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A Love Rekindled

By Margaret Daley

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Excerpt. © Reprinted by permission. All rights reserved.

Clasping the strap of her purse so tightly pain zipped up her arm, Kim Walters zeroed in on Zane Davidson, the man she had avoided for the past three years since he had returned to Hope, the man who had broken her heart. The man she wished she never had to talk to again. But he was her last hope to get her house repaired at a price she could afford.

Before she lost her nerve, she crossed the parking lot of the hurricane-damaged school building where she was a third-grade teacher. I can do this. But her step faltered the closer she came to Zane. The fingernails on her hand around her purse strap dug into her palm.

This is crazy. Maggie is wrong. My cousin is an eternal optimist. Surely there's another solution to getting our home restored. Kim halted, chewing on her bottom lip.

I can't do this.

Before he saw her, she started to turn to leave. But she was too late. His dark blue gaze—that used to draw her in and hold her captive—snagged hers from across the parking lot. He said something to one of the workers next to him, then strode toward her.

She froze, wanting to leave, knowing she couldn't now. She wouldn't show any emotions to him. She didn't want him to realize his leaving Hope fifteen years ago had crushed her. Shifting, about to face him head-on, she squared her shoulders and lifted her chin, hoping to give the illusion she was taller than her five feet four inches.

"It's nice to see you, Kim." He stopped a yard away from her, a neutral expression on his face.

"It is?" she asked before she could censor her words. Open hostility was no way to get him to agree to what she wanted—especially since she'd visited all the contractors in Hope she trusted and they couldn't do her repairs for months.

"I've been back three years, and this is the first time you and I have talked."

"We move in different circles." As a teenager, she remembered her father kept telling her that she and Zane were from different social classes and a relationship would never work between them. They were too mismatched.

The hard line of his jaw attested to the effect the reminder of the gulf between them had on Zane. He drew in a deep breath that released the rigid set to his shoulders. "How's your dad?"

Surprised for a few seconds at his question, she averted her gaze, trying to formulate an answer. Zane and her father had never gotten along. Fifteen years ago, she'd been ready to defy her father for Zane. But then he'd left her without an explanation, taking the decision out of her hands. "Since you've been in Hope for a while, I'm sure you've heard about his illness."

"Yes. I knew a guy with Parkinson's disease in New Orleans. It's tough. How's he coping?"

"He's hanging in there." She didn't want to talk about her father and needed to steer the conversation quickly to what she wanted to discuss—her family home, Bienville, restored. Memories of Hurricane Naomi hitting Hope almost three months ago flashed into her mind, battering at her composure like the storm had her home. "I need you to give me an estimate on repairing Bienville. The hurricane flooded the first floor of the house and did extensive wind damage to the roof. We have done what we can, but there's still a lot that needs to be done by a professional."

"I thought you had someone working on your home."

"Henderson Roofing and Construction left town."

"When are they coming back?"

"Never." She gritted her teeth to keep from explaining further. It was bad enough her father and family had been taken by a crook, but she didn't want to admit it to this man.

Zane's eyes narrowed. "I hadn't heard that. Is there a problem?"

"It just happened yesterday. The problem is our gaping roof."

"Most of the town needs repair."

The wind off the water not far from Jefferson Elementary School chilled Kim, reminding her of the cold, damp rooms in her family home. "I realize that, but Henderson Roofing removed part of the old roof to replace it, making the problem worse since they skipped town. I need that repaired immediately before it rains again. My father isn't doing well and—" she swallowed hard, fighting the tears swelling into her throat "—I know you probably have more work than you need, but. .but we're only living in a few rooms right now."

"My crews are stretched as thin as possible. I just don't see—"

"I understand. Thank you." Whirling around, she marched toward her eight-year-old sedan. She couldn't stay another second or she would cry in front of Zane Davidson, and she'd promised herself she would never let him be the reason she shed a tear again.

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