Praise for Abby Brooks
“Abby Brooks is a wizard with Beyond Us—entertaining and pure enjoyment!”
Adriana Locke—USA Today and Washington Post bestselling author
“A masterful blend of joy and angst.
Praise for Abby Brooks
“With just the perfect amount of angst and remarkable character development, Abby Brooks has crafted a masterpiece…”
Praise for BEYOND WORDS
"Once again Abby Brooks creates a world filled with beautifully written characters that you cannot help but fall in love with.”
Praise for BEYOND LOVE
"A lovely story of growing beyond your past, taking control of your life, and allowing yourself to be loved for the person you are."
Melanie Moreland—New York Times Bestselling Author, in praise of Wounded
“Abby Brooks writes books that draw readers right into the story. When you read about her characters, you want them to be your friends.”
Praise for Abby Brooks
Fearless
A Wildrose Landing Romance
Abby Brooks
Copyright © 2021 by Abby Brooks
All rights reserved.
No part of this book may be reproduced in any form or by any electronic or mechanical means, including information storage and retrieval systems, without written permission from the author, except for the use of brief quotations in a book review.
Cover image copyright © 2021 by WANDER AGUIAR PHOTOGRAPHY LLC
Cover design by Abby Brooks
WILDROSE LANDING
Fearless
Shameless
THE HUTTON FAMILY
Beyond Words
Beyond Love
Beyond Now
Beyond Us
Beyond Dreams
It’s Definitely Not You - Joe’s story
The Hutton Family Series - Part 1
The Hutton Family Series - Part 2
A BROOKSIDE ROMANCE
Wounded
Inevitably You
This Is Why
Along Comes Trouble
Come Home To Me
A Brookside Romance - the Complete Series
WILDE BOYS WITH WILL WRIGHT
Taking What Is Mine
Claiming What Is Mine
Protecting What Is Mine
Defending What Is Mine
THE MOORE FAMILY
Finding Bliss
Faking Bliss
Instant Bliss
Enemies-to-Bliss
THE LONDON SISTERS
Love Is Crazy (Dakota & Dominic)
Love Is Beautiful (Chelsea & Max)
Love Is Everything (Maya & Hudson)
The London Sisters - the Complete Series
IMMORTAL MEMORIES
Immortal Memories Part 1
Immortal Memories Part 2
AS WREN WILLIAMS
Bad, Bad Prince
Woodsman
Contents
Chapter 1
Chapter 2
Chapter 3
Chapter 4
Chapter 5
Chapter 6
Chapter 7
Chapter 8
Chapter 9
Chapter 10
Chapter 11
Chapter 12
Chapter 13
Chapter 14
Chapter 15
Chapter 16
Chapter 17
Chapter 18
Chapter 19
Chapter 20
Chapter 21
Chapter 22
Chapter 23
Chapter 24
Chapter 25
Chapter 26
Chapter 27
Chapter 28
Chapter 29
Chapter 30
Chapter 31
Chapter 32
Chapter 33
Chapter 34
Chapter 35
Chapter 36
Chapter 37
Chapter 38
Chapter 39
Chapter 40
Chapter 41
Chapter 42
Chapter 43
Epilogue
Shameless sneak peek
Chapter 1
Chapter 2
Acknowledgments
Recipes
Also by Abby Brooks
Connect With Abby Brooks
Chapter One
Evie
Amelia Brown squished my cheeks so hard my lips poofed out, gave them a pat, and smacked a kiss to my forehead. “Evie. Darling. Smile for me, sweetness. Opportunity hides in every disaster. This is a chance to come back stronger. To learn. To grow.”
I mentally added an exclamation or three after each of her sentences and the smile she requested bloomed. With the jingle of jewelry and perpetual optimism, my best friend swept into the kitchen in the apartment we’d been sharing for the last several months, then returned with a bottle of tequila and two shot glasses.
She gave them a wiggle. “We’re gonna celebrate.”
“Ahh, yes.” I tucked my legs underneath me and hugged one of her many pillows to my chest. “Not only am I living on your couch because my ex is a terrible excuse for a human being, but now I’m unemployed. Definitely a reason to celebrate.” Despite my sarcasm, an odd blip of hope swelled in my heart.
Sometimes you have to burn to the ground to rise from the ashes.
That thought sounded more like it belonged in Amelia’s head than mine. Maybe I’d read it on some of her motivational wall art.
She plonked the bottle of tequila onto her coffee table and folded herself into a sitting position on the floor. “You’re inviting negativity into your life with that attitude.” She glared, which made her as ferocious as a kitten in a field of daisies. “If you listen closely,” she continued, “your higher self and spirit guides are whispering. They’re telling you what you need to know, and I promise you, losing that job is a very good thing.”
I didn’t believe in spirit guides. Or tarot readings. Or any of the woo-woo weirdness Amelia built her life around, but I loved her for it anyway. Besides, whether I believed her or not, I couldn’t ignore the feeling that my change in employment was a Very Good Thing Indeed.
Capitalized. Underlined. Bolded.
“All right, then.” I scooped up a shot glass and held it her way. “To new beginnings.”
“That’s the spirit!” With a massive grin and a twist of the cap, Amelia cracked open the tequila and filled both glasses. She tossed hers back and I followed suit, widening my eyes and huffing a breath as it burned down my throat.
“I can’t remember the last time I did shots.”
Amelia paused mid-pour. “Hmm. Me neither.” With a shrug, she downed her second shot and graced me with a grin that said we were in for some fun.
“Tonight, we’re gonna rewrite everything that jackass said when he fired you. We’re gonna build you up because, Eveline, you are so fine.” She giggled at her silly rhyme and handed me my next shot. “It’s time for you to unleash your real self on the world.”
I tossed it back as she poured another. “It’d be nice if creepy men would stop unleashing themselves on me.”
Five hours ago, my boss sat me down and broke my world by saying I was an acceptable writer, with piles of unrealized potential, but I played things too safe. The man I’d thought of as a mentor stared me in the eyes and said, “Evie, if you were a color, you’d be taupe.”
Not powerful, sophisticated black.
Not cool, calm, has-it-together teal.
Not fiery red or sweet-as-candy pink.
Freaking taupe.
“You weren’t like this when I hired you,” he’d said, then went on to tell me I blended into situations like muzak in a department store. Unobtrusive. There, but not. You could bob your head without realizing. Hum along without caring. Then leave with a song you hated stuck in your head for days.
I was boring. Bland. He said my new personality seeped into my writing. In a world that ran on drama, outrage, and preferred YouTube to newspapers, he couldn’t keep waiting for me
