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Campaign For His Heart
Joy Avery
The perfect candidate…Former foster kid Lauder Tolson is proud to become a politician, but his bachelor status makes him look less than family oriented. He needs a lady love—just for the campaign. The ideal candidate is childhood nemesis Willow Dawson.But he once broke the beauty’s heart and barely has her vote! Still, to fulfill her own dream, she agrees. Suddenly, they’re a devoted couple in public. But what happens when the campaign is over?
The Perfect Candidate
Former foster kid Lauder Tolson is running for North Carolina state senate, but his bachelor status makes him look less than family oriented. He needs a lady love—just for the campaign. The ideal candidate is childhood nemesis Willow Dawson. But he once broke the beauty’s heart and barely has her vote! Still, to fulfill her own dream, she agrees. Suddenly, they’re a devoted couple in public. But neither expects how hot it gets in private.
JOY AVERY works as a customer service assistant. By night, the North Carolina native travels to imaginary worlds—creating characters whose romantic journeys invariably end happily ever after.
Since she was a young girl growing up in Garner, Joy knew she wanted to write. Stumbling onto romance novels, she discovered her passion for love stories; instantly, she knew these were the type of stories she wanted to pen.
Joy is married with one child. When not writing, she enjoys reading, cake decorating, pretending to expertly play the piano, driving her husband insane and playing with her two dogs.
Also by Joy Avery (#ulink_6473ad32-16f9-5253-a989-49e06b0b214d)
In the Market for Love
Soaring on Love
Discover more at millsandboon.co.uk (http://www.millsandboon.co.uk)
Campaign for His Heart
Joy Avery
www.millsandboon.co.uk (http://www.millsandboon.co.uk)
ISBN: 978-1-474-07804-7
CAMPAIGN FOR HIS HEART
© 2018 Joy Avery
Published in Great Britain 2018
by Mills & Boon, an imprint of HarperCollinsPublishers 1 London Bridge Street, London, SE1 9GF
All rights reserved including the right of reproduction in whole or in part in any form. This edition is published by arrangement with Harlequin Books S.A.
This is a work of fiction. Names, characters, places, locations and incidents are purely fictional and bear no relationship to any real life individuals, living or dead, or to any actual places, business establishments, locations, events or incidents. Any resemblance is entirely coincidental.
By payment of the required fees, you are granted the non-exclusive, non-transferable right and licence to download and install this e-book on your personal computer, tablet computer, smart phone or other electronic reading device only (each a “Licensed Device”) and to access, display and read the text of this e-book on-screen on your Licensed Device. Except to the extent any of these acts shall be permitted pursuant to any mandatory provision of applicable law but no further, no part of this e-book or its text or images may be reproduced, transmitted, distributed, translated, converted or adapted for use on another file format, communicated to the public, downloaded, decompiled, reverse engineered, or stored in or introduced into any information storage and retrieval system, in any form or by any means, whether electronic or mechanical, now known or hereinafter invented, without the express written permission of publisher.
® and ™ are trademarks owned and used by the trademark owner and/or its licensee. Trademarks marked with ® are registered with the United Kingdom Patent Office and/or the Office for Harmonisation in the Internal Market and in other countries.
www.millsandboon.co.uk (http://www.millsandboon.co.uk)
Dedicated to the dream.
Acknowledgements (#ulink_f9090fed-e8d4-59d0-99a1-72ca8a63568a)
I acknowledge everyone who continuously supports
me along this beautiful journey!
I love and appreciate you all!
Contents
Cover (#u34611708-0f9f-5e6e-b7b7-751bd9d7aeb5)
Back Cover Text (#u6297bdf5-4608-5a4d-9590-4167e0839c12)
About the Author (#u135f551e-b413-5624-85b4-48abf2434c82)
Booklist (#ulink_4b885618-529b-5bed-9f07-024f5e0e74e5)
Title Page (#u4d178c15-64c3-5db8-bb79-396e39289e9b)
Copyright (#uff8ec3d1-8f5b-5792-b180-9ae25b9ec90f)
Dedication (#ueee61743-9acc-5ea3-b2a4-760f19f1911a)
Acknowledgements (#ulink_23bd7dd5-3716-5eb9-8c81-658b500274f4)
Chapter 1 (#ufe2d1fda-b705-58f6-81a2-18f222f2dd05)
Chapter 2 (#u3c992bda-2a5d-591a-a1c9-c2853c3490cb)
Chapter 3 (#u094d42d7-52a0-57da-ad92-5c1a3700d588)
Chapter 4 (#u7b5ad1a9-c68b-5069-8eea-5a646cbd8655)
Chapter 5 (#ud0804b7a-e531-5e85-aba1-6ef899f63ca9)
Chapter 6 (#litres_trial_promo)
Chapter 7 (#litres_trial_promo)
Chapter 8 (#litres_trial_promo)
Chapter 9 (#litres_trial_promo)
Chapter 10 (#litres_trial_promo)
Chapter 11 (#litres_trial_promo)
Chapter 12 (#litres_trial_promo)
Chapter 13 (#litres_trial_promo)
Chapter 14 (#litres_trial_promo)
Chapter 15 (#litres_trial_promo)
Chapter 16 (#litres_trial_promo)
Chapter 17 (#litres_trial_promo)
Chapter 18 (#litres_trial_promo)
Chapter 19 (#litres_trial_promo)
Chapter 20 (#litres_trial_promo)
Chapter 21 (#litres_trial_promo)
Chapter 22 (#litres_trial_promo)
Epilogue (#litres_trial_promo)
Extract (#litres_trial_promo)
About the Publisher (#litres_trial_promo)
Chapter 1 (#ulink_8b76015e-ee19-57f3-81ad-3846112206a1)
Lauder Tolson sat on the edge of his desk, tossing a stress ball into the air and listening to his best friend and campaign manager, Chuck Carlisle. The man went on and on about the fact that he needed to appear more family oriented if he wanted to win the senate seat, especially in the great state of North Carolina.
Six months until the election and Lauder still couldn’t believe he’d actually decided to run for congress. A bold move, Tolson. A bold move.
Chuck—or Chuckie, as Lauder liked to call him—snapped his fingers, drawing Lauder’s attention back to the conversation.
“You with me? You listening?” Chuck said. “This is serious, L.”
Lauder tossed the ball to Chuck. “Think fast.”
Chuck knocked the blue puff across the room. “I need you to focus.”
Lauder rubbed a hand over his close-shaven head. “Calm down.”
“These aren’t calm times.” Chuck paced. “I know that snake in the grass Edmondson has something up his dingy white sleeve. I can feel it.”
Jeff Edmondson had been a thorn in Chuck’s side since the man had decided to throw his hat into the race some months back. If being a family man was what would win the race, Lauder should drop out now, because Edmondson had him beat in that arena. The man had been married for countless years to his high-school sweetheart and had enough well-mannered children to start their own baseball team. But what the man lacked, in Lauder’s opinion, was passion. Edmondson wanted the win because Senator preceding his name would add to his prestige. Lauder wanted to win because he truly wanted to make a difference in his home state and in a foster care system that had failed so many, including him.
Chuck stopped so abruptly he nearly stumbled over his own feet. “We have to polishup your image, and fast. You need a significant other. Now.” Chuck massaged his clean-shaven jaw.
Lauder knew that cunning look on Chuck’s face. The man was up to something. Something Lauder was sure he wouldn’t like. Lauder’s brow furrowed and lips parted, but Chuck cut him off before he could speak by tossing a hand up.
“Before you get all I don’t do long term, it doesn’t have to be a real relationship. It just has to appear that it is. In the political game, it’s all about perceptions,” Chuck said.
Nope, he didn’t like it one bit. Lauder folded his arms across his chest. “Let me get this straight. You want the man running on a platform of truth and accountability to lie about having a lover. And on top of that, you expect me to convince someone to be my fake girlfriend.”
“Wife.”
Lauder pushed to a full stand. “Wife! Hell, no!”
Chuck massaged the back of his neck. “Okay. Girlfriend will work. Unless you are just totally against a fake wife. That would play so much—”
Lauder shot Chuck a death stare.
“Girlfriend will work.” Chuck started to pace again. And stopped again. “But none of the women in your little black book. Those women would do more harm than good.”
“I’ll have you know I only deal with the cream of the crop.”
Chuck released a condescending laugh. “Yeah. I’ll handle it. I know your type. I’ll make sure I choose the opposite.”
For kicks, because no way would he ever entertain such a ridiculous idea, Lauder said, “Shouldn’t I have a say in whether or not I want to parade around town with some stranger on my arm for the next several months?”
“Wayment. You’re telling me you’re okay with a stranger in your bed but not on your arm.”
It always tickled Lauder when uptown and proper Chuckie allowed his hoodness to slip out. But since they were having a serious conversation, he bit back his amusement. Plus, he had him there. He’d never favored attachments. He was a product of his past. And that past had taught him not to get used to anything or anyone.
“First off, I’m a thirty-six-year-old grown-ass man. Whom I allow in my bed is still my damn business. No one else’s.”
“Lauder...” Chuck paused as if to get his thoughts together. “You’re running for a state senate seat. Your business is everyone’s damn business. Welcome to politics.”
Lauder dropped into his chair and massaged his now throbbing temple. What in the hell had he been thinking running for congress? He was a businessman. He wasn’t a politician. Why in the hell hadn’t he kicked Chuck out of his office when he’d first approached him with the idea?
“You’ll make a hell of a senator,” he’d said. “You can change the world.”
Lauder scoffed, remembering his friend’s words. Change the world. All he wanted to do was change North Carolina. Tackle homelessness, poverty, foster care. Definitely foster care. A severely damaged system, in his opinion. That alone still made this journey so worthwhile.
“When did this crusade to polish my image become an agenda? My wifeless, kidless image hasn’t been a problem before,” Lauder said.
“Before Edmondson started parading his trophy wife and his perfect little renditions of himself all around town in their color-coordinated outfits, smiling and waving like they’re on a parade float.” Chuck grimaced, then started again, “This is the south, L. The perfect family allusion works on multiple levels. You do want to win, right?”
“Yeah, but you want me to lie to get what I want.”
“You say it like it’s a new concept. Politicians have been lying since the beginning of time.”
“But I’m—”
“Not a politician,” Chuck said, continuing Lauder’s thought.
“Exactly. And that’s not how I want to build my campaign. Not on lies.”
Chuck rested his hands on his hips, lowered his head and sighed. “What do you want to do, L? You want to drop out of the race? Concede to Edmondson before there’s even been an election? Bow down to the same cocky bastard who said you didn’t stand a snowball’s chance in hell against him?”
