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Sunset In Central Park
Sarah Morgan
‘Morgan excels in balancing the sweet and sexy to create the perfect blend.’-BooklistTrue love can be hard to find. Even when it’s been right under your nose all along…After witnessing the fallout of her parent’s divorce, love has never been a priority for garden designer Frankie Cole. The only man in her life is her friend Matt–but that’s strictly platonic. If only she found it easier to ignore the way he makes her heart race…Matt Walker has loved Frankie for years but, has always played it cool. Until he uncovers new depths to the girl he’s known forever, and doesn’t want to wait a moment longer.Matt knows Frankie has secrets and has buried them deep, but can he persuade her to kiss him under the Manhattan sunset?‘Lovers of romance will relish this tale of friendship, fun and flirting set in beautiful New York.’-My Weekly
Praise for Sarah Morgan (#ulink_d0c8709e-086f-5671-8255-4396b2dc88b5)
‘A gorgeously sparkly romance’
– Julia Williams
‘The perfect book to curl up with’
– Heat
‘Full of romance and sparkle.’
– Lovereading
‘I’ve found an author I adore – must hunt down everything she’s published.’
– Smart Bitches, Trashy Books
‘Morgan is a magician with words.’
– RT Book Reviews
‘Dear Ms Morgan, I’m always on the lookout for a new book by you …’
– Dear Author blog
SARAH MORGAN is the bestselling author of Sleigh Bells in the Snow. As a child Sarah dreamed of being a writer, and although she took a few interesting detours on the way she is now living that dream. With her writing career she has successfully combined business with pleasure, and she firmly believes that reading romance is one of the most satisfying and fat-free escapist pleasures available. Her stories are unashamedly optimistic, and she is always pleased when she receives letters from readers saying that her books have helped them through hard times.
Sarah lives near London with her husband and two children, who innocently provide an endless supply of authentic dialogue. When she isn’t writing or reading Sarah enjoys music, movies, and any activity that takes her outdoors.
Readers can find out more about Sarah and her books from her website: www.sarahmorgan.com (http://www.sarahmorgan.com) She can also be found on Facebook and Twitter.
Copyright (#ulink_50847618-f6da-50e6-a60c-4aa96da08e5f)
HQ
An imprint of HarperCollinsPublishers Ltd 1 London Bridge Street London SE1 9GF
First published in Great Britain by HQ in 2016
Copyright © Sarah Morgan 2016
Sarah Morgan asserts the moral right to be identified as the author of this work.
A catalogue record for this book is available from the British Library.
This novel is entirely a work of fiction. The names, characters and incidents portrayed in it are the work of the author’s imagination. Any resemblance to actual persons, living or dead, events or localities is entirely coincidental.
All rights reserved under International and Pan-American Copyright Conventions. By payment of the required fees, you have been granted the non-exclusive, non-transferable right to access and read the text of this e-book on-screen. No part of this text may be reproduced, transmitted, down-loaded, 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 HarperCollins.
Ebook Edition © July 2016 ISBN: 9781474047548
Version: 2018-04-11
Dear Reader (#ulink_689c78d8-ef13-5558-8e42-017fbbf5f88d)
As a child I was always in awe of my mother who could name every plant we ever passed, often by its Latin name. I used to test her, trying to catch her out. I’d tug her arm and point to some obscure leaf or flower, often hidden behind another, and ask ‘what’s that?’ She always knew. I badly wanted to be such an expert, able to impress people with my depth of knowledge. Sadly, that has yet to happen (although I’m confident with ‘rose’) but one of the great things about writing is that you can create characters who are everything you’re not.
The heroine of this story, Frankie, is most definitely an expert. Like my mother, she can take a few stems of greenery and arrange them in such a way as to make a person stop and admire. Frankie is a strong, independent woman who is very good at her job and she is in control of every part of her life except one – her love life. Taking that leap requires her to put aside her tarnished beliefs about love. The one person who might be able to do that is Matt, the older brother of her best friend.
Friends-to-lovers is a theme I love exploring. I enjoyed watching Frankie and Matt’s long friendship turn into something deeper, and seeing Frankie learn to trust after years of keeping barriers between herself and the world.
Thank you for picking up this book! I hope you enjoy Sunset in Central Park, and that reading it brings some reading sunshine to your day. Don’t forget to look out for Eva’s story, Miracle on 5th Avenue, coming later in the year and if you’re on Facebook, I hope you’ll join me there. https://www.facebook.com/AuthorSarahMorgan (https://www.facebook.com/AuthorSarahMorgan)
Love Sarah
Xx
This one is for my dear friend Dawn, with much love.
Epigraph (#ulink_f7585bb5-2a30-5d2f-acb8-cbfc3d82ac5e)
The course of true love never did run smooth.
—William Shakespeare
Table of Contents
Cover (#u0d76d939-4454-57c0-a947-067f02e06c56)
Praise for Sarah Morgan (#u1abcb3d2-08d0-5386-8f6d-fdbaff0f23f9)
About the Author (#u2a39c6c0-2123-5040-b78c-d21afbe64ae8)
Title Page (#uec08df78-d821-58ce-9a51-cd67f3b63663)
Copyright (#uf9ada537-4cfc-59e9-ab4a-ceba927ed724)
Dear Reader (#uf0f0fcef-6f31-5bf2-9c04-aa795d14e78f)
Dedication (#u5a4a33c6-2385-5c35-930a-16b6cdcdd2e4)
Epigraph (#ub7a3f8ec-3ee9-55d8-9461-e94740683b54)
Chapter One (#u36842741-3efc-5b9f-ad09-48fd8c9fc8c4)
Chapter Two (#ud56c12af-a1dd-50f1-964d-6c7d2f07f0a2)
Chapter Three (#u53e1abc1-e10b-5ac7-82f1-276416c9aa8c)
Chapter Four (#u503f72bf-6ade-520e-95fa-1e5376172554)
Chapter Five (#litres_trial_promo)
Chapter Six (#litres_trial_promo)
Chapter Seven (#litres_trial_promo)
Chapter Eight (#litres_trial_promo)
Chapter Nine (#litres_trial_promo)
Chapter Ten (#litres_trial_promo)
Chapter Eleven (#litres_trial_promo)
Chapter Twelve (#litres_trial_promo)
Chapter Thirteen (#litres_trial_promo)
Chapter Fourteen (#litres_trial_promo)
Chapter Fifteen (#litres_trial_promo)
Chapter Sixteen (#litres_trial_promo)
Chapter Seventeen (#litres_trial_promo)
Chapter Eighteen (#litres_trial_promo)
Chapter Nineteen (#litres_trial_promo)
Chapter Twenty (#litres_trial_promo)
Acknowledgments (#litres_trial_promo)
Extract (#litres_trial_promo)
Endpage (#litres_trial_promo)
About the Publisher (#litres_trial_promo)
Chapter One (#ulink_dacf6cf3-1213-5b2e-b509-3c19d6a60586)
Sleeping Beauty didn’t need a prince. She needed strong coffee.
—Frankie
She’d expected hearts, flowers and smiles. Not tears.
“Crisis unfolding, two o’clock.” Frankie tapped her earpiece and heard Eva respond.
“It can’t unfold at two o’clock. It’s already five past three.”
“Not the time, the position. Crisis is unfolding ahead of me and to the right.”
There was a pause. “You mean by the apple tree?”
“That’s what I mean.”
“Then why not just say ‘by the apple tree’?”
“Because if you’re going to make me wear an earpiece and look professional, I’m going to sound professional.”
“Frankie, you sound more like the FBI than a floral designer. And how can there be a crisis? Everything is running smoothly. The weather is perfect, the tables are pretty and the cakes are looking stunning if I say so myself. Our bride-to-be looks radiant and the guests will be arriving any minute.”
Frankie stared at the woman crumpled against the tree trunk. “I hate to tell you this but right now the bride-to-be isn’t looking radiant. We have tears. I am the last person to make an observation on the psychology of weddings and all the fluff that surrounds them, but I’m guessing that’s not the usual response. If they reach this stage, it’s because they think marriage is a good thing, am I right?”
“Are you sure they’re not happy tears? And how many tears exactly? One tissue or a whole box?”
“Enough to cause a world shortage. She’s crying like a waterfall after heavy rain. I’m starting to understand why they call it a bridal shower.”
“Oh no! Her makeup will be ruined. Do you know what happened?”
“Maybe she decided she should have gone with the chocolate ganache instead of the orange sugar icing.”
“Frankie—”
“Or maybe she saw sense and decided to get out now while there’s still time. If I were about to get married, I’d be crying, too, and I’d be crying a hell of a lot harder and louder than she is.”
A sigh vibrated in her ear. “You promised to leave your relationship phobias at the door.”
“I closed the door, but they must have sneaked in through the keyhole.”
“The mood for this event is sunny optimism, remember?”
Frankie stared at the bride-to-be, sobbing under the apple tree. “Not from where I’m standing. It’s been a dry summer, though. The apple tree will be pleased to be watered.”
“Go and give her a hug, Frankie! Tell her everything will be okay.”
“She’s getting married. How can everything be okay?” Sweat pricked the back of her neck. There was only one thing she hated more than bridal showers, and that was weddings. “I will not lie.”
“It’s not a lie! Plenty of people live happily ever after.”
“In fairy stories. In real life they sleep around and get divorced, invariably in that order.” Frankie made a huge effort to smother her prejudices. “Get out here now. This is your area of expertise. You know I’m no good at the touchy-feely thing.”
