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Lost and Found Husband
Sheri WhiteFeather
Lost and Found Husband For waitress Dana Peterson, it’s now or never. For a year, she’s flirted with regular customer Erik Reeves. Who cares if he’s a little older? He’s yummy! So she takes the plunge and asks him out – on Valentine’s Day!Against his better judgement, Erik lets this ray of sunshine into his life. But things quickly spin out of control and now Dana’s pregnant. Erik will do the right thing and marry her.But Dana won’t accept anything less than his heart and the love that she truly deserves.
Love’s on the menu in this installment of Sheri WhiteFeather’s Family Renewal miniseries!
For waitress Dana Peterson, it’s now or never. For a year, she’s flirted with her regular diner customer, widower Erik Reeves. Who cares if he’s a little older? He’s yummy! So she takes the plunge and asks him out—on Valentine’s Day, no less.
Against his better judgment, Erik lets this ray of sunshine into his life. But things quickly spin out of control and now Dana’s pregnant. Erik will do the right thing and marry her. But can he retrieve his heart from the lost and found to give this feisty beauty the love she truly deserves?
“Taste the pie. It’s guaranteed to make you smile.”
Erik did as he was told. Stupid as it was, he liked having her nearby, tempting him to take a mouthful of the forbidden fruit. Á la mode was an added bonus.
Sure enough, it made him smile. “You win.”
“I always do. You know what would be great? For us to go out and play together. There’s a gallery opening tomorrow night that I really want to see. You can take me to it, if you’re free.”
He looked at her as if she’d flipped her lovely little lid. Her suggestion sounded suspiciously like a date. “You don’t need an older guy like me taking you anywhere.”
“You’re not old. You’re yummy.”
Yummy? His heart beat hard in his chest. Bang.Bang. Bang. Like shots from a gun. His daughter wanted him to start dating again. But he doubted that she had someone like Dana in mind.
“Say yes, Eric.”
Dear Reader,
Have you ever wondered how books are titled? Who comes up with the name and how it’s decided upon? Mostly it’s up to the author to make suggestions, then it goes to editorial, where they either chose a title from the list the author submitted or make new suggestions, based on the marketing of the book.
Thinking up titles has always been a challenge for me. I never seem to have just the right one floating around in my head. I appreciate that it’s not solely up to me. Some of my favorite titles were created by editors or marketing executives.
But I have to say, Lost and Found Husband came naturally to me for this book. I titled the first book in my Family Renewal duet Lost and Found Father because the hero in that story had given up his baby daughter for adoption and was being reunited with her eighteen years later. In this book, the hero (who is that child’s adoptive parent) was once a happy and well-adjusted husband who’d tragically lost his wife. Now he is in a position to be a husband all over again, to start fresh, to regain the joy that he’d lost, only with someone new.
So…I give you Lost and Found Husband, a book with an emotionally wounded hero and the lovely young woman who helps him find his way back home.
Hugs and Happily Ever After,
Sheri WhiteFeather
Lost and Found Husband
Sheri WhiteFeather
www.millsandboon.co.uk (http://www.millsandboon.co.uk)
SHERI WHITEFEATHER is a bestselling author who has won numerous awards, including readers’ and reviewers’ choice honors. She writes a variety of romance novels for Mills & Boon. She has become known for incorporating Native American elements into her stories. She has two grown children who are tribally enrolled members of the Muscogee Creek Nation.
Sheri is of Italian-American descent. Her great-grandparents immigrated to the United States from Italy through Ellis Island, originating from Castel di Sangro and Sicily. She lives in California and enjoys ethnic dining, shopping in vintage stores and going to art galleries and museums. Sheri loves to hear from her readers. Visit her website at www.sheriwhitefeather.com.
Contents
Chapter One (#u20a2d558-4698-525c-bcce-5ff98f5064b9)
Chapter Two (#uf6b97a05-99d0-5578-b507-609e264b63df)
Chapter Three (#ua2eb69fe-409d-54b2-973f-2fad8fa45d45)
Chapter Four (#u405e01cf-8108-5c7f-b5a9-2bec82b1c0d5)
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)
Epilogue (#litres_trial_promo)
Chapter One
Eric Reeves was dining in an eatery near his Southern California home, watching Dana Peterson, the bubbly blonde waitress, bring food to another table. His dinner, meat loaf and mashed potatoes, was only half-eaten.
He kept his gaze trained on Dana. With her bold pink uniform and her nicely curved figure, she was a sight to behold. They weren’t friends, per se, but they’d built a friendly rapport through snippets of server-customer conversation. Eric ate here often.
When his wife was alive, he used to eat at home. Back then, everything had been wonderfully normal. But he’d lost Corrine seven years ago, and it had become a long and lonely road since then.
Dana whizzed past him on her way to the kitchen and smiled, her ponytail swishing. She was a twenty-six-year-old working her way through community college and enjoying the wherever-it-took-her experience. Eric was forty-two with a grounded job and a grown daughter. He and Dana didn’t have much in common, except that his daughter was a college student, too.
By the time he finished his meal, Dana returned to his table. She shot him another of her upbeat smiles. Today she was wearing a purple iris fastened behind her ear. She always wore a flower of some sort. Sometimes they were artificial flowers in trendy hair clips, like the aforementioned iris, and sometimes they were real.
A while back, she’d given him one of the real McCoys when he’d revealed that he was widowed. She had always pegged him for divorced, and to make up for her error, she’d removed the flower she wore that day, a velvety red rose, and placed it gently in his hand. Later, he’d gone to Corrine’s grave and left it for her. Somewhere along the way, he’d gotten used to talking to his dead wife. He’d even explained where the rose had come from, telling her about the warm-hearted waitress who’d bestowed it upon him.
“Can I get you anything else?” Dana asked.
He shook his head.
“You sure? The apple pie is fresh.”
He thought she was fresh, too, light and springy—a modern bohemian, as she called herself, who’d yet to decide on a college major.
“Cherry is my favorite,” he said.
“We don’t have any cherry. But I promise the apple is delish.”
He met her gaze. She had the bluest eyes and the blondest, most naturally golden hair. Everything about her shimmered.
She cocked her head. “What do you say? A la mode?”
He shifted his focus. Pie and ice cream. “Sure, okay.”
“Coffee, too?”
“Yes.”
Off she went: pink uniform, purple flower and Gidget ponytail. Eric found himself watching her again. He enjoyed looking at her. He enjoyed it far too much.
He was frowning when she delivered his coffee and dessert.
“What’s wrong?” she asked.
You, he thought. He didn’t want to be attracted to a woman who was closer to his daughter’s age than his own.
“Nothing is wrong.”
“Taste the pie.” She waggled her fingers. “It’s guaranteed to make you smile.”
He did as he was told. Stupid as it was, he liked having her nearby, tempting him to take a mouthful of the forbidden fruit. The a la mode was an added bonus.
Sure enough, it made him smile. “You win.”
“I always do. You know what would be great? There’s a gallery opening tomorrow night that I really want to see. You can take me to it, if you’re free.”
He looked at her as if she’d flipped her lovely little lid. Her suggestion sounded suspiciously like a date. “You don’t need an older guy like me taking you anywhere.”
“You’re not old. You’re barely into your forties. Besides, you’re yummy.”
Yummy? His heart hit his chest. Bang. Bang. Bang. Like shots from a gun. His daughter wanted him to start dating again. But he doubted that she had someone like Dana in mind.
“Say yes, Eric.”
He didn’t utter a word. Instead he took a second bite, but the diversion didn’t work. The gooey sweetness made him want to tug her onto his lap and kiss her hard and fast. To curb his appetite, he swigged his coffee.
She persisted. “Come on. It’ll be fun. Besides, you’re an artist. You’ll be the perfect companion for a gallery opening.”
He downplayed his profession. “I’m an art teacher at a middle school.”
“You’re still an artist. How about this? I’ll give you my number, and you can call and let me know.”
She zoomed off to tend to other customers, and he ate the devil out of his pie.
A short while later she returned with his check and her number, written on a scrap of paper. Eric tucked it into his pocket. He had no idea what he was going to do, but at least he had a day to think about it.
“I hope I see you tomorrow,” she said, placing her hand on his shoulder.
He wished that she hadn’t touched him. The kiss he’d longed for came tumbling back. “I just don’t know.” He gazed at her mouth.
She moistened her lips. “You’ll figure it out.”
Would he? She was the first woman he’d desired since Corrine had died. He didn’t know what that said about his libido, considering Dana’s carefree attitude and age. “I’ve been out of the loop since my wife passed.”
“Ours will be just a casual date.”
“That doesn’t change the age difference between us.”
“It isn’t that big of a difference.”
It was to him. Even as attracted as he was to Dana, he’d never considered dating a twentysomething. “I’ll call you and let you know either way.”
“Okay. Thanks. I better get back to work now.” She touched his shoulder again, rubbing it a little this time.
His stomach flip-flopped.
After she was gone, he paid with cash and left her a generous tip. On his way to the door, he turned around and looked for her, seeking her attention from across the diner.
She caught his gaze and flashed a don’t-forget-to-call-me smile.
As if forgetting about her was actually possible.
* * *
After work Dana went home, excited about the possibility of going out with Eric. Even if he chose not to date her, she would still be proud of herself for putting it out there. She’d had a crush on him since she’d first met him, which was when she’d started working at the diner, almost a year ago. A year was a record for her. Not just to hold a crush for that long, but to stay at the same job. She liked to mix things up.
And boy had she done that today. She’d finally mustered the courage to ask Eric out. She’d been thinking about it for what seemed like forever and now that Valentine’s Day was around the corner, she figured this was the time to do it. Plus, when she’d heard about the gallery opening, she knew she’d found the perfect event to invite him to attend with her.
He was such an intriguing mystery, a man she wanted to get to know. She especially liked to see him smile. He had a great smile that he didn’t use nearly often enough.
She went into her bedroom to change. She lived in the most adorable guest house that she’d found on Craigslist. Her side of the yard, which had a white picket fence, hosted an English-style garden and a naked-cherub fountain. The cherub amused her because he was one of those mischievous little angels that appeared to be peeing in the water. Everything about the place was perfect. She even had an awesome landlord who owned the property and lived in the front house. In fact, she and Candy McCall were becoming the best of friends. Prior to living here, Dana had been in an apartment crowded with roommates.
She tossed her uniform on a chair and climbed into a ragged T-shirt and comfy jeans. She was anxious to talk to Candy about Eric.
Dana ventured outside. The weather was lovely on this February evening. As she passed the cherub, she smiled.
After crossing her flower-filled yard, she entered through the gate that led to Candy’s equally colorful residence.
She approached the back door and called out through the screen. “Hey, you! Can I pop in for a minute? I have some news.”
