Secrets of Forever

  A temporary assignment could have permanent side effects

  Ellie Montenegro and her secondhand plane just delivered an angel of mercy to her remote Texas town. Forever’s warmhearted inhabitants are counting on New York cardiac surgeon Neil Eastwood to save their beloved matriarch. But it’s the heart of the sexy, outspoken pilot Neil hopes to steal as he joins Ellie on a secret family search. Is the runway long enough for a relationship to take off?

  USA TODAY Bestselling Author Marie Ferrarella

  “Maybe we should go in.”

  “Maybe we should,” Neil agreed.

  But instead of doing that, he slid his fingers along her throat, tilting her head ever so slightly. He slipped those fingers into her hair a little at a time.

  And then he slowly inclined his head over hers. And then his lips met hers.

  Just like that, time stood still as the kiss between them blossomed and grew until it couldn’t be measured in any breadth and scope that had been invented yet or even made any sense.

  Ellie’s mind stopped protesting, stopped attempting to put the brakes on.

  Instead she allowed herself to be wildly, breathlessly swept away down an uncharted river she had never even imagined in her wildest dreams existed.

  Rising up on her toes, she slid her arms around his neck, felt herself responding to the heat of his body. Not just responding, but suddenly finding herself wanting more.

  Eagerly.

  Where had this come from? And why, in heaven’s name, now?

  And why with a man who couldn’t possibly want to stay in this small town once his job was done?

  FOREVER, TEXAS: Cowboys, ranchers and lawmen—oh my!

  Dear Reader,

  Well, here we are again, back in the world of Forever, Texas, where everyone is into everyone else’s business and if they’re not all one big happy family, they still really do care about one another. So much so that when one of their own, Miss Joan, appears to be having serious health issues, the town’s community becomes exceedingly concerned. Dr. Davenport gets in contact with Neil Eastwood, a well-known, innovative cardiac surgeon who, despite his discipline, has grown dissatisfied with his life and is searching for some sort of meaning. Once Dan tells him the problem he’s encountered, Neil decides to come out for a visit. Who knows? Maybe he’ll find what he’s looking for in Forever while helping his friend with Miss Joan.

  Elliana Montenegro has lived in Forever all of her life and she dreams of having her own small airline service and flies a small plane. Since Forever doesn’t have an actual airport, Ellie is dispatched to bring the good doctor to Forever. There, Neil soon locks horns with the stubbornly uncooperative Miss Joan, who is very much in denial about her medical condition. Totally focused on this task, neither Neil nor Ellie realize that they are also falling for one another.

  Come, read and see how this all turns out. Oh, and if you still have some doubts about investing your time reading this latest story about the citizens of Forever, I can promise you a surprise. Miss Joan’s estranged younger sister, Zelda, surfaces to further complicate matters.

  As always, I thank you for taking the time to read one of my stories, and from the bottom of my heart, I wish you someone to love who loves you back.

  All the best,

  Marie Ferrarella

  Secrets of Forever

  Marie Ferrarella

  USA TODAY bestselling and RITA® Award–winning author Marie Ferrarella has written more than two hundred and fifty books for Harlequin, some under the name Marie Nicole. Her romances are beloved by fans worldwide. Visit her website, marieferrarella.com.

  Books by Marie Ferrarella

  Harlequin Special Edition

  Forever, Texas

  The Cowboy’s Lesson in Love

  The Lawman’s Romance Lesson

  Her Right-Hand Cowboy

  Matchmaking Mamas

  Coming Home for Christmas

  Dr. Forget-Me-Not

  Twice a Hero, Always Her Man

  Meant to Be Mine

  A Second Chance for the Single Dad

  Christmastime Courtship

  Engagement for Two

  Adding Up to Family

  Bridesmaid for Hire

  Coming to a Crossroads

  The Fortunes of Texas: The Secret Fortunes

  Fortune’s Second-Chance Cowboy

  The Fortunes of Texas: Rambling Rose

  Fortune’s Greatest Risk

  Montana Mavericks: The Great Family Roundup

  The Maverick’s Return

  Visit the Author Profile page at Harlequin.com for more titles.

  To

  Lucy,

  Who knew that 37 pounds

  Could tear around the house like that?

  We’re exhausted, but our hearts

  Are smiling!

  Thank you, German Shepherd Rescue Society of OC

  For bringing Lucy into our lives

  Contents

  Prologue

  Chapter One

  Chapter Two

  Chapter Three

  Chapter Four

  Chapter Five

  Chapter Six

  Chapter Seven

  Chapter Eight

  Chapter Nine

  Chapter Ten

  Chapter Eleven

  Chapter Twelve

  Chapter Thirteen

  Chapter Fourteen

  Chapter Fifteen

  Chapter Sixteen

  Chapter Seventeen

  Chapter Eighteen

  Chapter Nineteen

  Epilogue

  Excerpt from Four Christmas Matchmakers by Cathy Gillen Thacker

  Prologue

  While Miss Joan’s Diner—the only restaurant in the small but thriving town of Forever, Texas—was rarely ever empty, the hours between 11:00 a.m. and 2:00 p.m. were hands down the busiest time of the day. That was usually the time when ranchers and small business owners chose to take a break from their hectic lives and reconnect with friends and neighbors. For the space of an hour or parts thereof, they forgot about deadlines and schedules, or the problems that ranching might generate, and just paused to take a deep breath.

  Even so, most of Miss Joan’s patrons were usually in a hurry, wanting to eat and go before their self-indulgences created some sort of a problem that left them answerable to either bosses or, on occasion, to themselves.

  Miss Joan, owner of the diner for as long as anyone could remember, presided over all this organized chaos with an iron, blue-veined hand, making sure her customers never had anything to complain about, be it the service or the food.

  As usual, her full complement of waitresses—four—was on hand during this time frame. While they knew better than to rush her customers, Miss Joan always made sure they kept everything moving right along.

  Noticing one of her regulars staring off into space while cradling a cup of coffee in his rough hands, the sharp-tongued woman said, “You want to nurse what’s in front of you, Jefferson, go to Murphy’s.”

  Murphy’s was the local saloon run by three brothers. When they’d taken over the family establishment after their uncle died, the Murphys had struck a deal with Miss Joan. They’d promised not to serve any food other than pretzels, and Miss Joan had promised not to serve any sort of liquor, not even beer. It was an arrangement that served both establishments well.

  Today, for some reason, it seemed as if the diner was even busier than usual.

  The noise level was higher. Not to mention the diner seemed
hotter than usual. Miss Joan could feel perspiration beading along her brow beneath her ginger-colored hair. She paused just for a second to take in a deep breath.

  Something felt off to her and she didn’t like it. She just wasn’t herself.

  The diner owner had just refilled Jerry Walker’s coffee cup and turned to replace the coffeepot on the burner when she abruptly froze. Her perspiration intensified. Not only that, but her pulse raced in time with her heart. The latter was suddenly beating so hard, her head felt like it was spinning.

  Isolated in her own little world, Miss Joan didn’t see one of the waitresses closest to her, Vanessa Aldrich, looking at her, concern etched on her fresh features.

  Vanessa had temporarily forgotten about her customer sitting at one of the tables, waiting for his rare steak.

  “Miss Joan?” Vanessa whispered. When she received no answer, she repeated the diner owner’s name and laid a hand on the older woman’s bony shoulder.

  Miss Joan all but jumped the way a person did at the sound of gunfire. “What?” she snapped, doing her best to try to cover up her reaction to what was the most startling moment of physical weakness she had ever experienced.

  “Are you all right?” Vanessa asked her.

  Miss Joan had prided herself on being equal to and surviving every curve that life had ever thrown at her, including one very big one. Surviving and managing to go on even stronger than before. It was a well-known fact that Miss Joan was the one who provided strength to many people in Forever. She did so while maintaining an air of wry aloofness.

  Despite this façade, in times of need or trouble, Miss Joan was always the first person everyone turned to, the first to provide unspoken moral support, not to mention the occasion roof overhead and/or source of much needed employment. It was an open secret that the woman had a heart of gold even though she pretended to remain distant and disinterested even when interacting with her patrons.

  The terrifying wave of weakness disappeared as suddenly and mysteriously as it materialized and, within moments, it was as if that debilitating moment had never even happened.

  Almost back to her old self, Miss Joan drew back her thin shoulders and raised her head like a soldier on the verge of battle.

  “Of course I’m all right. I’d be even better if my waitresses were moving a little faster instead of stopping to gawk at the woman they work for. Your break time comes after the lunch rush, not in the middle of it,” she reminded Vanessa as she waved her hand at the man sitting to her right. “Now take Rudy here his steak before it turns cold and Angel has to make him a new one.”

  “Yes, Miss Joan,” Vanessa murmured, hurrying over to her neglected customer’s table.

  “The girl was just concerned, Miss Joan,” Rick Santiago, Forever’s sheriff, pointed out to the woman he had known ever since he had been a boy. “There’s no need to snap her head off.”

  Penciled-in deep brown eyebrows drew together over the bridge of Miss Joan’s amazingly perfect nose. “There’s always a need to bite their heads off,” she informed the sheriff with no hesitation. “And I’ll thank you to let me run the girls in my diner the way I see fit. I don’t tell you how to run the town, now do I?”

  The sheriff merely smiled because they both knew that was not the case. Miss Joan was the most opinionated person Rick knew. He also owed her a great deal. Everyone in town did. He nodded at his almost empty coffee cup. “How about a refill?”

  “As long as you promise to keep your opinion to yourself,” Miss Joan said. She positioned her coffeepot over his cup but held off pouring as she waited for Rick’s response.

  He nodded. “For now,” he replied.

  Miss Joan sighed. “I suppose that’ll have to be good enough. For now,” she echoed as she finished refilling his cup.

  Rick inclined his head in silent agreement. A draw was the best that anyone could hope for when it came to Miss Joan.

  Chapter One

  Miss Joan raised her eyes as she straightened the sugar dispenser on the counter.

  “If you’re expecting me to sprout wings and fly away, you’re going to be disappointed, so stop watching me like that,” she ordered Cash, her grandson thanks to her finally tying the knot with Harry Taylor some years ago. Making her way over to Forever’s other lawyer, one look at Miss Joan’s face told everyone within sight of the woman that she looked as if she was loaded for bear. “Don’t think I don’t know what you’re up to,” she all but growled, her hazel eyes pinning Cash where he sat on the stool.

  “And just what is it that I’m up to, Miss Joan?” the tall, blond-haired young man asked her innocently.

  She didn’t like playing games. Miss Joan’s eyes narrowed like two laser beams as she looked at Cash. This sort of attention made her feel feeble.

  “Don’t play dumb, Cash. It doesn’t suit you. We both know that old man sent you here to watch over me. Well, you’re wasting your time, not to mention a perfectly good seat in my diner.” Miss Joan nodded at the stool. “A seat a paying customer could put to good use.”

  “When it starts getting crowded in here, Miss Joan,” Cash promised her, “I’ll vacate it.”

  Miss Joan snorted. “Don’t you have any wills to write up or update?” she asked, then added, “And I don’t mean mine.”

  Cash laughed. “You’re going to live forever, Miss Joan. Grandpa just wants to make sure that you’re healthy while you’re doing it,” he told the town icon with a smile.

  Miss Joan cleared away an empty cup left behind by a customer. “Humph. You want to waste your time, you can go right ahead and—”

  The lanky woman’s words seemed to dribble away as a really sharp, intense pain suddenly stabbed her in her chest, bringing with it a wave of heat accompanied by a weakness she found herself incapable of dealing with.

  Miss Joan couldn’t seem to catch her breath.

  Because she had abruptly stopped talking, Cash glanced up. He immediately saw the change in Miss Joan’s face. As usual, he was wearing a suit, but that didn’t even begin to stop him. Cash instantly vaulted over the counter to get to her side, managing to acquire a dollop of whipped cream on his trousers as he did so.

  He reached the woman just as she looked as if she was going to sink to the floor.

  “Miss Joan, what’s wrong? Are you having a heart attack?” her grandson asked, putting his arms around the thin, shaken woman as Ruby and Laurel, the two waitresses currently on duty, quickly closed ranks around the diner owner.

  Ruby, the older of the two, spoke first. “Get Miss Joan some water,” she ordered as she looked at Laurel.

  Miss Joan barely heard the young woman, or Cash. They were just noise. Shaken, she was focused on what was happening to her—and frightened. The heated wave had already started to pass and, while not entirely releasing Miss Joan from its death grip, she was doing her best to rally.

  Becoming aware of their hands attempting to hold her steady, she waved away the waitresses as well as her stepgrandson.

  “I’m fine,” Miss Joan insisted then snapped, “Stop fussing. I’m fine, I tell you.” She straightened like a regal queen.

  Cash withdrew his hands and released the woman who still appeared to be very fragile to him. He remained close to her.

  “No,” he told her firmly, “you are not fine. In case you missed the message, your body is putting you on notice, Miss Joan, and you’re going to listen to that warning, do you understand?”

  When he looked as if he was about to take hold of her again, Miss Joan shrugged him off. “What I understand is that Harry raised a grandson who doesn’t know how to behave respectfully around his betters,” she fired back, deliberately avoiding the word “elders” because she felt it reflected poorly on her.

  Cash Taylor was known for his easy-going disposition, but he drew the line when it came to being bullied. “Nonetheless, I want you to go see Dr. D
avenport.”

  Miss Joan was aware that every eye in the diner was on her. She definitely didn’t care for this sort of attention.

  “You go see Dr. Davenport. I don’t have the time,” she declared, turning her back on Cash and moving away.

  “Make the time, Miss Joan,” Cash told her in a no-nonsense voice.

  Miss Joan slowly turned around and glared at the young man. “If I make the damn appointment, will that get you off my back?” the woman demanded, her tone far from friendly.

  Cash’s eyes met hers. “Yes,” he answered in no uncertain terms.

  Frustrated, Miss Joan blew out an impatient breath, a player conceding the game under duress.

  “Fine!” she snapped. “I’ll make the appointment!”

  “That’s my girl,” Cash said affectionately, planting a kiss on Miss Joan’s shallow cheek before she could pull her head away, out of his reach. He knew that Miss Joan wouldn’t say that she was making an appointment if she didn’t intend to live up to her word. He considered the battle won and went to tell his grandfather.

  * * *

  As good as her word, Miss Joan did, indeed, make the appointment.

  The problem was, Cash found out the following week, that Miss Joan hadn’t kept the appointment. He discovered this when he’d called Forever’s lone medical clinic to ask when he could pick Miss Joan up.

  The clinic’s head nurse, Debi, informed him that Miss Joan had called to cancel the appointment set for later that morning.

  Stunned, Cash told the nurse that he was “un-canceling” Miss Joan’s appointment and to expect her within the hour. Hanging up, he strode out of his office, disappointed and annoyed.

  “You’re not really surprised, are you?” Olivia Blayne Santiago, his senior partner, as well as the sheriff’s wife, asked when he gave her the update. “Miss Joan never listens to anyone except her own little inner voice.”

  Cash shook his head. He refused to accept this turn of events. “I just came in to let you know I’ll be out of the office for the next hour or so.”