On the Crystal Coast of North Carolina, in the small town of Emerald Isle… Juli Cooke, hard-working and getting nowhere fast, marries a dying man, Ben Bradshaw, for a financial settlement, not expecting he will set her on a journey of hope and love. The journey brings her to Luke Winters, a local art dealer, but Luke resents the woman who married his sick friend and warns her not to hurt Ben—and he’s watching to make sure she doesn’t. Until Ben dies and the stakes change. Framed by the timelessness of the Atlantic Ocean and the brilliant blue of the beach sky, Juli struggles against her past, the opposition of Ben’s and Luke’s families, and even the living reminder of her marriage—to build a future with hope and perhaps to find the love of her life—if she can survive the danger from her past.

A SHORT STORY from Emerald Isle, NC - BEACH TOWEL (republished with updates from the Summer Shorts anthology from Turquoise Morning Press) now being re-released as a single. SHORT STORY ~ Carrie runs away from her wedding before saying "I do." She refuses to marry Andrew, but doesn't know what she will do as she tries to straighten out the disaster her life has become. She runs to Emerald Isle, NC where happier memories call to her and she hopes she can reclaim what she's lost.

Off-season at Emerald Isle ~ In-season for secrets of the heart Frannie Denman has been waiting for her life to begin. After several false starts, and a couple of broken hearts, she ends up back with her mother, with whom she doesn’t get along, until her elderly uncle gets sick and Frannie goes to Emerald Isle to help manage his affairs while he’s recovering. Her uncle’s oceanfront home, Captain’s Walk, is small and unpretentious, and even though Frannie isn’t a ‘beach person,’ she decides Captain’s Walk in winter is a great place to hide from her troubles. But Frannie doesn’t realize that winter is short in Emerald Isle and the beauty of the ocean and seashore can help heal anyone’s heart, especially when her uncle’s handyman is the handsome Brian Donovan. Brian has troubles of his own. He sees himself and Frannie as two damaged people who aren’t likely to equal a happy ‘whole’ but he’s intrigued by this woman of contradictions. Frannie’s mother wants her back home and Brian wants to meet the real Frannie, but Frannie wants to move forward with her life. To do that she needs questions answered. With the right information there’s a good chance Frannie will be able to affect not only a change in her life, but also a change of heart.

BEACH CHRISTMAS ~ A Novella ~ plus the Sweet Summer Short Story, BEACH TOWEL Whatever the season, it's always a good time for a love story and a trip to the beach! BEACH CHRISTMAS Jessie Dawson wants to bring her loved ones together again and plans the perfect Christmas for her family ~ without consulting them. Things don’t go as planned, but a special delivery and a stranger from the past may cause her to rethink her Christmas wishes. BEACH TOWEL Instead of saying, “I do,” Carrie runs away on her wedding day. She runs to the place where she always felt safe and loved, desperate to find a way to rebuild her life.

One house. Two people in need. On a winter night several years before, a young runaway, Kelli, stumbled onto the porch of an oceanfront cottage. The woman who lived there, Margie, took her in and gave her the gifts of safety and security. Twelve years later, Margie dies. Kelli continues living at the cottage until the day the woman’s nephew arrives for a Christmas visit. And he intends to stay. Dylan has been on the road for many years. He calls himself a traveler, but he’s tired of always being on the move. When he arrives at his aunt’s home, he learns that she has died. Who has the better claim? And how far will Kelli go to keep the house that has become her home?

BEACH WEDDING is the fifth story in the Emerald Isle, NC Stories series and the third full-length novel. If the reader would like to read the Emerald Isle series in order (recommended), here’s the list: BEACH RENTAL (novel), BEACH TOWEL (short story), BEACH WINDS (novel), BEACH WALK (novella), and BEACH WEDDING (novel). Book Description: Along the Outer Banks of North Carolina and the Crystal Coast ~ from the Front Street Gallery in Beaufort, NC, to the beaches of Emerald Isle and across the sound to Morehead City ~ Maia Donovan has watched her friends find true love, and has dreamed of her own happily-ever-after, but wishes and reality don’t always match up. When Maia met Joel Sandeford, she thought she’d found a man worth risking another broken heart over. But she’s hesitant. Joel lives out of town and always seems to be working. Maia, too, works long hours and spends most of her time managing the Front Street Gallery. She fears the distance and their work ethics may spell disaster. Maia doesn’t realize the biggest impediment to her happily-ever-after may be herself, and the memories she’s hiding in her heart—that part of her heart that still belongs to her first true love. If Maia can’t resolve her fears and give up those old feelings, then finding her happily-ever-after may become an impossible dream, and a waste of a heart ready for love.