Also, there's more to the "vow renewal" story below than she lets on. If you want to know...you might have to get to know her too. And trust me, it's a good story. :-)
***
From the
time I first began to write, it was always about love and romance and
boy-meets-girl. There’s nothing more
thrilling than that first touch of hand or soft kiss on the lips. And all of that takes on an even more
romantic glow if it’s set on a beach with waves lapping the shore and sunshine
(or moonlight) warming your shoulders. I
guess that’s one of the reasons my favorite journey was to the Caribbean.
On our 20th
wedding anniversary, my husband and I decided to renew our wedding vows. We wanted it to be something quiet, beautiful
and completely secret from family and friends.
Something just the two of would share and tell the story later. Our choice of destination was Jamaica. After a great deal of internet research, we
decided on an all-inclusive resort, Couples Swept Away, in Negril. This being our first island adventure, we had
to take the word of cyber space and we were certainly glad we did.
The resort was
all we could’ve asked for and more…white sand, blue water, friendly people and
all you could eat and drink. Every night
was a different function from cheese and wine intimate gatherings in low
lighted dining areas to a wild and crazy beach buffet with dancing in the sand
the final night. That was my husband’s
first experience with real seafood…muscles, clams, scallops and so much more.
Of course
the best day of the week was the day of our renewal. Walking barefoot down to the beach to meet my
husband brought the same butterflies and jitters to my nervous system as the
first time I said “I do”. The resort
played the perfect island music under an archway of flowers and fluff and
ribbons while the officiate said all the right things…that is, as much of his
words as I can remember.
When I think
of those ten or fifteen minutes, I really only remember my husband’s voice
telling me, once again, how much he loves me and that we would always live
happily ever after…and we are!
***
Title: Forever Again
Series: Island Love Trilogy Book 1
Author: Linda Stiles Fox
Publisher: Create Space
Date of Publication: December 2015
ISBN: 978154075802
Number of pages: 439
Word Count: 116,256
Blurb: A Hawaiian romance
peppered with a little mystery and intrigue.
Madison Reeves is eighteen, engaged and
pregnant. Her fiance’, Brody Mason, has a great job offer that he thinks will
help them reach their future faster. He leaves one night to make the connection
with the new businessmen and never returns. Twenty years later, Madison
receives an all expense paid two week vacation in the beautiful Hawaiian
islands, but she doesn't know who sent it. Her son, Cody, convinces her to go
on this new adventure and relax from her stressful job in LA. Sam Wallace is
waiting for her at the gate when she arrives and seems to show up everywhere
she goes during her stay. When her son unexpectedly arrives the day before his
birthday after receiving the same anonymous vacation gift, Madison starts to
worry. The very wealthy and handsome Sam not only wins her heart, but her son's
as well and, just when Madison decides to relocate to the paradise she now
loves, Sam breaks some shocking news. Twenty years ago, Madison promised Brody
she would love him forever. Can she now find true love and make it last forever
again?
Buy links: www.lsfox.com
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*books purchased through website will be personalized and shipped free*
Excerpt:
He stood in the crowd
outside the gates. The plane taxied in
and came to a stop. His heart was racing
as the door swung slowly open. The lei
of white and purple orchids felt like lead in his shaking hands. He watched each passenger approach the open
door and then carefully make their way down the stairs to the tarmac. Suddenly his heart slammed to a stop and the
breath whooshed from his lungs. She
stood in the doorway looking down at the crowd below with anxious, almost
fearful eyes. Her auburn hair hung past
her shoulders and the white of her business suit glared in the early afternoon
sun. Her purse hung at her shoulder and
her hand fisted and relaxed around the handle of her briefcase. The deep,
steadying breath she took was visible as she stepped slowly down the
stairs. She was here.
He watched her descent and gauged the distance from stairs to
gate. As she walked forward, so did
he. Stepping in among the Hawaiian
greeters with their arms full of leis for the tourists, he waited. Then she was at the gate.
He took two steps forward and stood in front of her. His
voice was far from steady as he said “Aloha.”
Her green eyes looked into his, but there was no reply. He reached out, lifting the lei. She didn’t move. It was only another step forward to place the
fragrant flowers over her head and down to her shoulders. Suddenly, the nearness was almost more than
he could bear. He needed to take her in
his arms, to crush her to his body and whisper how much he loved her. Her eyes flickered slightly as they looked to
the soft white flowers and back into his dark eyes. He commanded his arms to move, to reach out
with the flowers and to restrain from touching her.
Now, the blossoms lay around her neck and she lifted a hand
to gently touch them. The whispered
“thank you” was all there was before she moved on through the gate and into the
terminal.
Sam turned slowly to watch her walk away. The feeling of loss was overwhelming. Of course, he would see her and talk to her
and, hopefully, touch and hold her over the next two weeks, but, now, right
now, it was like finding her and losing her all over again. Giving himself some strict words of reproach
and reminding himself that he would need to be patient, he began to walk. He’d stay far enough away that, hopefully,
she wouldn’t notice him watching. He
just needed to see her.
I was born
in Worcester Massachusetts and, after my first six weeks, was raised as an only
child in Peoria Illinois. At 19 I made
the journey across the country to take up residence in California where I
married and started a family.
Twenty-four years later, another move found me living just outside the lights of Las Vegas Nevada
where I live with my husband Bill, our
dog, two cats and numerous fish. I’m
very proud to be the mother of five grown children and can list my favorite
pastimes as spending time with fourteen grandchildren and five great
grandchildren as well as reading, dancing, cross stitch and traveling. And I do
love the traveling part! I admit to
having a few very safe addictions that include works by Sandra Brown as well as
indulging in anything chocolate and playing silly Facebook games. My motto to live by is and has always been “Every decision has a consequence” and my
children will attest to that as they heard it often. I happily give all credit to God for the
courage and determination to complete and publish what I love to do. Although my writing began at an early age, my
first publication didn’t bloom until 2013 and I’ve been planting a garden of
romance ever since.
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