The Sweet Spot Read online

  Church, community, and family—and not necessarily in that order—are an integral part of Lowcountry life, and never is that more apparent than on Cavanaugh Island. As soon as you read the first page of HAVEN CREEK you will be given an up-close and personal look into the Gullah culture with its island-wide celebrations, interactions at family Sunday dinners, and a quixotic young woman who has the gift of sight.

  The gossipmongers are back along with the region’s famous mouth-watering cuisine and a supporting cast of characters—young and old—who will keep you laughing throughout the novel.

  Read, enjoy, and do let me hear from you!!!

  [email protected]

  www.rochellealers.org

  From the desk of Laura Drake

  Dear Readers,

  Who can resist a cowboy?

  Not me. Especially a bull rider, who has the courage to get on two thousand pounds of attitude that wants to throw him in the dirt and dance on his dangling parts. But you don’t need to be familiar with rodeo to enjoy THE SWEET SPOT. It’s an emotional story first, about two people dealing with real-life problems, and rediscovering love at the end of a long dirt road.

  To introduce you to Charla Rae Denny, the heroine of THE SWEET SPOT, I thought I’d share with you her list of life lessons:

  Before you throw your ex off your ranch, be sure you know how to run it.

  A Goth-Dolly Parton lookalike can make a great friend. And Dumpster monkeys are helpful, too.

  Next time, start a hardware store instead of a bucking bull business—the stock doesn’t try to commit suicide every few minutes.

  “Never trust a husband too far, nor a bachelor too near.”—Helen Rowland

  If you’re the subject of the latest gossip-fest, stay away from the Clip-n-Curl.

  Life is full of second chances, if you can get over yourself enough to grab them.

  “To forgive is to set a prisoner free, and discover that the prisoner is you.”—Louis B. Smede

  I hope you’ll enjoy THE SWEET SPOT, and look for JB and Charla in the next two books in the series!

  Thank you for buying this ebook, published by Hachette Digital.

  To receive special offers, bonus content, and news about our latest ebooks and apps, sign up for our newsletters.

  Sign Up

  Or visit us at hachettebookgroup.com/newsletters

  For more about this book and author, visit Bookish.com.

  Contents

  WELCOME

  DEDICATION

  ACKNOWLEDGMENTS

  CHAPTER 1

  CHAPTER 2

  CHAPTER 3

  CHAPTER 4

  CHAPTER 5

  CHAPTER 6

  CHAPTER 7

  CHAPTER 8

  CHAPTER 9

  CHAPTER 10

  CHAPTER 11

  CHAPTER 12

  CHAPTER 13

  CHAPTER 14

  CHAPTER 15

  CHAPTER 16

  CHAPTER 17

  CHAPTER 18

  CHAPTER 19

  CHAPTER 20

  CHAPTER 21

  CHAPTER 22

  CHAPTER 23

  CHAPTER 24

  CHAPTER 25

  CHAPTER 26

  CHAPTER 27

  CHAPTER 28

  CHAPTER 29

  A PREVIEW OF NOTHING SWEETER

  THE DISH

  NEWSLETTERS

  COPYRIGHT

  Copyright

  This book is a work of fiction. Names, characters, places, and incidents are the product of the author’s imagination or are used fictitiously. Any resemblance to actual events, locales, or persons, living or dead, is coincidental.

  Copyright © 2013 by Laura Drake

  All rights reserved. In accordance with the U.S. Copyright Act of 1976, the scanning, uploading, and electronic sharing of any part of this book without the permission of the publisher constitute unlawful piracy and theft of the author’s intellectual property. If you would like to use material from the book (other than for review purposes), prior written permission must be obtained by contacting the publisher at [email protected]. Thank you for your support of the author’s rights.

  Forever

  Hachette Book Group

  237 Park Avenue, New York, NY 10017

  www.hachettebookgroup.com

  www.twitter.com/foreverromance

  First ebook edition: May 2013

  Forever is an imprint of Grand Central Publishing.

  The Forever name and logo are trademarks of Hachette Book Group, Inc.

  The publisher is not responsible for websites (or their content) that are not owned by the publisher.

  The Hachette Speakers Bureau provides a wide range of authors for speaking events. To find out more, go to www.hachettespeakersbureau.com or call (866) 376-6591.

  ISBN 978-1-4555-2194-4