More Than Words, Volume 5: An Anthology - Hardcover

Graham, Heather; Camp, Candace; Bond, Stephanie; Jackson, Brenda; Quinn, Tara Taylor

Hardcover

ISBN 10: 0373836694 ISBN 13: 9780373836697

Verlag: Harlequin, 2009

Inhaltsangabe

A little comfort, caring and compassion go a long way toward making the world a better place. Just ask the dedicated women handpicked from countless worthy nominees across North America to become this year's recipients of Harlequin's More Than Words award. To celebrate their accomplishments, five New York Times and USA TODAY bestselling authors have honored the winners by writing short stories inspired by these real-life heroines.

We hope you're stirred by More Than Words to become a real-life heroine in your own community.

Über diesen Titel

Über die Autorinnen und Autoren

New York Times and USA Today bestselling author Heather Graham has written more than a hundred novels. She's a winner of the RWA's Lifetime Achievement Award, and the Thriller Writers' Silver Bullet. She is an active member of International Thriller Writers and Mystery Writers of America. For more information, check out her websites: TheOriginalHeatherGraham.com, eHeatherGraham.com, and HeatherGraham.tv. You can also find Heather on Facebook.

Candace Camp is a New York Times bestselling author of over sixty novels of contemporary and historical romance. She grew up in Texas in a newspaper family, which explains her love of writing, but she earned a law degree and practiced law before making the decision to write full-time. She has received several writing awards, including the RT Book Reviews Lifetime Achievement Award for Western Romances. Visit her at www.candace-camp.com.

Stephanie Bond grew up in eastern Kentucky, but traveled to distant lands through Harlequin romance novels. Years later, the writing bug bit her, and once again she turned to romance. Her writing has allowed her to travel in person to distant lands to teach workshops and promote her novels. She’s written more than forty projects for Harlequin, including a romantic mystery series called Body Movers. To learn more about Stephanie Bond and her novels, visit www.stephaniebond.com.

Brenda Jackson is a New York Times bestselling author of more than one hundred romance titles. Brenda lives in Jacksonville, Florida, and divides her time between family, writing and traveling. Email Brenda at authorbrendajackson@gmail.com or visit her on her website at brendajackson.net.

A USA Today bestselling author of 130 novels in twenty languages, Tara Taylor Quinn has sold more than seven million copies. Known for her intense emotional fiction, Ms. Quinn's novels have received critical acclaim in the UK and most recently from Harvard. She is the recipient of the Reader's Choice Award, and has appeared often on local and national TV, including CBS Sunday Morning.For TTQ offers, news, and contests, visit http://www.tarataylorquinn.com!

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"Mayberry!"

Craig Wilson didn't talk. He barked.

Somewhere in his life, he had probably been told that the editor of a major newspaper was required to be brusque and sound as if he was growling all the time. He wasn't a bad guy; Laurie was thrilled to be working for him, even if she usually drew the most mundane assignments. When she walked into the office that morning, Craig was striding through the rows of desks and computer screens as if he was running from a fire. But that was his way. Underneath the gruffness, he was a nice man. Maybe he was afraid that if people suspected he was too nice, he wouldn't be respected as a top-notch journalist.

"I'm here," Laurie said. She glanced quickly at her watch. She wasn't late. She'd worked at the Valley News for almost a year, and she hadn't been late a single day yet. It was also surprising to see Craig anxious to see her. She wasn't one of his ace reporters; she was more bottom of the totem pole. She was young, and she was new.

"Sybil Chaney is getting married up in St. Marys."

"St. Marys," Laurie repeated, looking at him blankly.

"St. Marys, Pennsylvania. Just a few hours north of home. You need to head up there. Since she's big local money and we're a local paper, we'll do a major piece, covering the lead-up and the wedding itself, which will be Saturday night. Which means you need to get up there ASAP," Craig said.

She stared at him, not at all sure why he was so gung ho to give her an assignment about a socialite's wedding.

"Wedding. Great," she said.

"Don't be a wiseass, young lady," he admonished.

"I said great," she protested.

"Do your homework. It's Sybil Chaney. She was engaged to the Braff Steel heir and threw him over for an artist. It's a great human-interest story. Sal will follow you up in time to take pictures of the place and the ceremony. You can go home now and pack, so you can leave this afternoon."

"Wait!" Laurie called. He had already started for his office. She ran after him, and he spun around and stared until she felt her cheeks redden. "I can't go until Thursday morning."

"Why? Have I given you an assignment I don't remember?" he asked her.

"No."

"Then??"

"I have to go to the hospital tomorrow night," she said.

His brow furrowed. "Are you ill?"

"No, I'm fine. I go every other Wednesday night. You know that. You're the one who allows me to canvas the office for toys, books and electronics for the kids."

"It's that important to you? You can't miss one night?"

"Will it make any difference if I go now or Thursday morning?"

He stared at her a moment longer. "I have a solution. Go to the hospital tonight. And be in St. Marys by noon tomorrow. You have an actual appointment to talk with the bride at one. And I've finagled an invitation to the wedding itself. You should be thanking me for this one, not making excuses to get out of it."

"Of course. A wedding for a woman I don't know. I'll be all teary-eyed. Craig, I'm not sure if I can switch nights at the hospital. They have very strict rules about people coming in to work with the children," she told him.

Then she hesitated. Sybil Chaney. Maybe she did know the woman. A girl named Sybil had been a fellow patient at Care for the Children Hospital, and now that Laurie thought about it, she recalled her last name had been Chaney or something similar. Like Laurie, she had beaten cancer. At the hospital, though, all the children had been the same. Laurie had never associated the local heiress with the girl she had known five years ago.

"I'll take care of it."

"What?" she asked, deep in her memories of the lowest time of her life.

"The hospital."

"Craig?"

"Just pack up your goodie bags and head over tonight. And be ready to drive up to St. Marys tomorrow."

She was silent, still not certain he had any sway with the children's hospital.

She let out a sigh as he disappeared into his office. Maybe he could arrange for her to go in this evening. She had done the Wednesday night routine for so long, she wasn't sure herself what the current rules were. At least he hadn't suggested that her job was more important, and if she wanted to keep it, she had to cancel. To many people, her time there might be no big deal, but those Wednesday nights back at the hospital were important to her. Laurie had sworn to herself that as long as she lived she would never forget what it was like to be a kid in a hospital, and she had wanted to help others who found themselves in a situation she knew all too well. Then, just a year ago she had heard about Toys.Calm, an incredible organization started by someone just like her, a young woman who had been a cancer patient at the age of thirteen and had received an anonymous gift that had made a world of difference to her. Laurie simply loved the name of the Web site?Toys.Calm. Because toys and books really did provide comfort and a sense of calm in the midst of the chaos and stress of a long and depressing hospital stay.

She still valued her book, her illustrated edition of Little Women. The book that Brian Thompson had brought for her. Little things could make so much of a difference for a child in the hospital.

"A society wedding.Wow," Jack Mason teased as she sat down in her cubicle. Jack, who had the cube next to her, was good-looking in a tawny-haired beach boy way, and he was a flirt. He had been with the paper a year longer and was a thousand times more cutthroat than she was. She was pretty sure he would trample his own mother to get a story.

She liked to think that she got more of a story by being a good listener. Of course, it didn't matter all that much how well you listened when the topic was a dog show or the newest diet craze.

"Yeah, thanks," she replied, then turned her attention to her work. There was nothing wrong with human-interest pieces, she told herself.

She was deep in an obit when she felt a presence at her shoulder. Looking up, she saw Craig standing over her.

"You're on for tonight."

"Really?"

"And tomorrow, bright and early, St. Marys," he said gruffly, then nodded curtly and moved away.

A few minutes later she looked up and saw that Jack had wheeled his chair over and was right behind her.

"What's on for tonight?" he whispered, looking from side to side to make sure he wasn't being overheard. "What are you and the boss cooking up?"

Good God, the man thought she had something going with Craig, she realized after a moment's puzzlement. And he was jealous, afraid that she would start getting the better stories.

She almost laughed out loud. "Pardon?"

"Tonight. What's the secret mission?" Jack asked.

"It wouldn't be a secret if I told you."

"Come on, what's going on? I'm an investigative reporter, so you know I'll just hound you until I find out the truth."

"Jack," she said firmly, "my life is none of your business."

He arched a brow, indicating the entire office. "It might be our business," he said knowingly.

It would have been amusing to play him for a while, but she didn't want to take a chance on any repercussions. "Jack, I'm going to the hospital tonight. I was supposed to go tomorrow, but I'm going tonight instead, so I can leave tomorrow to cover the wedding."

"You're going to the hospital? Why? Are you sick?"

She let out a long sigh, thinking, No, not anymore. I'm one of the lucky ones. I'm cancer free, and I have been for five years. But I'll never forget what it was like to be a kid with cancer and how one brightened moment can mean everything.

"No. I drop off toys and books and things for kids who are sick, remember?" she told him.

"Oh,...

Details zur Ausgabe

• Verlag: Harlequin
• Erscheinungsdatum: 2009
• Sprache: Englisch
• ISBN 10: 0373836694
• ISBN 13: 9780373836697
• Einband: Gebundene Ausgabe
• Anzahl der Seiten: 512
• Kontakt zum Hersteller: Nicht verfügbar
• Verantwortliche Person: HarperCollins Publishers Ireland; enquiries@harpercollins.ie; ; Macken House 39/40 Mayor Street Upper; Dublin; D01 C9W8; Irland