Never Say Goodbye

Never Say Goodbye
Irene Hannon

FROM HEAVEN TO HELL…Three years ago, married father Scott Mitchell had everything a man could want. Then, in a blinding instant, a fateful error in judgment shattered his perfect world. Yet through the long years in prison, Scott found his faith–even as his estranged wife was losing hers….TO HEAVEN AGAIN?Consumed by grief, Jess had never intended her path to cross Scott' s again. Now he was back, asking her forgiveness–and more. He wanted to rebuild their lives together. Yet how could she put her trust in the man she blamed for her most tragic loss–and in the Lord who had abandoned her in her darkest hour?

“Hello, Jess.”

Startled, Jess came to an abrupt stop as the man who had once been the center of her world stepped out of the shadows of a spruce tree. The bag of groceries slipped from her grasp, and only Scott’s quick reflexes kept it from hitting the sidewalk. He moved swiftly toward her and made a successful grab for it, which salvaged the canned goods—but dented her heart. Only inches away, his tangible, physical presence drove the breath from her lungs and she stumbled backward, desperately trying to put distance between them, unable to deal with the sudden, too-close proximity.

She would recognize him anywhere. Yet he was different. And it was more than the physical changes.

IRENE HANNON

has been a writer for as long as she can remember. This prolific author of romance novels for both the inspirational and traditional markets began her career at age ten, when she won a story contest conducted by a national children’s magazine. Today, in addition to penning her heartwarming stories of love and faith, Irene keeps quite busy with her “day job” in corporate communications. In her “spare” time, she enjoys performing in community musical theater productions.

Irene and her husband, Tom—whom she describes as “my own romantic hero”—make their home in St. Louis, Missouri.

Never Say Goodbye

Irene Hannon

www.millsandboon.co.uk (http://www.millsandboon.co.uk)

Hope deferred makes the heart sick,

but a wish fulfilled is a tree of life.

—Proverbs 13:12

To my mom and dad, who fill my life with love

and add joy and grace to my days.

Contents

Chapter One

Chapter Two

Chapter Three

Chapter Four

Chapter Five

Chapter Six

Chapter Seven

Chapter Eight

Chapter Nine

Chapter Ten

Chapter Eleven

Chapter Twelve

Epilogue

Letter to Reader

Chapter One

Three years.

Three long, lonely years.

Three years without freedom.

Three years without the woman he loved.

Three years of hell.

And now they were over.

Scott Mitchell turned and took one last look at the bleak gray walls of the high-security prison where he’d spent the past three years of his life.

Where he’d reached such depths of despair that he’d seriously considered suicide. Where he’d spent agonizing hours reliving the tragic accident that had taken the lives of two innocent people.

Where he’d lain awake night after night yearning for the tender touch and sheltering arms of the woman he loved…tormented by the knowledge that she never wanted to see him again.

Where he’d finally found something to cling to in a long-neglected interest in horticulture, a hobby that became a passion and offered a temporary escape from the drab walls to a world of color and beauty and new life.

Where he’d acknowledged his mistakes and straightened out his priorities.

And most important, where he’d slowly, one tentative step at a time, rebuilt his faith and reconnected with his God.

Scott drew a deep, cleansing breath as he stared at the hellish place that, ironically enough, had put him back on the road to heaven. But it had been a harsh, brutal journey. The abrupt transition from power lunches to prisoner, from a world where individual rights reigned supreme to a world where no rights existed had been harrowing. He’d been stripped of his dignity, reduced to a number, looked upon with contempt. He’d lost everything he ever cared about—and that didn’t mean the designer suits or sports cars or country-club membership he’d once valued so highly. No, the loss was much more basic than that—the people he loved and his freedom. Dear God, how he’d missed those two things, which he’d always taken so much for granted!

But never again, he vowed. He was a different man now, with solid priorities and two very clear goals.

First, he intended to make his faith the guiding force in his life.

Second, he intended to win back the heart of the only woman he’d ever loved.

The first would be easy.

The second would take a miracle.