A Woman Worth Loving

A Woman Worth Loving
Jackie Braun

Audra Conlan has always been flirtatious, flamboyant and wild, until fate gives her a second chance she vows not to waste. This time she'll repent her mistakes, face her estranged family–and evade men like photographer Seth Ridley, whose sexy smile and welcoming ways tempt her to fall for him, hard and fast.But when her past threatens her new life, will Audra dare to forgive the woman she once was–and embrace the woman she was meant to be…a woman worth loving?

Harlequin Romance® presents…

Jackie Braun

Her believable characters and fresh voice will pull you into the drama…and have you turning the pages all night long!

THEIR UNFINISHED BUSINESS #3901

SAYING YES TO THE BOSS #3905

Books by Jackie Braun

HARLEQUIN ROMANCE®

3804—HER STAND-IN GROOM* (#litres_trial_promo)

3825—THE GAME SHOW BRIDE** (#litres_trial_promo)

3840—IN THE SHELTER OF HIS ARMS† (#litres_trial_promo)

3860—THE BILLIONAIRE’S BRIDE

Dear Reader,

When I first began toying with the idea that became A Woman Worth Loving, I knew that I wanted to explore love against the backdrop of redemption and amid the often sticky dynamics of family.

I came up with a hero and heroine who certainly have their share of faults and issues. More than being flawed, though, I saw Audra and Seth as lost, and forgiveness as the beacon that would help guide them not only home, but to each other.

The other Conlan siblings—Audra’s twin sister, Ali, and her big brother, Dane—will have their own stories, coming soon in Harlequin Romance® books.

Best wishes,

Jackie Braun

A Woman Worth Loving

Jackie Braun

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

Jackie Braun earned a degree in journalism from Central Michigan University in 1987 and spent more than sixteen years working full-time at newspapers, including eleven years as an award-winning editorial writer, before quitting her day job to freelance and write fiction. She is a past RITA® Award finalist and a member of the Romance Writers of America. She lives in mid-Michigan with her husband and their young son. She can be reached through her Web site at www.jackiebraun.com (http://www.jackiebraun.com)

“Unlike Audra Conlan, I don’t have a twin, but I do have three older sisters (and ten sisters-in-law).

My sisters are my dearest friends, my biggest supporters and the people I can count on to let me know when my hair color is less than flattering. God bless them.”

—Jackie Braun on A Woman Worth Loving

My thanks to Steve Jessmore, chief photographer at The Flint Journal, for his insight.

I promised to point out that Steve is as un-paparazzi as they come.

My thanks also to my editor, Stacy Boyd, for letting me “push the envelope” with this one.

CONTENTS

CHAPTER ONE (#u2f1581a8-5f4c-59ea-a33a-b30b1b9b1d77)

CHAPTER TWO (#u9ec39582-cda3-577b-9fb7-45135d83314a)

CHAPTER THREE (#u51765789-f709-5c1d-8a62-a347cf9db232)

CHAPTER FOUR (#litres_trial_promo)

CHAPTER FIVE (#litres_trial_promo)

CHAPTER SIX (#litres_trial_promo)

CHAPTER SEVEN (#litres_trial_promo)

CHAPTER EIGHT (#litres_trial_promo)

CHAPTER NINE (#litres_trial_promo)

CHAPTER TEN (#litres_trial_promo)

CHAPTER ELEVEN (#litres_trial_promo)

EPILOGUE (#litres_trial_promo)

CHAPTER ONE

IT WAS easy to have regrets about the way she’d lived her life when a man’s hands were wrapped around her throat, thumbs pressing insistently on her windpipe to cut off her oxygen supply. In truth, though, the excuses Audra had made for her bad behavior hadn’t seemed valid for a while now.

It’s not fair.

That thought registered even as her vision began to dim.

After all, she had been changing her ways—discreetly, which perhaps explained why the tabloids’ most recent headlines had still labeled her a gold digger.

Audra didn’t like the moniker, although she supposed she had been called far worse. Still, she had married for love and, after that, for emotional security. Wealth hadn’t been the quality that had attracted her to any of her husbands, including the late Henry Dayton Winfield the Third. He’d been kind, undemanding. He’d been…safe. And she had been determined that this marriage would work despite the gap in their ages. She had been determined that this time she would not fail. Marriage number three would not end in divorce like the previous two, leaving her disillusioned and her heart a gouged-out husk.

“Lying, manipulative witch,” spat the man squeezing her throat.

Audra was incapable of disputing his words. How ironic that when she had been capable of speaking out in her own defense, she hadn’t bothered.