The Daughter Merger

The Daughter Merger
Janice Kay Johnson

The terrible twos are nothing compared to the traumatic teens.David Whitcomb is a good father and once upon a time, his thirteen-year-old daughter Claire adored him. But times have changed and Claire seems intent on running away to live with her mother–a woman who's unable to look after her.In desperation, David turns to Grace Blanchet, the mother of Claire's best friend. Grace agrees to foster Claire while father and daughter work things out. She knows this is what's best for Claire. She's just not sure it's best for her. Does she really want to "play house" with a man who, much as she's attracted to him, reminds her of another man–one she'd prefer to forget?

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“Tell me about your stipulations, Grace.”

“That you become very involved in her life. Take her places, join us for dinner, call her, look over her schoolwork… Be her father.”

David scrutinized her for the longest time. “I’d be over here constantly.”

“That’s okay.” Was it? she asked herself, with a faint sense of panic. Too late.

“Claire won’t want me here.”

“But that’s the deal,” Grace said firmly. “She has to promise to work at being your daughter. One of my rules is that we’re all polite to guests.”

“Guests.” He tasted the word as though it was questionable wine.

And who could blame him? His position would be awkward, to say the least. His daughter was choosing to live with someone else. He gave one of those off-putting nods. “I’ll talk to Claire.”

Grace hardly had time to say goodbye before he was gone, leaving her with the horrifying realization that she’d gotten herself into something she wasn’t at all sure she wanted to do.

It should have been Claire she was thinking about. Unsettled, Grace had to admit, if only to herself, that she was far more worried about dealing with the grim father than with the sulky teenage girl.

Dear Reader,

The Daughter Merger came naturally to me, and let me tell you why: I have two teenage daughters. The bickering, the repartee, the gossip about school, all are the stuff of daily life for me. The rehearsals are familiar, too, since both my daughters act and I am, of course, their chauffeur.

Let me hasten to say here that my girls have more in common with Linnet than with Claire. They’re top-notch students and my best friends. So here’s my real secret: I was Claire, not Linnet. At twelve, my mother tells me, I was a nice kid. At thirteen, I woke up one morning a monster. I wept at sad songs, I stormed at my parents’ refusal to let me date, I screamed at them, I spent the night at friends’ houses and… Well, never mind. My mother might read this, and I wouldn’t want to horrify her too much! Fortunately, at about fifteen, I awakened one morning to discover I’d grown up.

The point is, Claire came from my memories of that sad, tumultuous age. She has some reasons to be sad, as her father has reasons for his emotional detachment. Those of you who have read my previous books know that I love heroes who have difficulty expressing emotion—the strong silent type. What makes David Whitcomb a hero is his willingness to learn, to risk and, ultimately, to love passionately. This guy is one of my all-time favorite heroes. Claire is a lucky kid.

Now that you’re in on my secrets…

Janice Kay Johnson

P.S. You can reach me at www.superauthors.com

The Daughter Merger

Janice Kay Johnson

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

For Nan Hawthorne, Jim Tedford and the real gang: Lemieux, Stanzi and Kitkat

CONTENTS

CHAPTER ONE (#u2195d734-e2f8-52fa-95e7-27ac79d5ca3b)

CHAPTER TWO (#ueae63675-570e-5e27-ab86-c7beee460c8e)

CHAPTER THREE (#uadc7b08f-5ba8-5270-a92d-a8a27d604e14)

CHAPTER FOUR (#u162c6473-a0a8-5263-ac42-9b437d522671)

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)

CHAPTER TWELVE (#litres_trial_promo)

CHAPTER THIRTEEN (#litres_trial_promo)

CHAPTER FOURTEEN (#litres_trial_promo)

CHAPTER FIFTEEN (#litres_trial_promo)

CHAPTER ONE

NOTHING LIKE FINDING OUT your teenage daughter had cut school to foul up your day. David Whitcomb’s mounting tension was laced with anger. He didn’t have time for this.

But fear was his strongest emotion. Had Claire hit the road again? How far would she get this time?