Motherhood Without Parole

Motherhood Without Parole
Tanya Michaels

Instant motherhood felt a lot like being under house arrest…When a corporate oversight lands her new husband in jail, Kate St. James feels as if she's the one being sentenced. True, her ritzy new home in the suburbs looks nothing like the Big House. But for a woman barely able to keep her tropical fish afloat, Kate's not expecting time off for good behavior when she becomes an instant mother to her husband's two children!Still, somewhere between dealing with a burned bake sale project, PTA meetings and preteen dating, Kate realizes she's never felt so free. Because being a good mother isn't about being perfect. It's about being there. For the kids, her husband…and herself.

“The kids will be home next Monday,” Paul said.

Kate nodded. Eight days. She could do this. Now was not the time to dwell on the fact that the only living things that had ever been in her care were some exotic fish that had added color to her condo. Until she’d accidentally knocked the heater into the aquarium and electrocuted them all in mere minutes.

“I don’t want them to visit me, Kate. I just can’t imagine them in these surroundings.” He ran his hands over his face. “Haven’t they been through enough in their young lives without seeing their old man—”

Startled by the raw vulnerability in his tone, she rushed to reassure her husband. “I understand. Maybe writing you letters would be less traumatic than visiting you here.”

Looking at the haunted eyes of the man she loved, Kate vowed to be the best stepmother possible. Realistically it was the only thing she could do to help Paul. For the next four to five months, she was all the parent those children had.

Thank God kids were more resilient than tropical fish.

Tanya Michaels

Tanya Michaels can’t remember a time when she didn’t want to be a writer. She finished her first illustrated “book” at the age of nine and is now the award-winning author of over a dozen romance and women’s fiction novels. Tanya has been nominated for numerous honors, including Romance Writers of America’s prestigious RITA

Award and several Readers’ Choice and Reviewers’ Choice Awards. She currently resides in Georgia, where she’s living out her version of happily ever after with her husband and two children. Visit her home on the Web at www.tanyamichaels.com.

Motherhood Without Parole

Tanya Michaels

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

From the Author

Dear Reader,

I have two jobs—writer and mother. Reference books have been published on both subjects. Support groups exist for both. But there’s really no substitute for hands-on experience! As difficult as parenting can sometimes be for any mom, no matter how prepared she is, I began to imagine a woman with zero prior experience who becomes a stepmother, joining a family “already in progress.”

What would that be like? And what if, soon after her becoming a stepmom, the children’s father was temporarily out of the picture, leaving her to learn the ropes on her own? (Suddenly the challenges I occasionally face in my own role as Mommy looked a lot simpler.)

Meet Kate St. James, the result of all my what-ifs. I hope you enjoy her story of becoming part of a family and her realization that there are all kinds of success in the world, some harder to measure than others but infinitely rewarding. Watch for her friend Delia’s story, Motherhood Without Warning, in 2007! More details about that book, as well as my other releases and reader giveaways, are available at www.tanyamichaels.com.

Happy reading!

Tanya

Thanks to all the readers and reviewers who

have let me know how much they enjoy my work.

You truly make the tough days worth it! And special

thanks to Anna DeStefano, who’s been there for every

career and motherhood challenge I’ve faced,

always willing to brainstorm, encourage and

discuss hilarious GFY and TWoP posts.

CONTENTS

PROLOGUE

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

PROLOGUE

My first Valentine’s Day as a married woman. Forty-two-year-old Kate St. James stood barefoot in the modern kitchen, theoretically tackling an impromptu romantic breakfast while her husband, Paul, showered. In reality, Kate had barely glanced at the cookbook lying open on the kitchen island. Having not partaken in her morning caffeine rituals—the dark roast was still brewing—she’d been staring contentedly into space.

Mooning, her friend Delia would scoff. Fast-talking businesswoman Delia Carlisle was not prone to romantic sentiment. Then again, Kate hadn’t been either until a couple of years ago. Until Paul St. James.