Love's Wall Chapter Reveal

Title: Love's Wall
A Time for Love Series Standalone

Author: Karen Deen

Genre: Contemporary Romance

Release Date: December 4, 2017

Blurb

Falling in love can be so easy - but is it always the right thing to happen in your life? Everyone has a history but, for some, that history makes them believe they aren’t worthy of love.

Zach

Life sends us the right person at the right time. You just have to be ready to accept them.

When his last relationship ended and shattered his dreams for the future, Zach moved forward carving out a life on his farm. He built a wall around his heart so he’d never be hurt again.

Family is everything for him. Working in the family-owned building company, life was simple and happy. Yet something - or someone - was missing from that life. Zach didn’t know it, but things were about to change. His wall was about to be tested and love was going to challenge everything he has strived to protect. Will it crumble enough for him to accept his one?

Emily

Just when you least expect it, there is that one moment that changes everything.

Being a single Mom, every day is a challenge for Emily. Her life has become a series of relentless hurdles. She decided a long time ago that love was on hold until her children were old enough to support themselves.

Life has toughened Emily. She’s created a wall around her little family to protect them - and her heart. Never again would she allow it to be taken and abused by someone else. Pushing hard to survive the latest blow, Zach walks into her life and turns it upside down. Seeing Emily at her lowest, Zach wants to rescue her. Can she let her pride slip enough to allow her wall to crumble and open up to him? If she finally shares her world, will Zach still look at her the same? Should she put it all aside so she doesn’t miss her one?

Can love erase the history that has made their walls so thick and high? Even if they both know they’ve found the one, can they demolish their walls enough to make the leap? 

ADD TO GOODREADS

Chapter One

Zach

Heading across the bedroom, steam still swirling around from the shower, I paused. The view of the mountains brought a smile to my face as I stood naked at the window, enjoying the morning in all its glory. The breeze carried the bird’s morning song and the sounds of the cattle in the paddocks through the open window. Nature was busy getting ready for the day. I pulled my clothes on for the office. Part of me wished that I could just jump back into my farm jeans, shirt and boots and head out to the barn to saddle up for a ride. I could use one more day to relax in this tranquil place like I had been for the last two days.

Thinking back on the weekend I could see that, although I loved my life, it was missing something. Or perhaps someone. My life was full. I had an amazing family and a business that made me happy to get up and go to work every morning. My home was my safe-haven, it gave me a place to just be myself with no expectations. It also gave me a place to hide. With all of the things that were right in my life, there was still a part of me that was empty. After letting my mind drift, I knew I needed to get my head around the start of a new week. Jumping in the car, I placed the same call that I made every Monday morning as I drove out of the gate. 

“Good morning, Zoe, how was your weekend?” I smiled, waiting for the usual answer.

“Morning, Zach. Let’s just say that several words can describe it. My weekend was fun, crazy, drinking, partying - all of which have led to my head paying the consequences this morning!” Zoe then launched into stories of the weekend and we spent time laughing about her nights out.

As I turned down the entrance to the highway and felt my foot press down on the pedal, my body pushed back into the leather seat that wrapped around my body so well. The buzz of driving a nice car at speed brought a smile that inched up my face.

“So the big question is, Zoe - did you spot your Mr Right out there somewhere?” I let out a little chuckle, hearing Zoe sigh and then laugh. She got ready to joke it off, but I knew deep down under the party girl exterior it was no joke. She was a young lady who would give anything to have a man to love and protect her, to plant her feet on the ground. My gut feeling was that man would be my brother, Luke, but the two of them just hadn’t worked it out yet. The sexual tension between them could light up Times Square, yet they both fought so hard to keep that ‘friend wall’ up. One day something was going to flick that switch and the explosion would be more impressive than the Fourth of July fireworks. I’d just sit back, watch, wait and then say ‘I told you so’ because I knew all along.

“Now Zach, you know as good as I do that there is no good man out there who will pin me down. Living the dream, Zach, living the dream”. I burst out laughing at Zoe’s comment, knowing she was trying to convince herself of that. “Tell your head that this morning, Zoe. Anyway, as much as I hate to hurt that little brain of yours, what’s on the agenda for today? Also, did you get that email I sent you re the plans for Branch Street that need to be at council by 10.00am?”

“Yes, yes,” she sighed. “Already done, you know I am always one step ahead of you!”

Zoe joined our building development company five years ago straight out of secretarial college and had been my assistant from day one. It was a match that could have spelled disaster. She walked in on a day that had me dragging myself up off the couch in my office. I was trying to make the bathroom to throw up the bottle of bourbon I had consumed the night before. Tragically, I stumbled and managed to throw up on her shoes and then lay moaning at her feet.

Our relationship could have gone either way. She could have turned around and walked straight back out, cursing me as she left, never to return. Instead, Zoe just looked down at me and burst out laughing. She proceeded to tell me to take my hungover ass and grovel back to the couch while she changed and cleaned up my mess. She walked over and threw her shoes in the bin, mumbling that she expected two new pairs of shoes to replace the ones which were now laying sadly in the bottom of the bin. It hurt my head to laugh, but I couldn’t help but let out a quiet chuckle. We would get on just fine.

Zoe spent our first day of working together in her gym clothes. Luckily, they were in her car and clean. Me? I was in the singlet and jeans I had on from the night before, minus the shirt. It had a new home in the bin with her shoes!

Zoe had cleaned me up, poured coffee that was as thick as tar down my throat, along with bottle after bottle of water and plenty of pain relief. We managed to get to the end of the day and she never asked what happened. And I never told her. From that da