Pulse of my Heart

By Mary Suzanne

“Would you give me a hand?” her mother popped the button on the key to open the trunk.
“Sure,” Allie made her way to the back of the car. Inside the trunk was an assortment of dishes in boxes Grace prepared the night before. It looked to Allie as if her mother planned on feeding an army.
A noise behind her brought Allie’s head around swiftly. There stood a brawny looking man well over six feet with midnight black hair and the greenest eyes she’d ever seen on a person. This was the first time in a year another man held her interest for more than a few seconds. The stranger looked ruggedly appealing, somehow managing to invade the shell she placed as protection around her heart. She felt as if someone knocked the wind from her chest and it was hard for her to breathe.
“Grace, I’ve come out to give you a hand,” his deep husky voice held the rich sound of an Irish lilt.
“Oh, thank you, Liam,” her mother greeted him. “Liam O’Shea, this is my other daughter, Allie Taylor.”
“It’s nice meeting you, Allie Taylor,” the huskiness was still in his voice, but now she noted a gentle tone, as well.
“And you, Liam O’Shea,” she answered, feeling her pulse rise. She couldn’t explain the strange reaction she was having to him. It felt as if the fog she’d been in for a year was slowly lifting and a patch of sunshine filled her thoughts.
“Liam, take the heaviest boxes at the back of the trunk inside and we’ll carry the others,” Grace tried not to show approval for the way Allie was responding to Liam’s gentleness. She wanted her daughter to open up and find happiness again after such a long drought.
After Liam lifted the boxes, he walked toward the farm house just ahead of the two women. Allie couldn’t take her eyes off his muscular frame. It was so long since she’d found anyone else this attractive, other than Jake, and she felt waves of guilt swishing through her. Even with the guilt, she couldn’t stop her emotional response to this giant Irishman.
Once inside, Allie followed Liam and her mother into the kitchen where her grandmother was looking into the oven door checking the delicious smelling turkey. When she turned and saw Allie, she reached out and hugged her granddaughter. “Oh, Allie, you’ve made me so happy today. We’re going to have a lovely dinner and socialize afterwards. I’ve missed you.

• Language: English
• Publisher: Mary Suzanne
• Release date: May 16, 2016
• ISBN: 9781310935893

Mary Suzanne

Mary Suzanne writes a story feeling the hero and heroine’s pain, happiness and joy over their relationship. It she is able to transport a person from their every day existence to another realm in time; then she has succeeded in giving something special to her readers.Currently there are 99 e-books ready for purchase at Smashwords.com and othet distributors.

Book preview

Pulse of my Heart

Copyright 2016 by Mary Suzanne

Smashwords Edition

CHAPTER ONE

Allie Taylor picked up the phone, noticing her mother’s name on the ID caller. Hello, she pictured her petite mother with her salt and pepper hair coloring.

Hi, Grace Martin answered. I’m calling about Thanksgiving this year. Granny Martin will be having the dinner at her home and wants you there. Give it some thought before you make a decision. You know how she is about taking no for an answer. Besides, it’s been a year since you’ve been to her home.

Allie was silent, remembering how she’d spent the last year. She hadn’t wanted to socialize with anyone since opening the door and having two Air Force men greet her with the announcement her husband Jake was missing in Afghanistan. The news devastated Allie, but life went on, and she mechanically showed up at her office job every day where she headed the department. The days floated into one another with her swallowing down her pain trying to keep the hurt at bay and plodding through her work.

Allie, Mrs. Martin interrupted Allie’s depressing thoughts. Are you going to make it this year?

Mom, I’m not in the mood for celebrations. To be truthful, she never felt like celebrating anything lately.

"Well, when are you going to be in the mood? It’s been a year and you need to get on with your life. I won’t hear of you not coming and joining in the family gathering. I’ll be by to pick you up next week at eleven on Thursday."

Allie hesitated, but knew there was no way she could get out of going. All right, if you insist, She heard the dial tone and knew her mother hung up the phone before she could change her mind.

The last thing she wanted was to pretend she was in the holiday mood. A picture of Jake Taylor ran through her head and moistness coated her lashes. She’d met Jake in high school and was his constant shadow until he finally noticed her. Their next stop was college, bringing them even closer. Love bloomed and wedding bells sounded as soon as they received college diplomas. The happiness filling her so long ago seemed a thing of the past. When she’d heard the news of Jake’s disappearance, she felt as if someone reached inside her chest and tore her heart out, leaving her