by CATHY L. CLAMP; FRANCIS RAY; BEVERLY JENKINS; MONICA JACKSON; GERI GUILLAUME
I don’t think they minded too much. Kirby came by often to check their progress. I think they got a thrill out of knowing that a beautiful woman was visiting them in their locker room. More than once, I caught several of them taking their shirts off whenever she was around as they mopped up the pools of soot and water, scrubbed lockers, and repainted walls. That is, they flexed their collective muscles until I reminded them that they were showing off in front of the future Mrs. Barrett.
Maybe I shouldn’t have mentioned anything about my personal relationship with Kirby. I was always careful not to cross that fine line with the students. But even if I hadn’t said anything, sooner or later they would have known something was up. It showed in my face, in the sudden jauntiness of my walk. No doubt about it. I was ecstatic. For Kirby had given me her most precious gift—her love. Nothing under the traditional Christmas tree or presented to me as a Kwanzaa zawadi could have thrilled me more, touched me deeper, than her acceptance of my marriage proposal.
It had taken a long time for us to come together. If I could, if I had to do it all again, I probably would have knocked a few years off the wait. But there was no time to dwell on that now. As my pops would say, a man could break his neck looking back.
There was too much on my plate to worry about the might-have-beens, anyway. Figurative plate, that is. It was hard to try to scarf down a triple cheeseburger with Kirby keeping me honest. Who needed special sauce when he had Kirby showering him with motivational kisses at every opportunity?
She had always been my one true weakness. And now she was here, the source of my one true strength. And here she would stay. With Kirby by my side, I could look ahead. I didn’t have to dread Mondays, or any other day for that matter. I had a school to run, a wedding to plan, and a woman to cherish.
Our unity cup had finally run over.
CHECK OUT THESE SOUL SISTERS!
BUTTERSCOTCH BLUES
by Margaret Johnson-Hodge
At the age of thirty-four, Sandy Hutchinson wonders if love will forever elude her, until the day she meets Adrian Burton, a Trinidadian with caramel skin, naturally wavy hair; and eyes the color of butterscotch. Together they share a whirlwind romance—until the night of a fateful call from the hospital and she learns of his ailing ex-wife. Now, Sandy must decide if her love is strong enough to help get them through what may be their darkest hour.
A FAMILY REUNION
by Brenda Jackson
It’s been fifteen years since the Bennetts were all in one place at one time, and now at a total blowout of a reunion, three generations will gather to remember old memories and reestablish deep roots. But for four special cousins, hidden desires and long-kept secrets will challenge their bond, test their courage, and change their hearts forever . . .
FAR FROM THE TREE
by Virginia DeBerry and Donna Grant
Struggling Manhattan actress Ronnie Frazier has come home to Buffalo for her father’s funeral. In Ronnie’s opinion, Celeste English already has it all as a doctor’s wife and a mother. But when the sisters journey to their newly inherited North Carolina family homestead, the startling truth about Celeste’s perfect life and Delia’s murky past begins to emerge.
TRYIN’ TO SLEEP IN THE BED YOU MADE
by Virginia DeBerry and Donna Grant
Gayle Sounders and Patricia Reid have been best friends since they were children. Gayle, the beauty pampered by her working-doss parents, believes a man will make her world complete. Pat, the brainy one, is the hand-me-down child whose mystery parentage haunts her. And then there is Marcus Carter, linked to both women from the moment a childhood tragedy bonds them in secrecy.
THE TURNING POINT
by Francis Ray
Desperate to escape her abusive marriage, Lilly Crawford files for divorce, then slips away from her small east Texas hometown. When her car breaks down on a back road in Louisiana, Lilly seeks help and finds unexpected employment as a caregiver to Adam Wakefield, a former prominent neurosurgeon who is now blind. As the two spend long days together, an unexpected bond develops that can offer the promise of healing . . .
AVAILABLE WHEREVER BOOKS ARE SOLD FROM
ST. MARTIN’S PRESS
AA 8/01
GOING TO THE CHAPEL
From the acclaimed authors of Essence Blackboard bestsellers
Rosie’s Curl and Weave and Delia’s House of Style
Rochelle Alers • Gwynne Forster •
Donna Hill • Francis Ray
Four celebrated authors march you down the aisle to love in this heartwarming collection of stories about that special day every girl dreams of having . . .
Rochelle Alers’ “Stand-in Bride”
Savannah wedding planner Katherine Langdon agrees to coordinate the “wedding of the season” between a spoiled debutante and her French fiancé for one reason—the gorgeous fattier of the bride . . .
Gwynne Forster’s “Learning to Love”
Working for the United Nations has given Sharon Braxton a passion for other cultures—and for a Nigerian Prince. What can stand in the way of their love besides two vastly different worlds? The other bride his father has arranged for him to wed . . .
Donna Hill’s “Distant Lover”
Can anything be more glamorous than a job that takes careerminded Mia to the Caribbean? Yes! A hot, sexy hunk from Barbados, who wants to sweep her to the altar, but his old-fashioned values keep driving them apart. And the intense passion is too irresistible to ignore . . .
Francis Ray’s “Southern Comfort”
A bridesmaid for the eighth time and not the bride, political fundraiser Charlotte Duvall is fed up. Worse, she finds a major problem at this wedding—the Best Man. They’re fighting about her clothes (too sexy), her behavior (too flirty), and his macho views (wives shouldn’t work). It sounds like they just might be falling in love!
AVAILABLE WHEREVER BOOKS ARE SOLD FROM
ST. MARTIN’S PAPERBACKS
GTC 7/01
WELCOME
TO
LEO’S
FOUR NOVELLAS BY
Rochelle Alers Donna Hill
Brenda Jackson Francis Ray
Welcome to Leo’s, a stylish D.C. supper club where patrons come to enjoy rich, savory Southern food, sip on intoxicating cocktails, and drink in the soulful sounds of live jazz. It’s the perfect place to dine, unwind, catch up—and maybe even fall in love . . .
A Texas Ranger and a candy shop owner have a blind date—
with a deliciously unexpected outcome. . .
A widowed party planner meets a handsome doctor,
but fears losing her heart for the second time. . .
A journalist runs into an old college flame—
she’s determined to be all business, but he has another agenda. . .
A proper lady lets loose on Open Mike night—
and opens her heart to a different kind of man. . .
AVAILABLE WHEREVER BOOKS ARE SOLD
FROM ST. MARTIN’S PAPERBACKS
WTL 1/01
I know Who
Holds Tomorrow
Francis Ray
Blackboard bestselling author of The Turning Point
Happy with her career but miserable in her marriage, TV personality Madison Reed is living a lie. To the world, she and Wesley Reed—son of one of America’s premier black families—are the perfect couple: young, good-looking, and destined for greatness together. Then she gets a stunning message . . . Wes has been in a terrible accident, and Madison is stricken with grief and guilt. But her mourning turns to blinding pain and shock when she discovers that the tragedy not only has taken Wes away, but also the woman who was with him. And now the only part of Wes that remains is a baby girl—Wes’s daughter . . . Through the dark days that follow, Zachary, Wes’s best friend, is there for Madison, holding her, healing her. Soon Zach’s loyal love begins to ease her pain. But when another secret is exposed, their future together is threatened unless they can find the key tha
t holds the promise of tomorrow . . .
“Francis Ray creates characters and stories
that we all love to read about.
Her stories are written from the heart.”
—Eric Jerome Dickey, NewYork Times bestselling author
Available wherever books are sold
from St. Martin’s Press
KNO 2/02
Table of Contents
Cover
Halftitle
Title
Copyright
Contents
The Wish by Francis Ray
Homecoming by Beverly Jenkins
The Way Back Home by Monica Jackson
The Seventh Principal by Geri Guillaume