Restless in Texas: A Champagne & Truffles Series , livre ebook

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111 pages

English

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When she first saw Jake singing in his lounge, Tess was a divorced, single mother of a five-year-old daughter. Jake was a lonely widower and wealthy entrepreneur with a college freshman son. Their chemistry was instantaneous, and so strong that neither could ignore the attraction.
Now married after a six-month whirlwind romance and a fabulous honeymoon in France, Tess and Jake are ready to begin their life together in Houston, Texas. As they immerse themselves in their interracial marriage, Tess struggles to put her traumatic past behind her so she can move forward with her life. Meanwhile, Jake’s desire to control everything, including Tess, drives him to investigate her past to learn more about her trauma. But before he can realize complete satisfaction and happiness in his life with Tess, Jake must first overcome the guilt associated with his own former experiences. Will Jake and Tess ever find their happily-ever-after or will both remain tormented by their pasts?
Restless in Texas is the tale of a newlywed couple who must reconcile their past experiences and trauma before they can ever realize true happiness together.

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Fiction

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Publié par	Archway Publishing
Date de parution	25 juin 2023
Nombre de lectures	0
EAN13	9781665745437
Langue	English

Informations légales : prix de location à la page 0,0300€. Cette information est donnée uniquement à titre indicatif conformément à la législation en vigueur.

Extrait

RESTLESS IN TEXAS: A CHAMPAGNE & TRUFFLES SERIES

BENCHI F. HUDSON

Copyright © 2023 Benchi F. Hudson.

All rights reserved. No part of this book may be used or reproduced by any means, graphic, electronic, or mechanical, including photocopying, recording, taping or by any information storage retrieval system without the written permission of the author except in the case of brief quotations embodied in critical articles and reviews.

This is a work of fiction. All of the characters, names, incidents, organizations, and dialogue in this novel are either the products of the author’s imagination or are used fictitiously.

Archway Publishing
1663 Liberty Drive
Bloomington, IN 47403
www.archwaypublishing.com
844-669-3957

Because of the dynamic nature of the Internet, any web addresses or links contained in this book may have changed since publication and may no longer be valid. The views expressed in this work are solely those of the author and do not necessarily reflect the views of the publisher, and the publisher hereby disclaims any responsibility for them.

Cover design by Winnivations Creations

ISBN: 978-1-6657-4544-4 (sc)
ISBN: 978-1-6657-4542-0 (hc)
ISBN: 978-1-6657-4543-7 (e)

Library of Congress Control Number: 2023910959

Archway Publishing rev. date: 06/23/2023
CONTENTS
Acknowledgments

1
2
3
4
5
6
7
8
9
10
11
12
13
14
15
16
17
18
19
20
21
22
23

To
Gladys Bell
Diane Hamilton
Bernice Nesmith
and
Lurlene Scott
ACKNOWLEDGMENTS
New friends and old,
One is silver, the other gold.
Gold
Margie Gamble
Natalie Johnson
Patricia Atkinson
Linda Wilson
Carma Rollerson
Adrienne Smalls
Silver
Gretchen Rivers
Charlesetta Murray
Paulette Felder
Lillie’s of Charleston

1
T he weather was unusually bright and sunny for late winter in Switzerland. Rays of sunlight offered a “welcome out” as they gleamed in the chateau’s kitchen. The housekeeper quietly entered the bedroom where the honeymooners from the United States were still asleep, and as requested by Mr. Tyler the previous night, she used the remote to open the drapes. She quickly slipped out of the room, knowing that Mr. Tyler would get up now that daylight had entered. The sun beamed directly on the bed where Jake Tyler and his new bride, Tess Golden Tyler, were sleeping, awakening Jake as the darkness gave way to daylight. With his arms still around his sleeping bride, he kissed her neck and cheeks and aroused her from sleep.
“Bonjour, Madame Tyler. Avez-vous bein dormi?”
An arousing Tess stretched and rested her hand on his head, rubbing the curls on the nape of his neck. “Oui, Monsieur Tyler. Je dors très bein. As tu?”
“Every night I sleep next to you, Tess, I sleep well.”
“Are you going to feel this way when we get home, babe?”
“Baby, I will feel this way for the rest of our lives,” he said as he lightly patted her on her derriere.
She rolled over, looked at the clock, and said, “If we’re going to see Nicolette at her shop, we need to get up, get dressed, and get going. I don’t want to leave Switzerland without my chocolates, and she is holding a special bottle of champagne for me.”
Jake got up, stood at the side of the bed, and said, “Let’s shower together quickly. We’ll get an early start and tour La Chaux-de-Fonds after we visit with Nicolette. We return to Texas tomorrow, baby. The honeymoon trip will end, but the honeymoon will last the rest of our lives.”
“That’d better be a promise, Mr. Tyler, and I’m going to hold you to it.”
He leaned over, kissed her, sat on the side of the bed, and said, “It is, baby. It’s a promise.”
Tess said, “I’m going to hate leaving this château, this castle. I feel like a real princess here.”
“That’s because you are my princess, and wherever we live, I will make you feel like royalty.” He gently kissed her lips again and said, “Now, let’s get ready to see your friend.”
She leaped out of bed and followed him into the shower. She didn’t want him to know that she had been awake earlier because she’d had the dream again. She had recurring dreams of being traumatized on the night her late ex-husband left her and the night she saw a stranger in her bedroom. However, the dreams were real. Why now? she thought. I can’t believe this is happening on my honeymoon. Why isn’t this behind me in the past, where it should be?
Having spent two weeks in France on their honeymoon, Switzerland was the last visit before Jake and Tess would return to the States. She met him when he was the singer at a lounge he owned in Houston. Tess was captivated by his smooth voice, his deep blue eyes, and his gentle touch when he later held her in his arms. They fell in love and were married six months later on Valentine’s Day in Riverton, South Carolina, her hometown. When they met, she was a divorcée with a five-year-old daughter, Alli. Her ex-husband, Mike Morgan, died three months before she and Jake were married.
When Tess came into his life, Jake was a widower with an eighteen-year-old son, Deuce, enrolled in college. Jake was a wealthy businessman and a senior partner in Tyler Oil. He was also a musician with three albums recorded that made the top ten on the country and pop music charts. He owned several businesses and properties in several cities in Texas.
Tess had some concerns about her relationship with Jake, mainly because she was African American and he was Caucasian. She was just getting over a painful divorce and was not interested in a relationship—although when she met him, she was instantly attracted to him. Once he held her in his arms, she felt such safety and contentment, a feeling that she belonged—something she had never felt in her marriage to Mike. She soon forgot about their differences and knew this man had to be in her life.
Jake had been involved with several women, beautiful and famous, but he quickly discovered that they were superficial and only wanted the lifestyle he could give them. They wanted publicity and to be seen with the wealthiest man in Houston.
Despite feeling lonely after Deuce left home, he felt resigned to being alone with his music and his businesses until he met Tess. Once he looked into her beautiful, bright, amber-colored eyes, he was mesmerized and instantly fell in love with her.
Jake believed he could have the happy and blissful marriage with Tess that he did not have with his first wife, Beth. That was a secret he kept from everyone, especially his son. He often wondered how long he would harbor the guilt for what happened in his marriage and whether he would ever stop blaming himself for her death.
After their shower and while getting dressed, Tess reflected on the past two weeks in Paris and Bordeaux, France. They toured Paris and visited her friends, Henri and Bijou de le Blancherette in Bordeaux, and their friend Jean-Claude de la Renta, who always made a point of saying he was not related to the famous fashion designer.
Tess had met Henri, Bijou, Nicolette, and Jean-Claude on a trip to Bordeaux while in college. Her college professor Milton Meyers had selected his top students to visit France. Professor Meyers had previously visited Paris and Bordeaux, where he met with business owners who agreed to let his students shadow for a week at their company. Tess was selected by Bijou to learn at Blancherette and Associates. They formed a friendship and remained friends.
Bijou and Henri fell in love with Tess and told her they would always have a job for her if she decided to move to France. They were sure that she was moving to France a few months ago, after her breakup with Jake, which left her heartbroken and ready to make a move. Jake was determined not to let that happen. After meeting her, he couldn’t imagine life without her. They mended their broken relationship during the Christmas holidays and were married almost two months later.
Tess and Jake had said their goodbyes to Bijou and Henri two days ago, and now they were ready to spend the last day of their trip seeing Switzerland and visiting Nicolette, the chocolatier. She made and sold the truffles that Tess loved so much.
Nicolette Aubert had moved to Switzerland from Bordeaux, France, two years ago when her grandfather passed, and she inherited his candy shop, Pierre’s Confectionery. She had spent summers working and training with her grandfather in his shop, and now she had perfected the skill of making candy.
The temperature was just above freezing in Switzerland, and Jake and Tess were well bundled for the weather. Once the driver reached Nicolette’s shop, they quickly entered and welcomed the warmth. Feeling the sting of the cold when Jake held the door open for Tess, Nicolette quickly turned to face the entrance and, smiling, ran to greet her friend. “Nicolette!” Tess said excitedly as she and Jake entered the shop. “I’m so glad to see you!”
Nicolette embraced Tess. “Bijou told me you were in France and would be here today. It’s so good to see you, Tess; you look so good! It’s been too long.” She looked over Tess’s shoulder at Jake. “This handsome man must be Monsieur Tyler.”
Tess quickly answered, “Oui, puis-Je presenter mon Mari, Monsieur Jake Tyler.” She turned to Jake. “C’est mon Amie Nicolette.” He told Nicolette to call him Jake. Tess and Nicolette chatted for a while, then she closed the shop for lunch and went to a nearby café with Jake and Tess.
When they finally said good-bye to Nicolette at the shop, Jake carried several boxes of chocol