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Overview
PREFACE
"Sometimes baby, love lies deep ... a man gets buried in your soul and there ain't no getting him out." Her mother had said that to her once. The words haunted her as she thought about Satchel. He'd been the one to end their relationship over seven years ago, so what did he want now? And what did he mean he wouldn't stay away from her; that he'd never wanted to.
She had fought hard to get over Satchel, and one thing she knew for sure ... there was no way she was letting him back in -- not after the way he'd crushed her all those years ago. She couldn't live through that kind of pain again. No human could endure that twice in a lifetime.
And, she knew just how to keep him away. Only, could she go through with it? Or, would the love that had lain so deeply within her for him resurface, leading to heartbreak all over again?
***
Three years earlier
"Sometimes baby, love lies deep ... a man gets buried in your soul and there ain't no getting him out," Celia said to her daughter.
"Have you ever felt that way about a man mama?"
"Yes, once. Who? Daddy?" Nylah asked.
"No honey. I loved your father, but a bit before I met him, there was someone else ..."
"You mean you loved another man more than you loved daddy?" Nylah queried, incredulous. She'd never even imagined her mother with another man.
"Nylah I had a life before your father," her mother said simply. "I was quite the looker you know. I had a few suitors before your father settled me down. But, a woman doesn't have to tell all her secrets. In fact, there are some things she never tells another soul. That's just the way of a woman."
"Well ... why haven't you ever told me any of this before? Did daddy know?"
"You mean did he know if I dated other men before he came along? ... Of course he did," Celia answered before Nylah could confirm or deny her question. "Why do you think he was so quick to propose? He did so after three weeks of courting me, you know?"
Nylah smiled and shook her head. She'd heard the story many times. It was ironic, she thought. She'd dated a man for three, almost four years and instead of proposing, he'd given her her walking papers. Her mother, on the other hand, had gotten a marriage proposal – in three weeks. Nylah often wondered about women like her mother. What did they possess that a man couldn't resist? What secret did they have? And how did it draw a man into a lifetime commitment so quickly? Whatever special power or secret or trait it was, she hadn't inherited it. In fact, it was just the opposite. She seemed to be able to repel suitors with very little effort.
"So who was he; this other man? Why didn't you marry him? What happened between you all?" Nylah asked, still flabbergasted that her mother had never even breathed a single word about someone who had obviously meant a great deal to her.
"That's a story for another day and another time. But I do know of a couple who had that kind of love you're carrying around in you for Satchel. Your grandparents; your father's mama and daddy. I've never seen two people more in love. I think that's why your father was able to love me so, and why I was so devoted to him. He had the best example of what love was supposed to look and feel like – and I did my best to be the kind of wife his mother was – because lord knows my parents were a disaster. If there were two people who didn't belong together, it was my mother and father."
Nylah hadn't known her mother's parents. But she smiled, thinking back on the grandparents she did know -- her father's parents. She'd witnessed the love flow between them as effortlessly as waves crashing against an ocean shore.Even as a child, Nylah knew that there was something special about their union.
"I want that mama. I want that so bad," Nylah said, her throat convulsing as she swallowed the pain threatening to engulf her.
"There's someone out there for you honey. You just have to trust that."
"I don't want someone mama. I want 'the one.' I want what grandma and grandpa had. ... What if I've found the one? What if it was Satchel? What if I never feel for another man the way I feel for him? It's been over a year and I haven't even mustered up enough interest to go on one date."
"Give it time honey. It'll be alright. The right man will come along. You will love again."
Celia placed her hand on her daughter's back and rubbed it as they sat on the front porch. Her mother had nursed her through all of her teenaged heartbreaks here. She wasn't sure if it was fitting or pitiful that some twenty years later, her mother was still nursing her through heartbreaks.
Nylah buried her face in her hands and exhaled heavily. "But will I love again like that mama?" she said, tears silently coursing down her cheeks. "Will I love like that?" she repeated.
"Sometimes baby, love lies deep ... a man gets buried in your soul and there ain't no getting him out." Her mother had said that to her once. The words haunted her as she thought about Satchel. He'd been the one to end their relationship over seven years ago, so what did he want now? And what did he mean he wouldn't stay away from her; that he'd never wanted to.
She had fought hard to get over Satchel, and one thing she knew for sure ... there was no way she was letting him back in -- not after the way he'd crushed her all those years ago. She couldn't live through that kind of pain again. No human could endure that twice in a lifetime.
And, she knew just how to keep him away. Only, could she go through with it? Or, would the love that had lain so deeply within her for him resurface, leading to heartbreak all over again?
***
Three years earlier
"Sometimes baby, love lies deep ... a man gets buried in your soul and there ain't no getting him out," Celia said to her daughter.
"Have you ever felt that way about a man mama?"
"Yes, once. Who? Daddy?" Nylah asked.
"No honey. I loved your father, but a bit before I met him, there was someone else ..."
"You mean you loved another man more than you loved daddy?" Nylah queried, incredulous. She'd never even imagined her mother with another man.
"Nylah I had a life before your father," her mother said simply. "I was quite the looker you know. I had a few suitors before your father settled me down. But, a woman doesn't have to tell all her secrets. In fact, there are some things she never tells another soul. That's just the way of a woman."
"Well ... why haven't you ever told me any of this before? Did daddy know?"
"You mean did he know if I dated other men before he came along? ... Of course he did," Celia answered before Nylah could confirm or deny her question. "Why do you think he was so quick to propose? He did so after three weeks of courting me, you know?"
Nylah smiled and shook her head. She'd heard the story many times. It was ironic, she thought. She'd dated a man for three, almost four years and instead of proposing, he'd given her her walking papers. Her mother, on the other hand, had gotten a marriage proposal – in three weeks. Nylah often wondered about women like her mother. What did they possess that a man couldn't resist? What secret did they have? And how did it draw a man into a lifetime commitment so quickly? Whatever special power or secret or trait it was, she hadn't inherited it. In fact, it was just the opposite. She seemed to be able to repel suitors with very little effort.
"So who was he; this other man? Why didn't you marry him? What happened between you all?" Nylah asked, still flabbergasted that her mother had never even breathed a single word about someone who had obviously meant a great deal to her.
"That's a story for another day and another time. But I do know of a couple who had that kind of love you're carrying around in you for Satchel. Your grandparents; your father's mama and daddy. I've never seen two people more in love. I think that's why your father was able to love me so, and why I was so devoted to him. He had the best example of what love was supposed to look and feel like – and I did my best to be the kind of wife his mother was – because lord knows my parents were a disaster. If there were two people who didn't belong together, it was my mother and father."
Nylah hadn't known her mother's parents. But she smiled, thinking back on the grandparents she did know -- her father's parents. She'd witnessed the love flow between them as effortlessly as waves crashing against an ocean shore.Even as a child, Nylah knew that there was something special about their union.
"I want that mama. I want that so bad," Nylah said, her throat convulsing as she swallowed the pain threatening to engulf her.
"There's someone out there for you honey. You just have to trust that."
"I don't want someone mama. I want 'the one.' I want what grandma and grandpa had. ... What if I've found the one? What if it was Satchel? What if I never feel for another man the way I feel for him? It's been over a year and I haven't even mustered up enough interest to go on one date."
"Give it time honey. It'll be alright. The right man will come along. You will love again."
Celia placed her hand on her daughter's back and rubbed it as they sat on the front porch. Her mother had nursed her through all of her teenaged heartbreaks here. She wasn't sure if it was fitting or pitiful that some twenty years later, her mother was still nursing her through heartbreaks.
Nylah buried her face in her hands and exhaled heavily. "But will I love again like that mama?" she said, tears silently coursing down her cheeks. "Will I love like that?" she repeated.
Product Details
| BN ID: | 2940150823709 |
|---|---|
| Publisher: | Inkwell Editorial |
| Publication date: | 07/13/2015 |
| Series: | Love Lies Deep , #1 |
| Sold by: | Barnes & Noble |
| Format: | eBook |
| File size: | 173 KB |
About the Author
I'm a freelance writer, author and web entrepreneur.
I've been a freelance writer since 1993 and a self-published writer/author since 2002. To date, I've published over 50 non-fiction ebooks, and more than 30 fiction (mostly romance).
TRAVELING FREELANCE WRITER
I'm American but made the move to Negril, Jamaica in 2014. I plan to be here for the next three to five years before going back to the states. I visited Jamaica for the first time in 2009 and started going back on a regular basis. After so many trips (and so many expensive hotels) I thought, "It's cheaper to move." So I did!
THE THING I LOVE THE MOST ABOUT MY CAREER
The thing I love the most about being a writer is that it allows me to live and work where I please. As long as I have an internet connection, I'm good to go. I've worked everywhere from a hotel room in Barcelona, Spain; to a cafe in Stockholm, Sweden; to a farm house in Cordoba, Argentina. As far as work, I feel like the luckiest girl alive most days.
THE THING I LOVE THE MOST ABOUT BEING AN EBOOK WRITER/SELF PUBLISHER
In a phrase, "income stability." As long as I can write (ie, produce new products), I can make a living. How much I earn is entirely up to me. Thanks to places like Barnes & Noble, Amazon and other outlets for independent publishers. you don't have to be famous to make a living as a writer.
RUNNING, RUNNING, RUNNING!
I'm also a marathon runner. I've completed almost a dozen marathons and am always training for the next one.
LIFE PHILOSOPHY
Just do it! As a runner, of course Nike's philosophy fits who I am. :-)
LEARN MORE ABOUT ME
You can learn more about me on the "About" page at Inkwell Editorial Publishing, my publishing company's website.
CONNECT WITH ME
Connect with me on Twitter at @AnInkwellPub and my publishing company's Facebook page at InkwellEditorialPublishing.
Thanks for dropping by, and feel free to send me any questions you have about freelance writing, ebook writing, and/or self-publishing in general.
Sincerely,
Yuwanda
I've been a freelance writer since 1993 and a self-published writer/author since 2002. To date, I've published over 50 non-fiction ebooks, and more than 30 fiction (mostly romance).
TRAVELING FREELANCE WRITER
I'm American but made the move to Negril, Jamaica in 2014. I plan to be here for the next three to five years before going back to the states. I visited Jamaica for the first time in 2009 and started going back on a regular basis. After so many trips (and so many expensive hotels) I thought, "It's cheaper to move." So I did!
THE THING I LOVE THE MOST ABOUT MY CAREER
The thing I love the most about being a writer is that it allows me to live and work where I please. As long as I have an internet connection, I'm good to go. I've worked everywhere from a hotel room in Barcelona, Spain; to a cafe in Stockholm, Sweden; to a farm house in Cordoba, Argentina. As far as work, I feel like the luckiest girl alive most days.
THE THING I LOVE THE MOST ABOUT BEING AN EBOOK WRITER/SELF PUBLISHER
In a phrase, "income stability." As long as I can write (ie, produce new products), I can make a living. How much I earn is entirely up to me. Thanks to places like Barnes & Noble, Amazon and other outlets for independent publishers. you don't have to be famous to make a living as a writer.
RUNNING, RUNNING, RUNNING!
I'm also a marathon runner. I've completed almost a dozen marathons and am always training for the next one.
LIFE PHILOSOPHY
Just do it! As a runner, of course Nike's philosophy fits who I am. :-)
LEARN MORE ABOUT ME
You can learn more about me on the "About" page at Inkwell Editorial Publishing, my publishing company's website.
CONNECT WITH ME
Connect with me on Twitter at @AnInkwellPub and my publishing company's Facebook page at InkwellEditorialPublishing.
Thanks for dropping by, and feel free to send me any questions you have about freelance writing, ebook writing, and/or self-publishing in general.
Sincerely,
Yuwanda
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