Cover Copy
Finding the fairytale in Storybook Lake . . .
Grace Wade left Storybook Lake hoping to escape her crazy family and the demands of her job as a defense attorney. But not twenty-four hours after landing in a small Texas town where she hopes to find new beginnings, Grace instead finds herself in the middle of an investigation that’s turning the town inside out. Once she agrees to be the defense attorney on the case, Grace suddenly finds herself torn between twin brothers Blane Sheperd, the bad boy prosecutor on the case, and Jamie Sheperd, the sweetheart town Sheriff . . .
Grace thought life in a small town would be simple, but simple has a way of eluding her. To find her way to a happy ending, she’ll have to master the art of following her heart . . .
Visit us at www.kensingtonbooks.com
Books by Melissa Shirley
Storybook Lake Series
Here He Comes Again
Falling Grace
Breaking Hearts
Published by Kensington Publishing Corporation
Falling Grace
A Storybook Lake Romance
Melissa Shirley
LYRICAL PRESS
Kensington Publishing Corp.
www.kensingtonbooks.com
Copyright
Lyrical Press books are published by
Kensington Publishing Corp. 119 West 40th Street New York, NY 10018
Copyright © 2015 by Melissa Shirley
All rights reserved. No part of this book may be reproduced in any form or by any means without the prior written consent of the Publisher, excepting brief quotes used in reviews.
All Kensington titles, imprints, and distributed lines are available at special quantity discounts for bulk purchases for sales promotion, premiums, fund- raising, and educational or institutional use.
To the extent that the image or images on the cover of this book depict a person or persons, such person or persons are merely models, and are not intended to portray any character or characters featured in the book.
Special book excerpts or customized printings can also be created to fit specific needs. For details, write or phone the office of the Kensington Special Sales Manager:
Kensington Publishing Corp.
119 West 40th Street
New York, NY 10018
Attn. Special Sales Department. Phone: 1-800-221-2647.
Kensington and the K logo Reg. U.S. Pat. & TM Off.
LYRICAL PRESS Reg. U.S. Pat. & TM Off.
Lyrical Press and the L logo are trademarks of Kensington Publishing Corp.
First Electronic Edition: February 2016
eISBN-13: 978-1-60183-611-3
eISBN-10: 1-60183-611-2
First Print Edition: February 2016
ISBN-13: 978-1-60183-612-0
ISBN-10: 1-60183-612-0
Printed in the United States of America
Dedication
For Gina and Diana
Acknowledgements
Very special thank you to the best CP in the universe.
Chapter 1
“My wife killed our daughter.”
Nathan Gabriel strolled into the office and threw out the line as though he said things like that every day. For such a serious statement, he’d said it with no stuttering sense of urgency, no affect whatsoever. The sheen of sweat on his face and his pinhead sized pupils spoke to something underlying his serenity as he spoke.
“Your wife killed your daughter?” As a criminal attorney, I dealt with some big baddies, but never with someone who confessed so readily for his wife.
“They think she did.” He twitched and scratched the side of his face. “She wants Rory Allden to defend her.”
“But you said…” I shook it off. “Rory isn’t here. I’m her partner, Grace Wade. I might be able to help you.” I never offered services without knowing the actual client’s name and never without a few more details than a statement condemning the person meant to be my client, but something about him…
He looked around, glanced back as though waiting for the door to open. His wife was suspected of murder, and he needed a lawyer. I fit that description. What was the hold up?
After a few long minutes, a couple of frustrated huffs and puffs of his chest, and more waiting, he nodded. “Fine. Let’s go.”
I jogged with him across the street to the police station armed with only his name and what I could remember of his words. His first damning statement spun around my mind.
It wasn’t my usual mode of attack on a case, but I brushed my confusion aside and peppered questions at his back. He hurried faster than I could keep up in my pencil skirt and four inch heels.
Conveniently located in viewing distance from the new offices of Allden and Wade, Attorneys at Law, the police station looked more like a refurbished coffee house, with a picture window in front under a black awning with its edges flapping in the wind and a park bench on its wide sidewalk. The whole town had been designed right out of a Rockwell and the sheriff’s department was no different.
I stepped inside a heavy glass door and breathed in the pungent smell of sweat and chilidogs. Pinching the bridge of my nose, I approached a counter marked Information in crooked gold lettering.
An officer behind the waist-high counter that doubled as a desk barely looked up from his Bikes and Babes magazine. “Can I help you?”
I curled my fingers in my palm to resist the urge to smack his feet off the cluttered Formica. “I’m Grace Wade, and I want to speak to my client.”
“What client would that be?”
“I’m sorry. I didn’t realize your town was so rife with crime that you could possibly be confused.” Well, more confused. “Mrs. Quinn.” I didn’t even know her first name, for goodness sake.
He rolled his eyes and flipped a page. “Have a seat over there.” He nodded to a semi-stained seating arrangement that I wouldn’t risk my clothes to sit on. “I’ll let the detective know you’re here.”
The magazine crinkled as he brought it closer to his face, investigating something on the inside. He’d missed a button when he dressed and more of his lunch dotted his shirt than could possibly have landed in his mouth.
He ignored the long, huffy breath that billowed between my lips. I counted down the ten more seconds I waited by drilling my fingers against the counter for each one that ticked off. Enough. I snatched the magazine from his fingers and shoved it behind my back as he reached for it.
“I can charge you with assaulting a police officer.”
“Not until I smack you with it.” I slammed the flimsy paperback down in front of me. “Listen, Einstein. If your detective is in there questioning her and she’s asked