All He Ever Desired: Book Five of The Kowalskis

by Shannon Stacey

Overview

A second shot at first love

After college, Ryan Kowalski decided to leave Whitford, Maine, rather than watch Lauren Carpenter marry another man. Now his siblings need his help to refurbish the family-owned Northern Star Lodge and he's forced to face the past sooner rather than later when he collars a vandal—and learns the boy is Lauren's son…

The last person Lauren needs back in her life is Ryan Kowalski. With a bitter ex-husband and a moody teenage son, she has enough man trouble already. But her son needs to learn a few lessons about right and wrong, even if Lauren has to escort him to Ryan's door every day to work off his crime.

With all this close contact, Ryan and Lauren can't deny the chemistry between them is as powerful as ever. But can a few searing kisses erase their past and pave the way for a second chance at true love?

70,000 words

Product Details

ISBN-13:	9781426894459
Publisher:	Carina Press
Publication date:	11/12/2012
Series:	Kowalskis
Sold by:	HARLEQUIN
Format:	eBook
Sales rank:	109,732
File size:	946 KB

About the Author

New York Times bestselling author Shannon Stacey lives with her husband and two sons in New England, where her favorite activities are writing stories of happily ever after and riding her four-wheeler. The Stacey family spends many weekends on their ATVs, making loads of muddy laundry to keep Shannon busy when she’s not at her computer. However, she prefers writing to laundry and considers herself lucky she got to be an author when she grew up. Visit her at ShannonStacey.com.

Read an Excerpt

Because hectic Monday mornings didn't suck enough all on their own merits, Lauren Carpenter managed to miss her lashes and apply mascara straight to her eyeball. Cursing and blinking, she groped for a tissue.

She wasn't sure why she bothered making herself up anyway. Over her years working as the entire office staff for the only insurance agent in town, she'd seen communications swing from office visits to phone calls and faxes and then to email. Entire days could go by without anybody but her boss actually stepping foot in the place.

It was the principle, she decided as she mopped up the damage and tried again. She'd long ago given up on giving a crap what anybody thought of her, but it made her feel good to look good. There was a limit, though, and she smiled as she shoved her feet into the battered leather loafers that were even older than Nick. Her feet were usually under her desk anyway.

Thinking of Nick, she glanced at her alarm clock and sighed. Morning battle to commence in three...two...

"Ma!" The bellow made her cringe.

She'd asked him not to shout at her from across the house even more times than she'd asked him not to call her Ma. Ma made her think of calico dresses and aprons and churning butter. It also made her feel old, and being the mother of a sixteen-year-old was reminder enough of that, thank you very much.

Lauren left her bedroom and went down the hall, purposely not glancing into the train wreck that was her son's room, fastening small pearl earrings as she walked. "Don't bellow, Nick."

"If I don't, you won't hear me."

He was in the kitchen, rummaging through his backpack at the table while a full bowl of cereal turned into mush on the counter. "You planning to eat your breakfast?"

Shrugging, Nick pulled a crumpled ball of paper out of his bag. "Yeah. You need to sign this."

"What is it?" She carried the bowl of cereal to the table and traded it for the paper. "Eat. The bus comes in five minutes."

When he kept his eyes down and shoved a heaping mound of cereal in his mouth, Lauren's stomach sank. Whatever the paper was, it wasn't good.

Physically, Nick took after Dean, her ex-husband. Nick's hair was darker than her blond and his eyes were a lighter brown. He'd gotten not only his dad's good looks, but his struggles in school, too.

It was a detention notice, assigned due to missing homework. "Nick, you've only had three weeks of school and you're slipping already?"

"I don't like the teacher," he mumbled around a mouthful of cereal.

"You don't have to like the teacher. You do have to do your homework." He shrugged and the nonverbal whatever was the straw that broke Monday morning's back. "I know which form I won't be signing and that's the driver's ed registration."

"But, Mom—"

"Save it. The bus is coming."

She signed the detention paper while he dumped his bowl in the sink, then watched him ball up the notice and shove it back in his pocket. The faint rumble of the bus came into earshot and he hefted his backpack.

"Walk straight home after detention," she said to the back of his head as he walked toward the front door. "And no video games."

"Uh-huh."

What People are Saying About This

From the Publisher

No one does contemporary romance like Stacey...Very highly recommended." —Library Journal on All He Ever Needed, starred review

"I'm madly in love with the Kowalskis!"- NewYork Times Bestselling author Nalini Singh

"Books like this are why I read romance."

- Smart Bitches, Trashy Books on Exclusively Yours

"Shannon Stacey's books deliver exactly what we need in contemporary romances.... I feel safe that every time I pick up a Stacey book I'm going to read something funny, sexy and loving." –Jane Litte of Dear Author on All He Ever Needed

Editorial Reviews

Stacey’s many existing fans—and likely new ones—will enjoy her second trip to tiny Whitford, Maine, and the ongoing romantic escapades of the Kowalski brothers (begun in All He Ever Needed). Single mother Lauren Carpenter is raising a teenage son, Nick, and wondering if she made a mistake years ago when she refused to run away with Ryan Kowalski. Ryan, her ex-husband’s former best friend and a building company owner, is back in town temporarily to help spruce up the Kowalski family’s lodge and business. After a chance meeting, Lauren discovers she’s still attracted to Ryan but isn’t sure how to proceed. When Nick is caught vandalizing the lodge, Lauren and Ryan are thrown together. Readers will enjoy revisiting other Kowalski family members, including previous protagonists Paige Sullivan and Mitch Kowalski, as Lauren and Ryan (and Nick) find their way to a happy ending. Agent: Kimberly Whalen, Trident Media Group. (Mar.)

Publishers Weekly

"No one does contemporary romance like Stacey...Very highly recommended." —Library Journal on All He Ever Needed, starred review

"I'm madly in love with the Kowalskis!"- NewYork Times Bestselling author Nalini Singh

"Books like this are why I read romance."
- Smart Bitches, Trashy Books on Exclusively Yours

"Shannon Stacey's books deliver exactly what we need in contemporary romances.... I feel safe that every time I pick up a Stacey book I'm going to read something funny, sexy and loving." –Jane Litte of Dear Author on All He Ever Needed

From the Publisher