Breathless (Seven Brides Seven Brothers Pelican Bay Book 1) Read online

  Table of Contents

  Prologue

  Chapter One

  Chapter Two

  Chapter Three

  Chapter Four

  Chapter Five

  Chapter Six

  Chapter Seven

  Chapter Eight

  Chapter Nine

  Chapter Ten

  Epilogue

  Coming Soon

  Breathless

  Belle Calhoune

  Private Investigator, Parker Donahue, gets a blast from the past when his ex-girlfriend, Cadence, walks back into his life with an urgent request. It’s been three years since Cadence broke his heart by unceremoniously dumping him. Now, she wants his help in getting her son back after he’s abducted by her ruthless ex-husband. Seeing Cadence again rocks Parker’s world and reignites feelings he’s tried to stuff down over the past few years. Having the love of his life back in his orbit forces him to face the fact that he’s never gotten over her. And he fears he never will.

  Three years ago Cadence Johnson sacrificed herself in a bid to save the man she loved from a a dangerous threat. Now, with her son kidnapped by her ex-husband, she turns to Parker to help her locate him. Being in Parker’s presence reminds Cadence of everything she lost when she ended things with Parker. But she fears Parker won’t ever truly forgive her for the pain she caused him in the past.

  Can Parker and Cadence work through the betrayals of the past and reignite their love story

  Dedication:

  For everyone who has ever read one of my Seven Brides Seven Brothers books and asked for more brothers, cousins, mothers and fathers. This is for you!

  Dear Reader,

  Thank you for joining me on this spin-off series from my original Seven Brides, Seven Brothers series featuring the Donahue brothers of Breeze Point, Cape Cod. This series features the Donahue cousins of Pelican Bay, Florida. The eight Donahue cousins…Parker, Jason, Daniel, Micah, Caleb, Heath, Nash and Shayla. Each of them has their own path in life and in love. They are loving, faith-driven siblings who experience life, romance, loss, heartache and triumphs. This debut story features Parker Donahue, the oldest of the siblings. Parker is a Private Investigator who owns his own agency. Cadence—his ex-girlfriend—is a loving woman who has made a lot of sacrifices for the man she loves. Although she is regretful about some of her choices, Cadence knows her heart—her intentions were always pure.

  At one point (perhaps in A Man Loves a Woman) I alluded to Penelope Donahue being terminally ill with cancer. Since that time, I have lost my own brother due to terminal cancer. I decided to change her situation, because it would have been incredibly hard to write that storyline after living it. So instead I opted for a different story for the couple. Penelope and Jude Donahue will face another challenge in their life as a married couple. This is a very real problem that many couples face in life. I hope you root for them as they travel through this storm.

  I hope you enjoy this romantic journey of the soul. More Pelican Bay books to follow.

  Blessings,

  Belle

  About the author:

  Belle Calhoune grew up in a small town in Massachusetts as one of five children. Growing up across the street from a public library was a huge influence on her life and fueled her love of romance novels. Belle is the author of seven Harlequin Love Inspired novels with three more to be published in the next year. She has Indie published the popular and best-selling inspirational romance series, Seven Brides, Seven Brothers. Her latest indie series, the Secrets of Savannah is a spin-off of her debut series. Belle loves writing romance and crafting happily-ever-afters. When she’s not wrangling her two high maintenance dogs or spending time with her husband and two daughters, Belle enjoys travel, classic films and exploring new places.

  Copyright 2017 by Belle Calhoune

  All Rights reserved. No part of this book may be reproduced or transmitted in any form or by any electronic or mechanical means, including photocopying, recording or by any information storage and retrieval system, without the written permission of the publisher and author, except where permitted by law.

  Cover by Elizabeth Mackey

  http://www.elizabethmackeygraphics.com/

  A few of Belle’s books:

  Secrets of Savannah Series:

  Book One: Till the End of Time

  http://www.amazon.com/dp/B017L5ZPCE

  Book Two: A Moment in the Moonlight

  http://www.amazon.com/dp/B01AARG24A

  Book Three: The Last Kiss

  http://www.amazon.com/dp/B01C1WIPAG

  Book Four: For Love Alone (Morgan and Luke)

  http://www.amazon.com/dp/B01GEE5Q8G

  Book Five: Falling in Love (Charlotte and Marc)

  http://www.amazon.com/dp/B01LYTVT4N

  Seven Brides, Seven Brothers Series:

  Book One: The Way Home

  http://www.amazon.com/dp/B00KTCBXSC

  Book Two: Still the One

  http://www.amazon.com/dp/B00M0EUU22

  Book Three: Until You Loved Me

  http://www.amazon.com/dp/B00N15TPFC

  Book Four: Love Me Tender

  http://www.amazon.com/dp/B00OFAVB1I

  Book Five: If only in my dreams

  http://www.amazon.com/dp/B00R6U2PZK

  Book Six: Baby It’s You

  http://www.amazon.com/dp/B00VZ3FCB8

  Book Seven: When A Man Loves A Woman

  http://www.amazon.com/dp/B011J6ZTE0

  PREQUEL: WHEN YOU BELIEVE

  http://www.amazon.com/dp/B00T52CK1G

  Table of Contents

  Prologue

  Chapter One

  Chapter Two

  Chapter Three

  Chapter Four

  Chapter Five

  Chapter Six

  Chapter Seven

  Chapter Eight

  Chapter Nine

  Chapter Ten

  Epilogue

  Coming Soon

  Prologue:

  Parker Donahue paced back and forth in the dining room of his house. Over and over again he recited the words he’d been practicing for weeks now.

  “Cadence, will you make me the happiest man in the world?” He ran his hand across his jaw. “Cadence, will you make me a happy man?” He let out a groan. So far, he hadn’t gotten it right once. He was a stumbling, bumbling mess. Perhaps he should just take the ring out of the box and let her figure out the rest.

  Lord, please give me a hint of grace, he prayed. Please let me speak from the heart.

  “You better take it easy. You’re going to have a heart attack before you even have a chance to pop the question.” His brother Jason stood a few feet away from him, his handsome brown face lit up with merriment. With his chiseled features and amiable smile, Jason was the type of man who turned female heads wherever he went. Having light, caramel-colored eyes and an athletic build didn’t hurt either.

  For quite some time now—ever since he had been on his path to sobriety—Jason had steered clear of relationships. Parker respected him for focusing on staying clean rather than on romance. Jason wasn’t just Parker’s brother—he was his best friend. The one who knew all of his secrets and his worst nightmares. The good Lord had blessed him with seven siblings—four adopted and three biological—and he loved them all dearly. He could honestly say that he forgot sometimes who was adopted and who wasn’t, even though there were clear differences amongst them—height, skin color, temperament. Parker could honestly say Jason was his spiritual twin.

  Parker held out his hand. It was trembling. As a PI, Parker didn’t waver. He wasn’t a fearful
man. In his professional life he’d dealt with many forms of evil. He’d battled wife beaters, cheaters, tax dodgers, megalomaniacs, pyromaniacs. You name it. Parker had investigated it. But love was the one thing that made Parker’s hands tremble. And he was crazy about Cadence Johnson, the woman he loved beyond all reason. The woman he was proposing to tonight.

  “Get it right,” he urged himself. “She’s worth it.”

  “Of course she’s worth it. You’ll definitely be marrying up,” Jason quipped. The corners of his brother’s mouth twitched with merriment.

  Parker grinned. “She’s pretty fantastic, isn’t she?”

  Jason grinned. “You’ve got that right! She’s the whole package. Looks, intelligence, a sense of humor. And loads of compassion.” Jason shook his head. “Too bad she doesn’t have a sister.”

  “Ha!” Parker said with a chuckle. “You’re a sworn bachelor, remember?”

  Jason stroked his chin. “I might reconsider under the right circumstances.”

  Parker grinned at Jason. His brother worked for him at Donahue Investigations. He was working his way toward becoming a full-fledged Private Investigator. Jason was a recovering addict. He had been drug free for two years. He’d been through hell and back with his addiction, and the entire Donahue family had been put through the ringer right along with him. Jason was doing well at the moment, but it was a battle he would be fighting for the rest of his life. Parker admired his courage and conviction. At his lowest moment, Jason had turned his life over to God and admitted he was helpless against his addiction. He’d been living with Parker for the last two years and rebuilding his life.

  The sound of footsteps heralded the arrival of their younger brother, Micah. With his dark head of hair and blue eyes, Micah was striking. And he always had been, ever since he came into the world. As a baby, strangers had stopped their mother Penelope on the street to comment about Micah’s curls and his azure colored eyes. As an adult, Micah had parlayed those good looks into a successful modeling career.

  “Are we done here, yet?” Micah let out a huge sigh. “Frankly, this is the girliest thing I’ve ever done.”

  Jason let out a snort. “Spoken by a super model.”

  “Right?” Parker said with a chuckle. “I can think of at least ten more girly things you do on a photo shoot.”

  Micah held up his hand. “Okay. Okay. I misspoke. Seriously though. Are we done here? I have a date.”

  “You always have a date,” Daniel said with a frown, appearing in the entryway with a basket of rose petals in his arms. Tall and serious looking, Daniel had probably never dealt with a rose petal in his life. He’d been strewing them all over the carpet in the living room. All the while he’d had a perplexed expression on his face. As the owner of a multi-million-dollar computer company, Daniel tended to focus more on his business than on his personal life. It drove their mother crazy. “How am I ever going to get grandbabies?” was one of her favorite questions. Parker wasn’t so sure she should hold her breath waiting on Daniel. He hadn’t had a girlfriend in forever.

  Micah grinned at him. “We can’t all be as work-oriented as you are, Daniel. Remember, even the Lord rested on the seventh day.”

  Jason, Parker and Micah all chuckled.

  “How did Nash and Heath get out of helping?” Micah asked, referencing two other brothers.

  “Stop grumbling,” their sister Shayla said as she walked in from the kitchen and deposited a big bouquet of flowers on the dining room table. With her honey blond hair and gray-blue eyes, Shayla was beautiful. Being the baby of the family and the only girl made her the jewel in the Donahue family crown. She had the luxury of having seven brothers who would catch a bullet for her in a heartbeat. Parker pitied the man who fell in love with Shayla and wanted to get serious with her. He would have to walk a gauntlet of seven warriors in order to win the princess.

  She was in school at the moment working toward her degree in education. Everyone in the family knew Shayla would make a wonderful teacher one day.

  A heavenly smell drifted from the kitchen. Parker closed his eyes and inhaled deeply. His brother Caleb was a chef-bistro owner and he was preparing a sumptuous meal for him and Cadence. Sometimes it took a village, he realized, to make a wonderful impression on the woman of your dreams. Parker couldn’t even express in mere words how grateful he felt for siblings who would go the distance for him. He couldn’t thank his parents enough for blessing him with a large, bustling family. It came in handy during moments like this.

  Caleb poked his head around the doorway leading to the kitchen. “I’m almost done. The chicken piccata is on the stove. I’m just waiting for some cornbread in the oven. I made a Greek salad with a special dressing. It’s sitting on the counter. And there’s Tiramisu settling in the fridge.” He winked at Parker. “Not to mention a celebratory bottle of champagne is chilling in an ice bucket.”

  “You’re amazing, Caleb,” Shayla said, moving toward her older brother and planting a kiss on his cheek.

  Parker walked over and clapped him on the shoulder. “You’re one in a million,” he said. “I can’t thank you enough.”

  Caleb grinned. “No thanks needed. After everything you’ve done to help me get my Bistro up and running, I’m the one who owes you a debt of gratitude.”

  “We’re family,” Jason added. “We help each other out whenever or wherever it’s needed. Donahue strong!”

  All of the siblings repeated the family motto in unison. No matter what challenges they faced, the Donahue family knew the importance of staying strong and holding fast to their faith. It was the staple of their family unit.

  Jason rubbed his hands together and looked at Caleb. “Are you giving out any samples?”

  Caleb frowned. “It’s dinner for two, Jason. There are no samples.” The sound of a timer went off. Caleb raced back into the kitchen.

  Parker took a quick glance at his watch. “You guys better scoot. Cadence will be here in fifteen minutes. I’d like her to think I did all of this by myself.”

  Shayla rolled her eyes. “She’ll never believe that,” she said with a giggle, reaching out and giving Parker a hug. “Good luck with everything.” She winked at him. “Not that you need it. Cadence adores you.”

  Parker placed a kiss on his sister’s temple. “Thanks, Shay. I can’t wait to put this ring on her finger.” He patted his pocket.

  “I’ll be back later on,” Jason said. “Probably not till eleven o’clock or so.” He winked at his brother. “I don’t want to mess up the romantic vibe.”

  Parker smiled. “We should be finished with our celebration by then.”

  “And you’ll have a fiancé,” said Micah, clapping him on the back.

  “And I’ll be engaged,” Parker said with a nod. Engaged. The mere word caused adrenaline to rush through his veins.

  Parker watched as his siblings filed out of his house. Although it had been great to have them all here, he couldn’t deny the fact that the absence of his best friend, Keith, gutted him. Friends since high school, Keith had been killed in a terrible car accident four months earlier. Parker still felt slightly responsible since Keith had borrowed his car the evening of the crash. Parker missed his best friend like crazy. Not a day went by when Parker didn’t pray for his family and his wife, Claire.

  He ran a hand through his hair. He couldn’t believe by the end of the evening he’d be an engaged man. From the moment he’d met Cadence, Parker had known she was the one. Every time he gazed into her blue-green eyes, Parker saw his future reflected there. She was his sweet inspiration. Parker couldn’t imagine loving a woman more than he loved and adored Cadence.

  He chuckled at the memory of their first meeting. Parker had been convinced that Cadence was a spoiled brat raised with a silver spoon in her mouth. Parker had been out to dinner with friends at a local restaurant situated by the marina. When Cadence walked in to the outside dining area with a group of women, she’d caused heads to turn due to her stunning good looks. With
her designer clothes and the way she’d strutted in like a model on a catwalk, a buzz accompanied her entrance. Parker had watched from across the terrace as several men approached her at her table. Each one was rejected. He couldn’t help but think she was one of those women who liked to give men the brush off.

  As they left that evening, Parker had received a wake-up call when he’d spotted Cadence picking up a to-go meal and then handing it over to a homeless man on the corner. He had watched her from the street as she engaged the man in a conversation, then handed the food over. He’d felt ashamed of himself for making such a snap judgement about the woman. It hadn’t been fair or righteous of him. Because of her beauty, the attention she’d received and her attire, he’d summed her up unfairly. On impulse, he’d walked over and introduced himself. He’d invited her to go for coffee with him at his family’s diner—the Silver Spoon—and she’d surprisingly agreed. The rest was history.

  Although Cadence was the daughter of a wealthy businessman, Garrett Johnson, her father had fallen on hard times, which led Cadence to strike out on her own to support herself. She had been working full-time as a receptionist in a realty office and working hard to make ends meet.

  When the doorbell rang some twenty minutes later, heralding Cadence’s arrival, Parker felt a loud thumping in the region of his heart. He took a deep breath as he walked toward the front door and pulled it open. He exhaled as soon as he laid eyes on his lady. She was dressed in a royal blue dress that fit her like a dream. Her hair hung invitingly around her shoulders. Parker had to stop himself from staring. Cadence always pulled him in like a magnet. He imagined she always would.

  “Come on in, Cadence.” Parker invited her in, pulling her in for a kiss as she walked inside. The smell of her rose to his nostrils—a light sandalwood scent. It was her signature perfume—heady and intoxicating. For a second she felt stiff in his arms. He stared down at her, trying to figure out if she’d had a bad day at work. Her face looked tense. There were slight shadows resting under her eyes.