Showing results by author "Leigh Duncan" in All Categories

Belle and her cousins have beautifully restored the Dane Crown Inn, and with it, their warm sisterly bond. But can they stay close with Aunt Margaret poised to sell their legacy?

Could a secret lost in the past be the key to saving the Dane Crown Inn?

Margaret Dane Clayton has spent her entire life at the Dane Crown Inn, the beautiful resort in the quiet beachside town of Emerald Bay. But the inn once hailed as the "gem of Florida's Treasure Coast" is showing its age, much like its fiercely independent owner. Margaret swears she'll keep the doors of the inn open forever—until an accident forces her to accept that she can no longer cater to guests on her own. After reaching the most difficult decision of her life, Margaret asks her daughter and nieces to grant her one final wish before she places the property on the market.

At forty-five, Michelle has a great life: a husband who loves her, two children on the fast track to success, a beautiful home in the rolling hills of Virginia, and three of the best friends a girl could ever want. But with the sudden death of Michelle’s husband of twenty-five years, her life turns upside down. Forced to sell their forever home and at odds with her children, Michelle faces a bleak future. Until an unexpected inheritance starts her on a path paved with bright possibilities.

As the Dane Crown Inn comes back to life, the women of Emerald Bay find that sometimes, in the midst of change, the most precious treasures are the bonds that hold a family together.

Reggie has life all mapped out. The husband she put through law school has just landed his first big case. He’ll probably make junior partner within the year. In no time at all, they’ll move out of their cramped apartment, pay off the bills from the fertility clinic, and buy a nice house in the suburbs, where they’ll raise a baby. Except life goes off course when Reggie’s husband walks out on their marriage the same day she receives the most devastating news. With her hopes and dreams for the future crumbling, Reggie turns to three of the best friends a girl could ever want.

It's Christmas at the Dane Crown Inn, and the much-needed renovations at the resort once known as "the gem of Florida's Treasure Coast" have been put on hold for the holidays. Amy Sommer Peterson and the rest of the family deck the halls with festive garland, decorate towering Christmas trees, and hang sparkling lights. When surprise guests arrive to share the season, everyone soon gathers in the kitchen to decorate cookies, sing Christmas carols, reminisce about the past, and make new memories. While the rest of the family celebrates, Amy faces a host of challenges.

At forty-five, Chef Nina has all but given up on her dream of having a kitchen of her very own. Once hailed as the fresh, new face on the restaurant scene, she saw her hopes for the future fall like an overbaked soufflé after the man she loved betrayed her and destroyed her reputation. Ten years later, Nina gets one more chance to make her dreams come true. While her friends convert a run-down beach house, Nina tests out new dishes for the Café at Sugar Sand Inn. But when rumors of Nina’s past threaten the Café, will diners patronize the restaurant she’s always wanted?

No matter where she lived, Kimberly Ann Dane considered the Dane Crown Inn her home. As a child, Kim looked forward to frequent visits to the inn, where she enjoyed building sand castles on Emerald Bay's sandy beaches, learning to cook in the inn's spacious kitchen, and hunting for buried treasure with her cousins. As she grew older, she paid her way through college by working summers and school holidays at the inn. It's no wonder that—divorced, at odds with her grown children, and hoping to make a fresh start—Kim returns to the one place she's always been welcomed with open arms.

Forty-five-year-old Erin has grown restless with her life, which is odd because she’s spent the past twenty years roaming the globe. Between summers in Alaska and winters in the Florida keys, she’s climbed the steps of Machu Picchu, hiked long sections of the Great Wall of China, and kayaked down the Amazon. Lately, though, Erin has felt the urge to put down roots, strengthen her neglected relationship with her sister, Reggie, and reconnect with her two best friends, Michelle and Nina.

A recovering addict faces the ultimate test when an old friend puts him through a terrifying ordeal. Two brave souls spend the night in a haunted house, only to emerge forever changed. And a cursed photographer goes to horrific lengths when their vision slowly decays.... Scare Street is proud to present a new collection of diabolical delights. Twelve nightmarish tales of terror lurk within this sinister tome. Each one is a treat for shivers and shrieks. And the only tricks you’ll find are the ones your mind plays on you as you feverishly listen to another minute.

Her entire life is based on a lie. Rocked by the discovery of a long-hidden family secret, high school teacher Meridith Robins embarks on an increasingly dangerous journey to uncover the truth about her past. Her efforts take her to the middle of the Amish countryside outside Lancaster, Pennsylvania where she infiltrates a harsh religious cult in order to meet its mysterious founder—her father. The ink has barely dried on Brad Lang’s medical license when yet another in a recent spate of troubling accidents lands newcomer Meridith on his exam table. Concerned for the raven-haired ...

Butterfly Kisses is the first book in The Orange Blossom series, the latest in heartwarming Women's Fiction from National Readers' Choice Award winner, Leigh Duncan. Justine Gale just got incredible news. The struggling single mom has inherited the flourishing citrus grove where she spent idyllic summers and formed lifelong friendships. Once on the fast track to success, Justine has recently learned her five-year-old daughter faces a lifetime of expensive medical treatments. Treatments, she can't afford. The decision to sell the land her family has owned for generations seems like the ...

Fresh Hope for Shattered Lives After her mother dies, Ann Maywood intends to tie up the loose ends of the debt-ridden family estate so she can return to Atlanta and her successful career in graphic design. First though, Ann must carry out Maggie’s last wish and help her younger brother and sister through the grieving process. A task that becomes nearly impossible when her sister blames Ann for their mother’s death, while their brilliant younger brother turns his back on the dreams the entire family has sacrificed so much to help him achieve. For all their sakes, Ann puts her life in ...

Though Colt Judd chafes to escape Glades County, the former rodeo star vows to maintain the traditions of the South Florida ranch following the death of his father. Her job as head cook gives widowed mom Emma Shane the chance to provide a permanent home for her daughter...until Colt swaggers into her domain. More than soup simmers in the kitchen while Colt and Emma work to recreate lost family recipes, but Emma guards against the man whose tumbleweed existence threatens both her heart and the stable life she wants to provide for her daughter.. Will the Circle P’s beautiful new cook tempt ...

Widower Garrett Judd only feels alive when he’s riding so close to the edge that the slightest wrong move will send him into spiraling into Hell-and-gone. Which is fine for him, but it’s no way to raise his infant son. Searching for peace to soothe his soul and heal his grief, Garrett and his baby boy head home to the South Florida ranch his family has worked for four generations. There, following in his father’s and his brothers’ boot steps as the manager of the Circle P, Garrett keeps his distance from everyone...including baby LJ. It’s only in the dead of the night that the ...

Sarah Bowen is trapped in Orange Blossom...and she’s desperate to escape. The day Sarah dropped her college-bound best friends off at the airport, she vowed to follow in their footsteps...soon. While she worked in her family’s pie shop and socked away every spare dime toward her expenses at a world-renowned culinary school, she dreamed of the day she’d become a famous chef and open her own restaurant. But Sarah’s plans have simmered on the back burner when one disaster after another delayed her plans. Her friends have established careers and started families while she remained ...

More than hooks and lines are in the lesson plans when an upcoming fishing trip with his new business partners forces a hunky thoracic surgeon to work hand-in-hand with a feisty fly fishing instructor. Dan Hamilton is a foster care success story who lives for the day he can help give kids stuck in “the system” a good start in life. His wildest dreams are finally within reach when Dan is asked to join in building an exclusive medical center on Florida’s east coast. Widowed Jessica Cofer wants little more than to help her young son grow into an honest man and preserve the natural beauty...

Travis Oak dreamed of making it into The Show before three broken ribs ended his career as a pitcher. Now relegated to the sidelines, Travis teaches Phys Ed while he waits for his next chance to make it into the major leagues—this time as a coach. He gets a rare a chance to mold raw talent when a fight at his school forces widowed mom Courtney Smith to choose between expulsion or Little League for ten-year-old Josh. There’s just one problem. The slim blonde with a baby on one hip and desperation in her blue eyes doesn’t want anything to do with baseball...or the men who play it. To ...

Will the scars of the past trample any hope they have of a future together?Former rodeo sensation Amanda Markette is about to face the ride of her life. She’s hung up her spurs and is now blazing a trail across a new frontier: a career in family law. Yet her resolve is shaken when she discovers that her new client’s ex-husband is none other than her childhood flame, the rugged and steadfast Mitch Godwin. Far more comfortable prosecuting criminals than defending himself in family court, Mitch is determined to win full custody of the daughter he’s single-handedly raised for the past ...