Christmas in Magnolia Cove Read online

  Christmas In Magnolia Cove

  Chapter 1

  Chapter 2

  Chapter 3

  Chapter 4

  Chapter 5

  Chapter 6

  Chapter 7

  Chapter 8

  Chapter 9

  Chapter 10

  Chapter 11

  Chapter 12

  Chapter 13

  Chapter 14

  Chapter 15

  Chapter 16

  Chapter 17

  Christmas In

  Magnolia Cove

  by Rachel Hanna

  www.RachelHannaRomance.com

  Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/rachelhannaromance

  Please connect with me on Facebook so we can chat!

  Twitter: @RachelHannaBook

  Connect with me!

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

  The scanning, uploading, and/or distribution of this book via the internet or any other means without the prior written permission of the author is illegal and punishable by law.

  All characters are fictitious and not based upon any real person, alive or dead.

  Copyright Rachel Hanna 2012

  Chapter 1

  Madison Carter was known for many things. Her long red hair, her crystal clear blue eyes, and her gift at interior design were just a few of them. Known in Atlanta to be the premier interior designer, clients had been clamoring for her for several years.

  At twenty eight years old, she was further ahead in her career than most people she knew from back home in Magnolia Cove. Growing up in the north Georgia mountains hadn’t always been fun for her. She rarely visited her hometown anymore because it brought back some painful memories of being bullied in school.

  She had left that world behind, and her life was exciting to her now. As she drove to her next appointment, she felt a surge of pride at how she had transformed herself from a shy, bullied kid into a successful, financially stable interior design superstar. Being engaged to the dashing and sought-after Connor Strickland didn’t hurt either.

  Connor had proposed to her last Valentine’s Day. They hadn’t set a date just yet, but she told herself that was just because he was so busy with his real estate investing career. With the holiday season coming, they would have plenty of time to discuss their wedding plans.

  Madison’s thoughts were interrupted by the ring of her cell phone.

  “Madison Carter,” she answered in her typical professional tone, devoid of her Southern accent.

  “Madison, darling, I am so sorry that Carlton and I must cancel our appointment with you today. Our dog, Wellsley, is so sick that we must take him to our vet,” the overdone voice of Cicely Crawford drawled on the other end of the phone. Madison had been chasing the Crawfords as clients for weeks now, so to hear that her long-awaited appointment with them was canceled was very upsetting to her. At the same time, she knew not to ruffle their feathers because they were the center of the Atlanta social scene.

  “Not to worry, Cicely. We can just reschedule for next week, alright?” Madison said as she pulled off to the side of the road to look at her calendar.

  Once she had confirmed her new appointment time with Cicely, Madison realized that she had some time to kill. Her next appointment wasn’t until four o’clock. She decided that preparing a romantic dinner for Connor would be the best course of action. She stopped by the grocery store to get some wine and ingredients for a fabulous dinner.

  Connor had been working a lot lately. The real estate market in Atlanta had taken a tumble in recent years, but Connor was well versed in taking lemons and turning them into lemonade. He commonly bought fixer-upper properties and rehabbed them, with Madison coming in on the back end to do the interior design. They made a great team in Madison’s mind.

  As Madison pulled into the driveway of the cozy Atlanta cottage-style house that they shared, she noticed that Connor’s car was in the driveway. It was unusual for him to be home during the middle of the day. He was usually at a real estate closing, walk-through, or some other kind of meeting. She thought it odd that he had not called her, but he also didn’t know that her schedule had changed. For all he knew, she was deep in negotiations with the Crawfords right now.

  In an effort to surprise him, she quietly unlocked the front door and tiptoed through the living room. The house was silent until she made her way down the hall to the master bedroom. Hearing what sounded like groans, she pushed on the cracked master bedroom door.

  Madison’s heart sank as she stood there frozen, watching Connor make love to another woman. She was busty and blond - exactly the opposite of Madison. Both of them were naked, and the woman was straddling him in their bed.

  In. Their. Bed.

  How could he do this? Madison stood there for several moments watching them. She knew that she shouldn’t, but she could not force herself to speak. Her legs would not move. Her lungs felt like they were full of molasses as she watched the woman rock up and down while her fiancé and boyfriend of five years grinned from ear to ear.

  “Connor,” was all that Madison was finally able to utter. Standing with her mouth gaping open and tears streaming from her eyes, she stared at the couple in her bed.

  “Oh, gosh, Madison…” Connor said quickly sitting up as the woman covered herself with sheets next to him.

  “In our bed? Seriously?” Madison finally forced herself to say as she slowly walked into the room.

  “Madison, I was going to talk to you…” Connor stammered as he reached for his underwear on the side table and slid them on.

  “Talk to me? What were you going to talk to me about exactly? Were you going to ask me if it was okay to screw some random slut in our bed? Because my answer would have been no, in case you were wondering…” she said sarcastically.

  “Don’t call her a slut, Madison,” he said with a glare as he located his shirt and jeans on the floor.

  Madison’s blue eyes had glints of fire shooting from them as she glared at Connor. Had he just defended this naked tramp?

  “Are you defending her?” Madison asked with a scowl.

  “You don’t know the situation. That’s why we need to talk,” he said pushing her back out of the bedroom and down the hallway as he struggled to pull his jeans back on.

  Madison stood in the living room of her home, and suddenly nothing looked familiar to her. Everything that she thought they had was gone. Twisting the one carat diamond ring he gave her around on her finger, which had become a habit, made her stomach churn.

  Staring blankly at Connor, she waited for answers. She wanted some magical response that would make this all go away. She wanted to feel better, to rewind to fifteen minutes ago, to never have seen what she saw. Would it have been better to have stayed in the dark? She sank down onto the sofa. He finally got completely dressed again, which was a good thing since she had toyed with the idea of grabbing a pair of scissors and...

  “Madison, I want out.” His words seared her like a branding iron. Her heart was beating wildly in her chest as she continued looking at him. “Getting engaged was the wrong thing to do. I was getting pressure from my parents to get married, and I made a bad decision…”

  “You think of me… of us… as a ‘bad decision’?” she asked. “How long has this been going on? And don’t lie to me!”

  “For a few months.”

  “A few months? In our bed?”

  “Sometimes.” Connor was unapologetic and honest. Why hadn’t he been honest before?

  “Why didn’t you just te
ll me? Why lead me on?”

  “I didn’t want to hurt you, Madison,” he said trying to reach out and touch her arm. She pulled back and balled her fist.

  “Don’t you touch me, you piece of crap! Did you think it wouldn’t hurt me to walk in and see her riding you in our bed?” she asked standing up with tears returning to her eyes.

  “I had no idea you would be here. I thought you had a meeting…”

  “Oh, well, that makes it all better then,” she said through gritted teeth. She took the ring off of her finger and put it on the coffee table. “I want you to leave so that I can pack my things and get the hell out of here tomorrow.”

  “Okay. That’s fair…” he said looking down.

  “None of this is fair, Connor. We had something great for a long time, and I deserved better than this. I’m just glad I found out what a sorry piece of crap you were before I married you.”

  Before he could respond, the blond woman slowly walked down the hallway.

  “Sweetie, I am going to be late getting back to work, so can you take me?” She made sure to look at Connor and avoid eye contact with Madison. As a redhead with piercing blue eyes, Madison could look scary when she wanted.

  “You know, you are something else, woman. What kind of skank are you? Do you just go around sleeping with random men?” Madison was now in her face.

  “Connor and I have known each other for years, actually. He loves me,” she said smiling at him.

  “Love?” Madison swung around and looked at Connor.

  “Yes, love. Melissa and I have known each other since we were in college. We ran into each other a few months ago at an investor’s meeting. I’m sorry to hurt you, Madison, but I love Melissa…” he said as he stood and put his arm around the woman.

  “Get out. Both of you. And don’t come back here until after lunch tomorrow. I will be gone by then.” She wouldn’t look at either of them as they walked out the front door.

  Madison slumped down onto the sofa where she and Connor had made love many times. As she looked around the room, the memories hit her like bricks. She had to get out of the house and out of the city for awhile, and she knew just where to go.

  Chapter 2

  Magnolia Cove had been both a blessing and a curse to Madison over the years. When she was a young child, her small world had meant everything to her. As her car pulled into the town square, she felt a sense of peace mixed with anxiety come over her. The last time she’d left here her heart was broken. Now, she had come back with yet another broken heart.

  The mountains surrounded the small town, and nothing looked any different than it had the thousands of times she had walked those sidewalks in her youth. The shops all looked the same, which was comforting in a weird sort of way.

  Madison made her way through the town and off onto a side street that led up the side of a mountain. Her family farm was nestled in the cove, and she could see it as she drove up the steep incline. The house, a large white Victorian, held many memories from her childhood. Her first big birthday party with friends. Her mother’s fresh baked apple pies on Sunday after church. Playing hide-and-go-seek with her older sister, Samantha.

  It also held some upsetting memories. Coming home from school after being bullied for her red hair and scorching blue eyes. Getting off the bus while listening to kids sing, “I’d rather be dead than have red on my head.” And, to top it all off, her father’s death when she was sixteen years old.

  She would never forget coming home from school one day to find her father lying in the field under one of the apple trees. He had died from a heart attack at only forty-seven years old. Madison was devastated and insisted on her mother having the tree cut down. In its place, they had erected a small concrete cross which came into full view as she pulled into the long, gravel driveway.

  Madison stopped her car for a moment as she stared ahead at the house and the rolling hills of apple trees in front of her. At one point in her life, she had been expected to stay behind and help run the family farm as every child had done for generations before her. But, she couldn’t. She had bigger dreams at the time, one of which was to get the heck away from the bullies at school.

  As soon as she graduated, she took off to Atlanta to attend college. She wanted to build a better life and a new reputation. She almost dyed her red hair just to blend in better with other girls in her college classes, but then she realized that others thought her hair was beautiful. It had taken her years to believe them because her damaged adolescent brain had convinced her she was ugly.

  Interior design had come naturally to her. She had loved fashion and architecture magazines even as a young kid. They were hard to find in the stores of Magnolia Cove, but when she got to go to Atlanta on occasion, she would always beg to stop at the local stores to buy magazines.

  Now, here she sat in front of her family home wondering if she had made a mistake. Her mom and sister had no idea she was coming, and her sister would certainly rub in her misfortune with Connor. She held resentment at Madison for leaving home and, as she saw it, abandoning her family.

  Inching ever closer, Madison drove the car up the front of the house and got out. She took her bags and purse and walked up the front steps. As she knocked, her stomach churned at the thought of where her life had taken her. Why had she run home at the first sign of trouble in Atlanta?

  “Madison!” her mother screeched as she opened the door. She threw her arms open and Madison sank into them. Madison’s mother, Diane, was a typical Southern mom. She had always stayed at home, running the farm and the small retail store adjoining it. She was a gentile woman and a fabulous cook.

  “Mom…” Madison said in a tone that worried her mother. She pulled back and saw a tear running down her cheek.

  “Oh, Madison, what’s wrong?” her mother asked as she pulled her toward a small bench in the foyer and sat her down. “Tell me, honey.”

  “Connor cheated on me. I walked in and saw him…”

  “Say no more. I understand what you mean, Maddie.” Diane was a very proper woman who did not want to hear her daughter discuss sex or anything even remotely related to it.

  “I wasn’t going to tell you what I saw, Mom. For goodness sakes,” Madison said shaking her head.

  “What did he say… when you caught him?”

  “Well, he said he was sorry, but that he was in love with this other woman. They had been doing it for months… in our bed.”

  Madison knew that her mother would cringe at the comment “our bed” since she did not believe Madison should have ever moved in with Connor. The thought of a man and woman living together outside of marriage was very upsetting to Diane.

  “I am so sorry, Maddie,” her mother said as she sat down and wrapped her arms around her. Although Madison’s mother didn’t agree with her choices sometimes, she never said a word. She was just a good, supportive mother, which Madison greatly appreciated at times like these.

  “Well, well, well… You’ve chosen to grace us with your presence. To what do we owe this honor?” Samantha scowled as she walked into the foyer.

  “Sam, don’t do that. Your sister is devastated,” Diane snipped.

  “It’s okay, Mother. I am used to her treating me like crap when I come home,” Madison said rolling her eyes.

  “Girls! This is not the time. I won’t have it.” Diane was a force to be reckoned with when she wanted. The girls looked at her and then at each other. Their mother had made it clear that she did not want them arguing and wasn’t going to put up with it. She had often looked at them that way as children when they fought with each other. They had become close as teenagers until Madison decided to leave town after high school.

  “I think I will just head up to my room and have a little alone time, if you don’t mind, Mom…” Madison said as she got to her feet.

  “Sure, honey. Whatever you need. We will be having dinner in a few hours, so I will call you down for that.”

  Madison brushed past her sister with
out making eye contact and took her bags from the foyer. She walked upstairs and into her childhood bedroom. It still looked much the same because her mother had always hoped that she would come back home from Atlanta.

  The pink comforter and puffy window valances were still as she left them. A shaggy white rug had been added at some point, and all of her books were still on her shelf. She felt pretty big as a twenty eight year old woman in the bedroom of a teenager. Again her mind vacillated between good memories and not so good ones.

  She ran her hand along the molding that bordered her closet doors. She could see small marks that her mother had made as she grew taller. They stopped when she was sixteen. A lot had stopped when her father died. Gone were the big family dinners that he loved on Sundays as her mother was forced to work harder around the farm. Gone was the relationship with her sister once she decided that farm life wasn’t for her.

  When high school ended, Madison just wanted to leave. Although she loved her mother, she knew there had to be more out there. And she was right. Atlanta had been good to her. She’d met new friends, and people respected her opinion. Her business was thriving, and she thought that she had been in a deep and meaningful relationship.