Lynn Hubbard, Romance Author

Excerpt:

Amelia stood at the end of the platform waiting impatiently for her luggage to be unloaded. A cool breeze swept by and she inhaled the fresh air. It felt marvelous to be free from the stifling compartment. Spotting one of her bags, she grabbed it, slung it over her shoulder with the strap, and waited for her suitcases. Amelia frowned as she saw them tossed haphazardly and land hard on the ground. Annoyed she marched up grabbing them by the handle. Her arms burned as she awkwardly lifted the heavy bags. Gritting her teeth, she waddled away with her load.

Her father had loaded the bags earlier so she was not aware of the sheer weight of them. In hindsight she wondered if she really needed all of the things she had packed. She heard a soft click and suddenly felt her burden lighten. Looking down she saw a pile of her things strewn out on the dirt as one of the locks had given way.

With muttered curses she flung down her load and started to collect her belongings. Seeing her plight, a passerby hurried over to assist her. He grabbed a handful of lace and she looked up at him appalled. Recognizing his features as the man who accosted her on the train she hissed.

“Would you please give me my bloomers? I do not need your help.”

Chase looked down at the limp ruffles in his hand and was glad that his hat and dark skin hid most of his reddening face. He tossed it into the suitcase and stammered out his apologies.

“Sorry ma’am. About what happened on the train; I wasn’t quite awake.”

She looked up at him from her knelling position and he looked down upon her beautiful porcelain face framed with luminous hair and set off by her deep blue eyes. How the hell did he ever mistake her for a banshee?

“Let’s start over.” He held out his hand to her. “Chase Stafford.”

Instead of grasping his hand, she frowned at him as she climbed to her feet dusting the street off her skirt. Still eyeing him warily, she grudgingly held out her own hand as the qualities her father tried to instill upon his children took hold. She felt her own face flushing as his large warm hand engulfed hers and she pulled away a bit reluctantly.

“I’m Amelia, Amelia Lovett.”

“Lovett? Are you any relation to Sabrina?”

“Yes, she’s my cousin. I’m headed to her wedding.”

Chase laughed out loud. A rumble that made Amelia’s body tingle. “So am I, She’s marrying my brother, Brock.”

“May God help her.” Amelia murmured to herself as she again knelt to finish stuffing her once neat belongings back into her bag. Why was fate so cruel to her? Well she guessed it was Sabrina’s problem that she marrying into an insane family. To tell the truth, the others all seemed very kind. Just Chase had issues. Maybe too much sun she thought noticing his darker skin.

She allowed him to help repack her suitcase and he grumbled when he had to hold it down while she redid the clasp.

“Do you really need all of this stuff?”

“Yes.”

“How the heck did you get this locked before?”

“I sat on it.”

Chase snorted as he carefully removed the pressure; he was relieved when it remained shut. However, he continued to eye it warily as if it would spring open at any moment.

The train whistled again and he cursed as he hurried over to retrieve his families’ baggage before it left the station. He was relieved to see they had already been unloaded and stacked on the platform. There was only a small trunk and a saddle bag with his belongings. Grabbing them both, he made his way back over to Amelia who was watching him.

She blushed as he looked down to meet her eyes. He perfectly balanced the trunk on his shoulder and held it securely with one hand as he walked over to her and lifted her largest bag with his free hand. Wow he’s strong she thought.