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The Wildwood Sisters by Mandy Magro

The past Renee Wildwood once ran from still haunts her…

Nine years ago, Renee’s twin sister Scarlet went missing. In the threatening aftermath, seventeen-year-old Renee was forced out of her home at Wildwood Acres, leaving her family and her boyfriend behind. Although the case has long gone cold, every day Renee hopes the person responsible will be found. She has since made a new life for herself in the city but when fate intervenes, a family emergency forces her to face up to her fears and her painful memories. But can she go back to Wildwood Acres, the one place her heart yearns to be but where her life may be in grave danger?

Dylan Anderson has never quite got over the loss of his first love, Renee Wildwood, who left him without a word. He’s now a single father trying to make it on his own after the tragic death of his wife, and his cattle property is struggling financially. Against all odds he’s taking steps to get his life back on track, starting with a new job. But how will he feel when he finds Renee, the girl who stole his heart, is back at Wildwood Acres? Will he ever be able to forgive her?

Exclusive excerpt from The Wildwood Sisters by Mandy Magro

It was just past midnight. Renee stood in front of her bathroom mirror, defeated, deflated and miserable. Peeling the spaghetti straps from her shoulders, her Swarovski studded Louis Vuitton dress slid effortlessly from her body. Tia was certainly right, she had lost weight—the pressure of her job and the countless hours she spent doing it were taking a toll. Black rings circled her eyes, eyes that were bloodshot and glassy from crying—she hadn’t been able to hold in the tears after she’d gotten off the phone to her pa, and mascara stained her cheeks from where they had fallen like a river.

As she’d predicted, her date had begged to come inside with her but she had declined, saying she was way too tired for company—besides, what kind of man would still press for sex after the heartbreaking phone call she’d received less than an hour ago?

The lack of depth of these city blokes was driving her round the bend. She’d always dreamed of finding the kind of love that would make her heart race and her toes curl, while leaving her blissfully breathless—the type of love she’d felt so briefly, yet poignantly, once before—but the last few guys she’d dated were making her doubt her faith in a happily ever after.

With her pa’s words swirling around in her mind, her tears began to fall once more, her deep sobs breaking the silence of her one bedroom apartment.

Her beautiful nan, the woman that had always been there for her, now needed her to be there, and so did her pa. He had tried to reassure her that Nan was going to be okay, but Renee was finding it hard to believe him. What if he was just saying that to stop her coming home? What if she didn’t go back and Nan died before she got to tell her to her face how much she loved her? Life could be really cruel—after what she had been through in her lifetime she knew just how damn cruel it could be. She couldn’t bear the thought of losing her nan, not now, not ever. She needed to find the courage to return to Wildwood Acres, but even after nine years of being away, the note she’d found on her windscreen—the one that had made her skip town so suddenly—still haunted her, and the thought of the nightmares starting all over again overwhelmed her.

Smacking her open palm down on the marble vanity, she swore loudly. She was tired of letting fear run her life, and fed up with forever feeling as though she was treading dangerous waters with her lips just above the surface.

Pa was nearing seventy. With his long-time sidekick Mick recovering from a freak accident, and Nan in hospital, she knew he could use an extra hand around the place, be it in the saddle or around the homestead. Not that Stanley Wildwood was going to admit that to her. His fears about her returning home overshadowed any desire for her to ever go back.

But I have to.

Renee closed her eyes and breathed in deeply, turning back the clock in her mind to the days when her future seemed full of endless possibilities. She had spent the first seventeen years of her life at Wildwood Acres and there were many happy memories of she and her twin sister, Scarlet, growing up on the property, memories she had locked away after that devastating night almost ten years ago. It was about time she allowed herself to reminisce. Smiling sadly, she hugged her arms around herself as if trying to stop herself blowing away.

The world had been an enchanted place with Scarlet beside her, her sister always seeing everything through rose-coloured glasses. It had been one of her many beautiful qualities, one Renee treasured now more than ever.

The Wildwood Sisters is available in eBook and paperback from all good retailers.
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Read more about Mandy and her books on MEET MANDY MAGRO

 

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