Black Tangled Heart by Samantha Young Page 0,126

He was one of the strongest people I’d ever met. A literacy charity now employed him, and he spent his days planning fundraising events. Despite our physical distance, our friendship didn’t break down to crumbs of communication as it had with Cassie. We were too intrinsically connected for that to happen. Asher and I spoke nearly every day, and Jamie and I had already agreed to name the little boy growing in my belly after his soon-to-be godfather.

So handsome. Have a great time! xx

Asher texted back a blowy kiss emoji, and I smiled.

A wavelike sensation in my belly made my breath hitch. I wondered if I’d ever get used to the little guy moving around in there. It was a wonder every time. The first time baby Asher kicked, it felt like gas bubbles. As the weeks wore on, I could definitely feel the thud of it more, but it wasn’t painful, just wonderfully weird.

And when he moved or shifted, it was like the ocean rolling inside me.

I wondered if he’d have Jamie’s ocean eyes. I hoped so.

Jamie had already told me he had his fingers crossed for my hazel-green ones.

Moving my feet off the couch, I planned to go to Jamie to let him feel the movement. I still didn’t like interrupting him while he was working, but he told me he wanted to feel baby Asher’s every kick and turn.

Crossing the room toward the sliding doors, however, the music coming from the radio distracted me.

I listened to the familiar notes of The Waterboys’ “The Whole of the Moon” and felt a painful ache in my chest that would probably never go away.

Jamie and Lorna’s relationship never mended.

Sometimes I thought maybe I should encourage him to reach out to her, but I wasn’t a perfect person, and the damage she’d done scared me. Jamie and I had talked about Lorna a lot over the years. We accepted our blame in the dissolution of our relationship with her, that our actions had driven her to hurt us. Jamie believed he could’ve been a more patient and understanding big brother when we were kids.

And I knew that I never should’ve forsaken her so easily for Jamie. So caught up in falling in love with him, I hadn’t considered Lorna’s feelings enough. When she gave me that ultimatum, I should’ve tried harder to convince her that choosing Jamie didn’t mean I didn’t love her.

But I didn’t try hard enough. Neither of us did.

Even so, it didn’t excuse what Lorna had done to us. I wasn’t sure I could handle her in our lives again when we’d finally found everything we were looking for. And Jamie felt the same way.

In that moment, however, as I caught sight of my husband staring out at the lake, his body tense as the song played, my thoughts turned to Skye. The painful ache her memories caused softened as I remembered where we were, that we were together and our family was growing.

Stepping outside, I moved behind Jamie and leaned down, wrapping my arms around his chest. Resting my chin on his shoulder, my cheek pressed to his, I felt him relax.

He reached for one of my arms and gently caressed my skin with his fingertips as we gazed out at the lake, listening to the song that reminded us of Skye.

Instead of grief, I felt contentment.

It was like she was there with us, telling us she was at peace now too.

“I love you, Doe,” Jamie whispered.

I nuzzled my face against his throat. “I love you too.”

Bonus Scenes

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Acknowledgments

I was writing Jane and Jamie’s story just as the coronavirus was beginning to spread around the world. It’s a true testament to how enraptured I was by these characters that it wasn’t until the book was finished that I really began to feel the emotional impact of the pandemic. I’ll be forever grateful to this story for providing me with that escape. There were a lot of important subjects to tackle in this novel, and because of my sincere desire to handle them with sensitivity, this book has probably been one of the most difficult of mine to write. I gave it everything I had. And I hope readers felt my total immersion in Black Tangled Heart through the bond between Jane and Jamie.

First, I must thank the Goldbrickers for keeping me sane when I “went with my gut” a number of times writing this book. And by going “with my gut” I mean cutting chapters, rearranging narrative, and rewriting until I told the story I needed to tell. Goldbrickers, your support meant so much to me. Thank you!

For the most part writing is a solitary endeavor but publishing most certainly is not. I have to thank my wonderful editor Jennifer Sommersby Young. Thank you for believing in this story too!

And thank you to my bestie and PA extraordinaire, Ashleen Walker, for handling all the little things and supporting me through everything. I appreciate you so much. Love you lots!

The life of a writer doesn’t stop with the book. Our job expands beyond the written word to marketing, advertising, graphic design, social media management and more. Help from those in the know goes a long way. A huge thank you to Nina Grinstead at Valentine PR for brainstorming with me, for your encouragement, your insight and for going above and beyond. You’re amazing and I’m so grateful for you.

Thank you to every single blogger, instagrammer and book lover who has helped spread the word about my books. You all are appreciated so much! On that note, a massive thank you to all the fantastic readers in my private Facebook group Sam’s Clan McBookish. You make me smile every day!

Moreover, thank you to Regina Wamba for the gorgeous cover photo.

A massive thank you to Hang Le. You create the most beautiful art and this time you did it doubly so. Not only is the e-cover smolderingly hot, the paperback cover is stunning! They’re both so emotive and perfect for Jane and Jamie’s story. Thank you!

As always, thank you to my agent Lauren Abramo for making it possible for readers all over the world to find my words. I feel privileged to have you as my agent and friend.

I have to say thank you to my family and friends who were particularly patient and supportive with me as I worked on this book. Thank you for loving me and for getting it.

Finally, to you my reader, the biggest thank you of all. I hope you’re all safe and well. And I hope you enjoyed this small piece of escapism.