His Most Important Win

Cynthia Thomason

Dare to dream… these sparkling romances will make you laugh, cry and fall in love – again and again!When it comes to love… he’s playing for keepsBryce is living in his small hometown; back coaching his old team; and back in love with his high-school sweetheart. But this time around, he’s determined not to lose Rosalie’s heart ever again. Only problem is, Bryce’s first love has been keeping a big secret from him all these years.And when he discovers the son Rosalie never told him about, the betrayal may just be too painful. Then again, true love can change everything. And if Bryce has anything to say about it, this is a game that they’ll all win… together.

“I know one other thing. I’m not going to wait another fifteen years before I kiss you again.”

His mouth settled on hers. His lips were soft and warm and inviting. As sweet as a first kiss. But then everything changed and the boy in her mind became a fully grown version of the person she’d loved. His mouth ravaged hers, exploring, igniting a young girl’s passion into a woman’s need. The sensation of being devoured by that hot, hungry kiss tingled through her body and she answered it with equal passion. It was like coming home and finding a treasure she’d thought she’d lost.

He planted a swift kiss on her temple.

“By the way,” he said. “I’ll be sleeping here from tomorrow night on. Just in case you get some ideas in the middle of the night that can’t wait.”

She already had one, and she was pretty sure he knew what it was.

Dear Reader,

What a thrill it is to write this first reader letter as a Mills & Boon

author. I am so grateful to my agent, Kevan Lyon, and my editor, Charles Griemsman, for making this happen. I have always wanted to write a book about high school teachers and coaches, and now this dream is a reality. I was once a high school English teacher like Rosalie, the heroine of this book. Perhaps my involvement with teens and sports explains why I’ve always had a bit of a love affair with football coaches. There is something about the caged energy they display on the sidelines—a tense expectation that can translate in a second to fist-pumping jubilation. How rewarding it must be to guide young men into adulthood.

This book also explores my first attempt at writing a teenager as the secret baby my heroine raised. I hope you enjoy Danny. It’s easy to love a cute little baby, but a teenager with all that angst and willfulness—if you’ve had one, you know.

Welcome to Whistler Creek, Georgia. Enjoy your stay.

Cynthia

I love to hear from readers. Please send me your reaction to His Most Important Win at Cynthoma@aol.com. Or visit my website, cynthiathomason.com.

About the Author

CYNTHIA THOMASON writes contemporary and historical romances and dabbles in mysteries. She has won a National Reader’s Choice Award and the 2008 Golden Quill. When she’s not writing, she works as a licensed auctioneer for the auction company she and her husband own. As an estate buyer for the auction, she has come across unusual items, many of which have found their way into her books. She has one son, an entertainment reporter. Cynthia dreams of perching on a mountaintop in North Carolina every autumn to watch the leaves turn. You can read more about her at her website, www.cynthiathomason.com.

His Most

Important Win

Cynthia Thomason

www.millsandboon.co.uk (http://www.millsandboon.co.uk)

This book is dedicated to the memory of my loving parents, Barbara and Bert Brackett, who never missed a high school football game under the “Friday night lights” of Cuyahoga Falls, Ohio.

Chapter One

Rosalie pulled into one of the last remaining spots in the parking lot, got out of her car and checked her watch. “Three minutes,” she grumbled. “I’ll just make it if I run.” She still had no idea why the high school principal had called this emergency meeting. His secretary had said he wanted as many of his faculty members who were in town to attend, so Rosalie had missed a lasagna dinner with her mother and her son to be here.

“Hey, Rosalie, wait u