Your Heart's Desire Read online

  Praise for Melody Carlson

  Love Gently Falling

  “Ms. Carlson pens an uplifting tale of love, family, and courage.”

  —RT Book Reviews

  Once Upon a Winter’s Heart

  “A sweet, quick read that celebrates love’s beginnings as well as the spirit of Valentine’s Day.”

  —Serena Chase, USAToday.com

  “A delightful story about the loss and recovery of romance, love, and hope.…Once Upon a Winter’s Heart will revive anyone who’s given up on romance and wants a happy ending.”

  —Family Fiction

  “Melody delivers all that is sweetest and best about love in this Valentine’s novella and does it with a tasty dash of Italian spice. Now that’s amore!”

  —Robin Jones Gunn, bestselling author of

  Sisterchicks in Gondolas

  “A sweet love story, Once Upon a Winter’s Heart is a beautiful picture of the joy of being swept off your feet.”

  —Melanie Dobson, award-winning author of Love Finds You in Mackinac Island, Michigan and Where the Trail Ends

  ALSO BY MELODY CARLSON

  Love Gently Falling

  Once Upon a Winter’s Heart

  Available from Center Street wherever books are sold.

  If you enjoyed Your Heart’s Desire, look for these Valentine’s Day novels by Melody Carlson

  Once Upon a Winter’s Heart

  Emma Burcelli concludes that love is officially dead when her grandfather, Poppi, suddenly passes, leaving her grandmother, Nona, devastated. To help out, Emma works in the family bookstore. Although she feels like a V-Day Scrooge, Emma quickly learns to enjoy the task of decorating the store for Valentine’s Day with the help of a handsome family friend, Lane Forester. As Emma and Lane share time and memories of Poppi, she reconsiders the notion that romance is alive.

  Just as Emma’s heart begins to lift, however, she learns her sister has already staked a claim on Lane. Emma’s mother and sister insist that Lane sees her only as a future sister-in-law, but she can’t help wondering if it could be something more.

  Love Gently Falling

  Rita Jansen is living her dream as a hairstylist in Hollywood when her father calls with news that her mother has suffered a stroke. When she gets home to Chicago, Rita finds her mother is healing but facing a long recovery. Worse, without being able to run their family-owned salon, her mother could lose the business. Rita decides to help, but she only has until Valentine’s Day to come up with a plan.

  As Rita takes her mother’s place at work, the nearby skating rink she loved as a child brings back fond memories. Rita also finds herself renewing friendships with her childhood best friend, Marley, as well as her classmate Johnny. Although they now lead such seemingly different lives, Rita is surprised by how well she and Johnny connect and how far he will go to help her. Though Rita believes Johnny is only being kind, with romance kindling in the air and on the ice, their friendship may just fall into something more.

  Available now in print and electronic formats from Center Street wherever books are sold.

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  Contents

  Cover

  Title Page

  Welcome Page

  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

  The Rest of the Sweet Story

  Praise for Melody Carlson

  Also By Melody Carlson

  You Might Also Like

  Newsletters

  Copyright

  This book is a work of fiction. Names, characters, places, and incidents are the product of the author’s imagination or are used fictitiously. Any resemblance to actual events, locales, or persons, living or dead, is coincidental.

  Copyright © 2016 by Melody Carlson

  Cover design by JuLee Brand

  Cover illustration by Mark Stutzman

  Cover copyright © 2016 by Hachette Book Group, Inc.

  All rights reserved. In accordance with the U.S. Copyright Act of 1976, the scanning, uploading, and electronic sharing of any part of this book without the permission of the publisher constitute unlawful piracy and theft of the author’s intellectual property. If you would like to use material from the book (other than for review purposes), prior written permission must be obtained by contacting the publisher at [email protected]. Thank you for your support of the author’s rights.

  Center Street

  Hachette Book Group

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  First ebook edition: January 2016

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  ISBN 978-1-4555-2813-4

  E3