A decade apart, a painful secret--can two childhood sweethearts find their way back to a love that defies cultures and time? Lia Juma thought she’d buried the dreams of her heart long ago. But when she’s forced to return to her family’s summer cottage on Pike Bay, the life she’s carefully crafted begins to unravel. The perfect immigrant daughter, Lia has carved out a successful career as a corporate lawyer and has just started dating a man who fulfills all her mother''s criteria for the ideal son-in-law. But underneath her polished life lies a secret she’s never spoken of--one she fears could have destroyed her family a decade ago. Back at the bay, Lia stumbles upon memories she thought were long forgotten;and, at the center of it all, is Wesley Forest--the boy she left behind, the boy who knew her dreams better than anyone. Their friendship and young love once burned bright, woven through long sun-drenched days and whispered promises of a future together. But when family pressures and heartbreak pulled the two lovers apart, they were forced to follow separate paths. Now, Wes is back in her life, and with him, old wounds and feelings surface. As the two confront the choices and secrets that divided them as teenagers, Lia must decide if she can heal from the past and finally embrace the;life and love she’s always craved. Could a second chance with Wes be worth risking everything for? Told over the course of five years in the past and one summer in the present, Lia will discover that sometimes, the only way forward is through the heart’s deepest scars.

Autorentext

Noreen Nanja

Klappentext

A decade apart, a painful secret—can two childhood sweethearts find their way back to a love that defies cultures and time?

Lia Juma thought she’d buried the dreams of her heart long ago. But when she’s forced to return to her family’s summer cottage on Pike Bay, the life she’s carefully crafted begins to unravel. The perfect immigrant daughter, Lia has carved out a successful career as a corporate lawyer and has just started dating a man who fulfills all her mother's criteria for the ideal son-in-law. But underneath her polished life lies a secret she’s never spoken of—one she fears could have destroyed her family a decade ago.

Back at the bay, Lia stumbles upon memories she thought were long forgotten and, at the centre of it all, is Wesley Forest—the boy she left behind, the boy who knew her dreams better than anyone. Their friendship and young love once burned bright, woven through long sun-drenched days and whispered promises of a future together. But when family pressures and heartbreak pulled the two lovers apart, they were forced to follow separate paths.

Now, Wes is back in her life, and with him, old wounds and feelings surface. As the two confront the choices and secrets that divided them as teenagers, Lia must decide if she can heal from the past and finally embrace the life and love she’s always craved. Could a second chance with Wes be worth risking everything for?

Told over the course of five years in the past and one summer in the present, Lia will discover that sometimes, the only way forward is through the heart’s deepest scars.

Leseprobe
Chapter 1

PRESENT DAY
*
June*

Summer has finally arrived and I should be happy, sitting here at a lacquered black table with my handsome date. A candle flickers between us, the lighting in this glitzy Italian restaurant clearly intended to create a romantic atmosphere, but I’m pinched and tired after finishing a major merger this week. All I want to do is flick my pointed heels off my aching feet and nestle into a fluffy blanket on the couch with a book and a cup of chai.

Now, though, I need to focus on the clinking of silverware and polite, flirtatious laughter. It’s unfamiliar. I haven’t been on a date in months. But it’s time for me to get back out there and meet someone who will have me gowned in satin white so my mother can throw the wedding she’s been nagging me for ever since I finished law school.

And for once, I’m out with a guy who has potential.

“You did a killer job on the Toasties and Salad King merger.” Hassan gazes at me, an appreciative glint in his eye. The slate grey of his suit makes his mahogany skin seem even warmer, a smile softening his usually stern face. Almost no one would get how hard this job is, how much work I put into it, but he does.

“I still can’t believe I closed it,” I answer, focusing on all there is to celebrate. Closing another deal, being asked out by the second-best senior associate at Gold & Wright.

Ever since Hassan took a job at the firm a year and a half ago, he’s been following me around like a wheaten terrier. At first, I thought he was trying to throw me off my game, since in corporate law you don’t really have friends. You have colleagues you are friendly with, who would happily stab you in the back for a promotion. So when he first started circling me, I’d backed away. We were neck and neck in our billing hours and both had our sights set on junior partner, after all.

But then I started to see the similarities between us. Both of us have been busting our asses to make our immigrant parents proud. He’s the kind of guy I can respect—and pretty attractive too.

So I finally said yes when he asked me to grab a coffee for the tenth time, and again to grab a bite after we worked on a case together. And now here we are on our first official date in one of the most exclusive restaurants in town. This man really knows how to wine and dine. Maybe I should have given in earlier.

Hassan winks at me. “I probably could have closed it faster.” His smirk gives away that he’s teasing, and I kick him jokingly under the table.

His grin broadens.

We’ve just finished our main courses, which lived up to the social media hype. A rare steak for him, spinach ravioli for me. Usually, I’d kill for a piece of chocolate cake to end my meal, but I’m not sure my form-fitting navy dress can take the added pressure.
Hassan’s hand catches mine. “You’re a brilliant lawyer.”

“I know.” My mother would love him. She’s been telling me for years that I need to get my head out of my ass and onto the dating market. My task is to bring home an accomplished man from the same cultural background so she can see her grandchildren before she dies.

Satisfaction wells in my chest as I picture him and my mother meeting for the first time.

Now I focus on the heat of his broad fingers against my slimmer ones, coaxing the respect and camaraderie I feel into a flame. His mouth twists into a smile that’s somehow both fond and mischievous.

“Hey,” he says, voice deeper than usual. “I’m so glad you said yes to tonight.”

“Me too,” I whisper. “But will this make things weird at work?”

“Of course not.” His smile is guileless. “Take a chance on me, Lia.”

It’s so easy to say but hard to do. Last time I took a gamble on dating was with a cardiologist that my mother set me up with through mosque. Our first date was an unpleasant surprise. Dinner with his entire extended family. After that evening, I never called the guy back, and instead invested in a new electronic version of a boyfriend that never disappoints.

But I can’t exactly walk a vibrator down the aisle and Hassan is leagues ahead of almost every other guy I’ve dated. He’s looking at me with warmth in his eyes, tilting closer as if he’s going to kiss me. I take a breath and make a choice, leaning in and letting the…