Finding You...

How far would you go?

When Sarah moved away from her hometown to go to college she thought she was doing it to be with her boyfriend Huck. But when she discovers he's a cheater out to get whatever he wants, she finds herself alone in a new city. Armed with only a few people she can trust, Sarah sets out to carve her place in the world.

Jeremy's life came to a stand still two years ago, but now he's trying to make something of himself. He heads off to college to put his past behind him and start something new. When he meets Sarah he knows he's in for a roller coaster ride. He hasn't felt this way about someone in a long time--he never felt like he'd feel this way, again.

As Sarah and Jeremy get to know each other, she realizes there's something special about him. Something she has never felt before. But there's something he's holding back from her, something he's keeping hidden. Can Sarah find a way to trust someone again, or will Jeremy's past reveal itself? And will she be able to handle it if it does?

Finding You is book 3 of The By You Series but can be read as a standalone novel.

AMAZON / AMAZON CA / AMAZON UK / BARNES & NOBLE

"Jeremy," Sarah stammered, brushing a handful of her blonde hair out of her face. "You startled me."

She could kick herself. Of course she had to be in such a hurry to get home that she didn't even realize someone was trying to talk to her. Her day didn't look like it was going to be getting better any time soon.

"I was starting to think you were ignoring me," he said, grinning.

His crystal blue eyes locked onto hers in a way that made her forget what she was thinking. He had a backpack slung over one shoulder, and the muscles in his forearm twitched as he shifted its weight around.

"Sorry, I guess I wasn't paying attention. It's been a rough morning so far."

His mouth curled in a half-smile, though she couldn't figure out for the life of her what he was always smiling about.

"That's not what I was talking about," he said, with a quick shake of his head. "It's been weeks and you never called. I was starting to think you got abducted or something."

Sarah let out a small laugh while her stomach twisted into nervous knots.

"Oh, God no. No abductions for me, thank you." She shook her head. "I was going to--it's just that everything's been so crazy, lately. Classes are keeping me busier than I thought they would."

It was a lie, but she hoped that he couldn't tell. She hadn't lost his number or anything, she'd just been focusing on herself for the past few weeks. After everything that had happened, she wasn't very interested in making friends with the opposite sex anytime soon.

Jeremy clutched a hand to his chest and winced.

"I thought we had a good thing going," he said, his face twisted in mock pain.

Sarah let out another laugh. "Stop it, you know it's not like that."

The smile returned to Jeremy's face and she couldn't help but notice how his eyes looked her up and down. But the smile didn't last long before fading away.

"Don't worry, there's no hard feelings. I know you have a boyfriend and all, I was just hoping you were still interested in being friends."

Anger flared up in her at the mention of her boyfriend, but she reeled it in, quickly. She should just tell Jeremy the truth--that she and Huck were done--but she didn't want him getting the wrong idea. He'd already made it clear that he was interested in her, and he might think that he had a shot now that she was single.

But he was right. They had only seen each other a few times since they'd met, but they'd had fun. He was easy to talk to, and he had a way of listening to her like he actually cared about what she had to say. Maybe making a new friend wouldn't be the worst thing that could happen?

"It's not like that--I promise."

Jeremy studied her, his eyes narrowing with consideration. His cheek twitched as his lips pinched together, and he nodded as though he'd come to some conclusion.

"Fine, you're forgiven for blowing me off." The playful grin returned to his face and he took a step closer to her, leaning down to whisper something. "But, you're going to have to make it up to me."

Sarah's eyes widened as unwanted thoughts and images flashed in her head. Jeremy leaned away again and she hoped he didn't see the burning in her cheeks.

"Make it up to you?" she said.

"That's right. But don't worry, I'm a pretty fair guy, even when my ego has been trampled..."

"I didn't trample anything--"

He held up a hand, cutting her off. "Coffee, at three." He gave her another grin, and even winked, before adding, "Just as friends, of course. Don't be late--my ego can't handle being trampled twice by the same girl."

Without warning, he turned and started walking away from her. Sarah stared after him for a second, speechless.

"Hey, wait," she yelled. "Where are we meeting?"

Jeremy turned but kept walking backwards. He tilted his chin toward her. "You have my phone number still, right? Text me and I'll let you know."

He flashed her one more grin before turning away and picking up his pace. Sarah watched him until he disappeared between a couple buildings, flustered and confused by everything that had just happened.

Did she really just agree to go on a coffee date with him? She muttered and cursed at herself while she walked back to her dorm. She wasn't sure if she was more upset at herself for agreeing to meet up with him or because she didn't tell him that she was single. Either way, the day didn't look like it was going to be getting better any time soon.

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Like for many, life for Kelly didn't really begin until her 30th birthday. That was when she decided she was done with the corporate ladder and was going to start publishing some of her stories to see if people liked them. Fast forward a couple of years, and she's still amazed that she's able to spend her time doing something she's loved doing since she was a little kid.

Most of her free time is spent working in front of the computer at various coffee shops around Houston. But when she's not working on her next book, she's probably sitting in front of the TV with her eyes glued to whatever Netflix show she happens to be obsessed with at the time. Do we really have to wait this long for the next season of Orange Is The New Black?!

Follow her on Twitter, @harper_books, or head over to her Facebook page (http://on.fb.me/1fo0reU) and leave her a message. Her website is currently going through some construction, and will be up and running sometime in February.

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