Made to Last (Where Love Begins Book #1)

Melissa Tagg

Description

Miranda Woodruff has it all. At least, that's how it looks when she's starring in her homebuilding television show, From the Ground Up. So when her network begins to talk about making cuts, she'll do anything to boost ratings and save her show--even if it means pretending to be married to a man who's definitely not the fiance who ran out on her three years ago. When a handsome reporter starts shadowing Miranda's every move, all his digging into her personal life brings him a little too close to the truth--and to her. Can the girl whose entire identity is wrapped up in her on-screen persona finally find the nerve to set the record straight? And if she does, will the life she's built come crashing down just as she's found a love to last?"Sweet, fun, and faith-filled, Melissa Tagg's Made To Last is a story made to delight lovers of romance and behind-the-scenes reality TV.  Pull up an armchair and enjoy!"--Lisa Wingate, National Bestselling Author of Blue Moon Bay, one of Booklist's Top 10 of 2012"Clever plot. Engaging, funny, fresh writing. A winning voice with deeper layers that touch the heart. Melissa Tagg is the whole package. A delight for CBA readers."--Rachel Hauck, award-winning and bestselling author of Once Upon a Prince "If there is such thing as a perfect story, Melissa Tagg has written it with this first novel. Laugh-out-loud funny, a delightful premise, hunky heroes, surprising plot twists and poignant, heart-tugging moments, all wound together with beautiful writing. Made to Last is a keeper that will charm its way onto your shelf, and into your heart."--Susan May Warren, RITA Award winner and bestselling author of Take a Chance on Me"Made to Last is a fun romantic comedy that will have you turning the pages. Melissa Tagg is a fresh voice to watch."--Jenny B. Jones, award-winning author of Save the Date and There You'll Find Me"Melissa Tagg has written a fun, fast-paced romance. Her first novel will certainly not be her last."--Kristin Billerbeck, author of The Scent of Rain"A must for fans of romantic comedy! Melissa Tagg's endearing characters charmed me and their story line captured my imagination. Reading Made To Last was like eating a hot fudge brownie sundae with girlfriends. Fun. Delicious. Completely entertaining."--Becky Wade, author of My Stubborn Heart and Undeniably Yours"With witty dialogue, lovable characters, and an entertaining plot, Melissa Tagg is sure to become a new favorite among fans of Christian romance. Made to Last reminds us all that we are more than the roles we play. At our core, beneath our failures and hang-ups, we are loved and cherished by a faithful God."--Katie Ganshert, author of Wildflowers From Winter and Wishing on Willows"Readers are going to fall in love with Melissa Tagg's novels! She writes vivid stories filled with true-to-life characters who wrestle with questions about life, faith and romance. Melissa's writing is equal parts laugh out loud humor and moments that touch your heart. I can't wait for others to discover this talented new author!"--Beth K. Vogt, author of Wish You Were Here and Catch a Falling Star "What happens when a harmless lie you didn't intend to tell takes on a life of its own? When you're Miranda Woodruff, star of a home improvement show, you learn how to let go and become who God called you to be because nothing else is left. A great story with life-impacting truth surrounded by romance to make you swoon."--Cara Putman, award-winning author of A Wedding Transpires on Mackinac Island"Reading Made to Last, Melissa Tagg's debut novel, was like meeting new friends whom I wanted to continue hanging out with long after the book ended. Melissa's fresh voice and ability to craft a well-written story hooked me with the opening line and held my attention to the very end. Her flawed characters, LOL moments and spiritual truth provided a foundation for a stellar debut novel. I even had to dab my teary eyes a couple of times. Melissa Tagg is an author to watch and one whose books I want to fill my shelves."--Lisa Jordan, award-winning author of Lakeside Reunion and Lakeside Family

Sujets

• Love
• Love (disambiguation)

Informations

• Publié par: Baker Publishing Group
• Date de parution: 15 septembre 2013
• Nombre de lectures: 0
• EAN13: 9781441262806
• Langue: English

Extrait

© 2013 by Melissa Tagg
Published by Bethany House Publishers
11400 Hampshire Avenue South
Bloomington, Minnesota 55438
www.bethanyhouse.com
Bethany House Publishers is a division of
Baker Publishing Group, Grand Rapids, Michigan
www.bakerpublishinggroup.com
Ebook edition created 2013
All rights reserved. No part of this publication may be reproduced, stored in a retrieval system, or transmitted in any form or by any means for example, electronic, photocopy, recording without the prior written permission of the publisher. The only exception is brief quotations in printed reviews.
Library of Congress Cataloging-in-Publication Data is on file at the Library of Congress, Washington, DC.
ISBN 978-1-4412-6280-6
Scripture quotations are from the Holy Bible, New International Version®. NIV®. Copyright © 1973, 1978, 1984, 2011 by Biblica, Inc.™ Used by permission of Zondervan. All rights reserved worldwide. www.zondervan.com
This is a work of fiction. Names, characters, incidents, and dialogues are products of the author’s imagination and are not to be construed as real. Any resemblance to actual events or persons, living or dead, is entirely coincidental.
Cover design by Dan Thornberg, Design Source Creative Services
Author represented by MacGregor Literary Group
Praise for Made to Last
“Clever plot. Engaging, funny, fresh writing. A winning voice with deeper layers that touch the heart. Melissa Tagg is the whole package. A delight for CBA readers.”
~Rachel Hauck, award-winning and bestselling author of Once Upon a Prince
“If there is such a thing as a perfect story, Melissa Tagg has written it with this first novel. Laugh-out-loud funny, a delightful premise, hunky heroes, surprising plot twists and poignant, heart-tugging moments, all wound together with beautiful writing. Made to Last is a keeper that will charm its way onto your shelf, and into your heart.”
~Susan May Warren, RITA Award winner and bestselling author of Take a Chance on Me
“ Made to Last is a fun romantic comedy that will have you turning the pages. Melissa Tagg is a fresh voice to watch.”
~Jenny B. Jones, award-winning author of Save the Date and There You’ll Find Me
“Melissa Tagg has written a fun, fast-paced romance. Her first novel will certainly not be her last.”
~Kristin Billerbeck, author of The Scent of Rain
“A must for fans of romantic comedy! Melissa Tagg’s endearing characters charmed me and their story line captured my imagination. Reading Made to Last was like eating a hot fudge brownie sundae with girlfriends. Fun. Delicious. Completely entertaining.”
~Becky Wade, author of My Stubborn Heart and Undeniably Yours
“Sweet, fun, and faith-filled, Melissa Tagg’s Made to Last is a story made to delight lovers of romance and behind-the-scenes reality TV. Pull up an armchair and enjoy!”
~Lisa Wingate, national bestselling author of Blue Moon Bay , one of Booklist ’s Top 10 of 2012
“With witty dialogue, lovable characters, and an entertaining p lot, Melissa Tagg is sure to become a new favorite among fans of Christian romance. Made to Last reminds us all that we are more than the roles we play. At our core, beneath our failures and hang-ups, we are loved and cherished by a faithful God.”
~Katie Ganshert, author of Wildflowers From Winter and Wishing on Willows
“Readers are going to fall in love with Melissa Tagg’s novels! She writes vivid stories filled with true-to-life characters who wrestle with questions about life, faith and romance. Melissa’s writing is equal parts laugh-out-loud humor and moments that touch your heart. I can’t wait for others to discover this talented new author!”
~Beth K. Vogt, author of Wish You Were Here and Catch a Falling Star
“What happens when a harmless lie you didn’t intend to tell takes on a life of its own? When you’re Miranda Woodruff, star of a home improvement show, you learn how to let go and become who God called you to be because nothing else is left. A great story with life-impacting truth surrounded by romance to make you swoon.”
~Cara Putman, award-winning author of A Wedding Transpires on Mackinac Island
“Reading Made to Last , Melissa Tagg’s debut novel, was like meeting new friends whom I wanted to continue hanging out with long after the book ended. Melissa’s fresh voice and ability to craft a well-written story hooked me with the opening line and held my attention to the very end. Her flawed characters, LOL moments and spiritual truth provided a foundation for a stellar debut novel. I even had to dab my teary eyes a couple of times. Melissa Tagg is an author to watch and one whose books I want to fill my shelves.”
~Lisa Jordan, award-winning author of Lakeside Reunion and Lakeside Family
To Mom and Dad: because more than anyone I know, you’ve shown me what “made to last” love and faith look like. And because I love you.
Contents
Cover
Title Page
Copyright Page
Praise for Made to Last
Dedication
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
Chapter 17
Chapter 18
Chapter 19
Chapter 20
Chapter 21
Chapter 22
Acknowledgments
Discussion Questions
About the Author
Back Ads
Back Cover
Chapter 1
A SHEVILLE , N ORTH C AROLINA
On any other day of the year, in the lull of routine, she could almost forget the lie she lived. But today’s would-be anniversary made forgetting about as easy as building a house from cotton sheets.
Miranda Woodruff hooked a thumb under her tool belt and stepped onto the outdoor set, squinting against the familiar glint of studio lights. The light crew usually played off the sun when taping outside, but this evening’s canopy of low-lying clouds dimmed the valley already hazed over by the smoky cover of the Appalachians.
Mission: Smile. Access her inner Colgate commercial and convince everybody she meant it. Forget the date on the calendar, and while she was at it, pretend this afternoon’s lousy interview never happened. Hey, if anybody could fake it—
“Randi! Where’ve you been?” Across the set, Whitney’s heels clicked over the bluestone patio. How did her assistant walk in those stilts? Especially with a tangle of cords and wiring webbing the set.
Miranda skirted around a camera to meet Whitney, pasting on a grin about as plastic as the lighted Ficus trees hedging the patio. Only one more sequence to shoot, and then they could call this week’s taping of her show, From the Ground Up, a wrap.
Whitney reached her, disapproval tugging her face into a frown. “What’s with the cookie crumbs all over your shirt, girl?”
Busted. “Got a secret stash of Chips Ahoy! in the truck.” Along with enough Coca-Cola to de-corrode a few car batteries. The stuff of emotional self-medication.
“Let’s see, we’ve covered your season finale, plans for next season. Now I’d like to get personal for a moment.” Hours later, that reporter’s nasally voice still played on repeat—accompanied by a feeling so achingly routine it barely stung.
Fine, not true. A dozen raging wasps couldn’t do to her what today’s interview did.
“What do you have to say regarding the rumors about your marriage?” Miranda’s shoulders stiffened all over again at the memory of the reporter’s averted eyes as she posed the question—the subtle-as-a-foghorn interest edging her words, the disappointment when Miranda’s underwhelming answer fell flat. “I’m sorry. I don’t talk about my personal life to the media.”
“You know everybody’s curious about where you disappeared to today.” Whitney brushed the crumbs off Miranda’s white V-neck tee.
And probably annoyed, too, since her last-minute appointment with the magazine journalist meant taping would run late tonight. “One of those spur-of-the-moment interviews. Brad coerced me.” “We need this, Rand.” Why the worry in her manager’s voice as they’d spoken over the phone? Surely after their third season finale her homebuilding television show had finally hit its prime. “Is the crew mad?”
Whitney stepped back, glance darting from Miranda’s boots and denim up to her signature tee. “Not mad. A tad irked, maybe. No one likes to stay late. Might’ve helped if you’d hit the catering table with everyone else. You always eat with the gang.”
Except on October 4. But none of the studio bunch knew the gut-punching significance of the date. And she’d just as soon keep it that way. Otherwise there’d be no holding it together through tonight’s taping. “Needed a little quiet. That’s all.”
“Well, let’s hope the break has you in top form so we can close this in one take. That dark sky won’t hold out forever.” A spotlight snapped on as the set hummed into post-break activity. Whitney pulled a tube from her pocket. “Now, pucker up.”
“Right, because a girl can’t build a house without lipstick.”
“Correction: lip gloss . Now get out there and do the Home Depot thing.”
As Whitney pranced away, Miranda turned her eyes to the green ridges peeking through dusk’s fog. Those paunchy clouds did promise rain, and soon. They just needed to get through this taping. . . . Correction: she needed to.
And she would. Always did—on all four October 4ths since he left.
Robbie.
But she couldn’t let her mind wander there—to Robbie, the anniversary. She needed to ditch thoughts of that prickly interview, too. C’mon, think favorite things. Real Sound of Music –like. Bubble baths. Bonfires. Ooh, or how about the new Powermatic 2000 3HP table saw? Now, there was something to put a little spring in a girl’s step.
“Oh, please tell me that grin means what I think it means.”
Her focus slid to the right. Brad Walsh. Yup, there he stood in all his hair-gelled, leather-shoed, this-century’s-William-Holden glory.
“And what do you think it means?” And why in the world did her manager have to pick today of all days to visit the set?
“That you’re happy to see me,” Brad said, sweeping his arms wide. “That you realize,