Kristie Jernigan

I've loved him as long as I can remember. The gangly boy with big brown eyes and unruly hair who grew up into an intoxicating man. He wears scruff like he invented it and ambles with a swagger that makes panties drop. Killian Shepard. Shep. We grew up together. We played Ghost in the Graveyard. Had our own rock band. It didn't matter that he was five years older than me. It didn't matter that he looked at me as a kid sister even as I grew into woman.

I was once told that the woman you have to work the hardest for would be the one worth working for by far - and Taylor Mathews has turned the expression into a mantra for me. Here I am, Maclain Stone, centering my very existence on the woman. She’s quickly become my obsession, and my reason for trying to be a better human - though trust me when I say that may never happen. But I’m going to try. For her.