Part 14 (2/2)

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Acknowledgements.

This book was born from a bad dream I had while planning my own wedding. With my wedding so close, I kept worrying that the worst would happen before I married my best friend. The dream was so haunting, I knew I needed to get it down in a book. And while the story is a work of fiction, I was able to draw from the experience of being a stepmom and starting a new family.

This was the very first book I ever had the courage to follow through and publish, and there are many people I want to thank who supported me in this journey.

First and foremost is my wonderful editor, Carol Weber, who took the story and made my words sing. Carol, you saw my vision for this book and made sure everyone else could, too. And I'd like to thank the wonderful people at NaNoWriMo.org, who told me I could write a whole book every November.

I want to thank my kids Summer, Lucas, and Andrew who tried not to need me too much while I typed away at the novel, and who I hope will forgive me when being a writer and a good mom and stepmom didn't go hand in hand. I'd like to thank my mother, Nancy McLerran, who took the first stab at editing my book and couldn't quite look me in the eye for weeks after reading Chapter 19, and who also didn't shy away from telling me when certain facts didn't match up.

And for all my friends and family who have encouraged me along the way, I couldn't have done it without your support! My sisters Melissa Moreno and Heather McLerran, my dad Gary McLerran, my Grandma Elsie Chretien, my fabulous in-laws Joan and Dave O'Conner, my honorary brother Brian Moreno, my sisters in crime Anne Schmidbauer and Pam Enquist, and my friends Wendy Dunnagan, Kristin Meyer, Alberto Melendez, Katie Talbot, the homegroup homies, the Girl Talk gals (your support means the world to me!), my friends and family at New Life, and everyone who stood behind me at The Press Democrat.

And I couldn't have done this without my husband, Shawn Langwell. Darling, you encouraged me from day one, read my horrible, awful first draft and still believed in me. Now if that isn't love, I don't know what is! Thank you for your patience when I chose to go to bed with the computer much to your dismay. With this book, I give you back your wife. I love you!

About the Author.

Crissi Langwell is a writer in Northern California. When not writing fiction, Crissi writes for her local newspaper, the Press Democrat, and maintains several of the newspaper's websites. She lives with her husband, three children, and a couple of very needy cats. This is her first novel.

Please visit her website at crissilangwell.com.

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