Suspicion's Gate

by Justine Davis

BADDER THAN BEFORE

Years ago, teenage Nikki Lockwood had been the only one in town to see past Travis Halloran's bad-boy leather jacket and tough talk --- until she'd seen just HOW bad he was. He'd carelessly caused her father's death, then lied and denied it. And now Travis was back, ready to do even more damage.

To save one of their own, the mighty Lockwoods had destroyed Travis Halloran. And as he'd rotted in jail, he'd called himself every kind of a fool for believing that wealthy, wide-eyed Nikki would KNOW he wasn't guilty. Now, at last, he could prove his innocence. But his proof was worthless because the truth would destroy Nikki --- the woman he'd waited forever for ...

Genres: Romance, Contemporary

253 pages, Paperback

First published March 1, 1992

About the author

Author biographies are supposed to give you all those statistics, books written, awards won, etc. and I will, I promise...but first let me tell you about this ornery little tomboy (back then, the boys had all the fun...) who was always the one to make up the stories the neighborhood kids would "play". For those who came of age in the computer game era, this is something that was done usually in the backyard, by any number of summer-bored children, with props where appropriate. (Did you know a 55 gallon drum tied to a picnic bench makes a very cool horse?) It wasn't until much later that this tomboy realized two things: A) not everyone made up stories in their heads all the time, and B) in real life, the boys that had already had all the fun now seemed to always be winning.

But I digress. I was born on a farm down in Iowa....well, not quite, but close; Boone, Iowa is in the middle of farm country, but I arrived at a hospital. In a snow storm. Make that a blizzard. My sister tells me she knew my destiny when I was very young, because when I first saw the Disney classic Old Yeller, I was apparently so upset that I promptly went home and rewrote the story. In my version, the dog lived, of course. Should have been a clue.

Possibly in response to that blizzard I was born in, I've been a West Coaster since before I was a year old, and intend to stay that way. I have a history of staying. I started my first full time job right out of school (well, there was a very brief sojourn at a place where they made, among other things, burial vaults, but I prefer not to recall that one...) and stayed for twenty-one years. I've been married to the same wonderful guy for going on two decades now. We lived in our last house for seventeen years. (I won't even mention how many dumpsters we filled moving after that long....)

Readers seem as fascinated by my first career as they are with my writing. My time in law enforcement was many things, exciting, nerve wracking, and irritating, but most importantly never, ever boring. It was fascinating enough that I didn't think about writing seriously for several years. I kept a journal, and wrote long letters, collected quotes, mentally rewrote movies, and still made up those stories in my head, but never dreamed of actually writing for publication. I was having too much fun helping to catch bad guys, and being continually amazed at the situations people get themselves into. And eventually I walked away with a wealth of background and story ideas, and knowing some truly great people who work very hard to keep all of us safe. I'm proud to have been one of them, and I'm very aware that I have had the great good fortune of having had two jobs in my life that I love. Many people don't get even one.

But now that I'm in the delicious position of being able to make a living telling those stories in my head, I promise my readers two things: A) I'm staying--I'll keep writing as long as you keep reading, and B) in my stories, the girl--tomboy or not--always wins!

~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~

And now, the official stats:

Justine Dare Davis sold her first book in 1989, and followed that up with the sale of nineteen novels in less than two years. Her first four books were published in 1991, and she saw all reach the finals for either the Romantic Times Reviewer's Choice Award or the Romance Writers of America prestigious RITA Award. She has since won the RITA award four times, along with several Reviewer's Choice awards and three Career Achievement awards from Romantic Times. At the 1998 national conference, Justine was inducted into the RWA Hall of Fame, making her one of a very select group of just eight writers. She also had four titles on the Romantic Times "Top 200 of All Time" list. Her sales now total more than 45, and her books have appeared regularly on best seller lists, including the USA Today list. She has been featured in several local newspapers and nationwide by Associated Press, has appeared on CN

Reviews

[Kay · Rating 4 out of 5]

4 Stars ~ They'd always been soulmates; he from the wrong side of town and she from the town's wealthiest family. Nicki's mother had seen something special in Travis and encouraged him to work hard and strive for a good life.  And Nicki adored Travis, she was his confidante, his rock, always on his side.  Travis was Nicki's confidante, always able to read her thoughts as if they were his own, and amazed that she was just a kid when she could understand all his deepest secrets and fears. And then came the accident that took Nicki's life, and Nicki's brother claimed it was Travis that was driving his car that forced their father's off the road.  With all the pain he'd already endured in his young life, the pain of Nicki's mother when she sided with her son and betrayed Travis was the most cruel.  That is until now, 15 years later, Travis has made something of himself, and he returns to his hometown to attend Nicki's mother's funeral.  The first look in Nicki's eyes proves they still have a deep connection, but then she averted her eyes and able to read her still, he sees that she too had believed the lies told that tragic night.  Out of some need to assuage her guilt, Nicki's mother leaves Travis her share in the family quarry, making Travis equal partners to Nicki and her brother.  The urge to reject the inheritance is strong, but he decides to hold on for a bit and see if he can't find the passionate teenage Nicki in the hard cold Nicole she'd become. 

From the first pages, Ms. Davis grabbed my attention and emotions in this wonderful star-crossed lovers romance.  Travis is still reeling from the betrayal of years ago and his rebel bad boy reputation sees that the entire town remains against him.  Nicki still feels their connection and is confused by her conflicting loyalty towards her brother, her only relative, and her memories of the strong, honorable Travis she once adored.  Theirs is a turbulent journey to HEA but one destined from the beginning.