“This is classic Wiggs, with its emphasis on the strength of family and friends, and a landscape integral to the plot.”

—Publishers Weekly on The Apple Orchard

About the Author

Susan Wiggs is the author of more than fifty novels, including #1 New York Times bestsellers from her hit series The Lakeshore Chronicles. She is a three-time RITA® Award winner, and her novels have been translated into two dozen languages. Born in Upstate New York, educated in Brussels, Paris and at Harvard, Susan and her husband make their home on an island in Puget Sound. Visit her at www.susanwiggs.com or Facebook.com/susanwiggs.

Booklist

Also by Susan Wiggs

Contemporary Romances

Home Before Dark
The Ocean Between Us
Lakeside Cottage
Summer by the Sea
Table for Five
Just Breathe
The Goodbye Quilt

The Lakeshore Chronicles

Summer at Willow Lake
The Winter Lodge
Dockside
Snowfall at Willow Lake
Fireside
Lakeshore Christmas
The Summer Hideaway
Marrying Daisy Bellamy
Return to Willow Lake
Starlight on Willow Lake

The Bella Vista Chronicles

The Apple Orchard
The Beekeeper’s Ball

Historical Romances

The Lightkeeper
The Drifter
The Mistress of Normandy
The Maiden of Ireland

Tudor Rose

At the King’s Command
The Maiden’s Hand

At the Queen’s Summons

Chicago Fire Trilogy

The Hostage
The Mistress
The Firebrand

Calhoun Chronicles

The Charm School
The Horsemaster’s Daughter
Halfway to Heaven
Enchanted Afternoon
A Summer Affair

Look for Susan Wiggs’s new novel,
The Oysterville Sewing Circle,
available now!

Dedication

For dreamers everywhere.
May the spark of your imagination take you wherever you wish to go.

The St. James Affair

The St. James Affair

Chapter One

chapter one

Elaine St. James hurried along Fifth Avenue, trying to outrun Christmas, but it was gaining on her. She was only a few steps ahead of a troop of apple-cheeked carolers belting out “Hark the Herald Angels Sing” and collecting donations from shoppers and tourists. She dodged to avoid a Santa reeling in the crosswalk, his breath smelling of too much holiday cheer too early in the day.

Although she had a cell phone glued to her ear, Elaine could barely hear Byron, her boyfriend. Still, she’d heard enough to know the news was not good.

“A bra model?” she yelled into the tiny daisy-decorated phone.

His response was a garbled remark ending in “Huh?”

And so she yelled even louder, “You’re dumping me for a bra model?”

Too late, she realized the heralds had stopped harking, and the stoplight had brought traffic to a halt. Everyone within half a city block had heard her.

Caught in the glare of dozens of curious looks, Elaine dropped her hand to her side and hitched her purse strap up on her shoulder. Byron’s mosquito-voiced reply squawked faintly from the receiver, but she didn’t want to hear another word. Belying the flames of humiliated color in her cheeks, she held her head high and said to no one in particular, “Whatever.”