Read an Exclusive Excerpt from A REASON TO STAY by Kellie Coates Gilbert

About A REASON TO STAY

As the host of her own television news show, Faith Marin works to expose the truth for her viewers. But in her personal life, she's anchored her world with firm boundaries in order to hide a family history she'd like to forget.

Her pro bass fisherman husband Geary's life is an open book, and unfortunately his busybody family doesn't know the meaning of boundaries. Deception and crippling differences soon derail their tender relationship, leading Faith to believe her only option is to end the marriage. But while divorce papers sit on her desk waiting to be signed, tragedy strikes and her heartrending decision is interrupted. With her life in the balance, Faith finds that the one she has been shutting out may be the very one she cannot bear to lose.

Kellie Coates Gilbert takes readers on an emotional roller coaster as she weaves themes of unexpected trial, self-discovery, and forgiveness in this profoundly honest portrait of the tensions that can break a marriage--and the ultimate healing power of love.

Read the Excerpt

Faith shifted slightly closer to the camera to create a sense of urgency, as she’d been trained. “In moments, officials will give the signal and these boats positioned along the shoreline will launch three at a time.”

Chuck turned the camera to catch a shot of the launch.

As if on cue, idling engines roared to life. The first three boats in the lineup inched forward. Applause drifted from across the inlet where a crowd of onlookers gathered on a deck outside Wolfies, a popular local restaurant.

At the signal, the low-profiled boats heavily festooned with sponsorship decals simultaneously screamed into action, speeding across the water and leaving enormous plumes of water jetting from the rear motors. Three more bass boats immediately followed. Then another group.

Out of the corner of her eye, she saw the man in the yellow jacket edge his boat closer. He watched her now from only a yard or so away. Continuing to ignore him, she recorded her voice-over, using enough volume to be heard over the distant engines. “And there they go, folks,” she said with bright enthusiasm. “The final day of the Texas Bass Classic has officially begun.”

The boat she stood on wiggled slightly, causing her feet to become unsteady in her heels. Suddenly, the wake from the launched boats landed against the side of the boat she stood on, knocking her off-kilter. She scrambled a bit, tried to catch her equilibrium.

Oh no! she thought, feeling her body shift recklessly. She moved her left foot to catch herself. Then her right. Too late.

A second and much more forceful wake hit. This time the increased impact caused the boat to pitch in a way she didn’t expect.

Frantic to catch her balance, she reached for something to hang on to, her eyes wide. She heard Chuck curse. At the same time he jumped back onto the dock, her fingers loosened and she dropped the microphone.

Her ankle gave way, her pretty pump slipped from her foot.

“H-help!” she screamed.

She tumbled, barely having time to hold her breath as she listed over the side, arms flailing.

Splash!

She squeezed her eyes tightly shut just before hitting the water’s surface. Sound muffled and she sank into the depths of the murky green lake, arms wildly pummeling against the water.

Suddenly, arms folded around her back and she felt their strength pull her in an upward motion through the water. Seconds later, her head broke the surface. She sputtered, choked.

“Are you all right?” Chuck grabbed her arm and pulled her back onto the deck of the boat next to where her notes and microphone lay abandoned.

Faith rubbed at her eyes. After barely daring to open them, she grabbed at a piece of something slimy clinging to her face. She yanked the offending plant off her cheek and coughed.

A spindly stick of a man with teeth too big for his face rushed up the dock. “Hey, that’s my boat!”

Chuck held up his hand. “Sorry, dude. We’re sorry.”

“Is the lady okay?” the owner asked, frowning.

Chuck stood. “Yeah, she’s fine. Just wet.”

She wiped her face again, already feeling the heat of humiliation warming her cheeks. What had she been thinking? She’d let her zeal for a good shot unknowingly place her in a vulnerable situation that led straight to catastrophe. Now what was she going to do?

Chuck helped her rescuer into the boat then. The dark-haired volunteer, the one she’d purposely ignored, perched himself next to her. He was drenched, his legs dangling off the bow of the flat bass boat. Tiny pieces of green plant particles clung to his yellow vest. He gave her a sideways look, and Faith couldn’t help but notice his blue-jean eyes lined with thick dark lashes.

“Uh, thank you,” she murmured, grateful the embarrassing incident hadn’t been broadcast on a live shot. It was bad enough the small crowd watching from the shore had seen.

Hopefully, Chuck could edit the footage and save the broadcast. Unfortunately, they’d have to wrap the footage with what they had. And she’d missed having him shoot a great close-up of her closing out the segment.

Her hands brushed dripping auburn hair from her wet shoulders. She’d also have to see to it the cuts didn’t show up on some blooper reel at a future office party. As it was, she’d have to bribe Chuck not to make her the laughingstock at the studio for weeks to come.

The guy who’d pulled her from the water studied her, his dark blue eyes narrowing as he sized her up.

“What?” she said, her tone a bit more curt than intended.

He held up his palms. “Hey, sorry.”

Immediately, she felt like a heel. She shook her head. “No, I’m sorry. It’s just that, well—”

“Do you always do that?” he interrupted with an annoying grin.

“I beg your pardon?” He was teasing her, and she didn’t like it. Not bothering to hide the fact, she tucked her bare foot beneath her and scanned the boat for her missing shoe. “Do you mean staying focused, because a good reporter—”

“Uh-huh.” His eyes twinkled and he grinned even wider. “I meant ignoring someone’s warning.”

He was laughing at her.

She grabbed her shoe and slipped it on her foot. “Look, thank you and all—but we’re busy here.” She retrieved the microphone she’d dropped.

He lifted his chin and looked toward the sky, still grinning.

She scrambled to her feet. “Yeah, so I guess all this is pretty funny.”

Only feet away, Chuck watched them with apparent amusement as he apologized again to the owner of the boat and promised him they’d be moving along. Even her cameraman was grinning now.

Faith wrung out her dripping hair. “Glad everyone is so easily entertained, but we still have work to do.”

About Kellie Coates Gilbert

Kellie Coates Gilbert spent nearly twenty-five years working in courtrooms and behind the scenes of some of the largest and most well-known cases in America. Kellie was one of the lead paralegals in the Jack-in-the-Box litigation, where uncooked hamburger resulted in the deaths of several toddlers and made many more critically ill, which is now the subplot of her recently released WHERE RIVERS PART from Baker Publishing/Revell. A WOMAN OF FORTUNE from Baker Publishing/Revell was chosen as a Library Review Best Book of 2014. Kellie’s novels not only explore the heart issues that matter most to women, but often allow readers an inside peek into her former legal world.

Website | Facebook | Twitter | Google+ | Pinterest | Instagram | Goodreads | Blog