About this item
The daughter of an adulterous father deals with the long-rippling effects of his actions in her own love life in this emotionally powerful novel by award-winning and national bestselling author ReShonda Tate Billingsley.Lauren Robinson knows exactly what it takes to be the perfect mistress. She had a front-row seat when she tagged along with her father on all of his extramarital trysts. She loved "keeping Daddy's special secrets," but many family members, especially her mother, consider her an accomplice in helping break up their family. Years later, Lauren's mother, Joyce, whose health is failing, cannot let go of the bitterness caused by her husband's philandering. She continues to blame Lauren, as does Lauren's brother. Joyce can't see past her anger and betrayal and has withheld her maternal affection from Lauren for most of her life. This emotional distance and Lauren's early dating experiences lead her to date married men ... That is until Dr. Matthew King enters the scene. Now poised to become a college president, Matthew is a former beau that left Lauren brokenhearted. He tries to show Lauren that he's a changed man since their college days. The two truly connect and their relationship quickly escalates. When Matthew proposes marriage, Lauren happily accepts, but as their very public engagement makes the news, someone is intent on sabotaging their relationship. Someone who watched her own marriage destroyed by Lauren, and won't be happy until she gives Lauren a taste of her own medicine. Can Lauren stop the cycle of destruction in time to salvage the only love she's ever known?
About the Author
ReShonda Tate Billingsley always did have an active imagination. From making up stories to crafting award-winning poems, the national bestselling author has always maintained a love for telling stories. After numerous rejections from publishers, ReShonda stepped out on faith, established her own publishing company, and released her debut novel, My Brother's Keeper. It's a move that paid off as megahouse publisher, Simon & Schuster/Pocket Books, picked up the book and, to date, has published all of ReShonda's books. A former television and radio news reporter, ReShonda is an editor for the Houston Defender Newspaper, as well as a professional editor, ghost writer and literary consultant. She has worked as a reporter for The National Enquirer and as an anchor and reporter for NBC, ABC and FOX television stations in Beaumont, TX, Oklahoma City, OK and Houston, TX. She left her job at FOX 26 News in Houston in 2007 to write full-time. And write she does ... ReShonda is the national bestselling author of 35 books. Her sophomore novel, Let the Church Say Amen, has been made into a movie, directed by actress Regina King and produced by Queen Latifah's Flava Unit Productions. The movie is slated to be released in 2015. ReShonda, who served as a consultant, also makes an appearance in the movie. Her entire Amen series, as well as the novel I Know I've Been Changed, has been optioned by BET. Several of her faith-based books have become a sought-after property in Hollywood.A much sought-after public speaker, in 2012, ReShonda won the NAACP Image Award for Outstanding Literature for her book Say Amen, Again and was nominated again in 2013 for her book The Secret She Kept. She has won numerous awards for her journalism, fiction and poetry writing skills. She is a five-time winner of the National Association of Black Journalists Spirit in the Words competition. Considered one of the top Inspirational Fiction authors in the country, her books remain a staple on the Bestseller's list and have been featured in USA Today and Ebony Magazine as Summer Sizzlers. In 2010, ReShonda was inducted into the Arkansas Black Hall of Fame. ReShonda, along with National Best Selling author, Victoria Christopher Murray, is the co-founder of Brown Girls Books, a boutique publishing company aimed at producing quality books from fresh voices and fan favorites. A member of Alpha Kappa Alpha Sorority, Inc. and Jack & Jill of America, ReShonda is a former professor of Broadcast Journalism at Langston University. She is married to Dr. Miron Billingsley, a Vice Chancellor at North Carolina Central University. The Billingsleys have three children ages 15, 12 and 7.
