Character Sketch: Julia, One More Second Chance @JanaRichards_ #RLFblog

One More Second Chance
by Jana Richards

Message from author Jana Richards:

Today I’m here at Romance Lives Forever with Julia Stewart from
my new contemporary romance release. Before we talk to Julia, here’s the blurb from
One More Second Chance, which is part of the Lobster
Cove series from The Wild Rose Press.

Dr. Alex Campbell has an agenda–finish his contract to provide
medical services in Maine, pay off his medical school debt, and head back to his
real life in San Diego. But when he meets Julia, all his carefully laid plans are
put in jeopardy.

Julia Stewart, Lobster Cove’s high school principal, swears she’ll
never let another man drag her away from the home she loves. Her aging parents need
her, and the Cove is where she wants to raise her daughter. When her mother’s illness
brings her and the big city doctor closer together, panic sets in. Her marriage
taught her men don’t stay.

Can she put aside the heartaches of the past and trust Alex enough
to accept the love he’s offering? Or will her fear of abandonment mean she’ll send
him away forever?

Tell us about yourself.
Where are you from?

I’m from a small town in Maine called Lobster Cove. The Cove
is located on Mount Desert Island, just down the road from Bar Harbor. I love this
town. I love the people here, I love the ocean, and I love my family. Lobster Cove
is a beautiful place to call home and I never want to leave.

But you did leave at one
point, right?

Yes. My ex-husband and I spent a few years teaching in Thailand.
Russ loved it there, but I was homesick a lot of the time. When I got pregnant,
I wanted to come home and give birth to my daughter in the States. Russ was never
happy back in Lobster Cove, especially when I got the job as principal of the high
school, and essentially became his boss. When Ava was about three he demanded that
we go back to Thailand.

Why didn’t you go?

I was going to. I was afraid if I didn’t our marriage would be
over. But in the end it didn’t matter. Russ went on ahead to find us a place to
live. A few days later I got a call from him. He told me he didn’t want me to come.
He didn’t love me anymore.

That must have been very
painful for you.

It was, but with help from my parents and my friends, I got through
it. And Ava helped me, too. I had to be strong for her. She’s the joy of my life,
and I intend on raising her here in Lobster Cove.

How old is Ava?

(smiling) She just turned six the other day. We had seven six-year-old
girls at her birthday party. My ears are still ringing from all the excitement.

(smiling) I remember those
days. So you’re a teacher?

Yes. I’m presently the principal of Lobster Cove High School.

Do you like being a principal?

I do. I love the kids, and I love teaching, though these days
I’m more of an administrator than a teacher. Sometimes I miss being in the classroom.
But as principal, I have the opportunity to really make a difference in my students’
lives. But affecting change can be difficult. As much as I love Lobster Cove, people
can be pretty set in their ways here.

Let’s get to the juicy
bits. Tell me about your relationship with Alex Campbell.

(shifts uncomfortably in her chair) There’s nothing to tell.
I don’t have a relationship with him. Not really.

I don’t believe that and
I don’t think you do either. Tell me about your first meeting.

I thought he was an arrogant jerk when I first met him. Alex
is a doctor, and when I took Ava to the ER with a broken arm, he accused my mother
of abusing her!

And then?

(Sighs) Then we discovered what was really going on with my parents.
Alex has been very supportive.

Not to mention easy on
the eyes.

(sits up straighter) It doesn’t matter how handsome he is, or
how beautiful his eyes are, or even how compassionate he is. When his contract with
the Island Health Board is up, he’ll be leaving Lobster Cove. End of story.

It doesn’t have to be
the end. You could go with him.

(shakes her head) No, I couldn’t. Even if our relationship was
at that stage, which it’s not, I’m never leaving Lobster Cove again. My life is
here, and so are my responsibilities.

But what if he stayed?

He’s not going to do that. There’s nothing in a small town like
Lobster Cove to entice a big city doctor like Alex.

Nothing but you. Maybe
you could ask him to stay.

(turns away) If he stayed because I asked him to, he’d only grow
to resent me. It’s better this way.

Better for who? Not for
Ava. She adores Alex and she needs a father. And not for you. If you don’t tell
him how much you care for him, he’s going to walk away. Is that what you want?

(gets to her feet) This interview is over.

Don’t let your chance
for love slip away, Julia.

(Julia hurries away.)

(calls after her) Don’t
lose him because you’re scared. Ask him to stay!

About the Book

Title: One More Second Chance

Author: Jana Richards

Genre: Contemporary Romance

Publisher: The Wild Rose Press, the Lobster Cove Series

Release Date: February 6, 2015

Book heat level (based on movie ratings): R

They drank their tea in silence, but the silence didn’t feel
awkward. Julia felt soothed, the stress slowly leaving her body. Perhaps her grandmother
had been onto something. The tea seemed to be working.

She finished the last of it and set down the cup. “I should
be going. I left Ava with Tracy, and she’s probably hungry by now.”

Julia got to her feet and headed to the front door, with Alex
following her. “Thanks for the tea, and for listening. I guess I needed both
today.”

“Anytime. Seriously, Julia, anytime you need to talk, about
anything, give me a call.”

She wondered if he was speaking as a doctor, as a friend, or
as a man. Which one did she want him to be?

“Thank you.”

“I’ll try to keep an eye out for your folks, see if there’s
anything I can do for them.”

She was touched by his offer. “I really appreciate that,
but I know how busy you are.”

He waved away her concern. “It’s no big deal. I appreciate
my grandmother’s neighbors checking in on her, and I’d be happy to do the same.”

He really did understand how she felt. “In that case, thank
you.”

She opened the front door and stepped outside. Turning to Alex,
she smiled. His thick hair had begun to dry, and the dark strands gleamed in the
spring sunshine. Her breath caught in her throat at his beauty.

“Bye, Alex.”

“Bye. Take care.”

Julia hurried down the steps and across the lawn to her car.
An appreciation for his looks was as far she could take any relationship with him.
Her life was too complicated, too full already. And she would never get involved
with a man who planned to leave Lobster Cove in only a few more months.

More about this book: http://www.janarichards.com/onemoresecondchance.html

About the Author

When Jana Richards read her first romance novel, she immediately
knew two things: she had to commit the stories running through her head to paper,
and they had to end with a happily ever after. She also knew she’d found what she
was meant to do. Since then she’s never met a romance genre she didn’t like. She
writes contemporary romance, romantic suspense, and historical romance set in World
War Two, in lengths ranging from short story to full length novel. Just for fun,
she throws in generous helpings of humor, and the occasional dash of the paranormal.
Her paranormal romantic suspense “Seeing Things” was a 2008 EPPIE finalist.

In her life away from writing, Jana is an accountant/admin assistant,
a mother to two grown daughters, and a wife to her husband Warren. She enjoys golf,
yoga, movies, concerts, travel and reading, not necessarily in that order. She and
her husband live in Winnipeg, Canada with their Pug/Terrier cross Lou and several
unnamed goldfish. She loves to hear from readers and can be reached through her
website at www.janarichards.com