No One But You
Jillian Hart
www.millsandboon.co.uk
More Than Words: Bestselling authors & Real-life heroines
We all have the power to effect changewe just need to find the strength to harness it. With every good deed done and helping hand offered, we are making the world a better place. The dedicated women selected as this years recipients of Harlequins More Than Words award have changed many lives for the better, through their compassionate hearts and unshakable commitment. To celebrate their accomplishments, bestselling authors have written stories inspired by these real-life heroines.
In this book, Jillian Hart honors the work of Mary Byberg, a committed volunteer for Nellies Shelter for Women and Children in Toronto, Ontario.
We hope More Than Words inspires you to look inside your heart and get in touch with the heroine inside you.
Dear Reader,
For many years Harlequin has been a leader in supporting and promoting womens charitable efforts. Through Harlequin More Than Words, each year we celebrate three women who make extraordinary differences in the lives of others, and Harlequin donates $15,000 each to their chosen causes.
We are proud to highlight the current Harlequin More Than Words recipients with the help of some of the biggest names in womens fiction, Harlequin authors, who created fictional stories inspired by these women and the charities they support. Within the following pages you will find a touching story written by Jillian Hartone of three ebooks available at www.HarlequinMoreThanWords.com. Be sure to look for Michele Haufs Maxwells Smile, and Betina Krahns Hookedalso available online. A book with three additional stories, written by Debbie Macomber, Brenda Novak and Meryl Sawyer, can be found on the shelves of your favorite bookstore in More Than Words, Stories of the Heart. All six of these stories are beautiful tributes to the Harlequin More Than Words recipients and we hope they will ignite the real-life heroine in you.
Thank you for your support; all proceeds from the sale of the print edition will be returned to the Harlequin More Than Words program. For more information on how you can get involved, please visit our website at www.HarlequinMoreThanWords.com.
Together we can make a difference!
Sincerely,
Donna Hayes
Publisher and CEO
Harlequin
Nellies Shelter for Women and Children
Mary Byberg
How Mary inspires others:
At some point, nearly everyone experiences a moment when one decision changes their future forever. For Mary Byberg, that moment came in January 1992, when she left her abusive husband.
Emotionally exhausted from feeling as though she was walking on eggshells around him, and even more frightened that the latest assault would be her last, Mary grabbed her two young daughters and fled to the local womens shelter in Barrie, Ontario, a small city north of Toronto. She didnt have money. She didnt have extra clothes. All she had was the knowledge that it was finally time to escape the physical and emotional turmoil shed been living with for years.
Mary had left before, but like so many women in similar circumstances, she always went home again, hoping that life would change. Yet there was something different about this latest altercation that made her stay away for good.
I really saw that there was a chance I wouldnt make it out of the relationship alive, she says.
Today, Mary is more than simply alive, shes living and thriving. Shes now juggling a full-time career in the legal field with her responsibilities as a mother, grandmother and committed volunteer for Nellies Shelter for Women and Children in Toronto.
Respect for all
Since 1973, Nellies has been at the front lines helping to rebuild the lives of more than 15,000 women and their children who have felt the impact of violence, poverty, homelessness and oppression. The organization, which is named for Nellie McClung, a feminist pioneer who worked to change the system so that women could vote in Canada, provides emergency shelter and protection for women and kids, with the ultimate goal of securing long-term, independent and affordable housing. Nellies staff also offer programs, services and advocacy to improve the conditions of womens lives.
Although Mary used another shelter when she herself was in need, organizations such as Nellies are vital. According to some oft-quoted statistics, almost half of all women experience abuse and violence in their lifetime. Its little wonder then that Nellies operates at full capacity all year, filling its thirty-six beds each night.
Back in 2004, after years spent in law school and practicing law, Mary felt a need, as wellto give back to her community. When she stumbled across a posting on Charity Village, a website that links charity organizations with volunteers, she immediately knew she wanted to contact Nellies and lend a hand.
The rest, as they say, is herstory, she jokes now.
In fact, Marys path from abused wife and mom to law school graduate and advocate was not nearly that simplistic. After leaving her husband, she spent seven weeks at a shelter learning to feel good again and to parent her girls on her own. She also needed housing, a job and child care. Amazingly, within weeks, a housing counselor found Mary subsidized housing, another contact hooked her up with a receptionist job at a not-for-profit agency, and she even received subsidized support for her childrens day care.
Today shes still amazed that with proper funding, helpful people and a little luck, the social system worked so well. She was able to move on to the next stage of her life: law school, a goal shed set for herself years before, after watching her younger sister graduate.
It was something I needed to do, Mary says. It just took me a very long time to get there.
Working toward a better life
Having lived through her experiences, and knowing how difficult the journey can be, Mary was motivated to volunteer at Nellies to do what she could to help women and their children who were fleeing violence. In 2004 she joined as a volunteer member of Nellies board of directors, and served as the treasurer for six years.
Even when she was up to her elbows in wedding planning with her two daughters, she made time for Nellies, spending hundreds of hours fulfilling her volunteer duties. And when her grandmother, who had raised her, passed away, Mary put aside her grief and mourning to finish the annual treasurers report on time. She has spent countless hours fund-raising, working on a capital campaign to raise money for a new shelter space with fifty beds, and speaking to groups about her experience and how their donations can give Nellies what it needs to support and feed its families.
As a survivor of violence, Mary inspires all women, says Wendy Sung-Aad, manager of development for Nellies. She is an ordinary woman giving extraordinary hope to other women affected by violence. Marys story and voice is one of strength, perseverance and giving back to the community to help others.
Mary, who has since stepped down from the board after serving the maximum three two-year terms, points out that many women in her position have gone on to be successful and give back.
Thats great if someone thinks my life can be an inspiration for other women, but I have met dozens of women who I think are just as inspirational, she maintains. Still, shes happy to be a face for Nellies if it means more women and children will be given the same opportunities she and her daughters were offered.
Although Mary is quick to point out that shes not a crisis counselor, shes more than willing to guide women in the right direction if they come to her with abuse stories of their own. Her advice? Talk to someone in a shelter or call a woman-abuse hotline. Trained staff members are available to help create a plan for leaving safely, she says. Theyll also discuss the documents needed and where to go to stay safe.
Reaching out for help changed Marys life forever, and shes passionate about helping others find a way out of fear.
When I left, it finally offered me the opportunity to see how far I could stretch my life, she says. If you can find the courage, have the courage. There is a better life waiting for you out here.
Jillian Hart
No One But You
Jillian Hart grew up on her familys homestead, where she helped raise cattle, rode horses and scribbled stories in her spare time. After earning her English degree from Whitman College, she worked in travel and advertising before selling her first novel. When Jillian isnt working on her next story, she can be found puttering in her rose garden, curled up with a good book or spending quiet evenings at home with her family.
Contents
Chapter One
Chapter Two
Chapter Three
Chapter Four
Chapter Five
Chapter Six
Chapter Seven
Chapter Eight
Epilogue
Letter to Reader
Chapter One
Mariah Evans. Is that you? The deep baritone rumbled above the noise of the crowd, drawing her out of her thoughts.
Strange, the power that one voice had out of the many rising around her. Recognition streaked down her spine and kicked up her pulse as a tall, powerful man broke away from the crowd. Although it had been nearly eighteen years since high school, Mariah knew the confident gait, the always-in-charge manner and deep blue eyes that touched her heart.
Wyatt Royce. Her old boyfriend. Shock rocked her back on her heels. She blinked, but he kept coming, weaving coolly around the volunteers hurrying to take donations of cash, checks and diapers from the cars driving up. He was a calm island in a sea of activity. When his dazzling gaze latched on to hers, the banner flapping in the March wind advertising the diaper drive, the bustle and noise of a local television crew setting up, and the squeal of kids running to the booth ahead of their parents all faded into the background.
Run? Panic? Escape? Why was that her first instinct? Probably because things hadnt ended well between her and Wyatt in their high school days. What a shock to see him again. Im Mariah Duncan now. What are you doing in Buffalo?
Working. He approached the booth like the calm in a storm, poised, masculine, impeccable in a tailored suit.
On a Saturday afternoon? She nodded toward his attire, definitely out of place at this casual event. Why am I not surprised youre a workaholic?
Type A personality. Thats me. I guess some things dont change. His grin hadnt changed, either. Wide and open and honest, it softened the rugged planes of his face and reminded her of the high school boy whod asked her out on her first date. That smile could still make her fingertips tingle.
Not that she was letting it. She would never be interested in a man like Wyatt. Theyd broken up for a reason.
You certainly havent changed. He pulled a checkbook out of his jacket pocket. Youre still pretty. Let me guess. Youre in charge here?
Im the executive director.
Oh, I saw your name on the shelters letterhead, but I had no idea you were that Mariah. Wyatt clicked a penan expensive one. When he bent forward to fill out his check, dark locks of hair fell over his forehead, just like they had in those innocent days when shed been in love with him.
How trusting shed been before marriage changed her. She sighed, remembering. Shed never known true sadness or loneliness before those dark days as Jasper Duncans wife. If Wyatt knew about her past, would he pity her? Or had he simply been a Jasper in the making? And what was he talking about? Where exactly have you seen my name? I dont understand.
You and I have been sort of corresponding. Hows that for irony? He signed the check with a flourish and handed it over.
Corresponding? You and me? No way. She would have recognized his name. She could never forget the man whod given her her first kiss and first heartbreak. You and I havent
We have. Amusement drew dimples beside his mouth and mellowed the chiseled angles of his face, and her heart caught again. Just like old times. All her experience and hard learned lessons vanished like fog in the sun as he splayed his hands on the booths counter. Im Flagstone Properties.
What? No. She couldnt believe it. That was a hugely successful company worth billions. Flagstone Properties owned several impressive buildings in downtown Buffalo, as well as a chunk of Manhattan real estate. The organization was so wealthy it could afford to give property away. I deal with Ella Jean there. Shes handling the final paperwork on the land the company is donating for our new shelter site.
Ella Jean works for me. Im the W.R. in the cc line of every letter and email shes sent you. You wrote her about your fund-raiser today and thats why I dropped by. He shook his head, scattering that thick dark hair, so good-looking that her volunteers and employees were starting to notice. Who wouldnt? He was a striking man.
Take over for me, Sunni. Please. Mariah handed Wyatts five-figure checkher knees buckled when she noticed the amountto her coworker.
Gladly. The Asian woman flashed a knowing smile. So nice to meet you, Mr. Royce.
Good to meet you. Wyatt nodded politely. When he stepped back, he didnt seem aware of the half-dozen women who watched him. He cut a fine figure in his perfectly fitted suit. Personally, Mariah didnt notice the bunch and ripple of his muscles beneath the cloth as she slipped out of the booth and into the spring sunshine.
Youre sure this is really a coincidence? She narrowed her eyes. Honestly, she didnt know what to think. You must have researched our organization before Ella Jean chose us.
It was her project, not mine. Shes in charge. I just approved her decision. His brow furrowed. Why? You arent going to change your mind about accepting the property, are you? Lets face it, things didnt end well between us.
That was a long time ago, and besides, the shelter has outgrown our building. With this new property, Marys Place can finally be what the board and I have imagined it. Im very grateful for your donation, Wyatt.
Im glad we can make a difference. Wyatt shrugged, caught between wanting to know more about her and wanting to walk away. Shed been his first failed relationship. You run an impressive organization. After seeing your shelter through this expansion, you could have your pick of executive positions.