Zack turned to look at Joy, and a glint of humor entered his golden brown eyes. She'd never forgotten the warmth and kindness of that gaze--the total sanity that ruled his life. How attractive that was to her right now, even from this man who had broken her heart.

Instead of sitting behind his desk, he took the seat next to hers, turned to face her and sank down, so close their knees nearly touched. "Joy, I really am glad you're back in town, and don't worry, I won't bite."

She swallowed, embarrassed by her continued edginess. "Thank you for agreeing to meet me at such short notice."

"You're kidding, right?" His lips twitched. "Don't tell me we're going to keep this strictly professional. I'll always make time for my friend and anatomy partner."

"I'm not concerned about those people, just the former fiances."

"Think we could work around it until we get more comfortable with each other again?"

"Are you trying to talk me into taking the job?" She resisted the sudden urge to retreat as it hit home how difficult it would be to work with him regularly, see him every day. Being this close to him brought buried emotions to the surface once again.

When Dr. Joy Gilbert is fired from a lucrative job in the city by an employer who expected more than she cared to give him, she returns to her small hometown of Juliet, on the bank of the Missouri River. She arrives in the middle of the night, and her former employer's fifteen-year-old daughter, Tressa, pops out of the backseat, refusing to return home to divorced and broken parents. Minutes later Joy encounters Zack, who broke their engagement last year without a good explanation, and he's still very much single. When she finally arrives at her mother's house, it's to find Molly sick and broke, without electricity, as she cares for dozens of abandoned animals.

Deeply in debt from school loans and mortgage payments on a house in the city she never wanted, Joy must have a job, and the only position available in this town is working in the ER where Zack is the director. They must find a way to reconcile, and their work together becomes more vital when Tressa begins having unexplained fainting spells that grow worse over time.

Can Joy pull her life together and allow her wounds to heal as she tries to help the ones she loves? Can she face the secrets that come out as she and Zack fight Tressa's life-threatening illness? Come visit the charming town of Juliet, Missouri, where family and friends ensure no one ever feels alone, and heroes fight for the health and safety of those in need, in Book One of the Hallowed Halls Series, written by award winning author, Hannah Alexander.