Everand Logo

Welcome to Everand!

  • Discover millions of ebooks, audiobooks, and so much more with a free trial

    Only $11.99/month after trial. Cancel anytime.

    Never Again
    Never Again
    Never Again
    Ebook62 pages1 hour

    Never Again

    By Gabriella Mahoney

    ()

    Read preview

    About this ebook

    Book 4 of the Spinster Series

    A youthful romance that ended badly has rendered Mabel Hughes incapable of ever loving another man. Or so she thought. A self-portrait she painted and sold years ago crosses paths with wealthy businessman, Thomas Torrens. He is captivated by the hauntingly beautiful woman in the picture and is determined to discover her identity. Little does he realize that artist and subject are one in the same...

    This novelette is approximately 13,000 words.

    LanguageEnglish
    PublisherGabriella Mahoney
    Release dateApr 24, 2013
    ISBN9781301506897
    Never Again
    Author

    Gabriella Mahoney

    Gabriella Mahoney is a California girl that has been writing since grade school. As an incurable bookworm, she remembers when her best friend first introduced her to Georgette Heyer and the world of Regency romance like it was yesterday. Gabriella likes to write in a variety of genres but she is especially fond of short form fiction and exploring the new romantic possibilities it creates.

    Read more from Gabriella Mahoney

    Related to Never Again

    Related ebooks

    Historical Romance For You

    View More
    View More

    Related podcast episodes

    Related articles

    • Article

      Back Draft: Danez Smith

      Dec 3, 2020

      The poet on a hard year for books, getting a rise out of an audience, and “Frankensteining” your archives.

      7 min read

    • Article

      Australia Reads At Home

      May 18, 2020

      Australia Reads At Home
      7 min read

    • Article

      It’s OVER

      Aug 30, 2023

      It’s OVER
      3 min read

    • Article

      The Art of Comics No. 3

      Jun 8, 2021

      The Art of Comics No. 3
      32 min read

    • Article

      Wuthering SLEIGHTS

      Jan 31, 2024

      The phone went for the fourth time that morning, and I had a pretty good idea who was calling. ‘It’s me,’ said my sister Deb. ‘Look here, do you think I have to finish all these books?’ ‘Up to you. Why do you ask?’ The phone went silent for a moment,

      3 min read

    • Article

      Hilton ALS

      Jun 15, 2018

      Hilton ALS
      29 min read

    • Article

      Just Make Someone Feel Something: The Millions Interviews Bud Smith and Rae Buleri

      May 12, 2022

      "I come to fiction to suspend my disbelief. The book is a drug. I'm trying to take this drug. Get melted off this drug." The post Just Make Someone Feel Something: The Millions Interviews Bud Smith and Rae Buleri appeared first on The Millions.

      8 min read

    • Article

      California Screaming

      Mar 24, 2021

      California Screaming
      5 min read

    • Article

      My Friend, Mitzi

      Jul 16, 2021

      My Friend, Mitzi
      5 min read

    • Article

      Now Is the Time

      Nov 24, 2020

      Now Is the Time
      5 min read

    • Article

      Margaret Atwood: ‘It Would Be Fun To Talk To Simone De Beauvoir’

      Mar 11, 2023

      Margaret Atwood is the author of more than 50 books of fiction, poetry and essays. Her novels include Cat’s Eye, The Robber Bride, Alias Grace and The Blind Assassin. Her 1985 classic, The Handmaid’s Tale, was followed in 2019 by a sequel, The Testam

      4 min read

    • Article

      Patrimony

      Nov 2, 2021

      Looking through an old issue of Art & Australia, I was reminded of an artist whose efforts came to nought. It was a simple black and white advertisement that brought him to mind. It bore no picture. Just his name, some exhibition dates and the galler

      3 min read

    • Article

      ‘Trump Ruined Bad Taste’

      Jun 10, 2022

      ‘Trump Ruined Bad Taste’
      7 min read

    • Article

      The Duplex

      Jun 9, 2020

      I moved to Los Angeles to sing. When was this? August? June? I was twenty-nine, and those were shapeless months, when the days blended together and I refused to pull them apart. My landlord was unusually close to her adult son. His name was Jeffrey,

      21 min read

    • Article

      Patricia Smith Wants You to Hear Every Gunshot: The Millions Interview

      Aug 2, 2017

      My mom believed that the way to get through life was to be as beholden as possible to white people. If she was in a room and a white person walked in, her whole body would get smaller. She tried really hard to teach me how to live like that—because i

      14 min read

    • Article

      Lingering EFFECTS

      Jun 2, 2022

      Lingering EFFECTS
      7 min read

    • Article

      ‘I Never Needed People To Like Me’: Dragons’ Den Star Deborah Meaden On Snobbery, Fame And Her 40-year Marriage

      Apr 6, 2022

      As Deborah Meaden gears up for her 17th series of Dragons’ Den, which she joined in 2006, she meets me at the Guardian’s offices. She is maybe 90 seconds late and does this lightning three-act apology – that she is sorry; why it happened (taxi driver

      8 min read

    • Article

      Monster

      Dec 1, 2022

      Monster
      7 min read

    Related categories

    Reviews for Never Again

    0 ratings

    0 ratings0 reviews

    What did you think?

    Tap to rate

    Review must be at least 10 words

      Book preview

      Never Again - Gabriella Mahoney

      Never Again

      By Gabriella Mahoney

      ***

      Published by Gabriella Mahoney at Smashwords

      Copyright 2013 Gabriella Mahoney

      Smashwords Edition, License Notes

      This ebook is licensed for your personal enjoyment only. This ebook may not be re-sold or given away to other people. If you would like to share this book with another person, please purchase an additional copy for each recipient. If you’re reading this book and did not purchase it, or it was not purchased for your use only, then please return to Smashwords.com and purchase your own copy. Thank you for respecting the hard work of this author.

      ***

      Prologue

      I can, of course, bring you more selections, Mr. Torrens.

      Thomas raised an amused eyebrow at the aging art dealer. He was driving the man to the point of distraction and they both knew it. Mr. Simmons had been contacted a fortnight ago with a request for a selection of art from a variety of contemporary artists. A promise to make the effort worth his while made him reluctantly agree.

      Thomas was used to the type of reaction the Mr. Simmons was giving him. An untitled man was never afforded the same respect as that given to a peer. It didn’t matter that Thomas Torrens happened to be richer than most of the English aristocracy. New money was almost always viewed with contempt.

      The selections you brought me are just fine. I can tell that you went to some trouble to acquire a few of these pieces. I’m merely taking my time. One should never take the job of patron lightly.

      Simmons sighed and took a few steps back as Thomas resumed his careful scrutiny of each piece. His approach was unusual since very few aristocrats actually bothered to become educated in the field of art. They supported artists as a matter of show rather than principles.

      But Thomas took pride in his carefully acquired artistic taste, having originally spent his younger days as a painter’s apprentice. Ambition made him cut his art career short. He was tired of going to bed hungry and wanted his impoverished parents to live out their remaining days in comfort. Scraping together every shilling he could muster, he had eventually made his fortune through ruthless stock trading, loans and banking. His entire life now revolved around numbers. The occasional painting project in his precious few free hours was the only way he still felt human. Art and his daughter, Annabelle, were his two reminders that there was goodness in this life.

      He wasn’t quite sure if his decision to become an art patron stemmed from his passion or his guilt. His career demands up until this point had made it impossible for him to do anything other than collect the occasional piece. But at seven and thirty years of age he decided enough was enough. It was high time he started doing something with his money other than buy yet another lavish country estate.

      His eyes narrowed as he examined the work in front of him. It was a painting of a bustling dock at dawn. Fishermen setting sail and their wives cutting up the latest catch. The artist had done an exquisite job capturing all the unassuming details of the scene. His technique was flawless. It lacked… depth. Thomas could immediately tell that the artist felt no connection to these people.

      He didn’t want to pick just any artist to sponsor. He wanted the artist to have that special something in their work. He wasn’t sure what that was but he would know it when he saw it. Scowling at the dock scene, he moved on to the next display. So far all of these artists struck him as the same: skilled but soulless. Was it really so much to—

      His internal tirade was cut short as his eyes took in the next painting.

      Enjoying the preview?
      Page 1 of 1