Lightning's Lady

When leukemia suddenly took sixteen-year-old Jenny Dean's mother, she'd been thrust into the role of caring for her younger twin brothers and making a home for her father. However as she came into her early twenties her father fell in love with Lucy, a woman only a little older than her, and Lucy doesn't want Jenny around. To make matters worse, the one time she'd slept with her boyfriend left her pregnant and when he heard the news he split for America. Then her Uncle Lou died and left her his opal mine at Lightning Ridge in the heart of Australia's outback, so Jenny grabbed at the lifeline, left Sydney and set out to seek her fortune. Wealthy Lachlan Frost owns the Orana Homestead, sort of like a giant ranch, about four hours drive from Lightning Ridge. When the homestead and its responsibilities get to be too much for him, he leaves Orana and heads out to his opal claim at Lightning Ridge. Oh, yes, I almost forgot to mention that when Lachlan was in the Royal Australian Air Force he was a victim of a chemical attack by terrorists in the middle east and as a result he is sterile. However in all other respects, he can perform more than adequately. Unknown to Jenny her Uncle Lou was ashamed of his old beat up shack in Lightning Ridge, so he'd told Lachlan that he had a girlfriend he was trying to impress and when ever Jenny visited, it was at Lachlan's that she stayed, thinking it was her uncle's. So naturally when she arrives in Lightning Ridge, it's there she goes, only to be met by Lachlan after she's been there for awhile. Yes, sparks fly. Lachlan could be the answer to Jenny's prayers and likewise Jenny could be the perfect woman for Lachlan, who so desperately wants a child. However there is the problem of Jenny's independent spirit and the stunning woman who lives on the homestead next to Lachlan's who has her beautiful eyes set on our hero. Valerie Parv has written an excellent story, a first rate romance that I couldn't put down and thoroughly enjoyed. I will definitely seek out more of her stories.