Original Love — J.J. Murray

Peter Underhill was smitten by Ebony Mills the moment she joined his street hockey team--a coal-eyed, tomboy goddess, as dark and dazzling as he was pale and awkward. That she returned his affection was a boy's dream come true. But despite a bond that grew into their teens, Peter's intolerant father and Ebony's meddling family finally forced them apart. That was twenty years ago--and Peter has been trying to write his way back to his first and true love ever since. As a novelist using the pen name Desiree Holland, Peter has paid tribute to their most intimate moments, all the while harboring a secret wish that somehow, the girl he can't forget will read between the lines and recognize him. And now that Peter is free of a marriage that was wrong from the start, he is determined to find her...

When she was kid, Ebony feared no one, not even Peter's violent, bigoted father--not even when he caught them in their hideout under the deck of his house. Back then, Ebony said she'd love Peter forever, and she meant it. It didn't matter that they couldn't share milestones like the high school prom together--what they had was the real thing, and nobody could take it away...or could they? Even now, Ebony doesn't quite understand how she and Peter had disappeared from each other's lives. Had the hatred that surrounded them finally won? Ebony doesn't want to believe that, but she knows one thing: if she ever has the chance to reunite with Peter, she'll never let him go. Because you don't throw away something that only comes along once in a lifetime. You don't mess with original love...