Jessica Cassady must reevaluate her marriage while also dealing with the realization that her hair pulling is more than just a nervous habit. When her husband Lee attends a sportswriters’ convention and Jessica calls his hotel room, another woman answers the phone. He swears things aren’t what they seem, but she insists he move out while she decides whether or not to forgive him. With the increased stress of the separation, Jessica’s hair pulling escalates and she realizes she might have a physical condition called trichotillomania. As if she doesn’t already have enough to deal with, her domineering mother shows up for a surprise visit. Jess tries to avoid her mother’s disapproval by attempting to conceal her marital problems. While Lee works to win Jess back, things grow complicated when she runs into Noah Hamilton, a sweet, unassuming history teacher from her past. Jess’s interest in Noah makes her think that maybe—as her best friend Deb loves to tell her—she needs to forego the beefcake brigade and give the sensitive type a try. Conflict escalates when Lee realizes just how much he’s lost in losing his wife. Sparks fly as these two polar opposites on the testosterone scale compete for Jess’s affection. Will she find her emotional center, decide which man is right for her, and finally achieve the symmetry she craves in every aspect of her life?
The valedictorian of her high school graduating class, Joyce Sterling Scarbrough is an intelligent Southern woman weary of seeing herself and her peers portrayed in books and movies as either post-antebellum debutantes or barefoot hillbillies a la Daisy Duke, so all her heroines are smart, unpretentious women who refuse to be anyone but themselves. She's lived all her life in southern Alabama, she's the mother of three gifted children, and she's been married for 26 years to the love of her life.
In addition to her three novels, Joyce has five short stories featured in upcoming anthologies from L&L Dreamspell and Excalibur Press.
