A Winter Night

Part psychological study and part romantic comedy, A Winter Night reintroduces the fictional Dugan family of upstate New York. Eldest daughter Angie may have found the man of her dreams, but has trouble believing a word he says. Told bluntly yet with tenderness and humor, A Winter Night brings Angie face-to-face with herself, her fears, and her ability to truly love. Continuing the Dugan Family Saga, A Winter Night focuses on eldest daughter, Angie, and her issues with self-acceptance, love, and learning to trust.
Angie's been unlucky with men. Three awkward relationships have left her leery of commitment. When she meets Matt, a friend of her brother's, she is instantly attracted to him. The attraction seems mutual, yet Angie can't quiet her inner doubts. Is his interest sincere? Is he just using her for sex? Does he really not care that she carries a bit of extra weight? Angie is good at reading people, a skill that serves her well in her job as a social worker for a retirement community, but can't read Matt at all.
When Angie hears that a waitress at the bar where Matt works is arrested for selling cocaine, she soon learns that she and Matt were more than co-workers. Matt says the relationship is over, but Angie has trouble believing that, especially because he talks to her whenever she calls, and she calls all the time. Then there's Matt's history of drug use, which may not be as behind him as he says. His answers to Angie's frustrated questions are plausible, reasonable, and ring of truth, but Angie's suspicions remain.
Is she being played for a fool? Or is she just scared of getting hurt again? A Winter Night is Parrish's ninth book of fiction. Earlier Dugan books are Maggie's Ruse, The Amendment, and Our Love Could Light The World.