SOLVED. Adult Romance in the South - Unsolved Murder - Innocent Man - Unrequited Love - Stalker/Attempted Murder

[Katarina]

Read this 10~ years ago and it wasn't new then, so probably 90s? I am not totally sure though. Author is well known in the romance field I believe. It is set possibly in Alabama. It starts when the characters are younger. The main female protagonist is orphaned and comes to live on this old plantation home. The male protagonist is a few years older and falls in love with this other girl that lives there, but she ends up murdered and he is suspected. He isn't guilty, but he leaves because he hates everyone for suspecting him. The book then fast forwards a few years when the business isn't doing well./ The female protagonist goes and finds the male protagonist who agrees to come back if she sleeps with him. She does and he returns. He finds out the troubles that have been happening. The female protagonist almost died at one point because she stopped eating and sleeping. He gets really protective of her of course and that relationship develops. Naturally someone is trying to kill her. In the end the original murderer is revealed as well as the new stalker.

It's not a great book or anything (pretty messed up really), but it's one of those I just need to reread because the plot won't leave my head. You know like a song that gets stuck until you listen to it. Hopefully someone can find it, because I feel I just wrote the damn thing. Anyway, let me know if you need anymore details. I feel like it may have a very corny name like romance novels did back then. Like midnight or magnolia or something like that in it; who knows?

[Katarina]

Nevermind... I found it. Shades of Twilight by Linda Howard.

[Alex]

Shades of Twilight for the link😉