This image is the cover for the book He Was My Man First

He Was My Man First

Valentine Daye is a product of the streets. Raised in the projects, she lost her father and her mother young. By fifteen, she was living the life with drug lord Colombo. But when Colombo and his crew are murdered, Richard Washington, one of Colombo's many street runners, swoops in and wastes no time making Valentine his queen.

Nine years later, Valentine and Rich are a happy couple who have weathered some "minor" problems. Valentine is well aware that Rich steps out on her. But doesn't every man? He always finds his way home. Or at least he did before Vanessa Knight.

Vanessa Knight is a woman who has everything . . . except Richard Washington. An heiress to a multimillion-dollar company, Vanessa is willing to forgive Rich's flawed background. However, she wants him for herself, and tells him that he must decide what's important to him—a flourishing career at clothier Jorge Jacobs, where she can make him a VP, or a life with his street past, Valentine?

When Daye meets Knight, each woman plots and schemes to steal Rich's heart. Rich must make a decision. Does he gamble and start a new life with the beautiful and cunning Vanessa, or does he stay with his around-the-way girl Valentine, who has been with him through thick and thin?

Nancey Flowers, Courtney Parker

Nancey Flowers is the author of the #1 Essence bestselling novel Shattered Vessels. She also penned No Strings Attached and A Fool's Paradise, and contributed to Proverbs for the People and I Didn't Work This Hard Just to Get Married. She lives in Brooklyn, New York, with her husband, Michael.

Courtney Parker is a writer specializing in self-help, inspiration, and creative fiction and nonfiction. As a celebrity ghostwriter, novelist, and children's book author, Courtney has written or collaborated with such bestselling authors as Terrell Owens, Nikki Turner, Victoria Christopher Murray, music producer Teddy Riley, and Olympic gold medalist Maurice Greene. Her works include a contribution in Twilight Moods and her debut novel, Runnin' Game. Currently, she works on the Emmy Award-winning Law & Order: Criminal Intent.

St. Martin’s Press