“Oh, hi.” She sat still while Margie and Eunice jumped up and pretended to be doing busy stuff. “Is that rain still out there?” And when would she learn to keep her mouth shut?
“Did I scare you?” he asked, ignoring the rain question.
“No. I mean, yes.” It was time for her to go home.
He gave her the glint look. “Voices tend to echo through this house.”
“I’ll keep that in mind.”
After the other women beat a hasty exit, he leaned against the counter. “Do I...scare you?”
Callie couldn’t fudge the truth. She was known for her sugar-coated bluntness, after all. “Yes, you do. You’re different.”
“In what way?”
In a tingling, strange way that messes with my head.
She lifted her hand, indicating their surroundings, and thought of the first excuse that came to mind. “This house didn’t come cheap.”
Fleur House was a true treasure with its many porches and porticos, the arched windows and terraces and that garden, lush with possibilities. This man had bought it, commissioned Nick Santiago to renovate it and had managed to put a big intricate iron fence around it to keep everyone out.
But all of that added up to a lot of money.
“No, but how does that make me different?”
“Have you really taken a look at this town? We’re hurting. Between storms, oil spills and a bad economy, we’re barely hanging on. But you—you seem to have it all together. You get to live in a beautiful, historic home. You obviously have money since you poured a lot into renovating this place. And you’re paying me a hefty fee to spruce up the property. So yes, you’re different. You don’t have to worry about where your next paycheck will come from.”
He leaned close to her, his gaze heating her skin. “I am different, but not in the way you think.”
Callie took a breath and dug right in. “You want to explain that?”
“No,” he said. Then he glanced out the row of kitchen windows. “Oh, look, the rain’s stopped.”
Callie knew a dismissal when she heard one.
“My cue to leave,” she said. Grabbing her tote and her pride, she turned at the back door. “I’ll be back tomorrow. Hopefully, the ground will be dry by then. I’ll try to stay out of your way.”
“I’d appreciate that—you coming back to finish the job and you staying out of my way.” He nodded, glinted and then turned and walked out of the room.
Copyright © 2014 by Lenora H. Nazworth
ISBN-13: 9781460324592
HER UNEXPECTED COWBOY
Copyright © 2014 by Debra Clopton
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www.Harlequin.com
Taming The Wanderer’s Heart
Carissa Hopper’s always been strong and self-sufficient. So when the single mom of three finds herself in need, accepting help from the rugged and adventurous Phillip Chatam isn’t easy. She knows he’s the kind of man she should stay far away from. Still, when his aunts offer her lodging at Chatam House, where Phillip also resides, Carissa can’t refuse. Always on the move, Phillip has no interest in settling down. But as he gets to know Carissa’s adorable children—and falls for their mother—he realizes that his biggest adventure will be convincing Carissa to let him be a part of her future.
Chatam House: Where three matchmaking aunts bring faith and love to life.
“Thanks for your help.”
“No problem. They were so tired.”
“They had a wonderful day, and so did I.”
“I’m glad.”
Phillip smiled down at her, and Carissa stepped closer. She couldn’t help herself. A warm feeling washed over her, and she felt certain that he would kiss her. His copper gaze skimmed her face. Her breath caught in anticipation. But then he turned the doorknob.
“If, um, you should change your mind about attending church with the aunties and me on Sunday…”
Disappointment dealt her a crushing blow, but she managed to keep her composure. “I’ve already told Uncle Chester and Aunt Hilda we’ll be going with them.”
“All right, then.”
“About Saturday night, though…”
“Oh, with my parents here and everything… I’ll try, though. Well, good night.”
“Good night.”
He slipped out, closing the door behind him. Carissa tried very hard not to cry. She kept telling herself it was for the best. He wasn’t the man for her. No good could come from putting herself in Phillip Chatam’s way. But she didn’t have to be happy about it, did she?
Books by Arlene James
Love Inspired
*The Perfect Wedding
*An Old-Fashioned Love
*A Wife Worth Waiting For
*With Baby in Mind
The Heart’s Voice
To Heal a Heart
Deck the Halls
A Family to Share
Butterfly Summer
A Love So Strong
When Love Comes Home
A Mommy in Mind
**His Small-Town Girl
**Her Small-Town Hero
**Their Small-Town Love
†Anna Meets Her Match
†A Match Made in Texas
A Mother’s Gift “Dreaming of a Family”
†Baby Makes a Match
†An Unlikely Match
The Sheriff’s Runaway Bride
†Second Chance Match
†Building a Perfect Match
Carbon Copy Cowboy
Love in Bloom
†His Ideal Match
*Everyday Miracles
**Eden, OK
†Chatam House
ARLENE JAMES
says, “Camp meetings, mission work and church attendance permeate my Oklahoma childhood memories. It was a golden time, which sustains me yet. However, only as a young widowed mother did I truly begin growing in my personal relationship with the Lord. Through adversity He has blessed me in countless ways, one of which is a second marriage so loving and romantic it still feels like courtship!”
After thirty-three years in Texas, Arlene James now resides in Bella Vista, Arkansas, with her beloved husband. Even after seventy-five novels, her need to write is greater than ever, a fact that frankly amazes her, as she’s been at it since the eighth grade. She loves to hear from readers, and can be reached via her website, www.arlenejames.com.
His Ideal Match
Arlene James
Two are better than one, because they have a good return for their labor: If either of them falls down, one can help the other up. But pity anyone who falls and has no one to help them up.
—Ecclesiastes 4:9–10
For Joseph, who has given this mom plenty of
gray hair but much, much delight.
Pride is a sin to which my sons continually tempt me.
Contents
Chapter One
Chapter Two
Chapter Three
Chapter Four
Chapter Five
Chapter Six
Chapter Seven
Chapter Eight
Chapter Nine
Chapter Ten
Chapter Eleven
Chapter Twelve
Chapter Thirteen
Chapter Fourteen
Chapter Fifteen
Epilogue
Dear Reader
Questions for Discussion
Excerpt
Chapter One
The wrought iron gate stood ajar, so Phillip Chatam slipped into the leafy courtyard of the Downtown Bible Church of Buffalo Creek, Texas. Here, landscape lighting held back the gathering gloom of this first Thursday evening of June. Behind him rose the sanctuary in all its stylized Spanish glory. Ahead of him, a walkway wound through the trees and flower beds. It was a peaceful place, but had he not promised his aunts—the renowned seventy-five-year-old triplets of Chatam House—that he would attend tonight’s grief support meeting, he would not be here.
When his aunts had politely but firmly insisted that he attend this meeting, he could have told them that they were mistaken in their assumption that grief and fear had driven him away from his occupation of the past several years and into this state of ennui, where he had languished for the past five weeks. Of course, he grieved the deaths of his friends and coworkers in a fall from the mountain in Washington State where he had worked for some time. He had functioned in a daze for at least six weeks after the accident.
The company he’d worked for had brought in professional counselors, and Phillip, like the other guides and outfitters, had attended his obligatory three sessions. Like the others, he had experienced moments of fear and discomfort on his next climb, and truth be told, he had secretly welcomed such emotions. Guiding tourists on mountain climbs had become old hat. Fear had at least added an element of excitement to the process. The apprehension had rapidly dissipated, however, and he had known then that it was time to move on. But to what?
For eight months he had gone through the motions. The whole time, he’d been looking for the next challenge, the next adventure. In the past, something had always cropped up. This time, though, he hadn’t been able to wait on it. This time, he’d started to worry that his lack of enthusiasm for the work was going to get someone else hurt. He’d walked away in the middle of the season, just packed up his stuff and left Seattle for Texas. He’d spent the past five weeks at Chatam House, the antebellum mansion where his aunties had lived their entire lives and the lodestone of the large, far-flung Chatam family.
During that time, his parents had harassed him almost daily about finding a “real” job, and his aunts had worried that he was ignoring his grief. The least he could do, given that the aunties had opened their home to him, was assuage their concern by schlepping downtown to a meeting of the DBC Grief Support Group.
He followed the signs along a hallway and down a flight of stairs to the meeting room in the basement. Soft instrumental music and muted light greeted him as he passed through the open doorway. A pair of older women smiled at him from the counter laden with cookies, coffee and water. His gaze swept the softly lit room, taking in the other occupants. Most were older than him. A boy and girl in their late teens or early twenties appeared to be siblings. Hub, Phillip’s elderly uncle and a retired minister, swooped in with arms spread wide in welcome.
“Phillip! So good to see you.” Reaching up to slide an arm across Phillip’s shoulders, Hub turned to address the milling group. “My nephew Phillip Chatam is joining us tonight. He’s come home to Texas from Seattle.”
Most people nodded and offered taut smiles, but the two women at the refreshment table beamed as they carried over napkin-wrapped cookies and a disposable cup of coffee strong enough to anchor a grappling hook. Phillip accepted both with self-conscious nods before dropping down onto the nearest folding chair. About a dozen of them had been arranged in a horseshoe shape. The other attendees quietly took up seats, leaving several empty, including the one on the end to Phillip’s left.
“Let us begin with silent prayer,” said Hub.
Everyone hushed. Several moments ticked by while Phillip tried to think of a prayer, finally coming up with, God, be with the families of those who died.
It was the same prayer he’d prayed on the day of the accident. He didn’t figure it would do much good. It seemed to Phillip that God was too busy to pay attention to him, but it couldn’t hurt to send up a prayer now and again.
Someone slipped into the empty chair on Phillip’s left, derailing his train of thought and sharpening his senses. Before he could stop himself, he turned his head, just enough so that he could see a portion of a feminine form from the corner of his eye.
A pair of worn but clean white canvas sneakers came into view, followed by the frayed hems of slender faded jeans. A pair of delicate, feminine hands rested in casual but prayerful repose atop one jeaned knee, but that was as much as Phillip could see.
Several long minutes later, Hub said, “Amen.”
“We have another newcomer,” Hub announced, engaging the latest arrival with a welcoming nod. He reached out a gnarled hand for a gentle shake. “I’m Pastor Hub.” He went around the room, naming everyone in order. “This is Phillip, Mr. Edgar, the Lallys, Margaret, Sandra, Miss Clara and Bernice.”
Turning to the woman at his side, Phillip smiled and tried not to stare. She was beautiful, in a wide-eyed, elegant way that belied the casual twist of her golden-brown hair and slightly shabby clothing. Without a speck of cosmetics, she took his breath away.
Phillip suddenly wished he had shaved. His brown hair was so dark it was almost black, and the hair on his face gave him a constant five-o’clock shadow, always appearing between shaves. In fact, within three weeks’ time, he could have a beard heavy enough to obliterate the cleft chin that marked every adult Chatam and the dimples that his mother so adored.
He unconsciously fingered the deep cleft in his chin now as he took in the generous smattering of freckles across his new neighbor’s tiny nose and high cheekbones. Wide, naturally rosy lips revealed neat, white teeth without quite smiling, and tawny hair wisped about an oval face with a delicately pointed chin. She had unusual eyes of a deep velvet blue, thickly fringed in dark gold lashes. She looked young, early to mid-twenties, but wore a maturity that made her seem older. He couldn’t take his eyes off her.
She introduced herself to the group in a husky, whispery voice. “I’m Carissa Hopper.”
Phillip shifted in his chair. Feeling like a teen boy with an unexpected crush, he concentrated on his hands. Rough and hard, they were no longer the slender-fingered hands that his mother had once declared those of a pianist or surgeon. He concentrated on a tiny jagged scar on the side of one knuckle where a crampon had sliced his glove as the climber above him had struggled to find his footing.
Shaking himself, he sat up straighter and listened as Hub instructed everyone to tell why they were there. When Phillip’s turn came, he cleared his throat and muttered, “Two of my friends and a client were in a rock-climbing accident over eight months ago. They fell when a cliff face suddenly gave way.”
The woman beside him displayed no such hesitancy to speak, declaring forthrightly, “My husband was killed almost four years ago when a truck he was working beneath fell on him. I’m here now, frankly, just to please certain family members.” She went on to explain, “Times are tough right now. They’re worried about me.”
Phillip spoke out of the corner of his mouth. “Same deal with
me. Here to please family.”
If Carissa Hopper thought that this gave them more in common than the others present, she gave no sign of it.
Hub began to speak about how tough times could affect grief by exaggerating or covering over it. Those who were regulars to the group offered up personal stories illustrating the point in one way or another. Phillip barely heard them. He was too busy planning how to get to know Carissa Hopper better.
Hub closed the meeting with a few well-chosen words on overcoming grief. “Don’t wait for others to minister to you. Do something for someone else,” he said.
That made sense to Phillip, but it didn’t apply to him. He wasn’t sad, just uncertain what to do next. Surely he’d come up with something before his money ran out. A decent accountant, he knew how to make his bucks last, which was why he was currently enjoying the haven of Chatam House. And attending grief support meetings to appease his aunties.
As the session broke up, he rose to follow the lovely Carissa from the room, rehearsing conversational icebreakers in his head.
Before he could catch up to her, however, his uncle laid claim to him. “Phillip, can you help with these chairs?”
Glancing at the folding chairs being loaded onto a long, rolling rack, Phillip frowned inwardly. “In a minute, Uncle Hub. Be right back.”
He dashed from the room, only to find the hall empty. Racing up the stairs, he tore through the building, sure he would catch her before she reached the courtyard, but she must have gone another way, for when he pushed through the door, he found himself alone on the softly lit path.
Disappointed, he heaved a sigh. Well, maybe next week.
Lord, he thought, if You’re listening, if it matters, I’d like to see that woman again. Please.
In fact, he’d attend more grief support meetings on the chance that he’d see her again.
Love Inspired January 2014 - Bundle 1 of 2: Her Unexpected CowboyHis Ideal MatchThe Rancher's Secret Son Page 19