by Karey White
A Novella Prequel
Karey White
Rachael Anderson
Kelly Oram
Heather B. Moore
Julie Wright
Heidi Ashworth
Taylor Dean
Michele Paige Holmes
Janette Rallison
Regina Sirois
Sheralyn Pratt
Jaima Fixsen
Copyright © 2015 by Mirror Press, LLC
E-book edition
All rights reserved
No part of this book may be reproduced in any form whatsoever without prior written permission of the publisher, except in the case of brief passages embodied in critical reviews and articles. This is a work of fiction. The characters, names, incidents, places, and dialogue are products of the authors’ imaginations and are not to be construed as real.
Interior Design by Rachael Anderson
Written by Heather B. Moore; Edited by Linda Frost, Rachael Anderson, Karey White, and Kelsey Down
Cover design by Rachael Anderson
ShutterStock Image # 94765600
Published by Mirror Press, LLC
eISBN-10: 1941145523
eISBN-13: 978-1-941145-52-4
Broken Things to Mend by Karey White
Coming January 2016
Not Always Happenstance by Rachael Anderson
Coming February 2016
If We Were a Movie by Kelly Oram
Coming March 2016
Love is Come by Heather B. Moore
Coming April 2016
Four Chambers by Julie Wright
Coming May 2016
O'er the River Liffey by Heidi Ashworth
Coming June 2016
Chasing Fireflies by Taylor Dean
Coming July 2016
Between Heaven and Earth by Michele Paige Holmes
Coming August 2016
How I Met Your Brother by Janette Rallison
Coming September 2016
To Move the World by Regina Sirois
Coming October 2016
King of the Friend Zone by Sheralyn Pratt
Coming November 2016
The Reformer by Jaima Fixsen
Coming December 2016
Read the matchmaker’s story to find out where it all starts . . .
Mae Li has been in love with Chen Zhu for years, and he with her. But when the matchmaker arrives at the Zhu family home, she recommends another village girl for Chen.
Heartbroken, Mae Li watches as Chen does his duty by marrying another. Mae flees her village with the clothes on her back and her only possession—a pearl embedded comb, given to her as a goodbye gift from Chen Zhu.
Upon Mae’s arrival in Shanghai, she quickly learns that she’ll starve within days unless she sells her prized comb or joins a courtesan house. She goes to the Huangpu River and promises the River God that she’ll always be selfless if he will save her from becoming a prostitute . . . Her wish is granted when Ms. Tan, the matchmaker of Shanghai, finds Mae. But Mae must completely change her future and her name if she is to become the next matchmaker.
Chapter One
The inky sky outside Mae Li’s bedchamber window changed to swallow gray then violet. Today the matchmaker, Song Ren, would come. And today, Mae Li would learn who she was to marry. Since turning eighteen a few weeks before, this day had been all she could think about. She’d been watching the sky for hours, too anxious to sleep, and now the sun was finally waking up. It was too early for her mother and father to rise, but not too early to light incense, once again, for good luck.
Without making a sound, Mae Li crept to her window, left open so that the wind would draw out any bad feelings or bad luck. She picked up the tiny incense burner and relit it, then held the even smaller parchment scroll over the wafting sweet smoke. She’d written Chen Zhu’s name upon the rolled parchment one-hundred times.
Mae needed all the luck she could get. She’d been in love with Chen Zhu for a year now, and he with her. Perhaps longer. Everyone in the village knew of their shared affection. And everyone believed the matchmaker would soon declare them a match.
Mae smiled to herself as the incense smoke curled around the scroll. It was as if the smoke were caressing her love’s name, much in the same way that Chen held Mae in his arms when they stole away to the riverbank. The matchmaker had visited Chen’s home last week and collected his history. This boded well for Mae. It meant that Chen would be matched this month as well.
A burst of wind brought Mae’s thoughts to the night before when she had met Chen by the riverbank in a final declaration of love before the matchmaker’s arrival. Chen had wrapped her in his arms, and she’d laid her cheek against his strong, hard chest. Only in his arms did she feel that she’d be safe forever.
“You must have faith,” Chen had whispered against her neck. “We are destined to be together. Does not the man in the moon smile down upon us tonight?”
Mae had looked up at the moon, and her heart soared in agreement. The moon seemed to be smiling benevolently, casting its silver rays upon the riverbank, and softly surrounding the young couple.
She gazed into Chen’s dark eyes and smiled. “I have never been happier,” she whispered. “Or more scared.”
Chen cradled her face with his hands. His eyes were dark pools of warmth, filled with love. His black hair fell across his forehead as he studied her. “I have never been happier either,” he declared. His thumb brushed her cheek, then moved over her lips, making them tingle. “But I could never be scared, not here, not with you.”
Mae wanted him to kiss her, but she waited. She had learned that with Chen, the best things came with patience. And Chen always took his time. His gaze continued, intent on hers.
“If you believe, I will believe,” she said, moving her arms up his chest until they rested on his muscled shoulders, built from years of hard labor in the fields. He was to inherit a large farm from his elderly father. As the only son, Chen would be considered a wealthy man in a few years.
All the more lucky for Mae. She would live a life of luxury in Chen’s home. Plenty of servants. New silk cheongsams every season. A mother-in-law who loved to laugh and eat sweets. But even if Chen had no property to inherit and spent his days catching fish for supper, she’d love him the same.
“Mae Li,” Chen said, her name a caress on his lips. “Your belief must come from within . You cannot rely on another’s faith. If you don’t have faith in your heart, then you cannot believe.” His smile was gentle as he continued, “Your belief will make you strong, and it will bring you luck and many blessings, but only if you believe with your heart first.”
Mae didn’t always understand all of Chen’s philosophizing, but she loved it when he spoke of things like hearts and love. “Chen,” she’d whispered. “I do believe with all my heart.” And even though fear still mirrored her hope, telling Chen that she believed was the right thing to say. For in the very next moment, he kissed her.
She wrapped her arms about his neck, pulling him close, and she felt him smiling against her mouth. It seemed that she was forever amusing him. When their kissing turned from soft and gentle to deep and passionate, Chen abruptly broke off. “My sweet Mae. We must be patient. When the matchmaker gives us her blessing, we will marry soon, and then we’ll have all the time in the world together.”
If the sun had been awake, Mae was certain Chen would have seen her deep blush. She wanted to tell him she was afraid that e
verything would change. What if the matchmaker didn’t give her blessing? What if they didn’t have all the time in the world? Like a flock of ravens descending, the weight of the future settled against her chest, weighing her down. The matchmaker held the power of happiness and love. And that had the potential to break Mae’s heart.
Chapter Two
Mae felt the matchmaker’s approach before she saw the old, crooked woman turn on the dirt lane that led to her house. The wind changed direction, pushing against the lemon trees, stirring up the sharp citrus scent, and settling it over Mae where she sat in the garden on the side of her house.
Her mother sensed the matchmaker’s approach too. She reached out and clasped Mae’s hand. “She’s coming. Do you feel that?”
“I do,” Mae said, echoing her excited whisper.
Her father stood from the white-painted wooden bench and clasped his hands behind his back, waiting.
Mae held her breath, and each slow step of the matchmaker, Song Ren, made her heart thud even faster.
Greetings were exchanged, and tea served by their servant girl. Mae could hardly stand the formalities, and her gaze kept straying to the basket the matchmaker carried. For inside, Mae knew it contained the marriage contract. A young man and his parents had made an offer for her, and Mae was about to find out his name.
Chen. Chen. Chen. She repeated over and over in her mind.
Her mother and father continued to speak with Song Ren about the weather, and the market cost of rice, and the baby boy born to the Sheng family.
The warm weather grew hot and the flies came out, landing on Mae’s perspiring arm, then taking off again.
Finally, the matchmaker reached into her basket and lifted out a scroll.
Mae could hardly breathe. Chen. Chen. Chen.
The woman’s crooked fingers struggled for a moment to untie the scroll, and Mae wanted to snatch it from her and open it. Instead, she kept her hands clasped in her lap.
“This young man’s family is very good, very hard workers,” the matchmaker said, her deep brown eyes gleaming. “You will be a good match.”
Mae found herself smiling.
“This young man is the only son,” the matchmaker continued, tapping the scroll.
Mae’s smile broadened.
“He was born in the Year of the Horse.”
Mae blinked rapidly. Chen was two years older than she, which meant he was born in the Year of the Ox. Her breath halted, and her eyes blurred. What was Song Ren saying? Had Mae been mistaken? Was Chen younger than she thought? No. She knew everything about him.
Song Ren’s voice was bright, cheerful, as if she were announcing a great prize. “Bohai Ma has good health, good manners, and he is tall and strong.”
Bohai Ma? Mae’s heart froze. She couldn’t meet her mother’s or father’s eyes. She focused on the matchmaker’s mouth as she spoke the words “Bohai Ma is . . .” and “His father . . .” and “His mother . . .”
Bohai Ma lived on the other side of the village. He was a loud boy with terrible teeth. Perhaps he would make a good husband to another woman, but he wasn’t Chen. No one was Chen.
Mae decided she was dreaming—that she’d fallen asleep while waiting for the sun to rise. The matchmaker sitting before her was only imagined, and the scroll she held in her hands wasn’t real at all.
Mae reached out and touched the scroll, and the matchmaker looked up in surprise. “What is it?” Song Ren asked.
Mae’s mother grasped her arm and told the matchmaker, “Everything is fine.” But she was holding Mae’s arm in place and silently telling her to not make any protest.
This was no dream. The scroll was real, her mother’s touch was real, and her father’s eyes narrowed as they studied her. Don’t embarrass us, he seemed to be saying.
Mae looked at her mother, eyes pleading, but her mother glanced quickly away. And then realization coursed through her. If she’d been matched with another man, who had Chen been matched with?
Her heart twisted with deepening dread. She didn’t know if she could remain upright any longer; if she could listen one moment longer without screaming. If she could remain sitting here with the lemon trees swaying above her, their sweet scent turning sour in her stomach.
Chapter Three
Dear Chen,
Weeks have passed and still no word from you. I know you have been matched with Lian Lu. She has been gloating about it all over the village. Her sharp eyes and puckered lips do not miss an opportunity to let others know her good fortune. Chen, she cannot love you like I do. She doesn’t know you. And I cannot marry Bohai Ma. I cannot imagine being in another man’s arms that are not yours. It would be like death to me.
How can we let a matter of a matchmaker separate our destinies? We know that we are meant to be together. Come to the riverbank tonight. We can make our plans, and we can start over in another village. I will leave everything behind for you. We can be together and find new happiness.
I will wait for you by the riverbank.
Your true love, Mae.
Mae went over the words of her letter in her mind as she stood on the riverbank waiting for Chen. She’d rewritten the letter three times, and then finally, she’d sent it, paying a small boy to deliver it. The sound of the river reached her, fast and mocking, unlike her memories of standing on the riverbank with Chen and being lolled by its gentle course.
The sun had set, and the sky had shifted from orange to dull rust. Mae kept her gaze focused in the direction of Chen’s home. He would come; he had to. She had hoped he’d come to see her after the matchmaker’s visit, but the hours passed, turning into one day, then two.
On the third day, Mae’s parents had forced her out of her room. On the fifth day, Mae’s parents had invited Bohai Ma’s parents over for supper.
Mae had sat at the table, stone silent, as her parents politely carried on a conversation with other parents that would never be hers.
On the seventh day, Bohai had visited her home. She spent a painful ten minutes in his presence, head lowered, as he spoke to her parents. He was loud. Brash. High-minded. He smelled of cooked fish and vinegar. His face was wide and flushed. His teeth horribly crooked.
His voice had been like a dagger into her heart, plunging over and over with each word he spoke.
He was not Chen.
The breeze stirred the hem of Mae’s best cheongsam. She’d twisted her long dark hair into a simple plait and applied the palest pink to her lips. She looked over at the satchel she’d set by the tree trunk, packed with three dresses, peasant trousers and a coarse shirt, miniature paintings of her parents, and a wooden ancestor tablet from her home’s shrine. She’d sell everything that belonged to her in order to start a new life with Chen. She would not be returning home tonight; she would not leave Chen’s side again.
And finally, Chen came.
He ambled through the bushes, around the willows, following the twisting path to where Mae waited for him. Her heart expanded until it felt like it might burst. He had come. He had come for her, and they’d never be separated again.
It was all Mae could do to not run to him and throw her arms around his neck. She remained still, waiting and watching as he approached. She studied him closely as he walked toward her, depending on the light of the rising moon to see him. But she couldn’t read his expression, and he didn’t seem to be in much of a hurry.
Letting out a breath, Mae told herself to be patient. He’d be at her side in moments, and she’d be in his arms. If there was one thing Chen had taught her, it was that patience was valuable. Yet the closer he drew, the harder her heart pounded . . . not with excitement, but with dread.
Mae pushed back the misgivings. Chen was here; she was here. Everything was going as planned.
“Mae,” he said, her name puffing out from his lips as he stopped a few steps away.
Why wasn’t he coming closer? Why was his expression so somber?
He stretched out his hand, holding the letter s
he’d written. Mae looked at the folded paper, scrawled with her words of love and desperation.
“I cannot keep this,” he said, his voice low and soft.
Mae knew his voice. Each inflection and nuance was familiar to her. So it was that she recognized the determination mixed with sorrow. Regret.
Her eyes burned and her chest contracted until she felt as if her heart was being squeezed to a stop. Of its own accord, her hand lifted and grasped the letter from his fingers. Next, he drew something from his pocket, and Mae’s breathing halted. It was a beautiful comb, inlaid with precious pearls that glowed in the moonlight.
Mae had heard of this piece of jewelry that had belonged to his great-grandmother, bestowed to her by Emperor Quianlong when she’d saved his son from drowning in a pond. The story was a legend in the Zhu family, and Chen had told her that when they married, it would be her wedding gift.
But, now, staring at the priceless comb, Mae knew Chen was not offering it as a wedding gift. It was good-bye.
“Chen, no,” she said, her voice breaking.
And then she was clinging to him and sobbing.
Chen didn’t move for several moments. Finally his arms came around her, barely there.
“I cannot dishonor my parents, Mae,” he said when her sobbing trickled away, leaving her feeling empty and exhausted.
His hands moved to her shoulders, and he stepped back from her, keeping her anchored to the ground. “Your sorrow is my sorrow,” Chen said. “But the matchmaker has spoken, and I have accepted her declaration. To defy it would go against all tradition in our village. It would disgrace my parents and Lian Lu’s family.”