Lost and Found: (A Ripple Effect Romance Novella)

by Karey White

  Lydia graded essays on the Revolutionary War until her phone rang. “Hey, Lyd. I’m locked out of the school.”

  “I’ll be right out.”

  Lydia couldn’t help smiling when she saw Blake leaning against his car. He looked so good in a gray stocking cap and navy wool coat. When he pushed himself off the car and walked toward her, her insides melted.

  He put his hands on her shoulders and kissed her. “Do you feel like taking a little walk?”

  “Here?”

  “Why not?” He smiled. It was so hard to know where to look when he smiled. Did she focus on his twinkling blue eyes? Or the crinkles at the side of them? But how could she ignore that little dimple? It practically begged for her undivided attention.

  Lydia buttoned her coat, and Blake tied her scarf around her neck before taking her hand in his and slipping them into his pocket.

  For a few blocks, they walked and talked about the office, Paul and Jemma, and a Revolutionary War essay that lamented the loss of lives all because of fancy tea.

  The streetlights flickered to life as the sun slipped behind the mountains. The temperature dropped, and Lydia adjusted her scarf to cover part of her cold face.

  “You’re freezing. Maybe I should have driven you here.”

  “Driven me where?” Lydia asked, looking around the neighborhood.

  Blake stopped walking and took her cold face in his hands and kissed her. His lips were surprisingly warm.

  “Here,” Blake said and turned her toward a red brick rambler with a realtor’s sign in the front yard. “I looked at this today and I really like it. It needs a little sprucing up, but I thought maybe Jace could help me with that.”

  “It looks nice,” Lydia said. “I didn’t know you were looking at houses.”

  “I wasn’t.” Blake pulled her in front of him so they were both facing the house, his arms around her waist. Lydia crossed her arms over his and held his hands. “But then I started thinking how silly it would be to get a condo only to have to move again when we needed more room.”

  Lydia stopped breathing.

  “This has three bedrooms, and it’s close to the school and my new office. It doesn’t have to be this one if you don’t like it, but I was thinking we should get a house.” He kissed her temple. “I’ll move into it now, then this summer, when we get married, there’ll be plenty of room for both of us. And eventually, for a family.” His cheek rested against hers. It felt so nice she didn’t want to move, but everything he’d said deserved a response.

  She turned in his arms and held the sides of his coat in her fists. She grinned up at him. “You’re assuming a lot, aren’t you?”

  “Just hoping you love me as much as I love you, ‘cause I’ve pretty much planned out my entire life, and you’re in every day of it.”

  Lydia stood on her tiptoes and pulled Blake closer. He put his arms around her back and covered her mouth with his. His lips moved against hers, warm and intense. When he started to pull away, she moved her hands up to his cheeks and kissed him again before moving to kiss his dimple and his jaw.

  “I love you, too, Blake Knowles.” She kissed him again.

  “Whew!” Blake took a step back, reached in the breast pocket of his coat, and pulled out a tiny, silk bag. He opened the top and tipped the bag over into his hand. “I was hoping Francie hadn’t sent this to me for nothing.”

  “Is that really—“ Lydia took his outstretched hand in both of hers and looked at the familiar ring. “Oh, Blake.”

  “I know it’s not that fancy, but I figured later—“

  Lydia put her finger to Blake’s lips. “Stop. Don’t say another word. This ring couldn’t be more perfect.” Blake grabbed her hand as her finger left his lips, kissed it, then held it against his heart for a moment before he let it go. He took the ring and slipped it on her finger.

  “I love it,” Lydia whispered, and he wrapped her in his arms.

  When she shivered, Blake took her hand, tucked it back into his pocket, and they started the walk back to the car.

  “Know what I think?” Lydia said.

  “What?”

  “That this is going to be the best adventure of all,” Lydia said.

  Dear Reader,

  I’m humbled that you chose my book and hope you found reading it to be an enjoyable experience. I love to hear from readers, either directly on my Facebook author page, by email (kareylwhite@gmail.com) or through reviews on Goodreads, or Amazon. (Yes, I read them.)

  Getting a book noticed is a challenge, so if you’re enjoying The Ripple Effect Romance series, please spread the word with your reading friends.

  Thank you and Happy Reading!

  Karey

  Thanks to Rachael and Kaylee for the opportunity to do this together and for sharing my philosophy about writing. Thank you to Julie, Donna and Jennifer for enthusiastically joining the party.

  Thank you to my first readers—Rachael, Kaylee, Savannah and Mom (Karen). Your enthusiasm and input were very helpful.

  Thank you to my family, whose support and encouragement make it possible for me to do this.

  Finally, thank you to all of you who read what I write. I’m very blessed.

  Karey is a USA Today bestselling author. She grew up in Utah, Idaho, Oregon, and Missouri. She attended Ricks College and Brigham Young University. Her first novel, Gifted, was a Whitney Award Finalist.

  She loves to travel, read, cook, and spend time with family and friends. She and her husband are the parents of four wonderful children.

  Find out more about Karey at KareyWhite.com.