Matchmaking with a Mission. B.J. Daniels
if the boys were really dangerous.”
“Well,” McKenna said with a sigh, “it’s just an old, empty house now that Ellis Harper has died. But there’s forty acres with a creek, trees, a barn and some outbuildings. It’s exactly what I’m looking for and it’s adjacent to our ranch land to the east.”
Eve shook her head, worry in her gaze. “I think you’re making a mistake, but I know how you are once you’ve made up your mind.”
“I’m just like you,” McKenna said with a grin.
Eve nodded. “That’s what worries me.”
Chapter Three
McKenna called her Realtor friend right after breakfast to find out what she knew about Harper House.
“You heard about the auction? Minimum bid is what is owed in back taxes, but I don’t expect it to go much higher than that given the condition of the house. It’s really a white elephant. Why don’t you let me show you some houses that don’t need so much work?”
“Don’t try to talk me out of it,” McKenna said with a laugh. It amazed her that April sold anything the way she always tried to discourage buyers. “If the price doesn’t go too high, I intend to buy it.”
She had worked all through college, saving the money her parents and Eve had sent her. She also had money from a savings account her grandma, Nina Mae Cross, had started for her when she was adopted into the family.
“With auctions, you just never know,” April said. “But I can’t imagine there would be that many people interested in the place. The property isn’t bad, though. The fences are in pretty good shape, and it does border your family ranch, so that is definitely a plus. The barn needs a new roof. But you might want to just tear down the house and build something smaller on the land.”
McKenna couldn’t imagine doing that. Something about that house had always interested her. She had just hung up when her cell phone rang.
“Have I got good news for you,” a female voice said.
She was about to hang up, thinking it was someone trying to sell her something, when she recognized the voice. “Arlene?”
“Who else?” Arlene Evans let out one of her braying laughs. She was a gangly, raw-boned ranch woman who’d had her share of problems over the last year or so, including her husband leaving her alone with two grown children still living at home and her oldest daughter in the state mental hospital.
McKenna had signed up for Arlene’s rural online dating service at a weak moment—following a wedding and some champagne. She now regretted it greatly.
It wasn’t a man she needed but the courage to do what she’d always wanted: start a horse ranch. She’d loved paint horses from the first time she’d seen one. Descended from horses introduced by the Spanish conquistadors, paints were part of the herds of wild horses that once roamed these very plains.
With paints becoming popular with cowboys for cattle work, McKenna believed she could make a good living raising them. If she could get the Harper property for the right price at the auction Saturday. It was all she could think about.
“I’ve found you just the man,” Arlene gushed. “He’s perfect for you. I hear wedding bells already.”
“Slow down,” McKenna said, wishing she’d read the small print to see how she could get out of this.
“He’s handsome, a hard worker, loves horses and long walks and…did I mention he’s handsome?” Arlene laughed again, making McKenna wince. “He’s going to be out of the cell phone service area until Saturday night, so he’ll meet you at Northern Lights restaurant at seven. You’re going to thank me for this.”
McKenna groaned inwardly. There was no backing out at this late date, especially since calling him sounded like it was out of the question. But suddenly she was more than a little afraid to find out who Arlene Evans thought was her perfect man.
She only half listened to Arlene rattle on about the man as she thought of the auction and her plans for the future: a man was the last thing on her mind.
It wasn’t until after she’d hung up that she realized she hadn’t caught her date’s name. Great. She thought about calling Arlene back but didn’t want to put herself through another twenty minutes of hearing about how perfect this guy was for her.
In a town the size of Whitehorse, spotting the man should be easy enough at the restaurant Saturday evening.
McKenna quickly forgot about her date. The house would be open for viewing before the auction, but she couldn’t wait. She had to take another look at the place, and this might be her only chance to spend a little time there alone.
ARLENE EVANS GLANCED away from her computer screen to see her daughter Charlotte sprawled on the couch.
Just moments before that Arlene had been feeling pretty good. Her Internet rural dating service had taken off. Several of the matches she’d made had led to the altar. She’d always known she had a knack for this, even if she’d failed miserably with her own children.
For years she’d tried to find someone for her oldest daughter, Violet—with no luck at all. A lot of that was Violet’s doing, she had to admit now. Violet was crazy—and dangerous—so no wonder no man had wanted to take that on.
Now Violet was locked up in a mental institution—hopefully never to be released, if Arlene had anything to do with it.
Bo, Arlene’s only son, had been engaged to Maddie Cavanaugh. The two had been all wrong for each other from the beginning. Unfortunately, since the breakup, though, Bo hadn’t shown any interest in finding himself a good woman to spend the rest of his life with. In fact, when Arlene had offered to line him up with one of her clients, he’d told her it would be over his dead body. It broke her heart, since Bo had always been her favorite.
And then there was Charlotte, the daughter that Arlene had thought would never have any trouble finding a husband.
Arlene scowled as she studied her youngest child—and Charlotte’s huge protruding belly. For months Arlene had been trying to find out who had fathered the baby now growing inside her daughter. The baby was due next month, and Arlene was no closer to discovering the name of the father than she’d been when she’d found out about the pregnancy.
Charlotte took perverse pleasure in keeping it a secret. If her daughter even knew, Arlene thought with a silent curse. Other mothers considered their children blessings. Arlene had come to see hers as a curse.
Not for the first time, Arlene saw a silver SUV drive past. She couldn’t see the driver, not with the glint of the June sun on the darkened side window, but she had the impression it was a woman behind the wheel.
Arlene frowned, trying to remember how many other times she’d seen the vehicle. Strange, since not much traffic ever came down this road. She put it out of her mind. She had a lot more important things to worry about.
When she turned back to her computer, she was surprised to see that she had a potential new client. She completely forgot about the silver SUV as she clicked on the man’s e-mail and felt a small thrill that had nothing to do with success or money.
Since my wife died, I find myself deeply needing the company of an interesting woman. I want someone who would like to travel the world with me. Someone who wants to share my final years.
Travel the world. What woman wouldn’t want to do that with an attractive older man? A man only a little older than Arlene herself.
She e-mailed Hank Monroe back, promising to find him the perfect woman and set up a time to meet.
BEHIND HARPER HOUSE, Nate Dempsey leaned on his shovel to rest for a moment and listened to the sound of the wind in the trees. A hot, dry wind that made his skin ache. The years must have distorted his memory. He’d been so sure he was digging