this incredible woman into my life.”
Stella had to swallow back that lump of emotion in her throat again. It was her turn to speak. “I’m grateful for unexpected detours,” she said softly, looking at the people she loved most in the world. “For winding up a hundred miles from where you planned, but it being exactly where you belong.”
She never could have imagined the twists her life would take to bring her to this town, this family, this man. But now that she was there, she realized, the fairy-tale was coming true, after all.
And happily-ever-after was only just beginning.
A few months later…
Noah Mackenzie was a man of few regrets, but picking up the phone when his godmother had ‘just a tiny’ favor to ask was definitely moving up the list.
“Haven’t you learned better by now?” His cousin, Mac, hooted with laughter over a beer at the pub on Friday night. “Debra’s favors are never tiny. Remember the time she asked me to walk her dogs, and I wound up planning the entire Christmas festival?”
“Or in high-school, when I went to pick her car up from the mechanic, and somehow wound up driving the Chess Club all the way to Vermont?” Noah replied.
Mac grinned. “I forgot about that. Didn’t you wind up bunking down in a barn somewhere?”
“Just us, and four very disgruntled cows.”
“Were they disgruntled before or after you all tried to tip them?”
Noah laughed. Debra had a habit of springing surprises on them – and making it impossible to bow out. But he’d never thought that agreeing to keep an eye on the new owner of the Beachcomber Inn would turn out to be such a hassle – and he hadn’t even met her yet.
“Ms. Evelyn Baxter-Jones,” he said with a sigh. “She’s the bane of my existence. She been emailing for weeks with questions about the property. Like whether there’s running water. Shouldn’t she have asked something like that before buying the place?”
“Hey, if I saw a house selling for a dollar on the internet, I wouldn’t have asked too many questions, either,” Mac pointed out.
“What Debra was thinking, selling it so cheap?” Noah asked, shaking his head in disbelief. “Beachfront property is worth a mint on the Cape. She could be cruising through her retirement, not just spending the spring away.”
Mac shrugged. “Debra always has her reasons. Besides, you’ve seen the place,” she added. “Even the cobwebs have cobwebs. She probably knew she’d have to pay someone to take it off her hands.”
“True enough.” Noah grinned, imagining Ms. Baxter-Jones’ face when she arrived in Sweetbriar Cove to find her dream Bed & Breakfast was more like a crumbling nightmare. Maybe she’d already realized – she was supposed to be getting in today.
Riley swung by, and deposited a fresh pint in front of him. “From your fan at the bar,” he said, looking amused.
Noah turned, but there were at least three different women sending smiles in his direction. “Which one?” he asked.
“Five bucks, it’s the blonde.” Mackenzie offered.
“No, the redhead.” Riley said. “She’s been walking back and forth to the jukebox all night, hoping to get his attention.”
“My cousin, the stud-muffin.” Mac snorted. “Sure, you’re a hunky fire-fighter now, but I should show them the baby photos of you from back when we were kids. He used to dress up in my princess outfits for afternoon tea,” she explained to Riley.
“Go ahead and show them,” Noah smirked, unconcerned. “I was freaking adorable.”
He raised a glass, and sent a friendly wave in the women’s general direction. All of them smiled and waved back.
“Well, that doesn’t narrow it down,” Riley commented, amused.
“Good thing there’s plenty of me to go around.” Noah grinned. But as the bartender moved off, he caught a flash of disapproval on Mac’s face. “What?” he asked.
“You’ve been out with a different girl every night since Christmas,” Mac said slowly. “Everyone’s talking.”
“That’s because you’re all starved for gossip in this town.” Noah said evasively. “What was on the front page of the newspaper last week: ‘Stray Dog Causes Mayhem’?”
“It was Cassie’s dog, and he destroyed half the sets for the Drama Club. But I mean it,” Mac said, still studying him. “Don’t you want to slow down? I could introduce you to someone nice.”
“I meet plenty of nice women, all on my own.” He took a drink.
“Someone who’ll make you want to stick around for more than one date,” Mac corrected.
“Now, that’s not fair,” Noah said, still teasing. “I have plenty of second dates… If you count