her.
Standing on the sidewalk, blanketed by fast-falling snow, she couldn’t help but grin when she looked at the front of her shop, feeling an unexpected thrill.
She’d done it, she thought giddily, resisting the urge to hug herself as she headed toward her car. It had taken her six long, hard years to accomplish her dreams, she thought with a sigh as she brushed snow off her windshield, then unlocked the car and got in. But it had been worth it. Every terrifying moment. Safety and security for herself and her daughter, as well as her own hard-won independence, were what were important to her, what she’d worked so hard to gain.
While other women her age were living a carefree existence, out shopping for shoes, sipping lattes and partying at night while they patiently waited for Mr. Right to show up, she was struggling to put food on the table and keep a roof over their heads.
She’d learned firsthand how high the cost of trusting the wrong man could be. And she was determined not to make that kind of mistake—with any man—ever again.
Which was why Dr. Beau Bradford frightened her so much, she realized with a shiver. He reminded her far too much of Sofie’s selfish, irresponsible father. An immature young man who had used his good looks and charm to infiltrate her young life and take advantage of her inexperience and her youth. Then just as quickly he had used his parents’ money and power to extricate himself from her life once he’d learned they were going to be teenage parents.
In spite of all the hardships she’d endured in order to keep and raise her daughter, Cassie had never regretted her decision to become a single parent, not for one moment, because Sofie was worth more than life itself.
And things had been going fairly well until about a month ago, when a trip home to Cooper’s Cove for her aunt Louella’s wedding had changed their lives.
Trixie, the owner of the town beauty salon, had said she was retiring and looking for someone to take over the running and managing of the shop—someone who’d also be interested in buying it.
Afraid to get her hopes up, Cassie had spent three days negotiating with Trixie. On the third day, she’d finally signed the papers agreeing to manage the shop for five years with a percentage of the monthly profits going toward a buy-out. Within a week, she’d secured financing for a small-business loan to remodel and update the shop. And she was on her way. In five years the shop would be hers and hers alone. Bought and paid for with her own hands and hard work, she thought now, squinting to see through her snow-covered windshield as she slowly inched down Main Street.
She’d also accepted her mother’s offer to move back home. Now that Aunt Louella had married and moved out, her mother had been living all alone in that big house. Cassie had to admit that her mom wasn’t getting any younger and she worried about her being alone.
Cassie sighed again as she squinted harder in the darkness, trying to find the turnoff to Beau’s house.
Beau’s towering, crumbling house finally came into view, and Cassie let out a shaky breath as she slowly turned into the long driveway. She hated driving in the snow and ice, especially when it was so dark and cold.
The three-story stone house with the wide, straight driveway sat back at least a half mile from the road, making it difficult to see clearly through the snowy windshield. Snow was falling so hard now that visibility was nearly nil.
Lights were blazing inside and out and Cassie had to smile as she turned off her car. The house looked like one of those spooky old mansions in the campy horror flicks she used to love as a teen.
Grabbing her purse and gloves from the seat, she opened her car door, and braced herself for the cold and windy walk to the huge front door. Huddling inside her coat and clutching her purse to her chest, she stood on the front stoop for a few seconds, admiring the beautiful classic lines of the old stone house. It must have been a showplace at one time.
There was an old silver knocker on the door, but no bell, so she lifted the knocker and heard the resounding boom inside. She waited a moment, expecting Dr. Beau to open the door. But when it was slowly pulled open with a creak, Cassie found herself peering into the eyes of a small, rotund man who strongly resembled a mischievous leprechaun.
“Aye, who is it bothering me now?” he bellowed, his voice tinged with a heavy Irish brogue. Scowling, he blinked at her from around the door as if she’d materialized out of thin air.
Cassie swallowed, resisting the urge to step back. She had a feeling this was Dr. Beau’s uncle.
He was about as round as he was tall. His white fringe of hair sprouted in tufts around his ears and temples as if he’d been tugging at it. His eyes were big, blue and twinkling with good humor, but at the moment, they were also a bit confused, as if she’d interrupted him from some intense project. His cheeks were full and rosy, as if he’d been dashing about in the snow.
He looked like a slightly unkempt mad scientist leprechaun. Cassie resisted the urge to chuckle. Now she knew what Beau had meant about his uncle being…eccentric. In spite of it, she had to admit he was absolutely adorable.
“Have you found them, yet?” he asked in a conspiratorial whisper, surprising her as he intently peered around the door at her.
“Found them?” Cassie repeated, blinking back at him.
He nodded. “Aye, lassie, I’m heartily afraid they’ve gone off on their own again.” He looked at her, eyes wide and innocent. “Oh, don’t be alarmed, it’s not the first time, lassie, no siree. They’ve conspired for years to drive me daft. And now, I’m afraid they’ve gone off on their own again. Sprouted legs as sure as I’m standing here.”
“Sprouted legs?” Cassie repeated. She leaned closer to him. “Who?” she whispered, glancing around to see if someone sprouting legs was in the vicinity.
“Me spectacles, of course, lassie,” he admitted with a sad shake of his head. “They’ve gone a’traveling again,” he added with another sigh, and a light, impatient tug on his white hair, making Cassie smile again. “They’re trying to drive me daft for sure.”
“Um…actually,” she began slowly, as she reached toward him. “Um, may I?”
His face was blank as he blinked up at her. “Aye, yes, please, please,” he encouraged with a wave, letting his gaze follow her hands so that his eyes nearly rolled back in his head.
“I think this should do it,” Cassie said, lowering his glasses from where they’d been hiding on his balding head to rest them gently on his nose.
He blinked owlishly at her from behind the thick, heavy glasses as if seeing clearly for the first time in a long time. Then his face cleared and he beamed at her.
“Ah, so that’s where they went off to,” he said. “I’ve been searching for them for hours.” Now that he had his glasses on, he looked her over from head to toe. “Well, for St. Margaret’s sake, lassie, who on earth left you standing out in the snow and cold?” he asked as if there was someone else in the foyer deliberately being rude to her. “Come in, come in. ’Tis colder than an Englishman’s heart out there,” he said with a cluck of his tongue, reaching for her hands and drawing her into the warmth of the huge foyer. “Ah, lass, I’m sorry, you’ll think I’ve no manners now that you’re chilled to the bone.”
Cassie shivered a bit as she stepped inside and snuck a quick glance at the interior. She almost caught her breath. The foyer
