Dear Reader,
Thought you were done with the series, didnât you?
But ⦠well, Iâve said it before. Iâm not good at saying goodbye, so here we are again, watching Maizie Somers, full-time Realtor, full-time mom, weave her magic and come to the rescue of yet another concerned mother who cannot understand why her smart, pretty, vibrant daughter doesnât have a ring on her finger and babies in her house. Lucky for the concerned motherâwho just happens to be Maizieâs former sister-in-lawâthere are two motherless children in the background, as well, rooting for their dad to find the perfect mom to love them.
Kennon Cassidy is an interior decorator who takes houses and turns them into homesâfor other people.
That is, until Maizie sells a house to Dr Simon Sheffield, a handsome, widower doctor who is emotionally adrift ever since he lost his wife. Isolated in his world of pain, he cannot even connect with the young daughters he loves. He doesnât know how. Until Kennon shows him the way. And this time around, everyone, including Kennon, reaps the rewards.
Thank you for taking the time to read this book and, as ever, I wish you someone to love who loves you back.
Marie Ferrarella
Maizie Sommers leaned back in her chair, silently observing the somber-faced, stylishly dressed woman who had marched into her real-estate office, quite obviously on a mission.
Few things surprised Maizie these days, but this had. She hadnât said a word since the woman entered and started talking. That was almost ten minutes ago, and she was still talking.
Ruth Cassidy, her senior by some three years, was not in the market either to buy or sell a house. She was in the market for a man. Specifically, for a husband. More specifically, a husband for her beautiful and exceedingly selective twenty-eight-year-old daughter, Kennon.
Although Maizie hadnât seen the young woman very often in the last fifteen years, she had always been very fond of Kennon, who was her late husbandâs niece.
As for being fond of Ruth, well, not so much. But that had been both Ruthâs choice as well as her fault.
Ruth had made it very clear, right from the beginning, that she didnât approve of Maizie or think that she was good enough for her older brother, Terrence.
Ruth never called him Terry, the way she did, Maizie remembered.
As Ruth gave every sign of droning on, Maizie suddenly placed her hands on the padded armrests, pushed down and rose from the Italian leather chair sheâd had specially made for her. It had been her first frivolous purchase. If she needed to put in long hours at her desk, she intended to be comfortable doing it.
Without a word, Maizie walked over to the front window. She looked out onto the main thoroughfare that passed by the office, searching for something.
Ruth twisted around to get a better view of her former sister-in-law. âWhat are you doing?â she asked sharply.
Maizie didnât turn around but continued gazing out the window as she quietly replied, âLooking to see which of the horsemen is first.â
âWhat horsemen? What are you talking about?â On her feet now, Ruth stared out through the window herself at the usual midmorning traffic.
âThe Four Horsemen of the Apocalypse,â Maizie replied. She turned away from the window to face Ruth. Her sister-in-law still had her looks. And still retained that superior attitude. âThe way I see it, since youâre here, talking to me, asking for a favor, either hell is freezing over or the end of the world is coming, and I canât see hell from my window.â
Ruth glared at her, then exhaled loudly in exasperation. âAll right, maybe I had that coming.â
âMaybe?â Maizie echoed softly, an amused eyebrow raising high over crystal-blue eyes.
Ruth threw up her hands in desperation. âAll right, I did have that coming. That, and maybe even more.â The words seemed to burn on her tongue, but she pushed on. âIâm sorry, but I always thought you stole Terrence away from what would have been a very good match for him. Sandra Herrington was wealthy and her family went all the way back to the Mayflower.â
Maizie was well aware of her former rivalâs pedigreeâand the fact that her late husband always swore sheâd saved him from an eternity of unspeakable boredom. But, for the sake of peace, she said enigmatically, âYes, I know.â
Ruth frowned. âI was wrong, okay?â
Maizie had never thought of herself as a genius, but she was also far from stupid or gullible. âYouâre only saying that because you want my help.â
About to deny Maizieâs assumption, Ruth finally shrugged in a helpless manner. âWell, itâs a start, isnât it?â she asked. âIâm sorry, I made a mistake coming here. Itâs just that I heard that you and your friends were running some kind of matchmaking service on the sideââ