The Protective Groom: Billionaire Marriage Brokers

by Lucy McConnell

  “But if you ever need a house sitter …” Gabe kissed MaKayla’s temple and earned a playful shove in return.

  Cody shook his head. Gabe and MaKayla had an amazing house themselves, one he wouldn’t mind spending a week vacationing in. “Come on inside. I have the check in my office.”

  After inviting them to have a seat in the living room, Gabe went to fetch the donation. He came back to find Addison on MaKayla’s lap. Her hair was bunched in the back like she’d been tossing in bed, but her eyes were bright.

  “What are you doing up?” Cody asked with a smile. He handed the check to Gabe and took Addison’s hand.

  “I wanted to meet my new mommy, but she says she’s not her.” Addison pointed to MaKayla, who smiled fondly.

  “Are you getting married?” Gabe asked.

  Wanting to get out of this conversation as quickly as possible, Cody kept his answer short. “No.” Cody picked up Addison and put her on his hip. “I’ll be right back.”

  Addison leaned her head on his shoulder. It wasn’t like her to wake up once she fell asleep. Cody worried that by dismissing Ava, he’d disrupted his daughter’s life once again. Ava was the fourth nanny in less than eight months. If the constant turnover kept up, Addison could develop some real commitment issues.

  He tucked Addison back into bed and left her door open. With Ava gone, he’d sleep on the sofa upstairs so he could be close if she needed him. Rubbing his hand over his face, he resigned himself to a couple weeks of poor sleep.

  When Cody hit the bottom stair, Gabe asked, “Are you sure you’re not getting married? Addison was sure she was getting a mommy.”

  Cody scratched at his cheek. Gabe never was one to be put off easily. It was wishful thinking that leaving the room would change the subject.

  Sinking into the chair across from his guests and propping his feet up on the coffee table, Cody crossed his ankles. “It’s been a long day.” His eyes went back and forth between MaKayla’s and Gabe’s expectant looks, and he decided he might as well fill them in. First he explained about Ava hitting on him, and then he went over her attempt to sway Addison to her cause.

  MaKayla made a face. “How awful.”

  “So you understand why I had to let her go. I was just changing the locks when you two pulled up.”

  “That is a rough day.” Gabe leaned back and threw his arm over the back of the couch. MaKayla leaned in and they locked gazes, some sort of communication passing between them. Finally, Gabe nodded.

  Straightening, MaKayla cleared her throat. “If you were interested in finding someone …”

  Cody leaned forward. “I need a new nanny—yesterday would have been a great day to hire her.”

  “What are you looking for, exactly?” asked MaKayla. She exchanged a knowing look with Gabe.

  Cody picked up a coaster from the side table and turned it over in his hands. “I need someone who can look after Addison. Someone who has experience with children. She’d need to live here and be available at the drop of a hat.”

  Gabe leaned forward placing his hands on his knees. “Aren’t there nanny services?”

  Cody ran his thumb around the edge of the coaster. “There are. I’ve used several since Grandma Mia retired last fall.

  “The first girl turned out to be pregnant and claimed I was the father—though I’d never so much as looked at her. The second said she was looking for something long-term, but was really only interested in covering the break between semesters. The third had a par-tay, if you know what I mean, in the backyard while I was out of town and Addison was locked in her room. And you’ve just heard about Ava.”

  Cody rubbed his eyes. “I just … all the stuff Ava said about a mom made sense. I feel like Addison is missing out on all these little girl things. I’d like someone who isn’t interested and wouldn’t become interested in me. Does that make sense?”

  Gabe nodded. “I know exactly what you mean.”

  MaKayla rested her hand on Gabe’s back. “Tell him about BMB.”

  Cody’s hands went still. If they had an in with a great nanny service, he’d be all ears.

  “He’s not going to like it,” Gabe told her.

  MaKayla nudged Gabe. “It’s the perfect solution. Tell him.”

  Gabe shook his head. “Confidentiality agreement.”

  Cody was more than intrigued by Gabe’s tight-lipped behavior. He enjoyed watching the two of them go back and forth, and wondered how this would end.

  MaKayla folded her arms. “Pamela won’t mind. If you don’t tell him, I will.” Her voice was light and there was no malice there. Cody wouldn’t have even called it a threat.

  Gabe took a big breath, lifting his chest as if he were gearing up for a big project. He dug out his wallet and found a business card, which he handed to Cody.

  Pamela Jones

  BMB

  “What’s BMB?” Cody pointed to the card.

  “Billionaire Marriage Brokers,” Gabe mumbled.

  Cody dropped the card and held up both hands. “No way.”

  “Told you.” Gabe leaned back and threw one ankle over the other knee, looking smug.

  MaKayla crossed the space and picked up the card where it had fallen. “It’s not what you think.” She spoke softly, like she was trying to get a colt to eat his deworming medicine for the first time. “Pamela specializes in business marriages. She matches up people who have specific needs or talents.”

  Cody eyed the card warily. Business marriages—is that even a thing? He looked at MaKayla, letting all his doubts show on his face. Gabe enjoyed a good joke. Maybe they were pulling one over on him.

  They …

  They!

  The gears in Cody’s head came to a screeching halt. MaKayla’s hasty involvement in Gabe’s charities, their elopement, Gabe’s overwhelming trust in MaKayla from the first day despite what he’d gone through with his ex-girlfriend ... Cody turned to Gabe. “You?” he accused as he pointed to MaKayla.

  Gabe lifted his chin. “Best decision I ever made.”

  MaKayla threw a smile over her shoulder at Gabe before turning back to Cody and pressing the card into his hand. “Not all BMB marriages turn out like mine and Gabe’s. We weren’t supposed to fall in love.” She shrugged. “But it happened. Pamela would find a wonderful woman to watch over Addison. You don’t have to love your business wife; you just have to be able to work with her.”

  Cody gently pushed MaKayla’s hand away. “Thanks, but I’m just not interested in marriage. I’ll find another nanny.” A nanny who would last longer than three months. He’d learned they were difficult to come by.

  Gabe stood and joined MaKayla. “If you change your mind, let me know.”

  “I will,” said Cody. But he knew all the way down to his boots that there was nothing on God’s green earth that would move him to change his mind about getting married again.

  Also by Lucy McConnell

  Billionaire Marriage Brokers

  The Academic Bride

  The Organized Bride

  The Professional Bride

  The Country Bride

  Snow Valley

  Love in Light and Shadow

  Blue Christmas

  Romancing A Husband

  Echo Ridge

  Christmas Kisses

  Keep Reading for a Special Sneek Peak at Candlelight Kisses

  Gracie Louise Andrews led an ordinary, humdrum life—right up until the day she died. As she attempts to make her way to the pearly gates, she’s stopped by a stern rule keeper named Gertrude who informs Gracie that her work is not yet done. She must earn the privilege of entering into eternal rest by striving to become an angel. To make matters worse, Gertrude announces that she’s Gracie’s mentor and guide. Gracie is given the responsibility to help couples mend their relationships and find true love—an uphill task, considering that Gracie’s love life was a dismal failure during her time on earth.

  Begrudgingly, Gracie accepts her new role and is assigned her first
couple: Alex Swanson and Dawson Allen.

  Alex, a self-made business owner who has her nose constantly to the grind, regrets losing Dawson, the love of her life. Formerly the marketing director of Alex’s company, Dawson has moved out of state and is no longer a part of her life.

  Gracie uses her newfound angel powers to orchestrate a wacky plan that will bring the unsuspecting couple back to the inn where they first proclaimed their love for one another. Things quickly go awry, however, when Dawson’s high society fiancé shows up on the scene and threatens to ruin everything. Things get even more complicated when a devastatingly handsome stranger sweeps Gracie off her feet.

  Will Gracie’s zany antics save the day, or will she bumble the whole thing up and forgo any chance of ever becoming an angel?

  Candlelight Kisses

  Book 1 in The Almost an Angel Series

  By Jennifer Youngblood & Sandra Poole

  Chapter 1

  She was floating, drifting without a care in the world. It was the feeling of being caught up in a glorious dream where time and space were irrelevant. “Wow! This is incredible!” Gracie sighed contentedly, not wanting to wake up, but her eyes seemed to have a mind of their own as they popped open. She glanced around, expecting to see the familiar surroundings of her bedroom but then realized with a jolt that her favorite overstuffed chair and other comfy furnishings had been replaced with a metal chair, nondescript walls, and some sort of medical device. There was a solid red line going across the screen, and this annoying beeping kept wailing like an opera singer who’d gotten stuck on the same note. Her mind whirled in confusion as she realized that she was hovering in midair, her back pressed against the ceiling.

  Then she noticed that the room was full of people, gathered around a hospital table, frantically working to revive someone—a woman. She looked down, only mildly curious about whom the person could be. She was too busy enjoying being weightless and the carefree feeling that had overtaken her. All of her problems seemed obsolete, and she felt free and unencumbered, a happy balloon sailing in the air. Something about the scene below drew her attention, and she realized that the people scurrying about were doctors and nurses. Their faces were pinched and drawn. She wondered why they were all so sad.

  The doctor, a middle-aged man with graying temples shook his head. “We’ve done all we can do.” There was a note of finality in his voice as his hands fell limp to his side. A nurse nodded and began pulling a sheet over the woman’s head. It was only then that Gracie caught a glimpse of the lifeless girl on the table. A soundless scream wrenched from her throat as she recognized the face. It was her!

  In the next second, a curious numbness settled over her. She’d heard of near death experiences, but this was really freaky! This was like something off the Syfy Channel. As her mind tried to grapple with what was happening, she realized that if it had been a near-death experience then she wouldn’t still be floating up here. The doctors and nurses left the room, leaving only the still figure on the hospital bed, covered with a sheet. That couldn’t possibly be her. It was strange. She didn’t feel anything. Shouldn’t she feel sad … or something?

  The room faded away and whiteness took its place until she was standing in a building so large that the space seemed to be endless. She looked up but couldn’t see the ceiling, as if it extended up forever. Then she saw it—the shimmering door in the distance. It was gleaming white with dazzling light streaming from underneath it. It was so bright that it almost hurt her eyes to look at it. Warmth filled her breast, and she felt a burst of exultation. Somehow, in a way she couldn’t fully comprehend, she knew that everything she’d ever wanted was just beyond that door. It was the feeling of home, comfort, and love—all rolled into one. She began making her way to the door, and then she was running. It took her a moment to realize that no matter how many steps she took towards it, the door seemed to be growing farther away. What in the heck was happening? Panic gripped her. The door was impossible to reach!

  She felt a hand on her arm. “Hello,” a woman said in a brisk voice, “I’ve been looking for you.”

  Gracie turned, annoyed that someone was detaining her from her objective. “I’m sorry. I have to reach the door,” she mumbled, looking towards it. To her dismay, it was growing farther and farther away.

  “Gracie, look at me.”

  It was more of a command than a request. She turned. “You know my name,” she said more to herself than to the woman.

  “I know everything about you.”

  Gracie gave her a doubtful look. Then she took a good look at the woman. It only took her a second to determine that she’d never before laid eyes on her. She was older, late sixties maybe, with steel gray hair that was bone straight and cut in a severe bob that came to her angular jaw. She was wearing pink cat-eye glasses, the retro kind, worn in the fifties. Her face was devoid of a single speck of makeup, and she had on a gray business suit and sensible black flats. Tall and thin, she had a rather stern expression on her face as she looked Gracie up and down. “We must do something about your clothes.”

  “My clothes?” Gracie looked down and realized that she was wearing a hospital gown. Her cheeks went warm as she self-consciously rubbed her hands over the gown. “Oh, I didn’t realize.”

  The woman waved her hand. To Gracie’s amazement, the gown changed to a pair of white pleated slacks and a white cable knit sweater. Certainly not the outfit Gracie would’ve chosen, but beggars couldn’t be choosers. “Wow! That was incredible.” She shook her head, not fully comprehending all that was occurring. “Is this heaven? I’m dead, aren’t I?”

  A hint of amusement crossed the woman’s features. “Yes.”

  Okay, this was some doozy of a dream. Time to wake up now! Gracie pinched her arm and winced. “Ouch!”

  The woman was eyeing her with compassion. “It’s no dream.”

  In those three words, it all came together in a sucker punch that nearly took Gracie’s breath away. Hot prickles covered her as a sweat broke across her forehead. Her chest felt like someone was squeezing it to the size of a potato. “Oh, my gosh! This can’t be happening! I’m dead!” Tears sprang to her eyes, and then everything started to spin. “I can’t be dead! I have so much left to do! I’m too young to die!” she wailed. It became hard to breathe. Her legs gave way, and she toppled backwards, her hands clutching for something to hold onto but finding only air. To her surprise, she landed on something soft. She looked down. A chair? Where in the heck had it come from? It certainly hadn’t been there before! She fought to understand what was happening. The chair had appeared out of thin air. The woman seemed to be reading her mind.

  “I know this is a lot to take in. Panicking won’t do you an ounce of good. Take deep breaths. I promise, I’ll explain everything.”

  All Gracie could manage to do was nod, tears streaming down her cheeks.

  The woman waved her hand. Another chair appeared, and she sat down. “My name is Gertrude Benedict. You are an angel in training, and I am your mentor or guide.”

  A hysterical laugh bubbled in Gracie’s throat. Angel in training? Was the woman for real? She shook her head. “You’re telling me that I’m an angel?”

  Gertrude held up a finger. “Almost. You’re almost an angel. You have many things to learn and much work to do before you can become a real angel.”

  “Okay, and what happens after I become a real angel? Do I get a set of wings and a harp that I sit around and strum?” The comment came out sounding catty, but she was beyond the point of caring! This whole thing was starting to tick her off! How could she be dead? It wasn’t fair! She didn’t give a flying flip about becoming an angel! She wanted her life back! She wanted to live!

  Gertrude gave her a censored look. “No one has wings up here. That’s only for the movies.” She looked thoughtful. “I suppose I could get you a harp … if you really want one.” She peered over her glasses. “Although from what I read in your file, you don’t seem like the musical type.”

/>   Gracie’s eyes went large. “My file? I have a file?” This was getting crazier by the minute!

  “Yes, everyone does. Some call it the book of life, but a file seems more fitting.”

  “Where is this file?” she demanded.

  Gertrude reached in her pocket and pulled out a clear device that was roughly the size of a paperback book, but it was almost as thin as a sheet of paper.

  “You use iPads … up here?”

  “No, it’s not an iPad.” She laughed. “We would never use anything that archaic. Put simply, it’s an instruction manual, your guidebook or instrument for becoming an angel. Angel 101, if you will.” She held it out. “This one is for you. In it you’ll find all the rules, along with pertinent information about each assignment.”

  Gracie just sat there.

  “Go ahead. Take it,” Gertrude prompted.

  Reluctantly, Gracie reached for it. It was ultra lightweight. “What did you mean by assignments?”

  “The people you’re going to help.”

  “I’m sorry,” Gracie said, shaking her head. “I’m afraid I don’t understand a thing you’re saying.” Tears pressed against her eye sockets. All she wanted to do was wake up from this nightmare.

  Gertrude sighed. “As I said, you are an angel in training. You will be given various people to help.”

  Gracie thought about this for a minute. “People to help, huh? Well, what if I don’t want to help anyone?” She waved a hand. “I mean, this is heaven, isn’t it? Why can’t I just do whatever I want to?”

  “You young recruits are always so impertinent,” she snapped. “Youth! Why can’t anyone simply do good deeds because it’s the right thing to do?”

  Gracie crossed her arms over her chest and eyed Gertrude. “Sorry, you’ll have to do better than that. I just died today, and I’m not too happy about it. If you want me to do these assignments …” she made air quotes “ … then I need to know why.”