by Melissa Tagg
And she had Marshall. A man she knew and loved more with every day that passed.
“I had no idea you had such a green thumb, Marsh.”
“Don’t ever say that in front of Beth. She’s horribly jealous of it. Can’t keep a house plant alive to save her life.” He moved the swing with his feet. “Want to know something funny? I was working in the back yard just now and I kept looking at that wall where the hidden room juts out from the fireplace. I can’t get over how obvious it is. Anybody who really pays attention to the layout of the interior and compares it to the exterior could tell there’s more space there than you realize when you’re in the den. It looks even bigger from the outside.”
“I still wish we knew more about that room and why—”
She cut off at the sound of a car rumbling down the lane. It was too early for it to be Lenora and Davis. And they didn’t have any guests scheduled to show up today.
“Hey, that’s Sam.” Marshall stood and tugged Mara to her feet as Sam parked his car and bolted from the driver’s side. “Wonder why he’s got a duffel—”
“Hope you’ve got open rooms, Mara,” Sam half-growled as he marched to the porch and climbed the steps. “You’re gonna want to pack a bag too, Hawkins. I think I just gave away my house.”
“What?” Mara and Marshall said it simultaneously.
“Harper got evicted. She was going to take Mackenzie and move in with her parents. In Nebraska. Couldn’t let that happen.”
Marshall’s eyebrows lifted. “Uh, so they’re moving into your house?”
“And we’re moving out.” Sam yanked open the front door and stomped inside.
Mara turned to Marshall with a grin she couldn’t hide. “I have so many questions. You should go pry some answers from him, Detective Hawkins.”
“I don’t think he’s in the mood. And why are you smiling so big?”
“Because now our whole little friend-family is under one roof. This is what I’ve wanted all summer. We can have meals together and watch movies and make brunch on Saturdays.”
“Don’t we already do all that?”
“But it’ll be even better now. I’ve been saying all along you should stay here.”
Marshall’s answering smile held a playful reprimand. “And I told you, it wouldn’t be smart to stay under the same roof at night. Not when I find it hard enough to keep my hands off you during the day.”
“Well, who ever said I wanted you to keep your hands—”
“Mara!”
He was adorable when he was exasperated.
“Come on. Let’s get gruff old Sam a room and you too. Don’t worry, between him and Jen and Luke and two other guests, not to mention Lenora and Davis, I think we’re set as far as chaperones go.”
She started to turn away but he grasped her hand. “Or there’s another option.”
“You’re not sleeping in the garden shed, Marsh.”
He pulled her close. “The thing is, there’s something I’ve been meaning to ask you.”
The sudden husky edge to his voice added to the swirl of intent in his gray eyes. A gasp stuck in her throat and even the breeze stilled.
“I’ve been trying to figure out when and how and even just now when I was working out back, I was thinking about it . . . and now with Sam showing up, maybe it’s a sign and—”
“Wait a second.” Oh, she couldn’t believe she was doing this. Interrupting him. But the lightning strike of realization was too much to ignore. “You said when you were out back, the room jutting out behind the fireplace seemed even bigger than from the inside.”
“Um. Yes. But—”
She turned and towed him by hand into the house. Voices floated from overhead, and the floorboards creaked in all the familiar places.
“Mara, seriously, I was just about to—”
“I’m sorry, but I have to know if I’m right.”
“Right about what?”
They reached the den, and she let go of Marshall’s hand, hurrying to the fireplace. She caught a glimpse of the mantel and her favorite framed photo in the whole house. Not a photo at all, really. But that wrinkled magazine ad—the one Marshall used to carry with him. His daughter’s dream house and a reminder of all the love this wonderful man had to offer.
But first, she just had to know.
She ducked under the fireplace and found the handle to the hatch. In seconds, both she and Marshall were straightening in the dark room. Without wasting a moment, she knocked on one wall. It sounded solid.
“What are we doing, Mara?”
Another knock on another wall. Not the sound she’d hoped for.
One more possibility. One more knock.
She squealed. “Did you hear that?”
“Yeah.” He stepped up beside her, a hint of wonder in his voice. “It sounded hollow.”
“Do you think…”
“Only one way to find out.” He pulled a pocketknife from his jeans and opened the blade. He jabbed it into the wall then grinned down at Mara. “Just flimsy drywall.”
He cut a hole, then stuck his hand in and with a grunt, tore away a jagged chunk of the wall.
“That just reminded me of when you pulled the cellar door off its hinges your first night here.”
“Impressed you with my strength, did I?”
Her laughter filled the air around them as she helped him pull away more of the drywall. She lifted her cell phone to shine light into the hidden room’s even more hidden space.
The painting.
She shrieked again, throwing her arms around Marshall’s waist from the side and dropping her phone in the process. “Oh my goodness. We found it. We found the painting. We—”
He cut her off with a celebratory kiss. “You found it, you little genius. All I did was cut a hole in the wall.”
“With your impressive strength.”
“I think it’s safe to say you’ll never have to worry about money again, Mara.” He pulled her closer. “That is, unless you don’t technically own it. Does it belong to Lenora? Or does it come with the house? If it’s yours, think of what you could do with the money if you sell it. You could replace the furnace. You could get that crack in the foundation fixed. You could—”
Now she was the one to interrupt him with a kiss. One filled with so much joy there could never be a house big enough to hold it, no matter how many rooms, hidden or otherwise. “You were going to ask me something.”
“That I was, Mara Bristol.” He touched his forehead to hers and though she couldn’t see his dimples in the dark, she knew they were there. “And I don’t think I can wait any longer.”
“Good.” Because she couldn’t wait to give her answer.
* * *
THE END
Thank you so, so much for spending time in Maple Valley with Mara and Marshall and all the rest of my characters. If you liked this book, I’d be delighted if you’d leave a review. Thank you!
* * *
Also, if you enjoyed this book, you might also like my Walker Family series, which takes place in Maple Valley. Want a sample? How about two of them? Three Little Words is a prequel e-novella and it’s free on all e-reader platforms. Plus, check out the first chapter of From the Start, book one in the Walker Family series, right here . . .
From the Start
Chapter 1
How in the world had rain earned such a romantic rep?
Kate Walker tipped the collar of her jacket and bur- rowed her chin against the chilly afternoon’s heavy breathing. Chicago’s usual sticky late-August warmth had gone into hiding today—saggy clouds and a veil of gray creating the perfect backdrop for the swoon-worthy embrace playing out in front of her.
The dashing hero holding tight to his girl in the middle of the park, swinging her in a circle as she laughed with abandon. Oblivious to the rainfall, the both of them. And then . . . the most magic moment of all.
The kiss.
Kate folded her arms.
“I know—sentimenta
l fluff, right?”
She turned at the whispered voice beside her. Oh yes, the guy in the unzipped hoodie and ripped jeans who’d found her wandering around the movie set a few minutes ago. Couldn’t have been older than twenty-two, and yet, as he’d led her to the tent under which the hushed production crew for Love Until Forever did their work, he’d talked as if he’d been in the film-making biz for decades.
“Say again?”
Raindrops pelted the plastic overhead, and a camera on a dolly scooted along the park’s border. Back behind the tent, a rope separated those with set badges and the few dozen onlookers currently getting a behind-the- scenes peek at what might be Kate’s last project.
“That’s all these quickie made-for-TV features are. Fluff. The kind tucked in between 60 Minutes and the local news. Nothing memorable, but it’s a career start, right?” He flashed a smile that assumed she agreed. “I have film-school friends who’d kill to already have any AD credit under their belt.”
Associate director. And he has no idea who he’s talking to.
She didn’t know whether to laugh or sigh or just roll with the punches while insult and embarrassment duked it out.
Guess she couldn’t blame the kid. Kate rarely showed up on set—didn’t generally have reason to visit. She’d only come today at her agent’s request. Marcus called this morning, asking her to meet him here, said he had news.
Funny little word, that. News. So many possibilities crammed into four letters.
If only she could still the pecking voice in the back of her mind. The one daring her to hope that maybe, just maybe, this time the news might be good. But better not to get her hopes up.
After all, in the thirteen months since she’d sold her Love Until Forever script, she’d racked up a pile of rejections high enough to give the Sears Tower a run for its money. Scratch that—the Willis Tower. You’d think she’d get the name right, considering she’d had to take a part-time job there, doling out tickets, just to make ends meet.
How had so much changed in just a few short years? From multi-script contracts and her first book deal to standing in the rain, hoping against hope Marcus might have the kind of news that saved careers and made possible things like, oh, paying the mortgage on the cute brownstone in the cute neighborhood she used to think she could afford.
“Cut!” The director’s call ordered.
Where is Marcus anyway?
The AD poked her with his elbow. “Hey, I don’t think I gave you a chance to introduce yourself. You are . . .”
“Kate Walker.” She pulled her hand from her coat pocket and held it out. “The writer of that sentimental fluff.”
His grip on her palm went lax. “I, uh . . . I . . .” The burst of laughter from behind them—of course Marcus chose that moment to show up—cut off the AD’s sputtered reply. That and a glare from the director that told her he hadn’t appreciated the chatter on set. She gave the AD an awkward “See ya” and made her escape, deserting the cover of the tent.
Spatters of rain pricked her coat and caught in her hair for only seconds before footsteps splashed in a puddle beside her and a shadow rose overhead.
“Skulking away, are we?” Marcus’s joking voice accompanied the tapping of raindrops on the umbrella he now held over them.
“I can’t believe you laughed.”
“Oh, come on. It was funny.” Marcus tugged on her elbow, pulling her to a stop. With his reddish hair and stubborn freckles, he’d always reminded her of a grown-up Opie. “He’s a newbie know-it-all. Everybody’s like that right after college.”
“He’s cocky—that’s what.”
“Of course he is.” Exaggerated sympathy dangled in Marcus’s voice.
“He doesn’t know what he’s talking about.”
“Of course he doesn’t.”
But he’s right.
There they were again, the nagging whispers she could never quite hush—roused from temporary rest by the AD’s prodding. You promised you’d write something important. But here you are, thirty years old . . .
Marcus’s umbrella rattled as a gust of wind chugged over the blocked-off street edging the park. “Walker, you’re not actually bothered by what that guy said, are you?”
She was saved from answering by the director’s yelped instructions from the tent. “Start again from the kiss.”
She turned back to Marcus. “You said you had news?”
“Not out here. It’s raining, and I can’t take you seriously when you’re wearing that coat.”
“What’s wrong with my coat?” She cinched its belt as they started walking again. Maybe a little much for late summer—even a cool summer—but she’d take any chance she could get to wear the tweed trench coat with the oversized buttons and turned-up collar. It had character.
“It looks like something a reporter or detective would wear in an old-time movie. I feel like I should call you Ace and start talking really fast.”
“Do it and you’ll only encourage me to wear it more, my friend. As for the rain, a few sprinkles never hurt anyone.”
Especially not lovers on the brink of happily ever after. Not that she’d know all that much about that. But the hunky actor and his costar currently repeating their kiss for the cameras . . .? The weather couldn’t touch them.
Score one for waterproof makeup and extra-hold hairspray.
Kate stopped abruptly, gaze suddenly and unwillingly stuck on the staged love scene in the park. The brilliant green of a Midwest summer edged up to moody skies, the park’s border of towering cedar, maple, and walnut trees fidgeting in the wind. She barely noticed Marcus bumping into her. Hardly felt the pull of the breeze in her hair. Heard only the hush of a whispered memory. “This is right, Kate. Don’t you feel it? Come to Chicago.”
One prodding smile. One long kiss. One naïve decision.
The moment snapped as the actors in front of her parted.
One broken heart.
She blinked.
“Kate?” Marcus nudged her with his elbow, his umbrella tilting at the movement and sending rivulets of water down its curve. “You okay?”
“Just cold.” She dusted the last specks of her stray memory away with a shake of her head. “It’s Gene Kelly’s fault, you know.”
“What’s whose fault?”
“He did that tap number in a pretend downpour. It’s the reason everybody thinks rain is romantic. Thanks a lot, Singin’ in the Rain.”
“You are cold and kooky, Kate.”
She shrugged. Speaking of kooky, though . . . under the soft glare and watchful eye of set lights, the actors in the park were still . . . well, acting. Which didn’t make sense. According to the script she’d written, the kiss ended the scene. Ended the whole movie.
Concern picked its way in as the director’s call sounded from the tent once more. The starring couple broke apart—assistants appearing from opposite directions to offer umbrellas and drinks—and a buzz of activity filled the set, cameramen shielding their equipment and someone barking orders at the props guy.
“Let’s go inside.” Marcus steered her toward the house kitty-corner from the park. From the outside, the two-story structure looked like any other house on any other Midwest street. Pale blue siding, white shutters to match the white porch.
But Kate had wandered around the set enough to know the inside of the house was a maze of half-built rooms, shallow staircases, and hallways that led nowhere.
All for show.
Unease wriggled through her as their shoes clomped over the rain-splotched porch steps, same questions as always setting her on edge any time she gave them mental space. Had she built a career as fake as this set? Just like the house’s flimsy foundation of wood and plastic— nothing concrete or permanent—had she settled for less-than by peddling ideals she didn’t put much stock in personally?
Romance.
True Love.
Happily Ever After.
Not to sound cynical, but . . . yeah. Right.
&nb
sp; Marcus abandoned his umbrella on the porch, and Kate followed him under the doorframe and into a living room that could’ve graced the cover of a Pottery Barn catalog. Colorful throw pillows perfectly arranged on a beige couch. Framed photos on redwood end tables. Patterned rug reaching to the point in the room where the décor stopped and set lights began.
Marcus motioned for her to sit, then shrugged out of his raincoat and ran one hand through his hair. The movement carried a reminder.
She pushed a pillow out of the way and lowered to the couch. “How’s Breydan?” She shouldn’t have waited so long to ask.
Marcus released a sigh, settled into the rocking chair opposite her. “Okay. Last round of chemo next week. We’re praying this does the trick, once and for all.”
It put things in perspective, remembering Marcus’s little boy. She traced the stitching on the pillow beside her. Her concerns about her career were nothing when stacked up to a word like cancer. A child like Breydan. And Mom.
“Which reminds me—you’re coming to dinner Thursday night, right? Breydan wanted me to make sure.”
At her nod, Marcus smiled, took a breath. By the time he released it, he’d switched gears. Kate could tell— pressed lips, hesitance in his eyes. Sometime in the past five years, their professional relationship had morphed into a friendship. She usually appreciated that.
But it added an awkward angle to business discus sions. Especially . . .
Her hope dissolved even before Marcus spoke. Especially when the news wasn’t good.
“The network said no. Again.” She supplied the words for him.
He nodded.
“Okay.” She said it slowly, humbling reality loitering in the word.
“It doesn’t make any sense. You took home an Emmy. I’m as shocked as you.”
Except, if she was honest, Kate wasn’t that shocked. It’d been four, almost five years since the Emmy win. And her screenplays had felt forced and dry for a long time now. Which was probably why that scene she’d just watched being filmed had detoured from her original script. Then all those rejections . . .
