Category: Romance Publisher: Steeple Hill
ISBN-10: 0373871279
Type: Fiction
Pages: 250
Copyright: Dec 1 2000
Cory couldn't forget her painful childhood or forgive Matthew McKnight for his role in it.
When he comes back to the town she and her mother have finally settled in with news,
she doesn't want to see him. Matthew had always admired Cory's quiet faith. He hoped
that he would receive the strength he needed to convince Cory he had only her good
in mind. And that he wanted to help heal her aching heart.
Excerpt
"Coffee, Matthew?" she asked as she stopped by his table.
He looked up and grinned at her, dimples firmly in place, eyes fairly sparkling. "Yes. Please."
"If you're back about the will, a simple phone call would have done," she said as she poured him a cup. She wished she didn't have that silly jittery feeling around him. Two weeks ago she had felt a sense of relief when he left and now he was back mixing her up again.
"I don't have anything more to do with it. It's in my father's hands right now." He tilted his head as if to see her better. "I'm here to help Nathan for the summer."
"Nathan Stanley?" she asked, feeling suddenly weak.
"Yup."
"For the summer?"
"Starting tomorrow."
"I see." She clutched the coffee pot a little too tightly.
"And I'll have the special," he said.
"Okay." She turned and hurried back to the kitchen, her heart doing double time.
"Hey, wassup?" Kelsey caught her as she barreled past her.
Cory skidded to a halt and stood facing Kelsey, embarrassed at her headlong flight. "Nothing," she said forcing a nonchalant tone. "I'm in a rush."
"Why? It's not that busy."
Cory ran her thumb along the edge of the order pad and shrugged. "I just. . .don't want to keep a customer waiting."
Kelsey frowned and leaning sideways looked into the dining area. A slow smile spread across her mouth. "Well, well. The inimitable Mr. McKnight is back. And my friend is rushing around just for him."
"Oh knock it off." Cory felt a slow heat warm her neck.
"And she's blushing."
"Stop it," she fumed. "I'm just warm."
Kelsey gave her a considering look, nodding her head. "Of course. I'm wearing a sweater ‘cause I'm freezing and you're warm."
This would get her nowhere but deeper. Ignoring her, Cory turned and walked back to the kitchen with Matthew's order. She had better learn to settle down if he was going to be here for the summer like he said.
And how was she going to get through that?
By the time Cory brought Matthew his breakfast, her cheeks were a normal pink and she managed to exude an aura of control. Or fake it anyhow.
"Thanks, Cory. I appreciate the service," he said as she set the plate of steaming pancakes in front of him.
He glanced up and she managed a cool smile in reply, covering up the little bump her heart made when he winked at her. She tried not to rush away, as if she was afraid of him.
Then the door chimes jangled again, accompanied by a burst of noise as the first wave of the early-morning regulars started flowing in.
Shirine McVey discovers that twenty years of her life have elapsed since she went to sleep in a hotel room in El Paso, Texas. And worse, she is married to a man she doesn't know.
