Love Inspired November 2014 #2 Read Free

boasted.
    â€œGood for him, he deserves it.” Jesse forced enthusiasm into his voice. Somehow, it was always okay when Randy missed family functions because of work. It was never okay when Jesse had to skip one because he was at the firehouse.
    â€œSomeday, that brother of yours is going to rule the world.” Dad had said it a million times, but it never got easier to swallow. Every step Randy took up the ladder seemed to push Jesse farther down it from Dad’s point of view. While Dad never came out and said it, it was clear Jesse’s father felt that a man who worked with his hands only did so because his brain wasn’t up to higher tasks.
    â€œI don’t doubt it, Dad,” Jesse admitted wearily. “I’ll just settle for being King of the Grill.”
    Mom looked eagerly at the petite fillet he’d marinated just the way she liked it. “That is just fine by me. Jesse, honey, this smells fantastic. You will make some lucky lady very happy one of these days.” Her eyes held just a tint of sadness, reminding Jesse that the ink was barely dry on Randy’s divorce papers. His brother’s raging career successes had inflicted a few casualties of late, and Mom had been disappointed to watch her grandma prospects walk out the door behind Randy’s neglected wife. This past winter had been hard on the Sykes family, that was for sure. Was Dad clueless to all those wounds? Or did he just choose to ignore what he couldn’t solve?
    They were in love...once...his mom and dad. Now they just sort of existed in the same life, side by side but not close. Randy had married because he was “supposed to.” As if he needed to check off some box in his life plan. Jesse didn’t want to just make some appropriate lady “very happy.” When he fell, it would be deep and strong and he would sweep that love of his life clean off her feet.
    It just wasn’t looking as though that would be anytime soon.

Chapter Two
    â€œD one.” Charlotte Taylor finished signing her name at the bottom of the long sales document. She put her pen—the beautiful new fountain pen she’d bought especially for this occasion—down on the conference table as if she were planting a flag. She was, in a way. The knot in her stomach already knew this was a big deal. A good big deal. The way to get her life back on track and prove Monarch was only a bump in the road, not the end of the line. She looked up and gave her companions a victorious smile. “The cottage is officially mine.”
    â€œI still can’t believe you’re going through with this.” Charlotte’s best friend, Melba, sat with her baby on her lap, trying to look supportive but appearing more worried than pleased. “I mean, I’m happy for you and all, but you’re sure?”
    Charlotte had done nothing but mull the matter over in the week since the layoff, and while the timing might look wrong on the outside, she’d come to the conclusion that it was actually perfect. She needed this, needed a project to balance the stress of a job search. When she’d gone to see the cottage again and the seller had been willing to knock down the price for a cash offer, Charlotte felt as if Mima was showing her it was time to act. “I am. If I do it now, I’ll have the time to do it right. And you know me—I’ll have a new job before long. This is exactly the kind of thing Mima would have wanted me to do with my inheritance.”
    â€œIt’s nice to see someone your age so excited to put down roots.” The broker—a plump, older woman named Helen Bearson, who looked more suited to baking pies than hawking vacation properties—smiled back as she handed Charlotte the keys. The large, old keys tumbled heavy and serious into Charlotte’s hand. “I’m sure you’ll be very happy after the renovations. Gordon Falls is a lovely place to get away to—but