Love Letters: A Rose Harbor Novel Read Free

him.
    “Then you’ve got a creative imagination.”
    “Fine, you’re not under the government’s protection. You didn’t answer my question.”
    He sighed as if bored with the subject. “Which question?” He reached for another cookie and stood.
    “Have you ever been married?” I asked a bit louder this time. I wanted him to know I was serious and determined to unearth his secrets.
    “Can’t imagine why you’d want to know something like that. Doesn’t really seem like any of your business.”
    I guess that was meant to put me in my place. “Just curious,” I said.
    He set the mug in the sink. “Don’t be. I’m not that interesting. See you later.”
    And with that, he walked out the front door.
    “Well, well, isn’t he the prickly one,” I said to Rover, who cocked his head to one side as if he agreed. Unwilling to let the matter rest, I reached for the phone. Fine, if he wanted to be that way, I would go to plan B. I punched in the number for my friend Peggy Beldon.
    Peggy and her husband, Bob, owned the Thyme and Tide, another local bed-and-breakfast. It was Peggy who’d recommended Mark as a handyman. She’d become a friend and was always helpful and informative. Never once had I gotten the impression that she viewed me as competition. In fact, she’d often sent her overflow customers in my direction. I was grateful to Peggy for the advice and guidance she’d so generously shared with me.
    “Jo Marie,” she greeted, and sounded pleased to hear from me. “What can I do for you?”
    “I have a question,” I said, a little embarrassed to be so openly curious about Mark.
    “Sure, anything.”
    “I was wondering what you know about Mark Taylor.”
    “O-k-a-y.” She dragged out the word as if my asking had taken her by surprise.
    I wanted to make something clear first, though. “It’s not because I have any romantic interest in him.”
    “I didn’t think so,” Peggy said. “The reason I hesitated is because there isn’t much I can tell you. I don’t know that much about him.”
    “Does anyone?” I pried. Mark was the most secretive man I’dever met. I was certain there was a story there, possibly a dark and sinister one.
    “I can ask Bob if you like. He’s gone at the moment but is due back anytime now. I was heading to the bakery in an hour or so. We could meet there and I’ll fill you in on what Bob tells me.”
    “Perfect. I’ll meet you in an hour.” One way or another, I was going to unearth Mark Taylor’s deep, dark secrets.

Chapter 2

    Ellie Reynolds’s stomach was in knots, twisting and churning as she rode the shuttle bus from Sea-Tac Airport into Cedar Cove. She prayed she was doing the right thing by meeting Tom Lynch. Her mother’s warnings rang in her ears like cacophonous church bells drowning out her thoughts, until Ellie felt she was about to go deaf.
    She clenched her hands together as she looked out the bus window. The middle-aged woman sitting in the seat across the aisle from her held her knitting in her hands. As if guessing at Ellie’s unrest, the other woman offered her a reassuring smile. Ellie smiled back and turned her head away to study the landscape. In many ways, the terrain resembled Bend, her home in Oregon.
    Over the years, Ellie had visited the Seattle area twice before. Once as a Girl Scout in fifth grade, and then again in high school when she was part of a choral group that performed at a Christmasfunction in the city. Both Ellie and her mother had stuck pretty close to home for the majority of her life. Seattle was the “big city.” Visiting it had been a grand adventure when she was sixteen. Now, at age twenty-three, she felt like a disobedient child who’d defied her mother’s wishes.
    Ellie decided she couldn’t think about her mother. Instead, she would think about Tom. Right away a warm, happy feeling stole over her. They’d been communicating for months via Facebook, text messages, phone calls, and emails. She’d never felt