The Bachelor's Perfect Match

Justin drifted over to the plate of chocolate chip cookies Maddie had set out before the meeting, and Skye began to apply another layer of lip gloss. Tyler, who hadn’t paid any attention to the folder Maddie had given him, took his time sliding it into his empty backpack. When he finally got it positioned just right, his eyes locked on Aiden.

“I saw your picture in the paper.”

“Yeah?” Aiden stiffened, but Tyler didn’t seem to notice.

“Yeah. That rope bridge you’re building over the river...it sounds pretty sweet, man.”

The confused look on Aiden’s face told Maddie he hadn’t seen the most recent issue of the local newspaper. She retrieved the copy draped over the wire rack in the corner and set it down in front of him.

“It’s an article highlighting the activities for the fall festival.” Maddie had read it, too. Castle Falls Outfitters would be hosting a new event called River Quest during the weekend-long celebration, and the reporter had interviewed Aiden because he was the one who’d come up with the idea.

Some of the challenges sounded downright dangerous to Maddie, but she supposed that was part of their appeal. Until now, the most risky event in town had been the Five Alarm Chili Cook-Off.

Aiden’s gaze dropped to the black-and-white photograph on the front page. It had obviously been taken before the accident. He was leaning against the Castle Falls Outfitters sign, wearing jeans, a T-shirt with the Castle Falls logo on the front, and his signature grin.

“The headline is clever,” Maddie said, then read it out loud. “River Quest Promises Thrills, Chills and Possible Spills.”

* * *

Aiden might have agreed—if a knot the size of a baseball wasn’t clogging his throat.

He remembered the day the reporter had called and asked if he would be available for an interview.

“Let me check my calendar,” Aiden had joked. What he’d really needed was time to absorb the fact that the reporter wanted to meet with him instead of Brendan or Liam.

Aiden’s name was listed on the home page of the Castle Falls Outfitters website, but unlike his brothers, it wasn’t as if he’d accomplished something significant enough to earn his spot there.

River Quest was supposed to have changed that.

The interview had taken place a few weeks ago, and Aiden assumed the reporter had scrapped the whole thing after the accident, but here he was. On the front page. And apparently it didn’t matter that some of the details were no longer accurate.

Aiden had told the reporter that he planned to test the entire course himself before the fall festival, and now he’d be watching from the sidelines as a spectator.

On top of the world one day. Trapped underneath his pickup truck the next.

I don’t get it, God...

“Is there really a cave behind the waterfall on your property?” The girl with the lavender stripes in her hair pressed closer for a better look.

The fragrance she was wearing made Aiden’s nose sting, but he jerked his chin in a nod. “The cave is the starting point for the competition. Each team has to go through the tunnel and retrieve their flag. The one with the best time gets to skip the next challenge.”

The kid sitting next to Aiden shrugged. “That doesn’t sound very tough.”

Aiden found himself staring into the restless, prove-it-to-me eyes of his younger self. “It’s not. Just really, really dark.”

“No flashlight?”

“No light at all,” Aiden said. “Just you and a space about two feet wide.”

The buzz of the kid’s cell phone extinguished the flicker of interest in his eyes. He was on his feet before he’d even finished reading the incoming text and, without a word to Maddie or his friends, bolted for the door.

The other two exchanged a look, snatched up their backpacks and followed.

“If you have any questions before our next meeting,” Maddie called after them, “don’t hesitate to email me or stop—”

The door snapped shut.

“I don’t know about you, but I’m pretty sure I won them over.” A dimple that had been hiding in Maddie’s cheek came out to play. “Are you waiting for someone again? Or did you want to check out a book?”

Aiden was still distracted by that intriguing dimple, and it took a moment for the words to sink in.

“I don’t read.”

“You don’t...” Maddie stopped. Cleared her throat. “Then why—”

“I came to see you.” Aiden suddenly realized that hadn’t come out quite the way he’d intended it when Maddie’s big green eyes got even bigger. “One of the women who was here on Monday morning...she said you’d helped her find someone named Adelle.”

“Janette Morrison.” Maddie tipped her head, and a strand of pale blond hair slipped free from the bun at the base of her neck. “You’re interested in tracing your family genealogy, too?”

His family genealogy?

“Never mind.” Aiden planted his crutch against the floor and levered himself out of the chair. “It was stupid...”

And so was he. For eavesdropping on a conversation. For totally misunderstanding said conversation.

For thinking this was a good idea.

He made it two steps before Maddie landed in front of him, cutting off his escape.

“Aiden...wait.”

Even with a broken wrist and two cracked ribs, Aiden could have brushed Maddie Montgomery aside with no more effort than it would have taken to shoo away a butterfly. But because Sunni insisted her sons use good manners, he produced a grin instead.

“Look, no worries. I’m sorry for barging in on your study session tonight.” Aiden tried to ease around her and found his path blocked again.

“Who do you want to find?”

Aiden opened his mouth to tell Maddie that he didn’t want her help after all, but what came out instead was, “My sister.”

“I...I didn’t know you had a sister.”

“I didn’t either, until a few months ago.” Aiden couldn’t prevent the bitterness from seeping into his voice.

But Maddie didn’t gasp or pelt him with questions. She waited, her silence giving Aiden the freedom to retreat or explain.

Retreat seemed like the better option. Until now, it hadn’t occurred to Aiden that asking for help would mean opening the door to the past and allowing someone to see the skeletons rattling around in the Kane family closet.

He and his brothers had moved to Castle Falls when they were kids, but the past cast a long shadow. People still didn’t understand why the Masons had become foster parents and opened their home—and their hearts—to three troubled boys. And when Rich had unexpectedly passed away from a heart attack six months later, some of Sunni’s closest friends had encouraged her to send Aiden and his brothers back to Detroit.

Sunni had listened to God and adopted them instead, although they hadn’t legally changed their last name to Mason. Aiden hadn’t questioned the reasons behind that decision—or who’d made it—until Brendan had finally gotten around to telling the rest of the family they had a sister out there who might want to find them someday.

And family meant everything to Aiden.

He hadn’t been wanted—something Carla Kane had reminded Aiden often enough—but it was tearing him apart inside that their younger sister might have grown up believing the same thing.

“Our biological mother gave the baby up for adoption after she was born,” he finally said. “I thought...”

“I might know how to find her,” Maddie finished.

“Right.” Aiden touched the bandage on his forehead, hoping Maddie would dismiss the crazy notion as a side effect of his injuries. Playing the concussion card had worked pretty well with his brothers, after all.

“Maddie?”

They both turned toward the doorway, and Maddie’s face lit with a smile.

“Dad! I didn’t expect to see you until tomorrow night.”

A man with thinning gray hair and a frame the width of Aiden’s fly rod stepped into the room.

“I didn’t mean to intrude.” His gaze bounced from Maddie to Aiden and then back again. “I found some of those apples you like at the grocery store and thought I’d drop them off on my way home.”

“That wouldn’t be because you’re hoping I have time to make a pie for dessert tomorrow night, now, would it?” Maddie teased.

“Of course not.” Her dad flicked a look at Aiden. “I know how precious your free time is, sweetheart.”

Aiden didn’t miss the subtle implication that there were people in the room who didn’t.

“The door to my apartment is open.” Maddie’s smile didn’t waver. “I’ll meet you upstairs in a few minutes. Aiden just had a question for me.”

The only thing that moved was the man’s eyebrows. They sank together over the bridge of his nose in a frown that had probably scared away every guy who’d dared to ask Maddie out on a date.

It was a good thing Aiden didn’t scare easily.

Whoa. Where had that thought come from?

Not that Aiden had a problem asking a girl out. But like his brother Liam had so helpfully pointed out a few months ago, Aiden’s problem was that he never followed up with a second or third date.

Because of that, he’d gotten a reputation for avoiding commitment when the opposite was true. Because of his childhood, Aiden understood its value more than most guys his age. He never made promises he didn’t intend to keep. Aiden wasn’t a heartbreaker, but until he met a woman he could trust—with the good, the bad and the ugly—he stuck to the shallow end of the dating pool.

“That’s okay.” He tucked the crutch under his arm. “I have to go, anyway.” Sunni, who’d dropped Aiden off while she ran a few errands in town, was probably wondering where he was.

He took a step forward, but this time, instead of stopping him, Maddie escorted him past her father and into the narrow hallway outside the conference room.

“You don’t have to walk me to the door, you know.” Aiden’s lips twisted in a wry smile. “I’ll watch for rugs this time.”

Maddie tilted her head back to look up at him, and Aiden waited in vain for the dimple to appear.

Nope. Not happening. Once again, Aiden got the feeling she could see right through him.

“The library closes at two o’clock tomorrow,” she said. “But I’ll be working a few extra hours, going through donations for the used book sale.”

Her meaning was clear—if he wanted to continue their conversation. But Aiden didn’t respond.

Because right now, as anxious as he was to find his sister, Aiden wasn’t sure Maddie Montgomery and her fern green eyes wouldn’t prove more of a hindrance than a help. Because, oh man, he was distracted around her.

Chapter Four

Maddie started the countdown as her dad followed her up the staircase to the second floor.

Five. Four. Three. Two...

“I don’t like the idea of strangers wandering in off the street when you’re alone in the library at night, sweetheart,” he said.

Maddie tamped down a smile. When it came to her dad, the saying about old habits being hard to break had proved true. William and Tara Montgomery had loved and protected Maddie for twenty-five years. She’d been out on her own for several years now, but her dad never failed to come up with a reason to stop by and “check on things.” What he was really checking on was her.

“Aiden isn’t exactly a stranger, Dad,” she reminded him. “You see him every Sunday morning at church.”

“I see him staring out the window while Pastor Seth gives the message,” her dad grumbled. “He might be sitting in the chair, but it’s obvious his mind is somewhere else.”

Maddie wasn’t about to admit she’d noticed that, too. Because it would mean admitting that she’d noticed Aiden Kane.

You and every other unattached female in town, she chided herself.

“I left the door unlocked in case another student showed up for the study session, and Aiden saw the lights on,” Maddie told him. “He didn’t realize the library was closed for the evening.”

Her dad reached the door at the top of the stairs before Maddie, and it swung open at the touch of his hand. “You should keep this one locked, too.”

“No one can access my apartment from the street,” Maddie reminded him.

When the title of head librarian had transferred to her after Mrs. Whitman’s retirement, Maddie had been given the keys to the studio apartment on the second floor of the building, too.

The space was small, but Maddie loved every inch of it.

She’d sewn slipcovers for the sofa and decorated the interior with an eclectic style she liked to call thrift shop chic. A folding screen separated the kitchen from the living room, and African violets bloomed in the window. An old steamer trunk served double duty as a coffee table and storage for the surplus of books when the shelves began to overflow.

Growing up, the characters in the books Maddie read had become her closest friends, so she hadn’t been able to part with a single one. For Maddie, sharing a favorite book was like sharing a secret. You weren’t just giving people a book. You were offering them a glimpse into your heart.

I don’t read.

Maddie was still having a hard time processing what Aiden had said. Not only the words themselves, but the matter-of-fact tone in which they’d been delivered. The way someone might say, “I don’t eat kale.”

“Maddie?”

Oops. “Sorry, Dad. What did you say?”

“I just want you to be careful, that’s all.”

“I am careful. And I’ll lock the door from now on,” Maddie promised.

“I wasn’t talking about the door.” Her dad hesitated. “I was talking about Aiden Kane. From what I’ve heard, he can be impulsive and a little reckless. Not the type of man who’s looking to settle down.”

“Settle—” Maddie almost choked on the word. “Aiden isn’t interested in going out with me, Dad.”

Even if she couldn’t deny that for a moment—a teeny tiny moment—her heart had performed that crazy tap dance again when he’d said, “I came to see you.”

A response as ridiculous as Aiden asking her out on a date. They had nothing in common. Whenever New Life Fellowship sponsored a hiking trip or a weekend of downhill skiing, Aiden would be listed as the contact person in the church newsletter. Maddie knew that information before anyone else in the congregation because she was the one who typed the monthly newsletter.

She also knew the first four or five names on the sign-up sheet would inevitably be grown-up versions of the athletic, outdoorsy type of girls Aiden had dated in high school.

Maddie hadn’t dated in high school. Guys never asked her to go out for a movie and burger. They’d asked her for her help with English homework instead.

“I think that sigh—” her dad pressed a kiss against the top of Maddie’s head “—is my cue to leave.”

“Sorry, Dad. I’ve got a lot on my mind tonight, I guess.”

He gave her a look. “That wouldn’t be because you have too much on your plate, now, would it?”

“I like being busy.” Maddie linked arms with him as they walked to the door. “But if you want me to cut something out of my schedule, I don’t have to make dessert for Saturday night,” she teased.

“Never mind.” Her dad’s eyes went wide with mock horror. “I take it back!”

The weekly dinners had become a tradition, Maddie’s way of showing her parents she hadn’t abandoned them, she’d simply moved into her own place like a lot of other people her age. They always spent the evening catching up on each other’s lives, and then her dad would break out Scrabble or the cribbage board.

Yet another reason Maddie wasn’t Aiden Kane’s type.

“I thought you’d say that.” Maddie hugged her dad goodbye and closed the door before another sigh slipped out.

Contrary to what her dad feared, Aiden didn’t want to date her. He needed her help finding his sister.

Maddie flopped into a chair and curled her feet underneath her, questions multiplying like the maple leaves underneath the tree outside the window.

Did Aiden regret telling her? Did his abrupt departure mean he was going to give up the search before he’d even begun?

Maddie wouldn’t. She would have gladly given up half her bedroom—and space on her bookshelves—for a sister or brother. But her parents had found love later in life, and Maddie’s traumatic birth and the two heart surgeries that followed had dictated she remain an only child. It had also significantly reduced the chances of her ever having a child of her own.

She knew that God had richly blessed her in other ways—a job she loved, a purpose and a passion—so the pain of knowing she’d never be a mother had eventually subsided. But there were times—like right now—when Maddie felt the ache all over again, a weight pressing down on the sensitive scar tissue of an old wound.

She’d never told anyone her secret. It was her burden to carry. And the truth was, there’d never been a need. The boys who hadn’t noticed her in school had grown into men who’d fallen in love and married her pretty, more outgoing classmates. Maddie had been the quiet girl in the library.

Her lips tipped in a smile.

She was still the quiet girl in the library. And although Maddie liked and accepted that girl a lot more than she had in high school, it stirred up all kinds of dreams she had no business dreaming. Especially about Aiden Kane.

Maybe there was a woman out there who would eventually change his mind about settling down.

But Maddie knew it wouldn’t be her.

* * *

Lights illuminated the row of windows on the second floor as Aiden let himself out of the library. A gray Subaru idled at the curb, and before Aiden could take another step, Sunni had hopped out from the driver’s seat and jogged around the front of the vehicle to open his door.

Needing a chauffeur was another humbling side effect of Aiden’s injuries. It ranked right up there with knowing he’d lose to his mom in a footrace.

“I hope I’m not late. I ran into Rebecca at the grocery store and we chatted for a few minutes.”

Aiden didn’t have to ask what—or rather whom—the topic of conversation had been. Rebecca Tamblin was Pastor Seth’s wife and the head of New Life Fellowship’s prayer chain. Aiden’s name had been at the top of the list for almost two weeks.

“Not a problem.” Aiden squeezed out a smile as he folded himself into the passenger seat.

Sunni waited until he buckled up before she steered the car back onto the street.

“Are you too tired to take a little detour on the way home? Dr. Voss called me a few minutes ago and asked if we have room at the shelter for another dog.”

Aiden had passed tired a few hours ago and was skidding toward exhausted, but he nodded. “Go for it.”

His mom took her responsibilities as the recently appointed chairman of the animal shelter as seriously as she did the family business.

“I was hoping you’d say that!” Sunni flashed a smile and turned left off Riverside, Castle Falls’ main street. “Did you find what you were looking for at the library?”

An image of Maddie Montgomery’s face danced in Aiden’s mind, and he batted it away.

“No.” Aiden wasn’t ready to confide in his mom yet. If the search for his sister ended in a crash and burn, he wanted to spare his family a ringside seat. Not only that, given Sunni’s growing reputation as a matchmaker, Aiden ran the risk she might read something more into his decision to ask a certain librarian for help.

“Wasn’t Maddie there?”

“You know her?” As soon as the words slipped out, Aiden realized how ridiculous they sounded. Unlike Aiden, Sunni had lived in Castle Falls most of her life. She probably knew Maddie’s favorite color and her birthday.

“I know you didn’t graduate together, but she’s at church every Sunday.” Sunni slid a sideways glance in Aiden’s direction. “I’m surprised your paths haven’t crossed.”

Aiden wasn’t. Not after he’d seen Maddie flinch when he said he didn’t read. What he should have said was that he didn’t read well. Reading usually involved sitting still, and sitting still had never come easily to Aiden, either.

He’d rather stick to the things he was good at.

“How is the plan for the new addition coming along?” Aiden steered the conversation to safer ground.

“Wonderful. Between the silent auction last June and a generous donation from the bank a few weeks ago, we should be able to break ground in May.

“The committee decided that since the last meet and greet for the shelter went over so well, we’re going to host another one during the Fall Festival.” Sunni chuckled. “Of course, Cassie and Chloe voted that we set up the tent in the backyard.”

The gathering point for River Quest. Aiden was glad the darkness cloaked his expression. He gritted his teeth behind a smile. “Good idea.”

Everyone was full of good ideas these days. Orders for Liam’s new line of vintage canoes had picked up after Lily, the family marketing whiz, had posted a photograph of one on the home page of the website. Anna had taken charge of the Trading Post, and the twins helped on the weekends, straightening shelves and greeting customers.

Everyone, it seemed, had something valuable to offer. Everyone except Aiden.

Although he should have been used to that by now.

Lights glowed in the windows of the veterinary clinic, but Sunni cruised past the front entrance and drove around to the back of the building.

The door swung open before Aiden had a chance to knock, and Dr. Voss motioned them inside.

“Sunni. Aiden. Come in, come in.” The veterinarian’s eyes were bloodshot, and the tufts of reddish-brown hair that sprouted from his head now lay as flat as stalks of wheat after a killing frost. “It’s been a long day. Two emergency surgeries, which is the reason I called you. I’m afraid there’s no more room at the inn.”

“That’s why we’re here.” Sunni gave the man’s arm a comforting squeeze. “I’m glad the shelter could help.”

“Follow me.” The tails of the veterinarian’s wrinkled lab coat flapped against his legs as he led them down the hallway.

It wasn’t the first time Aiden had been to the clinic—he’d transported at least a dozen critters there for vaccinations since the shelter’s official grand opening—so he expected Dr. Voss to usher them into the spacious room that housed the kennels. The veterinarian walked past the door and took a sharp turn down another, shorter hallway instead.

“Is the dog in quarantine or something?” Aiden whispered to his mom even though he knew it didn’t matter. Sunni had a soft spot for hard-luck cases.

If Aiden was ever in danger of forgetting that, all he had to do was look in the mirror.

“Not in quarantine.” Dr. Voss was the one who answered the question. “He’s kind of a loner...being around the other dogs seems to agitate him. Our facility isn’t set up for long-term convalescence, so that’s why I called your mother.”

“Why isn’t it going home?” Aiden asked.

“He doesn’t have one at the moment,” Sunni said.

Dr. Voss’s steps slowed, and he matched his pace to Aiden’s. “A hiker found the dog caught in a trap by the river and called the sheriff’s department. When Deputy Bristow brought it in, the animal was dehydrated and hypothermic. Its leg wasn’t broken, but infection from the wound had spread, so we had to get that under control. What he needs now is rest and a little TLC.”

Aiden figured the “TLC” part was where his mom came in.

“What about its owner? Don’t you think someone is looking for him?”

A look passed between Dr. Voss and his mom, a hint they’d had this conversation before.

“I highly doubt it,” the vet finally said. “The X-rays I took show...older...injuries. The deputy found evidence the owner was hunting out of season, so if he does step up to claim the dog, he’d be facing questions he won’t want to answer.”

So rather than get into trouble, the owner had simply abandoned the animal.

Dr. Voss stopped in front of a door and slipped his hand inside to flip the light on. A row of large wire crates—all empty except the one filled with rags—lined the wall.