Finally a Bride. Renee Ryan

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СКАЧАТЬ but I trust you will put them right soon enough.”

      “I’d like nothing better.” Molly found great pleasure in turning an otherwise predictable hat into a new creation, with an added touch of flare all her own.

      Staring off in the distance, Mrs. Singletary made a small movement of her head. “I wonder why Mr. Mitchell left so quickly after his gallant rescue.”

      Molly masked the falter in her step. Garrett had been especially chivalrous this afternoon. But that was Garrett simply being Garrett. He would have done the same for any woman. She was nothing special to him, not anymore. The surge of sorrow was so strong it threatened to consume her. And...and...

      And Mrs. Singletary had just asked her a question. Releasing a tempered breath, Molly lifted a shoulder. “He was clearly in a hurry.”

      She sounded so calm, so in control. It was quite an act, when her heart was as bleak as a cold, rainy day.

      “You are friends with his sisters, are you not?”

      “I am.”

      “Hmm, very strange he didn’t stick around and, I must say, quite inconvenient.” Mrs. Singletary planted her fists on her hips, her gaze turning shrewd. “I have a business proposition of some urgency I had wanted to discuss with him.”

      Molly cast her employer a quick, baffled look. Garrett worked at Bennett, Bennett and Brand, yes, but Mrs. Singletary’s personal attorney was Reese Bennett, Jr. Therefore, it seemed rather odd that the older woman would approach Garrett in lieu of her own lawyer.

      “Why wait any longer?” The widow spun around and set out toward the law firm. “I shall speak with him now.”

      Molly trotted after Mrs. Singletary. Fingers curled into fists, she affected a placid tone. “But...” Think, Molly, think. “You don’t have an appointment.”

      “I don’t need one.”

      True. Mrs. Singletary was the law firm’s wealthiest and most influential client. Appointment or not, none of the attorneys would turn her away. “Are you certain this business you have with Mr. Mitchell can’t wait until later?”

      “Quite certain.” She quickened her pace.

      Molly did the same, her stomach tied in knots, her arms growing tired under the weight of the packages she carried.

      Dodging the bulk of the traffic with practiced ease, Mrs. Singletary hastened along the narrow sidewalk. A block shy of the firm, she leveled her gaze on Molly and made a most unusual request. “I would like you present when I speak with Mr. Mitchell.”

      “Me? I don’t understand.” Mrs. Singletary had never asked her to attend her business meetings before.

      “It’s very simple, my dear. I want to see how Mr. Mitchell behaves in your company. And you in his.”

      Oh, this was bad. So very, very bad. “Mrs. Singletary, you aren’t playing matchmaker, are you?”

      “Matchmaker, me?”

      The cryptic response made Molly all the more skeptical of her employer’s motives. “Why do you wish to see how Garrett and I interact with one another?”

      “It’s important my personal companion gets along with my business associates.”

      Since when? “That’s never mattered before.”

      “An oversight on my part.”

      So Mrs. Singletary was playing matchmaker. What a disastrous turn of events! Molly must dissuade her employer from this course of action, but how? If she protested too much she would only encourage the woman. “It’s useless,” she muttered.

      “Now, my dear, one never knows. A few false starts are no indication that we won’t find our one true love eventually.” She patted her hand. “The Lord has brought you into my care. I shall see you happily settled no matter how long it takes.”

      Molly chose not to argue. Mrs. Singletary would discover soon enough that Garrett was not the man for her. Their time had come and gone, never to be regained. Tragic, really.

      She suddenly felt exhausted, and oh so lonely. Even though others had claimed to love her since Garrett, none had been any more sincere than he. Molly had given two of them a chance, going so far as agreeing to marry them.

      Her greatest shame—the dark, awful secret she shared only with the Lord—was that she hadn’t been the one to call off her engagements. Her fiancés had walked away from her, just as Garrett had. Nearly eight months since her last broken engagement and she couldn’t help but wonder if she was destined to be alone. When all she wanted was a family of her own.

      This melancholy wasn’t like her. She’d always been a child of joy, of hope, her favorite Bible verse also her life motto. He fill thy mouth with laughing, thy lips with rejoicing.

      Where was her joy now? Her laughter?

      She fought off a wave of panic, and readjusted the packages in her hands. She could not give up hope, because without hope all was lost.

      * * *

      Secluded in his office, Garrett felt his mood take on a hard edge. He couldn’t get Molly Taylor Scott out of his head.

      The document beneath his hand blurred, the words a haze of black swimming atop white. He drummed his fingers on the parchment in a rapid two-finger rhythm. The sight of Molly this afternoon had been like a swift, cold wind through Garret’s soul, alerting all his senses, making him agonizingly aware that they’d once been very much in love.

      The bold color of her crimson gown had been a stunning complement to her raven hair, soft, creamy skin and blue, blue eyes. For that brief moment when he’d gripped her shoulders, the years had melted away and Garrett had felt the strong pull of her all over again. He’d been transfixed.

      The four men surrounding her had been equally transfixed.

      Hostility surged through his veins at the memory.

      Rearranging the Phipps contract on his desk, he proceeded to review the legal language. A detail man by nature, he searched for loopholes others had missed, areas that might present problems in the future. Even a misplaced comma could change the meaning of a sentence and cost his client a fortune.

      He was deep into the work when a knock came at the door. Concentration blown, he looked up. “Enter.”

      His law clerk, Julian Summers, a thin young man with ordinary features and an eager smile, stuck his head in the room. “Mrs. Beatrix Singletary has requested a moment of your time.”

      “She wishes to see me?” Not Reese? “Are you certain?”

      “She requested you. And she’s not alone—her companion is with her.” Adam’s apple bobbing, Summers sighed. “She’s really quite beautiful. Miss Scott, I mean. Charming, too.”

      The man sounded awestruck. He looked awestruck, with his fidgeting hands and dazed expression. Right. Another poor, unsuspecting sap had succumbed to Molly’s undeniable СКАЧАТЬ