Destiny Came Knocking: A Snow Valley Romance Read online

  Destiny Came Knocking

  Snow Valley Romance

  Cindy Roland Anderson

  Contents

  Chapter 1

  Chapter 2

  Chapter 3

  Chapter 4

  Chapter 5

  Chapter 6

  Chapter 7

  Chapter 8

  Chapter 9

  Chapter 10

  Chapter 11

  Chapter 12

  Chapter 13

  Chapter 14

  Chapter 15

  Chapter 16

  Chapter 17

  Chapter 18

  Epilogue

  Free Book!

  Also by Cindy Roland Anderson

  About the Author

  Acknowledgments

  Copyright © 2016 by Cindy Roland Anderson

  All rights reserved.

  No part of this book may be reproduced in any form or by any electronic or mechanical means, including information storage and retrieval systems, without written permission from the author, except for the use of brief quotations in a book review.

  Editor: Sadie L Anderson

  Cover Design: Casey Harbertson

  Cover photo by Valerie Bybee Photography

  Cover Model: Nicole Harbertson

  For the Snow Valley girls, Christina, Cami, Taryn, Janet and Kimberley… I love you all and treasure your friendship.

  Chapter 1

  Mutts, her precious new little babies were mutts and her neighbor was going to pay for every single one. Piper Jensen stared at all five of the puppies and wanted to cry. Not one of them— even as adorable as they were— resembled their papered mother, Anastasia, her beloved Cavalier King Charles Spaniel. Nor did they have any traits of their award winning father, Elvis.

  No. They resembled their no-account, mischievous father who frequently, as in several times a day, escaped his fenced yard to frolic through the surrounding property in Snow Valley, Montana.

  Aptly named, Rascal was a golden retriever and golden lab mix with a strong possibility of a poodle somewhere in his gene pool. She’d never formally met any of her neighbors, including the ones next door. She’d moved to Snow Valley a couple of weeks before Thanksgiving and hadn’t bothered introducing herself to anyone. The only reason she knew the name of the next-door neighbor’s dog was because she’d heard the owner call for the dog to come home almost every single night.

  “Ah, Anastasia, how could you fall for the charms of a rogue?” She affectionately patted the new mother on the head. “Haven’t you learned anything from me? Like never trusting anyone of the male species?”

  Anastasia ignored her and continued to clean up her brood of golden white puppies. “Don’t worry about it. I’ll make him— or rather his owner— make it right.” Piper groaned and got to her feet as anxiety squeezed around her chest. She had no idea how she was going to tell Emma Jamison— the owner of Elvis and her late-mother’s dearest friend— that the puppies were not purebred. Not only that, her mother’s reputation as one of the best breeders for Cavalier King Charles Spaniels would be ruined once word got out that her daughter had allowed the last female puppy from the award-winning champion Abigail to be ruined by a common dog.

  Even though Piper missed her mother, she was glad she wasn’t alive to witness yet one more failure from her only daughter. She blinked against the burning behind her eyes as despair pooled in her stomach. Why oh why had she signed up for that stupid online dating website? She would’ve never met Tucker Langston and would’ve never fallen for his charm or his lies.

  Her fingers curled into fists when she thought about how her life had spiraled out of control because of one man. A man she’d thought she might be in love with and had even considered marrying. He just forgot to mention one very important detail… that he was already married and had a child and another one on the way.

  Of course she wasn’t the only victim of Tucker. His wife, Caroline Belmont Langston, had also been a victim. However instead of blaming her wayward husband, the former Miss California had launched a social media attack on Piper. All thirty thousand of Caroline’s followers for her fashion blog had labeled Piper as a husband stealer. In a matter of weeks, her career as the music director for an affluent private school had been destroyed, along with her reputation and her independence.

  With very little savings, she’d moved back in with her dad and stepmother, hoping to find another teaching job. But that was a little hard to do when everyone considered her a home wrecker.

  Desperate times call for desperate measures. Piper wanted a clean slate and that meant moving as far away from the Langston’s as possible. That’s when she’d contacted Emma and told her that she would allow Anastasia to have one litter of puppies. Emma, who lived in Billings, Montana, was eager to accept the offer and, after Piper explained her current situation, had made a deal with Piper she’d be stupid to turn down.

  Emma could have first pick of the litter and in exchange Piper would get to keep all of the profits for the other puppies, which were expected to sell for fifteen to eighteen hundred each. On top of that, Emma’s sister, Juliet, had moved to Florida for the winter and had invited Piper to stay at her house in Snow Valley if she paid the utilities.

  It had all been going according to her plan. Now she had nothing except an expensive vet bill and five puppies she was uncertain what to do with. Emma was kind, but Piper had no idea how the woman was going to react to the news. She had already received down payments for the puppies and might expect Piper to pay for the loss. Plus, she could ask her to move out of her sister’s house, which would put Piper right back where she’d been two months earlier.

  Thinking about the lost income and how screwed up her life was, the anger resurfaced against her irresponsible neighbor once more. She looked down at the light colored puppies and shook her head. She had no choice but to confront Rascal’s owner.

  Since she was new to the area, she knew very little about him other than what she’d gleaned from the veterinarian, Ian Davies. Gabe Wesson was the single father of two. And, like her, he didn’t like to socialize with the opposite sex. Meaning he didn’t date either.

  Technically, Piper didn’t like to socialize period. Since the fiasco with Tucker, she preferred keeping to herself and had decided not to date anyone for a very long time.

  Glancing at the clock, she noted it was a little after nine. Mr. Wesson was probably still up, but hopefully his children would be asleep. They didn’t need to hear her yell at their father if it came to that.

  Just to make sure her trip wouldn’t be in vain, she crossed the floor to the kitchen and peeked out the window. The well-lit home and flickering light of the television indicated Mr. Wesson was still awake.

  Preparing for the bitter cold temps of Montana in late January, she bundled up in her tan colored Carhartt overalls and coat, a Christmas gift from her father. It wasn’t the most flattering clothing, but she wasn’t dressing to impress. She was dressing to keep from freezing. Twisting her shoulder length hair into a topknot, she secured it with a hair band and then pulled on a navy blue beanie.

  Before she could leave, her cell phone alerted her to an incoming FaceTime call. One glance at the caller’s name made her smile. It was her sister Tomi. Piper missed her more than she missed the warmer temperatures of Southern California.

  Tapping on the icon, she accepted the call and braced herself for Tomi’s reaction to her winter gear.

  “Please don’t tell me you’re going out in public in that?” Tomi said, shaking her head.

  “Not exactly in public.” Piper adjusted the beanie so it didn’t cover her eyebrow
s. “I’m just running over to my neighbor’s house.”

  “Really?” Tomi’s pretty blue eyes widened with surprise. “So you’re really not a recluse?”

  “Ha ha.”

  “I’m serious. I was starting to worry about you.”

  “It’s not a social call. I just need to confront my neighbor about his dog.”

  “Honestly, Piper. You’re already isolated enough without alienating yourself further from your neighbors.” Tomi sighed dramatically. “What did the dog do anyway?”

  Piper glanced at the brood of golden-white puppies and frowned. “Let me show you.”

  She walked back over to birthing box and turned the phone around so her sister could see.

  “Ah, they’re so cute,” Tomi said. “But they don’t look anything like Anastasia.”

  Angling the phone so she could see her sister, Piper said, “And that’s why I’m going to confront my neighbor.”

  Tomi started to laugh.

  “It’s not funny.” Piper tried to cut her sister a dirty look, but couldn’t pull it off. Tomi might be her half sister and five years younger, but she was her best friend.

  “I’m sorry.” Tomi said while still giggling. “But Mother is going to find this so abhorrent. She’ll blame Anastasia for being a hussy and ruining your dreams.”

  Piper closed her eyes, knowing her stepmother would more than likely tell her to quit being so dramatic and move back home. Her dad would agree with his wife, especially once they learned her first and only venture into breeding Cavalier King Charles Spaniels had been an epic fail.

  “Please don’t say anything to dad and Maggie. They’ll only worry.”

  “I promise not to say anything.” Tomi made the motion of zipping her lips closed. “Even though I should since I want my big sister back home.”

  “I miss you too, but you know why I had to leave.”

  Tomi’s blue eyes grew serious and she slowly nodded her head. “I do understand, but it doesn’t mean I have to like it.”

  Piper swallowed back the emotion clogging her throat. She was so lucky to have a sister like Tomi, although she hadn’t always felt that way about her. At the age of five, Piper was too young to understand why she had to share her father with his new wife, Maggie, and the baby girl they’d had together. She resented her stepmother and wanted to hate her half sister, but Tomi was too cute and adored her older sister. On top of that, Maggie was one of the sweetest people and showered Piper with love. It didn’t take long for her let go of her grudges, and she and Tomi had become best friends.

  “You can always come and visit me.”

  “I love you, sis, but I hate cold weather. I’ll plan to come out during the summer.”

  “It’s not that bad,” Piper argued.

  Tomi snorted. “Says the girl who’s dressed like a lumberjack.”

  One of the puppies whimpered as Anastasia aggressively licked it clean. It reminded Piper of what she needed to do. “I need to go talk to my neighbor before it gets too late.”

  “Be nice. Didn’t you say he’s divorced or something?”

  “I don’t know what happened to his wife. Just that he’s a single dad with two kids.”

  Piper ended the call with the promise to let her sister know the outcome of the visit.

  After slipping on her snow boots, she put on her gloves and opened the door. The icy air stung her cheeks as she stepped outside. At least the wind wasn’t blowing right now. In fact, in spite of the glacial temperatures, it was a beautiful, clear night. Stars glittered overhead, shining much brighter than they had been when she’d lived in the city. The copious amounts of snow that had fallen over the past two months sparkled under the light. She followed the pathway she’d cleared with the shovel and walked the short distance to her neighbor.

  She stood on the porch for a few seconds, debating about knocking or ringing the bell. Since she wasn’t completely heartless, she decided to knock so it didn’t awaken his children if they were asleep. Several seconds passed as Piper rehearsed what she was going to say. Yelling at the guy wouldn’t be a smart move. It would put him on the defensive and she’d learned a long time ago that the saying you could catch more flies with sugar than vinegar rang true.

  Just when she was about to knock again, the door creaked open. Only it wasn’t Gabe Wesson who had answered. Instead, Piper stared into soft, brown eyes that belonged to the most adorable little girl. Dressed in a silky red nightgown, her dark hair, nearly the same shade of auburn as Piper’s, hung in loose curls almost to the child’s waist.

  “Hello,” Piper said, quickly scanning the area for the girl’s father. Surely, he had to be nearby. “Is your daddy home?”

  “Are you a stranger?” the little girl asked.

  “Well, yes, but I’m also your neighbor.”

  Wrinkling her button nose, the little girl squinted. “Why are you wearing my daddy’s coat?”

  Piper smiled, knowing it was useless to point out she was wearing the female version of the hardy outerwear. “I’m not wearing your daddy’s coat. Just one that probably looks like it.” She made another quick perusal of the room, hoping Mr. Wesson would show up. “Can you please go tell your daddy he has a visitor?”

  Leaving the door wide open, the little girl nodded her head and then darted across the room, her red nightgown flowing behind her as she bounded up the stairs.

  Piper didn’t know what to do. Did she step inside so she could close the door or did she close the door while remaining outside? A sudden gust of wind kicked up a flurry of snow and helped make her decision. She quickly stepped inside and closed the door behind her.

  She welcomed the warm air that radiated from the fireplace in the open family room and was tempted to curl up on the comfy looking sectional to enjoy the fire. Glancing around, she noted the room wasn’t exactly messy, just appeared to be lived in. There were a few Barbie dolls scattered in front of a dollhouse with a model horse inside a fence. Judging by the Star Wars Legos strewn around the corner of the room, Piper guessed the little girl who answered the door likely had a brother.

  Next to the Legos sat a beautiful mahogany baby grand piano. Piper’s fingers itched to touch the ivory keys. Music soothed her in a way not even chocolate could. She missed playing the piano and wished she hadn’t been forced to sell her piano to help pay the bills when she lost her job.

  “Lindsey, you know you’re not supposed to open the door,” a male voice said, sounding more frightened than angry. “You’re not even supposed to be up. Please go get back in bed.”

  “But, Daddy, you were in the shower and I had a bad dream.”

  There was a beat of silence and then, “I’m sorry, baby. Let me go see who’s at the door and then I’ll come and snuggle you, okay?”

  “Okay, Daddy.”

  Piper’s anger drained away and she desperately wanted to leave. She hadn’t bothered to be neighborly, not even during the Christmas holiday. Now she was going to blast the guy about his wayward dog. She should’ve waited until tomorrow to talk to Mr. Wesson. Better yet, she should’ve just sent the man a nice letter explaining what had happened. Anyone who was that kind to his child had to be a decent guy.

  He descended the stairs and Piper sucked in a quick breath. She’d only caught a glimpse of her neighbor a few times, but she didn’t remember him being so handsome. His light brown hair was damp from his recent shower and looked deliciously disheveled as if he he’d just towel dried it, which he probably had. The dark shadow of whiskers covering his jaw indicated he’d either opted not to shave or he hadn’t had time. It was an incredibly good look for him.

  She suddenly wished she’d at least put on a little makeup or chosen to wear her much more attractive and fitted gray wool coat that Tomi had given her for Christmas. Not that she was interested in forming any kind of relationship with him, but a girl still liked to look somewhat presentable.

  He glanced her way, his deep blue eyes assessing her. Judging by the confused look on his f
ace, he clearly didn’t recognize her either. Or maybe he thought the same thing his daughter had… that she’d stolen his coat.

  “May I help you?” he asked, stopping a few feet in front of her.

  Licking her lips, she held out her gloved hand. “Hi, I’m Piper Jensen. Your closest neighbor.”

  Uncertainty clouded his eyes as he stared at the thick mitten she proffered. Piper quickly removed the glove. “Sorry.” She held out her hand again.

  “Gabe Wesson,” he said, giving her hand a firm shake.

  The warmth of his skin startled her and she quickly pulled her hand away. That earned her another strange look.

  “Is there something I can help you with?” he said, his brows drawing together.

  “Um, I just needed to talk to you about your dog.”

  His gaze narrowed. “My dog?”

  “Yes, your dog. I believe his name is Rascal.”

  He rubbed the back of his neck. “Look, Ms. Jensen, if he got into your trash then I’ll make sure my son, Shane, comes over to clean it up.” He pinned her with an annoyed look. “But it’ll have to wait until tomorrow. He’s asleep.”

  The irritated way he said it put her on the defensive. “I wouldn’t expect him to clean up the trash tonight, Mr. Wesson.” She narrowed her own eyes. “However, Rascal didn’t get into my trash.” She paused, not sure how to word what Rascal had actually done. “You’re aware that your dog frequently escapes your yard, correct?”

  “Yes, but we just had an invisible fence installed and he hasn’t gotten out all week.”

  So that’s why she hadn’t seen the culprit lately. She’d thought it had been because of the snow. “Well, it wasn’t soon enough, sir, because Rascal is now the father of five puppies… and I’d like to know what you’re going to do about it?”

  Chapter 2

  What he was going to do about it? Gabe stared at the woman, feeling the pounding headache he’d tried to get rid of coming back. He rubbed the back of his neck again and let out a big breath.