Jen Safrey - A Perfect Pair

Nate leaned in, so that they were nearly nose to nose. “Since when, Josey? You love being single. How many times have you waxed philosophical about how impossible it must be to find the right man and so you weren’t going to bend over backwards to do it?”

“So what?” Her voice turned stubborn. “I can’t change my mind?”

“You can change your mind, but this is a complete about-face. It’s weird.”

“Oh, I’m so glad you think I’m weird.”

“Josey, I’m sorry,” he said, grabbing her hand. “It’s just surprising. But I think it’s wonderful. I wish you luck. I really do.”

“You do?” she asked, her voice tripping with excitement.

Nate wondered why she was getting so emotional. “You know I do. You’re my friend and I’ll do anything to make sure you’re happy.”

A huge grin spread across her face. “I’m so glad you said that, you have no idea. Now I can get to what I really wanted to ask you tonight. I need your help….”

Dear Reader,

Well, the new year is upon us—and if you’ve resolved to read some wonderful books in 2004, you’ve come to the right place. We’ll begin with Expecting! by Susan Mallery, the first in our five-book MERLYN COUNTY MIDWIVES miniseries, in which residents of a small Kentucky town find love—and scandal—amidst the backdrop of a midwifery clinic. In the opening book, a woman returning to her hometown, pregnant and alone, finds herself falling for her high school crush—now all grown up and married to his career! Or so he thinks….

Annette Broadrick concludes her SECRET SISTERS trilogy with MacGowan Meets His Match. When a woman comes to Scotland looking for a job and the key to unlock the mystery surrounding her family, she finds both—with the love of a lifetime thrown in!—in the Scottish lord who hires her. In The Black Sheep Heir, Crystal Green wraps up her KANE’S CROSSING miniseries with the story of the town outcast who finds in the big, brooding stranger hiding out in her cabin the soul mate she’d been searching for.

Karen Rose Smith offers the story of an about-to-be single mom and the handsome hometown hero who makes her wonder if she doesn’t have room for just one more male in her life, in Their Baby Bond. THE RICHEST GALS IN TEXAS, a new miniseries by Arlene James, in which three blue-collar friends inherit a million dollars—each!—opens with Beautician Gets Million-Dollar Tip! A hairstylist inherits that wad just in time to bring her salon up to code, at the insistence of the infuriatingly handsome, if annoying, local fire marshal. And in Jen Safrey’s A Perfect Pair, a woman who enlists her best (male) friend to help her find her Mr. Right suddenly realizes he’s right there in front of her face—i.e., said friend! Now all she has to do is convince him of this….

So bundle up, and happy reading. And come back next month for six new wonderful stories, all from Silhouette Special Edition.

Sincerely,

Gail Chasan

Senior Editor

www.millsandboon.co.uk

To Bobbi Lerman,

a fantastic writer and friend, who coaxed this story

out of me even when it felt impossible. We did it!

grew up in Valley Stream, New York, and graduated Boston University in 1993. She is a nearly ten-year veteran of the news copy desk at the Boston Herald. Past and present, she has been a champion baton twirler, an accomplished flutist, an equestrienne, a student of ashtanga yoga and a belly dancer. Jen would love to hear from readers at jen02106@lycos.com.

Prologue

Chapter One

Chapter Two

Chapter Three

Chapter Four

Chapter Five

Chapter Six

Chapter Seven

Chapter Eight

Chapter Nine

Chapter Ten

Chapter Eleven

Chapter Twelve

Chapter Thirteen

Chapter Fourteen

Chapter Fifteen

Chapter Sixteen

Chapter Seventeen

Chapter Eighteen

Chapter Nineteen

Nate heard a woman shout in the apartment above, but he couldn’t make out the words.

The abrupt, angry sound pierced the silence in which Nate had been sitting at the kitchen table, spooning up Cheerios. He jumped slightly and a few Cheerios dripped onto his lap. He lifted the window curtain, opened the window and peered out. Squinting and tilting his face up to the early afternoon sun, he saw the open windows above him. After a few weeks of crisp, cold weather, the unusually mild November day had likely prompted his neighbor to air out her place. Nate silently waited a few moments. Nothing.

Slightly tense, he picked the Cheerios off his lap and reluctantly went back to eating. Still hearing nothing, he slurped on the spoon a little, quickly intercepting a stream of milk down his chin with a napkin. He hoped that one shout was the end of whatever was going on. As he scooped up the last Cheerio, he caught himself trying not to tap the bowl with the spoon, trying to stay quiet, his ears alert as a fox’s for another sign of discord.

He forced himself to relax his shoulders, to breathe normally. He reminded himself that one distinct drawback to living in Boston was getting to know neighbors intimately, whether he wanted to or not. And today, like most days, it really was “not.” He’d allowed himself the Sunday luxury of sleeping in as long as he could—until after noon—then he’d cracked open his briefcase and worked about an hour before he’d realized he’d forgotten to eat breakfast.

Nate put the bowl to his lips and drained the rest of his milk, feeling the sweet coldness slide down his throat, before carrying the bowl to the sink. He washed it carefully and rubbed it with a clean towel until it squeaked. He did the same with the spoon and replaced both in the overhead cabinet.

But then, there it was again.

Another wordless, indignant female scream echoed through the alley between buildings and into Nate’s kitchen. He stood motionless and tried again to talk himself out of his discomfort, this time attempting to be annoyed at the noise, the way a normal city dweller would be.

At least he’d already been awake and the racket hadn’t dragged him out of slumber, he told himself. Who was she yelling at, anyway? He didn’t even hear another voice.

He took the three steps to his sofa and fell onto it. He fumbled underneath his butt for the remote. A little channel surfing for half an hour wouldn’t put him too far behind, he thought. He needed a little downtime in his week. Besides, the TV would drown out his upstairs neighbor until she quit for the day, which, Nate hoped, was before he had to get down to serious work.

But before he could press the On button, there was a loud crash over his head, accompanied by an incredulous shriek.

Then silence.

Nate jolted upright.

There was someone with her. And it sounded like someone she’d pushed too far—someone who was going to hurt her. If he hadn’t already.

Nate tensed, waiting, his senses at attention. Then he heard another crash, like a piece of furniture hitting the wall, and another cry of outrage.

An image of the woman he’d never met flashed in his mind. Her features were unrecognizable, but there was terror in her eyes as she cowered, fearful of the next blow that was sure to come. He felt her terror now.