The sun beat on Pete’s head, made him wish he’d borrowed one of his father’s ball caps. If the local weatherman hadn’t missed his target, it was going to be another hot one. Heat was relative, and it hadn’t bothered him when he lived in California. But he hadn’t lived in the heat; he’d lived in the air-conditioning. Who couldn’t tolerate a cool room with a programmable thermostat? Same with his car—punch a few buttons and the heat evaporated within minutes, leaving the interior crisp and fresh.

But Pete wasn’t in California and he sure as hell wasn’t in air-conditioning. Nope. He was walking the land his Aunt Edith had gifted him, trying to decide which plots to give his siblings. After a bit of deliberation and persuasion, his aunt agreed it might cause a family feud if Pete kept the land all to himself, but he was to keep the majority. Period. It wasn’t open for discussion or debate. When Pete told his father about his aunt’s proposal, Jack scratched his head and told him to take the land before his aunt went and donated it to somebody’s dog.

End of story. Pete accepted the property and was in the process of figuring out how to give an acre to each of his siblings. He’d thought of building a house here, maybe a big farmhouse with a wraparound porch and wicker chairs. That sounded peaceful and right now, that’s what he needed.

But it would mean more to share it with somebody. Oh, hell, he might as well admit the truth. It would mean more to share it with Elissa. He’d heard her name tossed about a few times. Once by Nate, another by Christine, and Pop Benito had mentioned her three or four different times. There’d been a curious look on the old man’s face when he said her name, as though waiting for Pete’s reaction. No luck there, because Pete knew how to keep his feelings tucked away from everyone.

Except Elissa.

He’d thought of contacting her several times since he’d left the cabin, but he had no idea where she was or how to get in touch with her. They’d never exchanged phone numbers and if the Desantros hadn’t mentioned her last name, he still wouldn’t know it. But that wasn’t why he hadn’t tried to get in touch with her and he was a fool to pretend it was. Fear kept him away. Fear that he’d hurt her that last day with his harsh words and accusations and killed whatever she’d felt for him. He still didn’t agree with her allegiance to that Blacksworth woman, but he guessed he had to respect her loyalty—however misguided it had been.

The more time he spent with the couples in town like the Desantros, the Reeds, and his aunt’s favorites, the Casherdons, the more he understood what compromise really meant. You could love a person and not agree with them all the time, and if you disagreed, it didn’t mean you weren’t meant to be together. If you shared fundamental principles and values, then you’d make it as a couple. It was work. Damn hard work. But it sure looked like it was worth it.

Pete swiped a hand over his forehead, wished again he had one of the father’s ball caps. If Elissa were here, she would have remembered the ball cap…and she’d have an idea or two about what kind of house to build. He pictured her face turning pink with excitement when she talked about it, full lips smiling… There were a lot of women in this town, and quite a few had been obvious about their interest in him. Phone calls, flowers, cakes, and pies. He didn’t want any of them.

He wanted Elissa.

So, what the hell was he going to do about it?

* * *

A woman could only wait so long for a man to come after her. Two months was a lifetime, and yet there’d been no word from Pete Finnegan, which could mean just about anything. He really had been pretending in the cabin and had no real feelings for her; he’d had feelings for her, but they’d died when he discovered the notebook… Or, he didn’t know how he felt about her and wouldn’t know until he saw her again.

She chose to believe the last one.

What else could a woman think when everything reminded her of him? Darn it all, she was not going to live the rest of her life waiting for the man to wake up and realize he cared about her, maybe even loved her. Elissa Marie Cerdi was going to take action. No playbooks, no lists or timelines, nothing but her heart and her instincts guiding her.

And they both pointed to Magdalena.

Her parents worried she’d set herself up for serious heartache, worse than the fiasco with Zachary, but what could be worse than the not knowing? The old Elissa would wait and pray, hoping for the day when the man who owned her heart would rescue her from a life of loneliness and despair. The new Elissa said to heck with that and decided to rescue herself. One way or another, Pete Finnegan was going to own up to his feelings. One day in late June, Elissa packed her car, kissed her parents good-bye, and took off for Magdalena with a promise to let them know when she arrived and when she’d return. No need to tell them that no matter what happened in Magdalena, her life would not be in Chicago. That conversation would come later, though the extra-tight hug her mother gave her said she might already know.

It was close to dinnertime when she pulled into the Heart Sent, the bed-and-breakfast where she’d booked a room for the next few days. The proprietor was a spry, inquisitive woman with blue eyes and dangly ball earrings. Elissa’s plan to keep quiet about her reason for visiting Magdalena spilled out over a dish of Chicken Marsala.

“So…you and Pete Finnegan…”

Elissa nodded. “I had an opportunity to tell him the truth about some things, but I didn’t, and when he found out…”

Mimi Pendergrass forked a piece of chicken. “Oh, yes, the Finnegans are big on honesty. I’m sure Pete didn’t take it well.”

“He didn’t, and worse, I tried to defend my reason for not telling him.” She bit her bottom lip. “It was a disaster. One minute we were laughing and happy and the next, he was gone.”

Mimi reached over, patted Elissa’s hand. “He’s had enough time to cool off. I’m sure he’s regretted his decision more than once, but the Finnegan’s are a tough lot; don’t like to admit when they’re wrong. His father’s the same way.” She tsk-tsked and laughed. “Dolly, that’s Jack’s wife, deserves a medal and a straight trip to Heaven when the time comes.”

Elissa couldn’t let Pete take all the blame; she should have been honest with him. “It’s not all his fault.”

“I’m sure it’s not. It takes two to tango, my dear, and I’ll be the first to tell you I’ve known my share of relationship messes.” She took a healthy sip of wine, dabbed her lips. “And because of my vast experience in this unfortunate area, I can always tell when somebody’s in a fix and hurting.” Her blue eyes sparkled and a smile crept over her lips. “Pete’s definitely in a fix and hurting. You want to know how I know?” The smile spread. “Women are practically throwing their panties at him to get his attention. And Dolly told me about the phone calls to the house, the notes, the cakes, and pies. Goodness, she said there were some risqué photos, too. Can you imagine?”

Elissa clutched her wine glass, nodded. Any female with a heartbeat would be attracted to the man. “What did he do?” She didn’t really want to know, but the not knowing would be worse.

“Do?” Mimi sat back and laughed. “He didn’t do anything. Dolly said he gave the goodies to his father who took them to the shop and he tossed the letters in the trash—” she paused, tilted her head to the side “—unopened. Yes, he sure did. Dolly only knew about the photos because she thought they were recipe cards and opened them herself.” Tsk-tsk. “Said they near gave her a heart attack.”

“So, what’s he been doing?”

“Well, he’s been busy, that’s for sure. He’s helping one of his cousins renovate a house and he’s remodeling his aunt’s bathroom. She’s something else. Edith Finnegan’s her name. The woman is one strange canary, but she’s always had a soft spot for Pete. Dolly told me she up and gave him the deeds to a big stretch of land, just because. Imagine that?” She shook her head and the dangle ball earrings bounced against her neck. “But Pete, being the honest soul he is, thought it only fair to give his siblings a tract of land. I don’t think he chopped it five ways, for the number of kids in the family, but he deserves credit for gifting them anything.”

“He plans to stay in Magdalena?” He’d told her he had a lot to figure out and wasn’t sure where he’d end up. Sounded like he’d decided on small-town life in his hometown. She could picture him in this place. Hadn’t he told her how much he enjoyed improving existing structures, rather than ordering them torn down?

“I’d say he’s staying.” She slid a look at Elissa, said in a soft voice, “But there are other factors to consider.” Mimi shrugged and turned back to her meal. “Guess time will tell, won’t it, dear?”

That last comment signaled the end of the conversation about Pete Finnegan and his plans. Mimi changed the subject to gardening, perennial flowers, and The Bleeding Hearts Society, a group of residents interested in beautifying the town and spreading goodwill through flowers and acts of kindness. Apparently, Mimi was part of this group and invited Elissa to attend the next meeting as her guest—if she were still in town.

“We do more than plant flowers and weed beds.” She winked and added, “Lots more. Now why don’t you head to the sitting room and relax while I clean up the kitchen. Then I’ll fix coffee and peach cobbler. The cobbler recipe comes from one of the best bakers in the area. Her name’s Ramona and she’s on a Mediterranean cruise with her husband. Just got married this past Christmas.” Her voice turned soft. “Talk about love taking a long time to find its way. Now go on ahead and check out the reading material in there.”

“Are you sure I can’t help you clean up the kitchen? It’ll be much easier with two people.”

“No, no. I can clean it up in a jiff.”

“All right, but let me know if you change your mind.” Elissa made her way to the sitting room, spotted a photo album on the coffee table labeled Heart Sent Memories. She flipped open the first page, studied the attractive couple smiling at one another, so clearly in love. Ben and Gina Reed. The next page revealed another couple, equally attractive, equally engrossed in one another. Roman and Angie Ventori. More pages, more this-is-what-love-looks-like couples. Michael and Elise Androvich, Bree Kinkaid and Adam Brandon. On and on the pages went, a visual testimony to love and happily-ever-after. What about Bree and Adam? They were the only couple who didn’t appear to be married. Were they engaged? She’d have to ask Mimi about their story…

“Elissa?”

Pete Finnegan’s voice burst through her thoughts, captured her heart. He stood in the entrance of the sitting room, tanned and rugged, wearing a white button-down shirt and jeans, a bouquet of red roses in his arms—more handsome than she remembered. “Pete? What are you doing here?”

He moved toward her, his expression serious, mouth set in a hard line. “Mimi called and told me you were here.”

That voice made her stomach do flip-flops. “Mimi?” She glanced toward the back of the house where the proprietor was supposedly tidying up and preparing coffee and peach cobbler. Sounded like she’d taken a detour to make a phone call. “Why would Mimi call you?”

He shrugged, his gaze intense. “Guess she’s trying to play matchmaker. I told you this town butts into everybody’s business, didn’t I?”

Pete had told her a lot of things, some she’d rather forget. “You did mention that. Several times.”

“Yeah, sometimes I don’t know when to shut up.” A dull red washed out the tan in his cheeks, spread to his neck. “I’m going to have to work on that.” He cleared his throat, handed her the bouquet of roses. “These are for you. I remember you said red roses were your favorite.”

They’d been talking about flowers at the cabin one night and he’d said his aunt grew roses and treated them like her children. “You didn’t pick these from your aunt’s garden, did you?”

That made him laugh. “I know better than to fool with Aunt Edith’s roses. She’d come after me with a shovel if I even thought about it.”

“Thank you.” Elissa closed her eyes and breathed in their scent. “They’re beautiful.”

“Yes, they are,” he said, his voice husky. “I’ve got a lot of apologizing to do. I…was hurt and angry. I’m sorry I acted like a jerk, and I’m sorry I took off like I did.” He dragged a hand through his hair. “I should have stayed and talked it through, but I’m not used to caring enough to do that. Usually, the explosion comes from the other party and I use it as an excuse to duck out.” He sat next to her, clasped her hand, his voice dipping so low she had to lean toward him to hear. “But you were different.”

“You aren’t the only one with regrets. I should have told you about the notebook and the letters. That’s another one of the reasons I came here. I want to apologize to the people I might have hurt.” She paused, took a deep breath. “Nate and Christine Desantro, Harry Blacksworth, the MacGregors. Your father.”

“I think it’s best to let it alone. People don’t like their secrets tossed back at them, even if it’s in the form of an apology. As for my dad, Nate knows.”

Elissa blinked hard, fought back tears. “I wish I’d never sent that letter.”

“Dad went to see him right after I called. He said the conversation was long overdue. I’m not sure what happened with the letter, but it didn’t matter after that.”

“Good.” There was so much she wanted to tell him, but a sudden shyness overtook her. They weren’t in some hideaway miles from people they knew, pretending nothing existed outside of the cabin walls. A whole town surrounded them with people who’d known Pete Finnegan since he was a boy and others who still cursed Gloria Blacksworth for what she’d tried to do to their friends and family.

“Hey.” Pete touched her shoulder. “Why so quiet? What’s wrong?”

“Back in the cabin? I wasn’t pretending with you, Pete. What I felt was real.”

“I know. Me, too.”

“But real is scary, and messy.”

His lips twitched. “So I’ve heard.”

“You don’t even know my last name.”

“Cerdi. Elissa Marie Cerdi.”

“Who told you?” She narrowed her gaze on him. “You cheated back at the cabin, didn’t you? You looked in my wallet.” They’d made a pact to use first names and to not go hunting for last names.

“I didn’t.” He shrugged and said, “I heard it around town. Nate and Christine Desantro mentioned it, and so did Pop Benito.”

“Pop Benito?”

“He’s the guy they call the Godfather of Magdalena. Big on wisdom, helps people out of their messes.” He smiled, added, “The usual stuff.” The smile faded. “I didn’t care about your last name when we were at the cabin, and I still don’t. We knew the important things about each other, and that’s all that mattered. But if you want a cheat sheet, I’ll be happy to fill one out.”

“Are you teasing me?”

The intensity in his gaze burned her. “I’ve never been more serious. I’ll tell you anything you want to know. All you have to do is ask.”

The sweetness in those words made her heart swell, her soul ache. She trailed a hand along his jaw, leaned close, and kissed him. Soft, hesitant. With reverence and love.

“Elissa,” he murmured, his hands sliding down her back, pulling her closer.

Oh, but she had missed him. His touch, his voice, his mouth… She put the flowers aside, flung her arms around his neck, deepened the kiss. When she moaned, he pulled back, eyes glittering with need.

“I want you,” he said, his voice hoarse. “All of you. Always.” Pause. “I love you, Elissa Cerdi.”

She stroked his cheek, his chin. “I fell in love with you somewhere between our conversations and your cooking.”

He laughed. “Marry me. Let’s grow old together.”

“Yes,” she whispered. “Yes.”

He trailed his lips along her neck, her throat, settled a hand on the top button of her shirt. “I think you should show me your room. You know, I’m from this town, but I’ve never made it upstairs.”

She laughed. “Tonight, you will.”

“I like the sound of that.” His tongue traced a circle behind her ear, made her moan.

“What about Mimi? I think she’s fixing coffee and dessert. She’s been so nice to me, I’d hate to disappoint her.”

Pete eased his hand up her thigh. “I think Mimi already knows what you’re having for dessert. In fact, my guess is she planned it.”

Elissa pulled back, looked at him. “You mean there’s no peach cobbler?”

“There might be.” His lips twitched. “And if there is, it’ll probably be waiting for us later.”

“Later?” she squeaked, not sure she liked having a senior citizen know she planned to take a man to her room, or what she planned to do with him there.

He shrugged, kissed her mouth. “Like I said, this is a town of busybodies, but they mean well. Can you picture yourself living here?” He stumbled over the next words. “Raising a family here?”

She blinked hard to keep the tears from falling, but it was no use. “Absolutely,” she whispered. “As long as we’re together, that’s home.”

“I like the sound of that.” He swiped at a tear with his finger. “I don’t have a lot of money right now, but I’ve got some land and a few ideas.”

“We have each other, Pete. We’re already rich.” Elissa held his gaze. “Besides, Mrs. Blacksworth left me some money. What better way to use it than to put down roots in Magdalena?”

“From what I’ve heard about that woman, she wouldn’t like that.”

“Exactly, but she doesn’t control me anymore.” The words freed her, made her realize the truth in them. “We can do whatever we want and I want to invest in us. Right here.” She kissed him, worked up a smile. “I have an early birthday present for you.”

“You do? My birthday’s not for another ten months.”

“Then it’s a really early present.” She clasped his hand between hers, kissed his fingers. “I bought the cabin. I couldn’t imagine anyone in it but us. It’ll be perfect for weekend trips, and teaching kids about the woods and walking trails…”

Pete pulled her to him, held her tight. “I love it. And I love you.”

“I love you, too.” Pause. “I have another gift for you, too.”

“Better than the cabin?”

“Hmm. Maybe.” She eased out of his embrace, clasped his face between her hands, kissed him softly on the mouth. “This one’s upstairs. Invitation only.” One more kiss, and a whisper, “And you’re invited.”

Many thanks for choosing to spend your time reading A Family Affair: The Cabin. I’m truly grateful. If you enjoyed it, please consider writing a review on the site where you purchased it. (Short ones are equally welcome.) And now, I must head back to Magdalena and help these characters get in and out of trouble! If you’d like to be notified of my new releases, please sign up at my website: .