An Extraordinary Match (The Match Series Book 3) (23 page)

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It was nearly
nine o’clock by the time Hunter Vashon settled into his favorite Adirondack chair on his deck overlooking Quincy Bay. The waves were rolling against the breakwater at the edge of his yard, splashing up in white foam and adding a rhythm of sound to the atmosphere. The night was clear, but the wind was brisk, which suited him just fine.

It was warmer than usual for September in Boston, and he’d been out in the sun on a downtown jobsite all day. The concrete delivery had been late. A load of steel wasn’t to spec. And an electrical inspector was making his life hell.

Now, he cracked open a beer, set his two cell phones on the wooden table beside him and peeled back the lid of the meat-lover’s pizza he’d picked up at Strombo’s on the way home.

He’d spent a small fortune last year to buy one of the rare lots on the peninsula with direct ocean frontage. He’d demolished the small, aging house on the property and built himself what was a modest house by beachfront standards, a two-story Cape Cod with four bedrooms. It had an open-concept living area with a big brick fireplace, numerous windows, and plenty of deck and balcony space.

The interior was only partially finished, with a lot of work left to do on the second floor. But it was already his oasis. He relaxed into the deep, cushioned seat, helping himself to a slice of pizza, ready to enjoy that first thick, satisfying bite.

His doorbell sounded, the chimes ringing through the house.

“Damn it.” The scents of sausage and pepperoni were already teasing his taste buds.

He considered ignoring the sound. Who would drop by without calling?

But it rang again, and he considered that it could be a neighbor in trouble.

He sat up and dropped the slice of pizza back into the box. Then he rocked to his feet. Whoever it was, this had better be important.

Through the French doors, he made his way across the open living area. The blurry outline through the leaded glass panes told him it was a woman.

Clamping his jaw, he swung open the door then did an immediate double take.

“Hunter, darling,” the woman said.

“
Granny Dee
?” He didn’t think there was a sight that could have surprised him more.

He glanced to the curb behind his grandmother Daisy Vashon, not seeing a car. Then he looked up and down the road, trying to make sense of her appearance. “Are you alone? How did you get here?”

“On an airplane, of course.”

“By yourself?”

“I’m seventy, not seven. Are you going to let me in?”

“Of course I am.” Embarrassed, he quickly stepped backward, opening the door wide.

She crossed the threshold, glancing around. “That’s better. Wow. The place looks fabulous. You’ve worked hard.”

“What are you doing here?” He gave her slight body a quick hug and gave her a peck on the cheek.

“I came to visit my favorite grandson.”

“You’ve been to Hammond’s?”

Granny Dee rolled her eyes. “Ha ha. You always were a comic.”

Hunter hadn’t been joking, but he wasn’t about to own up to that. By any yardstick, Hunter was the black sheep of the Vashon family, with his older brother, Hammond, the golden child. Hammond was the heir apparent to Vashon Holdings. He was very much like their father in looks, interests and mannerisms.

Hunter, on the other hand, had disappointed his family by choosing trade school over college, striking out on his own and becoming a general construction contractor rather than helping manage the family’s real estate holdings. And Granny Dee knew his teenage transgressions better than anybody.

“Why didn’t you call?” he asked her.

“Is this a bad time?”

“No. I meant I could have picked you up at the airport.”

“Do you have a woman in here?” She squinted into the living area.

“No, Granny Dee, I do not have a woman in here. I have a pizza in here. Well, out on the deck.”

“What kind?”

“Meat lover’s.”

“Sounds perfect. I’m a little peckish after the flight. You know, they don’t serve you much of anything on an airplane anymore.”

She slipped a leather bag from her shoulder, and he immediately took it from her hands. It was far heavier than he’d expected.

“What do you have in here?”

“Just a toothbrush and a change of clothes.”

“You’re staying?”

She studied his expression. “Where else would I stay?”

The family estate with its seven bedrooms was the first place that came to mind. But Hunter didn’t want to sound inhospitable.

“Nowhere,” he said instead. “It’s just that—”

“Are you
sure
you don’t have a woman in here?” she asked.

“My upstairs bedrooms aren’t finished. But that’s fine. You can use my room. I’ll bunk in one of the others.”

“That’s very kind of you, Hunter.”

“It’s my pleasure.” It was. Though her arrival had taken him by surprise, he dearly loved Granny Dee. She was a bit zany and often unpredictable. But while he was growing up, she’d seemed to be the only member of his family who understood him.

“Which way to the pizza?” she asked.

He pointed. “The glass doors beyond the brick fireplace.”

She gazed around as she walked. “This really is a lovely house.”

“The deck is spectacular. It’s my favorite spot.” He passed her to hold open the door.

She smiled as she made her way outside. “I can see why.” She walked directly to the rail and braced her arms on the top, gazing at the foaming waves and the lights on the faraway shore.

“Are you warm enough?” he asked, taking up a spot beside her.

She was wearing black slacks and a chunky white cardigan. “I’m just fine.”

“How long are you staying?” He had to go to work early tomorrow, but perhaps he could arrange something entertaining for her during the day. He’d have his brother and his parents meet them somewhere in the city for dinner.

“Just overnight,” she said, turning around. She gestured to the table. “Have you got any more beer?”

“Absolutely. Sit down and get comfortable. I’ll get us some plates.”

She waved a dismissive hand. “No need for a plate, or a glass for that matter. I’m perfectly capable of roughing it.”

“Are you sure?”

“Old people are just like young people,” she said, bracing a hand on the wide arm of the chair to lower herself into it. “Except for the wrinkles and the creaky joints.”

As he retrieved another beer from his fridge, Hunter was reminded that he didn’t see his grandmother nearly often enough. She’d lived in Florida for several years now, and he’d never been down there, always counting on her holiday visits to Boston.

When he returned to the deck, she was already tucking into a slice of pizza.

“I’ve missed Strombo’s,” she told him. “They don’t know how to make pizza in Florida, all thin and slimy. I don’t think they use real cheese.”

“Well, enjoy,” he offered, setting the fresh beer on the table next to her and taking his own seat again.

The pizza was satisfying, and for a few minutes they both ate in silence, boat horns sounding far out on the water, a sleek yacht puttering past.

“You were working today?” she asked him, obviously taking in his thick, double-fronted cargo pants.

“I’m on a twenty-six-story office tower downtown.”

“Your company’s doing well?”

“My company’s doing very well.”

He was proud of the success of Straight Rock Construction. At twenty-eight, he’d already grown it from a one-man operation to a company of eight. It was affiliated with dozens of subcontracting firms and was successfully bidding for increasingly larger projects.

He knew he owed it in part to his father’s name and reputation and to the small start-up loan his father had provided. But he’d long since paid back the loan. And he’d grown and thrived these past eight years based on his company’s quality work.

“I have to say,” said Granny Dee, helping herself to a second slice, “you turned out better than I expected.”

Hunter couldn’t help but smile at the frank comment. He didn’t exactly know how to respond, so he took a drink of his beer instead.

“Do you remember spring break?” she asked him.

“Senior year?” The one he’d secretly spent in Florida. The one where she’d saved his ass.

“Yes, that spring break, dear.”

“I remember it well.” He’d had an absolute blast, finally getting lucky with Tawny Tevin. Of course, he’d never mentioned that part to his grandmother.

“So, you remember I helped you out that week.”

“I do.”

Something shifted in her expression. For a fleeting second, she looked calculating. But then it was gone.

“I need your help, Hunter.”

“Sure.” He’d do anything for her.

“It’s a little hard to explain. It’s for Hammond.”

Hunter felt his guard go up ever so slightly. So this trip
was
about Hammond. That shouldn’t come as a surprise.

Granny Dee sat forward in her chair. “My friends and I. Well, Sam, really. He’s a NASA genius. A former NASA genius. But he put the first man on the moon. So, well, he’s really, really smart.”

Hunter listened, confused at first, but then in growing astonishment as she outlined a computer matchmaking program devised by five senior citizens in the garage of a retirement complex in Florida. He didn’t know whether to be impressed or to call the authorities.

He had a little trouble following the stories of their three successes so far. They sounded farfetched and convoluted, and he wasn’t sure how much to believe. But, tragically, he understood completely what she was asking of him.

Hammond was the catch of the Vashon family, and they’d found him a nice girl.

Everything inside Hunter told him to refuse. Hammond was perfectly capable of finding his own dates. And Hunter didn’t want to change some unsuspecting young woman into a dream girl for his brother. It seemed seriously unethical.

He tried to form the words to let her down. “I don’t think I can—”

“It’s a ninety-nine percent match,” Granny Dee said earnestly. “That’s the highest we’ve ever had. I know it seems strange. But it always starts out this way—two people who don’t seem to belong together at all. But they always turn out to be perfect for each other, Hunter. And they’re all so happy now. I could give you their phone numbers. If you talk to them, I’m certain you’ll—”

“Granny Dee, really, I’m sorry, but—”

“You owe me, young man.”

She was right about that. “I know I do.”

“Have I ever asked you for anything before?”

“You haven’t,” he admitted.

She reached across the table for his hand. She looked so hopeful, so vulnerable, so completely convinced that she was doing the right thing.

She squeezed. “Hammond’s happiness, his lifetime of happiness, is all at stake here.”

Hunter tried to utter the word no. He wanted to tell her Hammond could take care of his own happiness. Hunter was far too busy to set his brother up. But the refusal stuck in his throat.

“And you can’t tell them,” said Granny Dee. “It won’t work if they know what’s going on. No matter what happens, this has to stay
our
secret.”

Hunter knew all about secrets with his grandmother. He felt a sharp twist in his chest. He knew he had no choice. So he nodded. “Okay. I’ll see what I can do.”

Find out what happens next in An Astonishing Match…

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Barbara Dunlop is a New York Times and USA Today bestselling author of fifty romance novels. A three time finalist in the prestigious RITA award, she is also a two time winner of the RWA Golden Heart award. An Unlikely Match, the first book in her acclaimed Match series, was a number one bestseller on Amazon. Barbara makes her home in Yukon with her bush pilot husband and the moose and bears that wander through their yard.

Visit Barbara’s website at
BarbaraDunlop.com

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