Free Matchmakers Box Set: Matchmakers, Encore, Finding Hope by Bernadette Marie Page A

like the right place to open business.”
    Sophia nodded. She remembered it was the day Mary Alice and Jeremy said their young vows that she’d first laid eyes on David Kendal.
    She hardly knew he was there.
    It wasn’t that she didn’t notice David altogether. She’d seen him, smiled, and moved on. Her grandmother had said to her, “There’s Millie’s nephew. Isn’t he handsome?” She’d nodded and caught him looking in her direction. He’d just graduated college and was headed to flight school. She was headed to college. The matchmaking duo of her grandmother and his aunt wouldn’t try their hand at setting them up for another four years. Her life would have been so different if they hadn’t met. Despite the heartache, she realized getting to know him again, and getting to know Carissa, made up for some of the pain of losing them.
    Mary Alice arranged the small display of treats on the counter.
    “So what brings you into my little store?”
    “I brought Carissa to work.”
    “Carissa? Oh…oh!” Her eyes widened. “Are you and David back together?”
    “Well…”
    “Oh, this is wonderful!” She reached for Sophia and pulled her into another hug across the counter. “He’s missed you.”
    “We’re not together. I’m only home for my grandmother’s birthday.” Her voice was softer, and the smile faded from Mary Alice’s face.
    “Well, I’m glad you stopped in to see us.”
    “So am I.”
    Carissa arrived at the counter with Sophia’s drink.
    “A chocolate, banana, granola, and peanut butter smoothie.” She handed it to Sophia.
    “Thank you.”
    Sophia handed Mary Alice her money, but Mary Alice pushed her hand away. “Oh, no. This is on the house.”
    “Thank you.”
    Mary Alice walked back around the counter while Carissa helped another customer.
    “You have to come for dinner while you’re in town. Come by and see the house. Meet my family.”
    “I’d like that.” She waited for Carissa’s customer to move from the counter. “What time are you done tonight?”
    “I get off at nine.”
    “Why don’t I just pick you up?”
    “You don’t have to do that.”
    “I have nothing better to do. I think I’m going to go home and practice for an hour or so, then I’ll come back to get you.”
    “Okay. Sure.”
    She took a sip. “Yep, this is how I like it.”
    “It’s how my dad likes them, too.” Carissa wiggled her eyebrows.
    The cold of the drink slithered down her throat, but the thought of sharing this small bond with David warmed her far more than it should.
     
     

CHAPTER SIX
     
    David wandered in and out of the shops that lined Maui’s Front Street. The surf crashed in the background, and scooters buzzed up the streets. Tourists from every part of the world jostled him; he’d probably brought some of them to their destination. It was a wonderfully eclectic place.
    He stopped with a crowd out front of a store that sold hand-blown glass. A man in the window blew a bubble of glass into a small ornament.
    Sparkling showcases of miniature musical instruments inside the window drew him into the store.
    Behind the man blowing the glass, music played.
    “Turn it up! Turn it up!” The glassblower’s voice carried through the store with his thick Italian accent. Before finishing the sale she was completing, the woman at the counter accommodated him.
    David listened. It was opera. It was unmistakably the voice of Pablo DiAngelo. A chill ran down his spine. Yes, it was Pablo DiAngelo’s voice, and the cello was Sophia.
    The woman approached him.
    “Can I help you, sir?”
    David shifted, startled. “I’m sorry. I was listening to the music.”
    “Pablo DiAngelo.” It was a simple statement. “Do you know who he is?”
    “Yes. I’ve met him before. Had dinner with him actually.”
    The woman clasped her hands together. “You’ve met Pablo DiAngelo?”
    “Yes.” He wished he’d been that impressed himself.
    “Carlo! Carlo!” She shouted until the glassblower