Free Her Perfect Match by Kate Welsh Page A

a permanent place in his life. “Interested in applying for the job?”
    She sniffled, and tears filled her eyes, but the smile on her face spoke of nothing but joy. “Oh, yes.” Her voice trembled just a little. “Nothing would make me happier. I’ve dreamed of this day for thirty-two years.”
    Jackson realized he was seeing her through a sheen of his own tears and quickly scrubbed them away with the heel of his hand. “Great. That means a lot. If you want to keep this just between us, I’ll understand. I don’t want to hurt your reputation or standing in the community or with your family.”
    Meg squeezed his hand. “Thank you for worrying about me. I don’t think that will happen, but I’d like a little time to decide how to tell everyone.”
    “Then this is our secret until you say otherwise.”
    She inclined her head and studied him for a long moment. “Would you mind a little more motherly advice about Elizabeth?”
    He grinned. This really was great! “Shoot,” he told her.
    “Okay then. I think you need to know that Elizabeth hasn’t had a storybook life, either. She was something of an ugly duckling born to a couple of spoiled swans. She was largely ignored by her mother until she suddenly blossomed at thirteen or fourteenand Louise took her on like a project. Her mother was nothing more than a sporadic etiquette, elocution and grooming teacher over the years and, from what I understand, Reginald only noticed her as a young child when he thought he could shape her into an Olympic-caliber event rider. She had the poor taste to develop back problems that made his dream an impossibility. Perhaps you should keep that in mind when dealing with her. Sometimes I’m not sure what Elizabeth sees when she looks in a mirror, but I don’t think it’s the beautiful young woman she is.”
     
    Elizabeth stared into mirror over her dressing table. If she didn’t get some sleep soon, there would be no way she could appear in public. The dark circles under her eyes defied cover-up. She looked like she’d gone ten rounds in a boxing ring—and lost.
    Night after night she lay in bed replaying Jack’s kiss and those few seconds of joy before the panic took over. She rethought and revamped each moment she’d spent with him, wishing she could go back and relive them all—change them all. Wishing she could go back even further and laugh off the taunts of cruel classmates, be suspicious of Jason Lexington, go to biology lab rather than be flattered by his attention.
    Shaking her head, Elizabeth picked up the concealing stick, knowing Cole was on his way. He’d sounded upset, and there was no way she could turn him away. But she also knew him. If he noticed anything wrong, his concerns would take a back seat to hers.
    Her last conversation with him had been yesterday afternoon, and encouraging. She’d called to see if he’d asked CJ Larson out on a date, but casually so as not to get her hopes up.
    “I did it,” he’d said.
    Elizabeth had laughed at how nervous he sounded. Who would believe ladies’ man Cole Taggert was anxious over an upcoming date? “I take it I’m no longer your safety net,” she said.
    “I wouldn’t go that far. I don’t want her to get hurt if it turns out that I don’t feel all for her that I should. I thought I’d just sort of avoid the subject of you until I was more sure of where I’m headed.”
    She hated to increase those nerves of his but she would have felt worse had she not told him what she was thinking. “I just thought I should warn you. I’ve sort of been rethinking our conversation. I’m not sure someone like CJ can spend time with a man she’s attracted to and not at least hope they have future. Go slow. You know?”
    “I’m not about to rush her into bed,” he snapped. “I’m not that out of touch with who she is.”
    “A kiss for someone like CJ could be as intimate as a whole lot more for the rest of us.” Elizabeth heard the sadness in her