Bride Of Dreams

707—BELLS, RINGS & ANGELS’ WINGS

751—SHE’S HAVING HIS BABY

774—THE LAST TWO BACHELORS

831—MY LITTLE ONE

865—BRIDE OF DREAMS

Who’s Who in Tyler

Cooper Night Hawk—His dreams are haunted by a woman some say will be his bride.

Caroline Benning—Falling in love wasn’t in her game plan when she came to Tyler.

Laughing Bear—His Sauk wisdom and the Spirit guides have served him well.

Brady Spencer—He wants the truth about Caroline…no matter what.

Delia Mayhew—A town librarian can tell a lot about people by the books they read.

Anna and Johnny Kelsey—There’s no hanky-panky going on in their boardinghouse!

Brick and Karen Bauer—This cop couple will bring peace back to Tyler, even if they have to handcuff Cooper and Caroline together.

Henry Farris—He has a roving eye for Caroline—even if he is ninety!

Lieutenant Steve Fletcher—His beat is the local lovers’ lane.

Tyler Quilting Circle—Whose wedding quilt are these matchmaking women working on now?

Contents

Prologue (#ud7ab3df9-4e3c-51d0-b8d1-c57f4fc112b8)

Chapter One (#uec990960-4c83-534b-8b0e-ae5166ea6ce0)

Chapter Two (#uaa2452b3-4d2a-517a-a6a1-078abc4cea51)

Chapter Three (#u3350f8b3-cc79-5782-bb71-e28f28970ed0)

Chapter Four (#litres_trial_promo)

Chapter Five (#litres_trial_promo)

Chapter Six (#litres_trial_promo)

Chapter Seven (#litres_trial_promo)

Chapter Eight (#litres_trial_promo)

Chapter Nine (#litres_trial_promo)

Chapter Ten (#litres_trial_promo)

Chapter Eleven (#litres_trial_promo)

Chapter Twelve (#litres_trial_promo)

Chapter Thirteen (#litres_trial_promo)

Chapter Fourteen (#litres_trial_promo)

Prologue

“I wasn’t ready for you to go just yet, Dad. I wanted you here so you could hold your grandchildren. Remember what you said you wanted to do? You were going to spend all your mornings on the golf course and avoid all those widows trolling for a new husband. The ones you claimed talk endlessly about taking cruises, and want a partner to go with them. Hopefully, you.”

Caroline Bennedict folded the last piece of clothing and carefully placed it in a box. Her movements were economical as she sealed the box with packing tape and marked it for one of the charities.

“I’m only twenty-two years old, Dad. I still need you.” She began clearing off his chest of drawers. She knew if anyone heard her talking out loud to her father, who’d died the month before, they’d think she was losing it. They had no idea that talking to him as if he was still there made the pain more tolerable. Plus she believed, in a sense, he still was with her.

Now she was involved in a task she hadn’t looked forward to but knew needed to be done—packing her father’s personal items. Tears pricked her eyelids as she emptied each drawer, then moved on to the closet.

Caroline frowned when she discovered a large box set back in the far corner of the top shelf. She stood on a chair and carefully maneuvered it forward so she could get a good grip on it. She carried it over to the bed. When she opened the box, the faint scent of Chanel wafted upward. Her dad always said Chanel reminded him of Mom. Caroline’s mother had died having Caroline, so she’d never had a chance to know her, and had to rely on stories from her father. Now she didn’t even have that.

The box held a quilt. She stared at the lively pattern of blue, white and green and gathered up the heavy fabric, allowing it to spill over her lap. She carefully smoothed it across her legs.

“Where did this come from?” she whispered to herself, picking up one corner and examining the tiny stitches.

Even her inexperienced eye could tell the quilt was handmade, put together with a great deal of care and love. She knew right away it wasn’t designed for her father’s navy-and-burgundy bedroom. As she turned the quilt over, additional colors in one of the corners caught her eye.

She pulled it toward her so she could examine it more closely. Her brows knitted in a confused frown as her fingernail traced the names embroidered in one corner of the quilt.

Violet and Elias Spencer

Seth, Brady, Quinn

Violet Spencer? The same Violet Caroline knew of as Violet Bennedict? The woman who’d died seconds after Caroline’s birth?

“Mom?” she whispered. “Who are these men? And what do they have to do with you?”

Chapter One

He couldn’t see her face, but he knew she was beautiful. The mist wrapped around her in the way a lover would protect her from outside forces. Even though her face was shrouded by the mist, he instinctively knew she was looking at him. Her slim figure was garbed in a cotton gown that clung to her form.

The mist swirled around her as she lifted her hand and reached out to him. She didn’t speak a word, but somehow he knew she was beckoning to him. Asking that he take her hand.

He didn’t move from his spot. Somehow he knew that taking her hand and allowing her to lead him into the mist would mean changes to himself and to his life. Changes he wasn’t ready to make. Instead, he stepped back. Once. Twice.