Moonlighting: A Serenity Harbor Maine Novella, Starlight Grille, #3

By Delsora Lowe

A blast from the past, a ten-year old matchmaker with a valentine wish, an omission, and a villainous man…
a recipe for disaster? Or love against all odds?

Tucker Benson's decision to move to a new town, build a new business, and protect his daughter does not include finding a replacement for his cheating wife. But his ten-year old daughter has other plans. And she's found the one!

Mary Beth Walters' life is up-to-the-brim full. When her high school crush, now single father, moves to town, she is tempted. Only problem is, he doesn't recognize her. That could be a good thing. Or end in trouble.

When Tucker discovers the secret Mary Beth holds close to her heart, will love be enough to overcome broken trusts?

• Language: English
• Publisher: Beach Plum Publishing
• Release date: Dec 7, 2017
• ISBN: 9781386405146

Book preview

Moonlighting

Starlight Grille Book 3

A blast from the past, a ten-year old matchmaker with a valentine wish, an omission, and a villainous man…a recipe for disaster? Or love against all odds?

Tucker Benson’s decision to move to a new town, build a new business, and protect his daughter does not include finding a replacement for his cheating wife. But his ten-year old daughter has other plans. And she’s found the one!

Mary Beth Walters’ life is up-to-the-brim full. When her high school crush, now single father, moves to town, she is tempted. Only problem is, he doesn’t recognize her. That could be a good thing. Or end in trouble.

When Tucker discovers the secret Mary Beth holds close to her heart, will love be enough to overcome broken trusts?

Reviews for the Starlight Grille Series

The Legacy of Parker’s Point

Starlight Grille Book 1

…a feel good story, full of love and romance and hope….no game playing, no lies, manipulation or underhanded deceit to win affection….just two strong people finding love, learning to trust, and trying to make it work.

The author depicts life in a small town with memorable characters and descriptive scenery. Lauralee and Grayson are two beautiful people inside and out. Their chemistry heats up the pages…. The secondary characters are well written and the next book in the series is about the piano player, Luke, at the Starlight Grille.

Dianamcc - Romance Junkies – Five Hearts

Set on the picturesque sea coast of Maine….a heartfelt tale of helping and healing…. a delightful, emotional read.

N, Amazon Reader – Five Stars

…a wonderful story of learning to trust in love enough to put the past behind you….characters are smart, sexy and hopeful and make you feel great for having read their story.

HarborGirl, Amazon Reader – Five Stars

The romance is done very well, with chemistry galore and a rich, beautiful world in Serenity Harbor. Definitely a keeper!

M, Amazon Reader – Five Stars

This is a sweet story. The romance is a well-written small town story where two people learn to trust both each other and themselves. I highly recommend the story.

Mainer, Amazon Reader – Four Stars

I appreciated how well-developed and fleshed out Delsora's characters are, despite this being a shorter story….Lauralee & Grayson grab hold of you from page one. I alternated between smiling over their cute interactions, to swooning over the steamier scenes (closed bedroom door).

Colleen, Amazon Reader – Five Stars

…a lovely, heartwarming story which takes the reader back to a time when family name and honor took priority for power brokers masquerading as parents—and the effects those antiquated beliefs continue to have on the generations that follow….It's a winner.

Kat, Amazon Reader – Five Stars

I loved this novella. The small, coastal Maine town was beautifully described. I really liked Gray and Lauralee right away. They connected quickly, and I loved their banter and flirtation.

Laurie, Goodreads Reader – Five Stars

Come Dance with Me

Starlight Grille Book 2

[Sam] is multi-layered, gorgeous and plays jazz like the super-star he is. Yet, something is eating at him. Then he meets Ashley Sullivan, the uptight high school teacher, riddled with fear and reluctance to join in. Sam doesn't give up on her and the push-pull of these two is charming. Give yourself a treat and read Come Dance With Me. It's a winner

Kat, Amazon Reader – Five Stars

Dedication

To my grandmother, known as Dolly, one of many artists in my family. She taught art classes in her home into her nineties, and specialized in stenciling on trays and other metal canvases, including recycled tin cans, as well as on velvet and glass. She was a recycler, save the earth, person long before it was the right thing to do. She cut her own stencils and free-handed the fine gold border lines, straight and steady as an arrow. She taught me and my sister everything she knew.

And to my sister, Robin, who went on to become a professional artist, as well. She also used her art and library science background as an art therapist.

Both are now up in the heavens, probably creating masterpieces together, and once in a great while imbibing in an afternoon treat of spiked tea and lace cookies, or a sip of sherry before dining. Miss you both so much!

Acknowledgments

To my fantastic team, without whose knowledge and guidance there would be no Delsora Lowe books; editor Janet Corcoran, cover designer Karen Ronan, proofreader Susan Vaughan, and formatter Nina Pierce. I owe everything to all of you!

And to my daily check-in cheerleaders from the Rose City Romance Writers (OR) goals and writing challenge loop. You listen to my ramblings, keep me grounded, encourage me to steadily reach for the stars, and pick me up when I falter.

Contents

About Moonlighting * Dedication * Acknowledgments

Excerpt from Parker’s Point * Excerpt from Come Dance with Me * Reviews for the Starlight Grille Series

Chapter 1 * Chapter 2 * Chapter 3 * Chapter 4 * Chapter 5 * Chapter 6 * Chapter 7 * Chapter 8 * Chapter 9 * Chapter 10 * Chapter 11 * Chapter 12 * Chapter 13 * Epilogue

Join Delsora’s Mailing List * A Letter from the Author * About the Author * Other Books by Delsora * Copyright

Chapter 1

I pick you.

At the sound of the young voice, Mary Beth Walters lifted her head from tabulating her receipt book. She stared into a freckled face with wide blue eyes the color of a tropical sea. The girl pointed straight at Mary Beth. I pick you.

Excuse me?

You. You’re the one. She bounced up and down, her bubbly excitement causing the tousle of red curls atop her head to bounce too.

The one?

To help my dad.

Mary Beth glanced around the crowded Cooper Memorial High School gym looking for a lost dad among the display tables filled with crafts.

Where’s your dad? She rose. What help does he need? Her teacher instincts kicked in. She held out her hand and the girl, nine or ten years old, tugged with a vice-like grip.

Mary Beth glanced over her shoulder at the vendors on either side of where she’d set up her display of folk art. I’ll be right back. Watch my table? She pointed toward a pile of papers. There’s the price list. She didn’t wait for confirmation. She’d worked beside these vendors for years. They always helped each other.

The girl dragged her along rows of six foot tables, through throngs of people, and out the gym door into the brightly-colored hallway that connected the high school to the middle school.

Where are you taking me?

The girl threw a duh glance over her shoulder and kept right on moving. My dad. He needs you.

They veered into a middle-school classroom. Mary Beth braced herself for any possibility. A prone, unconscious guy or a mangled hand or any other emergency horrors beyond her first aid training that she would have no clue what to do about. She dug in her pocket, finding comfort in her cell close at hand. She could call for help once she assessed the situation.

And that’s when she saw him in semi-profile. Standing upright. Not appearing to be injured. Tall. Broad shouldered. Close-cropped chestnut hair in slight disarray. A shadowed bristle of stubble framing his jawline. Trash can in hand. He turned to dump the refuse into an industrial-sized push cart. Her heart seized. Or was it her lungs? She couldn’t breathe. Her eyes widened. Tucker? Tucker Benson? In Maine?

I found her, Daddy.

His eyes locked with Mary Beth’s.

The girl let go, leaving her strangely bereft, and ran across the room to throw her arms around her dad’s waist. I found her. She’s the one.

Mary Beth's old high school classmate looked like he wished the floor would swallow him whole. His color faded from his lightly bronzed face to the washed-out tan of the cinderblock walls behind him. Was he ill?

He straightened his shoulders. His hand smoothed the curls on his daughter’s head. I’m sorry. She, Bunnie, has hopes, dreams. We’re new to, ah, town. She’s looking for, ah, friends.

Mary Beth wondered about his hesitation. He’d always been so confidant. So out of reach. So—no other way to put it—filled with testosterone-fueled fearlessness and masculinity. Captain of the wrestling and football teams, straight-A student, class president all four years of high school. Valedictorian. All he worked on predicted his success. At the present he held a trashcan. He still filled out those jeans, though, like wow.

Not for me, Daddy.

What? He jerked to attention. Perhaps he had been lost in the past too. Mary Beth totally related. She shook her head to dispel fantasies, er, memories she had of South Boston High School and Tucker Benson. Tucker. Benson. Face-to-face.

Not friends for me, Daddy. His hand slipped down the side of her face to cup her chin, as if the slightest pressure could shut her up. For you. The girl turned to face Mary Beth. He’s the one who needs a friend. I have friends at school, but Daddy, he—

Bunnie. Enough.

Out of the mouths of babes. Heat fired up to the tips of her ears and the end of her nose. The warmth traveled all the way across her cheeks and down her neck. She was positive her face matched Tucker’s. She always remembered the endearing way his face would turn red. Something the football team members relentlessly teased him about. Both now probably blushed as red as the valentines displayed on the fifth-grade classroom wall.

I’m sure your, ah, friend has other places she needs to be.

Tucker didn’t recognize her. Mary Beth backed up a step. Welcome to Serenity Harbor. I—I work on the other side of the building. High school. English. Room 127D. Tell me if you need anything. Glad you’re not dead, I mean injured, I mean all right. Glad you’re all right. She could not stop babbling. And I’m sure you’ll—both of you—will find new friends. She backed out the door and let out a sigh that echoed down the hallway.

Oh, gawd, nothing’s changed since high school.

Except Tucker—he’s a father. And a janitor? And he has no clue who I am.

Tucker Benson slammed the trash can back into place and scrubbed his fingers across his unshaven chin.

What’s wrong, Daddy?

Nothing, Hon-Bun. The can slipped. Guess I’m tired.

How did you tell your pride and joy that she had embarrassed the heck out of her dad in front of the nice-looking and seemingly sweet English teacher? That in fact her dad had been a big-man-on-campus back in South Boston, earned an MBA and worked for a prestigious company. Once. These days with his own struggling business, he had to work part time to keep food on the table. He hated the time the extra job stole from both his daughter and his business. Not to mention the hit to his ego. The latest hit, five minutes ago when the teacher backed out of this room.

He plastered on a smile, despite the fatigue pummeling his body and his mind, trying like hell to conjure up a positive front for his daughter. He had to see this change through. Make it a good change. A final change. So they could once and for all get on with their lives.

Perhaps meeting this English teacher could be a first step in the right direction for him and Bunnie. Everyone needs a friend.

Me too. I’m tired of this. Bunnie grasped his hand and tugged, pulling him out of the thick muck of his stupor. He couldn’t allow himself to go there. Not if he wanted to keep his sanity and harness his energy to get through this day. Do we get to go home soon?

Soon. Another hour. She heaved a sigh that rivaled the air whooshing out of a dozen balloons. Always the dramatic one, his baby. So like her mom. No. Bunnie would never, ever rival her mom in that area. No one could reach such depths of dysfunction.

He reached into his pocket and pulled out a five. Why don’t you go back to the craft fair and see if you can find something you like. I’ll be in one of the rooms in this hallway when you get back. I’ll end up in yours. Okay?

Bunnie’s nod and smile counterbalanced the sacrifice of a five-dollar bill. She hugged him, then half jogged, half skipped off. Her cheerfulness and optimism were always a salve to his aching heart.

Mary Beth inhaled the scents of baked goods and candles surrounding her at the craft fair, hoping to calm her beating-bass-drum heart. Tucker Benson. She couldn’t help be curious about why he’d moved to Serenity Harbor. Was it coincidence he ended up in the same town as