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The Mommy Plan
Widower Grant Adams loves his twin stepdaughters, but what does he know about pigtails and dresses and being a full-time dad? With his new job in a remote Canadian center for troubled boys, Grant needs a good nanny. But when he meets Dahlia Wheatley, who’s loving, patient and kind to his girls, he realizes the twins need more than a sitter—they need a mother. With her own harrowing past, Dahlia is as reluctant to get emotionally involved as Grant is. Yet his startling proposition just may form a happy new family of four.
“Is something wrong?” Dahlia asked.
Dahlia stood beside Grant, her face lifted as she searched his gaze.
Those eyes of hers saw too much. He couldn’t bear for her to glimpse that lost part of him that had never quite recovered. He shook his head. All he wanted was to be a good father to his twin stepdaughters. But was he?
Though Dahlia smiled, her beautiful hazel eyes didn’t have their usual twinkle. They locked on to his, freezing him in place.
“Would you like to go for a coffee?” Dahlia asked after a moment. She had more to say about him and the girls, he knew.
Grant was surprised by how much he wanted to say yes. “I should get the twins to bed,” he said.
“May I help?” The sparkle flashed back into her eyes.
“You want to help with bath time? You’ll get soaked,” he warned.
“It’s happened before. I didn’t melt,” Dahlia teased. “As long as you don’t mind sharing them for a while.”
Mind? He was delighted. “Don’t say I didn’t warn you.”
LOIS RICHER
began her travels the day she read her first book and realized that fiction provided an extraordinary adventure. Creating that adventure for others became her obsession. With millions of books in print, Lois continues to enjoy creating stories of joy and hope. She and her husband love to travel, which makes it easy to find the perfect setting for her next story. Lois would love to hear from you via www.loisricher.com or [email protected], or on Facebook.
North Country Dad
Lois Richer
But if we must keep trusting God
for something that hasn’t happened yet,
it teaches us to wait patiently and confidently.
—Romans 8:25
To the wonderful folks in Churchill, Manitoba,
who make the north country so much fun.
Contents
“We’re orphans, just like Cinderella.”
Dahlia Wheatley had forgotten how cute kids were.
“Not quite,” she said with a smile. “You’ve got a daddy.”
“Oh, yeah.” The auburn-haired twins glanced at the man sprawled out in the seat across the aisle, chin tucked into his chest, stubbled jaw barely visible. They smiled and went back to coloring.
They’d scooted across the aisle forty minutes ago for a visit. Dahlia had encouraged them to stay and color with her markers while their dad slept. He looked weary, like a father who’d used every last ounce of energy to entertain his two young daughters.
Dahlia could almost pretend she was part of their family. For a moment, she let herself imagine smoothing that unkempt hank of dark hair off his forehead, then she caught herself.
She didn’t even know the man!
“I’m hungry.” The wiggly twin, Glory, looked at Dahlia expectantly.
“Me, too.” Grace handed Dahlia her marker. “When do we get to Churchill?”
“Not until tomorrow morning. It’s a long train trip.”
“Because Canada’s so big.” Glory nodded sagely. “I’ll get something to eat out of Daddy’s bag.”