LITMIR.BIZ

       Chapter One

      A flood of memories filled Chase Asher as he unlocked the front door of his great-uncle’s mansion, Bee Tree Hill. He hesitated to enter, not because anyone lived there, but because he hated to face the reminder of his past mistakes. Uncle Morgan was gone, the house was empty, but the memories, both good and bad, lingered.

      Stepping over the threshold and into the walnut-paneled foyer, he forced the past to stay where it belonged and focused on the task ahead. His father wanted to sell the estate by the end of July, leaving Chase with just two months to inventory Uncle Morgan’s things, fix any minor repairs and quietly grieve the passing of a man who was like a father to him. Thankfully, he’d have the place all to himself, a nice change from the chaotic office back in Seattle.

      “One...two...three!” A child’s voice cried out from the front parlor. “Ready, not, here I come!”

      A little girl with dark brown pigtails and pink overalls ran out of the next room and right into Chase’s leg. The child fell and bounced on her backside. She looked up at Chase with large, brown eyes. “Tag!” she said with a giggle. “You’re it.”

      Chase stepped back, his pulse pounding hard. Where in the world had the child come from? The place was supposed to be empty. “Who are you?”

      “Kinsley,” she said, pointing to her chest.

      She started to pick herself up off the ground, but Chase couldn’t stand by and just watch. He picked her up and put her on her feet. “Are you hurt?”

      “No.” Her eyes turned into half crescents when she smiled. “I okay.”

      Another little girl, this one in purple overalls, came out of the powder room on Chase’s right. She was an identical copy of Kinsley, with brown pigtails and brown eyes.

      What was happening? Where were these kids coming from?

      “And who are you?” Chase asked, a frown pulling his eyebrows together. Had someone been living here illegally? His uncle had been gone for only three weeks—enough time for someone to realize the house was empty. He hated to think he’d have to get the police involved, especially with the kids present.

      The other little girl didn’t answer, but ran toward the stairs at the opposite end of the foyer. “Mama!” she cried as her short legs worked overtime to climb the steps. “Mama!”

      “That’s Harper.” Kinsley put her hands behind her back and bounced on her tiptoes, her pigtails swinging. “Who are you?”

      “Chase Asher.”

      She stopped bouncing. “Grandpa Asher?”

      Who was Grandpa Asher?

      “You play hide, seek?” Kinsley didn’t let Chase answer her first question, but took one of his fingers and pulled him toward the parlor. “You count.” She let him go and ran through the parlor giggling. “Find me!”

      Chase needed to discover who was squatting on his property, but first, he wanted to know who Grandpa Asher was to this little girl. Did she mean Uncle Morgan Asher?

      He followed her through the parlor, into the fountain room, and turned left to enter the large music room. Windows along three walls let in a flood of daylight and revealed the plush landscape of the nine-acre estate just beyond the wavy glass. The Mississippi hugged the back side of the property and sparkled off in the distance.

      It wasn’t hard to find Kinsley. Her muffled giggles revealed that she was hiding behind an ornate sofa, her chubby hands covering her mouth.

      Chase couldn’t help but smile at the laughter and glee this child possessed—even if her parents were trespassers. How long had it been since he was so happy and carefree? “I found you,” he said.

      “You hide!” She jumped up and put her hands over her eyes. “One...two...”

      “Who is Grandpa Asher?” Chase asked, crouching down. “Is he your grandpa?”

      She uncovered her eyes and nodded. “My grandpa.”

      “Does he live here in Timber Falls?”

      Kinsley shrugged.

      How did he expect to get a straight answer from such a young child? Where were her parents?

      “Can I help you?” A woman’s voice pulled his attention away from the child.

      He turned—and his heart stopped beating at the sight of Joy Gordon.

      She stood at the top of the steps leading into the music room, Harper hugging her leg. A baseball bat was in her right hand, but when she met his gaze, it fell out of her hand and ricocheted off the wood floor. “Chase.”

      “Mama!” Kinsley ran around Chase and went to Joy, tugging

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