All Because I Found You ebook

He never believed in fairytales until she knocked on his door.

There isn’t a hurdle Raelyn Shaw, Morgan’s Bay’s party planner extraordinaire, can’t overcome. So, when a hurricane destroys her client’s venue, she is determined to find the perfect replacement. The old barn catches her eye, but when she knocks on the owner’s door, the last person she expects to see is her high school crush who went MIA a decade ago.

Ryder Douglas became somewhat of a recluse after an accident took both of his parent’s lives. After all, he was the one behind the wheel. The scar on his face is a constant reminder of that awful night, and one of the reasons he stays hidden away. Nobody wants to be reminded of the tragedy that struck their small town. He’s content with his life until a perky brunette brings light and laughter to his doorstep.

While Ryder helps Raelyn turn the barn into a magical setting, he wrestles with the guilt that’s consumed him for years and starts to question if he’s the monster he’s made himself believe he is. Maybe it’s possible for his broken heart to not only heal but to let someone else in.

All Because I Found You is the fourth book in the Morgan’s Bay series, but each of these steamy small-town romances can be enjoyed as a standalone.

It was an absolute disaster. But that was okay. Raelyn worked best in times of crisis. All she needed was her coffee. She downed the rest of the magic elixir and placed her mug on the table. Think. How was she going to salvage this wedding?

She would do anything for her clients, even if it meant going to the flooded venue in a pair of galoshes and blow drying every square inch of flooring to get the area ready for the wedding in two weeks' time.

If only the hurricane had veered a little to the right, this all could have been avoided. Her entire town wouldn’t have looked like a scene out of an apocalypse movie. It was a little too late for wishful thinking. That ship sailed away with the hurricane.

Her head fell into her hands, and she took a deep breath. “A blow dryer can’t fix this,” she mumbled to herself, since she lived alone. “What am I going to do?”

She gave herself another minute of wallowing before pushing up from the table. She was Raelyn Shaw, best event planner in Morgan’s Bay, and she would figure this out if it was the last thing she did.

There was that barn on Beaver Creek. It looked promising. She just needed to find out who owned it and actually get a look inside to make sure it was safe. If it passed her inspection, and the owner said the structure was sound, then she could get the ball rolling. Problem was, she’d been by the barn twice already and not only was there no one around the property, the place was dead-bolted.

The universe was testing her, but lucky for her, she was resourceful. She texted a contact who worked for the zoning department, calling in a favor. She’d gotten Jimmy a ten percent discount on his catering bill when she helped plan his parents’ fiftieth wedding anniversary. He owed her.

He responded almost immediately that he would look into it. Great. But what was she supposed to do until then? Sit around and wait? There was no way that was going to happen. She grabbed her purse and keys and headed for the door.

Raelyn hadn’t had luck any of the times she’d been by the old barn, but she was desperate. Right now, all venues that hadn’t flooded out due to the hurricane or were currently without power were booked solid. Today was the day she needed to get the ball rolling, or she would fail her bride.

The drive through town always made her smile, grateful to have been born and raised in such a cute town, but today was different. Flood damaged debris sat piled outside homes, water restoration trucks and insurance adjusters parked in driveways where exhausted homeowners looked as if they were ready to collapse.

Raelyn had been lucky. Her place was just on the opposite side of Main Street where the floodwaters didn’t reach. Other than a few branches around her yard, she escaped the nightmare many people were dealing with.

It was why she needed this wedding to go off without a hitch. It was a local bride and she, along with her family and friends, needed something to celebrate. Something happy and uplifting. Raelyn was in the business of making that happen, and she would. Somehow.

She pulled onto Beaver Creek and followed it to the old barn. The place was a rustic beauty, surrounded by open fields of corn on one side and sunflowers on the other. Raelyn slowed as she approached, searching the vast area for any movement. Her heart sank when all that she spotted were birds and a few butterflies.

Throwing the car in park, she hopped out of the driver’s side and made her way up the gravel driveway, cursing herself for wearing wedged sandals. At least she wasn’t in pumps. Her feet wobbled as she maneuvered toward the large structure. An old farm wheel sat propped against the barn, making it look like something out of a photograph.

Raelyn got close, but there was still no sign of life. She moved to a window and pushed up from her wedges, cupping her hands on the glass and attempted to see inside. It would be a real waste of time if the inside was in shambles.

There wasn’t much she could see other than some old farm equipment, but for the most part, the condition seemed to be ideal. She lowered herself and scanned the property.

Her phone buzzed in her pocket, and she slipped it out. Her client’s name flashed on the screen, and she quickly answered.

“Hi Nicole,” Raelyn answered in her cheeriest voice.

“Rae, I’m freaking out. My wedding is in two weeks, I don’t have a venue, my grandparent’s basement is still drying out, my mother-in-law keeps insisting I reschedule, and I’m going to have a nervous breakdown. Please tell me you have good news.”

Raelyn bit her lip. She was never one to lie, but she was confident she would pull this off.

“Nicole, you are not rescheduling anything. You can tell your mother-in-law that your wedding planner has everything under control. As for you. Go help your grandparents, and I will make sure everything is ready to go.”

“Do we have a venue?”

“You’ll have one by the end of today. I promise.” Raelyn closed her eyes, praying she didn’t just stick her foot in her mouth.

Nicole let out a loud breath. “I knew I could count on you. Thank you. I look forward to hearing from you tonight.”

“You bet. Talk soon.”

Raelyn shook her head and ended the call, but her heart leaped when a new name flashed on her screen.

“Jimmy, please tell me you have something for me.”

“I do. It looks like the barn is owned by a company called RD Farms. The last known address for them is 22 Cedar Drive. Should be right around the corner from the barn.”

Raelyn jumped in place. “Thanks Jimmy. You’re the best.” She hung up and hurried to her car.

Cedar was the next block over, and Raelyn squinted at the house numbers, searching for twenty-two. “Where are you? Thirty-seven. Eighteen. Who the heck numbered these houses?”

Finally, at the end of the block, she spotted number twenty-two posted on a marker at the end of a very long driveway. She drove right onto the secluded driveway without a second thought. Trees lined either side of her, making it impossible to turn around if she needed to. Not that she would. She wasn’t leaving until she secured a venue.

The driveway, which was turning into more of a dirt road, curved to the left, and Raelyn continued to follow it until it opened up to a large lot. An early twentieth century farmhouse with dark brown weather worn shingles and several small porches sat at the top of the lot.

“That doesn’t look haunted one bit. Nope.” Raelyn closed the car door and took a hesitant step toward the old house. Two modern rocking chairs sat on one of the small porches, and if one of them moved, Raelyn was going to get right back in her car and leave.

She glanced around the property. Another barn was to the left, and fields stretched for what seemed like miles around the rest of the area. The location was not only secluded but beautiful. It was a surprise she had no idea this house existed, especially since she knew every person in town.

Three steps led to a door, and she made her way up them, knocking as soon as she reached the top. She waited and waited and waited, then knocked again, louder this time. She didn’t see a car, but there was a garage to the right and the door was closed. Nobody would take their car out, then shut the door. Right?

She pressed her lips together and spun from the door toward a window. It would be rude to peek inside. What if the person just got out of the shower and was naked? It’s not like she had anywhere else to be today. Securing a venue for her client was her number one priority. The rocking chairs looked sturdy and a little less like the ghost of old man Cletus would be sitting in them watching over his farm.

The door creaked open and Raelyn jumped. Her stupid wedge went left and her foot went right. She caught herself before face planting on the person’s doorstep.

“Can I help you?” the deep voice asked.

Raelyn plastered a smile on her face and straightened. “Hi.”

The man was younger than she expected. Had to be only a little older than her twenty-seven. He didn’t open the door fully, keeping it half closed as if she was going to push through and rob him.

The one side of his face was hidden by the doorframe and his chin length hair was brushed over to that side. The part of his face she could make out showed a strong jaw, surrounded by dark auburn hair, and gunmetal blue eyes that looked frighteningly familiar.

“My name is Raelyn Shaw, and I was hoping to discuss possibly holding an event at your barn on Beaver Creek.”

“No,” the man said and pulled back to shut the door.

“Wait!” Raelyn cried out. Desperation was overtaking, and there was no telling what lengths she would go to.

“I beg you. I’m an event planner, and my client’s venue was destroyed in the recent hurricane. She’s set to marry the love of her life in two weeks, but she has nowhere to hold the event. Your barn would be the perfect place.”

“It’s a barn. Not a place to hold a wedding.”

He hadn’t closed the door in her face, so she was taking it as a win. Now she just needed to close, and she was a pro at closing.

“But it could be with the right touches. You wouldn’t have to do a thing. I would clean up the space, bring everything in, and when the event is over, I would take everything out, leaving it exactly as it was if not a little cleaner.”

“I would love to help, but I’m sorry.”

“If you say no,” Raelyn said, “I’m just going to try harder. We can save each of us a lot of headache if you just agree to go to the barn with me and let me see what I’m working with. From what I can tell, the structure is sound, and the space is open. Other than some farm equipment, it looks party ready. And I’ll pay you. My client is from a wealthy family, and there is no price that will be too high for them.”

“I don’t care about money.”

“Then what do you care about?” she asked, not expecting the widening of his eyes, followed by the slight tilt of his lips. Progress, maybe?

“I care about being left alone.”

“And I will do exactly that once you give me a tour of the barn and agree to let me use it for the wedding.”

“Has anyone ever told you you’re pushy?”

“All the time. What’s your point?”

He let out a sigh, and she hoped that meant he was cracking.

“I can come back later.”

“That won’t be necessary.”

“So that means you’ll come with me to the barn?”

“That means we’re done here.”

Raelyn gasped. Usually, her upbeat personality made people warm to her instantly. This guy was a hard one to crack.

“I’m sorry,” he said, and stepped back to close the door. When he did so, she caught a proper glimpse of him, and the familiar blue of his eyes unlocked a memory from over a decade ago. Fifteen-year-old Raelyn desperate to get a glimpse of Morgan Bay’s high school star quarterback and the boy she had the biggest crush on… until tragedy struck, and he vanished.

“Ryder Douglas? Is it really you?”