Harlequin Romance March 2021 Box Set Cara Colter (the mitten read aloud TXT) 📖

told that his condition was terminal. It would make him happy, he had explained to the Realtor, to find someone who would genuinely love and preserve the Victorian home that had been passed down to relatives over the years, since there were no longer any heirs.

Red had been in the right place at the right time. His old university friend, Casson Forrester, had gotten in touch and had hired Red’s architectural firm to design Franklin’s Resort, a getaway for children who had finished their chemotherapy treatment. They and their parent or parents would be treated to a week at the luxury resort. Red had visited Parry Sound himself, fallen in love with the area, and had decided to invest in a property in the little town known as the “jewel of Georgian Bay’s Thirty Thousand Islands” and located inside the UNESCO-designated Georgian Bay Biosphere Reserve.

When he discovered that a Victorian mansion had been listed, Red had immediately made plans to check it out. He would be interested in renovating it, and perhaps designing some unique architectural features for the property. Although his flagship firm was located in Toronto’s Harbourfront, with offices in major cities around the world, Red had been charmed by the idea of spending time in picturesque Parry Sound when he needed a break from big-city living. And when he had gone through the house and surveyed the property, complete with a picturesque pond and a stunning view of the channel that fed into Georgian Bay, Red had been hooked.

He had taken possession of it a month earlier, but had only moved in two weeks ago, in plenty of time to settle in and attend the grand opening of Franklin’s Resort. He had hired a company to give the interior a fresh cleaning, and the only rooms he had made any changes to were his bedroom and the two guest rooms, with the purchase of new beds and linens, and the washrooms on both levels. He had plenty of time to consider any other modifications. For the next couple of weeks, all he wanted to do was enjoy his new estate and let some design ideas germinate…

“We’re almost there,” he said, slowing suddenly and turning. Ronnie, whose gaze had been drawn to the open door—and his room—across the hall, collided squarely with him. She stumbled backward, dropping her bag of books, and his arms instinctively flew out to grasp her firmly. As her head skimmed his chest, he felt a spike in his pulse. And then she pulled away and his arms dropped to his sides.

“Sorry about that,” she said with an embarrassed laugh. She picked up her bag.

“No worries,” he said lightly. “But I think we need to practice a little more if we want to perfect our tango for that dancing show on TV…”

Red saw Ronnie begin to frown and then her brow relaxed and she laughed. He was glad she was taking his comment as a joke, and as nothing more suggestive. He stopped farther on in front of a closed door. “This is one of the guest rooms,” he said.

He turned on the light switch just inside the door, and gestured for her to enter the room. He felt a tug of satisfaction at the look of wonder and surprise on her face. “I wanted to maintain the Victorian features in most of the place,” he said. “This room has just been refreshed—new wallpaper, draperies, linens. In fact, you’re the first guest to sleep in the new bed…”

“Wow, I guess I’ll know what Queen Victoria felt like,” she murmured.

“Enjoy the experience,” he said with a half smile. “And make sure to turn on the gas fireplace if you find it cool during the night.”

“I’ll be fine. I’m always hot at night.” She averted her gaze immediately, and Red suspected she was regretting the phrase.

“Okay, then, good night.”

She glanced back at him. “Good night,” she said, before shutting the door firmly.

Red stood for a few moments, staring at the door, and then went downstairs to the grand salon. He ambled to the window seat that looked out of the huge bay window onto the channel. The freezing rain hadn’t abated; in fact, it had intensified, and Red’s view was obscured by the accumulation of ice on the pane.

Even with the limited view, Red felt himself relaxing. He would enjoy visiting this place regularly and experiencing a taste of all the seasons, he thought, inhaling and exhaling deeply. Mr. Cameron Doyle—the previous owner—had wanted to personally meet whomever was interested in buying his mansion, and after chatting an hour with Red over afternoon tea, he had accepted Red’s offer, expressing his delight that “a young man of the same Irish heritage” would be purchasing it, with the intention of maintaining it as his family had done for a hundred years.

“And maybe you can find yourself a bonnie lass to marry and have a half-dozen children to liven up the place again.” He had slapped Red heartily on the back, and Red and the Realtor had laughed before taking their leave.

Red’s smile faded as another memory popped up. The image of his ex-girlfriend, Sofia, whom he had dated for over a year. Red had met her when her family had contacted his firm to redesign an estate and winery they had recently purchased in Italy’s Tuscany region. Sofia helped run her Italian Canadian parents’ wine business, which encompassed vineyards in Niagara-on-the-Lake, Ontario, and in the Okanagan Valley of British Columbia.

After focusing exclusively on his graduate studies and then his family business, Red had allowed himself to reconsider dating…

It hadn’t taken him long to be captivated by Sofia and her little boy, Marco. Red had spent many hours with Marco while Sofia dealt with business calls and regular trips to the family’s various wineries. They had agreed to maintain their separate condos, especially since Sofia had a five-year-old son. After she had returned from the ribbon-cutting ceremony at the official reopening of the Tuscany winery, she had dropped