Anchored in Alaska (At the Altar Book 13) Read online

  Chapter One

  Beverly Snow fluffed her mother’s pillow and laid the back of her hand against her forehead. “Are you feeling any better? It still feels to me as if you’re running a fever. I think we should head to the ER.”

  Her mother shook her head. “Absolutely not. They’re just going to put me on machines. If I need machines to keep me alive, then I don’t want to live.”

  “Mom…please…”

  “No. I’ve been in this bed and in wheelchairs for twenty years. I’m not going to stay here anymore. It’s my time. It’s time for me to see your father and sister…” Her mother was wracked with a fit of coughing, but the coughing was weak. Much too weak to clear her lungs. When it calmed, she continued. “I’ve been your burden for too long. You need to live your own life.”

  “You are my life, Mom.” Well, her mother and the business she ran from her mother’s bedside. “I’m not going to sit here and let you die.”

  More coughing. “We both know I have pneumonia. I’ve been a quadriplegic for too long. The doctor said my body couldn’t handle anything else. This is the end for me. I can die at home with dignity or you can take me to the hospital and let them insert all sorts of tubes that will make my death long and excruciating. Please let me die with dignity.”

  Beverly felt the tears flowing down her face as she nodded. Her mother was right and they both knew it. She deserved to die the way she wanted to die. “All right. I hate it, but I’ll do it.”

  “Promise me you’ll talk to Lachele after I’m gone.”

  Beverly’s brow furrowed. Lachele was a member of their congregation, and she visited her mother at least twice a month without fail. Beverly knew she was a good woman, but she didn’t know much about her. When her mother had a visitor, Beverly seized the opportunity to do some work or run errands. “Why?”

  “She’ll know.” Her mother coughed again, turning her head to the side. It was the only part of her body she had full control of. She couldn’t even cough as hard as she needed to.

  Beverly kissed her mother’s forehead. “I’ll let you sleep.” She wouldn’t leave her bedside though. She couldn’t. Her mother had been injured in a car accident after Beverly’s high school graduation. The whole family had been together, laughing as they talked about some of the silly things that had happened.

  None of them had seen the semi bearing down on them. The driver’s brakes had gone out. He’d honked his horn, but there were so many car horns in Manhattan, that they hadn’t paid any attention. Her father and sister had been killed instantly. Her mother had been left paralyzed. Only Beverly had walked away unscathed, and she’d felt guilty every day of her life since.

  Her mother was sleeping, so she picked up the baby quilt she was making from the floor, under the edge of her mother’s bed. She didn’t have much left to do on it, and then another blanket would be ready for the foundation she ran. She ran it much like a business, but the truth was, she made very little money from it. She and her mother lived on social security and the residual income from her father’s stock investments. Before his death he’d been the CEO of a Fortune 500 company. His life insurance had done much good, but it was almost gone. It took a lot of money to care for someone around the clock. Beverly was with her mother sixteen hours a day, but they had to hire people to help at night.

  Beverly hadn’t had the heart to ask her mother to move to a smaller space. Instead, she’d scrimped and saved every dime she could, doing her best to make the money they had stretch for as long as possible. Once her mother died, the sale of their home would give Beverly enough to live on for the rest of her life. Until then, she would clip every coupon she could to save money.

  She did the last few stitches, folding the quilt with love. Her foundation provided quilts and afghans to babies who were born addicted to drugs and alcohol. She loved that she could keep the infants warm. Many of the women who sewed and crocheted for her would go in and hold the babies, but she hadn’t ever been able to. Her mother kept her too busy for that.

  Not five hours later, her mother breathed her last breath. Beverly dropped her head onto her mother’s shoulder and sobbed. Saying goodbye to someone she loved so very much was harder than she’d imagined it could ever be. Yes, she was free to live her own life now, but she would have been so much happier to share her time with her mother.

  *****

  At the funeral a few days later, Lachele Simpson approached her. Beverly knew she was a counselor, but there were rumors she’d started a new business as well. Beverly didn’t know or care what the new business was, because she was so busy with her mother. “I’m sorry for your loss.”

  Beverly nodded, her eyes dry, but still red from the hours upon hours of grieving. “Thank you.”

  “The last time I saw your mother, she asked me to talk to you after she died. She’s known her end was close for a few months now.”

  “I know she has, and she told me the same thing. I can come to your office, if you’d like.” Surely, she could find time to talk to her mother’s friend around putting the house up for sale, and going through all her mother’s things to get everything in order. Talking to a real estate agent, she’d decided to sell the place furnished, which would help, but not nearly as much as she’d like it to.

  “There’s no need for you to do that. Why don’t I come over on Saturday afternoon? I can help you go through some of your mother’s things, and we can talk then. She was adamant that you need my services.”

  Beverly frowned. “I don’t know about that. I mean, I’m very sad about Mom’s death, but I don’t think I’m bad enough that I need mental health services.”

  Lachele’s eyes widened. “I’m not talking about mental health services. It’s my other business she wants you to take advantage of.”

  “Other business?”

  “You really don’t know, do you?” Lachele shook her head. “No time now. I’ll explain it all tomorrow. Your place at two?”

  “Sure.” Beverly had the real estate agent coming at one, but that should give them enough time. She hoped.

  After a quick hug, Lachele disappeared, and Beverly talked to the next person in the long line to speak with her. Her parents had once been a very active part of the social scene in Manhattan. Her mother was still loved and respected by many for her hours and hours of charity work.

  “I’m so sorry for your loss.”

  “Thank you.” The words were automatic now. How long would she be saying them?

  *****

  Beverly was just finishing up with the real estate agent when Lachele arrived the next day. She invited the older woman to wait in the parlor while she finished signing papers. “Do you think it will sell quickly?”

  The agent shrugged. “It’s a beautiful home, and has always been well-maintained. It’s right on the edge of Central Park, which will give it some added resale value. I think it’ll be off your hands in less than three months.”

  Beverly nodded. That would be just about when her money ran out, so it would be good timing. Of course, without her mother needing her every minute of the day, she could get a job too. She’d wait tables if she had to. She’d given up her college scholarships to stay home and care for her mom. Life would certainly be different now.

  After seeing the agent off, she wandered back to the room she’d left Lachele in. “Thanks for coming. Can I get you something to drink?”

  Lachele shook her head. “Nope. I’m good. I just want to have that talk your mother insisted we have. Have you ever heard of Matchrimony?”

  Beverly sat down across from Lachele, shaking her head. “No, I haven’t. Why?”

  “Well, it’s a co
mpany I run. I introduce people at the altar.”

  Beverly blinked a few times, trying to understand why this should matter to her. “You mean you’re a matchmaker?”

  “Yes, I am. And your mother thinks I should match you with someone now that she’s gone. She wanted me to do it before, but there was no way I could while you were caring for her full time.”

  “Why?” Beverly didn’t want to think about marriage. She just wanted to have time to grieve and run her little foundation.

  “Because she thinks that you’ve given up every chance of happiness you’ve ever had to take care of her. She wants you to marry whomever I find for you and live happily ever after.”

  “How on earth does she think I can live happily ever after if I’m marrying a man I’ve never met before? Has she lost her mind?”

  Lachele laughed. “I’ve not yet had a bad match. I put you through an entire day of psychological testing before I match you with someone.”

  “And that works?” Beverly couldn’t help but be skeptical. She’d only dated one boy in her life, and he’d promised that they would be together forever. After the accident, he’d expected her to leave her mother and go on with her plan of attending college she’d had before. Obviously, he hadn’t known her at all.

  “It always has. I promise. Are you willing to go through the tests and find the man of your dreams?”

  “I gave up dreaming about a man a long time ago. I can’t imagine what my mother was thinking! I have a foundation to run.”

  “I know you do. But you can really run it from anywhere, right? It’s not like you’re meeting with people here in the city.”

  “Well, I guess I can. Will you give me time to think about it? I really had given up all thoughts of happily ever after.”

  “I understand that, Beverly. But this was your mother’s last wish for you. She talked to me about it every single time I came here to visit her.”

  Beverly groaned. How could she say no to her mother’s last wish? “I’ll go through the testing. I’m not sure it’s what I want, but I’ll do it if it’s what Mom wanted for me.”

  Lachele smiled. “How about Monday? I’ve already cleared my schedule. If you want, I’ll come here. I can help you pack up your personal belongings and sort through your mother’s things. The work needs to be done anyway. I’ll just record the session, and I can input the information later.”

  “Sure. That sounds good. I’ll make sure I have boxes ready to pack when you get here. Morning?”

  “I’ll be here around nine. I’ve never been an early morning person. We’ll work then.”

  Beverly stood up, taking Lachele’s hand in both of hers. “Your friendship was very important to my mom. I think I see why now. Thank you for continuing to visit her for so many years. Others started, but they all died out. Only you kept coming.”

  Lachele hugged Beverly, feeling the girl tense up. She hadn’t been touched much in the past twenty years. She needed to get used to it.

  *****

  Colin Geller walked back toward his cabin. He’d been a ranger at Denali National Park in Alaska for twenty years. He liked dealing with the trees and wildlife. He didn’t like dealing with the tourists quite as much, but they came with the territory. They paid for the park to keep going, and he was happy to be able to live out his life there.

  When he got into the cabin, he looked through the letters that had been delivered. July was upon them. Soon, winter would start again, and he’d be buried in snow. He stopped when he saw a letter he’d been waiting for. Dr. Lachele Simpson. He’d had her come up at the end of May and put him through all of her psychological tests, trying to find a bride for him.

  Did this mean she’d actually found him a bride who was willing to live through nine months of winter every year? Was that even possible?

  He opened the letter and his eyes widened. His bride would be there to marry him on July thirty-first. They’d be married in a little church in Healy, which was a short drive from the park entrance. He couldn’t help but wonder what kind of woman was willing to give up her entire world, travel to Alaska, and marry a stranger.

  He folded up the letter and put it on his coffee table. July thirty-first only gave him about three weeks to get ready. He looked around his cabin. First things first. He needed to clean the place and make it look like humans lived there and not bears.

  *****

  Every minute of every day seemed to be scheduled. Beverly was due to fly out of JFK Airport on July twenty-ninth. She would then buy a car in Fairbanks, Alaska from the proceeds of the house, which had sold within three weeks, and she had to be out on the twenty-eighth, which was just fine. That would give her a couple of days to buy some more winter clothes. She’d rarely had a chance to leave the house, so two or three days’ worth of winter-wear were all she had.

  As she left her home for the last time, she felt only excitement, not dread. She was sure she’d be sad leaving the only home she’d ever known, but she knew it was time. A new family would live there and cherish her home in a way she never would again. Her childhood memories were good, and there had been some fun times with her mother. But mostly the house meant broken dreams to her. And no one wanted to dwell on broken dreams.

  She picked up her two suitcases, which represented everything she hadn’t shipped ahead, and she slipped into the back of the cab. A lone tear slipped down her face as she left her childhood home and the only life she’d ever known.

  *****

  Beverly sat at the airport, waiting for her flight. It was supposed to start boarding in forty-five minutes, but she’d been sure to be early. She couldn’t miss this flight, which would take her to her new home and new life, thousands of miles away.

  She looked up to see Lachele approaching her, and the older woman sat down beside her, her purple hair blending right in at the airport. “Are you ready?”

  Beverly took a deep breath, nodding. “I don’t have a choice. I thought you were going to fly up in another day or two?”

  “I decided it would be fun to be together for the flight. Don’t you think?”

  “I do.” Beverly had gotten to know Dr. Lachele much better since her mother’s death. She’d come and put in a lot of hours packing to help her. And she’d done a touch of grief counseling, but it had been informal.

  “Good. We’ll land in Fairbanks tonight, and then buy a car tomorrow. And then we’ll drive on up to Heely on Sunday. I’ve only been once, and it was gorgeous. I can’t wait for you to see it.”

  Beverly couldn’t believe how very excited she was to go to a new state and start her life over again. A place where she wouldn’t be the rich girl she’d been in school, but she also wouldn’t be the poor girl who had spent the last twenty years taking care of her mother. No, she’d be Beverly, the woman who ran a foundation. She’d be a strong, independent woman, and no one would remember her any other way. “I’m excited. I’m ready to start a new life.”

  “I’m sure you are. Just remember, you have to still be Beverly. Yes, it’ll be a new world, where no one will remember you, but it will still be a world where all the things that have happened in your past will be part of you. Never discount the heartaches of the past, because they’ve made you who you are.” Lachele spoke softly, but urgently. She needed Beverly to understand.

  “I will. I promise.” Beverly glanced down at her phone. “We’re boarding in fifteen minutes. I sure hope this mystery man you have me marrying will be everything you’ve said he’ll be.”

  “Oh, I promise, he will. He’s a good man. I spent a day with him as well, you know.”

  Beverly nodded, taking a deep breath. The idea of moving to Alaska was a wonderful one for her. The idea of doing something different with her life and starting over. However, the idea of marrying an absolute stranger who may or may not grow to love her was absolutely terrifying.

  “I sure hope he’s everything I need him to be.” Of course, she had no real expectations. She hadn’t been lying when she said s
he’d given up all her dreams of marriage and family many years before.

  “I think you’ll find him what you need. Maybe when you first meet him, he won’t be everything you want him to be, but he’ll be what you need. There’s a reason I made you sign a contract to stay with him for a full year. It might take you that long to get used to him, and to realize he’s the right man for you.”

  Beverly took a deep breath as their flight was called. She put the strap of her carry-on over her shoulder and stood up. It was now or never.

  Chapter Two

  After landing in Fairbanks, Lachele and Beverly checked into a couple of rooms at the Fairbanks Best Western there in Fairbanks. They took the airport shuttle and planned to take a cab to a Jeep dealership the next day.

  It had been a very long day, and they were both exhausted. Beverly decided to go to bed without eating, because the idea of picking up a fork was simply too much work. Lachele went to supper there at the hotel without her, and they agreed to meet at ten the following morning to look at vehicles. The dealership opened at ten, and she wanted to be ready to hop in whichever car she chose and practice driving around town, before it was time to head toward Healy, the town Lachele had told her she would marry in.

  She fell straight to sleep and didn’t move until her alarm woke her at nine the following morning. She knew she needed food, but she didn’t really have time to get any. She showered quickly and found a snack in a vending machine, and met Lachele in the lobby as promised.

  They could get the car and come back to the hotel for one more night. The drive to Fairbanks was only about sixty miles, and they could make that quickly if the road conditions were good. More than anything, she wanted to get the vehicle today, so she could practice driving. It had been years since she’d driven. She had a license that she’d kept up, but she hadn’t gotten behind the wheel of a car since the night of the accident.

  Dr. Lachele was waiting for her in the lobby, a cup of coffee in her hand. “Today’s one of those days where I just need an IV of this stuff.”