The Perfect Couple. Valerie Hansen

      “What do we do now, Tyler?”

      Kara whispered.

      “I suppose we could claim we were quarreling, like we'd planned.”

      “Even I wouldn't believe that one, and this story is my invention.”

      “Well, what then?”

      Kara pulled a face. “I don't know. Maybe we can…”

      Just then, Tyler saw everyone else rush out of the house. Mark was pointing at them.

      “Go to plan B.” Tyler finished her sentence with a self-deprecating smirk, grabbed Kara and pulled her into a full embrace. As he bent to kiss her, he whispered a warning against her lips. “Hang on. This won't hurt a bit.”

      VALERIE HANSEN

      was thirty when she awoke to the presence of the Lord in her life and turned to Jesus. In the years that followed she worked with young children, both in church and secular environments. She also raised a family of her own and played foster mother to a wide assortment of furred and feathered critters.

      Married to her high school sweetheart since age seventeen, she now lives in an old farmhouse she and her husband renovated with their own hands. She loves to hike the wooded hills behind the house and reflect on the marvelous turn her life has taken. Not only is she privileged to reside among the loving, accepting folks in the breathtakingly beautiful Ozark Mountains of Arkansas, she also gets to share her personal faith by telling the stories of her heart for Steeple Hill's Love Inspired line.

      Life doesn't get much better than that!

      The Perfect Couple

      Valerie Hansen

      

www.millsandboon.co.uk

      Blessed are they that mourn,

      for they shall be comforted.

      —Matthew 5:4

      To Joe, for being a great husband and father and

      also being substitute “daddy” to Whiskers, Harry (also known as Poopsie), Splash, Blackie, Neek, Gypsy, Dumbo, Essence, Dinky, Duchess, Beans, Shady, Big Molly and Little Molly. Thankfully, not all at the same time!

      Dear Reader,

      There are many decisions in life that can help make the difference between success or failure, health or illness, joy or sadness. But in the final analysis, no matter how hard we struggle or how much we scheme, we're still not in charge of the final outcome. We never were.

      Do we always understand why things happen the way they do? Of course not. Maybe that's why it's so easy to get caught up in worrying about our personal problems and forget that we don't have to face any of them alone. Not only does Jesus promise to send the Holy Spirit to comfort us, God also uses perceptive, empathetic people to help us bear our daily burdens. There is no adversity that others have not already successfully overcome, thanks to their faith in Christ.

      Sad or happy, our past is a part of us. It never goes away. There's not a thing we can do to change it. But our future is another story. There, we have a choice. We can spend the rest of our days struggling through life alone, or we can reach out to the Lord, turn our lives over to Him, and be assured He will never forsake us.

      Jesus is waiting to wrap us in His loving arms and heal our broken hearts. All we have to do is let Him.

      Valerie Hansen

      P.O. Box 13

      Glencoe, AR 72539-0013

      CONTENTS

      CHAPTER ONE

      CHAPTER TWO

      CHAPTER THREE

      CHAPTER FOUR

      CHAPTER FIVE

      CHAPTER SIX

      CHAPTER SEVEN

      CHAPTER EIGHT

      CHAPTER NINE

      CHAPTER TEN

      CHAPTER ELEVEN

      CHAPTER TWELVE

      CHAPTER THIRTEEN

      CHAPTER FOURTEEN

      CHAPTER FIFTEEN

      CHAPTER SIXTEEN

      Chapter One

      Kara Shepherd loosed her ponytail and slipped the clip into the pocket of her jeans. Weary, she rubbed the back of her neck. It had been a long day. And it wasn't over. Sighing, she picked up the inventory list and went to work.

      Intent on counting the supplies in exam room three, she didn't hear anyone approach. The first hint that she wasn't alone was a light tap on her shoulder.

      She shrieked, whirled, her heart thudding. It took only an instant to realize who had innocently tapped her. “Oh, my!” Air whooshed out of her lungs all at once, leaving her breathless. “Susan, you startled me.''

      “Boy, no kidding. I thought for a minute there you were going to slug me!”

      “Not a chance.” Kara was still working to catch her breath. She managed a smile. “I'd never do anything like that to my favorite sister.”

      “I'm your only sister.”

      “Good point.” Her grin grew. Mischief lit her brown eyes; the same lovely eyes her sibling had. “But don't push your luck by sneaking up on me like that again. I wanted a brother, you know.”

      “And I wanted a puppy. Maybe I should have been the veterinarian in the family instead of you.”

      Kara reached out and gave her sister a hug. “I'm glad we're related. You're very special to me. I don't know what I'd have done without you, after—”

      “Hey, no sweat. I like working here.” Susan hugged her tight, then stepped away. “Which reminds me. I finished all the billing. I figured I'd stop by the post office on my way home and mail everything. Want to come to dinner tonight?”

      Kara wasn't fooled by her sister's overly casual manner. She knew Susan had purposely changed the subject for her benefit, to get her mind off her supposed loss. If only she knew. If only someone did.

      Kara felt like a fraud every time she accepted an expression of sympathy. In truth, she was a lot less sorrowful than she should be about losing Alex, and her secret awareness of that fact left her feeling decidedly uncomfortable, especially at times like these.

      “Well?”

      Susan's voice drew Kara back to the present. “Um, no, thanks. I still have a lot to do here.”

      “Like what? Count pills? Roll bandages? Mop the floor?”

      Kara chuckled. “Mop? When I have a hired slave like you to do it for me?”

      “Yeah, yeah. Rub it in. You always were a pain.”

      “Isn't that what little sisters are for?”

      “Maybe. If I ever manage to get pregnant and have a girl, I'll know if the problem was all little girls or just you.”

      “If your baby's half as nice as you and Mark are, she'll be perfect. Now go on home and leave me in peace.” Kara put her hands on Susan's shoulders, turned her and urged her out the exam room door.

      Susan led the way down the hall. “You really aren't coming to dinner?”

      “Nope. If I keep you from having any time alone with that handsome