Everything about thirty-five-year-old Stone Acres hardware store owner Frank McCord is old-fashioned -- from his bow tie and overalls to the way he happily makes house calls. He dreams of lasting romance, true love, and marriage. Frank’s ancestors have run the store and been mainstays in the small California town for over a century. While genial Frank upholds tradition and earns the respect of friends and neighbors, he fears he’s too dull and old to attract a husband. Maybe it’s time to break out of his mold. Then handsome thirty-six-year-old electronic games designer Christopher Darling and his fifteen-year-old son, Henry, come into his life. Christopher has everything Frank could want in a potential partner: charm, kindness, and compatibility. Also, he’s a terrific father to Henry. When their Stone Acres home turns out to be uninhabitable, Frank offers the Darlings temporary lodging in his ancestral farmhouse, where he and his tenant Emil reside. Since Emil thinks Frank is his, sparks fly. Suddenly, Frank’s monotonous life promises to explode with love and change him forever.

Frank at Heart

“We’re on the same page, right? You feel a connection to me? Or am I mistaken?”


I smiled—okay, beamed—at him, throwing all my happiness in his face. After another cautious look at me, he grinned back. Our agreement constructed an invisible bridge, not a very sturdy or substantial span as yet, but a bridge between us nonetheless.


“Of course I feel it,” I said. “I want to see where this goes too.”


He still looked worried, but I was euphoric.


I’ve never understood this about myself. When I get overly angry, I work myself into a panic attack, but when I’m excessively happy, no attack. My heart seems to beat as quickly. My breathing is nearly panting. But no panic attack. How is this possible?


No matter. Christopher and I sat across from each other, ate our meals, and grinned. We were testing out our new little rope bridge, and it held.


Chapter 22