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

Henry wanted to come by the store in the afternoon. All three of us knew what he really wanted—to hang out and maybe put some IKEA furniture together. Christopher quashed the idea because Abe had told him his crew would be taking everything out of the second floor of the house. Christopher and Henry needed to be on hand to move their belongings to my place. What little furniture they owned would be stored in the farm’s outbuilding.


I parked behind the store as usual and walked in through the storage area with my old life in my hands. I stored the box back in a corner.


In my new tight jeans, my electric blue T-shirt, and my leather cross-trainers, I felt good. The new Frank McCord, dressed to take on the world. Maybe even break some hearts. Not a bow tie or pair of baggy overalls in sight.


“What the hell happened to you this weekend?” Riley greeted me with a twinkle in his eyes


Chapter 23