Match Made in Montana

Book excerpt: Rachelle Paige Campbell's heartwarming Match Made in Montana Complete Series FINDERS KEEPERS, COWBOY: Meg Hawke’s antique store is faltering. When her octogenarian neighbor Hank asks her to clean out his shed and sell antiques on consignment, she has a real chance at discovering forgotten treasure. If she steps foot on the Montana ranch, however, she’ll come face-to-face with her childhood frenemy and Hank’s grandson, Ryan. After selling off the ranch’s cattle years before, Ryan Kincaid dove into the world of high-end tourism, devoting everything to the business. For his sanity, he avoids his annoying known-her-since-childhood neighbor, Meg. With the forced proximity of the shed project happening in his backyard, though, he’s singing a different tune. Perhaps he’d been wrong about her. A surprise discovery spurs both change and challenge, and they’re forced to choose the potential of ever-after or forget each other and finally move on forever. Tropes: old enemies, rivals, love/hate, last to know, forced proximity, matchmaker, cowboy, small town CATCH A COWBOY: Kincaid Ranch’s lead cowboy, Ted Stirling, isn’t looking for romance or entanglements. He settled in Herd, Montana over a decade ago after a devastating loss. He’s seeking comfort and friendship. Nothing more. If he was going to try for love again, he would pick someone sweet and sunny, exactly like kindergarten teacher, Stephanie Patricks. But she’s too young for him. Stephanie has nursed a crush on quiet, handsome Ted for years. Unfortunately, every time she’s around him, she gets tongue-tied. She only seems to be able to find her words when she’s working with her students. When Ted’s sister unexpectedly arrives in town with his five-year-old niece in tow, he needs help,and Stephanie is just the woman to provide it. A sudden emergency puts into sharp focus exactly how fragile life is, and Ted needs to decide whether to open his heart again, or let love slip away forever. Tropes: age gap, sworn off relationships, matchmaker, child’s teacher/nanny, cowboy, small town UNMASKING A COWGIRL: Middle school teacher and amateur historian, Joe Staunch, likes everyone in smalltown, Herd, Montana. Except for Abby Whit. He can’t quite pinpoint what annoys him so much, besides the unnerving feeling she is lying to him and everyone in their close-knit community. Food truck owner, Abby Whit has a secret. The descendant of the infamous Whittier family, she never meant to settle in town under an alias, but she can’t imagine living anywhere else. Time is running out to claim her property, and she is unsure how to do so without upsetting everyone and ruining her life. How does she come clean without destroying her newfound love? And can love survive a lie? Tropes: matchmaker, love/hate, enemies, secrets, mistaken identity, small town, heir