Excerpt of The Single Dad's Holiday Match by Tanya Agler

Jonathan kept a lookout before he transferred most of his attention back to Brooke. From the looks of the line ahead, he and Brooke would know everything about each other before they reached the ticket seller.

That didn’t bother him one bit.

“The wait is worth it, but if there’s somewhere else you want to be...”

“Isabella would have preferred I stay back with the green pumpkins. All things considered, I’d say they’re used to having you to themselves.” Brooke stuck her hands in her coat pockets. “I gather you’re a single parent, too?”

They moved ahead by two steps. “Didn’t I talk about them before now? People have been known to run when they see me coming. Otherwise I tend to put them to sleep with the stories of the two of them or the myriad of pictures I have on my phone.”

Brooke chuckled, and then her face took on a more serious expression. “Isabella is rather protective of you.”

He smiled at the tactful way she phrased Izzy’s behavior. “She has more memories of her mom, but Vanessa was only five when Anne died.”

Sometimes it seemed most days passed in a blur, whereas the nights tended to drag without

having someone who laughed at his corny jokes and kept the bed warm when he climbed in after a long shift. For the first couple of years, the grief over losing Anne left him tossing and turning. Now he was no longer sure whether he stayed awake some nights missing Anne or the warm haze of what they shared.

“Good memories from the sound of it?”

“The best. Anne was everything to me. The way you said that, though. Can you relate to what Izzy and Vanessa have been through?”

“My mother passed away a while back.” Her lips pursed into a line until one side curled upward. “It’s been just Colin and me since the beginning. Maybe that’s a reason he’s defensive of me, although you wouldn’t guess that from a couple of minutes ago. I see the same in Isabella. She’s looking out for you in the best way she knows how, and that means keeping her father close.”

He laughed as they stepped onward to the ticket booth. “Is that a nice way of saying she’s jealous?”

Before Brooke could answer, Vanessa and Izzy returned with two funnel cakes, along with extra plates and forks. “Ms. Novak, you can have some of mine.” Vanessa cut off a piece of hers and shared it as they arrived at the front of the line.

“Can you hold this for me?” he asked. “I’m definitely not done with it.” She nodded at his request, accepting his plate in her left hand while holding her plate in her right. He smiled his thanks. “Despite your protests, I know the funnel cake will be hard to resist, just like me, so I’d like for your first hayride to be my treat.” He sensed hesitation in the set of her shoulders. “As a welcome to Hollydale.”

She chuckled. “I’ll grant you’re persuasive with classic lines like that, so thank you. Can you purchase one for Colin? I’ll pay you back.”

He bought the tickets, stuffed the change in the tip jar and exchanged the tokens for his plate, knowing full well he wouldn’t accept payment later. They walked over to the picnic tables. A group of four left as they arrived. Izzy and Vanessa flanked him, while Brooke sat on the other side by herself.

He whispered in Izzy’s ear, “Why don’t you move over to Brooke’s side?”

Izzy stabbed a piece of her funnel cake with her fork, stony silence his answer.

Vanessa tapped his shoulder. “Daddy, do you mind if I sit with Miss Brooke?”

He wanted to hug her but nodded instead. They soon finished the snack and found themselves in the hayride line. He waved to several people and introduced them to Brooke while ignoring the daggers coming from Izzy’s eyes.

Did he want Brooke’s friendship? Or did he want more? Izzy wouldn’t respond this way if she didn’t sense something brewing between him and the attractive brunette. Still, it was too soon for anything romantic. He caught himself. Too soon since he’d met Brooke or too soon after Anne’s death?