ENCORE PERFORMANCE (THE MATCHMAKER TRILOGY) (2 page)

Welcome to ENCORE PERFORMANCE, where Sophia
Kendal takes her turn at playing matchmaker for her
daughter Carissa, and her dear friend Thomas Samuel.
Follow their journey as they learn that you can create
your own fates in life and love.

My sincere thanks goes out to those who had the chance to
read MATCHMAKERS, the first book in the
MATCHMAKER TRILOGY before it was published. It
was the desire of these women who wanted more
matchmaking and Carissa’s story that prompted me to write
two more books.

I hope you enjoy Carissa and Thomas’s venture into a love
neither of them thought they could have or deserve and will
join us this winter for the final book in the trilogy, HOPE’S
DISCOVERY. See how Matchmaking continues to be a
family tradition.

Please visit my website at
www.bernadettemarie.com
to
read about upcoming releases, book signings, appearances,
and contests.

For Stan – Who believes in every crazy thing I come up with.
My Princess Warriors – Thank you for asking for Carissa’s
story. Without you, this never would be a reality.
My Fab5 and my family – Thanks!
My publishing team – you’re the best!
June, Lynae, Carolyn and Victoria––a super BIG thanks!

Her young student pulled the bow across the strings of
the violin and the sound was pure evil. Carissa Kendal
winced, then quickly smiled. She’d get it in time.
Eventually, they all got it if they stuck around.

The dropout rate of students was the one dark cloud
over her next venture, the Kendal School of Music. It had
been her dream to teach music in her own school and she
was about to dive into it. She’d hoped her mother would
have wanted to be by her side more, but Sophia still had
Hope to raise. Carissa accepted that, but to have her mother
call up an
old friend
to help her wasn’t settling.

Did Sophia not think she’d look him up? That she
wouldn’t find out who he was?
At the moment, he was nobody. Every musical
endeavor he’d pursued in the eight years since renowned
tenor Pablo DiAngelo’s ensemble broke up had failed
spectacularly. Why was Sophia soft on him? Her mother’s
name carried far more influence than that of the failed
pianist, and would have given Carissa’s music school all
the prestige it needed.
The student pulled another evil note and snapped
Carissa from her thoughts.
“I’m never going to get this,” the young girl
complained with her nose wrinkled up.
“You will. If you want to, you’ll get it.” She smiled
encouragingly, remembering when she’d been that young
girl. “You need to remember to practice the material I give
you.” Carissa raised her eyebrows with the subtle demand.
“Okay. I promise I’ll be better next time.”
“And if you practice, that will always be the case.”
As her student gathered her instrument, Carissa
marked off her lesson sheet and handed it to her.
They left the study of the old boardinghouse, where
Carissa lived with her grandmother, and stood by the door
as her student’s mother walked toward them. Carissa gave
the girl a squeeze on her shoulder.
“She’s doing wonderfully. A little extra practice each
day will help,” she said. “Don’t forget your peppermint on
your way out the door.”
The young girl fished in the bowl for the right piece of
candy as Carissa opened the front door. The violinist’s
mother handed Carissa a check for the lesson.
“Thank you, Carissa. She enjoys her lessons very
much.”
“I’m pleased to hear that. We’ll see you both next
week.”
As the woman and her daughter descend the front
steps, a man paid a cab on the street in front of the old
house. He stood with his suitcase in his and looked her
way.
He was tall, too thin for her taste, but he looked almost
regal in the way he carried himself. He removed his
sunglasses and then stroked the wisps of dirty blonde hair
from his eyes. She almost didn’t recognize the man from
the pictures she’d seen on the Internet.
He looked like a blond Jimmy Stewart, and her
stomach did a little flip.
“Hello,” he called as he neared the house. She smiled
despite her misgivings. He even walked like Jimmy
Stewart.
Just like most of Pablo’s ensemble he’d always walked
behind the man with the million-dollar smile, never next to
or in front of, not like her mother who had been paraded on
Pablo’s arm. It was no wonder she hadn’t recognized him.
She extended her hand to him, and as his fingers
enclosed hers she gulped in air. He was strikingly
handsome. She hadn’t expected that.
To have played for Pablo, as Sophia had, Thomas had
to be tremendously talented. Yet would the curse that hung
over his career affect her music school?
“You must be Thomas Samuel. I’m Sophia’s daughter,
Carissa Kendal. I’ve heard a lot about you.”

When Sophia Kendal had said her daughter would
meet him at the boardinghouse in Kansas City, he hadn’t
expected she’d look like the woman standing before him.
The woman before him stood erect as a dancer. Her hair
fell to the middle of her back like an ebony waterfall, and
her dark eyes were soft. She wore a flowing orange blouse
and a long skirt of the same orange, mixed with earthy
browns, that swirled around her calves when she moved.

She was mesmerizing.
“Please come in.” She stepped back through the door.
Heat rose on the back of his neck as he passed by her. “My
mother says you’ll be staying with us until you get settled.”
“Uh. Yes.” He felt like his tongue had swollen. “I’m
sorry if I seem out of sorts. I knew Sophia for so long, to
think of her as your mother, well, that’s a stretch for me.”
Carissa smiled at him again. “I was seventeen before
she adopted me, so I can understand. I’m sorry you
couldn’t make it out for their wedding.”
“Yes, so am I.” Had he made that wedding, he’d have
made it his business to become more familiar with the dark
beauty, who with the most subtle gesture of tucking her
hair behind her ear, had his pulse climbing.
Guilt halted his thoughts. He should have been at the
wedding because he’d promised Sophia he would be. It was
just another broken promise, and he feared he would let her
down again. And given his past, he had no business
fantasizing about Carissa—or any woman. It could end
only in heartache. Or worse.
“So you’re a teacher?”
“Yes. That’s my dream, to bring music to the masses
through their own fingers.”
“You play the cello, right? Just like your mother?”
“Yes. Even before I met her she was my inspiration.”
“Why are you only giving lessons? Why aren’t you in
the symphony?” From what he knew, Carissa’s talent was
as superior as her mother’s was.
“I’m a caregiver. My mother needed to look after my
little sister, and I chose to take care of the women who took
care of me growing up.” Her dark eyes clouded with
sadness. “My aunt Millie had cancer, and we lost her about
six years ago.”
“I’m so sorry.” He fought the urge to reach out to her.
“Thank you. But now I’m taking care of my
grandmother, who will be ninety-two soon.”
“She lives here? With you?”
Carissa nodded. “Well, I live with her. But yes, and
she’s still feisty as ever.”
“I heard that,” an elderly woman called as she walked
from the kitchen, slowly, balancing with a walker.
“Katie,” Carissa said, “this is Mr. Samuel. The man
mom sent over.”
“Mr. Samuel, it’s nice to meet you.”
He shook her hand with a gentle grasp. “Thank you.
And please call me Thomas.”
“All right, I will.” She turned to Carissa. “I’m going to
go lie down. Get Thomas settled. I think your parents will
be over soon for dinner. Wake me when they arrive.”
Thomas’ belly clutched. Sophia and David were
coming for dinner. Suddenly he felt dizzy. He hadn’t sat
down to a meal with a family in a very long time. It
shouldn’t bother him; this was Sophia, after all. He’d spent
plenty of time with Sophia.
What would she think of him now? Now that he was
washed up, broke, and had failed at everything he’d always
had hoped he’d accomplish.
Carissa kissed her grandmother on the cheek. Thomas
watched the exchange. He’d known them both but
moments, yet he knew what they meant to each other. He
was envious.
“Thank you again, Mrs. Burkhalter, for letting me stay
here with you.”
“You can stay as long as you call me Katie.” She gave
him a stern nod.
“Yes, ma’am, Katie.”
Katie made her way down the hall to a bedroom, and
shut the door behind her.
“Wow.” He shook his head. “I feel like I’ve just met a
legend. For years I heard about Sophia’s grandmother. I
feel like I’ve known her forever.”
“Next to my mother she’s one of the most amazing
women to me.” Carissa’s eyes followed the path her
grandmother had walked, her devotion to the older woman
glistening in her expression. “Why don’t I show you to
your room and you can get some rest before dinner.” She
turned back to him, catching his stare. “I’m sure it was a
long flight from Rome.”
“Yes it was.” Too long. Every minute of the flight he’d
fought with himself over whether it’d been right to accept
Sophia’s job offer. He followed Carissa up the stairs.
The room was as large as his apartment in Rome, yet
more homey. It had a brass bed that looked as old as the
house. Two chairs sat on either side of the window with a
marble-topped table between them. A door stood ajar,
revealing an adjoining bathroom, so he wouldn’t need to
share facilities with others in the house.
The room felt masculine and that pleased him. He’d
been worried about staying in the house of an old woman,
with doilies under everything and untouchable collectables,
and had almost called a hotel and made reservations. He
was glad he hadn’t.
“This room was my father’s while we lived here. I
think you should find it suiting.” Carissa pushed back the
sheers, and the afternoon light filled the room.
“I think this will be wonderful.”
“Good.” She pushed open the bathroom door. “Your
bathroom is through here. It adjoins to the other room, but
no one uses that room anymore.”
“Anymore?”
She let out a laugh that was as mesmerizing as her
looks. “That was my room, on the other side. When I
moved back in to take care of my grandmother and aunt, I
took my mother’s old room. It was her room growing up.
It’s
really
big and has its own bathroom.” The smile that
danced on her face was childlike. “So if you need anything,
I’m just down the hall.”
Her innocent offer punched him in the gut. He only
nodded as he watched her leave. He already knew he’d be
in need of her. And because he couldn’t allow himself to
have her, his nights here would be miserable.
He forced himself to focus on Sophia’s school. An
entire school dedicated to bringing music to children. Too
many school districts had ripped it out of schools because
of funding. The idea was stellar! Her request for his help in
putting it together had sent his dragging self-esteem
through the roof. It hadn’t taken but a week to pack his few
belongings and board the one-way flight to America to start
a new chapter in his life right there in Kansas City,
Missouri.
He had learned so much from Sophia when he’d
started playing with Pablo. To work with her on something
as great as a school made his heart pound.
There was a snag, of course. Carissa Kendal would
assuredly be one of the teachers.
He squeezed his eyes shut and pushed away the
thought. He wasn’t looking for a woman. He wasn’t
looking for the complications of a relationship. He didn’t
come from the kind of family that embraced love and
commitment. That, he knew, had to run deep enough to run
through one’s blood. Thomas Samuel was an amazing
musician and composer—but lover, husband, or father
material? He’d never know. He’d never bring a woman into
his circle and hurt her like that. Because that’s what he’d
do. He’d hurt her, just as his father had hurt the ones he
was supposed to love.
He blew out a breath. They had a lot in common, the
members of Pablo’s ensemble. Pablo had run from whom
he was. Sophia had run from what she thought. Thomas had
run from what he might become.
He’d run for a long time. He’d left the States when he
was only seventeen and started touring with Pablo almost
immediately. He’d been Pablo’s prodigy. Far away from
his family, if you could call it that.
His family didn’t live too far from where he stood
questioning his very being. Fear fluttered in his heart.
Occasionally he let himself dream of being part of a family
again, but he knew it could never come true.
As it was, he was going to wash up, go downstairs, and
dine with Sophia’s family. A family he already knew a
great deal about. But the nerves wouldn’t subside. They
were a family and he was an outsider, just as he’d always
been.
A commotion filtered through the house, and Thomas
followed the sound toward the wonderfully large kitchen.
With her back turned to him, Carissa stood at the sink
beside her mother. Heat rushed through him.
They were laughing, joking, and bumping into each
other over the sink.
“If you’d move your big behind . . .” Sophia directed
the insult to Carissa.
“Oh, excuse me, Miss-I-Haven’t-Seen-a-Treadmill-ina-year.” Carissa boosted back and they both laughed.
He could see that happiness had landed on Sophia.
She’d always been a firm and taut person, but the few
pounds that had crept onto her let him know she was truly
joyous in her role of wife and mother.
“Who are you?” a small voice asked from the table.
The laughter died and Thomas turned his head to the
table, where Katie sat. A young girl with rosy cheeks, deep
blue eyes, and mounds of blonde curls sat next to Katie,
looking up at him. He smiled cautiously at her.
“I’m Thomas, who are you?”
“I’m Hope. I’m eight.” Her expression clearly said,
you should have known that.
“Thomas!” Sophia squealed as she grabbed for a towel
to wipe her hands on and then she raced across the room
and wrapped her arms around him.
He breathed her in.
She pulled him back at arm’s length to study him and
he did the same. Her auburn hair was a bit longer, but her
brown eyes were just as welcoming. When she smiled at
him he knew he’d found a home. One thing about Sophia,
she could always make him feel at home.
“I can’t believe you’re here. I can’t believe you’re
standing right here.” Tears formed in her eyes and she
pulled him to her again. He held her tight. Already he was
glad he’d come.
“How come there is some man hugging my wife in the
kitchen and you are all standing around watching?”
Thomas stiffened at the sound of the man’s voice.
“Daddy!” Hope ran into the man’s arms and embraced
him. Still in his pilot’s uniform, he bent down to hug his
daughter. “This is Thomas. He knows Mommy.”
“Well, maybe you should introduce us.”
Hope nodded and walked her father by the hand to
Thomas, who still held one arm around Sophia.
“Daddy, this is Thomas.”
“Thomas, it’s nice to meet you. I’m David Kendal.”
He extended his hand and Thomas shook it.
“It’s an honor to meet you. I feel like I know you very
well.”
“Considering the time frame in which you got your
stories, I’d beg for another chance to make a first
impression.” He touched his wife’s cheek and she moved
forward and kissed him gently.
“Mr. Kendal, she never had a bad word to say about
you.” He looked at Sophia.
“She should have come home sooner, then.”
“You know, I’m not going to stand here and relive the
fact I made a mistake years ago.” Sophia threw up her
hands and shook her head with a smile. “Is there anyone in
this kitchen who doesn’t think I’m a wonderful
granddaughter, mother, friend, and wife? They shook their
heads.
“Okay, then, everything ended well and we can eat.”
Thomas found himself seated between Hope and
Carissa at the dinner table. If he let himself look at Carissa,
he was sure he’d end up tripping over his tongue like a
lovesick puppy, so he made an effort to take an interest in
her younger sister. One look at Hope and he saw
similarities to Carissa, though Hope was fair and Carissa’s
complexion darker. The resemblance was amazing for an
adopted child.
Katie passed the salad bowl over the top of Hope, who
wrinkled her nose. With a nod from Katie, Thomas dropped
a small spoonful onto her plate, and Katie smiled. She
reminded him a little of his own grandmother.
“So, Thomas, you’re a pianist?”
“Yes, ma’am. I’ve been playing piano since I was
three.”
“That’s awfully young.”
“Well, my grandmother insisted and she taught me my
very first scales.” The memory was one of the few from his
childhood that could bring a smile to his face.
“Wise woman.”
David passed a plate of roast to Katie. “So are you sure
you’re up to helping these two with their school? They can
be awfully demanding.”
“I can’t tell you how excited I was to get Sophia’s call.
What’s happening with music programs in schools is
pitiful. It doesn’t make sense to take the arts away. When
you start doing that . . .” All eyes were on him and he
realized he was about to go on a rant. “Well, I think it’s
foolish, and bringing music to others is what I do best.”
He felt Carissa’s eyes on him and he turned to catch
her stare. Her cheeks flushed immediately and then she
turned away. He sucked in a breath and lifted his water
glass to his lips to try to cool off his racing mind.