A Love to Treasure (Sunriver Dreams Book 1) Read Online Free PDF

a property management company, Ponderosa something. When I leave here I’ll be checking out of the lodge and moving to a house she rented for me.” She still couldn’t believe Grams had rented a house for her, but what was even stranger was that when she contacted the rental company they didn’t have the next clue. Somehow she thought they’d have it. She needed to find that clue. The problem was, she had no idea where to look.
    Sarah’s face lit up like a child’s on Christmas. “How fun! So that’s what the key was for. Very cool. I actually clean the office at Ponderosa Home Rentals a couple nights a week. I suppose I should have recognized one of their keys from the key ring, but I really don’t pay any attention to them.”
    “I thought you had another job.”
    “I do, but I’m a recovering shopaholic, and I need the extra money to help pay down my debt faster. Kind of a sensitive subject.” She touched Nicole’s hand. “I’m really sorry about your grandma, but that’s about the nicest thing I’ve ever heard of anyone doing. She must’ve been one special lady.”
    Nicole’s throat thickened. She took a slow sip of coffee, blinking away tears. A wave of longing fell over her heart. She missed Grams like crazy. If she spoke now, she’d start crying for sure. Sarah was right, Grams was very special.
    Sarah’s voice softened, a slight frown creasing her forehead. “Hey, are you okay?”
    Nicole nodded. “Sorry. I still get a little emotional.”
    “I understand.” She pulled a card from her wallet. “Give me a call when you know your schedule, and I’ll reserve a court time.”
    “I will. Thanks.” Nicole dropped the card into her bag, pleased she’d found a friend. It had been way too long since she could say she had a friend. She’d pushed all her old ones away with her work-driven lifestyle. At least here there was no danger of working too much, and she couldn’t be accused of putting lesson plans or grading papers before her social life, like Justin, her ex-boyfriend, had accused her of. She had feared her time in Sunriver would be long, lonely, and boring, but things had changed. Grams had stepped this game up several notches from her past adventures. She’d be lucky to find the next clue and finish solving the puzzle or whatever the point was before summer’s end. Could the house be the next clue?
     
     

Chapter Five
     
     
    Nicole pulled into the driveway of her new home-away-from-home. Who would have thought the last clue would have led to a house? The small home, probably made in the seventies, was painted in an earth tone that resembled the color of tree bark and had an attached single-car garage. Her stomach danced with nervous excitement. She slid the key into the lock then pushed the door open.
    She caught her breath. A white leather couch faced a fireplace with a large flat screen television mounted above, and a cozy dining room with a banquet to the left of the main room connected to the kitchen. “Oh, Grams this is lovely.”
    She closed the door and stepped in further, breathing in deeply a fresh, warm, pine scent. Someone had recently aired and cleaned the house, giving the indoors the fragrance of the surrounding trees.
    She rolled her suitcase across the hardwood floor, through the living room past the couch, and turned left toward the French doors and a deck enclosed by a tall wood fence. “I can’t believe you did this, Grams.” Leaving the suitcase, she stepped outside. Teak deck furniture and a gas grill filled the small space, perfect for a single person or a couple.
    She spun around and headed inside, closing the doors behind her. Bypassing the kitchen, she found two bedrooms at the end of a short hallway. She grasped the railing of the tight winding stairs off the kitchen and carefully climbed them to the loft. Excitement grew with each step as reality sank in—not only did she get to spend the entire summer in her favorite vacation resort, she would be