Match My Heart — Sophie Jacobs

Suzie Hart Matthews is hard at work on her new cookbook, Perfectly Matched, when she asks the local wallflower, Mary Lou Picketts, to help her with a project.

Mary Lou fantasizes about falling in love with country music star Nash Rhodes, but is ready to settle for Barry Phillips down the street. After all, Barry is her real boyfriend and he has actually popped the question. The likelihood that Nash Rhodes ever will, is slim-to-none. Nash is nothing more than a celebrity crush waiting to never happen.

Nash Rhodes enjoys his newfound status in the country music world -- after all, it is what he's worked toward for years -- but he longs for a break in the action to ground himself in home and family after months of touring, night-after-night of concert halls, and days-upon-end of sleeping in his traveling bus. And while he also enjoys his adoring fans, and knows his career is dependent upon them, he's grown weary of being followed. Just when he has made plans to head home to Louisiana for a long weekend, the chance to play a benefit concert presents itself and he's not sure he can refuse.

When Nash comes to Harbor Falls for the music benefit to support the local children's hospital, Suzie wonders if she can perfectly match the miss-matched couple of Mary Lou Picketts and Nash Rhodes. After all, they seem perfect for each other, and she had managed to hook her little sister, Shelley, back up with her old high school boyfriend, Matt, hadn't she? Can she do it again?

Previously published as Perfectly Matched by Maddie James. Revised and updated.