Chasing the Clouds Away

by Debbie Macomber

Genres: General Fiction; Women's Fiction; Romance; Clean & Wholesome Romance; Contemporary Romance

Synopsis

From #1 New York Times bestselling author Debbie Macomber comes an uplifting story of an unforgettable chance encounter between a successful yet jaded businessman and a woman who sees—but also expects—the best in everyone, sparking an unlikely romance that challenges their assumptions about generosity, trust, and the gifts of unforeseen love.

Maisy Gallagher has her own dreams, but when her father passes away, she selflessly sets them aside to help her family. Despite knowing it was the right thing to do, she can’t help but wish for the road not taken.

Chase Furst, the hardened heir to a financial empire, is on the other hand primarily focused on his own life and on his work as a bank executive. His childhood was marred by his mother’s struggle with addiction, and left him cynical and emotionally distant.

But then Chase meets Maisy, a beautiful woman full of optimism and kindness who can see past his defenses. To his surprise and annoyance, she offers to help him during a time of need, and declines his offer of payment. Instead, she asks him to pay it forward—and not with money or a quick fix, but through an act of true selflessness. At a loss, Chase doesn’t know where to begin.

Release date: April 28, 2026

Publisher: Ballantine Books

Print pages: 320

Sample

Chapter One

Chase Furst shifted impatiently from one foot to the other. This day just seemed to get worse by the minute. All he wanted was to pay for The Wall Street Journal, get to his gate, and wait for his flight.

One would think purchasing a newspaper would be a simple thing. Only the woman standing in front of him was talking to the cashier at the checkout stand like she was a female Dr. Phil.

“Really, Laura, give yourself credit. You raised Bella, you gave her a good foundation with boundaries and love. Now trust she’ll make the right decisions,” the woman in front of him said. She placed a reassuring hand on the other woman’s forearm as if to lend her comfort.

Chase felt as though he’d walked into the middle of a soap opera.

“I wasn’t able to give Bella a decent father, and try as I might, I can’t be both parents to her. She’s so vulnerable. I wish I could afford to put her in a private school. The one she attends isn’t in the best neighborhood.”

“I know, and I understand your concerns.”

“In the last few weeks, she’s gotten much worse. She’s only fifteen, but she acts like she’s twenty. One look at her so-called boyfriend and all I see is trouble. She’s so quick to come to his defense. I don’t know what happened to my sweet girl.”

“Give her time,” the woman urged.

“It terrifies me that Bella will make the same mistakes I did and fall for the wrong man.”

It sounded as if the cashier was close to tears.

Chase rolled his eyes. Heaven save him from women and their emotional drama. He had enough to worry about in his own life. The pressure from his father to marry weighed on him. Worse, Simon had essentially made the choice for him, seeing that Chase had cycled through one meaningless relationship after another for the last several years. His father worried that Chase was incapable of choosing the right woman. This from a man with three marriages behind him, no less. Chase’s current girlfriend, Astrid, had been handpicked by his father and fulfilled every requirement for his son to one day take over the huge Furst financial empire. Chase liked Astrid well enough, but he wasn’t really feeling it.

“The things Bella says to me are shocking.”

“She doesn’t mean any of it. You know that,” the woman continued with her back to him, her voice soft and comforting.

“Bella’s temper is out of control.”

“She’s venting.”

The woman standing at the cash register sighed. “I don’t know how much more I can take, Maisy.”

Me, either, Chase silently mused.

“Have faith.”

“I wish it was that easy . . .”

“I’ll make more of an effort to stay in touch with her,” the woman named Maisy promised.

The relief in the cashier’s face was immediate. “Would you?”

“Of course. We both know how difficult the teen years can be.”

“Excuse me,” Chase said, with limited patience, interrupting the flow of the conversation.

The women pretended not to hear him. One thing Chase refused to tolerate was being ignored. His frustration had reached its limit. Stepping forward, he butted his way to the counter until he stood in front of the cashier. “What’s the name of your supervisor?” he demanded. Clearly this employee had no sense of customer service, nor did she care one bit about her job. Plus, she brought her problems to work with her to share with anyone willing to listen.

The cashier stared open-mouthed at him as if he’d spoken a foreign language.

“I beg your pardon.”

“I want the name of your supervisor.”

The other woman abruptly turned around to confront him. “Why?”

Chase was immediately taken with her clear green eyes, which were intense, steady, and intelligent. She wore her light auburn hair in a bob cut with bangs that needed a trim. As if reading his thoughts, she brushed the hair away from her face. She wasn’t strikingly attractive but had a pleasant look about her. He guessed most men would call her pretty. All of this went through his mind in a matter of a millisecond. What he noticed, what caught his rapt attention, was the expression on her face. She seemed to look straight through him like she knew his every thought. Her narrowed eyes telegraphed her annoyance. That she was able to read him so easily left Chase with an uncharacteristic feeling of unease. It was as if he stood naked before her. He stiffened and glared back, refusing to let her rile him.

“It’s all right, Maisy,” Laura said.

Maisy continued to stare at him. “Is something wrong?” She directed the question to him.

He immediately bristled and tightened his jaw. “You mean other than the fact that I’m trying to pay for this newspaper and my plane is about to board?” This behavior was unacceptable.

“It’s more than that,” Maisy said. “It’s something else.”

Again, she gave him the impression she saw straight through him. It was as if she intuitively understood how much he resented having to take this flight to Seattle.

Chase briefly closed his eyes. He knew next to nothing about this woman. In fact, he would be completely happy if he never saw her again. Flustered now, he reached inside his suit jacket and withdrew his wallet. He slapped a ten-dollar bill on the counter. “Keep the change,” he said, eager to remove himself from both women so he could get to his gate.

First class would be boarding within the next few minutes. The sooner he attended to the unpleasant task ahead of him, the sooner he could get back to his life and settle this matter with Astrid. Unfortunately, his father had the company plane this weekend, so he’d been forced to book a commercial flight. His mood wasn’t great in the first place, and the annoyance of dealing with inept personnel only increased his irritation. He wanted to make these arrangements as quickly as possible and catch the return flight to Chicago that same evening. By the time he got to bed it would be the wee hours of the morning. He had an important meeting first thing that he couldn’t put off.

“Do you still want the name of my supervisor?” Laura asked.

He hesitated, debating if contacting the delinquent employee’s manager was worth the hassle. “Yes,” he decided, if for no other reason than to let his displeasure be known. He might or might not escalate the issue, although it would have to be later. He hoped the threat of reporting her lack of attention to her job would be enough for her to change her behavior.

Laura wrote out the name on a piece of paper and handed it to him.

“Why would you do that?” Maisy asked in that same calming voice, as if genuinely curious.

He didn’t bother to answer. No need. He’d made his point. Tucking the newspaper under his arm, he left the newsstand and walked to his gate, eager to put the unfortunate exchange behind him.

When he reached his gate, he learned the flight had been delayed. Perfect. Just perfect. He found an empty seat in the crowded area. Normally he’d have the plane and avoid these complications that often arose when flying commercially. That said, he felt it imperative that he get to Seattle and back in one day. This was the only flight with first-class availability.

Now a flight delay would upset his entire schedule.

This day was getting worse by the minute.

Folding open the newspaper, he crossed his legs and did his best to find a comfortable position. Although he centered his attention on a news article about the possible rise in home mortgage rates, his mind was on anything but the printed words. If anyone were to ask him what he was reading, he wouldn’t have been able to say.

What troubled him, and multiple things did, was the necessity of this trip. It irked him to the point of distraction. He hated the fact that this unpleasant task was left to him to deal with.

Finding it useless to even try to read, he set the newspaper aside and noticed Maisy, the woman from the newsstand, heading toward the gate. She paused when she saw him before smiling as if she was amused to see him again.

He ignored her and looked away. There were only a few empty seats available in the area. One was directly across from him, and she hesitated as though considering heading in his direction.

He glared at her, signaling that she should look elsewhere. Chase knew his frown was intense and quelling. One of his stares was able to silence a boardroom filled with executives. He didn’t need to say a word to get his message across.

To his surprise, Maisy appeared not to be the least bit intimidated and claimed the chair. What was with this woman? He wanted nothing more to do with her.

His eyes narrowed, as if to will her away with his displeasure. Apparently, she was oblivious.

“Excuse me,” she said, as she leaned forward, focusing her attention on him.

He refused to acknowledge her.