Total pages in book: 45
Estimated words: 43540 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 218(@200wpm)___ 174(@250wpm)___ 145(@300wpm)
Estimated words: 43540 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 218(@200wpm)___ 174(@250wpm)___ 145(@300wpm)
Our souls collided the day he walked into that bar.
His presence made me whole in a way I hadn’t been before.
He was my forever.
Until one day, he wasn’t.
The beautiful life we were starting to create was destroyed by betrayal.
And after two long years, I was still trying to move on and put my shattered pieces from his deception back together.
Except when the man you hate haunts your dreams, moving on is impossible.
Maybe that’s why my friends tricked me into going for a secluded weekend in the woods. A vacation to heal and finally move on.
But this trip was anything but serene and healing. It was more like a nightmare.
I vowed never to let him in enough to hurt me again. Because I hated him.
The problem is, I loved him more…
*************FULL BOOK START HERE*************
Sometimes goodbye is a second chance.
-Shinedown
Chapter one
Callie
I always imagined how I would die. A thrill-seeking bungy jumping accident. Meh, there’s not a bone of thrill in my body. Being attacked by a shark while deep-sea scuba diving. Scratch that. I hate water. Even something as simple as being in my husband’s arms at the frail age of ninety. I’d have to have a husband first, let alone a boyfriend, for that to happen.
But I never imagined complete boredom would be the death of me.
As I stare across the table at my blind date, listening to him list the ingredients of his mother’s meatloaf, I realize that being eaten by a shark would have been better.
“You should come over for meatloaf night. Sometimes, when I’m good, she adds nutmeg to it. Gives it a super sweet taste. But don’t tell her I told you her secret ingredient. She’d have to kill you.”
“Oh, I would never,” I say because if I ever find myself at his mother’s house, eating said meatloaf, the bigger topic would be how to clean blood out of her tablecloth because I would have stabbed a fork into my jugular before my first bite.
It’s official. I’m done with dating sites. I’m done with dating, period. Done pretending I’m not destined to become anything but a single, lonely wallflower and I should start investing in a colony of cats now.
“Wow, this key lime pie is pretty good. Not as good as my mom’s. She likes to splash a bit of—”
My phone, set to the highest volume, goes off right on time. “Oh, shoot. Hold that thought.” I look at my screen to see Tory’s goofy face. “Hey Tory, what’s up?”
“Ring-a-ling! Tell me he’s the one.”
“Oh, my God. Is he okay?”
“Wow, so it’s bad?”
“Oh, that’s awful. What hospital did they take him to?”
“Damn. I really thought this dude was the one.”
“Yes, of course. I’m on a date, but I’m sure he’ll understand.”
“That poor dude—”
I hang up on Tory. “I’m so sorry. Something happened to a friend, and I need to go. Hope you understand. I had a great time, though.” I place my napkin on the table and stand, grabbing my purse. “Thanks again for dinner. I’ll call you.” And I turn to rush out of there.
“Hey, before you leave, I think your part of the meal came out to thirty-seven dollars and forty-two cents. I already divided the tip.”
***
I plow through the doors of Ray’s Bar, brushing the snow off my jacket. The dive bar is as divey as it gets, but they still manage to spruce it up with lights for the holiday season. I look around the bar and spot Tory and Ashley at our regular pub table. Ashley sees me first, and her lips downward-dog into a sad face. When Tory turns, her eyes light up with humor. “Man, we were sitting here planning your engagement party. What happened?”
I flick Tory off and take the empty seat next to Ash. “We never would’ve worked out because I’m pretty sure he’s in love with his mother and masturbates to her meatloaf on the daily.”
Ashley’s nose scrunches while Tory lets off an obnoxious laugh. “I mean, is his mom good-looking? And I can’t imagine boinking a meatloaf would be enjoyable. Jamming your dick into the mushy loaf—”
“I said to it, not in it—it doesn’t matter. Steve was a complete no, and as if the date could get any worse, he made me go Dutch on the bill.”
“No,” Ashley gasps.
“Yeah! Not to mention, he added a slice of key lime pie to take home to his mother, and it accidentally was put on my part of the bill!”
Tory leans back in her chair, taking a long sip of her vodka tonic. “Damn. That’s ruthless.”
“Tell me about it.” I wave to Sherry, our favorite waitress, who gives me the thumbs-up that my espresso martini is on the way. “I’m officially done with those dating sites.”
“Oh, don’t give up, Cal. Mr. Right is out there.”
“I’m pretty sure Mr. Right is a fictional character in one of your romance books and doesn’t truly exist. At least not for me.” Gotta love a friend who thinks that happily ever afters grow on trees. “I’m claiming spinstership. Mark it right now.”