Love's Second Chance (Second Chances Series) (30 page)

“Oh, you are just being nice. So, Richard is taking the girls to New Hampshire this weekend? Is there a special reason?”

“Yeah! Richard has been seeing this girlfriend for a while now. He wants Ashlee to like her because he plans on asking her to marry him.”

“Wow! And you are alright with this?”

“Totally! Why wouldn’t I be? He deserves to be happy. We truly are best friends. If he’s happy, then so am I. I’ve met her a few times, her name is Rochelle. She seems nice. It took her a while to realize that Richard and I are truly just friends, but now she seems to be a fit to our little family unit.”

“You are amazing, Tasha. I don’t know if I could ever do that.” Rebecca laughed despite her sinking feeling.

“So, since you are child-free, how about a girl’s night? Let’s go to dinner and have a few drinks somewhere.”

“I was going to ask Jack if he wanted to go out. Maybe it is just what we need to get things back on track again.”

“Alright, but I think you are wasting your time. If you change your mind, you know where to find me.”

At four in the afternoon, Jack called Rebecca on her cell phone. His voice came off as very robotic and matter-of-fact.

“Yeah, Dana told me that you stopped by earlier. Are the kids alright?”

“Um. yeah, I just packed a lunch and was going to surprise you.” The line went quiet.

“Oh!”

She didn’t know how she expected him to respond, but that was definitely not it. She felt let down.

“I had a meeting with a new supplier for the shop.”

“Yeah, Dana already said that.”

“OK, well if there is nothing else, then I’ll talk to you later. I might be late tonight. I have a few cars that need to be done so I can get paid. It’s the end of the week. I have to make payroll.”

“Oh!” she tried to hide her disappointment. “I guess I’ll see you later then.” She hung up the phone and swallowed the lump that had formed in her throat.

She fell back in her chair and stared up at the ceiling. She was mad and hurt. She wanted to scream. She called Tasha.

“I’m in. Let’s go out.”

“Yay! Girl’s night, shall we call prego and ask if she’d like to come? She can drive us since she can’t drink.”

“Sure, I’ll call her right now.” They hung up the phone and Rebecca dialed Emily.

“Hey sweetie, are you up for going to dinner tonight? Tasha and I are kid-free, so if you can get a sitter for Andrew…”

“Oh my god, yes. I’ll have my neighbor sit with him. She’s seventeen and could use the money. I’ll pick you up at, like, seven?”

“See you then.” They hung up the phone.

She went to her closet and looked around. Most of her clothes consisted of “mom clothes” as Riley often commented. They were all jeans and t-shirts or yoga pants. She dug through until she found her charcoal Kensie cowlneck sweater dress that sat above her knees. It showed off her long, lean legs and her slender figure. She ran a straightener through her long, dark tresses to smooth them out and applied some make-up. When she was through, she looked at herself in the mirror. She hadn’t allowed herself to dress up in a long time. She to fall had fallen into a slump where she hadn’t cared what she looked like.

She was applying some lipstick when she heard a horn honk outside. She put on a pair of knee-high black boots and her leather jacket and grabbed her pocket book as she ran down to the door. She locked up the house and got into Emily’s car.

“Wow, Rebecca, I can’t remember the last time I’ve seen you look so…hot,” Emily complimented her.

Tasha poked her head up from the back seat and growled, “The cougars are on the prowl tonight.” All three started laughing.

“Well maybe you are, but we’re married,” Emily said. “Plus, are we really cougars? Ick! Is that what people see when we go out? I think I’m going to cry.”

“Good going, Tasha,” Rebecca teased. “You freaked out the hormonal one.”

They all started laughing again.

“I’d take cougar days over the bimbo days any day. Personally, I hated my twenties. I was married and had a small kid, no offense Emily, you are just starting later in life. Now, our thirties are about our families growing up and us redefining who we want to be because we missed out on so much in our twenties. By the time we are forty, it’s about our families moving on to adulthood and us on our new paths of life. I don’t know about you girls, but I would like to have me a younger man to mold into something useful. Men our age are all about the younger bimbos, so if they can date younger, than so can we,” Tasha said.

All three started laughing again.

“Tonight should be good entertainment, watching Tasha chasing young men around,” Emily teased.

“I wish I had half of her confidence,” Rebecca replied.

“Well, you girls can just sit back and watch the pro at work.” They all laughed again.

Acknowledgments

First and foremost, I want to thank the readers for their support and understanding. My books would be nowhere without you, and I don’t think there’s any way I could ever thank you enough. Also, I wouldn’t be able to follow my dream if it wasn’t for my husband, Matt. He’s been there for me and actually helped give me ideas for Love’s Second Chance. Amanda, I have you to thank for introducing him to me. I also want to thank my children for being patient with me. I love you girls so much.

I want to thank my fellow indie authors for always being supportive. I’ve grown to cherish each and every one of you, and a lot of you have turned into really close friends. Jenna, you’re the best, and having you there with me through the good and bad has made an imprint on my heart. I don’t know what I would do without you. I definitely can’t forget about my crazy friend, Kymberlee. I want to thank you for getting me through my tough spots and always being there to help me. I appreciate it and I’m so glad that I have you there to help guide me.

Amber, you have always been one of my biggest supporters and gone out of your way to help me out. I’m lucky to have gotten to know you. Last, but not least, my friend Jimie. You’ve been the best and done so much for me, never asking for anything in return. You have a wonderful heart and you’ve always been able to bring a smile to my face.

About the Author

L.P. Dover lives in the beautiful state of North Carolina with her husband and two wonderful daughters. She’s an avid reader that loves her collection of books. Writing has always been her passion and she’s delighted to share it with the world. L.P. Dover spent several years in college starting out with a major in Psychology and then switching to dental. She worked in the dental field for eight years and then decided to stay home with her two beautiful girls. She spent the beginning of her reading years indulging in suspense thrillers, but now she can't get away from the paranormal/fantasy books. Now that she has started on her passion and began writing, you won’t see her go anywhere without a notebook, pen, and her secret energy builder…chocolate.

You can find L.P. Dover at:

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