Romantic Reads: Snowbound in Winterberry Falls by Ann Brodeur

The Story Behind the story “Snowbound in Winterberry Falls” 

by Ann Brodeur

Christmas in New England

It was like any other day when the inspiration struck. My morning coffee had been re-heated (for the third or fourth time) and the three oldest kiddos had boarded the school bus hours ago. My littlest one was happy playing on the floor.

Finally, a moment for me.

I flipped on my computer, opened up Facebook and lost myself on an endless rabbit trail. A friend posted an interesting article on a resort in New England. Nothing strange about that, except the resort celebrated Christmas all year round.

Christmas is one of my favourite holidays (behind Thanksgiving and Easter) so of course the idea of a Christmas-themed resort was definitely appealing. I kept following the trail around Christmas events in New England, dreaming of my own New England holiday.

My trail took me to a place called Middlebury, VT, nestled in the Green Mountains. From November 30 to the end of December, Very Merry Middlebury is an annual Christmas celebration that transforms the downtown center into a winter wonderland.

I loved the idea of a Christmas festival – an ideal backdrop for a holiday story. 

Story Questions

I started asking questions. For a place that loves Christmas so much, what would happen if things started disappearing – essential items to help the celebration? Who would do such a thing? Why?

Who would find out what was going on? Who had the skills required to solve the mystery? A police officer was too obvious, as was a P.I. or a detective for my main character.

As I started to hash out these details, another side story started forming – one that involved a bit of romance. My two main characters had known each other in the past, but had lost contact for some reason or another. A secret so huge between them had sent one of them running. For good.

I’m not into secret babies. So it couldn’t be that. I’m not about secret marriages or life-threatening diseases that would inevitably separate them forever. It had to be big enough to have the capability of blowing up in one or both of their faces. But it couldn’t be dark since this was supposed to be a Christmas story. And there had to be some funny moments too.

What could it possibly be?

Research, Research and Research Again

I had created three backstories to whatever it was that would ultimately be responsible for separating my couple in the past, but I needed to know if my scenario was even possible.

I started digging into newspaper articles covering a myriad of topics, which eventually led me to the big secret that pulled Stephanie and Jason apart in the first place (and no, I’m not going to spoil it for you). I pulled up university newspapers, local papers, and even some national articles to find that one missing piece.

I found a thread that would work. But was it enough?

More newspaper articles, various professional websites and publications led to what felt like a believable backstory that would deliver what I was aiming at. A compelling enough reason to keep my hero away for twelve years.

A Holiday Story with a Bit of Intrigue and a Whole Lot of Redemption

What started out as a simple ‘share’ on Facebook, turned into Snowbound in Winterberry Falls.

Redemption and forgiveness is a huge theme as my characters struggle along in their faith journey. It hasn’t been easy for Jason Miller to live with the decision he was forced to make. And instead of trusting God with the outcome, he walked away from the only One who could help him. As for Stephanie, now more than ever she’ll have to cling to her faith and trust God with the outcome – no matter what.

A buried story. A powerful senator. A Christmas they won’t forget.

~*~

Book blurb for Snowbound in Winterberry Falls by Ann Brodeur:

Unwrapping their past – one secret at a time. 

Owning her own PR firm is all reporter Stephanie Clark wants for Christmas, but the idea of running a prestigious election campaign in the country’s capital throws her stomach into knots. A last-minute vacation road trip to focus and seek God’s direction for her life ends up in disaster when she gets caught in the worst snowstorm to hit Vermont in over a decade, crashing her into a small town and the one person she’d rather forget.

Former photojournalist Jason Miller hadn’t planned on being solely responsible for saving his family business from financial ruin. He’s barely keeping the newspaper in print, his News Editor has gone AWOL during the town’s most celebrated holiday festival, and reports of missing Christmas decorations have everyone on edge.

When a desperate knock at the newsroom door brings a ghost from Christmas past back into his life, can Jason make up for his prior behavior without breaking his promise to Stephanie’s father? 

Will Stephanie’s quest to solve the town’s Christmas caper—and uncover the truth about Jason’s disappearance—cost her everything she’s ever wanted?

~*~
Author Bio:

Ann Brodeur is an award-winning novelist who writes inspirational and contemporary romances offering sweet hope and happy endings.

When she’s not reading, writing, chasing after her kids or enjoying long chats with her husband, Ann can be found drinking coffee, that’s been reheated several times throughout the day.

She aspires to someday drink a hot beverage in one sitting.

~*~
Buy Ann’s book:
Canada: https://amzn.to/3529fZe
USA: https://amzn.to/3p48B5y

~*~
Connect with Ann:

Join other readers in finding out the latest news from Ann and for bookish fun, by signing up for my newsletter on my website: http://brodeurwrites.com/

Check out novel inspiration, book reviews and more on my Pinterest page: https://www.pinterest.ca/brodeurwrites

Follow and Like my author page: https://www.facebook.com/annbrodeurauthor

GoodReads: https://www.goodreads.com/author/show/20786619.Ann_Brodeur

BookBub: https://www.bookbub.com/authors/ann-brodeur

Amazon Author Page: https://amzn.to/3mHgV9T

My Blog's 10th Year Birthday Bash: Christa MacDonald's book giveaway

Welcome to the seventh day of my blog's birthday bash!

Please welcome my author friend Christa MacDonald.

She's here to give away one of her books!

Enter the book giveaway contest via the Rafflecopter widget the end of this blog post. Only residents of the USA are eligible to receive a signed paperback copy of this author's books. International residents will only receive ebook copies due to costs of mailing books outside of the USA.

Let's learn a bit more about Christa and her books ...

Author Bio:

Christa MacDonald is a 2017 Carol Award finalist for contemporary Christian fiction. 

She began her writing career at the age of eleven, filling a sketchbook with poems and short stories. After publishing a few short pieces in her college’s literary magazine she took a long hiatus during which she embarked on a few different careers, got married, had three kids, and renovated an old barn masquerading as a house. 

Her most recent work, The Redemption Road, finished the Sweet River Redemption series published by Mountain Brook Ink.

When not working or writing Christa can be found ferrying her kids around, reading, or attempting something crafty. She and her family live along the coast of New England.

~*~

Back Cover Blurb for The Broken Trail:

Katherine Grant takes the job at Sweet River Christian Academy hoping a small town in the wilderness of Maine will be a vacation from her high-powered career and a break from the emotional toll of the secrets she has buried deep. 

With the school director on a power trip and evidence of shady dealings, there’s nothing relaxing about it. Maybe it would be easier if she wasn’t so distracted by Captain MacAlister, the local cop she can’t get along with, yet can’t get out of her head. She didn’t trek up to the middle of nowhere to lose her heart.

Mac doesn’t need the kind of trouble he believes Katherine will bring. He’s got enough to deal with from poachers to drug crime. Mac has rules to maintain his faith, like avoiding the pull of an attractive woman who doesn’t fit his life. But when he meets Katherine, he’s drawn in by her intelligence and strength, despite getting burned by her quick temper.

When near tragedy strikes, Katherine reveals her feelings, and Mac doesn’t hesitate to respond. If only their scars, both seen and unseen, didn’t threaten to tear them apart. 

Two wary hearts must soften and two steel wills bend if they have any hope of making it down the broken trail to love.

~*~
Connect with Christa:
Website: www.christamacdonald.com
Newsletter: https://christamacdonald.com/connect-with-christa/
Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/groups/1538432676468229/
Amazon: https://amzn.to/33uk329

Twitter: https://twitter.com/CricketMacD
Christa's book publisher: http://mountainbrookink.com/about-us/authors/christa-macdonald/

~*~

Enter this book giveaway contest for your chance to WIN a copy of this book by filling out the entry form on the Rafflecopter widget below: 

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Book feature with Mary Marie Allen, women's fiction author

Let's welcome Mary Marie Allen to the blog today! 

She's an author who writes under the women's fiction category of books.

Mary is here to share an excerpt and review of her book, God's Love Most Gentle.

First, here are a few words from Mary:

God wrote, and is writing, the greatest love story day by day with each of us. It’s a love I (Mary Marie Allen) hope others become acquainted with through my writing. 

My primary goal is to encourage women believers who have experienced love and joy in life along with sadness, loss, failure, and guilt. Hurting women often need help remembering God forgives and His love is most gentle. Then they can find love and joy in life once again. 

This is what happens when a pregnant woman with a harmful secret returns from the missionary field.

~*~

Excerpt from God's Love Most Gentle:

Kim sat cross-legged on the bedroom floor with a basin of tepid water nestled in her lap. She dipped a wash cloth and without wringing it plastered it to her neck. Water drenched her blue cotton dress and pooled about her waist and hips. She prayed for rain. Secretly, of course, for Kurt counted each dry dawn as a gift from God and devoted most of each day to construction of the new church.

Nsia entered the room with the laundry basket on her hip.

Kim plunged the cloth again and raised it over her head. She lifted her face. Clumps of wet hair clung to her cheeks and neck. “They said September was the start of the cool rainy season, but this humidity is more oppressive than any Midwest-summer day I remember. I hate the heat.”

Beneath a red headscarf, round dark eyes studied Kim. “I do not think it is the weather that causes your problem, Mrs. Kim. I will ask Mrs. Thema about a drink to help with baby sickness.”

“Are you saying I’m pregnant? I’m not pregnant.” Kim gave a dismissive wave of her hand letting droplets from the soggy washcloth fling about the room. Nsia knelt and set about sponging Kim with the water. Kim sighed. “That feels so good. You’re a blessing, Nsia, and a good friend.”

Nsia said, “You cry. Yesterday you cry over a watermelon.”

“I was thinking of my father. We won a prize for our watermelons one year. He died five years ago. I miss him terribly.”

“You get sick every morning. Eat or not, you get sick.”

Kim bolted upright. Her mouth gaped.

Nsia laughed and covered her smile with her fingers, but her luminous eyes were big with mirth. “You should see your face. You will give Pastor Kurt a fine, fat baby.”

“But, I don’t know what to do. There weren’t any babies around when I was growing up.”

Nsia patted her hand. “Do not worry. I care for you and the baby. I am the oldest of six.”

She smiled at Nsia. “You are like a little mother.”

“Thank you.”

“I miss my mother.” Tears burned in Kim’s eyes. She pushed homesickness away and pressed her stomach through the thin cotton material of her dress. “I don’t feel pregnant.”

Nsia rolled her eyes. “That comes later.”

Kim stood and hugged herself. She giggled. “I’m going to be a mommy. Kurt’ll be thrilled.” She twirled around then nausea overwhelmed her. She grabbed a bucket near the bed and groaned.

Nsia laughed. “Maybe you should rest a bit. Will you tell Pastor Kurt tonight?”

“No. I can’t wait that long.”

“Mrs. Macomb! Mrs. Macomb! ” Uzachi’s urgent voice blasted through the open window. His face appeared and he saw her. “Kim!”

Nsia scurried to fling open the front door. Men carried Kurt into the room and Kim ran to him. “Kurt! Take him to the bed. What happened?”

Uzachi’s face twisted. “Heat stroke. He never complained. None of us noticed anything until he collapsed and fell off the roof.”

A short man with a scarred face snatched up a braided palm frond beside the bed and fanned Kurt. “He fell on his head.”

Kim whimpered at Kurt’s still form. Nsia pressed the dripping cloth into her hand. “Wet him.” She moistened Kurt’s head and worked down his flushed frame.

His body was hot and dry. His breathing rasped in and expelled with a ragged sigh as his chest rose and fell unevenly. Her own lungs seemed frozen and she gulped for air. Kim re-moistened the cloth and gripped Kurt’s wrist. His pulse surged against her fingers. She swallowed back the bile that rose in her throat as the stench of hard-working bodies thickened the air in the small room.

More men, speaking in low, worried tones gathered outside the open window. Soon their voices rose in a clamor of supplication to God.

“Bring the pills from the desk drawer, Nsia,” Uzachi ordered. Nsia hurried off and trotted back, her hand extended as if to get help to Pastor Kurt more quickly. He placed two salt tablets under Kurt’s tongue. “Keep doing what you’re doing, Kim. I’ll call for help on the ham radio.”

A short time later he returned. His face was grim. “The helicopter can’t come. It’s on a call up in the mountains. That's the other direction entirely. We’ll have to do the best we can and let God do the rest.”

Fear stole words from her mind; a coherent sentence wouldn’t come together. Kim sank onto the edge of the bed and stared at Kurt’s still, pale form. 

~*~

Blurb for God's Love Most Gentle:

When a pregnant widow returns from the mission field family and friends rally to help, but she harbors a secret that may lead to her spiritual downfall. Kim Macomb returns from Zaire, Africa where the 1995 coup has claimed her missionary husband’s life. 

Grief-stricken and pregnant, Kim is only a shadow of herself. Hoping to promote her daughter’s healing, Carol sends Kim, to the calm, godly man who once rescued her. 

Jack’s Montana ranch seems to have the desired effect, but as his son, Mitch, and bad boy Hank vie for Kim’s affections, an agonizing secret drives her further from God. 

Swept up in Kim’s search for peace and forgiveness, those around her face their own frailties and the sometimes unexpected, yet overwhelming truth – God’s love is most gentle.

~*~
Book Review of God's Love Most Gentle:

“I thoroughly enjoyed God’s Love Most Gentle and highly recommend this read! It captivates from the start and takes the reader through the gamut of emotions. I laughed, I cried, I held my breath anxiously waiting for resolution, and my heart warmed at the faithfulness of our Heavenly Father. Seeing the hand of God move in the lives of the characters as He holds them, protects them and carries them through the joys and trials of life. I felt as if the characters became friends of mine and I often wonder how they are doing now! Lol! I’d love to meet up with all of them in a sequel!!” – Myra's 5-star review on Amazon.com

~*~
Author Bio:

Women’s Fiction author Mary Marie Allen lives in northwest Indiana with her high school sweetheart husband, a feisty 97-year-old mother, and a rambunctious German Wirehair Pointer. 

She’s authored four books of poetry, including one children’s Bible story. 

After five surgeries in two years, she’s happy to continue the story of the characters first seen in “God’s Love Most Gentle”. 

She expects book two to release fall on 2018 as “God’s Love Most Faithful”.

~*~
Connect with Mary:
E-mail - marymarieallen2015@gmail.com
Website - https://www.marymarieallen.com
Facebook - https://www.facebook.com/PoetAndWriterMaryAllen/
Pinterest - https://www.pinterest.com/marymakingmerry/

Cozy Christmas Reads: Belle's story

Interview with Belle Calhoune, author of Reunited at Christmas:

Alexis: The setting for your story, Reunited at Christmas, is an Alaskan town called “Love”. How sweet! It’s a very unique name for a town. What makes it special? Paint a picture of it with words.

Belle: Love is a quaint Alaskan town that is very special due to the charming townsfolk and its remote location. Love is only accessible via ferry boat and seaplane. The town has an imbalance of males to females, so the premise of the series is that the town mayor, Jasper Prescott, starts a program called Operation Love that brings single females who are looking for love to the lovelorn town called Love. There is lots of love in this town along with warm-hearted folks who live their life with faith.

Alexis: Ruby Prescott is the heroine of your story. What is she like? Describe her looks, personality and heart. 

Belle: Ruby is a beautiful woman with tawny colored skin, long black hair and warm brown eyes. She is African American. She is very brave. In the story she is suffering from amnesia, so when she returns to Love it is on a wing and a prayer. She’s forced into situations where she is completely lost, so she really has pluck and grit. She’s very honest and loving. She has a very big heart and she tends to think of others before she thinks of herself.

Alexis: How was Ruby’s life before the avalanche that almost claimed her life and how is it different now that she survived?

Belle: Prior to the avalanche she was working as a member of a search and rescue team which required a lot of courage and mental fortitude. She was happily married to Liam and raising a small child, Aidan. Although she and Liam were very much in love, he was very concerned about her career and the inherent dangers, so that was an issue standing between them. Overall, she was happy but conflicted about her career.

Alexis: Liam Prescott is the hero of this story. What is he like? Describe his looks, personality and tell us what defines his outlook on life.

Belle: Liam is very handsome. He’s tall with dark brown hair and brown eyes. He is probably the quietest Prescott. He’s a doctor who cares deeply about the world around him and his patients. He looks at life as an opportunity to care for others and show compassion and love. It takes a lot to anger or upset him. He’s a loving husband and devoted father.

Alexis: Ruby and Liam have a son. Tell us about him. How old is he? Who does he look like the most, his Mom or Dad? What is his favorite hobby?

Belle: Their son is named Aidan. He’s a really cool kid. He’s five years old. He looks like a sweet combination with dark hair and light brown skin. He’s biracial and beautiful. His favorite hobby is sledding. He loves the Alaskan outdoors and spending time in nature. He also loves pizza. 

Alexis: How did Liam and his son react when Ruby’s avalanche accident happened?

Belle: They were both devastated by her death. Liam had to hold it together so he could raise Aidan as a single father, but he was really messed up emotionally by losing Ruby, the love of his life. One of the beautiful aspects of this story is how Liam and Aidan had to band together in the absence of Ruby so that their little family didn’t fall apart at the seams.

Alexis: Why does Ruby have amnesia? What are her husband and son doing to help her regain her memory?

Belle: Because of the fall she sustained during the avalanche, Ruby suffered a head trauma. She does have spurts and flashes of memory, which lead her back to her hometown of Love. Through the course of the story we see that Ruby begins to remember things. The hope is that she will get back most of her memories, although it is quite possible some things will be forever lost to her. I think Liam and Aidan’s role is to be quietly supportive. Their very presence helps Ruby remember her past. 

Alexis: The cover models for your book are beautiful! What race are Ruby and her husband? Why did you choose to write about an interracial romance?

Belle: Yes, they really are gorgeous. Ruby is African American. Liam is Caucasian. Aidan is both. I wanted to write about an interracial couple because that reflects my reality. I myself am biracial and it is something very natural for me to see in my environment. My ancestry is diverse. I am African, Irish and have many other European ties. I think it is realistic in this day and age to show a loving, devoted couple who are interracial.

Alexis: What were the challenges of writing this book? What were the rewards?

Belle: It was challenging to write an amnesiac because I had to reconcile her new personality with her old personality. In essence, Ruby was born after the head injury. She’s the same person, but different. So I had to remind myself of that fact. Also, I had to portray amnesia in a realistic manner. I didn’t want to have Ruby suddenly remember everything. I think flashes of memory is more realistic. And also, I had to show that she may never regain those memories because that is what happens with real life individuals who suffer from amnesia.

Alexis: If you could spend this Christmas with The Prescott Family, what would you all do?

Belle: If I could spend Christmas with the Prescott Family I would ask them to take me sledding with them on the mountain. It would be so much fun to sled in Alaska and share fun times with this incredible family. I would also love to meet Mayor Jasper Prescott because he is the center of this quaint town and quite a character. He would definitely make me laugh out loud.

Alexis: Thanks for the interview, Belle! God bless you and Merry Christmas!

Belle: Thanks for having me on your blog. Merry Christmas to you as well. Blessings!

~*~
Author bio: 

Belle Calhoune grew up in a small town in Massachusetts as one of five children. 

Although her mother was a doctor and her father a biologist, Belle never gravitated toward science. Growing up across the street from a public library was a huge influence on her life and fueled her love of romance novels. 

Belle is the author of nine Harlequin Love Inspired novels with a tenth hitting the shelves in March of 2018. She has Indie published the popular and best-selling inspirational romance series, Seven Brides, Seven Brothers. The Secrets of Savannah and Pelican Bay are both spin-offs of her debut series. 

Belle loves writing romance and crafting happily-ever-afters. When she’s not wrangling her two high maintenance dogs or spending time with her husband and two daughters, Belle enjoys travel and exploring new places. 

~*~
Blurb for Belle's book, Reunited at Christmas:

A Season to Remember 

Two years after the avalanche everyone thought had claimed her life, Ruby Prescott returns to the remote Alaskan town of Love. And no one is more ecstatic than her husband, Liam, and their young son. 

Even if amnesia has robbed Ruby of her memories, she's soon woven back into the fabric of their lives. As they celebrate the holiday season, Ruby is falling head over heels for the man she's told was the love of her life. But she can't escape the feeling that there's something Liam is keeping a secret. 

Will the return of her memories tear them apart for good—or will this be a Christmas she'll never forget?

~*~
Connect with Belle:
Website - http://www.bellecalhoune.com
Twitter - https://twitter.com/BelleCalhoune
Facebook - http://bit.ly/2yTdF4v

~*~

Enter this book giveaway contest for your chance to WIN a copy of this book by filling out the entry form on the Rafflecopter widget below:
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Book Spotlight: The Last Summer, a romance story by Brandy Bruce

Meet Brandy Bruce. She is an author and editor of books, wife to a man named Jeff, and mom to their three adorable children. She loves dessert, especially cheesecake. 

Brandy's been our guest before but today, she's here to share an excerpt from her newest novel, The Last Summer! It's a great story. Read my review of her book then enjoy the story excerpt! :)

~*~

Book: The Last Summer

Author: Brandy Bruce

Reviewed by: Alexis A. Goring

Author Brandy Bruce shares her Contemporary Romance fictional story about a circle of friends who support each other like family and hold each other’s hearts.

The Last Summer is the title of her story and it’s a winner! Readers will find the supportive friendship of these main characters to be something that most people desire in real-life.

The story focuses on Sara Witherspoon and her longtime crush Luke. The author does a great job of keeping the focus while also giving the reader time with each of the friends in Sara and Luke’s circle. She does an amazing job of keeping the secondary characters’ subplots in line with the overall plot without confusing the reader, which can happen when an author has more than four main characters. There are seven friends in this story.

The reader is invited to go with Sara and her friends to their lake house summer getaway, engage in the wedding planning, and eat meals with the characters and their families. It is a delightful experience that makes the reader feel like they are in the story with the characters.

This story is about a summer that changes everything. One of their friends is getting married. Another already married announces that she is pregnant. Sara discovers a secret that her parents kept from her, and she struggles to deal with the heartbreak of watching her best friend Luke date Debra.

A handsome pilot from North Carolina enters the story and begins to woo Sara’s heart and for a while, it works. But then there’s Luke who she’s loved from day one, which makes Sara more distressed and confused.

As the story progresses, the plot thickens and this close circle of seven friends finds their bond being tested as they’re faced with a common struggle: Does growing older and making life changes mean that they will grow apart?

The Last Summer is an engaging story filled with likable characters, memorable moments, situations that are true to real life, and a lot of heart.

*The author provided Alexis A. Goring with an ARC of her book in exchange for an honest review.

~*~

Excerpt from Chapter Two of The Last Summer by Brandy Bruce:

Addison slid on her sunglasses. “Can you believe this heat?”

I dug through my purse for my own sunglasses. “After a lifetime spent in Texas, unfortunately, yes, I can believe it. Where ARE my sunglasses? Grrr! And I just realized I forgot sunscreen. Someone better have some.” I shook my purse.

Addison tsk-tsked. “How many Diet DPs have you had this morning?”

My addiction: Diet Dr Pepper. The gang liked to tease me about it. As if drinking Dr Pepper in Texas was a novelty. Sure, I might drink more soda than most—but we all have our vices. Thankfully, I’ve managed to keep my unnatural-for-anyone-older-than-ten-years-old appreciation for cherry Fruit Roll-Ups a secret to this point.  

“What about Yoda?” Addison asked.

“She’ll be fine. She’ll have complete run of the place for two days and she’ll love that. I’ll come home to so much fur everywhere that you’d think I lived with a gorilla.” I found my sunglasses and calmed down, then sweet-talked Addison into pulling through a McDonald’s drive-through so I could get a large Diet DP. It was Addison’s fault really. She’d brought it up and then I realized I’d forgotten to bring one for the road.

Summer in Texas was brutal. And even in early June . . . well, you learned to get used to it. The temperature on the car dial read 95 degrees. We chit-chatted as we drove through the city; once we passed the Houston city limits, I turned down the radio.

“So tell me how things are with Glen,” I told Addison, speaking of her boyfriend of the past nine months. She’d met the African-American youth pastor from a nearby Bible church at a leadership conference.

“Good. I adore him,” Addison said.

 “Well, what’s not to adore?” I said, thinking of Addison’s attractive, outgoing, crazy-smart but kind-of-obsessed-with-bike-riding boyfriend, and Addison smiled.

“So true.”

“Are you doing that bike marathon with him this summer?” I asked and worked hard to keep my lips in a line to keep from laughing at the immediate frown on Addison’s face.

“Hmm. I don’t know. Probably. It’s kind of a long marathon and I’m not really . . . but, yeah, I mean, if I buy a new bike seat . . .” her thoughts trailed off.

“Are you in love with Glenn?” I asked.

“Without a doubt. I’m one hundred percent in love with that man,” she sighed a happy sigh, all thoughts of bike-riding having vanished.

“How do you know?” I wondered.

“When it’s love, Sara, you know.” She gave me a sideways glance and her demeanor shifted again.

“How’s Luke doing?”

It wasn’t strange that she asked me. Everyone in our group knew that Luke and I were close.

“You know, he called me earlier, sounding a little distracted, saying we need to talk. Probably a work issue. Other than that, I think he’s fine. He has a lot of pressure on him at his job. That promotion last year has been a mixed blessing. More money, way more responsibility. Still, he’s so capable,” I felt like I was rambling. The conversation with him earlier kept flashing back.

“Like you,” Addison said, turning on her blinker and switching lanes.

“What?” I asked, my mind on that phone call.

“Capable like you,” Addison said again. “It’s like you two are the same person, Sara. You know that. We all know that. You finish each other’s sentences. It’s almost creepy how similar you and Luke are.”

“It’s not creepy!” I protested. But she was right. My friendship with Luke had started slow; conversations that ran long after hanging out with friends, running errands together because we always seem to take the same approach about shopping, about getting things done. Our taste in restaurants, entertainment, our views on spirituality—everything clicked. Eventually we just started spending more and more time together because our friendship was so easy.

Easy.

Easy for him.

“Do you think it’s hard for girls and guys to be friends?” I asked Addison. From her side profile, I watched her nod.

 “Yes. But it’s possible. Look at the seven of us. Our friendship is . . . “

“Unique,” I answered after a moment.

“Right,” she agreed, checking her blind spot before switching lanes again. “You and Jason are friends, and I was afraid you wouldn’t be after you two broke up.”

“I was afraid of that, too. I’m incredibly thankful we’ve managed to stay friends, great friends. And Luke—well, Luke and I are BFFs and he isn’t even a girl.”

Addison chuckled.

“He’s your match, I guess,” she said. I didn’t answer. The words swirled in my head. For some reason, they didn’t land, they just kept swirling.

“Could you tell from the beginning?” I asked. “Was that why you wanted me in the group, Addison? Because Luke and I were so much alike?”
            Addison turned off the freeway. She shook her head without looking at me.

“Oh no, Sara. It was because of how Jason looked at you from the moment you walked in the room that day. I thought you were Jason’s match.” 

~*~
Author Bio: Brandy Bruce is a mom, a wife, a book editor, an author, and someone who really loves dessert. She’s the author of the novels Looks Like Love, The Romano Family Collection, and The Last Summer (June 2017 release). Brandy, her husband, and their children make their home in Colorado.

~*~
Buy Brandy's book on Amazon

~*~
Connect with Brandy:
Website - https://brandybruce.blogspot.com
Twitter - https://twitter.com/BrandyBruce
Instagram - @ALittleBitofBrandy
Facebook - https://www.facebook.com/authorBrandyBruce/
Amazon Author Page - http://amzn.to/2rxoINc