I absolutely LOVE this cover!
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Chance Encounter
A Chance and a Hope Book One Now Free! Chance knew love once—a long time ago. She died when they were eighteen and the best of him died with her. Since then his work on a ranch in Montana has allowed him to keep his distance from people and from happiness. Eighteen years later, he may be ready to start living again—maybe. He’s watched all his friends find love and embark on the next stage of their lives. Part of him would like to do the same; part of him would rather cling to the past. He’s hoping that a trip to the Oregon Coast, and a couple of weeks away from his normal life, might help him figure out how he can move forward and maybe even be happy. It’s taken him eighteen years to get this point, but a chance encounter on the beach will make him want to figure it all out in just two weeks. He’s come a long way, but can he really open his heart up to happiness—and to Hope? ~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~ Chance Encounter is the first of three books in A Chance and a Hope Series. These are not standalone reads. In fact, when you get to the end of this story, you may be faced with a cliffhanger – or you may not. The choice is yours! What do I mean? Well, when you reach the end of chapter twenty you’ll be left with a warm and fuzzy Happy-For-Now. Then you’ll be faced with a choice – read on, all the way up to the edge of a cliff where I’ll leave you hanging, or stop right where you are and wait for book two to come out on June 13 and read Chapter twenty-one then. If you love a cliffy, you can have one. If you detest a cliffy, you don’t have to deal with it! And if you hate waiting for the next books in a trilogy, don't worry because they are coming out 1 month apart Book Two: Finding Hope releases June 13 Book Three: Give Hope a Chance releases July 11 |
Here's a sneak peek for you.
Fair warning: You might want to have some tissues handy!
Chapter One
Chance got to his feet and stood back to survey his work. There, that was better. He’d removed the dead flowers from the pot beside the headstone and replaced them with several bunches of fresh snowdrops. Chloe used to love snowdrops. They were the first sign of spring and … he closed his eyes for a moment, not wanting to acknowledge the significance … she’d always said they were a sign of new life. He didn’t want a new life, he didn’t want to move on. It didn’t matter that it had been eighteen years since she died, he still wanted his old life back; his life with Chloe in it.
He stood there for a long time, head bowed, hands folded in front of him. He wasn’t praying, he didn’t do that. He just wanted to be here with her, close to her. In the early years after she died he could still feel her everywhere. He hated that, as the years had gone by, he found it harder to feel her close. He resented the fact that this cemetery, this field full of dead bones was now the only place he could still feel her. This was the only place where new layers of life, new memories hadn’t built up over the memory of her, the memory of them. He drew in a deep breath and shook his head. And here he was bringing flowers that represented new life.
The sky had been gray all morning, suiting his mood. Now the first raindrops were beginning to fall. He turned up the collar of his jacket then picked up his hat from where he’d hung it on her headstone and put it on. He wasn’t ready to leave. He’d come to spend some time with her. There were things he needed to say. Things he needed her to understand. Who was he kidding? She didn’t need to understand. She couldn’t understand. She was dead. He was here to make some kind of peace with himself about what he was feeling. He just didn’t know how. The rain was really coming down now, but it didn’t matter. He was used to being exposed to the elements. A smattering of California rain was nothing compared to the harsh Montana winter.
He stared at the headstone, not seeing it, only seeing her face. Even that seemed wrong, though, somehow. Her face was the face of an eighteen-year-old girl. That was who she’d been when she died. He was now a thirty-six-year-old man.
“I’ll always love you, you know. Nothing will ever change that. You’re a part of me.” His voice cracked on the next words. “But I finally have to admit that you’re part of my past, not a part of my future. You know me; I’m a stubborn bastard. You were supposed to be my future and I never stopped believing that you should be. I don’t know what changed, honey, but something has. Maybe it was seeing all our friends get married. Seeing all of them, even Renée, moving on to the next chapter of their lives. I don’t know what changed, but I do know that I’m still alive. I kept telling Ben that where there’s life there’s hope. When I told him that, what I meant was that he had hope because Charlotte was still alive. But all that advice I kept giving him, I finally came to understand it for me too. Where there’s life there’s hope. And I’m still alive. I’ve decided it’s time to live. I don’t know what that means, I don’t know what that looks like. It doesn’t mean letting you go, I can never let you go. But it does mean I have to take you with me in a different way. I have to accept that you’re just a memory.” He brought his hand up to cover his eyes and swallowed back the tears. “All these years I’ve only been living a half life. I didn’t want a full life because I couldn’t have the life we were supposed to live. Isn’t acceptance supposed to be one of the stages of grief? I think I finally found acceptance that you’re not coming back, that I can never have that life, and that I do deserve a full life. Whatever that means.”
He stared at the headstone, wishing she could answer. His heart felt heavy, but it was lighter than when he first arrived here. He needed this. He’d chosen to close himself off from life in so many ways since she died, preferring to shut himself away with her memory. Something inside him had changed over the last couple of years, though. Some part of him did still want to live, did still want to be happy even though it couldn’t be with Chloe.
He stood that way for a long time. Eventually the rain started to ease up. He didn’t want to leave. He knew that when he walked away from her grave this time it would mark a change, a turning point in his life. He’d decided that that was what he needed, but he still wasn’t sure it was what he wanted.
When the rain finally stopped, the sun peeked through a break in the clouds. It felt like a sign, like she was telling him it was okay. The rain might have stopped, but the tears were still streaming down his face. He dropped to his knees in front of her headstone. He kissed his fingers and then pressed them against her name. “I love you, Chloe.” He nodded. “It’s time.” He got to his feet and backed away until he reached the path. He tipped his hat to her then turned and strode back to his truck;
You can get it in paperback or free in eBook form from:
Fair warning: You might want to have some tissues handy!
Chapter One
Chance got to his feet and stood back to survey his work. There, that was better. He’d removed the dead flowers from the pot beside the headstone and replaced them with several bunches of fresh snowdrops. Chloe used to love snowdrops. They were the first sign of spring and … he closed his eyes for a moment, not wanting to acknowledge the significance … she’d always said they were a sign of new life. He didn’t want a new life, he didn’t want to move on. It didn’t matter that it had been eighteen years since she died, he still wanted his old life back; his life with Chloe in it.
He stood there for a long time, head bowed, hands folded in front of him. He wasn’t praying, he didn’t do that. He just wanted to be here with her, close to her. In the early years after she died he could still feel her everywhere. He hated that, as the years had gone by, he found it harder to feel her close. He resented the fact that this cemetery, this field full of dead bones was now the only place he could still feel her. This was the only place where new layers of life, new memories hadn’t built up over the memory of her, the memory of them. He drew in a deep breath and shook his head. And here he was bringing flowers that represented new life.
The sky had been gray all morning, suiting his mood. Now the first raindrops were beginning to fall. He turned up the collar of his jacket then picked up his hat from where he’d hung it on her headstone and put it on. He wasn’t ready to leave. He’d come to spend some time with her. There were things he needed to say. Things he needed her to understand. Who was he kidding? She didn’t need to understand. She couldn’t understand. She was dead. He was here to make some kind of peace with himself about what he was feeling. He just didn’t know how. The rain was really coming down now, but it didn’t matter. He was used to being exposed to the elements. A smattering of California rain was nothing compared to the harsh Montana winter.
He stared at the headstone, not seeing it, only seeing her face. Even that seemed wrong, though, somehow. Her face was the face of an eighteen-year-old girl. That was who she’d been when she died. He was now a thirty-six-year-old man.
“I’ll always love you, you know. Nothing will ever change that. You’re a part of me.” His voice cracked on the next words. “But I finally have to admit that you’re part of my past, not a part of my future. You know me; I’m a stubborn bastard. You were supposed to be my future and I never stopped believing that you should be. I don’t know what changed, honey, but something has. Maybe it was seeing all our friends get married. Seeing all of them, even Renée, moving on to the next chapter of their lives. I don’t know what changed, but I do know that I’m still alive. I kept telling Ben that where there’s life there’s hope. When I told him that, what I meant was that he had hope because Charlotte was still alive. But all that advice I kept giving him, I finally came to understand it for me too. Where there’s life there’s hope. And I’m still alive. I’ve decided it’s time to live. I don’t know what that means, I don’t know what that looks like. It doesn’t mean letting you go, I can never let you go. But it does mean I have to take you with me in a different way. I have to accept that you’re just a memory.” He brought his hand up to cover his eyes and swallowed back the tears. “All these years I’ve only been living a half life. I didn’t want a full life because I couldn’t have the life we were supposed to live. Isn’t acceptance supposed to be one of the stages of grief? I think I finally found acceptance that you’re not coming back, that I can never have that life, and that I do deserve a full life. Whatever that means.”
He stared at the headstone, wishing she could answer. His heart felt heavy, but it was lighter than when he first arrived here. He needed this. He’d chosen to close himself off from life in so many ways since she died, preferring to shut himself away with her memory. Something inside him had changed over the last couple of years, though. Some part of him did still want to live, did still want to be happy even though it couldn’t be with Chloe.
He stood that way for a long time. Eventually the rain started to ease up. He didn’t want to leave. He knew that when he walked away from her grave this time it would mark a change, a turning point in his life. He’d decided that that was what he needed, but he still wasn’t sure it was what he wanted.
When the rain finally stopped, the sun peeked through a break in the clouds. It felt like a sign, like she was telling him it was okay. The rain might have stopped, but the tears were still streaming down his face. He dropped to his knees in front of her headstone. He kissed his fingers and then pressed them against her name. “I love you, Chloe.” He nodded. “It’s time.” He got to his feet and backed away until he reached the path. He tipped his hat to her then turned and strode back to his truck;
You can get it in paperback or free in eBook form from:
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