Authors: Jenna Pizzi
Sweet Serendipity
By Jenna Pizzi
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Amazon Edition
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Sweet Serendipity
Copyright © 2013 by Jenna Pizzi
Editor: Tabitha Short
Cover Artist: Erin Dameron-Hill
Formatting by
JT Formatting
All rights reserved.
Without limiting the rights under copyright reserved above, no part of this publication may be reproduced, stored in or introduced into a retrieval system, or transmitted, in any form, or by any means (electronic, mechanical, photocopying, recording, or otherwise) without the prior written permission of the author of this book.
This is a work of fiction. Names, characters, places, brands, media, and incidents are either the product of the author's imagination or are used fictitiously. The author acknowledges the trademarked status and trademark owners of various products referenced in this work of fiction, which have been used without permission. The publication/use of these trademarks is not authorized, associated with, or sponsored by the trademark owners.
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Table of Contents
Preview of “Love’s Second Chance”
Rebecca pulled open the curtains in her bedroom and looked out at the bright May morning. The sunlight cascaded through the window pane causing miniature rainbow prisms to dance along her walls. Another day, she thought to herself. Let the morning craziness begin.
As if on cue, her sixteen-year-old daughter, Riley, screamed at the top of her lungs, “Mom!
Rebecca ran down the hall where she spotted her ten-year-old son, Adam, holding a big black spider in front of his older sister’s face.
“Get him out of my room, now! I’m going to be late for school.” Riley demanded.
“Come on, Adam, stop teasing your sister, please. You need to get dressed and eat your breakfast.” Rebecca gave her son the look that told him to get moving or else.
“Geez mom, I was only having fun,” Adam responded as he slowly walked down the stairs into the kitchen, opened up the back door and lowered the spider on the deck. Rebecca poured a cup of coffee while she lovingly watched her son spare the spider’s life.
“OK buddy, what would you like for breakfast this morning?”
“Pancakes,” he answered instantly.
“Pancakes it is then.” She said with a big grin on her face.
Rebecca pulled a large bowl from a cabinet and began mixing together the ingredients for the pancakes. She didn’t believe in feeding her children frozen food. She wanted her kids to start their mornings with a homemade meal. While the pancakes were cooking, she hurried around the kitchen packing lunches for her husband, Jack, and her children, Riley and Adam.
Some mornings she felt as if she was Wonder Woman, capable of taking on the world. While other mornings she felt as if she was on auto pilot, following the same monotonous routines day in and day out.
Riley charged into the kitchen with her backpack on her back. She grabbed her lunch bag and headed for the door when Rebecca yelled out to her, “Oh no you don’t young lady, get your butt back here.”
“I don’t have time, Mom. Ashlee is already out in the driveway waiting for me. I’m going to be late.”
Rebecca handed her a plain pancake and told her to eat it on her way to school. She kissed her cheek and wished her a good day.
“What do you have planned after school?” Rebecca quickly asked her as she walked out the door.
“I have basketball practice, so you’ll have to pick me up at five thirty.”
“Thanks for the advanced notice, Kiddo, Adam has hockey at four so I might be a few minutes late.”
“Yeah, fine, whatever. See ya!” Riley waved goodbye as she got into the car and closed the passenger door.
Rebecca took a deep breath; she knew she should be grateful that Riley was a good kid as far as seventeen-year-olds went. She got good grades and played team sports, but Rebecca missed the times when Riley needed her and looked up to her as her hero. Rebecca watched as the car pulled out of the driveway. She gave a quick wave goodbye, feeling a little sad that Riley now had her own friends and her own routines, and no longer needed Rebecca the same way that she used to. She was her own person now.
“Mom, can I have my breakfast?” Adam asked, interrupting her thoughts.
Rebecca smiled at her son as she walked back in the house. She placed three pancakes on a plate, added a few fresh strawberries, and topped it off with maple syrup. Adam ate every bite.
Jack rushed through the kitchen like a frantic maniac, which was his typical morning routine. Rebecca stood aside as he slammed doors and hastily rummaged through drawers looking for something. He appeared in the kitchen with an annoyed expression upon his face.
“Have you seen my keys?” He asked with a testy tone to his voice.
Rebecca held them up and shook her head. Every day it was the same. Every day Jack rushed around in the morning, never able to leave for work on time. He hastily grabbed his lunch and ran his fingers over Adam’s head.
“Bye buddy, have a good day at school today, kick some ass in hockey later.”
Adam giggled at his father’s use of profanity.
“OK, Dad, I’ll see you later.”
Jack then looked over at Rebecca and very dryly said to her, “I’ll talk to you later,” as he rushed past her and out the door without as much as a simple goodbye.
Jack owned a garage in town. He had opened shop ten years earlier after being sick and tired of turning wrenches for someone else for many years. He ran a very successful garage and was the local go-to guy. Rebecca didn’t mind. It allowed her to be able to stay at home and raise the kids. That was all she had ever wanted to do…or so she thought.
At eight thirty, Rebecca put Adam on the bus and waved goodbye as the bus pulled down the street. As was making her way back toward her door she noticed that her next-door neighbor was outside watering her flowers, so she waved hello. Her neighbor didn’t bother to wave back. She turned away from Rebecca and resumed watering her flowers. Rebecca simply smiled to herself as she shook her head. Fifteen years they have lived in this very house. Fifteen years and her neighbor never once waved back.
She popped another K-Cup into her machine and hit the brew button. As if on cue, the phone rang. She smiled to herself, knowing how much she loved her morning routine.
“Good morning, Em.” She smiled into the phone. Emily and Rebecca became fast friends when they worked in the local mall together as teens. They have been the best of friends ever since.
“Oh, thank God you answered, my morning is a wreck. My damn dog decided to dig up my plants therefore throwing dirt all over my white carpets. Andrew decided to moisturize himself from head to toe and top it off with baby powder. Do you know what happens when baby powder gets mixed with moisturizer? I’ll tell you; it turns into a very thick glue-like paste. I had to bathe him twice just to get it off. I now need to shampoo the carpets. I think that the baby can sense all of the stress because it has been kicking up a storm. I am exhausted and unbelievably uncomfortable!”
“Would you like me to take Andrew for a while so you can relax?” Rebecca asked.
“I couldn’t do that to you. You already have so much going on.”
“I’m fine with it. My house is quiet now, and I really don’t mind. You can get some much needed rest. It’s a beautiful day outside. I’ll take him to the playground and wear him out for you.”
“I’d owe you big time. It’s so hard to do all of this alone.”
“Well, you are not alone. I am here for you, and James will be home from the Army around the time the baby is born.”
“I am eternally grateful. As for James, he can’t get here soon enough. I just hope we don’t end up hating one another. We’ve never spent more than a few weeks at a time with each other. What if we end up hating one another?”
“You married him, and you are about to have your second child, so I am pretty sure you guys don’t hate each other.”
“I know. You are right. I’m just tired and really hormonal. I appreciate you, Becca.”
“I know you do. I’ll be there soon.”
Rebecca hung up the phone, placed her coffee cup in the dishwasher, and set out for Emily’s house. She arrived within a half hour and was greeted at the door by Daisy, the St. Bernard, who jumped up and slobbered a big wet kiss on her. Andrew could hear Rebecca’s voice, so he came running and jumped into her arms as he squealed.
“Hi Auntie, we go play?” he said with all the enthusiasm of a three-year-old.
“Yes, Bud! Does that sound like fun? Then mommy can get a little rest.”
“OK!” The little blued-eyed preschooler answered.
“I don’t get it, Rebecca. You are always so put together, and you always look so pretty.”
Rebecca cracked up laughing. At thirty-seven years old and married for nearly eighteen years, she didn’t feel very pretty anymore.
“Oh, you know how to charm me, my friend.” They said their goodbyes, and Emily headed straight to her bedroom for a much needed nap.
Rebecca pulled into Nelson Park and Andrew ran off to the swings. She pulled out a snack bag for him and a book for herself. She began walking to a nearby bench when she heard a familiar voice calling her name. She looked over her shoulder and noticed Tasha waving to her. She stopped and waited for her to catch up to her. Tasha was out of breath by the time she reached Rebecca. At thirty-seven, Natasha was in better shape now than she was back in high school. Tasha reminded Rebecca of Beyoncé, with her mocha skin and long, sexy hair. It suited her. They had been friends since high school and had their daughters around the same time.
“You put me to shame, Tasha. Look at you all hot and sweaty.”
“Please, don’t give me that crap. I have to work at my image. You are just one of those lucky skinny bitches. What are you doing here anyway, aren’t the kids at school?”
“Yes they are. I’m watching Emily’s little guy. She needs some rest, and I thought I’d let him run around here. Why aren’t you at work?”
“I have no clients and no court, so I am enjoying this beautiful day. Let’s go sit and chat.”
Tasha took a sip from her water bottle and followed Rebecca to a bench. Rebecca waved to Andrew to let him know where she was, and he waved back as he excitedly followed another boy over to the slide.
“So, what’s been happening girlfriend? How’s Jack?”
“Jack is…Jack. He works and he sleeps.”
“Wow, let me please contain myself…sounds pretty boring. Is he having an affair?”
