by Alison Mello
TABLE OF CONTENTS
COPYRIGHT
DEDICATION
PROLOGUE
ONE
TWO
THREE
FOUR
FIVE
SIX
SEVEN
EIGHT
NINE
TEN
ELEVEN
TWELVE
THIRTEEN
FOURTEEN
FIFTEEN
SIXTEEN
SEVENTEEN
EIGHTEEN
NINETEEN
TWENTY
TWENTY-ONE
TWENTY-TWO
TWENTY-THREE
TWENTY-FOUR
TWENTY-FIVE
TWENTY-SIX
EPILOGUE
ACKNOWLEDGMENTS
Copyright © 2018 Refuse to Lose by Alison Mello
All rights reserved. Except as permitted by U.S. Copyright Act of 1976, no part of this publication may be reproduced, distributed, or transmitted in any form or by any means, or stored in a database or retrieval system, without prior permission of the author.
The scanning, uploading, and distribution of this book via the Internet or via other means without the permission of the publisher is illegal and punishable by law. Please purchase only authorized electronic editions and do not participate in or encourage electronic piracy of copyrighted materials.
This book is a work of fiction. Names, characters, establishments, or organizations, and incidents are either products of the author’s imagination or are used fictitiously to give a sense of authenticity. Any resemblance to actual persons, living or dead, events, or locales is entirely coincidental.Refuse to Lose by Alison Mello is intended for 18+ older, and for mature audiences only.
Editing and Formatting by Masque of the Red Pen
This book is dedicated to some very special ladies in my street team. These ladies have always been there for me. They encourage me and always have my back.
Karen, Misty, Lori, Haddie, Stacey, Rhonda and Arien. I love you ladies so damn hard. Thank you so much for all you do. You make Mello’s Militia special, and I hope you will forever be a part of my street team.
I also need to add a little shout out to my son, DJ, who has not only been encouraging me to write a story involving sports, but has always wanted me to use his name in a book. Well here you go, buddy. I love you to the moon and back.
"Mom, what are you doing?" DJ asks, walking through the door from his last day of school with a look of shock on his face. Of course, I can't blame him. I made this decision without even speaking to him about it, but I'm his mother, and I'm doing what I believe is best for us.
"Have a seat." I pat the empty spot on the couch next to me.
"Listen, buddy. Mom has done some serious thinking in regards to our situation. I'm not comfortable here in New York and I know I'm not being fair to you by keeping you stuck in this house all the time, so we're going to move. I want us to live somewhere that you can roam free and live the childhood life you deserve.
"But Dad's here." He sounds sad.
I close my eyes and take a slow, steady breath. "I know, and I believe in my heart that he would be okay with my decision. I believe that he would want me to do what is best for us." DJ losing his father at a young age has forced me to be blunt with him. We've had many conversations about the fact that his father is not coming back.
He nods but looks like he's still not sure he understands. "Where are we going, and when are we leaving?"
"I planned this so we could leave this weekend. You're done with school, and I want to be sure we find a place and get settled before the summer is over. Loretta is going to take care of selling our things and emptying our apartment for us. I've already gotten some of the items sold online. She and Carl will take care of meeting up with the people to deliver the items."
He looks a bit shocked but excited at the same time. "Mom, the weekend is tomorrow. Is my room packed?"
I smile at my son because I'm so proud of how brave he's being. "I packed your clothes. You have two boxes in your room that you can fill with anything else you want to bring, but unfortunately, we only have room for two boxes worth of what's most important to you and can't be replaced." What could a ten-year-old have that is really that important other than some things his father gave him. Two boxes should be plenty of space for him.
He nods and runs off to his room to do as I asked. I want so bad to follow him, but I need to give him some space. He hasn't been very happy here since his father passed on about two years ago. He has a few friends but they aren't close by, and there's no way I'm letting him roam the streets to hang with them. He's going to be eleven soon, and he needs some time to process this change.
Looking down at the family photo in my hand, I think about the many of nights I spent crying and praying to Dylan that he give me the strength to do what I believe is right. Thanks to my counselor, I believe I can finally move on.
I place the family photo into the box, tape it up, and stack it with the others by the door. I'm thankful for my minivan. It's comfortable for our drive and will allow us to take more things with us. I'm startled by the sound of the buzzer. It's Carl and Loretta bringing pizza over and saying goodbye. DJ and I will be leaving first thing in the morning.
I press the intercom button to confirm it's them before I let them up, and a second later there's a knock at the door. When I open it I see my dear friends standing there holding a few boxes of pizza and two bottles of soda. "DJ, Loretta and Carl are here with pizza." DJ comes running into the room. He says a quick hello and grabs the pizza from their hands to set it up in the kitchen. By the time we get in there, he's already setting up paper plates, napkins, and cups.
"Hungry?" Carl asks him.
"Starved," he replies, loading a few slices onto his plate. We all laugh and watch DJ dig in.
"Are you excited, DJ?" Loretta asks him.
He shrugs. "I don't know. Mom hasn't even told me where we're going."
"Well, I haven't fully decided yet. We're going somewhere in West Virginia."
His brows furrow. "West Virginia?" he questions.
"Yeah," I say with determination, not wanting to admit there's not a ton of explanation behind the choice.
"Why would you pick West Virginia?" he asks, sounding shocked.
"It's small town country living, and they have a lot of sports options for you. Maybe you can play something other than baseball."
His brows shoot up in shock. He looks like he's not sure what to say. "Whatever you say, Mom." He shakes his head and grabs another slice of bacon pizza.
We've just crossed the state line into West Virginia. "We're going to find a decent hotel to spend a few nights. I'll look for a place for us to settle down and get a job."
"Okay." He shrugs and goes back to playing a game on his phone, while I continue along our drive. It's been tough because there isn't a ton a ten-year-old wants to say to his mother while driving in the van. He would much rather occupy his time playing on apps than chatting with me. We loaded the van up late last night and left at two thirty this morning hoping to make good time, and we did. It's almost lunch time, and I'm going to need to find a place to stop soon. I decide to pull off the highway in hopes of finding something halfway decent.
My eyes are wide with excitement as we pull into this small town. I don't really know where we are, but it's the type of town I've always dreamed of living in. This place looks so warm and inviting. First thing I notice are a ton of beautiful tall trees. You don't get to see stuff like this in the city. "DJ, program the GPS to find us a restaurant." He pushes a few buttons and the voice calculates telling us there are a few options
. I continue on the path the robotic voice is describing, and now DJ is looking out the window with me. We drive past the town hall. It's a small, outdated building, but it fits in perfectly with the scenery. Not too far from that is the small diner the GPS is directing us to. When we pull up, both our stomachs begin to rumble. We climb out of the van, taking a second to stretch before heading in. "You know, DJ, I have a good feeling about this place. This might just be home.” I look around with a big smile. “How about we grab a bite to eat?"
DJ chuckles. "Sounds good to me."
As we approach the diner, my smile grows even more when I see a help wanted sign in the window. Things are getting better by the minute.
We walk in, and a woman with short dark brown hair greets us. "Good afternoon, y'all. Can I get you a booth?"
"Yes, please."
She walks us over to a small table. "Welcome. I'm Misty. What can I get you folks to drink today?" DJ orders chocolate milk, and I order a diet soda.
She returns with our drinks and we place our food order, but before she walks away I grab her attention. "Excuse me, do you know what kind of help they're looking for?"
She chuckles. "I'm looking for a waitress."
"I'm looking for a job," I tell her, sounding hopeful she'll even consider it.
"New to town?" she asks with a pleasant smile.
I nod. "Just got in today. I'm going to be staying in the local hotel until we find a place to settle."
"Well, why don't I get you your lunch and then we can chat."
When she walks away, I wink at DJ "What do you think, buddy?"
"I don't know. It'll be cool to stay in a hotel if it has a pool because then we can swim." I can't help but chuckle.
A few minutes later, Misty comes back with two plates of food and she asks if she can join us. When I agree, she pulls up a chair. "Tell me about yourself."
"I'm a single mom. We just moved here from Manhattan, NY, and I need a job."
"What made you move to West Virginia?"
I smile and tell her our story, going into just enough detail to let her know that I really need this job. "My husband passed away, and it made me afraid to stay in the city. Plus, I've always wanted to live in a small town like this one. I just happened to stumble upon this place and decided to stop."
"Wow, you're one brave woman." The conversation between the two of us flows easily. I can see Misty is going to be a good friend, and that's what I really need in my life right now—good friends. My parents passed away when I was a young adult. DJ doesn't even remember them, and Dylan's parents moved away from New York to Florida to retire and enjoy the warm weather. They didn't want to deal with the snow any longer. That left us with no one but friends. Misty pats DJ's arm with a smile. "DJ, how old are you?"
"Ten, but I'll be eleven soon," he says with pride, puffing his chest out.
Misty chuckles. "I have a ten-year-old too. Do you want to meet him?"
"Sure," DJ says, trying to play it cool, but he's not really hiding his excitement.
"Awesome because I'm going to hire your mom to work in my diner, but that means we need a place for you to hang out until school starts, right?" He nods. I look up to the ceiling and say a silent thank you to Dylan for looking over us and hooking me up with such an amazing person.
"Misty, I can hire a babysitter for DJ if you just give me some time and maybe some names."
"No, no, I won't hear of it. Mason needs someone his own age to hang with while I'm at work. I want you to come to dinner tonight at my place. I'll introduce you to my family, and the boys can play for a bit. Take the rest of the week to get DJ settled, and you can start on Monday."
"Misty, I don't know what to say."
"Welcome to small town living.” She chuckles. “All you have to say is that you'll join us."
With a huge smile on my face, I thank her for both hiring me and her hospitality. I think it's extremely sweet of her to welcome us into her home for dinner. I'm a little nervous about going to a stranger's house, but I have to believe that Dylan will continue to look over us. This is a chance for us to make a new start, and this is the type of town I was looking for—friendly people who are willing to help a woman in need.
"Good morning, Stella!" Misty calls out from behind the counter.
"Hey, girl." I slip my apron over my head and quickly give her a hug. I work at Shawmut Diner, and it’s slamming this morning. The place has been around for years and when the previous owner, who happens to be a family member of Misty’s, could no longer take care of it she took it over and has been running it for about the last five years. "Sorry I'm a few minutes late. The bus ran late picking DJ up this morning, and to boot, he has his first baseball practice tonight."
"Girl, you know it's not a problem. I know what it's like to be a single mom. I just got lucky and found Briggs. I also know about practice because he and Mason are on the same team. Since Mason will be at your place, will you bring them to practice and I’ll meet you there?" Briggs is her second husband and a great guy. He adores her and her kids. He owns the general store in town. It's one of those places where you can get almost anything you need for your home all in one place.
"Thanks, and of course that’s not a problem." I get a pot of coffee brewing when the bell above the door rings.
“Good morning,” I say with a smile, and the same brilliant smile I see every morning greets me back. This man has been coming into this diner every morning since I started working here. The first day I saw him he looked tired and almost grumpy, but when our eyes met his lit up, and he’s been greeting me with a smile since.
“Good morning, sugar. Can I get my usual?”
Trystan has been calling me sugar from day one. Typically that’s the type of thing that really annoys me, but coming from him, that sweet little accent ringing out from his lips it turns me to moosh. He flirts with me every morning, and every morning my response is the same, “Have a great day.” It’s all I can ever manage. I don’t know what it is about him, but he makes me all jittery.
He wiggles his eyes and says, “You too.” I can’t help but watch him walk out the door. Misty told me to watch out for him. She’s heard that he’s the town stud. His name is Trystan, and I keep saying I will introduce myself but I have yet to do it. I chuckle, realizing that after about six months of making the man his coffee it may be weird to introduce myself now. We’ve both done bits of flirting but never made it to the formality. To be honest, as much as I’d love for that man to clean out them cobwebs, I’m not sure that’s the best idea right now.
Some of our regulars come walking in making me realize he’s early today. I shake off my thoughts and get busy tending to our ole timers. The people in this town are pretty amazing. I grew up in New York City and was fine there until Dylan was murdered. He was walking home from work one evening when he was mugged. They stabbed him several times and left him in an alley to die all alone. After that, I decided the city wasn't where I wanted to raise my kid. I wanted a place where he could have fun with other kids. The bus picks him up every morning, and he gets home before me. In a town like this I don't have to stress him being home alone. Where we came from, there wasn't a chance in hell I could let him be home by himself. He is good friends with Misty's oldest son, Mason, so the two of them go to my house after school to do their homework. They're sixth graders and in the same class, so it works out well.
"Stella, can I get some more coffee when you have a minute?" Fred, one of our old timers, calls out.
"Sure thing. I'll be right there, Fred." We have a crew of men we call the old timers crew. They’re all retired and most of them have served in Vietnam. I believe they are a mix of Army and Navy, but they literally sit in this diner for most of the morning drinking coffee and shooting the shit. I have no idea how they come up with that much stuff to talk about, but they do. A few of them work part time around town, but it's usually for a few hours in the afternoon. I grab the pot of coffee and greet them. "Good morning, gentlemen
."
"Good morning, pretty lady." I chuckle as I refill their cup.
"Charlie, what did I tell you?"
"I don't know." He shrugs. "I'm three quarters deaf you know." I throw my head back laughing. He's not really three quarters deaf but he loves to flirt with me, and every time I remind him he is far too old for me he acts like he can't hear me.
I pat him on the shoulder. "I bet you would hear me if I told you to come over for dinner."
"Only if you said you were dessert."
My eyes go wide. "You are a dirty old man." I plant a hand on my hip.
"Damn right. I'm old not dead."
I shake my head and call over my shoulder, "You need to hit up bingo this weekend. There are some women your age who would love to date you."
He starts to grumble as he does every time I say that. The town has bingo at the church every Friday night, but it's mainly filled with women. Some of the men go, but Charlie and his crew stay away. There's a few women there who like them, but they’re not impressed. As a matter of fact, there was a rumor floating around that Charlie and Betty had a thing for a while, but Betty couldn't keep up with him so he broke up with her.
I'm starting a new pot of coffee when Misty comes up behind me. "Charlie flirting with you again?"
"Yeah, that man needs to stop popping Viagra." Misty cracks up laughing. "You laugh but that man needs to stop." She shakes her head.
The remainder of the shift is a whirlwind of activity. This is the place to go for breakfast and lunch. Misty isn't open for dinner and we're out of here by three p.m. The kids get out of school at two thirty, so it works out great.
"Mr. Shepard. Please step forward," the judge calls out. I can't believe I'm sitting in a courtroom. I got pulled over for drinking and driving, and no matter how hard I tried I couldn't talk myself out of having my car towed. I need to thank my lawyer who couldn't be here because he's busy with another case. Fucking bastard, some friend he is. With a sigh, I step forward and approach the empty table that is waiting for me.
"Here, Your Honor."
