The Reunion: Ashley's Mountain Retreat (Starting Over Series)
Page 4
“He should be by in about two hours. I am so sorry about your great grandbaby,” Ashley said putting her hand on the woman’s shoulder.
“Thank you. We are all still in shock, I think. But, God will provide as He always does. Just another life lesson for us all…”
“Life lesson?” Ashley wondered what kind of lesson that could possibly be.
“Everything has a lesson in it, my dear. Sometimes, these things happen and it teaches us to appreciate what we have while we have it. Some relationships are so brief. But, I know my granddaughter will always remember those nine months of feeling her daughter kick and move around in her tummy,” she said with a faint smile.
“I’m sure.”
“Can I give you a piece of general advice, honey?” the woman asked.
“Of course,” Ashley said.
“Never leave anything unsaid to those you love. And, as an old woman, I can tell you another piece of advice. Always take chances because they often lead to the best things in life.” She smiled as she squeezed Ashley’s shoulder and then turned to walk away.
Ashley stood there stunned for a moment. Why had this random woman given her this message? And what would she do with the advice?
***
“Miss Tate, you can sit right here. When the seller and his agent arrive, they will sit across the table from you so that we can easily pass the closing paperwork back and forth,” the secretary said as she took Ashley into the closing room. It had been two more weeks of waiting when the closing got delayed due to inspection issues. The seller ended up having a major plumbing leak repaired. Ashley was starting to worry that her cabin in the mountains was not to be.
“Thanks,” Ashley said as the woman left the room. A big bowl of candy sat in the middle of the table. Ashley reached for a mini candy bar to ease her grumbling stomach.
“You know, that stuff will ruin your appetite for lunch.” His voice rang through her like a bell. She felt her insides start to quiver as memories of kissing Parker shot through her.
“Parker,” she whispered as she looked up at him with a smile.
“The seller will be here shortly. He got caught up in traffic coming through Atlanta,” he said as he sat down across from her. His hair was perfectly messy, and he wore a thick gray sweater that smelled of his cologne.
For a moment, they just stared into each other’s eyes. Ashley thought about the advice that the old woman at the hospital had given her. She was determined to make the best use of every moment she had with Parker.
“I’ve missed you,” she whispered as she played with the candy bar wrapper.
Parker’s eyes got wide when he heard her words. She could tell he was genuinely surprised.
“You have?” he asked.
“More than I ever expected. I think I made a mistake,” she said with a smirk.
“You did?”
“Are you dating someone now?” she asked hoping the answer was no.
“Nope. You are a hard act to follow, Miss Tate,” he said in a husky voice that made her want to climb across the table. “And, for what it’s worth, I’ve missed you too.”
“I just got scared, you know? It was all moving so fast.”
“I know. But sometimes the best love stories happen that way,” he said with a grin.
“True. I have something to tell you…”
Just as she said that, the seller and attorney joined them. As the closing went on, Ashley’s heart raced at the thought of what she needed to tell him. Once the closing was over, he offered to drive her up to the cabin so she could leave her rental car in town.
When they got into his truck, he let out a big sigh and threw his head back. “Okay, I can’t stand it anymore. The suspense is killing me! What do you have to tell me?” he asked.
“Let me explain first. Ever since Dave and I split up, it has been hard to live in Houston. Everything reminds me of Dave. Even the hospital reminds me of him because he would often pop in and surprise me early in our relationship. Every restaurant reminds me of him. These are not good memories, you know? They are memories of a wasted eight years of my life,” she said.
“I can understand that.”
“I started to wonder why I was staying there, in the safety of what I knew for so long. Did I really want to live in Houston? What was keeping me there? And I realized that it was comfort. And I don’t want to spend my life being comfortable. I want to take risks and see what’s on the other side of safety…”
“And?”
“I resigned from the hospital and sublet my apartment in Houston. Yesterday I got confirmation that I will be the new head labor and delivery nurse at Mountainview General!” she said grinning from ear to ear. Ashley really was excited about working in a small town hospital and living in her mountain cabin.
“Seriously? You’re moving here?” Parker asked still trying to process the information.
“Are you going to hug me or what?” she asked with her arms out.
“No. I am going to kiss you!” he said throwing his arms around her waist and pulling her closer. His warm lips felt like home to her.
“Look, I can’t make promises about where this will lead, Parker. I want to take it slow and make sure that we are both happy…”
“Of course. I want you to be comfortable, Ashley. No pushing, I promise. Now, are you ready to go home?” he asked smiling.
“More than ready,” she said.
Epilogue
As Ashley drove to meet her three friends, she was bursting with anticipation to tell them about her whirlwind two years. They would never believe how her story turned out. Finding her Prince Charming had been so unexpected, yet it was the best thing she had ever felt in her life.
Saying her vows with Parker six months ago in a private ceremony by the Franki Falls had been magical. More magical than that was the lump that was growing day by day in her belly. She had just learned that her baby was a girl. They had decided to name her Hope since that summed up what their life together had been about.
Taking a chance had turned out to be the best thing Ashley had ever done. Now living in Parker’s dream house, the couple used the mountain cabin as a place where friends and family could come up and spend time in their quaint little town. Life was as good as Ashley could ever imagine, and she couldn’t wait to find out what had become of Emma, Shelby and Claire. Had they been as lucky as she had? Stepping out of her car, she walked toward the hotel to find out.
Afterword
Thank you so much for buying and reading THE REUNION: ASHLEY'S MOUNTAIN RETREAT novella! This story is the second in "The Starting Over Series." Since word of mouth is so critical to readers and authors alike, I would really appreciate it if you'd pop back to Amazon and leave a review of this story. It will only take a minute or two, but you opinion is priceless.
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Read the first book in the series!
http://www.amazon.com/The-Reunion-Vacation-Starting-ebook/dp/B009SRIGX4
About the Author
According to her family Angelina Rose was a sweet child … maybe a little shy. She often spent a lot of time making up stories rather than running around and playing outside with her brother and sister. She won several writing competitions and used the prizes to help her single mother pay the bills.
Like Emma, Claire, Shelby and Ashley, Angelina Rose is a Nurse. At a recent reunion of her graduating class she could not help but notice how the same girls would group together and laugh, chat and even shed some tears over their lives since graduating. Many of the girls had divorced … so Angelina thought "what if a group of the nurses came up with a plan to meet in two years and have a new love story to share?" Then this first story in the series was born!
Angelina lives in the mountains with her husband, her two poodles and two bombay cats.
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This book is a work of fiction. Names, characters, places and incidents are either products of the author's imagination or used fictitiously. Any resemblance to actual events, locales, or persons, living or dead, is entirely coincidental. All rights reserved. No part of this publication can be reproduced or transmitted in any form or by any means, electronic or mechanical, without permission in writing from the Author.