Southern Belles, a Novel About Love, Purpose & Second Chances (9781310340970) (46 page)

“Are you sure you’re ready for that?”

“No, but the bad choices we make don’t make
our situations any better, even if only for a moment.” She said,
holding me tightly.

“Did I ever tell you that I’ve always
admired you?”

“I’m going to need you to keep the
compliments coming for a while.”

“I’m being truthful CeCe. I love your
ability to fight hard for what you want including our
friendship.”

“Thank you.”

As we got to the edge of the pond, Eric and
Skylar lent their hands to help pull us out. As we made it back to
dry land, I noticed an audience from the lawn to all the windows.
CeCe, in true form, waved to all as she curtsied and took a
bow.

The news quickly spread to all three
families and to most of the county within the 24 hours. CeCe and
Skylar took off to talk and figure things out. I thanked Eric again
for his truly wonderful friendship. He said I was allowed to give
him a hug after I washed up. The wedding was cancelled and the
Crawford’s decided to throw a party for the entire town since
they’d already paid for everything. Lucy stayed at the party with
my parents so she could wear her pretty pink dress. We decided to
wait and not tell her just yet that she had another daddy.

Alone and covered in mud, I took the ferry
back to St. Marys. I went home and took a hot shower. Afterwards, I
sat down in front of my computer. I reflected back over the past 48
hours and set out to finish the last three chapters of my book
while my entire family celebrated on Cumberland Island all night. I
laughed and cried thinking about the frailty of life, how the
unexpected things—the unmade plans God knew about all along brought
challenges, surprises, but best of all relationships worth more
than all the gold and diamonds in the world. I stayed up writing
until the last period was in place. I saved a copy of the book and
then emailed it to Mrs. Kisielewski at 11:59 PM. Just after
midnight I crawled into bed and closed my eyes.

Chapter 23: Puppies and Butterflies

The
next morning I awoke to my cell phone ringing a little after
nine.

“Hello?”

“Meet me at Tru-Rox in twenty minutes.” CeCe
said pertly before hanging up.

I was excited to get to the diner and meet
with CeCe. I kissed Lucy and woke her up. I got her dressed quickly
and changed my clothes. We hopped into the car and headed to the
diner; a few minutes later we arrived.

“Hi Char.” Trudy smiled, bringing the coffee
pot over, as we slid in our booth.

“Good morning Tru.”

“Morning Ms. Trudy.” Lucy said grabbing some
crayons and a kid’s menu to color on.

A minute later CeCe walked in beaming. I
waved to her and she strolled over.

“Can I get you anything CeCe?” Trudy
offered.

“How about a chocolate milkshake?”

“Sounds good; it’ll take me a second. We’re
short-staffed. I haven’t been able to find another server as good
as Char and it doesn’t look like she’s coming back anytime soon.
Your mom said your book got picked up and is being published. I
knew it was only a matter of time for both of you to find your
wings and soar.” She smiled.

“Awe, thanks Tru,” CeCe and I said in
unison, before we looked at each other and started laughing.

“I want cheese fries.” Lucy said pressing
down firmly with her pink crayon.

“Good choice Lu. Your momma and I use to
order the chocolate milkshakes…”

“And the cheese fries she told me.” She
said, finishing CeCe’s sentence.

“That’s right.” CeCe smiled looking over at
her.

“Ladies, I’ll be back with your food in a
few moments.” Trudy said, leaving to put in our order.

“So, are you okay?” I asked, reaching my
hand over to hers.

“I’ll be okay. I’m sad but I’ll
survive.”

“I finished my book at 11:59 PM.” I smiled
back.

“I trust that I gave you enough material to
finish your book.” She grinned.

“Ughh, yes you did. Thank you for that and
for everything.”

“You’re welcome. I owed you one.”

“What do you mean?”

CeCe smiled and looked down and back up
again. “Last night after I finished talking to Christian, I mean
Skylar— I thought about you and Skylar and Eric. Do you remember
the day we first met Eric?”

“Yeah—I remember fighting over the locker
with you to put on my make-up before we saw him.” I smiled.

“Do you remember when Mrs. Newwater asked
for a volunteer?”

“How could I not? You about ripped my hair
out trying to get your hand higher in the air than mine.” I said as
Lucy shot CeCe a strange look before looking at me. “Auntie Ce was
crazy mad for Eric when we were in fifth grade.”

“Do you remember what I promised you that
day?”

I thought back—recalling the conversation we
had twelve years ago. “It’s a bit fuzzy—”

“I promised you that if you let me show him
around that the next good guy that came along was yours.” She bit
her bottom lip.

“Ladies, here are your fries and two
chocolate milkshakes, on the house.” Trudy unloaded the tray before
hurrying off.

Just then the doorbell dinged. I glanced
over to see Skylar look around before his eyes landed on mine. He
started towards us.

“I love you Char. I’ll always be there for
you and I know you’ll always be there for me. It’s your turn now;
your Prince Charming has arrived.” She said, standing up to kiss me
on the cheek before she headed towards the door.

She stopped and hugged Skylar on her way
out.

“Wait CeCe, where are you going?” I
shouted.

She smirked, “I’ve got some business to do
at Sothersby Insurance Company.”

“On a Sunday?” I asked, before her words
registered and she was out the door.

“Is this seat taken?” Skylar asked Lucy and
I as he approached.

“You can sit there.” Lucy interrupted.

“So, do you come here often?”

“A lot, me and my mommy love the cheese
fries and chocolate milkshakes.”

“Chocolate milkshakes—those are my
favorites!” Skylar smiled.

“I think we’re going to be friends then.”
Lucy giggled.

Skylar gazed at us. “I think we’re going to
be good friends too, Lucy.” He said reaching for my hand, “How do
you feel about puppies?”

Lucy’s eyes widened as she watched him.
“Oooh I love puppies!”

“Me too, I have a bulldog named Zeus.” He
said, grinning widely at the two of us.

As Lucy began asking questions about Zeus,
Skylar gently tucked my hand into his. Seeing him smile made me
smile and from deep within me I felt the pitter patter of
butterflies being released.

~The End~

Acknowledgements

A huge thank you to my husband Andrew Anderson for
helping me with quirky book things and ensuring our children were
not bleeding and ate dinner on the countless nights I spent at my
desk bringing this story to life, to my children, the most amazing
blessings in life and why I do what I do, and to my mother and
biggest fan Barbara Dzuris for so many things and especially, for
instilling in me the love of writing and storytelling. Thank you to
my dad, Milan Dzuris, for being such a great father and papa. To
Katie Hess for a great photograph and Amy Guilford for rescuing my
book cover-thank you ladies. For all the women I’ve come across
that have blessed me with laughter, friendship and wisdom, thank
you. And to my Heavenly Father, the author of absolute love and
second chances, thank you for your patience and your wild sense of
humor.

About the Author

Sarah Anderson grew up in a not-for-profit family
camp serving children and families from low income, urban
neighborhoods in Chicago, Illinois. After graduating high school,
she traveled the world, went on missions trips, and received a
Masters of Social Work degree to make a positive impact in the
world around her. She draws from these experiences to write moving
and humorous stories to inspire people of all ages to reach for
their dreams and never give up. She and her husband live in
Michigan with their four children.

Visit Sarah Anderson’s website to learn more about
her and other works in progress.

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