Stitches and Scars

Stitches

and Scars

a novel by

Elizabeth A. Vincent

OMNIFIC PUBLISHING

DALLAS

Copyright © 2010 by Elizabeth A. Vincent

All Rights Reserved. Except as permitted under the 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 written permission of the publisher.

Omnific Publishing

P.O. Box 793871, Dallas, TX 75379

www.omnificpublishing.com

First Omnific eBook edition, May 2010

First Omnific trade paperback edition, May 2010

First Kindle original edition, May 2010

The characters and events in this book are fictitious.

Any similarity to real persons, living or dead,

is coincidental and not intended by the author.

Library of Congress Cataloguing-in-Publication Data

Vincent, Elizabeth A.

Stitches and Scars / Elizabeth A. Vincent – 1st ed.

ISBN 978-1-936305-18-6

1. Young Women—Fiction. 2. New Hope—Fiction. 3. Friends—Fiction.

4. Doctor—Fiction. I. Title

10 9 8 7 6 5 4 3 2 1

Book Cover Design by Amy Brokaw

Book Interior Design by Barbara Hallworth

Printed in the United States of America

For my “Sophie,” Michelle,

who has been there since the beginning,

when all of this was just an idea.

Chapter 1

Epiphany

S
ophie, you have got to be kidding me!” Kate yelled over the dressing room door.

“Just come out and let me see it,” her friend pleaded.

“No freakin’ way am I coming out there. It barely covers my butt!” Kate turned around to look at herself in the mirror. The red dress she had just squeezed herself into left very little to the imagination. It fell just below her butt, and her chest was at serious risk of falling out.

“Wait, is that the red one?”

“Yeah, the red one that’s so small it’s now cutting off my circulation. What is this, a size two?” Kate pulled at the bodice of the dress, attempting to get her blood flowing again.

“Sorry, that one is mine; here it is in a six. Oh, and try this one too.” She threw the same red dress over the door, followed by a hot pink one. “Oh, and these too,” she said as she tossed over at least five more dresses in all different colors.

“Soph, what it is with all the colors? I’m trying
not
to stand out,” Kate said, tossing the pile of colorful fabrics on the chair.

“Well, it’s the trend right now. Just bear with me. You want this night to be something you remember, and there is nothing wrong with standing out. Plus, who knows—you might just meet someone.”

“Fine, but can you at least give me a few black ones—something a little less … loud?” Kate knew she would be giving in and buying something other than black, but it didn’t mean she was willing to give up without a fight.

“I’m already two steps ahead of you, babe. Here.”

Another batch of dresses was flung over the door, all of them black. Kate was beginning to regret ever agreeing to this little shopping trip, but Sophie always had a way of getting what she wanted. Plus, she was right. Kate did want to remember this night.

It was the first time her art would be displayed in a legitimate, well-known gallery, and she was beyond excited. She definitely wanted to look nice and make a good impression. And after looking through her closet, she realized that in order to do that she’d need to find a new outfit. Originally, she was planning on coming alone and getting a simple black dress. But then again, she did have Sophie as a best friend whose profession was buying clothing. She had an eye for what would look good and a passion for making people look their best.

“Do you have one on yet?” Sophie asked, showing the patience of a five-year-old.

“Almost.” Kate reached around and pulled up the zipper.

“Not bad,” her fashionista friend said, eyeing her over as she opened the door. “We can do better though. Try on the navy one next.”

Kate turned around and looked at the pile of dresses. “Umm, which navy one?”

“It’s right there, near the bottom.” She pointed her delicate finger at the corner piece of fabric sticking out from under the rainbow pile of silk and satin.

After a little maneuvering, Kate stepped into the navy dress and was fumbling with the zipper when Sophie cleared her throat from the other side of the dressing room door.

“So, have you heard anything from Scott lately?” Kate immediately froze when she heard his name. There was hesitance in Sophie’s voice and Kate knew that she hated bringing him up just as much as she did. But as her best friend, she was concerned.

“No, not since the last time.” Kate quickly got dressed, and stepped out without looking in the mirror in an attempt to distract Sophie’s current thought process.

A huge smile spread across her face and she clapped her hands. “Oh, Kate, it’s perfect! I knew that would be the one. See, I told you we would find something. Now all we have to do is find some shoes.” She quickly spun around and headed off for the shoe department, audibly debating whether to go with a sling back heel or a peep toe.

Kate smiled as she realized how good she had become at distracting her friend. Of course, shopping was a huge help. She knew she wouldn’t stand a chance at the game of distraction if they were just sitting at home. Either way, she had succeeded for now.

Still smiling, she turned to face the mirror. Her brown hair was in disarray and hung loosely over her chocolate eyes. With a flip of her head, she swept it aside, fiddling with possible hairstyles. With her hair out of the way, she finally got a good look at herself and realized Sophie was right, the dress was perfect. Not too flashy or loud. The length was respectable and the back showed off just enough skin. She felt sexy but still conservative.

Scott would love me in this.
As soon as the thought came to mind, she quickly pushed it aside and reminded herself that this was not going to be enjoyed by him, or by any other male for that matter. Tonight she was flying solo.

Before she had time to wallow in the fact that she had no one, Sophie came barreling around the corner holding a stack of shoeboxes.

“I couldn’t decide what color or what type, so I grabbed a few of each. Let’s start with the metallic ones; they’d be fun.”

“Fun? Right. They would be fun,” Kate said sarcastically.

“Come on, we’re supposed to be having fun, and shoes
are
fun. What about these?” She held up a metallic pewter peep toe. “These will be like a party on your feet!”

Kate laughed at her use of words. Sophie always knew how to make everything interesting, and she was right—the shoes were fabulous.

“You’re right, those will definitely be a party on my feet. I’ll have to tell them to behave themselves if they get out of hand tonight.” With a laugh, Kate grabbed the shoes and slipped them on.

“So, what do you think?” her friend asked, biting her nail.

“You already know I love them. Would I ever question something you picked out?”

“Yes, in fact, you have questioned me on, I believe … six different occasions.” Besides having great fashion sense, Sophie had an amazing memory; nothing ever slipped past her.

“Hey, six times isn’t bad. You’re lucky, that’s all,” Kate teased back.

“True. I guess after twelve years of friendship, six is a small number.” Sophie smiled to herself, obviously pleased with this fact. “Okay, let’s finish up and head over to the food court. We’re meeting Elle for some lunch in ten minutes.”

Kate went back into the dressing room to change, taking one last look in the mirror.
Tonight is going to be great, I can just feel it,
she thought. Quickly changing back into her jeans and tee, she grabbed her purse and walked over to the sales counter where Sophie was explaining the fine art of accessory shopping to the sales lady. Kate watched her friend talk adamantly with her hands, her white-blond bob swinging past her shoulders with every motion.

“The right shoes can make or break an outfit, and don’t even get me started on the importance of the right jewelry. Some people are just lost in the world of fashion, and it is our responsibility to show them the right way.” The sales lady was listening earnestly, leaning forward on her elbows.

“Here, I’m all set.” Kate put her dress and shoes up on the counter, breaking up the conversation. She felt bad interrupting, but knew that if she didn’t, Sophie could and would continue on for hours. Plus, Elle was waiting, and she hated waiting.

A few minutes later, they were walking through the mall toward the food court.

Kate watched the people as they walked by, wondering where they were heading and who they were meeting. Her mind started to wander back to Scott when Sophie cleared her throat and broke her train of thought. She should know by now that whenever a conversation started this way, it was going to be an interesting one.

“So, I noticed how you kind of danced around the whole Scott question earlier.”

“Oh, yeah?” Kate tried to sound surprised, but Sophie was always too perceptive.

“You know I can tell when something is on your mind, and I know when you’re keeping something from me. So, just drop the act and spill it.” She looked up at Kate, her blue eyes wide and a sad face that she knew her friend couldn’t resist.

“Fine.” She knew she wouldn’t win, so why try? “He sent me a text the other night.”

“What!” Sophie stopped walking and put her hands on her hips. “He texted you and you didn’t tell me! What did it say?”

“Geez, Soph, keep it down.” This was why Kate hadn’t told her. She knew that she’d throw a fit. “It wasn’t that big a deal,” Kate responded. But she was lying; it definitely was a big deal.

“Then what did it say?” Sophie was still standing with her hands on her hips, feet planted firmly on the ground. Kate reached in her bag and pulled out her cell phone.

“Here, you can read it. But at least start walking so we don’t … cause a scene.”

Walking over, Sophie took the phone and started punching the keys. Kate held her breath in preparation for what she knew would be coming.

“He misses you?
He misses you!
Are you kidding me?” She stopped once again and was now screaming at the phone. “He can’t say that! What type of twisted text is that?”

Kate felt her face go red as she dropped her voice. “Could you please not yell?”

Sophie froze and looked around, finally noticing the passing people who were staring. “Sorry,” she whispered. “But you know I can’t help it. And where does he get off saying that? You guys broke up. He can’t say he doesn’t want to be with you and then say he misses you. That’s … that’s just …” she stammered, trying to find the right word and finally settled with, “wrong.”

“I know it’s weird, but I mean … we were best friends. You can’t just lose your best friend and not expect to miss them.” Kate was justifying his actions, like she always did, and she knew it would bother Sophie. So it caught her off guard when she didn’t receive an immediate response.

Instead Sophie just stood there, silently thinking. Eventually she spoke up. “Katherine Elizabeth Thomas, I know he was your best friend. ‘Was’ being the key word here. But the moment he broke your heart, he gave up the right to call you that anymore. If he thinks he can just keep dragging you along like this by contacting you whenever he has a moment of weakness, he is seriously mistaken. I will not let him hurt you any more than he already has.”

Kate looked in the eyes of her concerned friend and couldn’t argue. She knew she was right. Just as much as Kate still wanted to talk to and be friends with Scott, she knew she couldn’t. Every time he made contact with her, it always turned out the same way. He said he missed her, she said she missed him. And after a few days of being “just friends,” he would say that they were getting too close.

This had happened a few times over the last six months, and each time Kate was left broken and crying. One time in particular was exceptionally hard, but she blocked that out, didn’t let herself even think about it. Sophie and Elle were there, like always, to pick up the pieces and help her get her strength back. Kate knew she owed them her sanity and quite possibly even more.

“Soph, I know how you feel and you know how I feel. This time I am not budging. It’s been three days since I got his text and I still haven’t responded, and I’m not going to. In fact, here.” She held out her hand, took her phone back and erased his message. “There. Now I won’t even be able to look at it any more.”

“That’s my girl,” Sophie said with a smile. She skipped over and linked her arm with Kate’s. “Now, let’s go have some lunch.”

When they made it to the food court, it wasn’t hard to spot where Elle was sitting. On most days, people were either lined up around her or sitting close by, blatantly staring. Today they were mostly staring, but there were a few brave boys that had approached her. Her exotic beauty was something everyone noticed. Standing at five foot ten with dark brown hair that almost looked black and flawless tan skin, Elle was a force to be reckoned with, and that wasn’t just because of her looks. The two best friends casually walked over and took their seats on either side of the ever-stunning Elle. Upon noticing them arrive, the boys quickly said goodbye and left the three girls alone.

“Giving out your number to minors again, Elle?” Sophie teased.

“Oh, come on, they were at least eighteen. Besides, they were just being nice and wanted an autograph.” Elle returned her attention to the boys and gave them a playful wink.

“You’re such a tease. I swear, I will never get used to the effect you seem to have on guys.”

Kate had known Elle for just as long as Sophie had. Elle and her older brother, Logan, moved to Virginia during high school, after their parents’ divorce. Although Kate and Sophie were already tightly knit, it didn’t take much for Elle to meld into their pairing. All three were different from each other, yet similar enough to bring exactly what the other needed into the friendship. They were a perfectly balanced, fiercely loyal trio, and nothing ever could or would come between them.

Their friendship lasted through high school heartbreaks and the even bigger ones that followed in college. They remained close, even when they went their separate ways for a few years. Elle went off to L.A. to pursue modeling full-time, Sophie went to Paris to study fashion, and Kate went to London and studied art. They never went more than two days without talking on the phone, and they made sure their trips home were scheduled to be at the same time. It had only been in the last two years, after the gang moved to the Philadelphia area, that they finally lived close together again.