The Broken Road

The Broken Road

Written By Melissa Huie

Copyright 2011 by Melissa Huie

All rights reserved.

This e-book is a work of pure fiction. Any resemblance to an actual event or person- living or dead– is purely coincidental. The author acknowledges the use of trademarked status and trademarks 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.

Editorial provided by Swift Ink Editorial Services      www.swiftink.net

Cover Art by Cusp-Studios       www.cusp-studio.com

Photography by Talia D. Photography     www.taliadphotography.com

To my wonderful and amazing children, -

Always reach for the stars. I know you can do anything you set your mind to.

I love you.

To my amazing husband –

Without your love and support, this wouldn’t be possible. Thank you. I love you.

This book is dedicated to the memory of my mother.  You always knew I would put my imagination to good use. You always believed in me.

I love you and miss you every day.

Chapter 1

I should have stayed in bed. I really should have just stayed in bed.

In my rearview mirror, I watched the police officer approach my car. I was on my way home from work on a crappy day and this is the last thing I wanted to deal with. I rolled down the window of my one-year-old Volvo and waited.

  “Ma’am, I clocked you at 66 in a 55 mile per hour zone. License and registration please.”

I smiled and dove into the black messenger bag that I used for work. I flipped open my pink leather wallet and realized that the space where my driver’s license
should
be is empty. I froze; my mind retraced what I had done with it. Could I have left it at home? At the office? I scrambled through the contents of my bag; tossing makeup, tissues, change, and other items onto the passenger seat.

  “Excuse me, Miss. Is there a problem?” He asked, peering at me. I knew he’d rather be sitting in his warm car, instead of standing on the side of the parkway in the bone-chilling temperature.  I gave him my most brilliant “I’m cute, please don’t be mad at me” smile and said, “I’m sorry. I’m not normally this disorganized. I have it here somewhere.”

  Apparently, my smile didn’t work because he just sighed and looked away. The panic hit when all I found at the bottom of the bag was a crinkled receipt and a lint covered mint. At my wits end, I finally felt around the pocket of my pea coat and gave a sigh of relief when my fingers wrapped around the hard plastic. I handed over my paperwork and with a huff, the officer headed to the warmth of his car.

I heaved a heavy sigh. The only place I wanted to be was on my couch, in my sweats, with a glass of Riesling. This day had been the pits. Doomed before I even woke up. I didn’t hear my alarm clock. I woke up to my lab mix, Penny, practically licking my hand off before I raised my head off the pillow and realized I was supposed to be on the road. In jumping out of bed, I barely missed Penny’s brown paw, and ended up crashing into my dresser.
That’s going to leave a nice mark;
I winced as I rubbed my arm. After showering, I realized I forgot my towel, which meant I had to navigate to the linen closet soaking wet, trying not to slip on the hardwood floors. After I was finally ready, I ended up spilling coffee on my hand and I left my lunch sitting on the kitchen counter.

   Going to work wasn’t the best idea either. I tore a nail, spilled even more coffee on my brand-new shirt, and got yelled at by a junior partner because
he
forgot to put back his file in its proper place. And to top it all off, I started my period two days early. Hungry, tired and mentally drained, all I wanted is for this day to end. A knock on my window interrupted my pity party.

  “Ms. Connors, here is your paperwork. You have the right to protest this ticket by appearing in court on March third. Please watch your speed.” He handed me my documents and returned to his car. I glanced at the ticket. One hundred dollars.
Great, one more thing to subtract from my meager budget.

   It took longer than usual to get home, thanks to going the speed limit. Two tickets in one day might just send me beyond my breaking point I pulled onto Hazelnut Court and into the carport of my half of a 1980’s red brick duplex in the town of Crofton, Maryland. It was small; with a backyard barely big enough for Penny, but it suited us just fine.  I unlocked the door to the mudroom and forced my way in as Penny tried to rush out. I threw down my bags and grabbed her collar.

   “Whoa Penny! Whoa!” I cried, pulling her back. I led her to the back door a few feet away and out to the fenced-in back yard.

  Sighing, I put my things on the wooden bench. I normally take Penny on a nice long walk after work, but with the chill in the air and the crappy day I had, that’s the last thing I wanted to do. Penny ran around for a while I added food to her bowl and checked the contents of the fridge for myself. My New Year’s resolution was the same as everyone's - to eat healthier and get into better shape. The workouts stopped before they even started, so I’ve had to really make an effort with the eating part. Everything I have in the fridge would require actual cooking. Heck no, I’m hungry now and I don’t feel like standing next to the stove. I opened up the back door and whistled for Penny. She bounded over, a slobbery ball in her mouth.

   “Aw, Penny. It’s too cold out. Get inside. Come on baby girl! Where’s your woobie? Let’s get your woobie!”  The fake enthusiasm worked. Penny dropped her ball and barreled inside. I headed upstairs while she scrounged around in her toy box for her favorite toy.  As the old water pipes heated up, I studied myself in the mirror.

   I haven’t gone on a date since I first met my ex-fiancé, Tommy Greene, three years ago. I haven’t changed too much. At twenty-six, I’m a size twelve with curves. Not overweight, but I’m not going to win any fitness contest, that’s for sure. I can look good when I want to, but lately, I haven’t made much of an effort. Up until recently, I’ve been so busy at work; there hasn’t been the time to meet anyone new. And, well, nor did I really want to. I’ve only been in love twice and both relationships ended with being “just friends.”

              “Just friends...with no benefits.” I muttered. 

After my shower, I felt a million times better. Dressed in a pair of sweats, I pulled my dark brown hair into a messy ponytail and padded down to the kitchen to address the food issue. Penny was at her food bowl, searching for scraps.

  “Oh my piglet Penny. What am I going to do with you?” I handed her a bone from the butcher’s. She greedily took it into the living room while I pulled out the take-out menus. I had just decided on Chinese when the phone rang.

“Hello?” I answered. 

“Hey Megan. What’s going on?” asked a husky voice that sent my heart racing. Shane Turner. We have been really good friends for nine years. Well, he thinks that we’re just friends. I was, and pretty much still am, completely in love with him. He always caught the eye of the prettier, skinner girls and I was the insecure idiot. Our relationship cooled after I found him at a restaurant with another girl and treated them so rudely. I was jealous; I acted like I had a claim to him, when I really didn’t. After calming down, I was mortified to learn that the girl turned out to be an old family friend. He accepted my apology, but our friendship became awkward and strained. It took the death of my father to mend our friendship. Since then, I’ve never told him how I felt. Just friends seemed to be the way our paths would lead. No matter how many lies I told myself, I couldn’t chance our friendship again. And it doesn’t matter anyway. Shane’s dating someone else now and that someone is not me.

“Hey Shane. We’re just hanging out. What’s up?”

“What are you doing later? I’m thinking about swinging by there and picking up that movie I left last week.” I heard the high-pitched whine of the power-tools and figured he was leaving the auto-shop where he worked.

  
Oh be still my heart
. “Yeah, that’s fine. I’m home now so whenever you want to stop by. I’m about to order Chinese; do you want me to order you something?”
Please
? I silently begged
.

   “No, I’m good. I’m meeting Allison for dinner.” I mentally groaned at the name of his new girlfriend. Shane and Allison had been dating for the last few months or so and it seems to be going well. She appears nice enough, but I’m not sure what to think about her. She’s not good enough for him. Hell, nobody is good enough for him.

  “Oh. Okay. That’s fine. I’m in for the night, so whenever,” I tried to play it cool, but inwardly I really hoped he would come over alone. Being the third wheel in any situation is very awkward.

  “Sounds good. If you do end up going out, just leave it on the kitchen table. I’ll let myself in,” he replied, sounding rushed.  “Hey – I need to go.” And before I realized what happened, I was saying goodbye to the dial tone.

  “Stupid Allison,” I grumbled to Penny. I shouldn’t get mad at Allison. After all, no one, except for my best friend Jen, has any idea that my feelings for Shane are this strong. Even when Tommy and I were together, Shane always had a piece of my heart. I gave up on the idea of us. We have both grown up and, sadly, grew apart. It was only recently, when I moved back home, that we became close again. But no matter how much time has passed, Shane has always makes my heart jump whenever he comes near me.

After I placed my order for Chinese, I threw myself on the oversized brown couch and covered up with a burgundy fleece blanket. My gaze landed on the game console and all the fitness games gathering dust. Some games have never been opened. A twinge of guilt gnawed at me for the money I’ve spend and the lack of effort that’s been put forth.  I shook my head. I don’t need a game system to tell me how much weight I’ve gained since the last time I worked out. Not today.

I stuck out my tongue at the offensive console. Penny came over and laid her head on my leg.  “That’s my good girl” I murmured, rubbing her silky ears. Penny is easy to please and is my best friend. I rescued her when I moved back to Crofton, saving her from a shelter and in turn, she helped me get through a tough time.

  The breakup was a total life changer for me. I went from living with someone and planning a life with him to being on my own. Tommy and I were together for three years. We bought a condo in Virginia and were going to get married. As a rising star in the FBI, Tommy’s dream assignment was New York City, which I found hard to accept.  Virginia is close enough to my mom and brother so that I didn’t panic, but far enough away that we can have our space.  For a while, Tommy understood. But he never stopped chasing his dream. Once it started to become more of a reality, our relationship went downhill.

  Tommy changed; his job became more important than our relationship. Tension built. We fought about the everyday mundane things like chores and bills; then it would escalate to the lack of trust and the future of us. Then, he decided one day that he was done. He was through with the fighting and he wasn’t happy anymore. A good thing in hindsight; I don't think I was really ready to get married. At least not then and not to him; not when we were either fighting or not speaking to each other.  We lost what was important and I felt I didn’t know him. So, eight months ago, we sold our condo in Virginia. He went to New York and I moved home. Tommy and I still occasionally exchange texts now and then. The cordial “hellos” and “how are yous?” I think about him occasionally and I do miss him, but I know it’s for the best. His career was his first priority and I was not willing leave my family to accommodate it.

The doorbell interrupted my train of thought and Penny started her happy wiggle. I quickly put her in the mudroom so she wouldn’t charge the delivery guy and grabbed some money from my purse. I opened the door and was startled. Standing on my front porch was Shane, holding my dinner.