The Groom Wanted Seconds: A Novella Read Online Free PDF

jigger Rose's grenadine
    8 ounces lemonade
    1 jigger Vodka or Rum, whichever you use for your Mojitos (optional)
     
    Nothing like a sweet little drink to distract you. This one is easy and fast—best of both worlds. If you could just get a cute guy to mix it, you’d have Nirvana in a glass. Put the raspberries and mint in a 12-ounce glass. Mush raspberries with spoon, along with the mint (don't break the mint, just press it enough to release the fragrance and flavor). Break up the raspberries all the way so they'll be little enough to drink. Squeeze lime juice into glass, and leave the lime slice in glass.
     
    Add remaining liquids and stir. Done...drink! Whatever problems you keep dwelling on are guaranteed to feel gone after one, or two, of these!

C HAPTER 5
     
     
    Rebecca fiddled with the forms before her, ignoring the long To Do list that sat beside the yellow order sheets. This was Gift Baskets to Die For’s first order, the thing she and her friends had worked so hard to achieve, and she just couldn’t get into the right frame of mind. She spent another ten minutes doodling instead of working, then finally gave up and pushed away from the little desk tucked in the corner of her room.
    Outside, she could hear the voices of her mother and two of her friends, who were exclaiming over the Sunday circular from Linens 'n Things. From the sound of things, there’d be new bath mats and towels before day’s end. Her mother had already asked her twice to join them for the home goods shopping extravaganza, but Rebecca didn’t feel up to that, either.
    She changed her clothes, then slipped on a pair of running shoes and swung her hair up into a ponytail. She headed out the door, then hit the pavement, weaving her way through her neighborhood and over to the Charles River. She passed the curved Hatch Shell at the Esplanade, the famous venue silent in the middle of the day. The lush green of the Esplanade lawn stretched beside her, but she kept going, looping up to the running path that ran along the sparkling blue river. A crew team rowed past her, the boat barely slicing the water as it slid along with the team’s precise, coordinated efforts.
    Rock music filled her ears, and she concentrated on the rhythm playing in her MP3 player. A classic Stones tune gave way to a fast-paced Christina Aguilera singing “Genie in a Bottle.” Sweat beaded on Rebecca’s forehead, and her lungs began to burn, but she ran on, trying to get this...tightness out of her system.
    She knew the problem. She’d been running from it, and ignoring it, ever since she got home from Indiana. Her hand strayed to her stomach, then away, her eyes burning. She’d dodged a bullet, and she should be grateful instead of sad.
    If she hadn’t miscarried, she’d be pregnant with Mr. Wrong’s baby, all her life plans thrown a huge curveball. God, she’d been so stupid.
    One crazy night. Caught up in flowery words that had nothing to back them up. She’d fallen for the stereotype—a summer fling. He’d been gone and out of her life before the sun rose.
    When the pregnancy test came back positive, Rebecca had been horrified. Excited, then devastated. Pretty much any adjective that could capture the tangle of emotions running through her.
    Then a few weeks later, the pregnancy had ended, a sad blessing that sent her into a second emotional tailspin of both grief and relief. By the end of the summer, she’d taken the whole thing as a hard-learned lesson and a second chance to get it right and make smarter choices. Ones where she thought with her head, not her hormones, and definitely not some silly romantic notions about Mr. Right.
    The problem? Her head kept sending conflicting messages about what she really wanted. So she ran, concentrating on her breathing, her pace, and prayed she’d find clarity by the end of her route.
    She passed under Mass Ave., the constant Boston traffic a roar overhead. Her music player shifted to J. Lo’s “If You Had