Summer of Second Chances by Andrea Hurst

Author:Andrea Hurst [Hurst, Andrea]
Language: eng
Format: epub
Publisher: Hurst Publishing
Published: 2020-06-08T18:30:00+00:00

The aroma of fresh-brewed coffee lured Shelby from her room. It definitely helped motivate her to get up early for dog walks. She walked out in her pajamas and heard her Grandma Alice humming in the kitchen. The scent of cinnamon and butter made her mouth water.

"Good morning." Shelby said.

Alice hummed as she moved around the kitchen, dressed and freshly made up. "Good morning. Did you sleep well?"

Shelby was surprised to see her grandmother so animated, and then she remembered Theo had come to dinner last night. And there were fresh flowers in a glass vase on the table.

Shelby smiled. "Someone's happy this morning."

Alice shrugged it off and reached for the coffee pot. "Would you like a cup?"

After pouring coffee for Shelby, Alice picked up a spatula on the counter by the stove. “I'm making you some French toast. You used to love it when you were a little girl."

This was going to be a wonderful morning, but a real sugar rush. “I have less than an hour until I have to pick up Mindy's dog. I've got to check my calendar; I think I have Dixie and Ruby today too.”

"Have a seat,” Alice said. “I’ve been soaking the bread in a vanilla, cinnamon, and egg mixture with a touch of cream, and it’s ready for the frying pan. We used to call it railroad French toast when you were little, do you remember?”

“I think I do.”

“Your grandpa and I took you and your mother on the Coast Starlight train all the way to Oregon for a vacation. All you could talk about after the trip was the choo choo French toast.”

Shelby sipped her coffee. "How old was I?"

Alice placed the gooey bread in the buttered frying pan, letting it sizzle as it cooked. "You were about five. Your dad had passed away the year before, and your mom was grieving. Grandpa and I decided to take you both up to Oregon and try and get everybody's mind off things. Your mom spent the whole time looking out the window and sleeping, but we took you to the wonderful Portland zoo.”

"I remember. Didn't you buy me a hat with a face on it and long braids hanging down?"

"That's right!" Alice dished up the French toast and topped it with a splash of powdered sugar. "There you go. Enjoy.”

This is the life, Shelby thought. She took a bite out of the buttery breakfast and moaned. "No one can make it like you, Grandma."

"Well, thanks. I know it’s a bit heavy for summer, but I’m happy to make it anytime."

"Where's your breakfast?" asked Shelby.

"I ate an hour ago. I've been up fussing, getting the first batch of cookies... Oh, the cookies! I ought to go check on them."

Alice was deftly creating magic in her kitchen, just like the old days. Change was possible under the right circumstances, Shelby thought. She was beginning to feel like a new person herself. She thought about Logan. He was so... She hated to use the word dreamy, but that summed it up pretty well.

Download

Copyright Disclaimer:
This site does not store any files on its server. We only index and link to content provided by other sites. Please contact the content providers to delete copyright contents if any and email us, we'll remove relevant links or contents immediately.