Changes of the Heart

By Michele Richard

When you're left with nothing at all, all you have left is to rebuild. Can losing everything bring two people together to make a new family? Gabe Lost his family on 9/11 and himself in the process. Juliette was left homeless with a small child after the child's father abandoned them. Will an icy collision bring these two to a happily ever after or are they too broken?

• Language: English
• Publisher: Renaissance Romance Publishing
• Release date: Jun 20, 2012
• ISBN: 9781476047072

Michele Richard

About The Author:Michele Richard lives in a suburb of Boston, Mass. She’s the mother of two pre-teen daughters, Danielle and Virginia.She’s currently learning French and Spanish, and one day hopes to be fluent in both. Learning new things is always something she enjoys.In 2012 she opened Renaissance Romance Publishing.Her works include:Mocked by series:Mocked by DestinyMocked by FaithMocked by Faith ~ Healing the FaithParasouls series:Divine InterventionShort stories:Changes of the Heart (Life is More Than Candy Hearts)10 Days to LoveThe Roommates

Book preview

Changes of the Heart

Author:

Michele Richard

Smashwords Edition

*****

Published by

Renaissance Romance Publishing

Copyright Michele Richard 2012

The right of Michele Richard to be identified as the author of this work has

been asserted by her under the Copyright Amendment (Moral Rights) Act

2000

ISBN: 9781476047072

Smashwords Edition, License Notes

This ebook is licensed for your personal enjoyment only. This ebook may not be re-sold or given away to other people. If you would like to share this book with another person, please purchase an additional copy for each recipient. If you’re reading this book and did not purchase it, or it was not purchased for your use only, then please return to smashwords.com and purchase your own copy. Thank you for respecting the hard work of this author.

This book is a work of fiction and any resemblance to persons, living or dead, or places, events or locales is purely coincidental. The characters are productions of the author’s imagination and used fictitiously.

This work is copyright. Apart from any use as permitted under the

Copyright Act 1968, no part may be reproduced, copied, scanned, stored in

a retrieval system, recorded or transmitted, in any form or by any means,

without the prior written permission of the publisher.

Renaissance Romance Publishing

PO Box 22 Clarendon, TX 79226

Cover design by: M.A. Richard

Thank You

Renaissance Romance Publishing and the author would like to thank Elizabeth Lawrence and Nick from Everything Indie. To all our fans in our fan groups and pages - we love you!

Thank you to my family for all their support: Maurice, Danielle, Virginia, and Pat, my mom.

They’ve endured my long nights of writing and editing with total understanding and unwavering support. I love you all. Without Lisa and Laura this might have never happened. I thank God everyday to have two partners who are also my best friends.

Table of Contents

Chapter 1

Chapter 2

Chapter 3

Chapter 4

Chapter 5

Chapter 6

Chapter 7

Chapter 8

Chapter 9

Chapter 10

Epilogue

Chapter 1

Juliette’s Hitting Rock Bottom

How the hell did my life end up such a mess? I grumbled, tossing my son’s clothes into a trash bag.

Looking at the police officer standing there with the eviction notice in his hand, I seethed, It’s the week before Christmas, for Pete’s sake!

Juliette, you were warned if I didn’t have your back rent by the fifteenth, you were outta here, complained my now-ex greasy, gray-haired apartment manager.

Please, Ms. Morrison, your time is up.

I looked up with tears welling in my eyes. The officer’s eyes shined back at me, full of compassion. With a sharp nod, I grabbed what I could carry, letting the officer handle carrying the rest of my belongings down to my beat up, old, beat up, gray Toyota Corolla. That beast would be our new home.

Let’s go, Cole. Turning to my son, I could see the confusion on his tiny features.

Unlike me, that rundown apartment was the only home he’d ever known. If his deadbeat dad hadn’t run off on us six months ago, we wouldn’t be getting thrown out in the first place. I couldn’t afford the rent on our one bedroom on a diner waitress’ tips.

Where we going, Momma?

I don’t know, baby, but I’ll think of something. Shifting my bags, I freed my hand to take his.

I held my head high and never looked back at my ex-landlord. Cole shivered as we stepped out into the frosty winter air. His jacket was already too small and would never fight off the Detroit, Michigan winter. We hurried to the car, trying to avoid the arctic cold front that had settled on the city overnight. He hopped into his car seat while I tossed everything we had left into the trunk. After popping it open, I started tossing everything in.

Do you have some place to go tonight?

Shaking my head, I huffed a white breath. No. I followed his father here from North Dakota. There’s no one here for us now.

Take a suggestion? Go home. He— the officer nodded his head toward Cole, deserves a home for Christmas. He passed me the last of our belongings.

I’m pretty sure they don’t want me back. They weren’t exactly happy to hear that I was pregnant at eighteen. I sighed.

How long has it been since you spoke with them? he gasped.

Four years ago. I fidgeted under his disbelieving gaze.

A lot changes in four years . . . Leaving the words hanging between us, he turned and headed for his cruiser.

After all this time, could I really go home? I’d run off in the middle of the night, leaving nothing but a note. Over the years, I’d tried to call, but I always hung up before they answered. Wiping away my tears, I decided I didn’t have a choice. Cole always came first, and if they rejected us, we’d survive somehow.

Climbing into my car, I tried to smile at my baby boy shivering in the backseat. Cole, how about we go see your Grammy and Grampy? He’d seen the only picture I’d brought with me from home.

Okay, Momma. He grinned, warming my heart.

Strapping on my fraying seatbelt, I prayed we could do it on the gas in the tank. It would be close. Too close. Playing with his toys, he kept himself content as I pulled away in search of something better than what little we had.

I said goodbye to Detroit one last time as we hit the highway. We left the big city life behind us, heading northwest on the interstate. My parents lived an easier, simpler life in the rural area of Mohall, North Dakota. There Cole could run in the fields, explore the farm, and, if they were willing, get to know my parents.

It’s not as if my parents were horrible people. They were faithful Christians, family oriented, and hopeful I’d do better than Billy Joe Jefferson. At the time, he was all I wanted. I should have listened to them back then.

The highway miles whirled by in a never-ending blur of white lines. Within hours, the cities became a distant memory, replaced by the wide open spaces of the countryside. Cole and