Wedding Journey

By Sara Hooper

To the casual onlooker, Janet Lockett is a strong, self-assured woman. Her kindness shows through in the work she does as an occupational therapist. What is not seen is the pain that plagues her in the hours spent alone, away from the world. A closer look reveals a woman who is incapable of a serious relationship. She is a woman in need of rescue, even though she may not realize it.
Janet has no idea that her life will be forever changed by a chance meeting at a friend’s wedding. Her initial encounter with the likes of Peter Wrightson only confirms her belief that men are a waste of her precious time. Soon enough, she will find that he isn’t what he seems and her discovery will send her on a journey that opens up an entirely different world for her.

Length: 20,112 words
This is a black woman white man interracial romance novella.

• Language: English
• Publisher: Sara Hooper
• Release date: Jul 11, 2014
• ISBN: 9781310544422

Book preview

Wedding Journey

Sara Hooper

Smashwords Edition

Copyright 2014 Sara Hooper

Smashwords Edition, License Notes

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Table of Contents

Chapter 1

Chapter 2

Chapter 3

Chapter 4

Chapter 5

About the Author

Chapter 1

They just seem like such an odd pair. I mean, he’s a corporate lawyer and she teaches special needs children. What could they possibly have in common? Sheila said to the people gathered at her table. It was the one designated for the single people who had arrived without dates.

Are you kidding? Look at them. They are like Ken and Barbie. What else do they need to have in common? I have a feeling that everything they need to know about one another is understood from a horizontal vantage point, responded one of the guys at the table. He snickered as he completed the thought.

You are terrible! Sheila replied with a hyena-like laugh. That sound alone went a long way toward explaining why such an otherwise attractive woman was still single though well into her thirties.

Well, I think they are perfect together. There is nothing wrong with embracing your differences. If we were all alike, we’d be bored to tears with one another, someone else chimed in. It was Janet, one of the bride’s work associates.

So, you think that someone who spends their life busting their ass to get ahead in a high profile corporate job can actually relate to someone who spends their days holding hands for a living? What can two people like that possibly comprehend about one another? scoffed Peter, a cousin of the groom.

There is a lot they can learn from one another. My ex-boyfriend was a stockbroker and I’m an occupational therapist. We had a solid relationship based on a mutual admiration and respect for each other’s accomplishments, Janet replied, perhaps a little indignantly.

Then, why is he your ex-boyfriend? I’m guessing that he really didn’t spend a whole lot of time listening to your happy little stories of how you helped someone that day while raking in a salary that you could have achieved serving coffee at the local Java Bean. Say what you want about how happy your job makes you, normal people prefer hard, cold cash over a pat on the back for their good deeds, Peter replied.

I can assure you that the work I do pays better than being an under educated barista. Plus, I would much rather come home and feel good about the work I’ve done during the day than wake up every morning dreading the day at my dull, unsatisfying job just because I’m going to get a big fat check at the end of the week. I guess you need that extra money to drink away the sorrow of spending your days in a miserable means to an end, Janet retorted.

Everyone at the table around them was silent as Janet glared at him for a moment. He looked at her with a bemused smirk on his face that only served to infuriate her further. Rather than wait for him to insult her profession again, she picked up her clutch from the table and walked away. She heard Peter say something that she couldn’t quite comprehend as she walked away and the entire table burst into laughter behind her. What a bunch of schmucks.

Janet said her goodbyes to the bride and groom. The valet brought her car around to the front of the reception hall and she drove away, still irritated by the conversation with the arrogant prick at the table. Who did he think he was to just disparage someone’s occupation like that? She wondered what he did for a living that made him think everyone else was so lowly.

By the time she arrived back at home, she had dismissed him as just another one of the obnoxious people you sometimes meet in life. She was sure that he was miserable in his own life and that is why he felt the need to make someone else feel bad about their career choices. Janet loved her job. Seeing the children she worked with learn to cope with their disabilities in a way that gave them more of a chance for a solid future was something she wasn’t ashamed of.

Several months later, Janet was invited to a housewarming party being given by the newly married couple. They had finally sold their respective apartments and purchased a new home just outside of town. It was a large, sprawling house that overlooked the Ohio River. Janet was overwhelmed by the gorgeous view from the oversized windows that flanked most rooms of the home. She could smell the fresh spring air coming off of the cool waters as she stepped outside onto the large deck that connected the house to the immense back yard.

She couldn’t believe how serene it was compared to the hustle and bustle of downtown Cincinnati where she lived in a fairly small, but nice, apartment. After taking it all in for a few moments, she turned to go back inside the house to top off her wine. Instead, she found herself colliding with the chest of a man headed in the opposite direction.

Oh, I’m so sorry! she began, grateful that neither of them seemed to have spilled their drinks on one another. Her eyes trailed up his long, lean body and met his eyes. Sudden recognition set in and she scowled without even realizing she had done so.

"Ah, if it isn’t