Tangled Webs

By Brenda K Stone

Meet Gina and Wendy.
Gina hungers to have a baby with her new husband Gary, until he reveals a dream wrecking secret.
Wendy falls for a former high school classmate with a crippling hidden addiction.
Gina and Wendy are real world women with real world conflicts. Women gaining control of their lives. Women who know what they want and aren't afraid to fight for it. Women with guts and smarts.
Women like us.

• Language: English
• Publisher: Brenda K Stone
• Release date: Jun 19, 2018
• ISBN: 9780463161753

Brenda K Stone

Brenda K. Stone is the pen name for Barb Lee, a native of Western Massachusetts who loves to write, travel the world, hike the world, and go to rock concerts. When not engaging in these particular adventures or the several other activities she enjoys that leave her no time for rest, you can find her “doing research” with her nose in a rock and roll biography and her black bunny Gert not far away, probably sleeping.

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Tangled Webs: Women Like Us – Book 2

Copyright © 2018 by JenAl RockLit Publishing

All rights reserved. No part of this book may be used or reproduced in any manner whatsoever including Internet usage, without written permission of the author.

This is a work of fiction. The names, characters, places, or events used in this book are the product of the author’s imagination or used fictitiously. Any resemblance to actual people, alive or deceased, events or locales is completely coincidental.

E-book formatting by Maureen Cutajar

www.gopublished.com

Print: ISBN: 978-1986620413

EBook ISBN: 978-1532371035

Table of Contents

A Man With A History

The Other Side of Alcoholism

Author’s Note

Dedication

Acknowledgements

Contact Information

Also by Brenda K. Stone

About the Author

Coming Winter 2018

A Man With A History

I’ll admit, I married a man with a few pieces of excess baggage.

Gary and I met at a barbeque of a mutual friend. Our eyes met across the yard, and that was it.

Who is that? I asked Sandra, who had invited us both.

Sandra and I had gone to high school together. We weren’t the closest of friends, but she liked to give parties, and I sometimes got an invite. Occasionally, I even accepted.

That’s Gary. Really nice guy. But just warning you, he’s here with a date.

The warning was heeded, but the sparks were flying, and not just from the barbeque pit.

Gary was with an attractive dark-haired woman.

That’s his ex-wife Maria. Or maybe, his wife. I heard they’re trying to work things out, Sandra explained.

Those words were enough to temporarily stop me in my tracks, but Gary and I kept meeting eyes that night. The following afternoon, I received a call from Sandra, with the news that Gary wanted to pass his phone number on to me.

He called you about me? I demanded excitedly.

Yes, and he said that he was only with Maria as a friend. He brought her to mingle and maybe meet someone.

That sounded rather suspect to me. But I started to swoon when I remembered how his thick black hair looked against his virile face, and how the glowing fire had reflected in his dark eyes.

Give him my name and number. He can call me.

I’d initiated enough relationships with men to know they lost interest a lot quicker if the woman made the first move.

Good thinking, Gina. I’ll pass it on.

I wrote down Gary’s number anyway, but refused to break down and call it, even after five days of hoping he’d ring my cell. I made excuses for him every day that went by without hearing from him—he must have gotten back together with his ex-wife, or Sandra didn’t give him my number, or he was waiting for me to call him and thought I wasn’t interested because I wasn’t dialing his digits.

I talked to Sandra again and asked her if she gave him my number.

Of course! As soon as you told me to.

He’s so good-looking, he must have women chasing him all the time, I worried.

Um, Gina, I don’t want to burst your bubble, but I’d better tell you something. Sandra paused, and I braced myself for bad news about Gary and his ex being an item again. He’s been married twice and has six kids, and he’s only thirty-four.

For whatever crazy reason, this news was a relief to me compared to Gary being back with his ex.

Oh, I’ve dated plenty of men with kids. You know how much I love children!

Well, okay! Sandra tried to sound cheery, but I know she thought I had lost my marbles. And I had. But it got worse when Gary contacted me the next day.

So you’re the lovely lady I stared at all Friday night! he crooned.

He had me at the word so.

Gary was incredibly nice and polite when I met him at a local restaurant. We talked for hours that night and fell in love, deeply in love, over the course of that meeting and a couple of other quick dates. We were inseparable after that. Gary was totally honest with me about his unsuccessful marriages and six children, two from Jackie, his first wife, and four from Maria, his second.

I loved my wives and still do. We keep up good relations for the kids. They have custody, but there aren’t any hard feelings, so I see my kids all the time.

I started dreaming of a life with Gary, and I liked the thought of having his kids as a part of it. In my mind Gary not only was a good father to the brood he already had, but he obviously didn’t shoot blanks, as my best friend Ella and I joked about men who had fathered a lot of children. Which would mean that Gary would be more than happy to make more babies. With me! Having a family was my biggest dream, and I planned to tell my new man this as soon as I had the chance.

I’m looking forward to meeting your kids, I gushed, feeling a warmth heating up my cheeks at the thought of the two of us with lots of kids running around the house. At least a few of them would be the ones we had together.

Gary said, I’m really happy I finally met someone who will accept my kids. A few women I’ve dated just ran away screaming. Thank you, Gina.

That’s terrible, Gary, I moaned, feeling tears coming to the surface.

I totally forgot to talk to Gary about my wish to have more kids with him.

On our fourth date Gary admitted, Gina, I know this is going to sound far-fetched, but I’m totally in love with you and I want to marry you. He produced a small silver box and got down on one knee in the aisle of the movie theatre we were at. A lot of people were around, but the movie had not started yet, so several of them started clapping for us.

Gary’s words didn’t sound far-fetched at all. I was feeling the same thing he was, and it was my first time truly being in love with a man that loved me back.

Oh my gosh, Gary! Yes, I’ll marry you! I cried. A lot of awwws and cheers echoed through the theatre.

Throughout the movie I was thinking about how Ella and I joked that we should never make promises to a man without sleeping with them first, or as we put it, without taking them for a test drive. I worried about making the right decision with Gary, especially so soon, but I took him for that test drive after the movie, and it was clear that Gary was a keeper.

My parents were suitably horrified when I showed them my ring. They knew about Gary but had not met him yet.

Well, it’s time! Let’s set up a meeting! I sang.

Ella had not met him yet, either, so I decided to throw my own little party and invite my parents, my best friend, and Gary.

I wasn’t much for planning parties, but Sandra was an expert, so I called her and she gave me some tips. After that I felt like it was unfair that I didn’t invite her, but she declined, saying, I’ll see you another time. This sounds like a get together for the people you’re closest to. Besides, I already know Gary!

Gary turned on the charm for Ella and Mom and Dad.

Everyone makes mistakes. I just happened to make two before I found the right one. I want to spend my life with your daughter, Mr. and Mrs. Wilson, Gary petitioned Mom and Dad.

When I looked across the table at Ella her eyes were glassy, but she winked at me.

Later, after Gary went home, she said, You’re right, Gina. He’s really handsome! And he seems to really care about you so much already. He’s using the ‘L’ word!

Mom and Dad smiled through our conversation, but I knew they weren’t leaving for a reason, even though it was late. They waited until Ella went home. I braced myself for their opinions.

Gary seems very nice, but don’t you think it’s a little too soon to be making such a major plunge with someone that has so much baggage? was how Dad put it, while Mom nodded her approval of Dad’s spiel.

You and Mom were only together for six months before you got married! I fought.

Then why don’t you wait six months just to be sure you’re doing the right thing, Mom challenged.

If that’s what you want, that’s what I’ll do, I exclaimed, throwing my arms in the air dramatically.

As much as I was already in love with Gary, I wanted to please my parents, too. I’d wait, and I’d tell Gary about the delay and hope and pray I didn’t lose him.

"Six months? I’ll agree to that, Gina. Your mom and dad are just watching out for you, and I applaud them for