Vanilla Setbacks

By Tanika Moore

Tracey has the perfect life, or it looks that way to the outside world. She has a cookie-cutter family. Tracey attends a catering gig. That night, she meets a man who is her husband’s total opposite. She has no way of preparing herself for the intractable events ahead. Ultimately, she must make a decision that could alter several lives.

• Language: English
• Publisher: AuthorHouse
• Release date: Jul 22, 2019
• ISBN: 9781728320151

Tanika Moore

Tanika Moore is a North Carolina native. She resides in Charlotte with her husband and her two daughters. Tanika started writing when she was about ten years old. She has written countless poems, short stories and now her first novella.

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© 2019 Tanika Moore. All rights reserved.

No part of this book may be reproduced, stored in a retrieval system, or transmitted by any means without the written permission of the author.

Published by AuthorHouse  07/19/2019

ISBN: 978-1-7283-1479-2 (sc)

ISBN: 978-1-7283-2015-1 (e)

Library of Congress Control Number: 2019910098

Any people depicted in stock imagery provided by Getty Images are models,

and such images are being used for illustrative purposes only.

Certain stock imagery © Getty Images.

Because of the dynamic nature of the Internet, any web addresses or links contained in this book may have changed since publication and may no longer be valid. The views expressed in this work are solely those of the author and do not necessarily reflect the views of the publisher, and the publisher hereby disclaims any responsibility for them.

Contents

Acknowledgements

Chapter 1

Chapter 2

Chapter 3

Chapter 4

Chapter 5

Chapter 6

Chapter 7

Chapter 8

Chapter 9

Chapter 10

Chapter 11

Chapter 12

Chapter 13

Chapter 14

Chapter 15

Chapter 16

Chapter 17

Chapter 18

Chapter 19

Chapter 20

Chapter 21

Chapter 22

Chapter 23

Chapter 24

Chapter 25

Chapter 26

Chapter 27

Chapter 28

Author Description

Acknowledgements

F irst of all, I would like to thank God. Without him, none of this would be possible. I would like to shout out my wonderful parents, Brenda and Richard for their love and support. As well as, my loving husband Darius. For the late night and early morning pep talks. For helping me come up with some awesome ideas. And always being my rock. Thank you to my beautiful daughters, Da’Bria and Jayla. They were always encouraging me to keep going. Even when I wanted to throw in the towel. Lastly, I would like to thank my bestie Mika. She’s my number one cheerleader. Always giving off positive vibes and good advice. Each one of these people hold a special place in my heart.

I hope you all enjoy reading this book, just as much as I enjoyed writing it.

Sincerely,

Tanika Moore

Chapter 1

"A re the meatballs done yet, Cynthia?"

Almost, Tracey

Cynthia is my assistant. She makes sure all of the food, décor, and everything else is ready to go. We were at the shop, finishing up the last dishes of meatballs, ribs, and honey ham for Jessica’s engagement party. I had known Jessica since high school. She used to tell me in culinary arts, that I should open my own catering business. I was always going the extra mile when we had food competitions. I would always come in first or second place. After her nagging me and doing side jobs for about two or three years, I decided to make it a career. I got my degree after taking my aunt Trisha’s advice. It was uphill from there. I cater weddings, bachelor/bachelorette parties, birthday bashes, and even family reunions. I started off in my house, but as business started to boom, I opened up my own shop. Now here I am. We were on a tight schedule. Jessica’s party started at 6:00 p.m., and it was already four thirty. We were waiting for the meatballs to finish cooking, and we still had to load everything in the van. We ended up arriving at the party at six o’clock on the dot. It wasn’t too bad because her family was running late, so we still had time to set up. When Jessica saw us walk through the door, she gave us a look that said I am only letting you slide because nobody is here. I just grinned and headed straight for the dining area. I was glad she decided to have dinner at her house. She had enough room there to avoid paying beaucoup bucks at some establishment that only held a handful of people. She was all about saving money, so that worked out fine for Ms. Save-A-Buck. We were finished setting up around six thirty. Her family arrived fifteen or twenty minutes later. When they came in, they headed straight for the dining room. It sounded like a stampede going through the hallway. Halfway through dinner, Jessica made a toast I would like to thank everybody for coming. We appreciate all of your love and support. She said some other things, but halfway through, I drifted off. You know how you can tell when someone is staring at you because it’s like they are burning a hole in the side of your head? I was curious to know who was watching me, so I glanced around the dinner table. That’s when I locked eyes with Jessica’s friend. He was fine. He had neat, shoulder-length dreads, hazel-brown eyes, and a nice smile. We were lost in each other’s eyes for a while. I really don’t remember how long, but when I realized I was drooling, I looked away. He was a piece of work. It was hard to enjoy my strawberry cheesecake after looking at this tasty treat. He was scrumptious. I couldn’t wait until the dinner came to an end, so I could get up close and personal with him. We ended up cleaning up and saying farewell to the family around eleven. It would have been earlier, but some