Gifted a Second Chance at Life

Prologue

Callie Wilson sighed as she passed the Green Forest, Idaho road sign. Fresh out of high school, she left to go to college and start her teaching career in Boise. Coming home with her tail tucked between her legs to live in the cottage behind her parents' home had never crossed her mind. Now, it was the only option Callie felt she had.

She and her ex-husband had been childhood sweethearts. No one was surprised when Callie and Mitch married a week after graduating from high school. Callie had received a scholarship to Boise State University, which covered nearly all the cost of her teaching degree. To help cover the rest, Callie worked as a waitress at a café not far from their tiny apartment. The owner, Ruthie, was also kind enough to give Callie leftovers to take home, which helped immensely. She and Mitch rarely had to buy groceries other than for his lunches at work.

Mitch had taken vocational education classes in high school for all aspects of construction and building. That had made it easy for him to land a job with a Boise construction company and quickly move up the ranks. In less than a year, he was a foreman and nearly indispensable to the company.

The future looked bright for the high school sweethearts, but things did not take long to sour. The first two years were good, with them finding their respective grooves. Callie would work shifts at the diner before and after her classes, doing much of her schoolwork at a booth in the back corner near the kitchen. Mitch worked every day possible to ensure they had plenty of money in the bank to hold them through the winter when the construction jobs died down.

In the late fall, toward the beginning of their third year in Boise, they were surprised to find out Callie was pregnant. Mitch had been furious that Callie had let that happen. That was the first time she had seen his temper and how dark he could be. He made it clear that he did not want the baby and that Callie would need to figure it out, which she did.

She worked and went to school right up until her due date. Callie had been fortunate enough to give birth to her little girl, Maya, only a week after summer break had begun. That had allowed her plenty of time to recover and make arrangements for daycare before returning to class. Ruthie, the café owner, had insisted that she bring the baby with her while she worked until she started class again. Ruthie had even set up a bassinet for the baby in her office. The woman had been a godsend when she was needed the most.

After Maya was born, things began to spiral. Mitch had become more and more angry. He claimed that Callie had pushed him aside and only paid attention to school, work, and Maya. That was when he began to break things and threaten to divorce her if she did not act the way she should.

In hindsight, Callie knew that was when she should have walked away, but she could not bring herself to do it. She had been raised to work through problems in a relationship, not to toss it aside because of a rough patch. In grade school, she had watched friends struggle with their parents divorcing, and she did not want that for Maya. So, she stayed and tried to do better.

That proved futile. Mitch took his first drink on his twenty-first birthday, and he had been drinking every day since. He had started staying out later and later after work, each time coming home drunk and belligerent. Callie had tried to shield Maya from it and ensure she was never on the receiving end. It was when Maya pointed to one of Callie’s bruises and asked about her booboo that it broke her. That was when Callie began to plan her and Maya’s escape.

Ruthie had opened her home to her and Maya as Callie planned her escape. Callie filed for the divorce on the same day she packed her things to take to Ruthie. She did it while Mitch was at work and knew whatever she took with her would most likely be all she and Maya would ever get from their tiny apartment, and she had been right. Mitch had destroyed everything of hers and Maya’s that she had left behind. He had even admitted to doing it in court yet saw no punishment. It wasn’t like she had expected any help from the court. The only thing she could do was put on a brave face and take care of herself and her daughter.

Callie had kept a checking account in her name since high school and had been stashing away money for years. She had planned on using it toward a down p*****t on a future home, but not now. Now, it had to be used to help her and her daughter start over. It wasn’t a lot, but it would get them by until she found a job back home. Back home. That thought made Callie sigh. She glanced in the rearview mirror to look in the backseat and saw her precious little girl dozing in her car seat. Callie smiled, knowing her little girl was safe, as her phone rang, breaking the mood.

Callie hit the phone mounted on her dash and said, “Hi, Mom. What’s up?”

“Where are you? Did you have car trouble?” her mother, Rosemary, anxiously questioned.

“I’m coming into town now. Nothing happened. You know how it is when traveling with a small child on a long car ride on snowy roads with slick spots. Do you want me to park out front or pull around to the back?” Callie asked.

“In front, of course,” Rosemary laughed. “I want everyone in town to see you are home.

“Mom,” Callie sighed. “It is right before Christmas. Under the circumstances, I would prefer to lie low for a few days before I get inundated with people wanting to spoil Maya, hug me, and tell me how sorry they are that things didn’t work out with me and Mitch.”

“Alright. I get it,” Rosemary said understandingly. “We had fresh snow overnight, and your brother and a friend are shoveling the back drive for you. For now, you will have to park out front. We can move your car and help you unpack when they are done. Sound good?”

“That sounds good, and I am pulling into the driveway now. Come out and wake your granddaughter up with hugs and kisses,” Callie giggled as she turned into her parents’ driveway. Before she hung up, she said, “Hurry! She doesn’t stay asleep long after we stop.”

She put the SUV in park, and before she shut off the engine, her mother came bursting out the front door, racing toward the car. Callie pointed to the back passenger seat to save her mother a little time finding her grandchild. Callie exited the vehicle, laughing as she watched her mother yank open the door and sweet-talk Maya as she took her out of her car seat. The little girl rubbed her eyes before she giggled and wrapped her arms around her grandmother’s neck.

“Oh, my sweet little Maya! How are you, baby? Did you have a nice nap on the way here?” Rosemary asked.

Maya nodded and said, “Yeah. I’m hungry.”

“Hungry? I have just the thing for that. I have fresh doughnuts in the kitchen,” Rosemary said as she took Callie’s hand and walked with her and Maya toward the house. “I even have chocolate ones. I know how much you both love those.”

“Yay!” Maya cheered as her grandmother carried her into the kitchen and placed her on a stool at the kitchen island. “I love donuts!”

“We all do. That is why your grandma makes them at least once a week,” Callie laughed as she watched her mother place a donut on a saucer and slide it in front of Maya.

“And now that you are here, I might have to make them even more so you can help. Would you like that?” Rosemary asked.

Maya nodded as she ate her donut.

“Then it’s settled,” Rosemary grinned. “We will make donuts more often.”

Callie was watching out the kitchen window. She could see her brother clearly but could only see part of the person helping him. Callie stepped to the side, trying to see him better, but it did not work. She still could not make out who was shoveling the driveway she would be using.

“Mom, who is helping Jimmy shovel? I can’t see him, but he seems familiar to me for some reason,” Callie asked.

“He should. He virtually grew up in this house with you and Jimmy. That’s Mark Palmer,” Rosemary grinned at her daughter as she bit into a donut. “He’s offered to help out around here until your dad’s sprained ankle is better. You don’t mind, do you?”

“No! Of course not,” Callie said more forcefully than she had intended.

Callie had had a crush on Mark even after she and Mitch had started dating. She hated to admit it, but she wasn’t sure that had ever gone away. Mark was the epitome of tall, dark, and handsome, the heir to the local ski resort and someone Callie had never wanted to disappoint. She cringed at the thought of him finding out that she had come crawling home with a young child and a failed marriage under her belt. All Callie could do was wait and find out how Mark would react, good or bad.