Second Rate Chances by Holly Stephens Read Free Book Online Page B

through the channels, Lil breathed a sigh of relief.
                                “Hey.” Lil was afraid to say too much more knowing that her voice still sounded gravelly.
                                “Hey you. So...how did it go? Tell me he's bald? Oh!” Lil could picture Ellie clapping her hands and stomping her feet from excitement. “He's bald isn't he? I knew it! The boys never get their daddy's hair and his daddy,” Ellie moaned into the phone, “is one hot piece of–”
                                Lil cut her off before she ventured into how hot Paul Travers was. “Ellie, I need you to cancel my appointments for today.”
                                “What happened? Lil Harper, you tell me right now what's going on.”
                                “I can't. Not yet anyway. Listen, just call and reschedule my appointments. I have something I need to take care of. I won't be in for the rest of the day. I'm sorry. I gotta go. Just do this for me and I'll talk to you soon.”
                  Lil ended the call before Ellie could say another word. She loved her best friend dearly, but she knew Ellie well enough to know that she would have beat the information out of her with a steel bat, then taken her to the bar at noon to get her wasted. The offer sounded tempting, but Lil had someone else she needed to talk to first. Someone who she had confided everything in. Someone she hadn't had to speak to in over a year.
    Lil dialed the number she still had programmed on her speed dial and waited. When the receptionist answered the call, Lil said the familiar words she thought she'd never have to say again.
    “This is Lil Harper. Please tell Dr. Kingston that I'm on my way. We need to have an emergency session.”
    ~~~~
    Lil sat in the office of Dr. Evelyn Kingston, her therapist who helped her through the break up with Sam. It wasn’t just the break up that left Lil needing guidance; it was what had led up to the separation. Dr. Kingston had helped Lil see that she wasn’t responsible for what happened. After blaming herself for a year, Lil finally understood that it wasn’t entirely her fault. Sam held just as much responsibility as she did.
                                Nothing had changed in Dr. Kingston’s office. The walls were still a chocolate brown. The pictures that hung were of her famed Weimaraner. Oddly, the worn leather of the couch felt comforting to Lil. She had thought after her last session when she had deemed herself no longer in need of Dr. Kingston's help that she'd never see this place again.
                                The door to Dr. Kingston's private office opened. Lil had never liked looking at the people who came and went. Therapy was a private matter and she tried to respect every person.
                                When she heard the front door softly close, Lil looked up. Dr. Kingston stood with a smirk on her face and her arms crossed over her chest.
                                “Well, well, well. Let me guess. You saw him?” Dr. Kingston was never anything but matter-of-fact. “Come on in, Lil.
                                “You look good,” Dr. Kingston said as Lil passed through the office doors. “My receptionist is still intact. Either you've been doing your breathing or you're on the edge of the cliff.”
                                Lil smiled. “Both.” Dr. Kingston closed the door to her office and gestured for Lil to have a seat. The long chaise lounge was a nicer addition than some stuffy old couch that was neither comfortable nor comforting.
                                Dr. Kingston took her usual perch on her Queen Anne chair. She was a