After a hard-fought victory over the alcoholism and dysfunction that has held her captive for so long, Rose Hart works to rebuild her life.
As she celebrates her one-year anniversary of being alcohol free, her world is shattered by a violent break-in. Fighting for her life in the wake of the crime, Rose flat-lines multiple times and finds herself in a hopeless situation as she experiences the horror of an afterlife she never imagined.
When she is revived, she knows her life will never be the same. As the young woman navigates through the aftermath, she finds God, love, and the ability to lay aside her anger and blame to forgive and show mercy to the man who tried to kill her.
Excerpt:
The day I got sober and dumped the toxic ex was one I wouldn’t soon forget.
A dog barked, jolting me awake. My eyes snapped open, only to be assaulted by painfully bright sunlight. Waves crashed against the shore, and seagulls squawked. A warm breeze swayed the palm trees into whispers around me. I could smell the salty air.
How do I make the spinning stop? I wondered, suddenly keenly aware that I had passed out on a beach. I wasn’t even sure what beach. How did I end up here?
I felt a sticky, warm sensation, something like damp sandpaper against my cheek. Something, or someone, was licking my face. I lifted my head from the sand and looked around. Two brown eyes looked back at me, and the friendly dog that had been bathing me snorted and wagged its tail.
Trying to figure out where I was and make sense of everything, I pulled a strand of seaweed from my hair and face. Wings flapped overhead as some gulls flew by. I felt absolutely awful, like a chorus line of hippos was dancing in my head, and I was so, so sick to my stomach. The sun told me it was morning, but I had no recollection of the night before.
That’s it. No more booze!
Bad decisions equal bad consequences.
I couldn’t help but pet the adorable Golden Retriever standing over me, even if I didn’t feel much like socializing. I felt lightheaded and dizzy, and the relentless, pounding headache made me moan. My body had tried to force me to sleep it off, but I clearly had a horrible hangover.
I-I’m a total disaster. Why do I do this to myself? I can’t ever wake up like this again.
I glanced down and was relieved to see that I was still at least clothed, tattered and filthy as I was. Still, spending the night out there robbed me of the little dignity I had left. “Could you please stop?” I asked the dog, who refused to cease the licking. “At least no one’s around to see me in such a mess,” I said, pulling a clump of soggy sand from my hair.
Then, just as I was spitting a wad of grit from my mouth, I noticed an old lady with short, red hair hovering over me. Her outfit was colorful to my red eyes, and the gleam off her white teeth as she smiled down at me made me smile back.
“Oh. Uh…hi, Bella,” I said. Even in my inebriated state, I had to admit the dog was absolutely the sweetest creature ever. “You like waking people up with kisses, huh?”
The dog barked and licked me once again.
“Okay, okay! I get the hint. It’s time to get up.”
“Are you okay, dear?” Bella’s mom asked.
I put a hand out to shield my squinty eyes from the sun. “Happy as a clam at high tide. How about you?”
“I’m wonderful. Bella loves her walks, and I love collecting sea glass and seashells.” She held up her basket to show me all her pretty treasures.
“Nice finds!” I said, sounding much cheerier than I felt.
“Thanks. I enjoy the hunt. I never know what I might find. Anyway, we’re on our way home now. We’ll come back to do more beachcombing tomorrow morning.” She then pulled down her sunglasses and studied my skinned knees. “Oh, no! What happened?”
No idea, I thought as I examined them. “Guess I’m a little scratched up. I’m a real klutz sometimes. Probably just tripped on the rocks. No biggie.” I abruptly sat up. “Hey, do you know what time it is?”
She looked down at the yellow watch on her arm. “It’s only 7:30 in the morning. Honey, did you sleep out here?”
“Apparently,” I whispered, my voice raspy. “There’s nothing like, uh…getting up close and personal with nature, ya know?”
“You were snoring pretty loudly when I found you. Look, to each their own and all, so you might enjoy this hippie lifestyle, it just isn’t safe, dear. You can’t spend the night out here by yourself. It’s way too dangerous for a beautiful, young woman like you.”
She was right, of course, and because I couldn’t remember what had happened, I feared the worst. I never would have dreamt of doing anything like that if I’d been sober, but alcohol made me stupid and reckless. I wanted to explain, but every syllable I spoke felt like the equivalent of a 10,000-watt amp pumping into my head.
