One Year LaterWhen Chan fluttered her eyes open, she smiled, and a sense of contentment and happiness coursed through her being. The morning sun was bright, filtering into the bedroom through the window. She lay there in bed for a moment, just enjoying the moment, basking in the peace and quiet as she gazed out the window, enjoying the view of the beach and ocean in the distance. When she finally moved and got out of bed, she went into the en suite and took a good, long shower. Done twenty minutes later and now dressed in a lovely floral sundress, she headed down the stairs.As she approached the living area, happy chatter reached her, and she knew literally everyone was in there. It was a Sunday, after all, and it was well past ten in the morning now.She came to a stop at the entrance of the room, her heart constricting with emotions. Yes, everyone was in here, all right. Fran was holding one of her little darlings, Chanlina, in her arms. The baby girl was cooing as Fran tickled th
Old Mr. Jones was entering a new phase in his life: rock bottom. He had just lost his job, his entire savings swiped from his bank account due to identity theft, and he was in over his head in debts. Today, like yesterday and the day before that, he considered ending it all. Then again, he always hit pause. He had his wife and granddaughter to think about, after all.Sometimes life just seemed to come at you, bringing bad luck after bad luck and disaster after disaster. Not only had his only child and her husband just died from a car accident, leaving their only eight-year-old girl with him and his wife, but the company he had worked for had laid him off, along with fifty others. A week later, his wife had a mild heart attack, freaking him out so much that he himself nearly had a heart attack. Then that same week, he found his bank savings had been drained, and he hadn’t a clue how since he hadn’t been withdrawing any money. A phone call to the bank confirmed that it was a case of ide
A GOLDEN COIN FOR A NECKLACEA Random Thursday“This brings back memories,” Chan said as they strolled down the street, exploring the Thursday Night Market along Surfer Paradise.Holding Darany in his arms, Sam chuckled then said, “Mm-hmm. The first time I met you.”Chan nodded. Sam leaned toward her and then planted a light, gentle kiss on her lips, which made Chan blush.Chanlina, in Chan’s arms, said, “Daddy kissing Mommy.”Suddenly, Darany chanted excitedly, “Monkey! Monkey show!” He was pointing toward a thick crowd of people on the other side where a monkey was performing.“Isn’t that...” Chan left her sentence unfinished.Sam chuckled. “Yeah. Let’s go watch.”“Yay!” Darany put his little arms up in the air in excitement.Once they were amongst others in the crowd, watching the monkey doing cool Kung Fu moves, Darany tapped at his father’s shoulder. “Daddy. Rany wants down.”“All right, but don’t go running off,” Sam warned.The boy simply gave his father an adorable, toothy gri
The delicate china felt warm in her palms. Tea. She was being served green tea. In this very hot weather? It was so like Grandma Su to serve her guests hot drinks, no matter the weather.Chandra Chandler stared long and hard at the light steam rising from the cup toward her face, fascinated by it. It wasn’t long, though, before she lost herself in her own thoughts again. Instantly, she felt that dull pain piercing deep within her heart and the absence and loneliness after losing her beloved Grandma Lin.It will get better, she reminded herself. It will.“Chan, dear?”Chandra jolted back to reality when she heard the soft, gentle voice calling her the name Grandma Lin had given her. Chan, which was a shortened version of Chandra, Grandma Lin had told her when she’d been a child meant “the moon” in Cambodian. The old woman said it was perfect for her, as she’d been born during the full moon at midnight.“I’m sorry?” she queried the elderly woman sitting across from her.Grandma Su glanc
Sam Harrington frowned distractedly at the piles of papers in front of him, wondering what the heck had gotten into Daniel Wakefield and his team.Blast it all! They should have had phase one sorted out months ago. Since the commencement of this project, however, they’d only managed to buy fifteen of the twenty houses he had his eyes on. At this rate, his plan to build a luxurious resort hotel right in front of that spectacular beach would never happen. And Sam wasn’t the type to allow the will-never-happen to happen.He’d been an entrepreneur since he’d hit twenty years old, like his father and grandfather before him. His grandfather, bless his good soul, had told him many times when he’d been but a mere boy that Sam had the nose for the money. Sam had an extremely sharp business acumen with the natural ability to see unseen opportunities and sniff out great deals. And this particular zone of the city, which at the moment held a block of rundown houses, was certainly a great deal ind
Sam threw the thin paper onto the desk and looked up at the elderly man. “Daniel, as of now, Jeremy will be taking charge of this project.”Daniel sighed in relief. Though, to be honest, he was hoping it was Sam himself who would take charge. Sam was the kind of rare man who had that special gift, the ability to naturally lead and wield great influence. His mere presence commanded authority that not only inspired people to want to work damn hard for him, but made them want to please him, especially the female staff, because, really, Sam Harrington was a damn good-looking man.Dark hair, brown eyes, tanned skin, and over six feet tall with a lean, toned body—women wanted him. The female employees flirted with him shamelessly at the office, though Daniel knew Sam paid no heed to them. As a single parent, his attention was exclusively for his beloved six-year-old daughter Lilly and, of course, his business.On second thought, though, Jeremy was very good at negotiating deals as well, in
A few hours later, when Chan returned to the house she and her sisters shared along Bay View Avenue, the dilapidated house they had inherited from their father, she headed into the shower immediately because she felt stuffy and was sweating like a pig. She hadn’t yet gotten used to the hot weather here in Australia, which was so different from New Zealand.She took her time, letting the cool water sprinkle on her as she thought about Grandma Su’s words. The woman had been right. She needed to move on. Yes, most of her loved ones had passed on, but that didn’t mean she should stop living her life. Just look at her childhood friends Alexandra, Ruby, Nikkita, Isabella, and Georgie. They were enjoying their lives, traveling around the world and doing new things. She, unlike them, hadn’t yet experienced what the world had to offer. Now, more than ever, she wanted to experience, taste, and feel everything.She finally got out, wrapped herself in a fluffy white towel, and came to stand in fr
Chan returned the smile, and that was when she noticed Lilly waving to someone. She was suddenly aware of the heat of a male body behind her, mere inches from her, and she could feel his warm breath above her.She tried to ignore him and the feeling of him so close to her, but it was impossible. When she couldn’t take it any longer, she crouched down beside Lilly.“Look, the monkeys are dancing,” Lilly said excitedly. “I like dancing. It’s fun. Do you like dancing?”Chan laughed. “I don’t know how to dance.” She told the little girl the truth.“Why can’t you? It’s easy.”Chan chuckled. “I’ve never learned.”“I can teach you,” Lilly said honestly.“It’s okay. I think I’ll survive without dancing,” Chan said, stroking the little girl’s cheek.Shoot! She just realized she’d touched this child without her parents’ permission. She hoped her father, the man behind her, wouldn’t think of her as a child molester or, worse, report her to the police or something.God, she could feel his gaze on