New Year a novella

New Year 

a novella by L. Mertz
Cover Reveal in 

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Genre: Contemporary Romance
Release Date: February 13, 2015

Braydon's life ended and began the night he lost his wife. He is now a single father to a baby boy. After a few years of mourning the loss of his wife, his mother has stepped in and set Braydon up on a blind date.

Annie is a woman full of life and is ready to give away her heart after years of healing. Her sole focus was her career and not thinking of the night she lost her fiancé.

Every year is a new start.

A new beginning.

Will these two people come together and find love or will secrets keep them apart?

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Her First Day (Part 17)

He left the hospital, heading for the garden area where there were benches for people to sit on while they were waiting for news of their loved ones. He found the first empty bench and sat down. Pulling out his cellphone, he dialed the office. He was scared for Missy. Her first day with them had not gone as she planned. He liked her. From the few short hours he had with her, he knew she was the perfect fit for the team. They needed a bright, young, lawyer on their team to compete with the other firms out there. Missy’s quick rise to the top at Farmer and Sons was a testament to her go getting spirit. They needed to have her working for them. She was the missing piece to their puzzle. She had to heal. He would see to it that Farmer paid for all her medical expenses. Whether it was him or her father, she would be well compensated. He hoped she would not quit on them or run away. He would take care of her, it was just who he was. “Andrew, what’s the latest?” “She is still in the hospital. I am not sure as to when she will be getting out. She had a seizure. They think it was due to the multiple hits on the head she suffered during the encounter. They are running tests on her to make a proper diagnosis.” “Are you kidding me?” “No, it was bad. One of the worst things I had ever seen. When my wife was sick, I had never seen anything like this. I am not sure what to do?” “Come back to the office. You don’t need to go through this again. It is too soon for you.” “I can’t do that. She needs someone here with her.” “I will call her family. She listed emergency contacts on her application. Someone will be there soon.” “I will stay until they arrive, just in case.” “Okay, I will pull her file from personnel and make the phone calls on her behalf.” “Thanks,” he said. “I am going to head back into her room and wait.” “Okay, we will see you soon.” Holland hung up the phone. Instead of making his way back to the room, he sat there staring out into the expansive garden of flowers. It was supposed to be a tranquil place, but all it did for him was bring up the memories of his wife. She loved flowers. She had planted several varieties around their home. Since her passing, he couldn’t bear to look at them. The final group died out just a week ago. Tears formed on the rims of his eyes. He tried to fight them back, but lost that battle. They flowed down his cheeks for several minutes, until he felt a hand on his shoulder. He quickly wiped his face with the backs of his hands. Looking up, he saw the sweet face nurse he encountered in the hallway.

Her First Day (Part 16)

“By the time I woke up from that, I was tied to the couch and he was on top of me,” she said, tears rolling down her cheeks. Holland grabbed her right hand, giving it a light squeeze. She looked up at him, smiling weakly. She was so glad he was there. She had never been happier to see someone in her entire life when he busted through that cabin door. “You don’t have to tell us everything,” the brunette nurse said. “We just needed to know if you hit your head and how many times. We are so sorry you went through this ordeal. No woman should ever be put through this.” “Thank you,” she said, wiping the tears from her cheek. “We are going to leave you alone. We will have the doctor order those tests we need. We will get you all fixed up and out of here in no time, sweetheart,” said the nurse who had straddled her. “You get some rest. If you need anything, you make sure to push this button and one of us will come.” “Thank you again,” Missy said, stifling a yawn. The nurses and orderly left the room, leaving Holland standing next to her bed, very aware that he was still holding her hand. He loosened his grip, but Missy did not let go. She needed to comfort of her hand in his. He pulled the chair closer to her bed, sitting down. She smiled at him over at him as she fought to stay awake. He ran his thumb over knuckles until he heard her soft snores. He slipped his hand from hers, quietly standing. She immediately felt the loss of his hand in hers. She opened her eyes. “Where are you going?” “I am just going to call the office,” he said. “Go back to sleep. I won’t be gone, but a few minutes. I promise.” “Okay,” she said, rolling over on her side. She was back to sleep in a matter of seconds. He quietly slipped from the room and down the hallway. He couldn't go through this again. Sitting in a hospital room every waking moment worried about the fate of the person lying in the bed. Missy’s situation wasn't anything like his wife’s, but just being here worried was enough to bring back the flood of memories he desperately tried to forget. He ran his hand through his salt and pepper hair as he waited for the elevator doors to open. One of the nurses stepped out as he was getting ready to step on. “Leaving?” “No, just going to make a phone call to the office. I didn't want to disturb her. She is sleeping. I will be outside on the benches. If she needs me for anything, please come get me.” “I will,” she said, smiling at him. He wondered if they all thought they were together as he stepped into the elevator. The door closed behind him and he let out the breath he didn't know he had been hold in.

Her First Day (Part 15)

Missy’s body shook and bucked off the bed. Holland’s eyes widened as the one nurse climbed on top of her. “We need to get her to stop. Mr. Holland go get another nurse. Tell her we need 10ccs of Dilantin, now,” screamed the nurse. Holland stood there for a minute. His feet would not move from the floor. His eyes were wide and still staring. “Mr. Holland, did you hear me. We need that medicine now, before we are unable to bring her out of this.” “Yeah, yeah, sorry,” he said, coming out of his fear induced trance. He went from the room making a right toward the nurse’s station. He spotted one of them before he made it all the way there. “Miss?” “What can I help you with?” asked the young brunette. “Room 302, she is having a bad seizure. The nurses already in there asked that I come and get someone and tell them they need 10ccs of Dilantin.” “I will be right in with it,” she said hurrying to the desk. Opening the bottom left hand drawer, she pulled out a vial and needle. Stabbing the top of the vial, she pulled the plunder of the needle, filling it with the medication. She put the vial in her pocket and followed Holland down the hall. Entering the room, she could see they were in a dire situation. This was one of the worst ones she had seen happen. She grabbed the IV, inserting the needed into it, she administered the medicine. They watched as she continued to shake and buck. “Why aren't you giving her more?” Holland asked in a panic. “Give it a minute. It takes a minute to infiltrate her system,” said the brunette who administered the medicine. Missy’s body began to calm down. The bucking stopped all together. The shaking began to slow. Her eyes fluttered open and she calmed down. The nurse, who had straddled her, went over to her. Taking the dowel from her mouth. “Missy? Can you hear me?” “Hmmm,” she said. “Missy, I need you to answer me in a sentence. Can you hear me?” “Yes, I can,” she croaked out. Her throat dry and scratchy from the ordeal. “Good, we have a question for you. Have you ever had a seizure before?” “No, why do you ask?” “Because you just had one. A bad one. You gave us quite a scare here.” “Sorry,” she said, absently rubbing her throat. Holland poured her a glass of water, handing it to her. “Thank you.” “You’re welcome,” he said, giving her a weak smile. “There is no reason to be sorry. We are just going to have to run some more test before we let you go home. During your ordeal with Mr. Farmer were you knocked on the head?” “Yes. He slammed my head into the dashboard. I was knocked out until we got wherever it was he took me. Then I remember hitting my head again when we got to the cabin.”