All Chapters of Dream Love: Chapter 1 - Chapter 10

“Have you ever opened your door to find a this absolutely gorgeous, hunky, specimen of a man standing on the other side? I’ve dreamt just that, repeatedly, to the point that I’m frustrated with myself for not having a depth of imagination to move beyond this dream guy -pun intended-  and into something more substantial.   I mean, all he does is stand there with a sexy smirk on his face. Night after night, I see myself in this cozy little log cabin.  There’s an enormous fieldstone fireplace dominating the room.  The warmth from its roaring fire permeates every crack and crevice of the small, but spacious room.  Either there’s no electricity, or it’s gone out for some reason because I’m sitting curled up in an overstuffed, tweed covered club chair, reading a book by lantern light.  I can’t see the title of the book, but, by the look of the cover, I’d guess it’s a romance novel. 

I won’t say that I didn’t feel a sense of loss over Bert’s death. We were engaged once, after all. Even though it ended badly, I’d had feelings for him at one time.  It’s just that the thought of sitting within the confines of the church amongst the ‘Gertie haters’ was more than either I or Chris wanted to endure.  We decided to forgo the church and catch up with the funeral proceedings at the cemetery.  I was surprised to see how intimate a crowd it was that gathered around the open grave.  I stood close enough to hear the eulogy, but far enough away as not to intrude on what appeared to be a tight-knit gathering.  My ever-supportive friend stayed glued to my side, gripping my elbow at times whenever someone from the group would look our way.I smiled to myself when I remembered the time that Bert accused me of being a lesbian.  Chris’ intent on shielding me from the mourners could eas

Roger stomped into my office with his usual stressed out purplish face while waving a stack of papers in the air.“I could have used your help with these,” he snapped.“I went to a funeral,” I said in a bland tone.“It would be nice if people would coordinate their deaths with your work schedule,” he said as he eased himself onto the white leather sofa on the far side of my office and positioned his scuffed shoes on my glass top coffee table.“That’s insensitive, even for you,” I said.After a brief moment of reflection, he nodded and said, “I need to get away for a while.”“This job will do it to you,” I added.“You love your work,” he said with a grin.“That doesn’t mean it isn’t stressful,” I retorted.“We need better bosses.  I think we should start a petition for the current owners to sell to

As I made my way into my office wearing a grin like the cat who’d caught the canary, I considered my actions of the night before.  I may have acted out of character, but I didn’t regret making love to Joshua Hanson.  I’d at least made certain that I had his full name, place of birth, size of family, and birthday before I fell into bed with him.  That had to stand for something. My body still tingled from his touch.  My heart still swelled from his words.  For the first time in my life, I was really and truly in love.  So many people never find the kind of love that we had.  It was an amazing thing.  What was even more amazing was how quickly it happened.  It was literally overnight!“Do you believe in love at first sight?” I asked when Chris entered with a cup of coffee and some Danish.“You were supposed to check in with either me or Roger.  I spoke with Roger and he did

On the morning of my birthday, I was able to move around enough to go outside and enjoy the beauty of my surroundings to their fullest.  Marc still insisted on carrying me, even though I assured him my legs were fine and that I could easily walk on my own.  Admittedly, I didn’t press the issue since it gave me a chance to wrap my arms around his neck and pretend that we were the love couple I dreamt of each night.He carefully set me down onto a lounge chair he’d moved from the covered porch onto the lawn so that I could feel the warmth of the sun on my face.   Beside the lounge, he’d placed a side table and a chair so someone could sit with me, should I desire the company.I smiled when I saw Luis making his way toward us.  He wheeled a tea cart laden with snacks and beverages along the smooth walkway.  Close behind him were his two assistants.  They carried a small table that I assumed they intended to set up to se