Spring Broke (86 Bloomberg Place Book #3)

Melody Carlson

Description

With creditors hounding her and all her available cash going to make payments on her debt, Kendall's spendthrift lifestyle has finally caught up with her. To complicate matters, she's pregnant and not sure who the father is. Kendall needs help, but her roommates are caught up in problems of their own. Megan is trying to manage her crazy boss and remain true to her Christian principles. Lelani is still trying to work up the nerve to go home to Maui for a visit with her parents and her young daughter. And after a gaffe on her first job, Anna is trying to regain credibility in the workplace without relying too heavily on Edmund. So when Lelani's parents offer to host the girls in Hawaii, it sounds like the vacation everyone needs--and no one can afford. A huge garage sale is scheduled, but fraying tempers threaten the teamwork needed to pull it off. Will they finally turn to the One who can really help?When you've got your first apartment, a real job, and grown-up responsibilities, life can be tough--loaded with confusion, emotion, and secrets you can't tell to anyone but God. In the 86 Bloomberg Place series, Melody Carlson has captured all the uncertainty and joy of being twenty-something in pitch-perfect detail--and their stories just might sound like someone you know.

Informations

• Publié par: Baker Publishing Group
• Date de parution: 01 mars 2009
• Nombre de lectures: 0
• EAN13: 9781493420735
• Langue: English
• Poids de l'ouvrage: 1 Mo

Extrait

What people are saying about
86 Bloomberg Place
“Melody offers Chick Lit readers a bouquet of colorful characters. Kendall and her Bloomberg roommates are guaranteed to brighten up your reading hours. Lovely!”
Robin Jones Gunn, best-selling author of the Sisterchicks® novels and Peculiar Treasures
“Melody Carlson is a master storyteller who deftly captures the heart and yearnings of young women. Readers will connect with the ladies of Bloomberg Place as they strive to find their place in this big world.”
Rachel Hauck, author of Sweet Caroline
“This fun romp with the Bloomberg Place girls has it all—snappy dialogue, complex relationships, and a fantastically diverse cast of characters that kept me reading nonstop!”
Camy Tang , author of Only Uni and Single Sashimi
“As the ‘Bloomberg Girls’ weather the challenges of friendship together, they discover the joys of forgiveness and restoration.”
Melanie Dobson, author of Together for Good and Going for Broke

© 2009 Melody Carlson
Published by Revell a division of Baker Publishing Group P.O. Box 6287, Grand Rapids, MI 49516-6287 www.revellbooks.com
Previously published by David C Cook
Ebook edition originally created 2012
All rights reserved. No part of this publication may be reproduced, stored in a retrieval system, or transmitted in any form or by any means—for example, electronic, photocopy, recording—without the prior written permission of the publisher. The only exception is brief quotations in printed reviews.
Library of Congress Cataloging-in-Publication Data is on file at the Library of Congress, Washington, DC.
ISBN 978-1-4934-2073-5
This story is a work of fiction. All characters and events are the product of the author’s imagination. Any resemblance to any person, living or dead, is coincidental.
Published in association with the literary agency of Sara A. Fortenberry
Cover Design: The DesignWorks Group, Charles Brock Interior Design: The DesignWorks Group Cover Illustration: Rob Roth
Contents
Cover
Endorsements
Title Page
Copyright Page
Dedication
One : Megan Abernathy
Two : Lelani Porter
Three : Anna Mendez
Four : Kendall Weis
Five : Megan
Six : Lelani
Seven : Kendall
Eight : Anna
Nine : Megan
Ten : Lelani
Eleven : Anna
Twelve : Kendall
Thirteen : Megan
Fourteen : Lelani
Fifteen : Anna
Sixteen : Kendall
Seventeen : Megan
Eighteen : Lelani
Nineteen : Anna
Twenty : Kendall
Twenty-one : Megan
Twenty-two : Lelani
Twenty-three : Anna
Twenty-four : Kendall
Twenty-five : Megan
Twenty-six : Lelani
Twenty-seven : Anna
Twenty-eight : Kendall
Twenty-nine : Megan
Thirty : Lelani
Thirty-one : Megan
Discussion Questions
A Conversation with Melody Carlson
An Excerpt from three weddings and a bar mitzvah
Back Ad
Back Cover
To Jennifer Bird,
a dear friend with a compassionate heart.
mc
One
Megan Abernathy
“I’m starting to get seriously worried about Kendall,” Lelani said as she stirred milk into her coffee. “She hasn’t been herself lately.”
“She’s been pretty bummed,” Megan admitted quietly. She knew it was unlikely that their unpredictable landlady would be up at this hour—especially after she’d gotten what looked like a lifetime supply of puppy potty pads for Tinkerbell last week. Still, Megan didn’t want to take any chances of being overheard.
“I think Valentine’s Day was especially hard on her this year.” Lelani put the milk carton away and shook her head. “She said it was the first time she’d never gotten a valentine from anyone.”
“I gave her a valentine.” Megan reached for a mug. “She didn’t even say thank you.”
Lelani smiled. “I know, you gave them to all of us, and that was some good chocolate. But you’re not a guy.”
“Kendall needs to learn to be happy without a guy.” Megan poured coffee into her mug. “I heard that if you can’t be happy without a guy, you will never be happy with one.”
“I agree.” Lelani nodded. “But I think Kendall’s bummed about more than just not having a guy. She’s starting to freak because she’s beginning to show.”
“Yeah. When I got home from work yesterday, I found her crying because her favorite jeans were too small.” Megan stirred some sugar into her coffee. “I told her that she could borrow some of mine, but that didn’t seem to help.” To be honest, Megan thought tight jeans seemed fairly minor in comparison to being pregnant, unemployed, and unmarried, but to Kendall it was a major crisis.
“It doesn’t help matters that Matthew Harmon is treating her like a stalker now.”
“You can’t really blame him,” pointed out Megan. “If you think about it, she sort of did stalk him when she popped down to Tinsel Town and tried to put the move on him at his wife’s birthday party.”
“I know.” Lelani frowned. “Still, it seems like he could show a little more compassion. It’s not as if she got pregnant on purpose.”
Now, Megan knew this was a tough issue for Lelani, and she didn’t want to step on her toes. By now all the housemates were aware that Lelani had been through a similar situation before she left Maui. But as a result, Megan felt that Lelani had a tendency to be extra hard on dads who weren’t willing to bear their share of the responsibility. These guys got blamed for everything, but Megan knew it took two people to make a baby.
“To be fair to Matthew,” Megan began cautiously, “Kendall isn’t a hundred percent certain that it’s his baby.” As far as Megan was concerned, this was just another bone of contention. Kendall had finally admitted that she’d slept with more than just one guy last fall. Not only had she been stupid, she’d been careless. Okay, Megan knew it was unkind to judge Kendall like that, so she never expressed these thoughts out loud, but it’s how she felt underneath it all. And it was just one of many reasons that Megan felt that sex outside of marriage was a foolish mistake. “And even if it is Matthew’s child, it’s not like she can make him drop everything and come to her side. Although I’m sure she could force him to pay some child support. What a mess.” Megan downed the last of her coffee.
“It’s no wonder that she’s depressed. Being single and pregnant is never easy. I guess we should be more supportive of her. Especially when she’s as down as she’s been these past few days. I kept thinking she’d bounce back.”
“It seemed like she had more resilience earlier on.” Megan rinsed her mug and placed it in the dishwasher. “Remember how upbeat she was when the pregnancy test turned out to be positive?”
“Being pregnant can play havoc with your hormones,” explained Lelani. “And your emotions. I remember having moments of unexplainable happiness during my pregnancy. But then I’d get blue—really blue. It’s kind of a rollercoaster ride.”
“So we just hang on tight and hope that she stays on the track?”
Lelani smiled. “And try not to say the wrong things.”
“Tell me about it.” Megan lowered her voice again. “The other day Kendall was talking about terminating her pregnancy. I was just minding my own business. I mean, she knows how I feel about abortion. She knows how we all feel. So then she looks me in the eyes and asks me what I would do if I were in her position.”
“Seriously?”
“Yes.”
Lelani’s brow creased. “What did you tell her?”
“That first of all, I wouldn’t be in her position, since I don’t plan to have sex until I’m married.”
“I have to agree with you on that now.” Lelani shook her head. “Although I didn’t feel that way before.”
“So I told her that I’d definitely have the baby, but that I’d probably adopt it to a loving family.”
“And?”
“She fell totally apart.”
“Oh.”
Megan looked at the kitchen clock. “Well, I better get to work. Cynthia’s gone this week and Vera has been stressing over absolutely everything. I wouldn’t dare be one minute late lest she fly into a rage.”
“Despite the fact that she makes you work overtime?”
Megan made a half smile. “But, oh, I’m so lucky to have this job.” She imitated Vera’s voice. “‘Hundreds of young women would love to be in your shoes, Megan.’” Megan looked down at her Cole Haan loafers. “Of course, Vera would then make fun of my practical shoes and suggest I wear something a bit more stylish.”
“You lucky girl!” teased Lelani.
Still, as Megan walked to work, she did feel lucky. Or maybe just blessed. And as the morning sun shone down, Megan felt truly optimistic for the day ahead. Oh, sure, Vera could be a witch. What else was new? But this was one of those rare late-winter days with hints of spring in the air. The plum trees that lined Bloomberg Place had burst into pale pink blooms, and the sunny faces of daffodils were making their cheerful appearances. Spring had always seemed a promising time of year to Megan. New life, freshness, the hope of things to come.
Of course, that’s probably not how Kendall felt these days. Despite the new life that was growing within her, Kendall seemed more confused and worried and troubled than ever. And why shouldn’t she be? A surge of empathy rushed through Megan. Poor Kendall!
As Megan turned onto Main Street, she felt a stab of guilt for not being kinder and more understanding toward her perplexing friend. Naturally, she couldn’t help but disapprove of Kendall’s lifestyle and choices. But at the same time, she should be careful not to condemn her. And she did want to help Kendall. But how? Often it seemed that Megan’s words only irritated her. And for that reason, Megan had been trying to keep her mouth shut. Really, other than praying for Kendall, there seemed little Megan could do.
As Megan got closer to the design firm, she spied the homeless lady who often waited for her. By now Megan knew that her name was Margie. But she hadn’t been around much during the past few weeks.
“Hello,” called Margie, grinning widely to expose her missing tooth.
“Where have you been?” asked Megan as she fished inside her bag. She usually kept a couple dollars or McDonald’s gift certificates handy, but since Margie had been gone, she’d gott