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    Christmas at Blue Hydrangeas: A Cape Cod Bed & Breakfast Story, #1
    Christmas at Blue Hydrangeas: A Cape Cod Bed & Breakfast Story, #1
    Christmas at Blue Hydrangeas: A Cape Cod Bed & Breakfast Story, #1
    Ebook88 pages59 minutes

    Christmas at Blue Hydrangeas: A Cape Cod Bed & Breakfast Story, #1

    By Marianne Sciucco

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    About this ebook

    It's Christmas Eve at Blue Hydrangeas, a Cape Cod bed and breakfast. While innkeeper Sara waits for her husband and son to arrive home, a surprise blizzard threatens to close the bridges, stranding all travelers to and from the Cape.  As she prepares their holiday feast,  unexpected visitors arrive, all sharing the common bond of grief. Sara is determined the storm and sadness will not spoil  their Christmas joy, and Santa will find his way to two fatherless children far from home. A sweet slice-of-life story about loved ones and strangers coming together to share the spirit of Christmas. This is the prequel to Blue Hydrangeas, an Alzheimer's love story. Chosen as the solo "Medalist Winner" in the Short Story category of New Apple Literary's 2019 Summer eBook Awards.

     

    Readers say:


    "Truly heartwarming!"

    "A perfect Christmas or any time of year read."

    "The few tears sprinkled into this story add all the more to its worth, warmth, and hope."

    "Delight yourself by reading this magical short story, set during the season when love shines especially bright."

    "Wonderful, heartwarming, delicious."

    LanguageEnglish
    PublisherMarianne Sciucco
    Release dateOct 23, 2018
    ISBN9781540182678
    Christmas at Blue Hydrangeas: A Cape Cod Bed & Breakfast Story, #1
    Author

    Marianne Sciucco

    Marianne Sciucco writes contemporary and YA fiction. She says she's not a nurse who writes but a writer who happens to be a nurse. A lover of words and books, she dreamed of becoming an author when she grew up but became a nurse to avoid poverty. She later brought her two passions together and writes about the intricate lives of people struggling with health and family issues.   Her debut novel, Blue Hydrangeas, an Alzheimer's love story, is a Kindle bestseller, Indie Reader Approved, a Book Works Book of the Week, a Library Journal Self-e Selection, and a 5-star Readers Favorite. Marianne's work with Alzheimer's patients and their families led her to help found the organization AlzAuthors.com, the global community of authors writing about Alzheimer's and dementia from personal experience to light the way for others. She is president of the organization, a board member, manager, acquisitions editor, and podcast host and producer for Untangling Alzheimer's and Dementia, an AlzAuthors Podcast. Marianne has also published a Young Adult novel, Swim Season, an Official Selection in the Young Adult General Fiction category of New Apple's 2017 Annual Book Awards for Excellence in Independent Publishing and a Book Works Book of the Week. Swim Season is based on the author's 11 years' experience as a Swim Mom, and the longest book she hopes she'll ever write. She prefers shorter fiction, and has published three short stories: Ino's Love, the award-winning Collection: Daisy Hunter Story No. 1, and Birthday Party: Daisy Hunter Story No. 2. The Daisy Hunter stories are loosely based on her childhood experiences. Visit her Amazon page for details on all her stories.  A native Bostonian, Marianne lives in New York's Hudson Valley. When not writing, she works as a campus nurse at a community college and helps run AlzAuthors.com. She enjoys books, the beach, and craft beer, preferably all at the same time.  Follow her  Adventures in Publishing on her website, Twitter, and Facebook. 

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      Book preview

      Christmas at Blue Hydrangeas - Marianne Sciucco

      Chapter One 

      Sara stood at the kitchen sink, up to her wrists in suds as she washed the morning's dishes, her eyes riveted to the scene outside the picture window.  

      This was not the Christmas she had in mind. 

      A heavy snow was falling, obscuring her view, her visibility penetrating just a few feet into the backyard. Fat, white flakes covered last week's blanket of snow, making it look new again, pristine and untouched. Yet the picture-perfect scene dismayed rather than pleased her, and she sighed, her shoulders tensing. 

      At least three fresh inches covered the driveway and the paths that led to the back door and the garage. If no one arrived to help, she'd soon need to shovel them clear. She checked the time. Kenny from the tree farm was due to arrive within the hour with their tree, his trusty plow attached to his truck. Perhaps he'd agree to clear out the driveway when he finished his deliveries. She could handle the walkways. 

      The bird feeders, empty of seed, swung wildly from their posts in the harsh wind, and she thought of the cardinals and finches left to fend for themselves in the storm. After she shoveled the walkways, she'd dig a path to the feeders and stock them to overflowing. 

      Just past eight o'clock and the day was already consumed by the weather.  

      A strand of auburn hair escaped the red bandana she'd tied around her head to keep her curls in place, and she reached up to push it back in.  

      In anticipation of the stormy day, she wore a cable knit sweater in a deep shade of indigo that made her blue eyes sparkle, layered over a white turtleneck, and navy wool slacks. A red gingham apron protected the outfit from her morning tasks.  

      Casting a final glance at the snowy scene outside, she finished washing the dishes and left them in the drying rack, moving on to other chores.  

      With a house the size of Blue Hydrangeas, their 12-room bed-and-breakfast in Falmouthport, Massachusetts, a picturesque village perched on the edge of Nantucket Sound, she always had something to do. They'd opened their doors for the first time this past summer and business was brisk.  Their six guest rooms were fully occupied most weeks with honeymooners, golfers, and antique shoppers. The fall's lull in tourism had given them a chance to catch up on heavy housework and maintenance, but now Christmas was upon them - tomorrow! - and she had a to-do list to finish.  

      Fortunately, the weather service had forecasted the storm earlier in the week - just a few inches, they'd predicted, no need to worry - and with her husband's help most of her list was checked off. But two days ago, Jack had to make an unexpected trip to New York City for a legal matter, a deposition of some sort for the drug company he used to work for, and she was alone at the house, awaiting his return. She'd have to finish the rest of her list on her own.  

      She didn't mind. She loved to bake and cook. It's why she became an innkeeper. Her chores and preparations for the holiday helped distract her from thoughts of Jack, traveling hundreds of miles in this wretched weather. She worried about him making his way along I-95 at a snail's pace, driving into the storm as it traveled south from New England into New York. He'd called just before bed the night before and promised to be home by noon. 

      She'd thought her worrying-about-Jack-on-the-road-days were over when he retired from his job as a district sales manager. He'd traveled the east coast from New England to Maryland for years and knew the interstates well. She trusted his handling of his Cadillac in any conditions and knew if the roads became too dangerous, he'd use his common sense and wait out the storm in some diner or truck stop.  

      She was also concerned about her son, David, a graduate assistant at a large university in Boston. He'd called a week ago to say he was bringing a friend home for Christmas, no details, but they couldn't leave the city until he completed work on a research project for one of the professors. Bogged down with grading his first set of finals and papers for the entry level English courses he taught, he fell behind at the semester's end and had to catch up. He'd called earlier that morning and said they'd hit the road around nine and would arrive before lunch.  

      The holiday prep was also a sort of therapy, keeping her mind off the troubling fact that this would be the fifth Christmas without their precious daughter Lisa, who had drowned in a tragic accident on their summer vacation. Time heals all wounds, they said, but Sara had concluded long ago that some wounds never heal, and the loss of a child topped that list. She'd set aside her sorrow and do whatever she could to ensure they'd have a happy holiday despite their painful loss. 

      She glanced out the window once more and uttered a quick prayer that both of her men would come home safe and soon. 

      Chapter Two 

      With the dishes done , she

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