Things He Hadn't Told Her by Vicky Whedbee is a Fall Into These Great Reads pick #fiction #romance
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  • N. N. Light
    • Sep 8, 2023
    • 6 min read

Things He Hadn't Told Her by Vicky Whedbee is a Fall Into These Great Reads pick #fiction #romance



Title: Things He Hadn't Told Her


Author: Vicky Whedbee


Genre: Romantic Fiction


Book Blurb:


Chad Edwards & Cole Rivers have been best friends since grade school. "Blood brothers forever" they declared after Chad saved Cole's life. Years later in college at the University of Tennessee, Chad is a student of Sports Medicine, and Cole is the Vol's star quarterback. That's where they meet Maggie Thompson. Ask either one of them and they would tell you, "Maggie is perfect". So, it's no surprise they both fall in love with her. As fate would have it, Maggie falls in love too, but only one of them is the recipient of her affections. It's what happens next that will surprise you.


They made a pact as boys. Can they keep that pact as men?


Excerpt:


During dinner they learned more about each other’s families, and told stories about their childhoods, ranging from before grade school to beyond high school, yet despite all the crazy stories that Cole and Chad shared, neither one of them so much as even mentioned Bull Run Creek or the secrets that it held of the incident so long ago. In fact, as if by unspoken agreement, neither one of them had breathed a word about that day since it happened, to each other or to anyone else.


When talk turned to their futures, Maggie expressed her desire to teach grade school children, and with just one look at her face Chad could actually feel how much it meant to her as she talked about wanting the opportunity to work with kids and be a part of their education. She told them she couldn’t wait to share her love of music and hopefully inspire kids to appreciate the art of music, whether it be intricate classical compositions or simple rock-n-roll ditties. He had no doubt that if she taught with half as much conviction as she had talking to them now, she would be wildly successful.


Just hearing the passion in her voice made him wish he’d paid more attention to his music teacher, Mrs. King, back in the fourth grade when she was trying to teach his class to play the recorder. Somehow though, he didn’t think Maggie would have any trouble capturing and keeping, not only all of the little boy’s attentions, but the little girls as well.


After dinner, Maggie asked them if they would like to accompany her to the OCI on Friday night for karaoke. They both agreed to go with her. “Maybe I can get you guys to sing,” she added, teasing.


“Yeah, that’ll be the day,” Cole replied, laughing.


Several weeks later they were at OCI looking over the list of songs Maggie could choose from to sing in the contest. They put in an order for some wings and a round of sodas. Cole had to forego his usual beer because he had his first game of the season coming up, Maggie never drank and Chad just wasn’t in the mood for it.


After ordering, Cole slipped off to go to the bathroom. While he was gone, Chad and Maggie noticed a girl they had never seen before sitting at a nearby table, trying but failing to hide the fact that she was crying.


“I feel so bad for her. I hope she’s going to be okay,” Maggie whispered sympathetically.


They turned their attention back to the list of songs but Maggie’s eyes kept drifting over to the girl, who was crying even harder now. Chad was touched by the amount of concern and compassion he saw on Maggie’s face for this girl that she clearly didn’t know and it melted his heart. Then apparently Maggie couldn’t take it anymore because she said, “I’ll be right back.”


She went over to the girls table, approaching her from the front so as not to startle her. When the girl looked up and Maggie was confident that she had been seen, she made her way around the table and gently placed her hand on the girls shoulder, then bent over and said something in her ear. The girl nodded, so Maggie pulled a chair over closer to her and sat down.


Chad tried not to stare but he was so moved by Maggie’s selfless act of kindness that he found it hard to tear his eyes away. He couldn’t hear what was being said, but the girl was talking and Maggie was listening intently. They talked back and forth, and after a few minutes the girl looked as if she was feeling a little better. When Maggie got up, the girl was smiling as she reached out and took Maggie’s hand giving it a squeeze. She looked up at Maggie gratefully. Chad could read her lips as her mouth formed the words “Thank you”. Maggie leaned down and hugged her, then headed back to their table, where Chad sat watching her, mesmerized. Her eyes were shining and there was a glow on her face. Then her eyes met his, and at that moment, Chad fell in love with Maggie.


***


He sat numbly letting this realization wash over him as Cole returned and they continued their quest to find a song for Maggie to sing. But Chad was only pretending to help, lost in his own little world. Cole was saying something about judging by everyone else’s singing, she could choose the alphabet song and have no competition, but before her turn came, Big Rod called Cole’s name.


Hearing Cole’s name announced brought Chad crashing back down to earth. Cole grinned at them as he got up and headed toward the karaoke stage, leaving Maggie and Chad looking at each other, stunned.


They were wondering what was going on as they watched him go straight up on stage to Big Rod. They both knew there was no way he was going to sing. He would never do that. But looking pretty confident, he did take the microphone and as Rod Stewart’s Maggie Mae began to play, Cole started to sing. He was looking directly at Maggie, leaving no question as to who the song was intended for. Unable to believe it, she stood up, her eyes locked on his, amazed that he was doing this. He was out of key and probably couldn’t have sounded worse to everyone else there, but incredibly, no one made a sound. It was as though they knew it had taken an incredible amount of courage for him to get up there in front of everyone and sing. Maggie knew it too, and to her it sounded beautiful! It was at that moment Maggie fell in love with Cole.


Buy Links (including Goodreads and BookBub):






What’s your favorite thing about autumn:


Being a born and raised a Florida girl, I have always longed for a more visceral sign of the change of seasons than we get in the deep south. But with the first sign of cooler weather I begin to look forward to the upcoming holidays, Thanksgiving being one of my favorites, and nights cold enough to have a fire in the fireplace, hot chocolate, and big bulky sweaters! Granted, as I said, we don't get too many of those days in Florida, so they mean a lot!


What inspired you to write this story:


I had wanted to write a book for as long as I can remember. Even before my high school English teacher encouraged me to do so after writing and acing an assignment in her class for a short story. Then life happened and after many starts and stops, years later, my husband encouraged me to finally give it a go. It still took me several years to get the first book completely finished and published, but the next two books came much quicker!


Giveaway –


One lucky reader will win a $75 Amazon gift card



Open internationally.


Runs September 1 – 30

Drawing will be held on October 2.


Author Biography:


Vicky Whedbee was born and raised in Daytona Beach, Florida, where she resided until her 40's when she relocated to San Mateo, Florida, where she currently resides. An avid reader, she wrote her first novel over a period of years as a labor of love and fulfillment of a lifelong dream that began with the encouragement of her Engish teacher in high school.


With a diagnosis of cancer for her dad, she decided to become an independent author and published her novel on her own in order to present a finished product to her father before his demise. She was in the process of reading said novel, "Things He Hadn't Told Her", to him at the time of his passing.


She wrote her second novel "Sarah's Song", which was a collaboration with her father set in the time of his childhood in the rural Appalachian mountains, with notes taken prior to his demise. Both books have been met with stellar 5-STAR reviews on Amazon & Goodreads, as well as awarded the 5-star review seal from Reader's Favorite.


After numerous requests, she wrote a sequel to Sarah's Song, titled Sarah's Home, which could also be read as a stand-alone. It, too, is being received with love and 5-STAR reviews.


She is currently working on her next novel.


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