Ice Dreams Part 1

ICE DREAMS

PART 1

BY

MELISSA JOHNS

ICE DREAMS

MELISSA JOHNS

Copyright © 2013

All rights reserved. Except as permitted under U.S. Copyright Act of 1976, no part of this publication may be reproduced, distributed, or transmitted in any form or by any means, or

stored in a database or retrieval system, without the prior written permission of the publisher.

Please check out these other books

By: Melissa Johns

FIRST LOVE (Now & Forever Series #1
)

EVERLASTING LOVE (Now & Forever Series #2
)

FOREVER LOVE (Now & Forever Series #3)

Her website is now up:
http://melissajohns.webs.com

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http://firstlovethenovel.blogspot.com
/

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TABLE OF CONTENTS

CHAPTER ONE

CHAPTER TWO

CHAPTER THREE

CHAPTER FOUR

CHAPTER FIVE

CHAPTER SIX

CHAPTER SEVEN

CHAPTER EIGHT

CHAPTER NINE

CHAPTER TEN

CHAPTER ELEVEN

CHAPTER TWELVE

DEDICATION

This book is dedicated to my father, Bill Benn. He was my best friend and the first man I ever loved. He believed in me until the day he passed away this past April. When I released the Now & Forever Series, he told all his friends that he was so proud of his daughter’s accomplishments. I hope he is looking down at me and proud of my continuing success.

This one is for you, Dad….

CHAPTER ONE

Madison Sinclair sat in the window seat of her small apartment, curled up and watched the snow fall over her small town of Huntsville, Canada, which was just north of Toronto. She loved the small town way of life. She could walk from her apartment to work and run into friendly waves and hellos.

She was born and raised there and but always dreamt that there were bigger things out there for her. Her parents still lived outside of town but kept their distance from her.
Madison grew up in a household where her brother was their favorite child and no one in their right mind would argue that fact.

Carter Sinclair, her brother, trained his entire life to become a professional hockey player. His dreams came true when he turned seventeen and was drafted into the major league. Even though Madison and Carter were only two years apart in age, he was the first born and received all the attention during their childhood. Between all of the practices, minor league games and tournaments, no one gave her a second thought.

It took Madison years to come to terms with her life but at the current age of twenty, she was happy or at least she thought she was happy. The downfall was they were so close in age her parents spent every penny they had on Carter's training. She had to give up the opportunity of furthering her education by going away to college. No one pushed her or encouraged her to pursue any of her dreams. When she graduated from high school, she found an office job and co-workers that she liked so she didn't mind the tedious work.

As the snow continued to fall,
Madison picked up her book and went back to reading about the passion love affair between the prince and the handmaiden. She never had a love life of her own because her father wouldn't allow her to date. She had been asked out in high school but always had to say no. Once they graduated, most the guys headed off to college and moved out of their area, leaving Madison alone.

Jessie was her closest friend. She was the only person in
Madison's life that truly loved her and stayed by her side no matter what was going on in their lives. Unfortunately, she had abandoned Madison for a higher education but always called her to catch up on the current events.

Over the past year, she had been trying to fix her relationship with Carter. They would talk every week to keep in touch with each other. He lived in the States along the east coast with his fiancée who he had proposed to her last year during their vacation to
France. Carter and Alicia were madly in love and looked forward to start their life together. Alicia was wonderful to Madison and tried to be a big sister to her.

It was because of Alicia that Carter and
Madison started to work on their relationship. Alicia saw through his hard exterior and taught him the importance of family. It took time but Madison felt like she had a brother who would do anything for her and a new sister who helped them through the roller coaster ride.

Madison
's attention went back toward the street as the plow hurled the snow to the side of the road. She sighed as she picked up her cell phone.

"Hey Maddy, how's it going?" Jessie asked as she answered her phone.

"I think I need a vacation."

"Are you going to come and visit me?"

Madison laughed. "Sorry, not this time. I thought that I would visit Carter and Alicia."

"That's a great idea! They would love to see you."

"He asked me to come last month but I couldn't get away from work. But, I have two weeks worth of vacation coming up and he's on the all star break.”

"I think that’s a wonderful idea, Maddy. You need to see the world. There is more out there then
Huntsville."

"Do you think my parents would care if I go visit him?"

"Who cares, he's your brother! They are the reason that you couldn't have a normal relationship with him to begin with and now that you do, don't listen to them anymore!"

"How's school?"
Madison asked as she changed the subject.

"Driving me crazy, I have papers due and living at the library."

She laughed. "Maybe that will be me one day."

"It's never too late, Maddy. You are only twenty years old. You could get financial aid and get your degree!"

Madison smiled. "Maybe one day, I'm going to call Carter. Be safe and talk soon."

As they hung up, she looked at her calendar and decided it was time that she started having some fun in her life. She called her brother and got his voicemail. She left him a message and told him to call her back as soon as he could.

She headed to bathroom, looked at herself in the mirror and frowned. She was unhappy with her flat black hair and she noticed that her skin looked tired and pale. She took care of her body and worked out most nights but never realized how poorly she looked overall.

Most girls grew up with mothers who taught them about make up or hair care products but
Madison didn't have a mother like that. Some of the girls in high school would snicker at her but she was comfortable wearing her hair in a ponytail and not having the hippest clothes.

If she was going to embark on a vacation, it would be the perfect time to put a little effort into her appearance. She ran her fingers through her long black hair and decided it was time to cut it. Her mother had always forced her to have it long. She smiled slightly as she thought about the changes she would be making in her life.

Her cell phone started to ring and snapped her out of her trance. "Hey Carter, thanks for calling me back."

"Of course, what's going on?"

"Does the offer still stand for me to come down and visit you?"

"Yes! Maddy, I'm so happy that you want to visit us."

"Alicia won't mind, right?"

"Of course not, you know that she loves you too. We will get the guest room ready for you. When do you want to visit?"

"I thought about flying down next Monday. I looked at your schedule online and noticed that you started your all star break and then have some home games."

"That's perfect. I will be at the all star game but you are more than welcome to come with us or stay at the house. We are on the beach so you can tan that pale Canadian skin of yours."

Madison couldn't help but laugh. "I will call you when I have my flight information."

"Sounds good, are you going to tell mom and dad that you are coming?"

"I should,” Madison paused. “But I don't care if they tell me not to go."

"
Madison, you are a grown woman. You can do whatever you want to do, ok? You need to find your own confidence and I think two weeks with us is a good start."

"I think you are right, Carter. I am going to try."

They said their goodbyes and Madison started to plan her next move.

CHAPTER TWO

After Madison finished her last day of work and started her much overdue vacation, she headed into town towards the salon. Her flight left in the morning for North Carolina and she decided she wanted a new hairstyle.

She opened the door and smelled the blast of perm solution and heard all the gossiping ladies over in the back corner. She had been going to the small boutique since a little girl because it was the only salon in town. She thought back to all the times that her mother would drop her off with some money and tell her to get a trim. She would never come in with her. She was lost in her thought when she heard a familiar voice greet her.

"Madison Sinclair, I don't remember seeing an appointment for you tonight."

"Good evening, Mrs. Adams. I hoped you could squeeze me in. I'm taking my first vacation and going to see Carter in the States."

"How wonderful, Madison! What did you want to have done tonight? Mrs. Adams asked as she pulled her towards the empty chair.

Madison
took a deep breath. "Cut it."

She felt her older hands touch her shoulders from behind as she looked at
Madison in the mirror. "Are you sure?"

"Yes. It's time that I try something new. I want it shoulder length with some kind of style."

Mrs. Adams smiled at her. "Well, let's get started."

Madison
was nervous as the scissors started their assault on her hair but quickly relaxed as she watched the transformation occur before her eyes. As the hair came off she felt the stress and tension lower as well.

When Mrs. Adams was finished,
Madison couldn't believe her eyes. The short hair stopped above her shoulders and had soft layers that framed her face. She couldn't understand how, but it made her brown eyes stand out more and gave her overall appearance an overhaul. Madison started to cry as she stared at herself in the mirror.