The Debra Dilemma (The Lone Stars Book 4) by Katie Graykowski Page A

needed and we all work overtime during the holidays.” Most weeks she worked sixty hours and not only because there was work to be done, but because she didn’t want to go home to a lonely house.
    “I bet the holidays are your busiest time.” Grace sounded sad. “I hate that for you and for all of the people who walk through Safe Place’s door.”
    At work, Debra only met people when they were at their most vulnerable. Yes, it was sad, but helping others gave her a purpose.
    “Let me grab some shoes and I’ll be right down.” Debra switched the phone to her other hand and used her free hand to brace herself against the door.
    “See you in a few. Bye.” Grace hung up.
    Debra shoved her phone in her back pocket. She stood and walked to the bathroom, found a pair of rhinestone studded flip-flops, grabbed her purse and headed out the door.
    She glanced down at the flip-flops, yet another remnant of her former floozy life. These days, she made it a point to never wear old memory triggers in public, but now she was beginning to understand that some sparkle was okay. She was starting to change on the inside, so maybe repressing her sparkly side wasn’t all that important. Maybe it wasn’t how she looked that mattered so much as how she felt . She was no longer the woman who would sleep with anyone who showed the slightest bit of attention; instead, she was learning to love all the parts that made up Debra Covington—even the not so pretty parts, like her self-doubt and her ears that stuck out. Neither would have been her choice, but at least she had pretty feet. Not everyone could say that.
    She was coming to realize that rhinestone flip-flops weren’t the first drink of vodka, a downward spiral that would derail her twelve-step program of betterment. Nope, they were just sparkly flip-flops.
    She pushed the down button and the doors rolled open. She touched the rhinestone barrettes in her hair. They weren’t going to turn her back into the monster she’d made herself into just because she’d bought them back when she was a floozy. It was so clear to her now…things didn’t make or break her, if was her self-esteem that caused her downfall.
    Hiding behind her mom jeans and boring shirts was still hiding. She glanced down. Okay, so these were boyfriend cut jeans, but everyone knew that boyfriend jeans were just mom jeans with holes in them.
    Come to think of it, what was so wrong with mom jeans anyway? She was a mom and it was time she embraced it. She pulled at the hem of her boring white T-shirt. Her version of mom needed some spice…some glitter…some Debra.
    She rattled the charm bracelet that CoCo had given her. It was so big that it dangled down into her palm. Wearing the bracelet with pride wasn’t her problem, but she needed to put her own spin on it. She unhooked the clasp, bent over, and wrapped it around her right ankle. It just fit so she closed the clasp. Now, the charm bracelet was different and a little daring—and very Debra.
    She wiggled her foot and felt the charms bounce against her ankle. She liked it there and she was beginning to like the part of herself that had the guts to put it there. She’d hated herself for so long that it felt wonderful to try hating on someone else for a change.
    Not that she really hated Warren…well, not too much, at least now that she knew for sure he hadn’t known about AJ. Somehow that made it better. He’d been honestly shocked, and the fact that he was grief-stricken somehow lessened her grief. That didn’t make things right, but it did make them better. She didn’t know if there would ever be anything between her and Warren, but at least, the hatred—a decade old hatred—seemed to have vanished into thin air.
    Now AJ’s father knew about him, and her friends knew about him—now her son finally existed, because people other than Debra knew about him. Maybe it was a small thing and made no difference in the grand scheme of the universe, but it made a