THE BOOK
No one expects her dreams of marriage, the perfect home and professional success to turn into a nightmare simply because of one misguided decision. However, this is what happened to Kendall Sweeney. Her life was turned upside down, and Benefit of the Doubt follows as she puts her faith and perseverance to the test to climb her way back to the top.
Based on actual events, Benefit of the Doubt examines difficult life lessons and illustrates how changing your mindset can change the world around you.
Benefit of the Doubt
ISBN: 9781633182219
I’m the kind of woman who stands out in a crowd, literally. My best feature has always been my legs; well-muscled, sensually chocolate, and sexy. I’ve had perfect strangers approach me in public restrooms just to compliment my legs. I’d like to claim the credit for them. After all, I’ve spent countless hours throughout my twenties, and thirties, on the soccer field and volleyball court, toning them to perfection. Not to mention, the great sacrifices I’ve made foregoing supersized fries, extra cheesy pasta, and decadent triple-layer fudge cake. But, the real credit goes to my parents. Without them, nothing would have been possible.
I wasn’t prideful about my legs. That would be sinful; rather they were my source of confidence. They helped define me as me. When I walked down a hall, the stares I got made me feel like a powerful, beautiful, woman. As that person, I was smart and self-assured. I could do anything I set my mind to, and I usually did.
Little did I know a single, misguided decision was just about to cost me those perfect legs and a hell of a lot more, not once, but twice.
I always wanted to be well-established before I settled down and started a family. About five years ago, I realized that I had to make a change if I wanted that dream to come true. I had a good career in marketing, made plenty of money, owned my own condo, and had two cars, but that one special person in my life was missing. I’d dated plenty, but no one ever seemed to measure up.
“Kendall Sweeney, what are you waiting for?” asked my cousin and best-friend, Lola. She pointed the carrot she had been peeling at me like a conductor’s baton, “Ryan is a smoking hottie. I would be working that hard. That man is fine husband material.”
“I kind of broke up with him,” I mumbled. Lola snapped the carrot in half. “You didn’t!”
“He started it,” I said unapologetically. I pulled a pot of potatoes off the stove and slammed it on the counter. “You should have heard the way he laughed at me when I told him I didn’t want him drinking any more.”
“How much had he had?” asked Lola.
“It was only his second, but we had a long night ahead of us and I didn’t want him getting plastered.”
“Did you bother to mention that before you left the house?”
I scowled. “He’s a grown man. He should have known better. Besides you should have seen the way he teased me, calling me a teetotaler. So I told him where to go,” I said dumping the potatoes in a bowl. “How to get there,” I added, squirting mustard at the offending potatoes like a fire hose. “And that I’d be more than happy to show him the way,” I blazed, slamming globs of mayonnaise on the mixture.