![\"As](\"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/www.everywritersresource.com\/selfpublished\/wp-content\/uploads\/2014\/08\/As-Is.jpg?resize=333%2C500\" "\\"As")
Author<\/h2>\nWendy Stenzel Oleston<\/p>\n
Wendy Stenzel Oleston currently lives in Janesville, WI with her husband, Ryan, and their two children, Brett and Caroline. She is a very proud recovering alcoholic who thanks God everyday for the freedom she has found through Him. After taking an eight year hiatus from writing fiction, a new vision for her writing began in January 2014. That new vision was \u201cEdgy\u201d Christian fiction with a very specific goal: to give something of value to the world instead of taking something valuable away.<\/p>\n
Wendy is also a digital designer and likes to run. She loves to travel and has been all over the world. She is a dynamic public speaker and welcomes any opportunity to share her life story with those willing to listen.<\/p>\n
“As Is” is a fictional story about an alcoholic-in-denial\u2019s journey to healing and freedom through faith. The story is based on the author’s own personal experiences as a raging alcoholic who was able to break free with the help of support groups and God. So far, the reviews on Amazon have been incredible! While the story is Christian, it does contain some language and strong themes.<\/p>\n
It is about a single mother by the name of Mara Shaw whose life has been extremely difficult from the time she was a child. One bad relationship after another has left her with no faith in anything, surely not God. Sexual dysfunction due to surviving a vicious rape seems to have completely destroyed her self-esteem. Infidelity has left her unable to trust in anyone, not even her own family or herself. The only man she thought could ever love her has written her off so she decides to start over in a new town after a humiliating suicide attempt. A new low-responsibility job as well as a promise to never allow anyone near her heart again leads her to believe she is safe from ever feeling pain again.<\/p>\n
An unfortunate police stop lands her in court-ordered therapy where she meets a strange man in the elevator. Graydon Davidson is handsome and persistent but also quite quirky. Confusion over his real motives leads to curiosity and the need to win his favor becomes Mara\u2019s internal goal. Slowly he begins to break down her walls to show her the truth of many things. While the truth is hard to accept, she also comes to realize, it is the key to her freedom. Will this gorgeous and compassionate stranger be the answer to all her dreams? Or will emerging ghosts from her past take over her life? Mara is faced with a choice that will change her circumstances forever.<\/p>\n
The surprise ending will leave you completely stunned and breathless. Never has a book like this been written before. It will leave you thinking about life, love, loss, forgiveness and redemption for days if not weeks and will hopeful leave you a better person. It is truly one of a kind.<\/p>\n
CHAPTER 7<\/p>\n
Dr. Garry Wills welcomed her into his office yet again. He had given her some homework at their last session. She hoped he wouldn\u2019t remember.<\/p>\n
\u201cSo, what\u2019s new and exciting this week, Mara?\u201d he asked.<\/p>\n
\u201cNothing.\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cDid you do your homework?\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cNo.\u201d<\/p>\n
He looked disappointed. \u201cWhy not?\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cI tried.\u201d It was a partial lie. She had tried, but not for very long. \u201cI couldn\u2019t think of anything.\u201d<\/p>\n
Garry gave her a look of disbelief. \u201cYou mean to tell me you couldn\u2019t think of one reason why you should be treated nicely by other people?\u201d<\/p>\n
She bit her lip.<\/p>\n
\u201cThat\u2019s kinda sad, Mara.\u201d<\/p>\n
She changed the subject. \u201cI had a really strong memory surface the other night, and it made me want to shut down.\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cWhat do you mean \u2018shut down\u2019? What would you be shutting down?\u201d<\/p>\n
She hadn\u2019t mentioned Graydon before now. \u201cI met a guy and we\u2019ve hung out a few times.\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cOkay. So you like him?\u201d<\/p>\n
She glared out the window. \u201cHe\u2019s cute. He\u2019s nice.\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cThat\u2019s not what I asked. Do you like him?\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cNah \u2026 not really. No. I don\u2019t think I want to see him again.\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cIs that what you mean by \u2018shutting down\u2019?\u201d<\/p>\n
She thought for a moment.<\/p>\n
\u201cWhat\u2019s his name?\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cGraydon. He\u2019s cute \u2026 and seems nice enough.\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cSo why wouldn\u2019t you want to see nice, cute Graydon again?\u201d he challenged.<\/p>\n
She shrugged. \u201cWyatt.\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cYou lost me, Mara.\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cWhen Graydon left my house the other night, all I could think about was Wyatt. He was my first love. The first guy I had sex with, too.\u201d She took a deep breath.<\/p>\n
\u201cTell me about Wyatt.\u201d<\/p>\n
She smiled briefly as she remembered what he looked like, but the smile quickly faded. \u201cI met Wyatt at a party the night I graduated from high school. He was the cutest boy I had ever seen. He had sandy blond hair and blue eyes \u2026 a washboard stomach. He was way out of my league, yet he came and asked me if I would go for a walk with him. It was probably the dress I had on. It was tight and short. I suppose I was asking for trouble.\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cDo you think the way a person dresses dictates how they are treated?\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cIn most cases, yes.\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cWhat happened with Wyatt?\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cI went on the walk with him and it felt amazing. He was so cute and oh so nice and he kissed me right there in the middle of the street under the full moon. I don\u2019t think I\u2019ll ever forget it. I fell for him right then and there.\u201d She leaned back on the couch. \u201cI immediately broke up with the guy I was dating and started going out with Wyatt. We went everywhere together and had so much fun. I had only known him two weeks before I gave him my virginity. I was so stupid!\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cWhy were you stupid?\u201d<\/p>\n
She rolled her eyes. \u201cI was delusional. I had this plan to only sleep with one guy in my whole lifetime. That was how I was raised. One partner, one marriage, one God. I chose to sleep with Wyatt because I wanted to marry him and I thought if I slept with him \u2026\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cHe would marry you,\u201d Garry finished for her.<\/p>\n
\u201cExactly. Like I said \u2026 delusional.\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cYour theory was okay, just a little backwards. Marriage is supposed to come before the sex.\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cYeah, I know. I\u2019ve always been a little backwards, I guess.\u201d She smiled ruefully.<\/p>\n
\u201cWhat happened next?\u201d<\/p>\n
She sighed. \u201cEverything was great for a while. The sex was good, I was in love, I thought he felt the same way. But then it all came to a crashing halt. He had a party but I couldn\u2019t go because I had to work. I decided to surprise him in the morning, so I headed over there, excited to crawl into bed with him and have a little fun. But when I got up to his room, I found he wasn\u2019t alone. My friend Shar was in bed with him and they were naked.\u201d Mara rolled her eyes. \u201cHe came up with some story to try and convince me nothing happened, and even though I didn\u2019t believe him, I went along with it just so I could preserve our relationship.\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cWhy didn\u2019t you break up with him like a normal person?\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cI loved him, or so I thought. I had slept with him, and according to the God I grew up knowing, I didn\u2019t have an option. It was him or nothing. One sexual partner and that was it. Soon he was cheating all the time, sometimes with Shar, sometimes with other girls \u2026 anyone who would take their panties off for him. Finally I confronted him. His response was that it was my own fault for trusting a horny teenage boy. I broke up with him, but not because I wanted to. I did it for my pride\u2019s sake. I felt like a laughing stock and a slut. I waited for him for a year, hoping he would come crawling back. He actually did a few times, but it never stuck. He just used me and then went on his way. It took a little time but I finally came to terms with the fact I had screwed up my eternity. I knew God could never forgive me for my sexual sin so why bother trying to be a good girl?\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cDo you still feel that way\u2014that God will never forgive you?\u201d<\/p>\n
She laughed. \u201cGod \u2026 no I don\u2019t really have time for God anymore. He abandoned me long ago.\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cDo you ever pray?\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cThe last time I prayed was the night I tried to kill myself. I asked God to let me die in peace and He couldn\u2019t even grant me that.\u201d<\/p>\n
Garry spoke seriously: \u201cMaybe it wasn\u2019t your time to die.\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cWhatever, it doesn\u2019t matter. The point is, no matter how cute or nice a guy seems, he is still a guy. Guys cheat. Guys lie. Guys break hearts. That\u2019s why I don\u2019t need one. My heart has been broken enough.\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cAre you talking about Graydon now?\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cNo,\u201d she protested.<\/p>\n
\u201cYou said he was cute and nice \u2026 things you also said about Wyatt. Maybe that\u2019s why you don\u2019t want to see him again.\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cNo, I don\u2019t want to see him again because he\u2019s full of shit. Nobody as cute as he is can be as nice as he is without there being some sort of catch. He is either pretending or he has an angle.\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cWhat if you\u2019re wrong and he really is just a cute, nice guy?\u201d<\/p>\n
Mara frowned, looking Garry straight in the eye. \u201cI don\u2019t think I want to find out. Not if it means I have to chance even the slightest amount of pain. I truly don\u2019t think my heart could take it.\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cWow. Someone must have done a number on you.\u201d<\/p>\n
She snorted. \u201cSomeone? Try all of them.\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cAll of them? You mean every guy you have ever let get close to you has done terrible things to you? I find that hard to believe.\u201d<\/p>\n
She thought for a moment. \u201cI guess I\u2019m a liar then.\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cNo, I don\u2019t think you\u2019re a liar. I just think you might be embellishing.\u201d<\/p>\n
She crossed her arms. \u201cI wish.\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cWhat is the worst thing a guy has done to you, Mara?\u201d<\/p>\n
Her eyes dropped to the floor and tears started to gather.<\/p>\n
\u201cTell me what you\u2019re thinking about.\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cIt doesn\u2019t matter,\u201d she said, trying to get her emotions under control.<\/p>\n
\u201cSure it does. What has you trying so hard not to cry in front of me?\u201d<\/p>\n
She blinked back her tears and looked at him with anger in her eyes. \u201cI was raped repeatedly by an Air Force sergeant when I was eighteen years old. Is that what you wanted to hear?\u201d She was furious now, and didn\u2019t want to be there for another minute. She stood up slowly.<\/p>\n
\u201cWhat are you doing?\u201d he asked.<\/p>\n
\u201cI don\u2019t need this shit,\u201d she replied, walking over to the door even though their session wasn\u2019t over. She paused before opening the door and said, \u201cHe was cute and nice too.\u201d With that she left, slamming the door behind her.<\/p>\n
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