The Do-Over

＂Look, you’re a nice girl but I don’t think we should see each other anymore.＂ The voicemail ends and I freeze in the dentist’s chair as I realize... I’ve just been dumped on live radio.

It took the most humiliating break-up for me to see that my life is in serious need of a do-over. Cue my anti New Year’s resolutions that even I can’t fail at:

1. Stop dating. (Men are the worst.)
2. Stop trying to lose weight. (I’m never giving up chocolate.)
3. Stop working so hard. (Selling mortgages is not my dream career.)
4. Stop trying to live up to unrealistic expectations. (Start living my best life.)
5. Stop trying to please my mother. (It’s not possible.)

But it turns out number five is harder than I thought, as she begins her campaign to get me back with my ex. So, what’s the perfect solution to keep her out of my love life? An imaginary boyfriend--at least he was supposed to be imaginary until I blurted out my neighbor’s name...

Nate, the bad boy next door with gorgeous hazel eyes, a razor-sharp jawline and a mysterious scar, might be hot, but he’s definitely not my boyfriend. Now all I need to do is stick to my resolutions while also keeping my interfering family away from my non-existent lover who has no idea that we’re fake dating. What could possibly go wrong?

Sharon M. Peterson is a former middle school teacher and has the personality to prove it. One of her favorite quotes is from Steinbeck’s The Grapes of Wrath: ＂It was her habit to build up laughter out of inadequate materials.＂ She strives to tackle life that way and create characters who do the same. Her first book, The Do-Over, was called ＂pure delight＂ by bestselling author Kristan Higgins. It’s slated to be translated into three languages (which is two more than she knows how to speak). Her second book, The Fake Out, released in July 2023 and is chockfull of really cheesy pick-up lines. She lives in Washington with her husband, and four children, including two autistic sons. She has one cat, two dogs, one tattoo, and an intense fear of poodles (don’t ask). Sharon can usually be found hunched over her computer, creating characters and stories she hopes you’ll love as much as she does.