Shattered Diamonds by Ann Omasta

Author:Ann Omasta
Language: eng
Format: epub
Publisher: Ann Omasta

23

ALEX

There was no way I was going to admit how anxious I was to hear Josie’s verdict about my writing. I had tossed and turned most of the night. It had been all I could do to keep from texting her around 2:30 a.m. The only thing that stopped me was the fact that she was starting to place a bit of tentative trust in me. I didn’t want to make her regret that by becoming a pushy, needy, and insecure author who craved her approval of my work.

Instead, I did my best to hide my desire for her to praise my prose. I had awoken with the sun––not well-rested, but unable to remain in bed another moment. Since then, I had been busying myself around the house as I anxiously awaited Josie’s arrival. I’d even made blueberry pancakes for breakfast, which Hannah was scarfing down now.

My fingers drummed nervously on the countertop after I glanced out the window over the kitchen sink and realized that Josie was finally almost here. This torture was about to come to an end. Even if she hated my writing, it would be better to know it than deal with this anxiety-riddled wondering, right?

When she stopped at the gate and bit her lip, I felt my body fold in on itself. It must have looked like I physically deflated as if I was a two-day old balloon. Her obvious anxiety could only mean one thing––she hated my work and didn’t know how to tell me.

I wasn’t sure why this young lady’s approval meant so much to me. After all, plenty of readers had left my books glowing five-star reviews. A few had also blasted them with scathing one- or two-star reviews, and I was perfectly fine with that. I had a tough outer shell and knew that my work wasn’t for everyone, which made it even more difficult to comprehend why I was so worried about what Josie thought.

When she finally resumed her walking after her long pause, I went to the front door to greet her. She was just raising her finger to press the doorbell when I swung the door open.

“Morning!” I said, trying to keep my voice casual and normal-sounding.

“Good morning,” she responded. Her cheeks flushed a lovely shade of pink, making me even more confident that she was nervous to tell me she hated my books.

“Josie!” Hannah rushed over and wrapped her arms around her nanny’s legs. “Daddy made blueberry pancakes, and they’re deli-thous.”

The woman and I shared secret amused smiles over Hannah’s adorable mispronunciation of the difficult word. The little girl evidently didn’t notice our adult moment because she quickly asked, “Want some?”

“Sure! That sounds great.” Josie told her as she stooped to give excited Pepper a quick greeting.

Hannah darted off towards the kitchen. Josie followed her. That left me with little choice except to go, too––even though I would have preferred to have a moment alone with Josie to get her impressions of what she had read so far.

Download

Copyright Disclaimer:
This site does not store any files on its server. We only index and link to content provided by other sites. Please contact the content providers to delete copyright contents if any and email us, we'll remove relevant links or contents immediately.