Teresa Southwick - A Word With The Bachelor

Erin’s eyes narrowed as she took it from him, then scanned the list. “Meteors? Dinosaurs?” She met his gaze. “You probably already know that Jurassic Park has been done.” She looked down again. “Jet Skis?”

“All things I’m considering incorporating into the story.”

With careful, precise movements she folded the single sheet several times before slicing him with a look. “What’s going on, Jack?”

“I need you to look stuff up.”

“No, you don’t. You’re trying to distract me and it’s time for you to cut the crap.”

“Is that any way to talk to your employer?”

“Technically I work for the publishing house, specifically your editor. So, yeah, it’s a very good way to address a man who is not forthcoming.”

“What makes you think something’s going on?” Besides the fact that he kept dodging her direct questions?

“Classic avoidance. And to quote Shakespeare—‘let me count the ways.’” She held up her fingers. “You won’t talk about the story, characters or what your hero has been doing. I’m pretty sure that means you have no idea. And every time I push for information, you come up with a distraction. Some ridiculous research stuff that has nothing to do with your genre. One hundred and one ways to be romantic—really, Jack? You even threw me out of my room and kicked me downstairs.” She took a breath. “So call me paranoid and neurotic—”

“Don’t forget punctual,” he added helpfully.

“—but I’m suspicious,” she continued without missing a beat after his interjection. “Your editor would welcome an outline of the project. Not details, necessarily, just the beginning, middle and end of the story. Possibly a one-line characterization of the hero.”

Jack met her gaze, stare for stare. Her perky, cheerful interrogation might have given him a sense of her being a pushover. Now he saw the error of that assumption. She was sunshine and steel.

Still, he couldn’t resist trying one more time. “There’s nothing to be suspicious about. I’m in the process of pulling all the threads together.”

“Then let me see your pages.” She suddenly stood and moved around the desk to look at his computer monitor. “It’s not even turned on.”

“That’s easy to rectify.”

“Okay. Let me see the work you’ve done so far.”

This time Jack did squirm, and Harley had disappeared down the hall so there was no way to keep Erin from noticing. “The work needs editing—”

She held up a hand. “There’s something wrong and I want to know what it is. I’m here to help you finish this manuscript and I can’t if you’re hiding something.”

Her relentless questions were like water dripping on a stone, wearing away the outer protection. Jack was at a crossroads. He knew what it looked like because he’d seen it before in the heat of battle when there was no wiggle room left. Almost always a course of action revealed itself and this situation was no different. Her counteroffensive left him no choice. He had to tell the truth or lie to her and he couldn’t do that.

“So quit stalling and turn on the monitor, Jack. Let me see your work.”

“I haven’t started it.”

“Of course not today. The laptop isn’t even on yet. I want to see what you’ve got so far,” she stressed.

“You don’t understand.” He met her gaze.

“Then enlighten me.”

“I have nothing. There is no book.”

Текст предоставлен ООО «ЛитРес».

Прочитайте эту книгу целиком, купив полную легальную версию на ЛитРес.

Безопасно оплатить книгу можно банковской картой Visa, MasterCard, Maestro, со счета мобильного телефона, с платежного терминала, в салоне МТС или Связной, через PayPal, WebMoney, Яндекс.Деньги, QIWI Кошелек, бонусными картами или другим удобным Вам способом.