Page 43 of The Ruse of Romancing
“Really? Because I’ve been trying to get you out here for a signing and keep hitting a brick wall with some guy named Eric.”
I rolled my eyes. Of course, Eric was causing problems. Avery’s ex-fiancé had the personality of a marble. And not one of those pretty, colorful marbles. He was just a round piece of glass that looked shiny but really didn’t have much purpose beyond that. Eric loved to point out just how shiny he was, touting his connections and advanced degree. How my adventurous older sister had ended up with such a stick-in-the-mud, I’d never know. I had never been more proud of her than when she’d called off the wedding last month.
“Don’t worry about Eric. I’ll talk to Avery, and we’ll get a signing on the calendar just as soon as we can work it into the schedule.”
“That would be amazing! Of course you can write here. My bookstore is your bookstore. I mean, for writing. Obviously, if you want to buy a book, you’ll have to checkout like everyone else—"
“Can you point me to the nearest armchair so I can get to work?” I asked, cutting Spencer off before he could ramble more.
“Happy to! Right this way.” Spencer led the way to the fluffiest reading chair I’d ever seen.
“Oh, this is perfect,” I said, as I settled into the seat. I deposited my laptop bag at my feet and retrieved my computer.
I could feel Spencer watching me and finally I paused to ask, “Can I help you with anything else before I start working? Did you get more books that you need signed?”
Maybe he’d take the hint and leave me to work. Instead, Spencer shook his head and bit his lip before blurting out, “You know, Mason says tourists only want one thing when it comes to a vacation romance. You should be careful with this guy you just met.”
I flinched at the harsh words, taken aback at their suddenness. My anger began to boil, and I had to remind myself not to snap at the kind, if misguided, bookstore owner in front of me.
“And how would Mason know what Allen wants?”
“Well, he doesn’t. I mean, I’m assuming. I haven’t asked him about your situation, of course, since I just learned you were seeing someone, but that’s what Mason says about all vacation romances. He says tourists just want a temporary fling, nothing serious.” All of this spilled out of Spencer in a torrent, without him pausing to take a breath as he wrung his hands as if nervous for my response. He clearly put too much stock in what Masonsaid, a man who really shouldn’t be trusted in the romance department if my observations were anything to go off.
If this was how Mason viewed the world, maybe I didn’t want to pass his name onto Avery as a possible cover artist.
“Good thing Allen isn’t Mason and is a mature man who’s not looking for a temporary fling.” I bit out the words, careful to keep my tone pleasant if a bit dry. “Now if you’ll excuse me, I have work to do.”
Spencer hovered awkwardly for a moment longer, but I ignored him, slipped in my earbuds, and got back to work, channeling my anger into a fight scene with the Fates that would leave readers desperate to get to the end of the chapter.
Chapter 23
Dani
Thenextnight,Iwiped my hands down the front of my dress, trying desperately not to appear nervous as I waited for Allen. I’d had two crazy productive days of writing. Between my growing interest in Allen and my anger and frustration with Mason, I had enough emotions to write five best-selling romantasy series. I still had a long way to go before the sequel toOf Curses and Pomegranateswas complete, but I was no longer worried I wouldn’t be able to write it. Just so long as I didn’t think about how the sequel needed to live up the hype of the first book, I could keep putting words on the page.
After my conversation with Spencer, I had almost left another sticky note for Mason, telling him what I thought of his vacation romance theory, but by the time I got home I had cooled off enough to see the note wasn’t necessary. Mason had said that to Spencer in general and not specifically about me and Allen. Also, why would I take anything my lady’s-man of a neighbor had to say about romance seriously?
Also, I’d just met Allen. Maybe this thing growing between us was destined to stay a vacation fling. Didn’t mean I was going to stop getting to know him and enjoying this experience.
A knock on the door pulled me from my thoughts and I hurried to answer.
I was wearing the green dress from Retro Rendezvous and, with my hair styled over one shoulder in soft curls, I felt as elegant as Doris Day heading out for a night on the town.
The look on Allen’s face when I opened the door was worth the effort. His expression was filled with appreciation, and I gave him a coy smile, knowing I looked good and fully prepared to use that fact to my advantage.
“Good evening,” he said, his voice warm. “I feel like I’m underdressed.”
He gestured at himself, drawing attention to his tan slacks, navy blue button down, and gray jacket.
“I think you look very nice, like you’re ready to show a lady a good time.” I stepped outside, closing and locking the door behind me. I shivered slightly, my bare arms not prepared for the cool summer air. It was cool enough to need a jacket, but I hadn’t had anything that would go with the dress, and I wasn’t about to let some silly thing like a cool summer night on the Oregon coast get in the way of impressing this man.
Allen held my door as I climbed into his dark blue SUV, and I enjoyed the view as he walked over to his side of the car to climb in.
On the drive to the restaurant, he asked how my writing had gone, and I told him about the scenes I’d drafted today.
“I probably have about a third of the book written at this point, and I’m hoping to get a good chunk written tomorrow. How was your day?”
“Oh, you know, same old, same old,” Allen responded vaguely as he parked the car.
