Page 47 of Bookworm and the Beast
Casting a nervous glance at the stairwell, I knelt to gather the papers. They were all out of order, but thankfully there weren’t very many, and there was a number in the top right corner of each page.
I quickly sorted them. In the process, I comprehended what they were.
This is the beginning of Book Seven.
My heart gave a hard thud then sped up until it felt like it might spin out of my chest.
Fingers trembling, I arranged the forbidden, oh so tempting pages by number, all the while fighting the urge to read the words and growing more fearful by the second that Jack would walk in and catch me.
The last page, number fifteen, had blown further from the rest. I crawled under Jack’s desk to retrieve it and add it to the pile.
And saw what was on the page.
I couldn’t help it. Truly. I tried so hard to train my focus on the safe upper right corner. But this last page was filled with capital letters in bold print, and they drew my eyes like a super-magnet.
“BLAH BLAH BLAH, EPIC BATTLES, TWISTY TURNS, ROMANCE, AND MANY WORDS WHICH WILL EVENTUALLY COME OR MY CAREER IS OVER.
THE END.”
What was this? My head swam. My heart threatened to pound right through Jack’s oversized t-shirt.
What could it mean? It couldn’t possibly be what it looked like.
Was thisallhe’d written? Of a book that was scheduled to release two months from now? It couldn’t be.
This was incredible. It was tragic. It really was, as he’d written, career-ending.
My heart instantly broke for him. How horrible to possess such extraordinary talent and yet suffer paralyzing writer’s block. It had to be beyond terrifying.
The deafening rush of my pulse in my ears must have obscured the sound of my impending doom because I never heard Jack’s approach.
I didn’t even realize he was standing at the top of the stairs until I caught movement from the corner of my eye and looked up from his manuscript in my hands.
Looming above me, he looked seven feet tall. His hands were clenched into tight fists, his face was red. And his expression was nothing short of murderous.
Oh no.The Beast was back.
Chapter Fifteen
Page Seven
Jack
The look on Bonnie’s face left no doubt. My worst fears had been realized.
She knew the truth, and I was finished. Not only would I be the laughingstock of the publishing industry for years, possibly decades, to come, but who knew how many people would lose their jobs over this.
The panic was nearly overwhelming. My own heartbeat screamed in my ears as I stared down at the lovely harbinger of my doom kneeling on the floor of my office, clutching the black and white evidence of my failure.
“What. The. Fuck. Do you think you’re doing?”
I worked to keep my voice even, though it held a detectable quiver.
“Well? I asked you a question. Do you have anything to say for yourself?”
She finally managed a hoarse whisper. “Jack… I… didn’t mean to…”
The excuse died right there. Even she knew there was no use trying to defend this.
