This week’s theme is the black moment. My excerpt is from Tea For Two, the moment where the hero suspects the heroine of selling him out to the tabloids to make some quick money.
TEA FOR TWO by Shelley Munro
“Cripes,” Suzie said in vast understatement.
Hayley opened her mouth and shut it again, her teeth meeting in an audible clack. Her face peered up at her from the newspaper—the front page, no less.
“That’s not a recent photo,” Suzie said.
“I know.” Hayley started to read the article, horror growing with each word she scanned. “I didn’t do this. Sam’s going to think I talked to the reporter.”
Suzie placed a comforting arm around her shoulders, hugging her in silent commiseration. “I’m so sorry.”
“It’s not your fault.” Someone had talked to a reporter, but Hayley didn’t think for a moment it was Suzie.
“No, I mean I’m sorry it’s happened.”
“Sam isn’t going to be happy. Are there other photos?”
“There are photos of the two of you together, but the accompanying story is speculation.” Suzie read some of the article and frowned. “This one is worse.” She hesitated. “Do you think your sister would do something like this?”
Hayley thought about the desperation on Abbey’s face, the determination, and slowly nodded. “She wasn’t very happy with me at our last meeting. She knows I read tea leaves. Abbey attended the fair at Greensbarrow and she and her friends wanted their tea leaves read.”
“Oh.”
“Oh, indeed. She demanded money again, and when I refused, she stomped off, saying I’d be sorry. I don’t understand why she hates me so much.”
“She’s jealous,” Suzie said.
“But why? Our parents were always so strict with me. I was the one who disappointed them and sneaked about with my boyfriend all the time. I was the one who managed to get pregnant.”
“Abbey needs to be the center of attention.”
Hayley snorted, her anger starting to grow. “So she does that by putting me in the papers? Yeah, that will really work well for her.”
“Sam’s gonna be angry.”
Hayley sucked in a deep breath, acknowledging the truth of Suzie’s words. Oh, yeah. And given his personal history with the tabloids, he’d put the blame squarely on her shoulders. “I’d better ring him.” Her hand trembled when she reached for the phone.
The intercom rang before she had a chance to dial.
“I’ll get it,” Suzie said.
Hayley dialed while listening to a reporter’s voice crackle through the intercom. Suzie told the man to piss off just as someone picked up the phone.
“Yes!” The impatient tone made her hesitate. “Is anyone there?”
“Sam, it’s me. Hayley.”
“You have a nerve,” he said in a low growl. “Did they pay you well?”
It hit Hayley then. Abbey had done it for both the money and to punish her for not handing over her precious savings. “I didn’t sell the story to the press and have nothing to do with the story.”
“Yeah, well, you would say that. Facts look pretty clear to me. Don’t bother coming for the next conference.”
“But I—”
“Trust means everything to me, Hayley. You lied to me about your name. You sold me out to the press. How the hell do you expect me to trust you again?”
“But—”
The soft click of the phone told Hayley he’d hung up without allowing her to explain. Not that she would have told him about Abbey’s gambling problems. She hung up, her shoulders slumping in despair. “He doesn’t believe me.” Her thick voice was loaded with tears.
“I’ll tell him the truth,” Suzie said, her chin jerking up in combative mode.
“No. I have to fix this myself. And if he won’t listen to me, he’s not worth fighting for.”
Check out my website to read a blurb or another excerpt. Available in ebook or print formats.
To read more excerpts in the Snippet Saturday trail follow the links below:
Vivian Arend
Ashley Ladd
Jaci Burton
Juliana Stone
TJ Michaels
Shelley Munro
Taige Crenshaw
Eliza Gayle
McKenna Jeffries
Savannah Foley
Elisabeth Naughton
Moira Rogers
