Page 9 of Making the Call
“Yeah. If I send out ARCs, people will read my book and review it before release day. Then hopefully when release day arrives, they’ll post their reviews, and I’ll get further promotion from the various retailers themselves.” She lets out a sigh, sounding exhausted.
“There’s obviously a lot more than I ever thought that goes into publishing a book. I thought only publishing companies or something like that, leave reviews posted on the book jackets,” I say without thinking.
“Not really. If I’m lucky, someone big in the book world will take it upon themselves to promote my book, but mostly it’s through the average consumer, bloggers, and my fans that I get promoted by word of mouth to new readers. Sure, I can market to specific audiences, which I do. But how I’ve made it so far, is through my fan base. I’m honored the people who like my work take the time to promote it to their friends, making my fan base grow.”
“That’s impressive.” I had no idea what went into getting a book onto shelves. “I guess I just take for granted, the authors I like publish books, and I pick them up when I need something to read.” I can’t say I’ve ever paid attention to when books are released, except for the Harry Potter series.Who didn’t pay attention to those?
“Sorry, I’ve been in edit mode all afternoon. You’ll have to forgive me. It makes me a little obsessive.” She lets out a light laugh, and I feel a shiver run through my body. It’s a warm summer evening, so the weather has nothing to do with it.
I grin in response. “It’s no problem. It’s nice to see how passionate you are about what you do.” A horn from the ferry blasts as it takes off, and I recall what I had originally called for. “So, Um… You haven’t fixed your bike yet, have you?”
“Uhhh, I have no idea where the nearest bike shop is, let alone the time this week to take care of it.” She makes a sound as if she’s laughing at me in private.Obviously, she’s been busy, and I now sound like a moron. Great.
“Well, would you mind if I stop by and fix it for you?”Yeah, that doesn’t sound stalkerish or anything. What the fuck was I thinking getting that part for her today? She didn’t ask or need my help, yet here I am ready to do it anyway.
“I guess?” she says in what I can presume is shock.
“If you’re busy, I can swing by another time,” I offer as a way of letting her off the hook if she doesn’t want to be bothered by me today.
“No. Today’s fine.” There’s a pause. “What time is it?” Another moment of silence. “Geez, it’s almost seven. I haven’t eaten since I left your house today. Have you eaten dinner?”
“No, not yet,” I admit. Then I realize I dropped her off before ten today, and we ate somewhere around eight… I think. I ate lunch, and I’m already hungry. She must be starved.
“Wanna come over, and I’ll treat you to dinner at the cafe near the lake? It’ll be my way of thanking you for your help this morning. I’d offer to cook for you, but I’m not sure what I have around here. I need to make a trip to the grocery store.” She lets out a light chortle. “Sorry, when I’m in the zone, the world around me ceases to exist.”
“Obviously.” I shake my head, knowing what it’s like to be in the zone. “I’ll be at your place in a few minutes. I’m not sure what time the diner closes, but if we’re too late, I know somewhere we can go.” I’ve got plenty of food to fix at my place.
Living on such a small island, I pull into her driveway within ten minutes. I’m greeted by an even more beautiful Dani than I remember. She’s now wearing her hair in a top knot, which would be messy on anyone else but is gorgeous on her. She’s changed into a loose blue tank with a fitted green one underneath and a pair of khaki shorts that are perfectly molded to her. Her knees are still covered in bandages, as well as her elbows, but she still looks amazing and nearly takes my breath away.
“Hey,” she says as she greets me. “Give me a second, and I’ll grab my purse.”
“No problem,” I say as I wait on her front walk. “I’ll drive, since I’m blocking you in,” I tell her when she reaches the door and locks it behind her.
“Sounds good,” she says as I escort her to her side of my Jeep and help her in. It’s lifted, and I use this as an excuse to stand behind her, ready to assist in any way I can. Dani’s a champ and doesn’t require assistance, so once she’s in, I simply close the door and make my way to the driver’s side.
I bought this Jeep when I was still in college. It’s not flashy and doesn’t stand out in this community, so it’s what I drive while I’m here. I can’t help the grin that spreads across my face when I remember how excited I was to buy it new, as a junior in college. I’d saved up and worked my ass off to get this on my own. Of course, I had it paid off as soon as I got my signing bonus when I was drafted into the league.
“So… What have you been up to today?” Dani asks as I put the car in reverse and leave her driveway.
“Well, after you left, I worked on a project in my garage for a bit then I ran some errands,” I reply, keeping my answer vague. No need to tell her what I did to get the wheel for her.
She angles her body toward me in the seat. “What kind of project?” she probes with genuine interest.
“Well, when I get the time, I’m restoring a ’66 Mustang.”
“Have you been working on it long?”
Unfortunately, a lot longer than I would like to admit. “Yeah, a couple of years.”
We pull into the cafe and realize it’s about to close in the next twenty minutes. “Uh, do you want to try going in or would you like to try some place else?” I ask, not caring either way. I have plenty to eat at my house, or we can go get something from the grocery store if she’d prefer to go home and fix something there.
Dani bites on her lower lip and contemplates her answer as she looks at the sign reading the hours of operation for the cafe. “I used to work as a waitress, and I hated when people showed up close to closing… Maybe we can have a raincheck?” She tacks on at the end.
“Well, since you said you haven’t eaten since breakfast,” I eye her dubiously, “what do you say I either take you to the grocery store or we go back to my place and eat?”
“Luke,” she draws out my name into more than three syllables. “I don’t want to put you out. I’m supposed to be thankingyou, not taking advantage of you… Again.” The look on Dani’s face is priceless. I know she wants to even the score between us, not feel at a disadvantage.
“I wouldn’t have offered if I didn’t want to. My housekeeper keeps my place stocked, so it’s really no imposition.” I can tell she’s about to protest, but I continue before she says another word, “I’ll admit I’m best at barbeque, so if you’re up for it, we can make dinner together, and I’ll bring you home afterward.”
