Page 29 of A Very Barrie Christmas
Buzz. Another text.
She’s going to Singapore for New Year’s and won’t have a chance to read your chapters until she gets back.
Juliet felt her pulse skip a few beats, daring to hope. Would this mean an extension on her deadline?Please say she’s giving me more time. Holding her breath, Juliet stared at the three dots indicating her mother was composing another text.
I know you’re excited and want to keep the ball rolling, so rather than postpone, I told her you’d email your chapters early, by the end of this week.
Juliet stared at the screen, reading the text again. No, no, no… This couldn’t be happening. Please, no. Tears burned at the backs of her eyes as guilt and panic swelled in her chest.
She’d wasted so much time succumbing to her writer’s block, hanging her entire career on the ridiculous hope that some spectacular storyline would miraculously appear in her mind. She should’ve tried harder; she should’ve forced a story onto thepage. Instead, she’d lived in denial at the expense of her future—of her parents’ respect.
And what did she have to show for her months of fear-induced avoidance? Absolutely nothing.
As she read the next text from her mother, a tear slid down her cheek, scorching her skin with shame.
Let me know if I overstepped, sweetheart. But I told Debra, I know my daughter. She’s a Klein, through and through. Ink runs in our blood. I said, Juliet probably has twenty chapters by now. And I know every one of them is brilliant. XXO
Sick to her stomach, Juliet dropped her head in her hands, surrendering to her tears. She had four days to turn in ten chapters with aplomb. Tenextraordinarychapters worthy of awards. Or implode her career before it ever got started. A career that she’d only just realized she wanted for herself, not merely to please her parents.
That night, somewhere amid the joyful haze of creative inspiration, she’d discovered a startling truth.
Her literary aspiration ran deeper than living up to a lofty family legacy.
She had an authorial dream all her own.
It just wasn’t a dream that would make her parents proud.
CHAPTER 20
FRANK
Frank stood at the kitchen window and sipped his morning coffee, watching Nate and Juliet build a snowman in the backyard—Day 5 on the Christmas Calendar. Something had happened last night while he and Bevy stayed over at Dolores’s, waiting out the storm. Even from afar, he could see the change in their interactions, the playful way they threw snowballs at each other, their easy laughter.
As soon as they got home that morning and Bevy noticed two mugs and dessert plates drying on the dish rack, she’d predicted the shift in their relationship. “Mark my words,” she’d said with a satisfied smile, “those two finally had a real conversation last night and realized they’re perfect for each other.”
Based on the lovey-dovey display he was witnessing—Nate pulled Juliet into his arms before diving into a powdery snowdrift while she squealed in feigned protest—Bevy was right. Too bad she had to rush off to the library and couldn’t bask in the success of her matchmaking scheme. Maybe they should invite Nate to stay with them a little longer so he and Juliet could spend Christmas together?
Frank harrumphed into his coffee cup. He really had gone soft in his old age. When had he ever wanted to extend thevisit of a houseguest? Muttering about Bevy’s bad influence, he served himself some mince pie.
He’d moved on to a second slice by the time Nate and Juliet stumbled through the back door, pink-cheeked and breathless.
“Good morning.” Nate tugged off his knit cap. His blue eyes shone clear and bright, the look of a man unabashedly smitten. “That coffee smells great.”
“Help yourself.” Frank nodded toward the French press on the counter.
“Thanks, but I gotta get going. I’m meeting Luke at the middle school to work on the sets.” His gaze flickered to Juliet, as if he dreaded the thought of leaving her.Ah, young love.
“If you see Cassie,” Juliet said, hanging her coat on a hook by the door, “please tell her I’m almost finished with the script. I should have it done by tomorrow. Or the day after, at the absolute latest.”
“I’ll let her know.” The two lovebirds stood staring at each other for several seconds until Frank cleared his throat.
Nate snapped to attention. “Well, I’m off. See you guys later.”
“Bye.” Juliet blushed as Nate shot her a lingering glance before slipping out of the kitchen.
Good grief. The romantic chemistry between those two hung so thick in the air he could almost chew it, and he vastly preferred the taste of pie. He took another bite and washed it down with a gulp of French roast.
Juliet poured herself a cup and joined him at the kitchen table, plopping onto her chair with a blissful sigh. She wore the same besotted expression as Nate.
