WITHOUT FURTHER ADO—here is the promised sneak preview of FESTIVAL NURSE. This scene depicts a pivotal moment, early in the story, when Roi makes a surprising revelation to our heroine, June Magee, R.N. Enjoy! **** “I’ll have a glass of the Chardonnay, please.” The server nodded and moved on to the next table. “So. You were saying?” June gave Roi a small smile. It was almost coquettish. Almost. She picked up her water glass. “I don’t believe I was saying anything, Mr. Rodgers.” Roi rolled her eyes. “June? Since we’re going to be together for most of the next six days, I think there’s something we need to clarify.” “What’s that?” Roi leaned forward over their small table and lowered her voice. “I’m not a man. I’m a woman.” June in mid-swallow choked on her water. She raised her napkin to her mouth, but the harder she tried to compose herself, the more she choked. Heads at other tables swerved toward the distressing sound. Roi began to stand up, but June waved her back into her seat. “I’ll . . . be . . . fine,” she gasped. “I just need a moment.” Roi fidgeted on her seat. What a colossal blunder. Why didn’t she wait until . . . when? Hell. There would never have been an easier time. She looked out the window and was surprised to see that things on the platform were moving. Correction. The platform wasn’t moving, they were moving. The train was leaving the station—just like she’d left the station with June. There was no going back now. The cat was out of the bag, and it lay stretched out across the tabletop between them, clamoring for attention. June seemed more composed, although she was still dabbing at her eyes with the end of her napkin. “Are you okay?” Roi asked. June nodded. “I’m sorry I just dropped it on you like that. I guess I thought you’d figure it out.” “Figure it out?” Roi nodded. The server arrived and deposited their drinks. “You folks ready to order?” June didn’t reply, so Roi told him they’d need another few minutes. The server didn’t seem to notice. He was too busy staring at June, who had picked up her wine glass and proceeded to drain half of its contents in one elegant sequence of energetic swallows. Roi and the server locked eyes. “Yeah. We’re going to need another one of those.” She made an oblique gesture toward June’s glass. The server winked and walked off. Roi waited until June set her near-empty glass back down on the table. “Thirsty?” June ignored the question. She unclipped the collar of her dark blue cape and slid it off her shoulders. “I don’t know why they keep it so warm in here.” Roi opened her mouth to say something, but thought better of it. “You honestly had no idea?” she asked instead. “No idea about what?” June replied. Her response seemed genuine enough. Roi didn’t think she was simply playing dumb. “No idea that I’m not a man?” June’s face dissolved into another flustered look. Roi quickly extended a hand across the table. “You’re not going to choke again, are you?” She shook her red head. “I just thought . . . well . . . that somebody at the paper would’ve told you.” June lifted her chin. “I don’t make it a habit to discuss the private lives of my co-workers, Mr.—Miss Rodgers.” This was going no place. And it was traveling there a helluva lot faster than the damn Capitol Limited, which appeared to be crawling its way out of Union Station. Roi sighed. “Please call me Roi.” June didn’t reply. Roi met her blue eyes. “Please?” “All right. Roi.” There was that maddening little tingle again. She needed to get that shit under control. And fast. She cleared her throat. “Look. This isn’t a thing for you, is it? I mean . . . it won’t get in the way of our working relationship, will it?” “A thing?” Roi sighed. “If you’re going to spend the rest of the evening repeating everything I say, this is going to be a very dull conversation.” June actually smiled . . . sort of. “I apologize. You just took me by surprise. I wasn’t expecting . . . that.” Roi crossed her arms. “What were you expecting?” June lowered her gaze and seemed to become absorbed by the blue-and-white pattern on the railway china. Roi gave up and flicked the rim of her empty water glass. The soft ting it made was as clear as a bell. June looked up at her. “Nice stuff.” Roi smiled. “You weren’t kidding about the first-class accommodations, were you?” June seemed to relax. A little. She picked up her wine glass again. “No. The elegance and refinement of train travel is highly underestimated by most people today.” “So I’m beginning to understand.” “Are you making fun of me?” The question caught Roi off guard. In fact, she had been making fun of her. And now, she felt like a schmuck . . . in boi’s clothing. “It’s my turn to apologize. I’m sorry for acting like an asshole.” June sighed. “No,” Roi clarified. “I mean it. I’m really sorry. Can we just start over?” June seemed intrigued by Roi’s suggestion. “What does that mean, exactly?” Roi extended a hand across the table. “Hello. My name is Roisin Rodgers, and I’m a photographer at The Windy City Mercury. My friends and family call me Roi for short.” June belatedly took hold of Roi’s hand and gave it a modest squeeze. amazon/June-Magee-R-N.../dp/B00QHEUE86
Posted on: Wed, 17 Dec 2014 12:08:39 +0000
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