Tuesday, June 17, 2008

A Good Day

Writing is hard. Some days I can sit for hours, other days I muse, play on Facebook and try to come up with new ways to avoid doing the ironing.
Today I wrote.
It was a good day.
I don't often do this, but I wanted to share a snippet. (hey if the blog is good enough for Danielle Steel then I may as well post my own writing as well!)
Let me know what you think.

Excerpt from Hidden in the Heart by Catherine West ©2008.

Michelle yanked her hands from his and put as much space as she could between them. “My life is not fodder for the press, Kevin Harrison. Nor is it at your disposal to sway the public in your favor. What is wrong with you? I’ve just told you something only a few people in this world know about. The last few weeks have been a living hell for me. I’ve been in torment, Kevin, but you haven’t noticed. You’re too busy focusing on your career, aren’t you?”
“And you should be as well,” he snarled. “It is after all, what I pay you for.”
“Not anymore.” Michelle grabbed her purse off the couch and marched to the door. Oh, she’d been blind, but her eyes were wide open now.
“Where do you think you’re going? We’re not done here,” Kevin shouted. His voice took on the tone she recognized, a warning of what might follow. Michelle swiveled and watched his face contort with anger. She’d put up with his violent outbursts too many times before, but wasn’t about to do so today. She glanced at the door, ready to run if he came toward her.
He didn’t. Not this time. He made an honorable effort to control himself, even managed a smile. “What about us, Michelle? I thought we had something going here.”
“So did I.” Michelle shook her head, aware that her eyes were dry. “I guess if you consider that something as someone who looks good on your arm, someone to do and say all the right things, and maybe at some point, a marriage of convenience, then yeah, we did have something going. But I don’t want that, Kevin. Not anymore.”
His eyes widened and he pulled a hand over his face. “Then what do you want, Michelle? Enlighten me.”
What did she want?
In a few years she’d be celebrating her fiftieth birthday. And what did she have to show for it?
Tears came to her eyes then, but they weren’t for Kevin.
“I want…a quiet life. I want to go for long walks with someone who really knows me, understands me and loves me anyway. I want to pick blueberries, sail, and swim in the lake, and go skiing in winter. I want a dog. Maybe two.” Her sudden laughter caught her off guard, but she gave in to it, enjoying the feeling. “I want to live in a cabin in the woods, with my family close to enough to have over for dinner whenever I feel like it. I want to get to know my grandson, and my daughters. But most of all, Kev, I want to be loved unconditionally. And I want to give back the same.”
“That’s a fairytale,” Kevin scoffed. “That kind of love only exists in romance novels and movies.”
“Oh, Kev.” Michelle let out a tired sigh and moved across the room to stand before him. She placed a hand on his cheek and shook her head. “I used to believe that too. But I think I might have been wrong. I pray I am.”
“You’re really leaving?”
“Yes.” She walked toward the door again, smiling.
“You’re throwing it all away, Michelle! You’re throwing your life away.”
Michelle turned one last time to look at him, her heart full with new promise and expectations and hope for what tomorrow would bring. Whatever the future held, she knew there was nothing left for her here.
She’d paid her dues.
“No, Kevin. I’m not throwing my life away. I’m taking it back.”

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