Currently Reading: A Discovery of Witches by Deborah Harkness
Amelia Gets a Job, an Excerpt from my first novel, A Life Beyond Yesterday (Women's Fiction)
The alarm on my cell phone rattled off at 9am. I stumbled across the hall to find Alex still snoring. Taking the opportunity to shower the sleep off, I washed my hair twice for good measure and tied it up tight in a ponytail before getting dressed for my interview at Duke’s Café.
I stirred Alex and herded him into the shower while I retrieved some pop-tarts from a box in the kitchen. I know it’s not the best breakfast for a growing child but I would find the grocery store today on the way home from the interview and stock the kitchen. Until then, pop-tarts would have to do.
After taking only two wrong turns I spotted the sign for Duke’s Café and pulled into the parking lot. My back tire tripped over the curb’s edge and threw my Blazer into a fitful bounce. “Shit,” I said under my breath. I scanned the parking lot to see if anyone noticed as I felt heat creep into my cheeks.
Finally parked, I tilted the rear-view mirror to see that I’d missed one crucially stray eyebrow hair while getting ready. I tried in vain to pinch it between my fingernails and rip it out by the roots but it wouldn’t budge and I’ve never been the type to carry make-up, let alone tweezers, in my purse.
Disgruntled, nervous, and now with a slightly red eyebrow, we headed for the door. Inside, I told Alex to have a seat at one of the booths where I could see him and stay put until I was done speaking with the manager.
The manager of Duke’s (and later I found out, also the owner), Clint Sterling, was an older man. An overworked fifty-five I guessed, with broad shoulders and a concave butt, Clint would have fit seamlessly into an old western film. I introduced myself and handed him my application just as a small fire began blazing in the kitchen that sent him rushing away, my application in his hand.
“I’ll make a decision within a week,” Clint said as he came strolling back through the swinging wooden doors from the kitchen, making a useless attempt to hoist his belt towards his waist. His burgeoning belly was too big of an obstacle to overcome. Not much of an interview, I thought. But I thanked him anyway and went over to gather Alex who was snacking on a turkey sandwich at the counter.
-A Life Beyond Yesterday, written under pen-name Clara LaVeaux
