Not sure if I've mentioned it, but I recently released my third novel, Fresh Ice (Don't be confused, there are two books out there with the same title...mine is, well mine. By SARAH J. BRADLEY) Anyway, the tale of former figure skater Isabella "Izzy" Marks seems to resonate with most readers, so I thought I'd give you all a little more of a peak into her world. At this point in the book, she's decided to leave Wisconsin for good and move to Nashville to be closer to her daughter, who is attending college there. Oh, and there's this sort of mystery guy she saw at a club...and she's intrigued. So here you go! (and for those of you NOT into Kindle, this book is also available for the Nook, any e-reader, if you click HERE! It's also available in print if you click HERE!
Izzy sipped her iced tea and tried
to ignore the chatter floating around her like cottonwood pollen. Jenna and Mikayla
carried on a loud discussion about what they would wear on the first day of
classes. Izzy knew it was a hilarious conversation, simply by looking at
Adele’s disapproving glare. Sean, probably thinking about the long day’s drive
he had ahead of him in the morning, was quieter than normal, which only
emphasized Izzy’s own lack of participation.
I
have to stay focused. I have to think of exactly the right words to somehow
make this decision seem right for everyone involved, including Adele.
“Ladies, I hate to break up your
chit chat,” Sean pushed his chair back from the table, but we have a long drive
tomorrow and us oldsters need our sleep.”
Adele looked at her watch. “Oh you
are right, Sean. Okay, girls, give me a hug.” She stood and held her arms out
wide. Jenna and Mikayla stood and positioned themselves into her iron embrace. Izzy
knew, from the girls’ body language, that this hug was not soft and motherly.
If
she’s hard and unyielding with the girls, what’s she going to be like with me
when I flat out defy her?
“Come on Izzy,” Adele could have been
summoning a dog to her side. “Let’s go.”
“No.”
The word was out before Izzy had
time to second guess herself. It hung in the air like the glow of an unexpected
bold of lighting.
“I’m sorry. What did you say?” Adele
put her hands on her hips, a fighter, waiting for the bell.
Sean and the girls froze in their
positions. Only their eyes moved back and forth from Adele to Izzy.
“I said no, I’m not coming with you.”
Izzy struggled to keep a fearful waver out of her tone.
Adele’s expression clouded. “I see. So
you’re having a few moments with the girls before you turn in?”
“No. I mean I’m not coming back to Wisconsin Nashville
Sean and the girls slipped back to
seating positions and waited.
“You’re staying here?”
“Yes.”
“You’re not coming back?”
“No.” Izzy shook her head for
emphasis.
“What do you intend to do?”
“I guess I’ll do what people do. I’ll
find a place to live, a place to work. There’s nothing for me back in Wisconsin
“Oh, and there are so many
opportunities here? What kind of job do you think you’ll get here? There isn’t
much of a market for a former figure skater with no education and bad credit.”
Adele’s words stung like a slap to
the face. Izzy blinked, and glanced at Jenna, whose expression of fury steeled
Izzy’s resolve. “My daughter is here. I have, or will have, enough money to get
a modest place.”
“How do you have any money?” Adele waited
a beat. “Unless that man you were with paid you. Just how good are you that you
can snag a dirty musician and suddenly have enough money to make a major move
like this?”
“Mom!” Mikayla shouted. “You don’t
know what the hell you’re talking about.”
“No Mikayla, you don’t know what you’re
talking about. Remember yesterday when she was so sick she couldn’t help you
move? Well, I found her out with a man, and they looked like they were headed to
bed.”
“All right Aunt Iz!” Mikayla
cheered.
“Adele, shut up.” Izzy kept her voice
low. Fear was gone, replaced by righteous anger. “I was not headed to bed with
a man. Collier was my best friend growing up. We happened to meet yesterday
purely by chance. We talked, we had dinner. And then he put me in a cab and I
went back to the hotel. Alone.” She glanced at Jenna, who gave her an uncertain
smile.
“Well at least you can’t ruin him
like you ruined Jason. He’s already homeless.”
Izzy staggered back at the force of
this unexpected blow. “I didn’t ruin anything for Jason.”
“That’s not the way I remember it.”
“Adele, that’s enough,” Sean said
quietly.
“No, Sean, this is a long time
coming. My brother had everything going to him until her father bribed him to
skate with her and then she trapped him with a pregnancy.”
“Your brother was a grown man who
got a young girl pregnant.” Sean’s face turned a shade of red Izzy had never
seen on him.
“Yes, and had she gotten the
abortion like we all told her she should have, he wouldn’t have been exiled in
shame.”
“Mother…shut the hell up!” Mikayla
put her arm around Jenna. “Do you listen to anything that falls out of that
gaping pie hole of yours or do you just say every damn word that comes to your
head?” Mikayla eased a stunned looking Jenna out of the booth. “You are one
foul bitch. For your information, Aunt Izzy won the lottery. Not a million
bucks, but certainly enough to tell your queen bitch ass to go to hell.”
“Mikayla! Language!”
“Whatever.” Mikayla hugged Sean, who
was now also standing. “Sorry Dad. Have a safe trip back. Come on Jenna.”
Without another word, the girls
walked out.
“Do you see what you did?” Adele
turned on Izzy, her eyes blazing.
“What I did? What I did? I didn’t do
anything to you.” Izzy took three steps toward the door.
“Everything you owe me, and this is
how you repay me?”
Izzy paused, her hand hovering over
the knob. The idea of owing Adele anything froze her. “What on earth could I
possibly owe you?”
“If it weren’t for us, you and Jason
would have been on the street.”
“Adele, Jason more than paid for
that and you know it.”
Adele whirled her viper eyes on Sean.
“Shut up Sean! That was nothing! That was a pittance! We gave them a life, we
gave them livelihood!”
“They paid for that. Izzy’s more
than paid her share.”
Izzy stared at Sean, his intense
glare of defiance surprising her. Sean never stood up to Adele. What does he mean, we paid for it?
“It wasn’t enough given the years I’ve had to
put up with this!”
Izzy’s glance whipped back to Sean as she
waited for a spirited rebuttal, but the look was gone, replaced by his usual
slack expression of defeat. I’m on my own
against her again. Izzy squared her shoulders. “Well, Adele, I’m so very
sorry you’ve had to put up with me all these years. So I guess I’m taking that
huge task away from you. Whatever will you do with all the time you’ll have,
now that you can’t think up ways to blame me for everything?” She didn’t wait
for a response, and given the purple hue to Adele’s face, it was doubtful the
one she got would have been pleasant. She whipped the door open and charged
through it, rage speeding her steps.
Once out on the street, the warm
night air did little to calm her. She started up the street with a vague notion
of tracking down Jenna. She didn’t realize she was nearly running until she
crashed into another pedestrian and fell down.
“Hey, where’s the fire?” The tall
man held out his hand.
“Thank you. I’m so sorry…oh, it’s
you…” Her knees went weak as she looked into the clear, beautiful eyes of the
mystery man from Jason’s funeral.
He smiled, and kept his hand on her
arm. “Yes it is.”
“I’m so sorry. I mean, you’re the
guy from the other night, the one who introduced the bands. Quinn…something.” Why am I blanking on his last name?
“Yes. Yes, that’s what my stage name
is; Quinn Something.”
Izzy brushed herself off. “I’m sorry.
I’m a bit preoccupied.”
“I gathered that.”
“Well, anyway.” She shook his hand. “Thank
you for your help, Quinn Something.”
“You’re very welcome, Miss. Look,
can I buy you a cup of coffee or something?”
Izzy looked up into Quinn’s face. Again
she was mesmerized by his eyes. “Are you in the habit of asking out complete
strangers?”
“No, of course not. But we’re not
complete strangers.”
“Really?”
“Really. I mean, you saw me at
Chance’s, and we just ran into each other here. Plus, we know 25% of our
combined names. We’re nearly old friends.”
“Ah. So what would we be if we knew
each others’ full names?”
“Well, this is the South. We’d be
kissin’ cousins.” He gave her a dizzying smile.
Her knees went weak, and Izzy
laughed out loud to cover her sudden flash of arousal. Her anger at Adele shed
itself from her like a heavy coat. There was something about Quinn that put her
at ease. Also, there were his beautiful eyes. “Say, you don’t have a twin, do
you?”
“No. Why do you ask?”
“Then we have met before. My name is
Isabella Marks, but everyone calls me Izzy. But you must have already known
that.”
A shadow crossed his face. “Why do
you say that?”
“You were at my husband’s funeral,
back in March.”
Quinn was quiet for a long moment, his
eyes darkened. “Yes, I was there.”
Briefly Izzy wondered why admitting
that fact was so difficult for him. She decided not to pursue the line of
questioning.
“So they call you Izzy.” He seemed
happy to change the subject. “That is a properly Southern nickname.”
“I grew up here.”
“Okay then, Miss Izzy,” he bowed
low, and used an exaggerated Southern accent, “my full name is Quinn Murray. I
did not grow up here, but here is where I have taken root.” He took her hand
and brushed his lips lightly on the tips of her fingers. “So, where would you
like to go?”
“I don’t suppose there’s anyplace I
could get some good coffee and grits, is there? I have a sudden urge for
grits.”
“Miss Izzy, this is the South. Finding
grits here is like finding cheese curds in Wisconsin
Ten minutes later, Izzy and Quinn
were seated in a Waffle House, waiting for their food to arrive.
“So Mr. Murray…”
“Call me Quinn, please.”
“Quinn. What are you celebrating?”
“I do some charity events at Bridgestone Center
“Well that is a reason to celebrate.”
She set her coffee cup down. “You said some of the Admiral players were your
friends. Are you a hockey player?”
Quinn took a long time stirring
cream into his coffee before he answered. “I work for the Nashville Predators,
that’s the NHL affiliate of the Milwaukee Admirals.” He took her hand in his. “Ja-Your
husband seemed to be well liked. I am sorry for your loss.”
There’s
something about his expression. He doesn’t look all that sorry.
I’m
imagining things.
“Thank you. It’s been a big
adjustment. I’ve just decided to move back to Nashville Wisconsin
Quinn smiled at her, his clear
blue-green eyes lighting up. “Well, then, I guess welcome back Izzy Marks. Welcome
home.”
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