“All right.” It was all going so fast and I’d never seen her so enthusiastic about any of my books. “That sounds good.”
“Great!” Standing up, she moved around her table. “But I have to ask you. How in the world did you come up with the idea of mixing romance with an Nman? It’s so bold. I mean, you might as well have written about a demon or Lucifer himself.”
“Maybe Nmen aren’t as bad as we think.”
“Ha!” Ebony shook her head. “As long as they stay on their side of the border, I don’t mind playing pretend games, but if I saw one in real life, I’d run for my life.”
I furrowed my brow. “You wouldn’t even give him a chance before you ran?”
“Nooo. Can you imagine?” She laughed.
“So what if, on a hypothetical level of course, my book wasn’t based on my imagination but on an actual experience? What if I knew an Nman and wanted him to live here with me?”
Ebony stared at me like I was talking in a dead language.
“What if I was in love with an Nman?” I specified.
Her whole face fell and she walked over to take my hand. “Darling, this happens sometimes, you know. All great authors have artistic souls and your characters feel real to you. I should have known that being alone in that forest for so long wasn’t healthy for you. Especially after what happened to your family.” Lifting her hand to her collarbone, she looked ridden with guilt. “How awful that we didn’t insist on your coming back here.”
“I’m fine.”
“Okaay…” She dragged the word out and it dripped with skepticism. “Then you understand that Mark is just a character, right?”
I pulled my hand back. “Of course.”
“Good.”
“I’m just asking you if you think our society could embrace and welcome an Nman if he decided to live here.”
“In theory, yes.”
“But in reality?”
She shrugged. “Well, as long as he was willing to shave and fit in with the rest of us, I suppose it wouldn’t be impossible. But he would have to give up everything that makes him an Nman and where’s the fun in that?”
“But Deidra accepted Mark for who he was.”
“What would it matter, if the things he enjoys are illegal here? He couldn’t fish, hunt, eat meat, or wear leather. And he would have to give up alcohol, which he seemed very fond of in your book.”
“Yes, but they would have each other.”
Ebony sat down on the edge of the table. “You know what, when readers ask you, just stick with the answer that it’s possible. It’s better if you don’t get too realistic. Let them love the fantasy of Mark as the dangerous demon.”
“He’s not a demon. He’s a man.”
“Who can hurt you.” Ebony winked. “I felt almost filthy for loving the book so much but I suppose even we modern women can dream of fixing corrupted men.”
Pushing the chair back, I got up from my seat. “He’snota demon!”
“All right, calm down. I didn’t mean to upset you.” Ebony rose to her feet and took my hand again. “You seem stressed. Why don’t you go and get a massage? That helps.”
I wanted to scream that I could never have a massage again without being reminded of Tyton and it would hurt too much.
“See your friends and go out a little. It’ll do you good, my dear. Once we’ve had an internal meeting about your book, I’ll tell you what the plan is and we’ll get you all set up for the press tour.”
A few hours after I’d left Ebony’s office, I met up with two of my author friends whom I’d studied with. After the initial kissing and hugging we caught up and talked about their current projects and when it was time to talk about me, I suddenly got uncomfortable.
“Didn’t you say you had a meeting with your publisher this morning?” My friend Tina blew her nose and it made her large blonde curls bounce around her head. “I’m so sorry but my nose is stuffy. I thought about canceling, but it’s been so long since we saw you and I’ve missed you.”
