#SampleSunday: An Excerpt from Charmed Life, available November 17th

As an actress, Sondra understood that, above all else, women were rivals. No matter what the relationship – sister, mother, daughter, friend – in the end, the best that could be expected was competitiveness.

Claire was a different sort of a woman from those Sondra had spent her life around, and her differentness confused Sondra. Despite knowing that Sondra and Milo had enjoyed a brief fling, Claire seemed determined to befriend her.

That Friday morning, Sondra awakened to the delicious aroma of fresh-brewed coffee – a beverage that Milo avoided for the most part. In his opinion, Arizona was no place for hot beverages. Therefore, she knew before she even set foot outside of her bedroom that Claire was in the kitchen. Still, the aroma was too strong to resist. She pulled her short pink-satin robe around her and walked quietly toward the kitchen, hoping to get a cup and get out before Claire could catch her.

“Good morning!” sing-songed the relentlessly cheery Claire. “I was just pouring you a mug of coffee!”

The first time Sondra had met Claire, the woman had been dour in the extreme and more than a little careworn. When Milo’s and her affection blossomed, though, Claire developed a glow that made Sondra want very much to kick her. But, she reasoned, that would be like kicking a puppy – people frowned when one did things like that. “Thank you,” she said, smiling stiffly and taking the mug.

“There’s an amaretto-flavored creamer in the fridge.”

“I know. I put it there.”

“That was you? I thought it was Milo.”

“Milo doesn’t drink coffee.”

“I know. I thought he bought it for me.” She sipped from her mug. “I’m afraid I used some of it.”

Sondra seethed, grinding her teeth as she poured a bit of the creamer into her cup.

“I’ll stop and buy a replacement bottle today. Do you want more amaretto or would you like one of the other flavors instead? French vanilla maybe?”

The anger she had been fostering dissipated, just as it always did where Claire was concerned. She never did enough wrong in sequence to allow Sondra time to build up a good head of steam. She tried to look on the bright side: soon, Claire’s unfailing goodness would be enough to raise her blood pressure. It was like living with Glinda the Good Witch. “French vanilla sounds good,” she answered. “And feel free to use as much of the creamer as you like.”

*****

Charmed Life, the second book in the Brass Monkey series, will be released on Thursday. If you haven't read Wild Life, please take the opportunity to pick up a sample. Links to all of my books can be found here.