キャミー・タング著「戌年」連載小説 プロのドッグトレーナーであるマリ・ムトウは、厄年を迎えている。 犬小屋と訓練所の改築をしながら、いつも不服そうにしている家族と同居することになった。母と姉に言わせれば、犬の毛とよだれかけにまみれる仕事は、家族にとって恥ずべきものだという。彼女は元カレを説得し、数ヶ月間犬を預かってもらうことにした。しかし、彼の兄は、数週間前に彼女が誤って車に追突した、怒り狂ったセキュリティ専門家であることが判明する。 アシュウィン・ケイトウは十分な問題を抱えている。叔母が玄関先に現れ、同居を希望している。彼は彼女にすべてを借りているので、断ることができません。母親が家を出て行った後、ネルおばさんはアシュウィンと弟を引き取り、愛のあるキリスト教の家庭で育てた。しかも、弟のダスティもアパートを追い出され、居場所を求めている。しかし、彼は犬を飼っている。そして、その犬の飼い主は誰だと思いますか？ しかし、旧友でオアフ島のノースショアでデイスパを経営する私立探偵のエディサ・ゲレロから依頼を受ける。マリの施設で奇妙な破壊行為があり、3年前に失踪したエディサの妹の財布を発見する。エディサはマリが危険な目に遭っているのではと心配する。警備の専門家であるアシュウィンがすでにマリを知っていることを知ったエディサは、忙しい若い女性を密かに監視することを彼に依頼する。 アシュウィンは、活発でのんびりとしたドッグトレーナーに不本意ながら惹かれていく。彼女は、幸せそうな母親を思い出させる。その母親の裏切りによって、彼は人と距離を置くようになったのだ。マリは、アシュウィンの冷たい外見を見抜き、彼が家族に忠実な男であることを認める。彼は、彼女のキャリア選択を批判するだけの母親や姉とは違う。 マリのバラバラな家庭とアシュウィンのバラバラな家庭の中で、過去を隠そうとする人たちから、彼らの周りに危険が迫ってくるようになる。彼らは、影で動く秘密に光を当てることができるのか？ 過去に発表されたパートへのリンクはこちら。 *** 第8章 - 恐ろしくも真っ白な不動産書類 『みんな仲良くできないのかな？』 マリは無用に力を込めて箱に本を投げ入れた。最近、なぜ彼女は人生の中で全員と言い争いをしているのだろう？もしかすると、これは本当に悪いアイデア
Captain’s Log, Supplemental
Blog book giveaway:
My Thursday book giveaway is WEB OF LIES by Brandilyn Collins.
My Monday book giveaway is BE MY NEAT-HEART by Judy Baer.
You can still enter both giveaways. Just post a comment on each of those blog posts. I won’t be drawing a winner this Thursday, but on Monday, July 31st, I'll draw the winner for BE MY NEAT-HEART and post the title for another book I'm giving away.
ICRS, part 9 (continued from part 8):
Mary DeMuth had arranged for a bunch of us to have a night of karaoke at a local bar. I don’t know who picked it, but it was a small bar with lots of locals getting drunk.
MaryLu Tyndall, Marilyn Hilton, Danica Favorite-McDonald, Jeannette Hanscome, and I walked into the place to see Chip MacGregor on stage belting out “Brown-Eyed Girl” with two women dancing on either side of him.
Good old Chip.
He sang two more songs during the rest of the night, although I think that “Twist and Shout” killed his vocal chords. What a ham. I don’t even think he can blame the margaritas.
Mary’s a pretty good singer—she has a deep, sultry voice.
Susan Meissner did a TERRIFIC rendition of The Rose.
Randy Ingermanson sat quiet—yes, you read that right! He might have been tired from the long day, because I rarely see Randy at rest.
There were other people there whose names I didn’t catch because it was so dang loud. Probably important people like editors and best-selling authors. I have got to learn some trick on how to remember people’s names.
Meredith Efken and her husband Jason came later.
I sang “I Can Only Imagine” by MercyMe and Jeanette and Marilyn sang “Amazing Grace.” In a BAR.
Danica sang “The Animaniacs.” Even the DJ said he’d never heard that song done in his karaoke bar before.
Afterward, while talking with Chip, Danica discovered that they are long-lost cousins, because the MacGregors are supposedly cousins of the McDonalds. Okay, I said this before on Danica’s blog but it bears repeating—Danica and Chip being related is just scary.
Danica drove me and Chip back to our hotel. Plus Danica had left her laptop in my hotel room.
We walked to the hotel doors and saw this soft-spoken guy there (with his friend). Chip chatted with him briefly and then turned to us. “Let me introduce Camy and Danica—Stephen Baldwin.” As in, one of the Baldwin brothers, who just published a book with Warner Faith (newly renamed FaithWords). I would never have recognized him. There’s no blinding charisma or “Hey, look at me!” in his demeanor. It was a majorly cool moment, in every way.
Am I just easily impressed? I’m such a dork. I told Danica, “I don’t know why you hang out with me, I’m such a nerd.” She replied, “That’s the thing, Camy—I am, too!” :)
Tuesday morning—time to go. My feisty Italian-American friend Tina Russo and her new hubby Tom picked up MaryLu and me and took us to Ted’s for bison burgers! Actually, I had a burger while MaryLu (she’s so sickeningly self-disciplined) had a salad.
Then we walked through LoDo Denver (the Lower Downtown Historic District). It’s got really cool shops, just like downtown Saratoga but with more space, larger buildings and shops. They also took us to the Tattered Cover bookstore, which is all old wood and antique décor. The coolest bookstore. My only gripe is I wish they had larger Romance and Christian Fiction sections.
After a tiring few hours traveling, we arrived at the San Jose airport where MaryLu’s hubby picked us up and drove me home. It was sooooo nice to be greeted at the door by my dog, licking and wiggling her butt. My husband didn’t quite lick me and wiggle his butt, but I knew he was happy to see me, too.
The End
Blog book giveaway:
My Thursday book giveaway is WEB OF LIES by Brandilyn Collins.
My Monday book giveaway is BE MY NEAT-HEART by Judy Baer.
You can still enter both giveaways. Just post a comment on each of those blog posts. I won’t be drawing a winner this Thursday, but on Monday, July 31st, I'll draw the winner for BE MY NEAT-HEART and post the title for another book I'm giving away.
ICRS, part 9 (continued from part 8):
Mary DeMuth had arranged for a bunch of us to have a night of karaoke at a local bar. I don’t know who picked it, but it was a small bar with lots of locals getting drunk.
MaryLu Tyndall, Marilyn Hilton, Danica Favorite-McDonald, Jeannette Hanscome, and I walked into the place to see Chip MacGregor on stage belting out “Brown-Eyed Girl” with two women dancing on either side of him.
Good old Chip.
He sang two more songs during the rest of the night, although I think that “Twist and Shout” killed his vocal chords. What a ham. I don’t even think he can blame the margaritas.
Mary’s a pretty good singer—she has a deep, sultry voice.
Susan Meissner did a TERRIFIC rendition of The Rose.
Randy Ingermanson sat quiet—yes, you read that right! He might have been tired from the long day, because I rarely see Randy at rest.
There were other people there whose names I didn’t catch because it was so dang loud. Probably important people like editors and best-selling authors. I have got to learn some trick on how to remember people’s names.
Meredith Efken and her husband Jason came later.
I sang “I Can Only Imagine” by MercyMe and Jeanette and Marilyn sang “Amazing Grace.” In a BAR.
Danica sang “The Animaniacs.” Even the DJ said he’d never heard that song done in his karaoke bar before.
Afterward, while talking with Chip, Danica discovered that they are long-lost cousins, because the MacGregors are supposedly cousins of the McDonalds. Okay, I said this before on Danica’s blog but it bears repeating—Danica and Chip being related is just scary.
Danica drove me and Chip back to our hotel. Plus Danica had left her laptop in my hotel room.
We walked to the hotel doors and saw this soft-spoken guy there (with his friend). Chip chatted with him briefly and then turned to us. “Let me introduce Camy and Danica—Stephen Baldwin.” As in, one of the Baldwin brothers, who just published a book with Warner Faith (newly renamed FaithWords). I would never have recognized him. There’s no blinding charisma or “Hey, look at me!” in his demeanor. It was a majorly cool moment, in every way.
Am I just easily impressed? I’m such a dork. I told Danica, “I don’t know why you hang out with me, I’m such a nerd.” She replied, “That’s the thing, Camy—I am, too!” :)
Tuesday morning—time to go. My feisty Italian-American friend Tina Russo and her new hubby Tom picked up MaryLu and me and took us to Ted’s for bison burgers! Actually, I had a burger while MaryLu (she’s so sickeningly self-disciplined) had a salad.
Then we walked through LoDo Denver (the Lower Downtown Historic District). It’s got really cool shops, just like downtown Saratoga but with more space, larger buildings and shops. They also took us to the Tattered Cover bookstore, which is all old wood and antique décor. The coolest bookstore. My only gripe is I wish they had larger Romance and Christian Fiction sections.
After a tiring few hours traveling, we arrived at the San Jose airport where MaryLu’s hubby picked us up and drove me home. It was sooooo nice to be greeted at the door by my dog, licking and wiggling her butt. My husband didn’t quite lick me and wiggle his butt, but I knew he was happy to see me, too.
The End
Comments
see what a great friend I am?? I'm not even going to touch that comment! LOLOLOL
I would have loved to have seen y'all on stage!!! why-o-why didn't anyone have a video camera?? I would have paid to see that!
The Christian fiction section at the Tattered Cover bookstore is sad isn't it???
Maybe we can do that again at ACFW in Dallas! Karaoke, anyone?
And...Where was the VIDEO CAMERA?! I'd love to have seen that! And made copies of it! And made big bucks on ebay...umm I mean...I would have loved to have seen that. Forget the rest of what I said.
Camy, you'll have to bring a rope to tie me up. I can be a real mike hog if no one else is singing. :)
I'm so cracking up, Camy!! I love that kind of welcome, too. From my dogs, that is. :)
PS. I, too, am not going to touch the wiggling butts.
Loved reading this story and hearing it again. LOL! What a trip you had! Love ya, girl!
I do wish I could be in Atlanta or at least closer than I am to it, so that I could at least see all those glamorous writers tomorrow, especially you. You can't sign your books yet. Can you give authographs anyway or how is it for writers waiting to have their books out?