Friday, April 27, 2012

Sweet Saturday

 
Welcome back! I have another scene from Sunlight and Shadows, my work-in-progress:

The shop was closed for the evening, so she could work on her project without being interrupted by customers. A knock on the door startled her. She looked up to see a familiar little face looking in and smiling. Her lips curved in an answering smile and she walked over to open the door.
"Hello, Jennie. What brings you here this evening?"
"Hi, Sophie. Daddy and I got a pizza for supper."
"Where is your Daddy?"
"He's right there." Jennie pointed to the car parked in front of the pizzeria. Brad stood next to the car, talking to another man. "He's talking to one of the band parents, and I saw your store's light was on and I wanted to say hi."
“That’s very nice of you. But does he know you came down here?”
"Jennie? Where are you?" Brad's anxious voice rang out. That answered her question.
"I'm right here, Daddy. I made sure I could always see you."
“I’m glad you did, Princess. I got really worried when I didn’t see you.”
Sophie's heart warmed to hear the exchange. Brad didn't sound angry, but his concern when he didn't see his daughter was evident, as well as his relief at finding her. As much as she grieved over the daughter she had lost, in a way it was probably better that the child had never been born. If she had, she would have been doomed to a life of constant criticism, and fear of not measuring up. She wouldn't have known what it was like to have friends, to express herself freely, play happily, and explore. She would have been as miserable as her mother had been. Maybe it was for the best the baby had never lived to experience such pain and suffering.
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Thanks for stopping by! Please leave a comment and be sure to check out other sweet excerpts at Sweet Saturday Samples.

8 comments:

  1. Jennie sounds like an independent little girl. :)

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  2. Jennie seems like quite a precocious child.
    I hope nothing bad happens to her!

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  3. *sniffles* It's so heartbreaking she feels this way. I bet by the end of the book her mind--and heart--will be full of much happier thoughts!

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  4. I love Jennie! Child characters in a non-children's book can be so fun.

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  5. Nice interaction, Patricia! I love that Brad is tender with his daughter.

    I would advise that you check your MS for "pet" words. You have two instances of "so" in the first paragraph (and a missing "she"). I have to watch out for "just" and a couple other words that crop up so much I think they lie in wait to launch themselves onto the keyboard. :-)

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    1. Duly noted, Marsha. I normally check my excerpts more carefully before uploading. Guess I was in a hurry this week. I'll edit when I get home from the conference in Chicago.

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  6. Patty,
    This story is really good. Quite a departure from your Samurai stories. I love that you're weaving your love of quilting into this new story. Looks like we're both off on different adventures!

    We really have to get together soon!!!
    ~ Marti

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