Hey! Hi! Hello! Happy Sunday and Merry January to you! I’ve got a nice hot cup of Steeped in Love waiting for all you folks dealing with the sub-zero temps out there, and even for those of you who are toasty warm already. I’m sweet that way. 😉
Continuing from where we left off….
Instead of telling her off or defending himself, which she fully expected, Ethan nodded to her abandoned table and asked, “Was that the guy’s problem?”
“I’m sorry?”
“The guy you were sitting with. Wasn’t he interesting enough for you? Read too many books, maybe?”
She struggled to find the right words. How could she tell him the real reason she ditched her date was because her tea leaves told her to? He’d put her on the next bus to the loony bin. “He was just a, um…ssssselfish. Too into himself.”
Here’s the blurb:
Addie Mitchell is a pie-on-the-fly entrepreneur who’s finally ready to settle down in the big, empty house her late great-aunt Edna left to her. Frustrated with her lack of success in romance, Addie turns to another gift her great-aunt passed on to her—the art of reading tea leaves—to aid her in her search for the ideal mate.
Novelist Ethan Holtz is having a hard time sinking his teeth into his next project, but he finds Addie fascinating. Mainly for her ability to make her dates disappear in fifteen minutes or less. He can’t help but eavesdrop on her dates in the local coffee shop, his writing haven, and soon finds himself taking pointers on what not to do from her failed suitors.
Though her methods seem nothing short of mad, he falls fast and hard for the pixie-haired pie-pusher. She thinks they’re all wrong for each other, but Ethan teams up with the tea leaves to prove they’re so right.
Thanks so much for stopping by and be sure to visit the other Weekend Writing Warriors!
Well, I can finally breathe a sigh of relief…at least for a little while. I’ve been stressing out for weeks and weeks over the Golden Heart, making sure my entry was as polished as it could possibly be. I finally had to let my precious go this past week. Now, we all play the waiting game. No matter what happens, I am so proud of myself for entering and I truly hope and pray Steeped in Love will be a finalist! In the meantime, I’ve also decided (yet again) to add on to the story and shoot for closer to 60k as my final word count. I think that’ll open up a lot more doors for me, so I’ve been brainstorming with my Crit Partner Extraordinaire. She always manages to help me see the light. Hope the week ahead is full of wonderful things for you, my friends! 🙂
Award-winning romance author & PE teacher who plays sports, sings, juggles, dances, has a sneaker obsession, & lives on PB! 
Nice little dig by Ethan, though he’s giving her a bit of a break, too. The tea leaves would be hard to explain!
I had to let him get back at her somehow, especially as a fellow author. 😉 Thanks, Christina!
Fun reading her bumble her way through an explanation. He’s a keeper.
Fingers crossed for your delightfully different story coming out on top!!
I think so, too. 🙂
Thank you so much, my friend! I’ll keep you all posted! xo
Well, the tables have definitely turned in that situation. He made her feel just as uncomfortable as she made him last week. Maybe they can put the digs behind them and move on to better conversation?
Exactly right. These two seem to thrive on trading wits and barbs, as you’ll soon see. lol. Thanks, Jessica! 🙂
Good luck with the Golden Heart. This story is so good, it should win.
Aww, thank you so much, Diane! That means the world to me! 🙂
Enjoyed the snippet! See, I don’t think the tea leaves are actually that hard to explain but clearly I’m a minority here LOL. Love the story. Best wishes on the Golden Heart entry.
Lol, I think you and Addie need to hang out, then. 😉 Thanks so much for your support, Veronica! I really appreciate it! *hugs*
LOL! Yeah, I guess tea leaves might be a bit hard to explain 🙂
Maybe just a bit. To most of us, anyway. lol. Thanks! 🙂
I can understand her reluctance. Don’t know how well she covered it.
Thanks for stopping by, Kimberly! 🙂
It’s interesting that although she believes in the tea leaves, she’s ashamed to admit it. I think we all have such ‘unacceptable’ beliefs we don’t own up to.
Very astute of you to pick up on that. It’s something she mulls over later on. I think you’re exactly right, like my belief that I might actually find ‘the one’ on Tinder…. 😀
We’ve waited soooo long for their interaction . . . and I’m not disappointed! Love the dynamics here, Julie.
Aww, I’m so happy to hear that, Nancy! Thank you! 🙂
It was more than the tea leaves that were warning her off, really. Like his dig at her earlier comments about reading. Readers are cool people, after all. 😉
Good luck!
Yeah! We’re totally cool and stuff! 😀 Thanks, Caitlin!
Hi Julie. I am late to the party so pardon me as I ask is The Golden heart the story of your work or a contest. Either way I wish you great success. I am trying to read enough of the WWW posts to understand how you do this. I intend to fully participate next Sunday.
Hi Joe! The Golden Heart is a contest run by the Romance Writers of America. I really appreciate your support! 🙂 Looking forward to you joining us next Sunday!
I think she might be surprised by him again… if she decides to tell him. 😉 Good luck with Golden Heart! Hard work pays off! 😀
IF…and that’s a big IF. lol. We shall see. 😉 Thanks so much, Amy!
Good luck with the Golden Heart, Julie.
I like how he puts her on the spot, and how he gives himself away at the same time.
Thanks so much, Kim! I really appreciate it! 🙂
“He was just a, um…sssselfish.” Hee, I see what you did there! Tea leaves for the win, making the snake slither off! My tea leaves say that a certain talented Canadian is soon to be a published author again!
😀 You’re ssssuch a clever girl! And you are ssssso sssssweet! Thank you, thank you for your sssssupport! xoxoxo
Read too many books…LOL!
He’s a snarky one, isn’t he? lol. 😀