Carol McClain – Romantic Excerpt – Part 2 of 3

Shannon here: Women’s fiction author, Carol McClain shares a romantic excerpt from her debut novel, DWF: Divorced White Female plus a chance to win a copy. Comment or answer the question at the end of any post dated Dec 8 -12 to enter the drawing. Deadline: Dec 20th, 11:59 pm central time. Here’s Carol:

So how does my autobiography show up in DWF: Divorced White Female? I hope I didn’t lead you on, my time online, was thankfully brief. I met one man, the one God ordained for my life.
However, a burning question raged that wasn’t answered until after we married.
This excerpt comes from Chapter Eight & illustrates my dilemma.
Excerpt from DWF: Divorced White Female by Carol McClain:
…I bit my lip, turned and faced Carleton.
He looked — good! Grey mustache, aquiline nose, grey, kind eyes. For the first time this evening, I relaxed. My shoe strap held with duck tape. I hadn’t tripped in front of him. Better than that? He showed up.
“I’m sorry I’m late,” I said when I remembered to stop looking like a startled ostrich and slid into the booth opposite him. “Black ice made the roads slick, and also I stumbled in front of the restaurant and broke my shoe strap.” I gulped. Stopped dead. I hadn’t meant to draw attention to my broken shoe. Afraid he’d wonder why I slipped and not wanting him to think I was staring into Porta Bella’s window like a pervert looking for a victim, I added, “I slipped on ice. It’s quite icy.”
“The North Country’s hazard.” He smiled and showed beautiful, straight teeth. Large, white, perfectly even teeth. So perfect for a fifty-year-old father. Two, deep, captivating dimples framed those teeth. Two deep parentheses crowning his smile, and those teeth.
Then, as if I wasn’t neurotic enough about this date, my tortured brain started a new train of mental torment. How can someone as old as he have those perfect teeth? Are they false? They have to be false? How do I find out if they’re real before we get serious?
Something in my face must have shown my alarm.
“Cheryl? Is something wrong?”
“No.” It came out too loud, too panicked. I gulped, blinked my eyes and modulated my voice. “No,” I said in my most adult, sophisticated voice. “Why?”
“You seemed,” he paused. “Never mind.”
I wondered if he wanted to say horrified, say I looked like a fish on dry land gasping for air. I didn’t intend for the date to be this way. I wanted to look perfect. I wanted to cry for joy when the waitress came and asked if I’d like a drink….
…After the waitress took my order, I looked at him again to reassure myself that I sat in a swanky restaurant, dining with a distinguished, maybe toothless, man. “I’ve never had a blind date before. I feared you’d think I was a freak.”
No. Did I say that? He’s on a blind date, too.
“We’re not blind dating.”
He didn’t notice, or at least he ignored, my faux pas. My hands stopped trembling, and the tension between my shoulder blades ebbed.
“I feel like I’ve known you for a long time.” His words sounded a little canned to me, but hungry for the sentiment, I let it slide….
“Here’s to a wonderful evening.” Carleton lifted his glass, “and to getting to know a wonderful woman….”
…He walked me to my car, and his arms slid around my shoulder as he turned me toward him. I feared looking at him, feared seeing derision at my drunkenness written on his face.
He was tall; even in heels, I just reached his chin. Then, like all the romantic movies, with my chin framed between his index finger and thumb, he tilted my face toward him, and I saw nothing but tenderness. He kissed me, his mustache tickling my lips. I did think, for a moment this would be the time to discover whether he wore dentures. However, even in my stupor, checking would be a bit forward on a first date. So we kissed — a simple touching of our lips. Demure. Romantic.
Me Again: Was Carleton the one? You’d have to read the book to find out. If you comment on the excerpt, a quirk your own spouse has that niggled your mind, or answer the question at the end of the post, you will be entered to win a copy of DWF: Divorced White Female. If you don’t win—no problem, it’s available wherever excellent books are sold.
About Carol: Diverse. If one word can describe Carol McClain, it’s diverse and had been long before diversity became such a pc buzz word. She’s a novelist, essayist, and erstwhile poet (Be glad it’s erstwhile and no longer current). She hales from northern New York—so far north, she’s almost Canadian. Eh?
She plays the bassoon, creates stained glass, cross-country skis, and is a former marathoner and high ropes instructor. For more than thirty years, she taught English, and she now teaches Bible studies, and edits for fun.
In addition to this, she has served on the North Country Habitat for Humanity board for over ten years. In that capacity, she’s held every position except those having to do with money. She may be able to tell you the definitions sesquipedalian, but simple addition baffles her.
She is course coordinator for ACFW. And of course, she writes. She’s completed four novels, with DWF being her debut. You can connect with McClain at: http://carol-mcclain.blogspot.com
About the book – DWF: Divorced White Female:
Sassy, unsaved and desperate, Cheryl Chandler realizes one thing will redeem her from her ex-husband’s betrayal. A man. Any man—so long as he’s hot.
If you meet him online, he’s got to be good? Right?
Ditched by her husband, Cheryl Chandler’s going to find love at any cost. But she has a lot to learn—and never expected to learn it from her kids.
DWF: Divorced White Female is a tale of love, laughter and redemption. You can find it wherever books are sold.
Question: Have you ever met anyone with perfect teeth?

Come back Dec 12 for Carol’s recipe for Apricot Brandy Pound Cake!