by Ann McMan
I draw daily inspiration from the interactions I am blessed to have with readers and writers. Thank you all for your candor, support, and friendship. Special thanks to Christine, Louise, and Sandy for being brave enough to read early drafts of this book. You each should receive hazardous duty pay. And the enduring love and support I receive from my personal “Nurze” and Lodge Sister, Jeanne Barrett Magill, means the world to me.
Not a day goes by that I don’t remember and celebrate the too-short life of Sandra Moran. You had a giant footprint, my dear friend—and I will forever be grateful that I got to walk alongside you for a while. You will never be gone as long as we remember you—and those of us fortunate enough to have known you will never forget you. That is especially true for your mother, Cherie Moran. Rumor now has it that Cherie lost her prized role as the lead synchronized swimming understudy for Esther Williams in Million Dollar Mermaid when her water broke (creating mass confusion on the set), kicking off a jaw-dropping 16 years of labor pains before giving birth to Sandra in 1968. Cherie? A tired and incredulous world thanks you for your sacrifice.
Buddha Bean? When I think about the debt I owe you, words fail me. You abide at the center of my best self—and whenever I wander off and get how I get, it is your voice that calls me back and calms me down. You remind me of every good thing. I think that’s because, for me, you are every good thing. Thank you for sharing your life with me. Thank you for your love and patience. Thank you for your hard work, your incredible involvement and investment in these stories, and your keen instincts. Thank you for making everything I do better—the least of which is reflected in these pages, and the greatest of which is reflected in the life I live with you. You mean everything to me. Having said that—no, we are not getting a second husky . . .
About the Author
ANN McMAN is the author of nine novels and two short story collections. A Lambda Literary Award winner, she is also a two-time Independent Publisher (IPPY) medalist, an eight-time recipient of Golden Crown Literary Society Awards, and a laureate of the Alice B. Foundation for her outstanding body of work. She lives in Winston-Salem, North Carolina.
Bywater Books
Copyright © 2019 Ann McMan
All rights reserved. No part of this book may be reproduced, stored in a retrieval system, or transmitted in any form or by any means, without prior permission in writing from the publisher.
Bywater Books First Edition: November 2019
E-Book ISBN: 978-1-61294-160-8
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Cover designer: Ann McMan, TreeHouse Studio
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This novel is a work of fiction.
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