The Unexpected Heiress
Page 29
“It’s from the John Murray Publishing Company,” Meredith said softly, a bit in awe of the name on the letter.
She had sent them her manuscript two months ago, just before she and Phillip were married. She had been so preoccupied with Phillip and the wedding, and then their travels in Scotland, that it had been easy not to think about her book and what the publisher may have thought of it.
Meredith had been busy discovering how much she loved being married to Phillip Sinclair. Sleeping beside him each evening and waking up in his arms every morning was a delightful pleasure, as was their laughter at the myriad of little things that they found funny. She and Phillip also discovered that they shared a love of traveling and decided that they would spend the first few years of their marriage visiting as many places as they could.
In the meantime, she had started writing another mystery novel while they were away. She had titled it, The Deceptive Damsel, and the story took place in a crumbling castle in the Scottish Highlands, where a mysterious disappearance had occurred years before. Meredith was quite inspired to write while she was there among the rocky, green hills, in spite of the wonderful distraction of having Phillip with her.
She loved sharing her writing ideas with him because he was such a good listener and took great interest and pride in her work. He had actually proved to be surprisingly insightful with characterization and plot points and advised her on what was plausible. While they were in Scotland, she’d been so motivated by all that they’d seen, that Meredith couldn’t wait to get back to her writing residence above the bookshop and sit at her mother’s desk and write some more.
Now, as she held the letter from the John Murray Publishing Company in her hand, her heart pounded wildly in her chest and her anticipation mounted. She was about to find out whether she was going to be a published author or not. This was the defining moment.
“That letter has been sitting here for over two weeks. I’ve been on pins and needles waiting for you to come home,” Colette cried with excitement.
“Go on, Merry,” Phillip urged with an encouraging smile. “Read it.”
Her hand trembling, Meredith broke the seal and opened the letter. With bated breath, she read it silently to herself. The words spun around on the page at first, and she had to read it again to make sure she wasn’t seeing things. Meredith looked at the expectant faces of her husband and her mother-in-law.
“They want to publish my book,” she said in complete disbelief, hardly able to believe the words that were written on the page in front of her. Her dream had come true. “John Murray invited me to come and meet him at his office to discuss terms, but he said they would be honored to publish The Edge of Danger.”
The words echoed through the room. And they echoed in her head. They tended to lose their meaning the longer she repeated the words to herself. They would be honored to publish The Edge of Danger!
Still in disbelief, she said the words again, out loud. “They would be honored to publish The Edge of Danger.”
Jumping from his seat, Phillip let out a great whoop of joy, picked up Meredith and, holding her by the waist, swung her around. “I knew it! I knew it! My talented and beautiful wife is a published author!”
Meredith squealed before he set her down and planted a kiss on her lips.
“Oh, Meredith!” Colette clapped her hands together in delight. “I’m beyond thrilled for you! I’m so very proud! I couldn’t be prouder if I were your own mother. And I can only imagine how proud she would be of you right now!”
Meredith was so happy that she wanted to pinch herself to determine if all of these good things were truly happening to her. She was married to the man she loved. She now belonged to a warm, wonderful, and caring family. And now her fondest dream had become a reality. She was really and truly an author now. Meredith Remington was a real writer.
“I will be so proud to sell The Edge of Danger at Hamilton’s Book Shoppe!” Colette exclaimed happily. “Finally, the Hamilton family, the owners of the most successful bookshops in London, now have a writer in the family!”
Meredith smiled with joy, and Phillip kissed her.
It was the perfect happy beginning to their story.