Manny
laid in bed, staring up at the ceiling and waiting for sleep. She
plucked restlessly at the blanket and wished she could relax. Tomorrow
was Steph’s first staff meeting. Today she’d reacquainted herself with
everyone in the office then spent the rest of the day with Manny being
briefed on the details of the work of the branch and any current issues
she’d need to resolve within the next few days. That meant Manny’s own
work had been delayed, and tomorrow it would be delayed again–and Manny
would have to leave early in order to meet Rebecca and Daisy at the
lounge for drinks before heading to the club.
Manny
took a deep breath and slowly let it out. It wouldn’t be too bad, she
staunchly told herself. Steph was young, energetic, and had a shrewd
intelligence almost obscured by the cleavage-revealing shirts, short
skirts and a figure that could stop traffic–and probably did. Manny
wondered if Craig truly understood what he’d gotten himself in for by
promoting Steph rather than Manny.
Cleavage and legs.
She mentally rolled her eyes at Harvey’s dry, cynical tones.
Maybe–but that’s not really fair to him, is it? He’s not a bad guy.
But he is just a guy.
She
does bring a new perspective–a new way of thinking about things. She’s
not a bad choice–and I can’t argue with Craig’s idea that shaking things
up could make things better.
And where does that leave you?
No worse off than I was before.
And no better.
If you’re not going to be helpful…
Harvey
glanced down at his suddenly ruffled shirt opened to the middle of his
muscled chest and skin-tight breeches. He glanced back at her with a
ruefully amused smile.
Watched the Ice Pirates again, did you?
Oh, shut up–it’s a classic no matter what anybody else thinks!
I’m
just sayin’–if I was real and regularly wore pants this tight, I’m not
sure I’d be of any use to you. If you know what I mean.
Manny
groaned and shook her head, and Harvey blinked out of existence. She
wondered when she’d managed to lose control of a figment of her
imagination–one she’d eventually felt compelled to name after an
invisible rabbit.
She groaned again, rolled over and pulled the covers over her head. It was going to be another long day tomorrow.
Complete with dancing.
For
the last fifteen years, Rose “Manny” Mankowski has been a very good
girl. She turned her back on her youthful fancies and focused on her
career. But now, at the age of 45, she’s questioning her choices and
feeling more and more disconnected from her own life. When she’s passed
over for promotion and her much younger new boss implies Manny’s life
will never change, something snaps. In the blink of an eye, she’s quit
her job, sold her house and cashed in her pension, and she’s leaving
town on a six month road trip.
After
placing a personal ad for a travelling companion, she’s joined in her
mid-life crisis by Zeke Powell, the cynical, satirical, most-read – and
most controversial – blogger for the e-magazine, What Women Want. Zeke’s
true goal is to expose Manny’s journey as a pitiful and desperate
attempt to reclaim her lost youth – and increase his readership at the
same time. Leaving it all behind for six months is just an added bonus.
Now,
armed with a bagful of destinations, a fistful of maps, and an
out-spoken imaginary friend named Harvey, Manny’s on a quest to
rediscover herself – and taking Zeke along for the ride.
Buy Now @ Amazon & Smashwords
Genre – ChickLit, Contemporary Fiction
Rating – PG-13
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