Perfect on Paper (37 page)
Authors: Maria Murnane
The Real End
THANK YOU
so much to those who provided help in all shapes and sizes for this book, which began as a dreamy idea on countless morning walks with my dear friend Alison Marquiss and finally came to life with the help of my impossibly wonderful father (and highly unpaid administrative assistant), Mike Murnane. Along the way I received invaluable feedback and support from the following amazing people: Flo Murnane, Mark Murnane, Icha Murnane, Monica Morey, Luke Morey, Michele Sharkey, Brett Sharkey, Terri Sharkey, Lindsay Barnett, Lucinda Bowman, Caitlin “Kiwi” Flanagan, Mary Huck, Kat Woody, Mary Scouffas, Bridget Serchak, Tami McMillan, Christine Paul, Sean Sullivan, Jen Jasper, Doug Massa, Sarita Bhargava, Doretta Bonner, Bobby Davidorf, Sunita Rao, Billy Burkoth and Jennifer Livingstone (collectively known as “BLi”), Debbie Bolzan, Andreá Maxwell, Annie Flaig, Michele Breen, Somill Hwang, Mary Karlton, Anh Vazquez, Danny Stoian, Jenn van der Kleut, Meg Russell, Leslie Harris, Nelle Sacknoff, Max Chang, Patti O’Connell, Alex Carr, and Lori “Bosenwasser” Rosenwasser.
In your own way each of you helped turn my imagination into a life-changing reality, and for that I will always be grateful.
MARIA MURNANE
had a successful career in public relations for nearly a decade before admitting to herself that she wasn’t happy. Knowing she would be miserable if she stayed on the path she was on, she quit and went to Argentina for what was supposed to be a two-week solo trip before facing real life again. Instead, she ended up living in Buenos Aires for a year, playing semi-professional soccer for one of the most famous clubs in the world and doing what she had always dreamed about, which was to write a humorous novel based on her experiences as a single professional woman in San Francisco.
Maria was a Regents’ and Chancellor’s Scholar at UC Berkeley, where she graduated with high honors in English and Spanish. She also received a master’s degree in integrated marketing communications from Northwestern University. She currently lives in New York and does professional business writing in addition to promoting her book.
More information is available at
www.mariamurnane.com
.
If you have an idea for a Honey Note, please let Maria (and Waverly) know.
They’d love to hear from you! Dating disaster stories are also welcome.
If you enjoyed
Perfect on Paper
by Maria Murnane, the humor and drama are far from over for Waverly Bryson.
Turn the page for the first two chapters in Waverly’s next (mis)adventures:
It’s a Waverly Life
by Maria Murnane (available now!)
CHAPTER ONETwo days to go.
It was only Wednesday, but I was already having trouble sleeping. For weeks I’d been counting down the days, just like little kids do with Christmas Eve, only sweeter. But also scarier, because Santa Claus can’t break your heart.
I put on my black wool coat and headed out into the chilly November night to meet my friends a few blocks away at Dino’s Pizza. On my way from my white Victorian apartment building, nestled on tree-lined Sacramento between Fillmore and Steiner, in Pacific Heights, the quaint San Francisco neighborhood I’d lived in for years, I admired the festive holiday decorations adorning the houses and shops. I smiled and thought for the millionth time how lucky I was to live in such a beautiful part of the world.
Dino’s was decked out in white lights and filled with the aroma of hot, freshly made pizza dough. Andie and McKenna weren’t there yet, so I sat at a table in the back and picked up the menu to ponder my options. Despite the fact that I’d eaten at Dino’s approximately ten thousand times, not to mention the countless nights I’d ordered for delivery, I studied the menu every single time I went in
there. I have no explanation for this behavior since I always ordered the same thing, but what can I say? I find comfort in tradition.
“Hey, lady, you waiting for us?”
As my friends approached the table, I rose to give them each a quick hug, standing on my tiptoes to reach the six-foot McKenna, then hunching over to embrace the five-foot-two Andie. As they settled into the chairs around me, Andie flagged the waiter and ordered three frosted mugs and a cold pitcher of Bud Light. It was one of our favorite Dino’s rituals, perhaps even
the
favorite.
“It’s good to see you, Wave.” McKenna put her hand on my arm. “It seems like forever.”
“That’s what happens when you get married and move across the city. Darn that cute husband of yours, snatching you from us,” I said.
“Oh please. Nob Hill is barely a mile away from here. It’s just a fifteen-minute walk.”
Andie poured us each a beer. “That’s fifteen minutes too many. You know how I feel about exercise.”
“You two are ridiculous,” McKenna said.
“True, but it was more fun when you lived around the corner. It’s not the same without you here,” I said.
She reached over and squeezed my hand. “I know.”
“What about
you
?” Andie said to me. “Jake lives in Atlanta. That might as well be a million miles away from here. If you leave, I’ll be the only one left.”
I coughed. “
Hello?
We just started dating. Long distance, I might add.”
“So? He’s a major hottie. If he asked you to move to Atlanta, would you go?”
I took a sip of my beer.
“Well?”
“I’m sorry, did you say something?”
Andie gave me a look. “Waverly...”
“What?”
“Jake
is
pretty cute,” McKenna said.
“Yeah...he is.” I could feel myself smile as I pictured his blue eyes.
“So Friday’s the big trip?” McKenna said.
“It is indeed.”
“Excellent. How long are you going to be there?”
“Three days.”
“This will be the first time you’ve seen him in person since my wedding, right?”
I nodded and took a sip of my beer.
“Are you super excited?” Andie pushed her short blonde hair behind her ears and playfully bumped me with her knee.
I bit my lip and thought of our awkward goodbye at the airport. “Actually, I think I’m more nervous than excited.”
“Why would you be nervous? You guys have such great chemistry,” Andie said.
“I think that’s
exactly
why I’m nervous.”
“Understandable,” McKenna said.
Andie patted the table with her hands. “Please. You shouldn’t be thinking about nerves, my dear. You should be thinking about how much action you’re going to get in those seventy-two hours.”
“Andie!”
“Andie...” McKenna said.
“Well? Aren’t I right?”
I blushed. “Maybe. We’ll see.”
“Wait a minute, back up.” Andie moved a virtual stick shift into reverse. “What do you mean,
we’ll see
. Haven’t you slept with him yet?”
I shook my head.
“Really? Why not?”
“Have you ever noticed that you ask a lot of personal questions?”
She rolled her eyes. “Please, this is nothing. Now spill.”
“Well, we’ve only spent the night together once, after Mackie’s wedding.” I swallowed and looked at my hands.
“And?” she said.
“And?” McKenna said.
“And...well, the thing is...” I kept staring at my hands.
“The thing is
what
?” they said simultaneously.
“Nothing happened,” I said softly, looking up.
They said nothing.
“We had this amazing chemistry that had been building up ever since I met him at that trade show last year, but when we were finally in a position to act on it, I...I sort of...choked.”
They both raised their eyebrows, sensing I had more to say.
“I’m not sure what happened, but once we were alone in the hotel room, I got really scared...and I froze.”
“Ouch,” Andie said.
“It was pretty bad...I barely even kissed him. He was really nice about it...but I think...I think I hurt his feelings.”
McKenna squeezed my shoulder. “Oh sweetie, I’m sure he understands.”
“I hope so.”
“Why do you think you got so scared?” Andie asked.
“Honestly,” my voice cracked a little bit as it turned into a whisper, “I think it was because I really...like him.”
McKenna smiled. “But that’s a good thing, Wave. It’s been so long since you’ve really liked
anyone
.”
“I know it has, but I’m having a hard time with it. I mean, even on the phone, I get flustered...and sometimes I think I end up coming across a bit...standoffish.”
Andie sipped her beer. “That’s totally understandable, given what you’ve been through.”
“Having real feelings for someone again is much harder than I expected. I didn’t think it would be so hard,” I said.
“Have you told Jake about Aaron?” McKenna asked.
I scratched my neck. “He knows the basics. But I didn’t go into the details.”
“Then I’m sure he understands. I mean, he has a history too, right? We all do.”
“I think he gets it. I mean, I hope he does...but...” My voice trailed off.
