I'm quite certain that Rose will become a trilogy now, if not a series. It's all still in very rough form at the moment, but for anyone who might care...I thought I'd offer a little peek into the sequel Rose, On Her Way. It begins mid-conversation with Rose and Jeannie:
"You know, Frank even offered to shoot Trevor's wedding
alone, Jeannie. And swore he would never tell you. But I love my job, and as
torn as my heart was that day, I knew I had to go on. My camera is always my
first love. I was true to that, and true to myself.”
“You know, Rose, even if you had not been able to
attend the ceremony that night, and even if I had found out, I would have
understood. You know that.”
“I know, Jeannie. I know. But I held myself to a
higher standard. My career had to come first. I couldn't let those feelings get
in the way.”
“My dear Rose. Those weren't merely feelings.
Those where emotions that defined your life at that moment in time. And take
this however you choose, but I've seen the pictures from that night and they
were nothing short of remarkable. I don’t know how you did it, but you did. If
you remember, I told you when I gave you the assignment that the last wedding
would be your best work, and I was right. And now, knowing how much you had
been through that day, it’s a true credit to your talent that you were still
able to produce such beautiful photographs. And let me add this much…I know I’m
older than you, and I’m from a big city, but even a fool could see there’s
something special about Trevor. I can’t put my finger on it, but he’s unique. A
small town guy for sure…every small town has one that stands out. But he’s
wonderful on the eyes, and adorable. I understand you more than you know, Rose.
And I understand why you fell.”
Rose knew every word Jeannie spoke was true. Being
reminded of how easy on the eyes Trevor was definitely a fact no one
needed to remind her of. And even though Rose was apprehensive to open up to
Jeannie, again, she knew it was for the best. Jeannie understood so much about
her. Even things Frank couldn't understand. They had a wonderful bond and Rose
always felt as though life made so much more sense after Rose a discussion with
her. Rose had confessed some extremely personal situations to her in the past
few months, and knowing she had Jeannie’s support was something she counted on.
She felt it a wonderful thing to have this woman as her confidant.
“I appreciate that, Jeannie. He really is a
special person. I’ll never really know what came over me that made me do the
things I did with him, but I can’t really say I regret it. Does that make me
terrible?”
“Not at all, Rose. Not at all. Let me ask you one
thing. Did you get anything positive from the experience? I’m assuming you did,
otherwise you would regret it. I've told you before, I've had
affairs. Sometimes they end well, and sometimes they don’t. But if you’re
lucky, you learn something from it all. You seem to have emerged from this
different somehow. Like you've been refined…through the fire and all that. I
like it, Rose. You may feel guilty or remorseful, but I like what I see in you
since all these events transpired.”
“You see all that in me, Jeannie?”
“Yes, Rose. I do. But I have to be honest with
you. Though I see lessons learned and decisions made, I also still see some
confusion in your eyes. I know you love Frank, but you haven’t yet convinced me
that you have Trevor completely behind you. Am I right? Just tell me if I’m not
and I won’t ever bring it up again.”
Rose stared down at the table again. There was no
point in lying to this perfectly wonderful friend. And even if she had, Jeannie
would have known the difference.
TO BE CONTINUED... :) I hope to publish the sequel by late summer 2013
Feel free to visit my new website (still in the developmental stages) at www.michelependleton.com
The book Rose, On Her Own is available at amazon.com in print and for the Kindle:
http://www.amazon.com/Rose-Her-Own-Michele-Pendleton/product-reviews/1482569167/
Also for the Nook:
http://www.barnesandnoble.com/w/rose-on-her-own-michele-pendleton/1114922420?ean=2940016190150&itm=1&usri=2940016190150
