Jo threw her toothbrush into her makeup bag, the other hand holding the phone to her ear. She tried not to let annoyance get the best of her as she listened to Avril make life more complicated than it needed to be.
The bad news: At 5000 words short of my goal, it looks like I’m not going to make my May 1 deadline for having this first draft done.
The woman had practically begged to be allowed to take care of Topaz so Jo wouldn’t have to delay her trip downstate, and now she wasn’t readily available to pick up the keys.
“Well,” Jo said, trying to remain reasonable. “Where do you live? Maybe I can drop the keys by on my way out of town.”
“No, no, that wouldn’t be a good idea. You’d be going out of your way. Isn’t there someplace you can leave them for me? Work? Do you have a doorman in your building, or a neighbor? You know, someone who would believe that the six foot tranny who comes by to pick up the keys is the person you told them to expect?”
The writer in 4B did owe Jo a favor for beta reading the tacky romance novel he’d finished last month. Sanjay would count it as her owing him a favor, rather than as payment of his, but he was an agoraphobic who never set foot outside his door so at least he’d be available regardless of when Avril stopped by.
The good news: The writing pace has picked up the last few days. I got over 2000 words done today.
Jo told Avril which apartment number to buzz to gain access to the keys, and which apartment was Keisha’s.
“But you’ve got to promise to be here before seven o’clock to give Topaz her supper. I was only a half hour late one time and the damn cat peed on Keisha’s favorite throw pillow. She will get revenge if you cross her.”
Birthing the Next Book 