“Then let’s go that way.”
I anticipated things being uncomfortable between us until we fell into our new rhythm, however long that would take. It didn’t happen, though.
“So, what are you working on?” he asked.
“It’s the first book in a new trilogy. Vampires have taken over following an apocalypse, and there’s a new world order. My heroine is the queen, and she’s supposed to marry a king from one territory over, but she’s in love with her first lieutenant.”
“That sounds kind of interesting.”
I laughed at the way he phrased it. “You sound surprised.”
He shrugged. “Paranormal stuff has never really been my thing. I grew up liking elves and dwarves and have always enjoyed plotting big battles. I’m not as good with the emotional stuff.”
“For what you’re writing, I think you’re very good. When you look back at Tolkien’s stuff, he barely built any romance in. Arwen was just a void on the page.”
“He was terrible at writing women,” Brody said. “I think that was the only thing he didn’t do well. It was the epicLord of the Ringsstory that made me fall in love with fantasy.”
I nodded, understanding. “I loved Aragorn. He was uber hot.”
“Did you ever actually read the book, or did you just watch the movie?”
I was sheepish. “I never read a fantasy book until I picked up yours. But I did love the movies. Don’t take it personally. I just like a little spice with my fantasy.”
He laughed. “I get it.”
“I like your books, though. You weave a lot of emotions into your stories. Does everybody in the fantasy genre do that now?”
“Not really.” He shrugged. “I do it a little more than others. I didn’t set out to do it. My first book… I was just vibing it out.My first few books weren’t published. It took me getting four in before I got one through a publisher.”
“I think that’s true for all of us.”
“I started to hit my stride on my second book and better understood what it was that I wanted to write. Then I got better and better.”
“I knew right away. When I go back and read that first book, though, I’m embarrassed.”
“Writing is one of those things you get better at the more you do it,” he said. “Do you ever think about writing something else?”
“Yeah. I’ve considered doing some contemporary romances, no paranormal aspects. But I’m nervous I’ll ruin what I’ve got going.”
“I’ve always wanted to write a mystery.” His cheeks colored when I glanced at him. “I’d probably be terrible at it.”
“You’ll never know if you don’t try.”
“Yeah.”
We kept walking. Conversation turned to other things. He was a big fan of shows likeDateline. He said he liked to figure out the mystery before they laid it out for him and had an impressive ratio of being correct. I admitted that I loved Lifetime movies but hated Hallmark movies.
“I can never tell Hayley that. She thinks Hallmark movies are the best thing ever invented, and if she knew I hated them, she would assume I enjoy kicking puppies in my spare time.”
He smirked. “Um … what’s the difference between Lifetime movies and Hallmark movies?”
“Seriously?” I stopped walking and studied him. “Have you ever seen either?”
“I don’t think so.” He looked uncomfortable. “Maybe.”
I wasn’t making fun of him. He probably didn’t realize that. “Lifetime movies are usually about crimes. Sure, they’redramatic crimes, like somebody stealing a kid and the parents not being reintroduced to the kid until they’re fifteen and there’s a chance the kid is a sociopath who wants to kill their other kids.”
His mouth dropped open. “That sounds awful.”
