Every week I welcome a guest author to share a first meeting excerpt. I have to admit that I’ve never heard the term “manny” before so I was already intrigued by the title My Mr. Manny. This is a contemporary romance from Jennifer Garcia, who tells me that she has a fear of heights. In spite of that, she once tried to snowboard with her family, had a panic attack on the ski lift and had to be tobogganed down the slope by the ski patrol. Gotta give her credit for trying!
Jennifer’s character, Mia, has arranged to meet a potential manny in this excerpt, and she has an attack of the irresistible attraction kind.
EXCERPT:
About fifteen minutes later, there was a knock on my door. When I opened it, I gasped, blinking. My mouth opened and closed several times, and I couldn’t form a word.
The first thing I saw were his eyes, which were a shade that transcended the most beautiful green things in the world: peacock feathers, limes, and lush leaves. They were small, slanted, and topped with thick dark eyebrows, which added a hint of mystery. His hair was dark black and slicked back. The bone structure of his face was strong, masculine, and angled. I couldn’t stop looking at him.
He cleared his throat and put out his hand. “I’m Dominic.” I grabbed it in a firm shake, and I felt like I could see my future in that instant. Pictures of Dominic and me together in our old age flashed before my eyes. I felt comforted, as if I were wrapped in a warm coat of love. It was an amazing feeling.
After much too long of a handshake, I pulled my hand back and said, “I am so sorry, Dominic. Please excuse my manners.” I waved him in with my right hand, while holding the door open with my left. “Come in. I’m Mia, by the way. Let’s have a seat in the living room to talk.”
I led the way to the sofa, and we both sat. I felt the need to explain myself, and the verbal vomit began. I turned bright red and said, “Please excuse my behavior at the door, it’s just . . .” I looked up at him through my lashes, not trying to be cute, just truthfully embarrassed that I was going to be so honest. “It’s just that you’re beautiful.”
I stood up in a flash when he paled before my eyes. His olive skin lightened to a pasty color. “Oh, God, I’m sorry. You want to leave, don’t you? I don’t act like this, usually. I swear I’m not crazy,” I rambled. I turned away from him in embarrassment. God, this was one time when my big mouth was not productive.
Dominic stood up, walked toward me, and grabbed my shoulders, turning me to face him before saying, “No, I’m not leaving. I was just taken off guard, embarrassed.” He grabbed my hand and guided me back to the sofa.
The whole situation had turned ridiculous. Leave it to me and my awkward behavior to ruin an interview with this . . . this . . . Adonis. I squeezed my eyes shut and filled my lungs
with air. I tried a couple of cleansing breaths to start over, but it wasn’t enough. “Excuse me, I’ll be right back.”
I walked like a bat out of hell to the bathroom, grabbed a washcloth from the drawer, and drenched it in cold water. Once I placed it on the back of my neck, it cooled me off in an instant.
Now, I needed to compose myself and not act like a teenager with raging hormones. With a big sigh, I smoothed down my blue tank top and pulled the hem over the waistband of my jean shorts. I made my way back out to the living room, still quite nervous, but ready to see if he was a good fit for Lucia’s and my life.
With a very apologetic and sheepish smile, I said, “Dominic, I am so sorry. My behavior is very unprofessional. I hope we can start over.” I could tell he was still sort of embarrassed, but he seemed much more comfortable after I spoke.
“It’s quite all right,” he said with a tilt of his head, making me feel better.
I knew that I would be calling Lori as soon as the interview was over. She would be getting a tongue-lashing for not warning me about how handsome he was. Once I got situated on the sofa again, I prompted, “So, tell me about yourself, Dominic.”
He rubbed his palms on the front of his jeans and answered. “Well, I know Chris and Lori told you my story or at least the basics. So, after I lost everything, I needed to do something I knew I’d enjoy and that was very different than what I had been doing. I wanted to make sure it was something I could do as a career.” He cleared his throat, which made me realize I hadn’t even offered him anything.
I jumped up. “Can I get you something to drink? Water? Soda?” I asked.
“Oh, yes please. Water is fine.” I jogged to the kitchen and pulled two water bottles from the refrigerator. Speeding back, I handed him one. He opened the bottle and took a long pull. His head was back and his throat exposed. I watched while his Adam’s apple moved up and down with each swallow. Shit, it’s getting hot in here again. Then I admonished myself. Knock it off and pull yourself together.
His beauty knew no bounds. He was perfection personified. My eyes scanned him from head to toe. His legs were long, clad in jeans, with a pair of black leather dress shoes peeking out at the bottom. He looked very clean cut in a blue short-sleeved, button-down shirt. With an attempt to cool myself off again, I took a couple of swigs from my bottle.
END OF EXCERPT
To keep up with Jennifer Garcia, visit http://jenniferfgarcia.com
To find My Mr. Manny, go to http://bit.ly/12xubxx
Thanks for visiting, Jennifer. We welcome any comments or questions our visitors have, and I hope you’ll all come back every Saturday to read a new first meeting excerpt!
Thank you for visiting today, Jennifer!
I need a manny and a hubby and …. well if only I can convince my hubby to allow me to have more men!
I’ll leave you to that, Melissa. I can barely manage my hubby and two sons….
Thank you so much for having me!
How cute! Can’t wait to read the book!
It really is a fun idea, isn’t it Rose. Thanks for checking out First Sight Saturday.
Oh my gosh, that sounds great. I’ve gotta read it! Congrats Jennifer
Thanks so much for stopping by, Krista!
Where can I find a Mr. Manny? I know many women who would want one. Good luck with your books!
You are so right, Marianne. Maybe there is a business model there…a manny matchmaking service.