Liz Borino Stops By

Fear


“Courage is not the absence of fear, but the decision that something is more important.”

My second novel, What Money Can’t Buy, is being released from Lazy Day Publishing. It’s the sequel to Expectations. Can I be honest with you? I’m scared. My fears aren’t rational, but how many of our fears are? I’m scared of audience reception. Expectations received favorable reviews, but still I worry. What Money Can’t Buy is different. Some would say darker, but I (and my beta readers) like it better. More specifically, I’m afraid What Money Can’t Buy won’t sell well. But that isn’t rational either. See I’m doing more/better PR and marketing for the sequel. I worry the sex scenes are too explicit, really though, who wouldn’t like that (other than my mother, sorry). All these rationalizations don’t stop my fears. You know what, though? I refuse to let my fears stop me. From anything. It’s never stopped me from writing. And now it won’t stop me from sharing the stories with the world.

I don’t expect to ever not be afraid when I press send or publish or even tweet. But I’ll be damned if the fear prevents me from making an impact on the world

Excerpt from What Money Can’t Buy:

* * *

“Matt, where are you going?” Carley asked as he finished setting up the living room and reached for his winter jacket.

Matt took a deep breath and counted to ten in his head. It was difficult to keep the irritation out of his voice when he had to keep repeating himself. “I’m going to pick up my dad, get him settled at Chris and Aiden’s and then eat dinner.”

“You’re eating dinner there?”

“Yeah, hon. I’ll bring you back some.”

“Some what?” Carley asked, trying to tone down her frustration. The doctor put her on bed rest at her last appointment because she had bleeding and he feared a miscarriage. It meant she had two options, the bed or the couch. Carley saw this as an opportunity for her and Matt to slow down and spend some more time together. Unfortunately, he didn’t see it that way. Matt worked more. When they worked together it mattered less how much they were in the office. They enjoyed work after starting their marketing company. Enjoyed each other, their clients, and their other business partner, Cyndi. However, Carley did not enjoy the long days when she was stuck at home and Matt was at work. She was hardly looking forward to three more months like this.

“I don’t know.” Matt ran his hand through his hair. “Chris didn’t know what he was cooking when I talked to him.”

“You know I can’t eat shellfish.” Carley bit her lip after the words left her mouth. How often has either of us made shellfish? Instead Matt gave her a pained smile. “I know and so does he. I’m sure it’ll be chicken or steak.” He walked toward the door and glanced over his shoulder, “Do you need anything else while I’m out?”

You. I need you.Carley shook her head. “Thanks, babe. I got everything I need here.”

He nodded and grabbed his keys. “I’ll be home.” She wanted something else, but Matt chose to ignore it. He had to get out of there.

They moved up to Hartford last week, or rather, he and Chris moved them up. Carley couldn’t help because of the baby. So, she stayed with Aiden. These damn hormones were gonna kill him. And they weren’t even in his body. The first few weeks of the pregnancy were fine. Carley was happy, excited. If he was being honest, so was he. Carley didn’t have any morning sickness. Though, Matt did find himself placating requests of mustard and egg sandwiches in the middle of the night. All in all, the first trimester was pleasant. It was just now that she was starting to get a noticeable belly. Matt thought it was beyond adorable. That all changed three weeks ago.

Blurb: What Money Can’t Buy, the sequel to Expectations, finds the two couples, Chris and Aiden and Matt and Carley, eagerly anticipating parenthood. However, their personal struggles continue. Though Matt overcame his dependency on alcohol, new temptations present themselves. And with Carley on bed rest, these temptations put a greater strain on their relationship. Chris continues to deal with issues regarding his father. These issues increase with greater proximity. When tragedy strikes, the best and worst in everyone is revealed. Can they stick together, or will their reactions tear them apart?

Please pick up Expectations now!

Amazon: http://amzn.to/gBh9M3

B&N: http://bit.ly/e7mwDj

What Money Can’t Buy will be available everywhere on May 18th!