Chapter 11 Experiments And Opportunities
Experiments And Opportunities
By the middle of December, Olivia felt as if she’d always lived at the farm.
She and Nash fell into a good routine with the kids. And if she thought of them as a unit, it couldn’t be helped. Two adults. Two kids. On the surface, a typical family.
Except they weren’t typical, and they weren’t a family, no matter how much she wanted them to be one.
She and Nash hadn’t taken any steps toward creating a relationship. No kisses, anyway. Lots of trust and like, though.
They lingered when their fingers brushed or when they eased past each other in the process of making cider.
The sparkling attraction built every day. She’d never experienced anything like it, and she wanted to explore it all the way to the obvious conclusion.
But she wanted more than that as well. Wanted the family image they projected to be real. She wanted to be a partner with Nash in all senses of the word.
Today, they were experimenting with another combination of cider flavors. Charlie was sure cinnamon and raspberry would be great with the apple flavor. The scent certainly was enticing.
When her phone rang, it took her a moment for her to realize it was a call. Since arriving in Vermont, her phone had gained more contacts, but most people texted.
Rika Yoshito’s name flashed on the screen with a video call and Olivia smiled. “It’s my agent. Do you mind watching Ella for a few minutes while I talk to her outside?”
Nash nodded even as Charlie called out, “I’ve got it.”
Ella was napping, so it wasn’t a burden, but Olivia knew it wouldn’t be a problem anyway. She had people she trusted to back her up and help.
Blinking away the tears, she answered while she threw on her coat. “Hey, Rika. How are you?”
Her friend smiled. “I’m great. And so are you. I can tell by the smile in your voice and on your face.”
Olivia couldn’t deny it. “I am. Everything is wonderful.”
“Wonderful? That’s amazing. I’m so glad to see you happy. Do you have a few minutes to chat?”
She looked back at the cabin and smiled, knowing she had no reason to worry about Ella. “I do.”
Rika grinned. “Good. The book release was amazing.”
She’d almost forgotten about the book release. Her publisher took care of the publicity and social media. Olivia had never had personal social media, and while she had an author presence on a few sites, she only used them to point readers to her website for more information about her books.
Here was one of the biggest moments of her career, and she’d only thought of it a couple of times the previous day.
Rika continued. “Early numbers say that preorders for Kayaia’s Choice are more than two hundred percent over Lelja’s Journey. Additional release day sales were higher, too.”
Olivia had to blink back tears. “That’s amazing.” With those kinds of numbers, her bank account would provide even more safety. The rent she chipped in for the farm wasn’t nearly what an apartment would cost, and she didn’t need a part-time job to help support her and Ella.
Rika nodded. “It is. Early reviews are glowing, and influencers are extremely positive about Kayaia.”
Having a twin-spirited character in a book for kids had been a risk.
One Olivia had been more than willing to take.
Most kids loved learning about people from all walks of life and with varied life experiences.
Giving face to a non-binary character had been important to Olivia.
Her books were about believing in yourself, and she hoped everyone could find a character to connect with in the series.
There would always be haters, but Olivia refused to change her books and her creativity for them. “I’m so glad to hear that.”
Rika laughed. “Me too. We’ve already got some character art showing up on social media. Dragons and brucans working together.”
Olivia laughed. “I’m not near them now, but we made snow dragons and snow brucans the other day. They’re fabulous.”
Rika’s eyebrows shot up. “I’d love to see photos. Tell me you took some pictures.”
“I did. I can send some to you after I hang up. If I do it now, I’ll probably disconnect us.” Not having had a phone during her teen years, she wasn’t as adept as most people her age.
“I can send some to the publisher. Put them out on social media. See if we can get other kids to do the same.”
“That sounds fun.”
Rika nodded. “And it sounds like you’re having fun. Did you find a good place to settle?”
Olivia had never shared her entire story with Rika, but her agent knew she’d been looking for a place to live with her little girl. And she knew that Olivia valued privacy above all else. “I did. It’s amazing.”
“And cold from the looks of it. Can you show me a bit?”
Olivia flipped the phone around. “It’s beautiful here.”
Rika gasped. “You’re in the middle of the woods. Are you even in civilization anymore?”
Olivia laughed and panned the camera to show the cabin, making Rika gasp again. She laughed. “This is where I’m helping a friend with a project. There’s an actual house not far from here, though.”
Rika sighed. “Good. I can’t even imagine living anywhere but Manhattan. That looks way too far off the grid for me.”
“I’m loving it.”
“Good to hear. That means more books for me. How’s Book Four coming? Do you have a title yet?”
Olivia nodded. “Battle For Samin. At least that’s the one that’s working for me right now. I’ve also got ideas for new species to inhabit the world, too. I think they’ll be in a separate series, but still within Norissamin.”
Her agent’s eyes lit up. “I do like a prolific author. Staying within Norissamin is smart. If you can, keep the new ideas connected to the original series for now. Ideally, I’d like to see six books in this series before you branch out, even if it’s in the same world.
You could also do an interconnected series for each new species.
Think about it and see what works for you. ”
Rika never pushed Olivia to go against her heart or her gut, but the agent knew far more about the publishing world than Olivia. Her advice was always sound. “I’ll see what I can do.”
She could hear Rika’s smile in her voice. “I don’t know where you’ve settled, but I hope you can come to the office next week for a day or two. We can conduct few interviews and try to ramp up the holiday sales. You know you love New York at Christmas time. Everyone does.”
She did, but Adam was in New York.
New York’s population was more than that of many countries. The odds of him seeing her were astronomical, especially in Manhattan. He wouldn’t have a clue where to find her. She shoved down the panic trying to make her heart leap out of her chest. “I need to think about that.”
“Don’t take too long. Some of the morning shows are asking for interviews, but they’ll only do them if you can be here in person. Let me know when you can be here and I’ll set up a few.”
Morning shows? Olivia had never had a TV interview before. Podcasts, sure. But TV? That was huge for her books. And it would translate into money she could put away for Ella’s future, even if it were terrifying.
Rika must have seen something on her face because her brows furrowed. “You okay with all that?”
“I think so, but it’s a bit scary.”
Rika laughed. “I bet. I’m just glad it’s you, not me. But putting yourself out there is the right thing for your career. If you’re too uncomfortable, we won’t do it. Take a day or two to think about it. Let me know as soon as you can.”
Olivia nodded. She knew people instinctively bought more books when they felt a connection to the author.
And Rika had warned her before that with the increasing popularity of the books, she would be wanted for interviews, which was extremely cool.
Her younger self would never have believed that people would enjoy her stories, never mind people wanting to interview her on TV.
Norissamin was more popular than even her wildest dreams.
Rika smiled gently. “Okay. I’ll let you think about it and get back to your project. I figured you’d like to hear the good news.”
“Thanks, Rika. For everything.”
“You’re welcome. I’m glad to see you happy and relaxed. I hope that translates into more words. People are clamoring for more Norissamin, so get on that.”
Laughing, Olivia hung up and took another look at the orchard. She didn’t miss New York at all. The people she’d loved weren’t there anymore. Her new life was here, in the heart of Vermont and she couldn’t be happier.
Visiting the city to promote her books was smart.
Adam didn’t know she was an author. By using her pen name in all the interviews and social media stuff her publisher did, it would be almost impossible for him to make the connection.
She wouldn’t be appearing on the big television shows, just the local ones.
She’d be crazy to turn down the opportunity, but it still scared her. She didn’t want to risk Ella’s safety, but doing the interviews would help secure the girl’s future.
Olivia he clicked on the photos her agent wanted. There was one where Charlie had set a timer. Ella sat on one of the snow dragons and Olivia, Nash, and Charlie surrounded her, grinning at the camera. It was a perfect moment in time.
She set the image as her screensaver and slipped her phone back in her pocket as she headed back to the cabin. It was time to make some more of those perfect moments before making any decisions.
Nash choked on the drink. He swallowed instead of spitting it out, but it was a near thing. “That’s disgusting.”
Charlie laughed with delight. “I wish I’d taken a picture of your face.”
Nash rolled his eyes and held out the glass. “I’ll get a photo of you trying it. Better yet, a video.”
Always game for an adventure, Charlie took the glass and waited for Nash to pull out his phone. Then he held up the glass for the camera. “Experiment Number Twenty-Two. Apple, pepper, jalapeno, and cumin. We’re trying for a spicy cider with this one.”