I'm turning my blog over to Molly Daniels, who was brave enough to sit down with Nancy, former assistant manager/dining room hostess at the country club in my book, Appetite For Desire, which was published by Secret Cravings Publishing July 6th, 2011. Take it away, Molly!
Thanks Kenzie:)
Hello Nancy. How are you today?
A little pissed off. I’ve been out of work for nearly a year now, and was just issued a summons this morning. I’m being sued. SUED! By one of my most loyal customers. (dabs heavily made up eyes) Do you know how hard it is to find work in this lousy economy? (sniff)
Who’s suing you? And for what?
Oh, don’t pretend you don’t know. Mr. James Sr, one of our most affluent members of the country club, makes more money per minute than I do in a week. So I didn’t feel he’d mind sharing some of his wealth. And mind you, it was only a teensy part of his income, and I did share it with one of our best waitresses. We were only about a month away from our goal when Lily came down with a bad case of bronchitis and Mr. James’ son came back to town. If only we hadn’t been so short-staffed that night….I let one of our new girls, Courtney, take the job, and the idiot grabbed the wrong clipboard. I had everything arranged, but she took the real invoice and the whole scheme unraveled when the son got nosy. All because his dad suddenly wanted only Courtney to be his server. Hmph!
You do understand that’s a crime-
Oh good lord….don’t sit there and pretend you wouldn’t skim a couple of bucks from people’s account if you had the chance.
Actually, no, I wouldn’t.
I thought you were unemployed.
I’m self-employed; and right now, my royalties are increasing at a nice rate. But this isn’t about me; it’s about you. I’m giving you a chance to explain yourself.
You’re not here to judge? I thought this was a deposition.
No; I’m interviewing you for anyone out there who wants to understand you a little better. What made you decide to ‘skim money’ from a client’s account?
It was very simple. I have a child entering college next year, and my deadbeat ex-husband was supposed to foot the bill. But he was downsized out of a job and had to dip into our son’s savings in order to maintain his lifestyle while he looked for another job. I did some calculating and realized some of our patrons don’t check their bills closely; they just pay whatever amount we send. I tried several patrons before settling on Mr. James, and had a set amount I was aiming for. As I said, one more week would have met our goal, and I’d slowly ‘wean’ him from the extra payments, so things wouldn’t look suspicious. I did NOT count on his son looking into his accounts.
I imagine you’re pretty resentful of both Courtney and Dustin.
I misjudged Courtney; she’s smarter than she looks. No, the one I’m the most furious with is Dustin James. How dare he go snooping through his father’s accounts and asking questions about the monthly bills the past year? Why couldn’t he just chalk it up to inflation or something? I’m also upset with Lily. If she’d not gotten sick in the first place, none of this would have happened.
People can’t control when they’re going to be ill, Nancy.
In my business, you take the over-the-counter medications. Wait staff should only go to the doctor during golf season when they’re bleeding, spiking an ungodly high fever, or unable to talk. Get sick on your days off or in the winter time. Not during our busy season! That’s what Tylenol is for.
So you feel the end justifies the means? Is that what you’re saying?
Hell yes. Didn’t you ever hear of Robin Hood? He stole from the rich and gave to the poor. I wasn’t trying to bankrupt anyone; I had a set amount I needed, and then I was going to stop. And when the ex got back to work, I was going to slowly replace the funds, saying an audit had taken place, or a clerical error had occurred.
Is this your first offense, or have you faced charges before?
(sniffs) This is the first.
That you’ve committed a crime, or been caught?
(Looks around and leans forward, lowering voice) This is just between you and me, right? I-
Excuse the interruption, Nancy, but before you reply, I just want to make you aware that other people will read this.
(Sits up) Oh…I see. Well, this is the first time I’ve ever been charged.
So you’ve done this before, just never been caught.
Who do you think you are, Jack McCoy from Law and Order?
(holds up hands) I’m just trying to get at the facts, ma’am.
Okay; now you sound like Joe Friday from Dragnet. And you call yourself a writer? What’s next, a Perry Mason reference?
(rolls eyes and mentally counts to ten) Let me get this straight. You feel you’re justified in what you did; you’re sorry you were caught; and you’re angry with the circumstances which led to your being fired. Do you feel that rules only apply to certain people?
I don’t understand the question. Rules are rules.
But do you feel some are meant to be broken, or that everyone breaks a rule from time to time?
(fidgets in chair and examines scarlet fingernails) When you put it that way….yes, I suppose I feel some rules don’t apply to some of us. After all, I am-WAS- the supervisor. I’m authorized to determine which rules can be bent in certain circumstances.
So you feel entitled to take whatever you want. Does it concern you that readers won’t like you?
Not at all. The only other thing which upsets me is Kenzie called my voice a ‘nasal whine’. I do NOT sound like that.
(Yes, she does) Do you plan to appear in any of Kenzie’s other books?
I certainly hope NOT! (sits up and glares) She’s caused enough trouble for me. Unless…..
Unless?
(smiles and leans forward) Do you think she’d be willing to set me up with a nice, handsome, single lawyer? I don’t really need a younger man; just someone who’s in his late 50’s or early 60’s. Someone with experience, if you get my meaning. Someone who’s, ah, been missing something from his life lately. (winks)
(sigh) I can certainly ask her if she’d be willing to do that. But no promises. Her writing is sort of on the back burner at the moment.
(pats my hand) You tell her to do it or I’ll come back and haunt her until she writes it.
Thank you for sitting down with me today. Nancy-did Kenzie not give you a last name?-is Courtney’s supervisor at the country club in Kenzie Michaels’ Appetite For Desire, available now at Secret Cravings Publishing.
Blurb:
Dustin James is shocked to learn the sexy blonde he met two days earlier is none other than his father’s caterer who also works at the country club he’s recently joined. When he can’t keep his hands off of her, is lust for her sexy body all he wants, or is it love?
Courtney Bright defied the rules by admitting her attraction to the new customer at the country club. But when she realizes her feelings aren’t just sexual, will she take a chance on love, or is her job more important?
Buy link:
http://store.secretcravingspublishing.com/index.php?main_page=book_info&cPath=4&products_id=85
A Scene With Nancy:
“Courtney! Where is she? Courtney Bright!” Nancy’s nasal voice was an octave higher than normal as she stormed through the swinging door of the club’s kitchen. “Courtney!”
“I’m here; what’s the problem?” Courtney backed out of the walk-in, balancing bowls of coleslaw and potato salad. Oh God…she found out I was eating again…
Nancy waved the invoice under the girl’s nose. “You call this accurate?” She screeched. “Where do you think we buy our food, the local farmer’s market? You didn’t charge him nearly enough!”
Courtney set the salad bowls on the stainless steel counter and checked the invoice. “But…that’s what Becky told me when she hired me. The prices are listed on the clipboard.” She went to the wall and found the one she’d used the night before. Flipping to the back, she ran her finger down and showed it to her manager. “See?”
“Well I never,” Nancy huffed, beginning to calm down. “I’ll have to check the rest of the receipts. There’s been a mistake somewhere. And I’m going to find it!” She spun on her high heels and left the kitchen.
Do you have anything else you’d like to add Nancy?
I’d like to state my last name is Nicholson*; I’m 42 years old**; my beautiful blonde hair is natural***, and I’m considered quite a catch, if you believe some of the gentlemen who flirted with me before I was fired. Anyone who is on my side and who’d like to hire me can contact me through Kenzie’s website….(knock at the door and an officer pokes his head inside the room)…What the hell is wrong now?
Sorry to interrupt Molly, but Nancy was supposed to be back home now. Her free time is up.
Not a problem; we were just finishing up. Nancy, I’ll pass along your message and thank you again for your time.
I didn’t know that damn ankle bracelet would warn you if I was a few minutes late! Hands off me; I’ll go by myself. (Stands and exits the room)
Officer? I didn’t realize she had an ankle bracelet.
Yes; it’s part of her plea agreement. She has to wear it for two more months. (tips his hat)
Sigh….just goes to show sometimes you don’t get the whole story!
*Nicholson: Her maiden name
**42 yrs: Actual age, 53.
***She is definitely NOT a ‘natural’ blonde….or at least not in the past twenty years.
And anyone who still wants to hire Nancy, please be assured your note will be placed in the circular file.
Please visit the other SCP author blogs and meet other villains, plus a chance for prizes!
Shannon West http://remyshannon.weebly.com/shannons-blog.html
Molly Daniels http://www.mjdaniels.blogspot.com
