100 Lifetimes of Us (The Romantics #1)

by Maggie C. Gates

“How’re you doing, superstar?” I asked as I hefted the tote into the elevator. Annie slumped against the wall and punched the button for our floor. “I’m fine.” I raised an eyebrow. This time, I didn’t have to prod for more information or coax it out of her. Annie just closed her eyes. “I keep thinking about that first girl who stopped by my table.” “Bridget?” I asked, recalling the name I overheard. “Yeah.” Annie closed her eyes. “She said Like Whiskey was her life preserver book.” “That’s a good thing, Annie Cakes.” She let out an unsteady breath. “Yeah. But it’s about domestic violence.” Oh… Shit. “Why does that freak you out? You wrote it.” She swallowed. “People tell me how much that book meant to them a lot,” she admitted. “And as honored as it makes me feel, it keeps me up at night. I lay awake wondering if I did enough. If I make people feel safe enough. If I made them feel loved. If I made them feel worthy and wanted. If I told the stories right. I try my best, but—” “You always wonder if you did enough,” I supplied for her. Annie nodded. “And then sometimes you look at a reader and just know that they walked through it. That it wasn’t fiction for them. And it scares me. I can kill off my villains. I can tame the demons. And my heart breaks for the people who can’t. And then sometimes I think about how fickle it is that I just write these silly stories when there are people who live it.” The elevator doors parted at our floor. I picked up the heavy tote and carried...