{"id":35609,"date":"2018-08-17T08:00:29","date_gmt":"2018-08-17T12:00:29","guid":{"rendered":"http:\/\/www.escapistbookblog.com\/?p=35609"},"modified":"2018-08-13T07:01:25","modified_gmt":"2018-08-13T11:01:25","slug":"excerpt-tour-blind-kiss-by-renee-carlino","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.escapistbookblog.com\/?p=35609","title":{"rendered":"Excerpt Tour: Blind Kiss by Renee Carlino"},"content":{"rendered":"

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Amazon\u00a0<\/a> |\u00a0 B&N<\/a>\u00a0 |\u00a0 iTunes<\/a><\/strong><\/h4>\n

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Synopsis<\/strong><\/h4>\n

From the national bestselling author<\/em> of<\/em> Before We Were Strangers<\/a>, Swear on this Life<\/a>, and<\/em> Wish You Were Here comes a powerful story of two people who spend years denying their scientifically-proven chemistry<\/em>.<\/p>\n

Penny spends her afternoons sitting outside a sandwich shop, surrounded by ghosts. Fourteen years ago, this shop was her childhood dance studio\u2014and she was a dancer on the rise. Now she\u2019s a suburban housewife, dreading the moment her son departs for MIT, leaving her with an impeccably-decorated McMansion and a failing marriage. She had her chance at wild, stars-in-her-eyes happiness, but that was a lifetime ago. After The Kiss. Before The Decision.<\/p>\n

The Kiss was soulful. Magical. Earth-shattering, And it was all for a free gift card. Asked to participate in a psych study that posed the question, \u201cCan you have sexual chemistry without knowing what the other person looks like?\u201d Penny agreed to be blindfolded, make polite conversation with a total stranger, and kiss him. She never expected The Kiss to change her life forever and introduce her to Gavin: tattooed, gorgeous, and spontaneous enough to ask her out seconds after the blindfolds came off.<\/p>\n

For a year, they danced between friendship and romance\u2014until Penny made The Decision that forced them to settle for friendship. Now, fourteen years later, both of their lives are about to radically change\u2014and it\u2019s his turn to decide what will become of their once-in-a-lifetime connection.<\/p>\n

Ren\u00e9e Carlino is a screenwriter and the bestselling author of Sweet Thing, Nowhere But Here, After the Rain, Before We Were Strangers, Swear on This Life, and Wish You Were Here. She grew up in Southern California and lives in the San Diego area with her husband and two sons. To learn more, visit Renee Carlino<\/a>.<\/p>\n

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Excerpt<\/strong><\/h4>\n

WE SAT AT the bar of the pub as I continued to stare at him, a mixture of curiosity and fear boiling in my
\ngut. He ordered a beer, and I ordered Chardonnay with beer-cheese pretzels.<\/p>\n

\u201cThat\u2019s different for you.\u201d<\/p>\n

I usually stuck to salads, an old habit from my dancing days, but I had lost a lot of weight in the past few
\nweeks. \u201cDon\u2019t think you can distract me so easily. Tell me what\u2019s going on. Did you break up with Briel?\u201d<\/p>\n

He took a long pull from his beer and stared straight ahead. \u201cDon\u2019t be mad, okay?\u201d<\/p>\n

I stared at him, wordlessly, the fear fully boiling over. And then he dropped the bomb on me.<\/p>\n

The next few minutes were hazy as Gavin, the bar, and my glass of Chardonnay swam together before
\nmy eyes. I tried to reach for the glass but found it suddenly empty. That\u2019s weird. It was full a minute
\nago. <\/em>I motioned to the bartender for another, then poured it down my throat in a steady stream.<\/p>\n

I was breathing fast when I slammed the glass on the bar, shattering my fugue state\u2014and bringing Gavin
\ninto sharp relief. I was reeling.<\/p>\n

\u201cShit, Penny! Be careful. You almost shattered your glass!\u201d He practically yelled.<\/p>\n

\u201cYou\u2019re moving to fucking France?!\u201d I yelled back.<\/p>\n

The bartender jerked his head toward the door, and within minutes Gavin was forcibly dragging me out of
\nthe bar by the arm. I slipped out of his grip and stood in the middle of the parking lot, seething, very much
\ndrunk, and fully freaking out. \u201cSo, do you love her?\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cBriel? What kind of question is that?\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cJust answer me.\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cFuck, Penny. That\u2019s not what this is about. I don\u2019t really have a choice here, though, do I?\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cYou always have a choice.\u201d<\/p>\n

He glared at me. \u201cThat\u2019s fucking rich, coming from you.\u201d<\/p>\n

I shook my head vigorously. \u201cTotally different situation.\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cLike hell it was.\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cWhen do you leave?\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cIn two days.\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cWHAT?!\u201d<\/p>\n

He ran up and shook me by the shoulders. \u201cJesus, if I knew you were gonna take it like this, I wouldn\u2019t
\nhave told you in public. Pull yourself together.\u201d<\/p>\n

I screamed at the top of my lungs and then made a guttural sound as I hunched over and held my
\nstomach.<\/p>\n

\u201cFirst Milo, now you?\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cDon\u2019t you put that on me. I\u2019m not the reason why you\u2019re about to be alone and unhappy.\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cFuck you, Gavin!\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cFuck you, Penny!\u201d<\/p>\n

He didn\u2019t turn around\u2014he just stormed off in typical Gavin fashion: petulant, recalcitrant, and a total
\nshithead. People in the parking lot were gawking, appalled, covering their children\u2019s ears. But no one<\/p>\n

made a move to leave. When Gavin and I got like this, we were like a car wreck by the side of the road,
\nimpossible to look away from.<\/p>\n

Gavin slid into his \u201967 Chevelle and fired up the engine. I hated that car because he loved it so much. It
\nhad a black leather interior, a flawless paint job, and tinted windows, like it belonged to some kind of
\ncelebrity\u2014which Gavin definitely wasn\u2019t. It was his only possession worth a dime, besides his garage, a
\nfew guitars, and a Zippo lighter he swore River Phoenix had given to him at the Viper Room the night of
\nhis death.<\/p>\n

I ran to the exit and stood in the middle of the lane, daring him to run me over as he ripped out of his
\nparking spot and raced around the corner toward the exit. \u201cWe\u2019re not done talking, you coward!\u201d<\/p>\n

He slowed but let the car idle while he revved the engine. \u201cI dare <\/em>you!\u201d I yelled.<\/p>\n

He stuck his head out the window, leaned his tattooed arm against the door, and actually grinned
\n<\/em>at me.<\/p>\n

So smug. What a dick.<\/em><\/p>\n

\u201cYou look ridiculous standing there. Get out of the way!\u201d<\/p>\n

I walked toward his window and noticed that his demeanor had completely softened. There was even
\nhumor in his expression. He wanted me to block him, and he knew I would.<\/p>\n

\u201cCan\u2019t you have a proper fight without running away?\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cYou were lecturing me, yet again. I have a mother, thank you. You have a child you can order around . . .
\nand a husband you can control. I don\u2019t need your shit, okay? Don\u2019t you realize that I\u2019m freaking out, too?
\nI\u2019m going through the hardest time of my life, and you\u2019re making this all about you.\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cYou\u2019ve been going through the hardest time of your life for the whole fourteen years I\u2019ve known you.\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cAnd as my friend, do you think you\u2019re helping my situation right now?\u201d he spat back, his mood shifting
\nonce again. \u201cDon\u2019t even. Don\u2019t you dare act like I haven\u2019t been a good friend to you. You\u2019ve put me in the
\nmost awkward situations, you\u2019ve bolted on me, you\u2019ve stopped speaking to me for weeks at a time, but
\nstill . . . I make myself available to you. I\u2019ve been here <\/em>for you, always. And now you\u2019re
\nmoving thousands of miles away when I need you most?\u201d<\/p>\n

He shook his head slowly. \u201cThat\u2019s right, Penny. You have <\/em>been here. You\u2019ve been right by my
\nside, lecturing me, rolling your eyes at me, pressuring me to get serious about Briel, all so I could go and
\nfuck up my life even more while you sit in your nice house, with your KitchenAid mixer, your Oracle
\nespresso machine, and your fucking yellow Lab.\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cDon\u2019t talk about Buckley that way! He\u2019s a good dog. And you love our espresso machine.\u201d<\/p>\n

Gavin\u2019s lips turned up at the corners. \u201cYou\u2019re so messed up, Penny. You definitely have a chemical
\nimbalance.\u201d<\/p>\n

I pointed to my chest, shocked. \u201cMe? Look who\u2019s talking? Please, pull into a parking space. I don\u2019t want
\nto stand here anymore, making a spectacle of myself. Some parent from Milo\u2019s school is probably
\nwatching this whole thing. There\u2019ll be whispers at the next PTA meeting. Is that what<\/p>\n

you want for me?\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cDon\u2019t pretend like you go to PTA meetings. And look around; everyone\u2019s gone. It\u2019s just us.\u201d<\/p>\n

He was right. The parking lot had cleared out. Gavin was sitting in his idling car while I was standing
\noutside his window like a moron.<\/p>\n

\u201cI resent you for saying I pushed Briel on you. And yes, for your information, I do go to PTA meetings.\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cYou <\/em>encouraged me to go out with her, then you needled me about it until I finally did.\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cYou were horribly depressed! I thought you were gonna jump off a bridge. I told you to go out with her
\nand to have some fun. She\u2019s a nice girl. I didn\u2019t say turn your life upside down, pack up, and run away
\nwith a foreigner! You\u2019re thirty-six-years old, Gavin. I think it\u2019s time you grew up.\u201d I shook my head. \u201cGod, I
\ncan\u2019t believe you.\u201d<\/p>\n

He jerked his head back and squinted. \u201cGreat band but not totally PC to call someone a foreigner,
\nPenny.\u201d His voice was low.<\/p>\n

\u201cAre you going to become a French citizen now, too? You better brush up on your French.\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cEveryone speaks English there.\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cNo, they don\u2019t! People always say that, but you\u2019ll see. They might be able to communicate to a degree,
\nbut it\u2019s not conversational English.\u201d<\/p>\n

Why am I still standing here, screaming about French people?<\/em><\/p>\n

I needed to tie this conversation up in a pretty little bow. I needed closure. I couldn\u2019t say good-bye to my
\nbest friend without it. He was leaving, going to France to chase a girlfriend<\/p>\n

I knew he didn\u2019t love. I was losing him. And it was my fault. We couldn\u2019t leave each other angry.<\/p>\n

\u201cI\u2019ll figure it out,\u201d he said. \u201cTry not to make me feel worse about my situation, though I know that\u2019s hard for
\nyou.\u201d \u201cYour situation? It\u2019s always your <\/em>situation. What about my <\/em>situation?\u201d He
\njust stared at me. He was hurting; I could tell. But I was hurting, too. \u201cListen\u2014\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cWhat?\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cDon\u2019t interrupt me.\u201d I cleared my throat. \u201cGavin . . . it\u2019s just . . . I\u2019m going to fucking miss you, okay? I\u2019m
\nhaving a hard time right now, and life is about to get a whole lot harder the second you leave.\u201d I started to
\ncry.<\/p>\n

He hated it when I cried, but he didn\u2019t ask me, \u201cWhy are you crying?\u201d He never had to ask. He took a
\ndeep breath in through his nose, then released it forcefully in a burst of frustration. A second later his car
\nstalled. He put it in gear, got out, and swooped me up in a bear hug. \u201cPenny, Penny, Penny . . . my crazy
\ngirl,\u201d he said as he rubbed my back. I was wiping my snot-covered nose on his black T-shirt and he didn\u2019t
\ncare one bit.<\/p>\n

He held me for a long time. When he started to release me, I said, \u201cIt\u2019s not enough.\u201d<\/p>\n

He picked me up again and squeezed me harder. Tucking his face into my neck, he said, \u201cIt\u2019ll never be
\nenough.\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cWhy?\u201d I said, fully bawling against his shoulder. He brushed a strand of my hair, damp with tears, behind
\nmy ear. \u201cI have to go, and so do you. You need to be with your family now.\u201d<\/p>\n

I felt the lump in my throat growing. \u201cYou don\u2019t have to constantly remind me that I have a family. I love
\nmy family. But you\u2019re a part of it, too, and that\u2019s why I\u2019m here. That\u2019s why I\u2019m fucking crying in the parking
\nlot in front of Bank of America.\u201d<\/p>\n

He pulled away and we stood there, two feet apart, staring at each other, as if we were committing each
\nother to memory. Allowing one another to really look at and take the other person in, stripped down to our
\nbones, without scrutiny.<\/p>\n

\u201cIs this it?\u201d I asked.<\/p>\n

\u201cThis is it, P.\u201d<\/p>\n

I shook my head, leaned up on my toes, and wrapped my arms around him. We hugged again for a long
\ntime before he got into his car. I tried to hold on to the feeling of having him in my arms, or maybe I was
\ntrying to hold on to the feeling of being held in his.<\/p>\n

He started the engine as I stood there, waiting for him to leave.<\/p>\n

\u201cWe\u2019ll talk on the phone or email or something, okay?\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cOkay,\u201d I told him.<\/p>\n

He swallowed nervously. Looking up at me from the car window, he said, \u201cI wish it were you, Penny.\u201d<\/p>\n

That was my bow. He knew I needed it, good or bad\u2014no matter what feelings it shook loose from our
\nlong and complicated history together.<\/p>\n

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\n

About the Author<\/strong><\/h4>\n

\"\"<\/p>\n

Ren\u00e9e Carlino is a screenwriter and bestselling author of contemporary women’s novels and new adult fiction. Her books have been featured in national publications, including USA TODAY, Huffington Post,<\/p>\n

Latina magazine, and Publisher’s Weekly. She lives in Southern California with her husband, two sons, and their sweet dog June. When she’s not at the beach with her boys or working on her next project, she likes to spend her time reading, going to concerts, and eating dark chocolate. Learn more at www.reneecarlino.com<\/a>.<\/p>\n

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FACEBOOK<\/a>\u00a0 |\u00a0 WEBSITE<\/a>\u00a0 |\u00a0 TWITTER<\/a>\u00a0 |\u00a0 INSTAGRAM<\/a><\/strong><\/p>\n

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