Sunny San Diego is the place to be for Sinatra Graham. A busy wife and mother of four, Sinatra is doing her thang in a major way until she stumbles across a stain of lipstick that doesn't match her own on her husband's clothing. Strengthened by all the advice she's received from the peanut gallery and her 'tough as nails' cousin, Berta, Sinatra decides to not get mad but to get even in this tale of drama and deceit.
A businesswoman, wife, and mother, Sinatra Graham’s life is good. She chauffeurs her children to their football games and cheerleading practices while running her own beauty salon with a staff of close friends. Unfortunately, life takes a sudden detour when she discovers her husband’s briefs smeared with lipstick—and it’s not her shade.
With her marriage on the rocks, Sinatra confronts her own relationship demons and revisits a past love, the father of her first child. But after she watches how her cousin struggles to find a good man and fails miserably, Sinatra decides to take a closer look at her marriage and decide how to proceed.
Sinatra keeps her children’s home life stable while She’s Gotta Have It, her beauty shop, keeps her busy as she tries to develop it into a successful business. But an unexpected pregnancy and uncertainty over who the baby’s father is adds a whole new dimension to her life.
A Little Bit of Sin explores infidelity and forgiveness in a story filled with verve and charm. You’ll root for Sinatra as she transforms from a woman scorned to a woman empowered.
Excerpt
I sat at a corner table and waited for my order. I had ordered a grande, decaf, Carmel Macchiato with a double shot of espresso, extra caramel, whipped cream and requested that the drink be made upside down so the espresso would be blended in and not the first thing to tarnish my taste buds. I waited the few minutes looking around the lobby and salivating over the pastries until my drink was finally ready. I took one sip of the seething hot liquid and instantly noticed the acidic taste of burnt coffee, also noting that there was definitely no whip cream or caramel only foam.
Oh hell to tha naw, I thought. “Excuse me!” I exclaimed, making my way back to the counter. The line parted like the Red Sea as I approached. “That’s right, disgruntled black bitch with hot coffee, step to da left,” I said, as I zoomed to the head of the line, my eyes darting to the uniform of my victim and searched out her name.
“LeeAnn…um, I requested that my coffee be made upside down and ordered whipped cream and extra caramel and paid an extra thirty cents and there ain’t hide nor hair of some whip cream and only a speck of caramel in this damn cup. Whassup with that?” I slammed the cup of liquid on the counter in front of the clerk, not giving a flying fuck that I had caused the top to fly off and hot scalding coffee to go flying in the air. The clerk quickly jumped back to avoid getting burned. Smart move. My own hand was still on the cup and hot liquid spilled over causing instantaneous searing pain pushing me over the edge. “I just want what I asked and paid for!” I screeched. I was pissed, more so at myself and the stupid position I was in than at these people. I was having a helluva bad day. Surely, they’ve got an order messed up before and didn’t nobody come back in the store and throw the hot shit back at them. But hey, that’s Murphy Law, sometimes shit happens. The manager rushed over trying to calm me down and make amends.
“Sorry, ma’am. We’ll fix that right away. What was your order?” I realized I was making a complete fool of myself and calmed the hell down. “I am so sorry. I just got some bad medical news and I just needed that coffee so very badly to ease my nerves. Don’t worry about it.” I grabbed what was left of my coffee and quickly escaped the glares and crazy looks I was receiving inside the coffee shop. The other patrons gaped in horror as I splattered my hot expensive cup of coffee all over the counter like a spoiled kid who didn’t get what she wanted. I felt so totally stupid and embarrassed it was unbelievable. I rushed to my car, thankful that it wasn’t in a spot right in front of the storefront.
I pulled into traffic quickly and plummeted down the street. I realized I was suffering from mood swings badly. The people in there probably thought I was some kind of drug addict coming off of a high or something deranged like that. I looked at my reflection and guffawed. I couldn’t believe I just went off in Starbucks. Thank God it wasn’t the one close to my house or close to the shop because I’d have to reroute to a different Starbucks every time I wanted some damn coffee. Shit, I’m too humiliated now to go back to that one.
Boy, am I incensed: LeeAnn, the waitress, is my daughter!
Well, not really, but there's such a realistic tone to this excerpt that I felt like I was right there at the counter watching this wench blow her cool.
Nice write, NikkiNicole. If your book A Little Bit of Sin is half as good as your excerpt, it'll be a hit for sure!
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