Today my special guest is author
James Fant. I met James in one of my Facebook groups, and I'm so proud to announce that he has a new release.
His new release has a great title and a very interesting premise. Here a short synopsis of
Fourteen Pages.
A nasty divorce is about to destroy Marco and Venice
Goldsmith. Bitter arguments, and slammed doors have plagued their three-month
long marriage. And when Venice proclaimed her hatred for Marco, divorce seemed
inevitable.
Then a marriage expert named Garfield Moody offers the Goldsmiths a
solution to save their marriage: a fourteen-page contract that includes step-by-step
marriage instructions. Their contract even includes safeguards for
non-compliance like “Chill Therapy” and “The Tip-Out Clause.” Everyone thinks
the idea is crazy. However, Marco and Venice think it’s just crazy enough to
work. Will Fourteen Pages be enough
to save their marriage?
Excerpt:
Marco
joined Venice at the table, their hands resting on top of their 14-page
document. With the help of Garfield Moody, the two of them had drafted what
they thought would not only save their marriage, but revolutionize the
institution itself, changing the way that couples view and govern matrimonial
unions. “Divorce could become extinct.” Those gripping words from Dr. Garfield
Moody gave them hope.
The
door to Judge Haskins’ chambers flung open; the door knob slammed against the
walnut colored wall with a loud thud. The Honorable Judge Calhoun Haskins
marched into the room with rigid authority, heading straight for the widely
opened window. He inspected it, rubbing his index finger along the seal. For a
moment, Marco thought that the old judge just may jump out of the window right
in front of them. Indeed the entire scene was surreal.
Judge
Haskins turned from the window and took a seat at the head of the conference
table, slamming a file folder on the table when he did. He flipped the folder
open, slammed his boney fist down on top of the official copy of the contract
and said, “Explain this!”
Marco
jumped right in.
“You
see, your honor, my wife and I were having marital issues. Serious marital
issues—”
“So
we attended a marriage seminar hosted by the great Dr. Garfield Moody,” Venice
interrupted. “He gave us the idea to start fresh—”
Marco
jumped in and said, “Yes. You see, we would like to renew our vows today, even
though we’ve only been married a short time. Long story short, Judge Haskins,
we may have moved too fast in the beginning, acted prematurely. But now we are
married and we—”
Venice
looked at Marco with a raised brow and interjected.
“We
don’t want to make two mistakes. You see Judge; we don’t love each other—”
Marco
winced when he heard her say that. She continued.
“—but
we’re hopeful that we can start things fresh with the help of some written
guidelines for how to be married.”
Judge
Haskins leaned back in his chair, eyeing the couple with great disdain. Then he
pointed his skinny finger at Benjamin and Kim and asked, “And who are you two?”
“Kim
Davies, your honor. Close friend of the bride. I had nothing to do with that
contract, sir.”
Haskins
peered in Benjamin’s direction.
“Benjamin
Goldsmith. Brother of the—”
“Fine
then,” the judge interrupted. “Let’s get this farce on the road. I have
reviewed this contract at length and I’m going to assume that the both of you
are in agreement with its terms. However, there are a few terms that—well—I
feel we must review together before I sign off on this thing.”
Judge
Haskins thumbed through the document to a page that he had bookmarked.
“This
Article 15, Chill Therapy?” he quizzed hoping to get some clarity on the
article as well as assurance that both Marco and Venice were in agreement with
it. He looked deep into Marco’s eyes with raised brows and waited for his
response.
“Yes
your honor,” Marco replied. “I’ve been known to be a hot head.”
Venice
shrugged her shoulders in agreement while Benjamin rubbed at his shoulder and
chest.
“Article
15, the Chill Therapy, that’s for me.”
“Okay
then,” Judge Haskins said as he quickly flipped to another page.
“What
about article 27, Dr. Goldsmith,” Judge Haskins smirked as he removed his
reading glasses. “Ah yes. The Quota. Are you okay with this?”
Venice
took a deep breath and replied, “Yes your honor. I am.”
Judge
Haskins stared at her for five seconds without blinking his eyes. Venice
thought that he might have zoned out on them for a moment. “Humph,” he finally
mumbled. And then he placed his reading glasses back on the bridge of his nose,
leaned over to Marco and whispered, “Well played, Mr. Goldsmith. Well played.”
Then
the judge leaned back in his chair and said, “Well then. I think that pretty
much does it for me—Hold on a second. There was one other thing. Yes. Article
35. No Children.”
He
looked at Marco and Venice sternly. “Are you both in agreement with that
particular item?” he asked them.
Venice
gulped and replied, “Yes your honor. We are.”
Kim
then lunged to her side, grabbed her sleeve and whispered, “But you’re always
going on and on about kids. You want kids! This is the time to negotiate that.”
Venice
gently placed her hand on Kim’s. “It’ll have to be,” she said.
“It’s
like my wife said, your honor,” Marco added as he looked into Venice’s eyes,
“we don’t want to make two mistakes.”
The
room fell silent. Venice closed her eyes for a moment. She desperately wanted
to have children. She thought about it very often. However, she also wanted to
stay married. And even though she held out hope that someday Marco would change
his mind, she knew that he would not budge on that issue at the present. So she
shelved those thoughts, opened her eyes and tried hard not to cry.
“Very
well then,” Judge Haskins said as he stood. “Let’s proceed with this ceremony.”
Marco
and Venice stood hand in hand before Judge Haskins with Kim and Benjamin at
either side. They exchanged vows hand in hand, eyes mutually fixed. Judge
Haskins pronounced them man and wife. Then they kissed each other. Their first
kiss was nothing more than a peck, their lips only touching for a millisecond.
Their second kiss was a bit more exciting as Marco took a second to suck the
gloss from Venice’s bottom lip. But their third kiss was special. It was long
and passionate and it involved slow head movements as their mouths melded together
and their tongues wrestled each other. Marco and Venice moaned mutually as the
soft muscles inside of their mouths engaged in a grudge match and just before
Judge Haskins had to clear his throat and restore order, a chilly wind grazed
their faces and freed them from the kiss that held them captive
Hand
in hand, they left Judge Haskins’ office, Kim and Benjamin following close
behind. After they were gone and Judge Haskins and Miss Agnes were alone, the
old judge turned to his assistant, shook his head and said, “Mark my words.
They will petition for divorce before the year is out.”
Buy Links:
Amazon: http://amzn.to/16Pfz00
B&N: http://bit.ly/10W7KC5
