The Deception Dance (45 page)

Seriously, it’s better that
I don’t know. It really is. I watch the angel and the man until
our plane drives forward and they’re out of view.

I didn’t expect to feel any
sadness leaving Europe, but I do.

Albert snores beside me before we
leave the ground. Brussels shrinks beneath us, a city unexplored.
I’ve left so many cities unexplored.

Maybe I will come back, someday.
But for now, I’m ecstatic to be just going home.

As
The Deception Dance
was my debut novel (not my first novel,
just the first to come crawling out of my closet) I needed and
received a great quantity of help.

First, and most, I want to thank my mother; she’s always ready
with a hug when I want one, a constructive critique when I need one,
and an encouraging (and somewhat embarrassing) cheer when I’d
turn back without one. My father has also encouraged me every time I
can track him down, from whatever country he is in.

I need to thank my sisters, Anna and Abra, two talented writers who
never seem to get annoyed of me bouncing ideas off their brains. Anna
has read every draft of every book, finished or not, I’ve
pushed at her—and asked for more, we are always each other’s
biggest fans. Thank you.

A couple more readers I want to thank, some of my favorite people:
Lindsey, Casey, “Mad Dog”, Christy, and a couple others,
thank you. There were many Goodreads.com readers who really helped
including Nikki, Kate “Katya”, and others, thank you.

I guess I should thank my husband…he told me I should…
thanks a lot
. Kidding, kidding. I love you. Thank you for
being the funny, often infuriating, inspiring person you are.

Several people have been great resources for me, in my writing and
publishing ambitions, including Ricky Beare, Ron Smith, Tomas Higbe,
all the amazing people in the On Fiction writing group, and others.

Thank you Jade Chan, a freelance editor hired for content editing.
Your ideas and suggestions were priceless; I did my best to follow
every single one you gave me.

Thank you again to all the “others,” you know who you
are.