#WIPpet Wednesday - Tabula Rasa (Rife) #amwriting #lgbtqia



WIPpet numbers for 6th September, 2017:

9-6=3 paragraphs
from Tabula Rasa


WIPpet Context:
Another snippet from Tabula Rasa (Gray Fisher #2).

This novel follows on from The WAG and The Scoundrel, featuring two former undercover police officers, Gray Fisher and Rob Simpson-Stone. Their investigations relate to white-collar crimes (fraud, embezzlement, etc.), and there are also romantic relationship story arcs (however, not between Gray—who is gay, and Rob—who is straight).

This snippet follows on from the previous snippets and is from Chapter Two, which is from Gray’s perspective. Gray is on his way out to Rob’s leaving do.

* * * * *
Gray hadn’t set out to mislead Will, but somewhere along the line, he’d had a bit of a wobble and implied going to Rob’s leaving party was a chore he could do without—hence Will’s offer to go with him. It would’ve been a first for them—accompanying each other on a work night out—but that wasn’t why he’d put Will off. Plus-ones were rarely welcome at police socials, and even though this one was being held in a restaurant with a nightclub attached, the culture would be rife. Gray remembered it far too well—the all-consuming nature of the job that made it difficult to switch off.

Hopefully, tonight would be different because Rob had never been a typical copper. Work or play, no mixing the two unless he was under orders, and he was leaving because he’d had enough. He’d tried going back on the beat and a stint in CID, but he couldn’t settle in his old job. So, he’d resigned to set up a private investigation agency…and asked Gray to go in with him.

It sounded far more thrilling than it would no doubt prove to be, and that suited Gray just fine. Only thirty-five and he’d already had his lifetime’s worth of excitement. It wasn’t so long since he’d been out every night of the week, getting drunk, getting high…it hadn’t been fun. But he was past all that now and dealing with his problems like a functioning adult instead of an out-of-control lunatic with a death wish. If it were anyone other than Rob, Gray would’ve given tonight a miss in favour of lounging on his couch. Or Will’s, maybe, along with at least one dog. The image popped into his mind of Will flopped full length of the sofa at the bottom of a dog pile, pitta bread in one hand, hummus in the other. It was a surprisingly alluring vision.
* * * * *
What is WIPpet Wednesday?

WIPpet Wednesday is a blog hop where authors share from their current works in progress - expertly organised/hosted by Emily Wrayburn - and the excerpt has to relate to the date in some way. For links to other fabulous authors' WIPpets, visit: http://www.inlinkz.com/wpview.php?id=355404


Thanks for reading
Deb x

Comments

  1. I love the image of the second half of that last paragraph.

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    Replies
    1. Ha, yes. I can't get near my sofa these days for the dog pile - not sure they'd be happy to share with me (unless I have food, maybe).

      Delete
  2. So, domesticity doesn't seem like such a bad thing now, huh? Gray's right, it has its good points-- if you're with the right person.

    Nice WIPpet!

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    Replies
    1. Gray is terribly fickle. ;) For good reason, but still. I think he might be working through it.

      Delete
  3. I thought I'd already commented on this. Obviously I forgot to actually post it. :/

    LOL at the last line. I still say I couldn't live with Will, but Gray may be on to something there.

    This too: "It sounded far more thrilling than it would no doubt prove to be..." That describes nearly every job I've ever had.

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    Replies
    1. LOL at the dull jobs. There should be laws against overselling employment.

      It would (will?) be interesting to see how Gray manages living with Will.

      Delete
  4. That last line made me smile :)
    I am interested in reading more about what the night will bring!

    Sophie

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    Replies
    1. Yay. :) Smiles are always good. And that night...well, best-laid plans and all that.

      Delete
  5. Everyone always thinks my job is far more exciting than it actually is because when I say I work in museums/archives, they assume I spend all my time playing with old objects or reading amazing letters written by amazing people. When really, I do a hell of a lot of admin.

    I like the last line. I think that would be far more alluring to me than a colleagues' leaving do as well.

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    Replies
    1. Ergh. This is Emily by the way. I thought I'd set my old Google account up to display as Emily Wrayburn, but it seems that's not happening quite yet.

      Delete

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