Read an excerpt from The Place Where We Belong by R.K. Mayer
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General Literary Fiction/Self-Help Fiction
Date Published: March, 2018
Why is starting over so complicated? After an amicable divorce, Tamara is ready to move on. She has loving friends, a meaningful job and a comfortable life. And yet, while everything seems to be in its correct place, she has the distinct feeling that nothing is as it should be. Feeling like she is losing control, Tamara struggles to answer a really difficult question: what does she really want? The Place Where We Belong is a novel about self-acceptance, belonging, friendship and love.
Excerpt
The next day at the Nest, I am doing paperwork in my office. Miriam is cooking up a storm in our tiny kitchenette. Smells of couscous and soup waft through the apartment. She brings me some steaming tea with mint leaves, lemon and honey. “You look like you need this, sweetheart,” she says. “Come and talk to me when you are done.”
“I sure will,” I say. “I just have to sift through some things before rush hour. Rush hour is when the kids come to the Nest after the school day is done. My phone rings. I don’t recognize the caller.
“Hi,” I say, “Tamara speaking.”
“Hi Tamara,” an accented voice speaks to me. “It turns out that I am more impatient than I thought.”
“Who is this?” I ask.
“It is Mike. You rammed into me on the sand the other day on the beach.” The guy from the restaurant.
“I didn’t ram into you: we bumped into each other,” I respond.
“Whatever. I am sure Freud wouldn’t agree. There are no coincidences.”
“I refuse to argue over this.”
“Then don’t, let’s just discuss it like two adults. Over some ice cream.”
“Ice cream?”
“You don’t eat ice cream? That is going to be a problem for me.”
“Of course I eat ice cream. Everyone eats ice cream.”
“Good, so it’s settled.”
“What’s settled?”
“We meet tonight at ten o’ clock.”
“Tonight at ten o’ clock, I will be sleeping.”
“You can sleep another time; tonight we eat ice cream.”
“Don’t you have a restaurant to run?”
“I don’t have to be there all the time, but thanks for your concern.”
“Have I given you any reason to think that I am interested in you?”
“None whatsoever.”
“So why are you doing this?”
“I like a challenge. I like to break down resistance. So will you be there?”
“I don’t know where ‘there’ is. I don’t know.”
“I will send you the address. See you later.” Mike hangs up.
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About the Author
R. K. Mayer was born in Cape Town, South Africa. She has been a teacher, a technical writer and a product manager. Her most short-lived job was in a clothes shop, where she lasted a grand total of two and a half hours. Her last "real job" was being a manager of some wonderful people across the globe, as well as being a lead and advocate for digital transformation in the software industry. Since leaving the corporate world, she is now a Change Management consultant, blogger, novelist and a serial volunteer in her community. In her novels, R. K. Mayer combines her understanding and perspective about how people are affected by change, and her love for storytelling.
R. K. Mayer lives in Israel with her husband and three children. Her latest novel is "The Place Where We Belong." Her first published novel was: "The Perfection of the Glass Lemons."
