Unleash Me, Vol. 1 (Unleash Me, Annihilate Me Series) by Christina Ross Page A

that ’ s
the case, I feel for your other authors. ”
    “ My
office is just down the hall and to the right. ”  
    I followed him down the hallway,
which I again thought was oddly quiet given what I ’ d experienced on the
other floors.   Is this what
traditional publishing was like?   I
was expecting a hum of activity, not people speaking quietly to each other or
into their phones.   But when I
considered it, of course it made sense, didn ’ t it?   I was
surrounded by editors, copy-editors, and proofreaders.   They would need quiet in order to do
their work.
    Marco stopped beside the last office
on the left, raised his eyebrows at me, and motioned for me to step
inside.   Naturally, he had a corner
office that overlooked Fifth Avenue.   It was a bright, sunny day, but covering the windows that surrounded us
were tinted screens that diffused the light.   In the center of the room was a
sweeping, L-shaped glass table.   A
manuscript sat at its center, with a number of red pens beside it.   An iMac and a reading lamp sat to its
right, and a telephone sat to its left.   A small stack of books were pressed neatly against the left wall.   Otherwise, there was zero clutter.  
    “ Can
I take your bag? ”
    “ Of
course. ”   I handed it to him, and as I did, he
came just close enough that I could smell a trace of his cologne, which was as
masculine as he was.
      I tried to read his expression, which was
neither cool nor hot.   Yesterday had
been disastrous between us, but I couldn ’ t tell where I stood with him now.   If anything, he was being polite and
professional, but I had to wonder just how much longer that would last once we
started discussing my book.
    “ Please
have a seat, ” he
said.
    I took the chair opposite his desk,
leaned back, and crossed my legs.
    He took his own chair, and I saw his
gaze linger on me for a moment before he collected himself.   “ Sorry about yesterday, ” he said.   “ I had a hell of a
morning, and I ’ m
afraid that I took it out on you. ”
    Were you told to apologize to
me?   I
had to wonder.   Still, at least he
did and I was glad to be beginning on a softer note.
    “ Don ’ t worry about it.   My skin is thick. ”
    “ That ’ s good, ” he
said.   “ Because I ’ m also sorry that
Blackwell felt she had to turn you into a clown. ”
    “ Really,
Marco?   Are we going there
again?   I won ’ t tolerate it.   You need to know that. ”
    “ You ’ re a beautiful woman,
Lisa.   You didn ’ t need to come dressed
like that for a photo shoot.   Not if
you want to be taken seriously as a writer.   And you certainly didn ’ t need to have those
diamonds on your lips, which some people will likely lampoon. ”
    “ I
take Blackwell ’ s
advice very seriously. ”
    “ You
might want to reconsider that.   If
you were a romance novelist, I could understand why she ’ d dress you like
that.   But you ’ re not.   You write about apocalyptic worlds.   You write science fiction. ”
    “ Exactly.   The suit I wore yesterday was fashion
forward.   The diamonds on my lips
were otherworldly.   There was a
reason behind everything. ”
    “ Would
you please consult with me in the future? ”
    “ I
think you should ask Blackwell that. ”
    “ I
will.   Now, we need to discuss your
book, and all the issues I have with it. ”
    And here we go.
    “ Such
as? ”
    “ Because
this already had been published, there ’ s nothing I can do about the title, which is a shame.   I hate it. ”
    “ What
don ’ t
you like about it? ”
    “ It ’ s not commercial.   It doesn ’ t catch my attention. ”
    “ But
it caught the attention of hundreds of thousands of others. ”
    “ True.   But ‘ I, Zombie ’ ?   Really?   It doesn ’ t do it for me. ”
    “ The
whole premise of the book is that it ’ s told from the point-of-view of a zombie.   I ’ m not sure if that ’ s been done before.   As my main character, Marcus, turns into