Kissing Cousins Read online

  I will confess to you that when I write a story, I get a little tired of it by the end. Usually about halfway through a book, my next book will start tickling the corners of my mind. That’s actually a bad thing because then I want to finish up whatever I’m currently working on so I can start the next one. Therefore, it’s usually literally years before I reread a book. Consequently and as I said (because I’m nothing if not redundant), I was always kind of astonished when groovy chicks like ourselves would tell me that Kissing Cousins is one of their favorites—until I reread it, that is. Furthermore, during my rereading, I realized the huge, huge, gargantuan mistake I had made while writing it—forgetting to have Swaggart Moretti strip off his shirt! Ahhhhhhhhhhhhhh!

  You know the story behind the shirt thing, right?—that I had promised my close friends I would always remember them and prove it by having every one of my heroes in every one of my books manage to remove his shirt somehow during the course of the romantic adventure? Well, somehow I forgot to do that in Kissing Cousins! I totally remember thinking about it—thinking, “Oh! I can’t forget to have Swaggart take his shirt off.” But then I did forget! I think it was because Swaggart can so perfectly hold his own in just a t-shirt that it slipped my goofy mind. Anyway, as you now know, that little faux pas has been corrected. Yep—we have finally seen Swaggart without his shirt. Whew! Now I can sleep at night.

  Which gives me an idea as to where to start this Author’s Note—Swaggart’s name. Personally, I really like Swaggart’s name. Swaggart Moretti—love it! Actually, his full name is Swaggart Dean Moretti—don’t want to forget to reveal the entirety of it, now do we? (Just for fun, see the etymology on Swaggart’s page in the Characters Bio section of my blog.) When I was envisioning Swaggart’s character (before I even began to write the actual story Kissing Cousins), it was obvious that he owned a very cool manner of walking—a swagger. My husband and both of my sons have a swagger or strut—very cool—and that’s how Swaggart walks. It’s not an intentional thing—not contrived, but natural. As a result, a little bell went off in my brain, and I suddenly knew Swaggart’s name was Swaggart.

  Swaggart Moretti has not only an awesome swagger, as well as a “massive chest” and “drop-dead gorgeous” looks, but he also has Italian heritage—evident in not only his dark hair and “chocolate brown” eyes but in his surname as well. I’ve always loved Italian last names, and Moretti echoed through my mind as naturally as Swaggart had. Swaggart Moretti—delicious! As for his middle name, Dean—well, I think that’s an obvious little pun on his parents’ part—because his paternal grandmother was over the moon for Dean Martin Italian love songs.

  I’ve received some criticism concerning Swaggart’s name—not much, but a little. Of course I always wonder why anyone would criticize anyone else’s name in the first place—but beyond that, I just think his name is uber cool! Swaggart—Swaggart—Swaggart. It just rolls off your tongue like sweet, rich crème brûlée—mmmm! I love it!

  Now, since we’ve discussed the history of Swaggart’s name, let’s investigate Poppy’s, shall we? Poppy Amore is another name that some people scoff at—but that’s her name—so why scoff? Poppy—a little flower—often red. First off all, I love poppy seed bread and muffins! When my daughter was in kindergarten, her teacher (awesome teacher, by the way!) gave me a poppy seed bread recipe that became our family’s favorite sweet bread recipe, as well as a total family tradition! Over the years, I used the recipe to make muffins too (scrumptious!). (I should include the recipe in this Author’s Note, huh? I think I will! *See the end of this note.) Anyway, I not only love poppy seed breads; I have a tender spot in my heart for poppies themselves—because of the little red poppies the Disabled America Veterans fashion and sell outside store fronts on or around Veteran’s Day. Plus, I think it’s a perky, fun name—Poppy! It makes me feel chipper and cheerful. Thus, when I realized that Poppy’s name was indeed Poppy, I thought, “Perfect!”

  As far as her surname is concerned (Amore)—it means a sense of great affection or love. How perfect is that? Not to mention the whole pun thing with the song “That’s Amore,” right? Too fun! Poppy Emelyn Amore—so sweet and lovable—I adore it!

  Okay—now my brain is working (at last). The mere mention of the song “That’s Amore” certainly brings me to one of my favorite (albeit trivial) things about Kissing Cousins—the music in Good Ol’ Days Family Restaurant! If you close your eyes and listen, can’t you totally hear Dean Martin crooning “Innamorata”? Ooo! What about “Pretend” by Nat King Cole? And Ella Fitzgerald’s rendition of “Dream a Little Dream of Me”? I’m all relaxed and romantical just listening to those songs in my mind!

  I love old 30s, 40s, and 50s music! Sure, I love an abyss full of different styles and types of music—that’s true. But when I want to relax and be dreamy, it’s the old stuff I turn on. There’s just something easy and restful about it, not to mention romantic—vintage music is so romantic! But back to the Kissing Cousins music—this was one of the first books I wrote in which I used a specific type of music and specific song titles to help set the mood in certain scenes. I mean, can’t you just see the restaurant employees and patrons enjoying a round of “That’s Amore”? Seriously! Or close your eyes and imagine Swaggart’s Risqué Martin groove to “Sway”! Music is a wonderful mood embellisher. In fact, I’ll go as far as to say that music itself actually sets the mood in any atmosphere in which it’s used. Ambiance is created by many different elements, but sometimes music trumps all the rest! Thus, I love the way songs are woven through the scenes in Kissing Cousins.

  And—on that note—I thought I might as well include what my band back in the 80s used to call a “tune list” for Kissing Cousins. Why not rummage around and gather together the following songs to create your own Kissing Cousins tune list? I find it’s especially effective in the kitchen when I’m cooking. Maybe put your Kissing Cousins tune list together and make some poppy seed muffins! Mmmm! So here goes—the Kissing Cousins tune list:

  “On an Evening in Roma” (Dean Martin)

  “Did You Ever See a Dream Walking?” (Bing Crosby)

  “That’s Amore” (Dean Martin)

  “Unforgettable” (Nat King Cole)

  “Dream a Little Dream of Me” (Ella Fitzgerald)

  “Stardust” (Nat King Cole)

  “Kiss” (Dean Martin)

  “Misty,” 1960 Version (Ella Fitzgerald)

  “Pretend” (Nat King Cole)

  “Sway” (Dean Martin)

  “Innamorata” (Dean Martin)

  “You Belong to Me” (Dean Martin)

  Next—you know the Dreams to Do lists Poppy and Whitney had? Well, being the ding dong ducky that I am, I had never heard of an actual “bucket list” when I wrote Kissing Cousins. I had always secreted kind of a silent, unwritten list in my mind of things I’d “like to do someday”—I think everyone does—but I’d never put a label on it until I wrote this book. As I thought about Poppy’s and Whitney’s lists, I realized that many of the things on their lists would be kind of difficult to accomplish—just like many of the things on mine. Therefore, I realized they were “Dreams to Do”—things that were fun, challenging to accomplish, and, of course, romantic—basically, things that were dreamy.

  Naturally, I had to draw the ideas for Poppy’s and Whitney’s Dreams to Do lists from somewhere, so I drew them from the same place I draw a lot of ideas for my stories—my real life! Thus, I thought it might be kind of interesting for us to go over Whitney’s and Poppy’s lists and see which things on their lists are on my “Dream to Do” list—some of which I have already accomplished. What do you think? Are you game?

  We’ll start with Whitney’s list. Is it okay if I just type it in and then we’ll go over it after we’ve reviewed it? Okay—here goes—Whitney’s Dreams to Do list:

  1. Kiss Greg Amore.

  2. See Bon Jovi in concert.

  3. Memorize “The Highwayman” by Alfred Noyes.

  4. Ride a train coast t
o coast.

  5. Visit The Goonies house in Oregon.

  6. Read all of Dickens’s and Austen’s works.

  7. Learn to crochet.

  8. Win a best-of-show ribbon in something.

  9. Learn to play the piano.

  10. Visit the U.S.S. Arizona Memorial in Hawaii.

  11. Visit Prince Edward Island, Canada.

  12. See the Statue of Liberty.

  13. Learn to swing dance.

  14. Learn to surf.

  15. Visit Mount Rushmore.

  16. Shake hands with Michael Jordan.

  17. See a tornado in real life.

  18. Find a starfish while wandering along the beach.

  19. Hike down into the Grand Canyon.

  20. Donate my hair to Locks of Love.

  What a list, huh? Now—and just for meaningless fun—I’ll go through and elaborate a little on each enumerated dream to do, and we’ll see where the idea came from. (Do I know how to I waste your time, or what?)

  1. Kiss Greg Amore. In truth, this one is kind of a wishy-washy answer—that being, it was simply necessary for the story.

  2. See Bon Jovi in concert. This had been on my personal Dreams to Do list for years! And in 2008 I checked this one off my list! It was an awesome concert! Kevin, my sons, and I saw Bon Jovi perform in Denver, and I will tell you that it was fabulous!

  3. Memorize “The Highwayman” by Alfred Noyes. This is actually on my own Dreams to Do list. Haven’t done it yet—and I stress the “yet,” because I will get ’er done one day!

  4. Ride a train coast to coast. This isn’t on my list, but I know it would be on my mother’s!

  5. Visit The Goonies house in Oregon. Totally had been on my list for years and years and years! I checked this one of while we were living in Washington State—and I actually checked it off twice! The first time was with my “partner-in-crime” friend, Sheri. Oh, what a trip—wonderful! The second time was when Kevin and I took the kids down to Astoria, Oregon, and then down to Canon Beach. Fabulous! I loved checking this one off! It sounds silly, but it was literally a dream come true for me.

  6. Read all of Dickens’s and Austen’s works. This one is something I too would eventually like to do. However, it overwhelms me to think of it, so it’s not officially on my list.

  7. Learn to crochet. This one is on my list too! I want to find the time to have my mother-in-law teach me to crochet one day. I’m afraid crocheting is one of those skills of the past that will be lost to the world in the near future.

  8. Win a best-of-show ribbon in something. Done! Sometime in the mid 1990s, I won multiple ribbons at the New Mexico State Fair for my cherry jelly, pralines, and other candy. However, one year I entered the First Lady’s Candy Box contest (judged by the governor’s wife) and won best-of-show! Fun!

  9. Learn to play the piano. I actually stole this from my daughter’s list. She managed to check this one off her list while in college!

  10. Visit the U.S.S. Arizona Memorial in Hawaii. Another one taken from my own list. I’m really not that desperate to visit Hawaii, but I so badly want to visit this monument someday!

  11. Visit Prince Edward Island, Canada. Any Anne of Green Gables fan probably has this one on her list—including me! Haven’t managed it yet, though.

  12. See the Statue of Liberty. This one actually has a funny story behind it…

  One year (the summer of 2006), my youngest son, Trent (who was only 12 at the time), said this to me: “Mom…there are only two things I want to accomplish this summer when I’m out of school.”

  “What’s that, honey?” I asked.

  Holding up an index finger, Trent said, “Number one, I want to see the Statue of Liberty.”

  I was immediately overwhelmed! Where in the world had that come from? We had absolutely no plans to visit New York—ever! Still, not wanting to smash his dreams on the shore of Liberty Island, I said, “Okay. And what’s the second thing?”

  With an expression that was entirely sincere in its earnestness, Trent held up another finger to join the first one and announced, “And number two, I want to go to PetSmart.”

  Naturally I burst into laughter! How random! How far apart could two summer Dreams to Do be (and I don’t mean just geographically)?

  Chuckling, I assured him that I knew we could most likely accomplish one of his summer daydream activities—PetSmart. However, I explained that the Statue of Liberty order was a big one to fill, and we wouldn’t be able to do it. He understood, of course, and just added seeing the Statue of Liberty to his own Dreams to Do list.

  But the story doesn’t end there. Low and behold, that June, shortly after summer vacation began, someone in our lives at the time decided that a group of us would be taking a trip back east with him and his family. (It’s a long story, actually—and it was a requirement as part of Kevin’s job at the time.) The trip was to be an American Revolution history tour—and New York was one of the stops! Can you even believe that? Further incredible was the fact that the only free day we had during the entire grueling trip was in New York City! So guess what? Our family hopped on the ol’ Staton Island ferry and scuttled over to Liberty Island to fulfill Trent’s dream! I mean, seriously—how many parents can manage to grant both of their child’s summer vacation dream getaways? Yep—little Trent checked off both of his Dreams to Do that summer—because we made sure he got to PetSmart too!

  13. Learn to swing dance. Yep—used to be on my Dreams to Do list, but now I’m pretty content to watch other people do it.

  14. Learn to surf. Not at all on my list! This was just something random that popped into my mind.

  15. Visit Mount Rushmore. I would love to visit Mount Rushmore someday! We only lived eight hours away when we lived in Colorado but never could find a time to go.

  16. Shake hands with Michael Jordan. Another random one—but I figured my oldest son would probably have this one on his.

  17. See a tornado in real life. This wasn’t really a Dream to Do of mine, of course—but I did it anyway! When I was a teenager, our family was driving back to Albuquerque from Colorado Springs, and half an hour into our trip, we saw three “sisters” in the distance! We pulled over to watch them, of course (my family has always been more interested in the event itself than in safety), and it was simultaneously terrifying and mesmerizing! The three tornadoes were side by side, and as they’d take turns touching down, dirt and debris would kick up. I remember the sound too. So scary! I also remember wishing my parents would just get us all back in the car and drive on!

  18. Find a starfish while wandering along the beach. Not necessarily a Dreams to Do—but I’ve done it! Clayton Beach in Bellingham, Washington—purple starfish—beautiful!

  19. Hike down into the Grand Canyon. Not one of mine, but growing up I watched enough rerun episodes of The Brady Bunch to have this one pop into my mind.

  20. Donate my hair to Locks of Love. My hair doesn’t grow anything like must be necessary to do this one, but I’ve always thought it would be wonderful and admired peopled who have done it.

  Are you still with me? Did you make it through all that? Do you think you can make it through Poppy’s list now? I’m sorry it takes me so long to blab all this out, but here goes nothin’—here is Poppy’s list:

  1. Kiss (make out with) Swaggart Morretti.

  2. Shake the hand of the President of the United States.

  3. Memorize “The Lady of Shalott” by Tennyson.

  4. Ride the rollercoaster at the top of the Stratosphere in Las Vegas.

  5. Visit The Goonies house in Oregon.

  6. Read all of Dickens’s and Austen’s works.

  7. Ride a horse along the beach in Monterrey, California.

  8. Receive a stamped postcard from Scotland.

  9. Eat crawfish in New Orleans.

  10. Sing the National Anthem at a college football game.

  11. Visit Arlington National Cemetery.

  12. Own a pair of Levi’s 501 button-fly jeans.
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  13. Learn the five Latin ballroom dances.

  14. Plant a rose garden.

  15. Walk the ridgepole of an old Victorian home.

  16. Have a chalk-artist do your portrait.

  17. Spend eight hours in a Civil War cemetery.

  18. Go fishing in Idaho.

  19. Serve on a jury.

  20. Photograph the Albuquerque International Balloon Fiesta.

  And now to detail:

  1. Kiss (make out with) Swaggart Morretti. I could spend days going over this one with you! Sure, it’s an integral part of the story, but it does have a basis as well. How many of us have ever had a crush on a boy or man that we wish or wished we could kiss? Seriously! Probably like every one of us, right? Well, that’s part of the reason for Poppy’s #1 Dream to Do—the other part is this little real-life happening:

  Several years ago there was a sweet, beautiful girl who had a crush on my oldest son, Mitch. He had a crush on her too—at first. But as adolescence always goes—we change. We learn things and begin to know who we are and what we want—and Mitch’s return of the crush began to fade. Actually, it sort of disappeared because of some of the girl’s behavior toward him and things (long, long, long story).

  Anywho, when the dust had settled, and I thought the sweet girl had mended her heart a bit, she was sitting with me in my kitchen one day, and she said, “The only think I want in life is to kiss Mitchel!” Her little eyes were so sad and filled with tears. It made me cry. I could see the residual pain throbbing through her—the regret for the things she had done to drive Mitch away. My empathy for her was profound! Poor thing! I knew how she was feeling—and I knew that wish, that dream would never be fulfilled and that it would haunt the corners of her tender little heart her whole life long. It was her first scar—do you know what I mean? We all have them—things that still pinch our insides or make our stomachs queasy whenever we remember them. It still bothers me—even today! Oh, the girl is more beautiful than ever and happily married—but her heartfelt, honest, pain-stricken confession that day will weigh on me forever.