What Others Tell You: A Short Story

By Lisa Shiroff

The Second Angie, Front and Center Story:

The reason why Angie's spa is so successful is simple: she keeps a database where she tracks every juicy detail of her clients' lives (in order to serve them better, of course, she's not a busy body). So when she realizes one of her customers is her new half-sister-in-law Giada, she also discovers Giada is hiding a secret about her past from Angie's family. Although not sure what to do with the information, Angie is sure she wants to know why Giada is lying. Giada's attempts to spend more time with Angie only increases Angie's curiosity. Her sudden friendliness just seems too coincidental and suspicious. What does Giada want from her? Of course getting to the bottom of Giada's mysterious past would be easier if she wasn't behind at work and if she wasn't mentoring an an accident-prone, left-at-the-altar bride with no job skills.

• Language: English
• Publisher: Tasfil Publishing, LLC
• Release date: Jun 24, 2014
• ISBN: 9781310322891

Lisa Shiroff

Lisa Shiroff is a comedic fiction writer celebrating the often unnoticed but beautifully bizarre in life. For years, she worked professionally as a corporate freelance writer and graphic designer. Not only can she Photoshop her way into a royal wedding, but she can write a PR piece that will make a cat in a tattered wolf costume sound like a Westminster Dog Show champion. But the struggle to keep her tongue out of her cheek was giving her TMJ symptoms and she decided she'd had enough. It was time she joined the ranks of those intent on using humor to balance out the negatives in the universe. Now she is unleashing her comedic perspective on anyone willing to take the risk to read whatever she writes. Having spent her formative years in small-town America, Lisa mastered the ability to amuse herself and others with tales about people we all wished lived next door (and some who really did). Now she’s bringing those stories to light in novels with funny characters experiencing sometimes inane circumstances and always finding happy endings (yes, she’s a sucker for them). Almost living the American Dream, Lisa lives in south Jersey with her husband, two kids, and a dog. Alas, she has no picket fence.

Book preview

What Others Tell You

The Second Angie, Front and Center, Story

By Lisa Shiroff

Tasfil Publishing, LLC, Smashwords Edition

Copyright 2014

Smashwords Edition, License Notes

Thank you for downloading this ebook. This book remains the copyrighted property of the author, and may not be redistributed to others for commercial or non-commercial purposes. If you enjoyed this book, please encourage your friends to download their own copy from their favorite authorized retailer.

Thank you for your support.

This story is a work of fiction. Names, characters, places, and incidents either are products of the author’s imagination or are used fictitiously. Any resemblance to actual events or locales, or persons, living or dead, is entirely coincidental.

Front cover font is Anjelika Rose, designed by Vanessa Bays at http://bythebutterfly.com.

Other books by this author include:

Hitting the Sauce

Revenge Café

What You Tell Yourself (the 1st Angie, Front and Center short story)

An Introduction

In the book, Hitting the Sauce, Lucy asks Angie why she broke up with her boyfriend. Angie replies with:

"I don’t want to be involved with a man who explains uncomfortable situations by saying he has a long story with his ex-."

"He really said that?" Lucy asked.

"Yes."

"What did you say?"

"That I didn’t want to be a subplot."

The scene is a pun because Angie is a subplot in that book. But then I grew to like the Angie character and I started feeling guilty. So to make amends with an imaginary person in my head, here is Angie, front and center as the protagonist in her own series of stories beginning with the story What You Tell Yourself. The one you’re now about to read, is the second in the series.

Spoiler Alert: This particular story takes place in time after the book Hitting the Sauce ends. If you don’t want to ruin part of the surprise ending in that book, you may want to read this story after reading it.

What Others Tell You

When Angie arrived at her spa at nine o’clock Tuesday morning, it was already bustling in a way only a spa could bustle: quiet and hushed. Having been opened for two hours already, a full staff was present, a pitcher of cucumber water surrounded by environmentally-friendly disposable cups was on the waiting room coffee table, and a recording of Japanese Shakuhachi flute music could barely be heard.

She stepped inside, inhaled the slight aroma of sandalwood, and let her eyes close for a long, slow exhale. There. She was grounded. Clear. Centered. She opened her eyes and waltzed through the reception area feeling as if floating on a sea of good vibrations. She smiled at a client perusing skin care items on display, nodded hello at another on her way toward the nail salon, and then stumbled at the sound of her receptionist.

Actually, it wasn’t really the sound that Crosby made that made Angie lose her footing. It was the words she’d said that landed like a sucker punch in Angie’s stomach.

Good morning, Mrs. Pulsoni, Crosby had chirped. So good to see you again.

Angie spun around and locked eyes with Giada Pulsoni.

Oh, hello Ange. Giada approached Angie, placed her hands on her arms and air kissed her cheeks. I told you I’d see you soon.

And you were right, Angie said. She cleared her throat and stepped back. So, uh, what are you here for?

A deep tissue massage, Crosby interjected. She’s trying something new. She handed a clipboard to Marissa who’d just stepped through the doors leading to