Candid by Michelle Pennington

Today I have an excerpt of a young adult contemporary I think you will enjoy:

Candid
by Michelle Pennington
Series: True Images #1
Publication date: May 15, 2012
Genre: YA Contemporary
Purchase: Amazon (eBook and paperback)

Life is simple for high school senior, Sienna Whitfield. With a few good friends, a camera, and a dream, she has everything she needs to be happy. But when Jordan Rubio, the most popular girl at Haskins High, makes her mad, she decides to use the power of photography to right a few social wrongs. As if that doesn’t cause enough drama in her life, she realizes she’s falling for the new guy, Lee Franklin. Strong and protective, he’s just what she needs to survive the craziness she’s stirred up at school. If only she didn’t have to keep her feelings for Lee a secret from her mom…

Excerpt: 

“You won’t freakin’ believe this, but he’s at the concession stand.”

Not sure why I wouldn’t believe it, I turned to look for him. The lines were still pretty long, and I couldn’t make out Mari’s gorgeous new guy in the crowd. “Sorry, I don’t see him.”

“Are you hungry?”

“Starving,” I answered honestly.

“Well, come on then.”  She grabbed my arm and pulled me towards the concession stand. She got in the back of the longest line, and I was about to complain until I saw that we were right behind a group of boys from the basketball team. They shuffled around, and I finally saw him.

Right then, I absolved Marisol of exaggerating. My heart came to a complete stop as I looked up at him. And I had to look up pretty far. Even though I was 5’8”, he was a lot taller than me – definitely over six feet. His hair was dark and carelessly styled over a face that begged to be photographed. His high cheekbones led to a square jaw and strong chin.

Despite these masculine features, however, there was a suggestion of kindness and sensitivity in his expression. Perhaps it was something about the fullness of his lips or the crinkles at the corners of his eyes when he smiled that made him look friendly and oddly approachable. It was hard to pinpoint exactly what it was that gave this impression, but I knew it was just an illusion. Everything about this guy put him way out of my league.

His t-shirt was damp, like everyone else’s, and clung to his sculpted chest in a way that drew my eyes like a magnet. As he put his phone in the pocket of his designer jeans, I caught the gleam of a watch that certainly didn’t come from the local discount store.

Why was life so unfair? I didn’t know people like this really existed. I could have appreciated him just as much if I’d seen him in a magazine ad, but no, he had to be standing right in front of me – tempting and real and impossible. And just like that, I longed to be the kind of girl who could get the attention of a guy like him.

Michelle Pennington

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Michelle Pennington has a BA in Liberal Arts from the University of Arkansas in Little Rock. To attain this degree, she studied Literature, Rhetoric, History, and Art. She married her sweetheart, Ethan, while still in college and developed a new penchant for skipping class to spend more time with him. Despite this distraction, she still managed to graduate Magna Cum-Laude.

Her love for the written word began at a young age. At four years old, she followed her mother around all day asking how to spell things. Her teen years were spent hiding in trees, on rooftops, and anywhere she could escape her chores for a while to read. Despite this aggravating behavior, her parents always encouraged her love of literature and her dream to write. Michelle is a hopeless romantic and an insatiable people watcher.

Currently she is a stay-at-home mom where she cares for her three children, who are at once adorable and exasperating. In the midst of the domestic whirlwind that is her life, she enjoys crafting, cooking, art, and reading. 

Have you ever felt like someone was out of your league?