SEMPRE SEQUEL: TITLE REVEAL & EXCERPT

A message from Carmine DeMarco

I don’t name shit.

Seriously. I don’t.

Even as a kid I didn’t bother naming things. We had dogs we called ‘dog’ and a cat called ‘cat’. Of course it wasn’t entirely my fault, since no one else named them either, but whatever…

Maybe it’s in my DNA. I mean, yeah, my parents named me (I’m pretty sure they legally had to), but I vaguely remember my mom calling me ‘baby’ a lot growing up. I always thought it was affectionate, but maybe it was just laziness. Maybe she didn’t like to name shit, either.

After all, it’s not easy. How do you look at something and pick a word, or an expression, that defines that thing perfectly? It’s a hell of a lot of pressure. What if you fuck up? What if you pick the worst name in the world? How did my parents look at this nappy-headed little baby and say, “yeah, he’s a Carmine, alright?” What if I wasn’t? What if I was a John, or a Joe, or a Steve? Naming something sort of sets the stage. You expect a bitch named Harmony to be able to sing and a guy named Hulk to be able to bench press a fucking Ferrari… but what if they can’t?

Like I said… hard.

Haven’s mom nailed the whole naming thing. I couldn’t think of a more perfect name for my hummingbird (unless, of course, we slap a DeMarco on the end of that motherfucker). But as for everyone else, I think we’re kinda just winging it and hoping like hell it’ll eventually fit. Sometimes it works, and sometimes it doesn’t… or, if you’re like me, you don’t even bother at all.

J.M. Darhower, you know, she’s sorta like my boss. I mean, I got another Boss now that would be none too happy to hear me say that shit, so keep it to yourself, okay? But it’s true. She’s in charge here. And I was really starting to fear she was a lot like me.

You know, in the sense that she doesn’t name shit.

I was worried, when the final part of Haven and I’s story was released, “The Unnamed Sequel” would be written on the fucking cover. It wouldn’t have surprised me, honestly. After the shit that happened in the first half of our story, nothing surprises me anymore.

Except maybe that some people don’t like Toblerone. What’s wrong with you? It’s chocolate. What the hell isn’t there to like about it?

But whatever, the point is I thought for sure our story would go nameless, like there was no name imaginable that would fit the book, but I’m happy (read: fucking relieved) to tell you that’s not the case.

Because “The Unnamed Sequel” finally has a damn name.

SEMPRE: REDEMPTION

By J.M. Darhower
The highly anticipated sequel to ‘Sempre’
Coming December 16, 2013
Simon & Schuster/Pocket Books

Redemption… because I’m not perfect, so thank fuck for second chances to try to make things right.

EXCERPT from SEMPRE: REDEMPTION by JM DARHOWER

***Content may be altered or omitted from the final product***

The black Mazda RX-8 sped along the worn gravel road, twisting and turning as it penetrated deeper into the foothills of the Blue Ridge Mountains. Haven clutched onto the passenger seat as the car haphazardly weaved through the dense forest.

“Are we lost?” she asked hesitantly as she stared at her boyfriend. Carmine was slouched in the driver’s seat, fiddling with the radio. Sunglasses shielded his eyes from her, so she couldn’t tell if he was paying any attention to the road.

“No.”

Haven glanced out the windshield, squinting from the early morning sunshine. Things looked the same in every direction-nothing but endless trees surrounding them. How could he know? “Are you sure?”

“Positive.”

Stubborn. “Where are we going?”

“You’ll see.”

Shaking her head, Haven surveyed the area. At first it appeared to be nothing unusual, a small gap in the trees with a cabin set a few yards away, until she spotted the faded white sign in the distance. Landell Christmas Tree Farm, it said in green hand-painted letters.

Although it felt as if time had stopped for the two of them, the calendar told a different story. It was the 23rd of December already, a month since they’d returned to the small North Carolina town of Durante in an attempt to get back to their lives… in an attempt to regain a bit of normalcy and piece together their relationship. It had been a struggle, dealing with the fallout of her kidnapping, but they took it day-by-day.

Together, the two of them set out through the tree farm.

“How about this one?” she asked after a while, stopping in front of a tree a few inches taller than her. “Do you like it?”

Carmine hardly even looked. “It’s too bare.”

Haven’s brow furrowed, unsure as to what he was talking about. The branches appeared full to her. “So finicky.”

“Whatever,” he muttered. “Do you see any others?”

“Uh…” She glanced around, randomly motioning toward another tree a few feet away. “What about that one?”

Carmine scanned it. “Perfect.”

Letting go of her hand, Carmine studied the tree, deciding how to go about taking it down. Haven watched him for a moment and burst into laughter when he took his first swing. It barely even sliced the thick bark.

Carmine groaned. “What’s so funny?”

“This is going to take you all day,” she said. “We should’ve just picked one that was already chopped down.”

“That’s cheating,” he said. “Just because it’s the easy way doesn’t mean it’s the best way. Sometimes it’s better to put in the work.”

He whacked the trunk repeatedly, the blade eventually cutting through the wood. Despite the cold temperatures, by the time the tree tilted, Carmine was huffing and drenched with sweat. It gathered along his forehead, running down the side of his face and dripping from his chiseled jaw. Haven watched him struggle in silence, a familiar pang of guilt deep down inside of her gut as she was reminded of what he’d done.

This boy-this stubborn, selfless, stupid boy-had given himself to the Mafia. He’d handed control of his future over to the men they hated most in exchange for her life. For her safety. And he’d done it so easily, so quickly, like there wasn’t even a choice at all… like making this sacrifice for her came just as naturally as breathing.

The act had left him fractured, and Haven was still trying to come to grips with the fact that it may be a long time before he was whole again. She was grateful to be alive, picking out a Christmas tree with the boy she loved, but she was also angry. Not at him-not anymore. That anger had been unfounded. She was mad at herself now, and at the universe, because no matter what she did, she couldn’t help Carmine.

Once again in her life, Haven felt powerless.

So she stood by silently, continuing to watch, terrified of looking him in the eyes one day and seeing regret. Frightened that someday, he’d turn to her, and she’d see her worst fear playing out in his face: that she hadn’t been worth it.

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