Acceptance

ACCEPTANCE is a story within a story, starring Samantha Strom, an independent realist who has isolated herself from all interpersonal complications. She's the woman who looks 'good enough' at age forty-two, who only 'borrows' a lover when she wants one, has chosen to have zero friends, and likes herself completely for who she is and the choices she's made. Then her attorney, whom she despises fully, and who harbors secret feelings for her, summons her to his office to advise her about a lawsuit that threatens her inheritance. Samantha learns that the lawsuit is filed by a brother she didn't know about and who not only threatens her inheritance, but also threatens who she has chosen to be. The inner story is the telling of how the brother came to be and the parental betrayal that makes Samantha who she is. Samantha's intentionally predictable life has suddenly become complicated, and the range of emotions she travels in the discovery of it make this a literary piece that prompts discussion of human nature, psychology, and dealing with adversity.

Katrina M. Nusbaum resides with her family in Charleston, WV.