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In Michele Campbells forthcoming novel,Its Always the Husband,three women meet in college and become inseparable.
Get a glimpse into the story below with EWs exclusive sneak peek inside the book.
Credit: St. Martin’s Press
Its Always the Husbandhits shelves May 16.
Her shoes were covered in mud, and she trembled from the cold.
Hey, she called out.
My shoes are soaked.
Just a little farther.
She was out of breath, and her feet were killing her.
It wouldnt be good for the baby if she tripped and fell.
Then they rounded a bend.
She got an open view ahead, and knew finally where they were.
When she saw the ghostly shape looming in the distance, she stopped dead.
In a matter of minutes, they reached the foot of the bridge.
A frigid wind blew in her face, carrying the scent of decaying leaves and ice-cold water.
There were barriers across the bridge now, blocking access, and a profusion of warning signs.Danger.
The more people who died here, the bigger the dare.
Kids had no fear; they were young, and didnt know better.
She could have told them.
Somebody dies, and it changes the lives of those left behind, forever.
But she didnt turn back.
There it was, the abyss that hed fallen through, the night he dis- appeared forever.
She looked down and saw the water roiling against the rocks.
The town had done a crappy job of boarding it over.
Below, the water swirled and foamed.
She could hear the roar from up here, over the pounding of her heart.
No, she said, backing away from the edge.
Go ahead and jump.
You know you want to.
Green grass, old brick, tower- ing trees.
Now, against all the odds, after three years of nonstop studying and scheming, here she was.
Carlisle was more beautiful than shed dreamed.
Pictures didnt capture the place.
She told herself that was just as well.
She couldnt imagine a place like Carlisle, let alone know how to behave here.
Her dorm was called Whipple Hall, and it was located somewhere along this exquisite quadrangle.
It was a miracle.
The entry foyer was dim after the bright sunshine.
Dark wood paneling, a fireplace with an elegant marble mantel, a sparkling brass chandelier.
Shed never been in a place with this much history in her life, not where she came from.
Tons of famous people had graduated from Carlisle over the centuries.
Scientists, writerspresidents, even.
She could visualize them lounging here in this very room, engaged in dazzling conversation.
The thought of her roommates made Aubreys stomach sink.
The brunette with the glasses and gold-cross necklace was quiet, studious, and religious.
Shed mailed the letters two months ago now, and checked the mail every day for their replies.
Shed never heard back, not a word.
It was surely her own fault that they never replied.
Aubrey wasnt good at friendship.
She didnt think of herself as ambitious, just as somebody who really needed to get out.
Aubrey became a reader early so she wouldnt feel alone in her apartment at night.
Then there were the nerds like her, who would rather study than hang out.
The end result was no friends, and no social life.
She didnt regret it.
Look at the results.
Here she was, eighteen years old, on the brink of realizing her dreams.
But she didnt have a clue how to be a cool girl.
No wonder the roommates hadnt written back.
All that was about to change.
Her real life was starting.
Whatever shed done wrong before, shed fix.
If shed been shy, shed become the life of the party.
If shed been a nerd, shed be the It Girl now.
If she was skinny and gawky, shed become thin like a model.
No transformation was beyond her, not at this place.
Shed make her roommates love her, no matter what it took.
FromIts Always the Husbandby Michele Campbell.
Copyright (C) 2017 by the author and reprinted by permission of St. Martins Press.
