Feeling about American, quiet in expectation (8)
I believe the answer is:
suspense
'expectation' is the definition.
(I know that suspense is a type of anticipation)
'feeling about american quiet' is the wordplay.
'feeling' becomes 'sense' (I've seen this in another clue).
'about' is an insertion indicator.
'american' becomes 'us' (abbreviation for United States).
'quiet' becomes 'p' (music symbol for 'piano', ie soft or quiet).
'us'+'p'='usp'
'sense' going around 'usp' is 'SUSPENSE'.
'in' is the link.
(Other definitions for suspense that I've seen before include "Hitchcock's speciality" , "Tense uncertainty" , "Tense expectation" , "Seen puss (anag.)" , "Feeling of excitement or anxiety about what might happen" .)