M.L. Skye's Blog, page 13

Sunday Snippet: Founder's Day Flames (Capital City Seasons)

Well, it's been aweek. I hit a slump even though I got a lot accomplished. Not sure why I endedup being so distracted, but I struggled to stay focused on anything.

Had a very slow viewingweek, probably due to being randomly distracted by everything.

I watched anotherepisode of Strangest Things and enjoyed the artifacts featured. Thisshow makes interesting connections when they're trying to figure out whatsomething is.

Caught a Deathin Paradise marathon, which ended up being fun to watch. I'm still doing afull watch in chronological order, but fun to have a whole day of great episodes.

Enjoyed another episodeof Battlestar Galactica. We finished up the first half of season two andduring our discussion we remembered how long we had to wait for the next half,especially because the episode kind of ends on something of a cliffhanger. Andthere were so many great moments in this episode!

I planned to start CannesConfidential this week but ended up being too distracted. I'll be watchingit in the very near future and will post my reaction next week.

That's pretty muchit for television this week. Tonight's post is from Founder's Day Flames,a Capital City Seasons sexy short.

Here's the mini-blurb:

An arsonist strikes Capital City, setting blazes, eachmore devastating than the last, on the lead up to the Founder's Day holiday,which falls on Beltane. Graham McClain is called on to analyze the firebug'sactions and help get a handle on his next move. Fire captain Prima Alton reluctantlyworks closely with Graham and together they discover she plays a role in theculprit's twisted fantasies.

And a sneaky peek…

Captain Prima Alton pushed her wayinto her chief's office. "What's this I hear about bringing in some talkerfor our firebug?" What is there tonegotiate? "We don't even know who the asshat is. Only that they'resetting fires all over the quad." She dropped her cover, bill side down,onto the desk of the fire marshal.

Wade Digbee gave her a level look."Are you questioning my decision?" He settled back, folding his armsover his chest.

Prima didn't back down even thoughcommon sense warned against her making this a bitch fest. "I discoveredthe pattern. This is my forte. The whole reason you brought me on board in thisoffice." And she didn't want to share the job until she had a handle onthe situation. "Why bring someone who makes compromises for a living inwhen we don't have anything for them to compromise on?" This shouldn't bedifficult to understand.

A throat cleared behind her and a sublimelygorgeous man with dark wavy hair and lovely golden eyes moved into her line ofsight. He wore a button-down shirt with the sleeves rolled up to his forearms,a pair of dark dungarees, and suede lace-up shoes with soft soles. His lipsquirked into a brief disarming smile.

Which threw her a little.

Prima slid her gaze back to Wade."I've interrupted a meeting. I'm sorry." She reached for her cover."I'll just step out—"

Wade lifted a hand. "Don'tleave, Captain. This is Graham McClain, the talker." Digbee rose andmotioned for Graham to join them. "McClain isn't just a skilled negotiator,he's also a data analyst." His mouth curved into a satisfied smirk.

Because, of course, the chief wouldhit her with something she lived for—crunching information and details to findcommonalities. Prima shot a quick look toward Graham. Looks aside, Prima stoodready to discount anything the negotiator had to say. Seriously, did he succeedby bowling people over with those incredible genes?

Wade rocked back on his heels."We brought him in because data tends to talk to him." Hemanaged to keep the smarmy smile to a brief flash.

Prima raised her eyebrows. "Datatalks to you? I'd like to see that." She met Graham's gaze.

His lips quirked again. "Thebits and bytes tend to be a little shy. You'll have to let me interpret foryou." Humor filled his eyes.

She laughed, almost hating to admitshe liked him. "Well, there's no time like the present." She noddedtoward Wade. "Mind if we get started?"

Wade spread his hands outward."Not at all. We need to nail this down sooner rather than later. And I'mconfident you two will get the job done."

Prima motioned toward the door."If you're ready, we can head to the situation room. I've got everythingset up in there." She'd play nice and give this guy a shot.

If for no other reason than topossibly catch the firebug before anyone else got hurt … or worse.

I love this series.Graham took a while to get a handle on, but Prima started talking right away.This is a fun book to write!

 

That's it for thisweek. Catch everyone on the flipside.

ML Skye

Sunday Snippet: Fortune's Dawn

Welcome July! Themonth that my doggos hate with the intensity of a thousand suns. And weactually got an early start on the fireworks this year … about mid-June or atleast the last two weekends. Personally, I love a good fireworks show. The dogsreally don't. They get antsy and want to go outside but hate it outside becauseof the loud crackle and booms. It's exhausting.

Had a good week withwork. Finished up two projects and made way to get started on a new one. I'm hopingto slide in some extra freelance work this month because I'm in between twodevelopmental edits at the moment and could use something to keep my busy.

Also had a bit of ascare with my dad. He ended up in the hospital for a few days but he's doingwell.

Not a bad week fortelevision. I'm really angry I didn't get to watch Grease: Rise of the PinkLadies before Paramount yanked it. It angers me that studios can pull whateverthey want to write off for tax purposes. I'd love to be able to do that on apersonal level.

I finished up theninth season of Brokenwood Mysteries. Actually loved the episode. Thisis such a comfort watch for me. Looking forward to starting Cannes Confidentialthis week, especially since one of my favorite actors is involved.

Caught another episodeof Madame Blanc Mysteries and enjoyed the mystery. Not sure I'm excitedabout having the creepy woman back but I'll reserve judgment on that one. I lovethe cast of characters in this show.

Finished up the secondpart of Silent Witness and the episode definitely took a turn I didn'texpect. I like it when that happens!

Enjoyed anotherepisode of Death in Paradise. I'd seen most of this one before and I'mglad I got to watch the whole episode. I'm loving this show.

Continued myrewatch of Battlestar Galactica with "Flight of the Phoenix."This one had so much going on and it was all spectacular. The pilot interactionended up being my favorite thing, as usual. But lots of good stuff overall.

Started the secondseason of Fantasy Island. I'm about halfway through the episode andenjoying it so far. I'm definitely here for Raphael and Elena interactions!

That's pretty muchit for the life update this week. Tonight's post is from Fortune's Dawn,a concluding novella in a three-part series I haven't named yet.

Here's the mini-blurb:

Quillan and Jeb answered fate's call, discovered anancient prophecy that led them to dance with destiny, and now they're setting outto find their lost colony before the cyborgs do.

And a sneaky peek…

Jeb rolled to his side and smoothedthe hair back from her head. "You know I don't believe in this mystical stuff."His fingers trailed along her jawline.

Quillan arched her brows. "Thescribes predicted this. You, the scholar, and me, the guide. How can you notbelieve?" She leaned into his palm.

Jeb lifted a shoulder. "Okay,it's an odd coincidence, I'll grant you. But that's all it is. You're trying tomake us fit the roles." He gave her a level stare.

Quillan snorted. "Bah. You'reso damned stubborn. Are you willing to keep reading the texts or not?"Because she couldn't make heads or tails of the ancient language.

Even being a true telepath, one ofa very few left in society, being a magic translator didn't count as one ofskills. And they needed to reunite with their original colony, lost eons ago.Her destiny wouldn't let her do anything else. And Jeb had become part of it …at least she thought he had.

Jeb nuzzled her throat. "I'min. If only to keep close to you. We've been apart for way too long." Hismouth covered hers and translating texts didn't matter anymore.

They had been apart way toolong. She twisted around and nudged him back then straddled his thighs. Herhead lowered and she scooted downward, pressing open-mouthed kisses along his chest.Easing further down, she grasped his heavy erection and sank her mouth over thelength.

Jeb groaned. "I'll never gettired of this. Of you." His fingers threaded through her hair.

Quillan pulled back a little."I feel the same." They'd taken a long time to get where they were.

Jeb reached down and hooked hishands under her shoulders. "As much as I enjoy the wicked wonder your lipscreate, I need something more from you right now." He hauled her upwardsettling her over his cock.

Quillan gave him a slow smile."It's good to be home." She shifted forward then pushed back, takingJeb's shaft deep.

And even though they had long roadahead to find a place for their people, Quillan would always consider Jeb's armsher true place of residence.

This trilogy iskind of all over the map, but the basic threads are in place. I'm having fun fillingin all the blanks.

 

That's it for thisweek. Catch everyone on the flipside.

ML Skye 

Sunday Snippet: Follow Me (Scorched Galaxy)

Can't believe Juneis almost over. This year is flying by so quickly. Or maybe it's just so muchis out of control it seems that way.

Great week of work.I'm finishing up two big projects and hopefully setting up the groundwork formore. I'd love to find some balance between big jobs and smaller ones.

Had a decent weekfor viewing. We had some weather roll through, and I took the precaution of notstarting anything when we might lose power.

I started a newtwo-parter of Silent Witness. Kind of an interesting premise and I'm notcompletely sure where this one is going. I like that.

Caught another episodeof Death in Paradise, and it's one I hadn't seen yet. I do love watchingthe series in chronological order.

Continued my rewatchof Battlestar Galactica with "Final Cut," which is one of myvery favorite episodes. There's a lot going on in this one and it's all amazing.

Finished the secondseason of Only Murders in the Building and, holy hell, I loved how itended! Can't wait for season three!

Also managed tocatch another episode of Classic Rugrats. It brought back some memoriesbecause my kiddos wanted to try flan because of this one.

And that's prettymuch it for the life update this week. Tonight's post is from Follow Me,the opening book of an epic space saga trilogy. I hope.

Here's the mini-blurb:

A will they or won't they wager spurs Molly and Sloan tosee how long they can without getting caught.

And a sneaky peek…

Molly pondered Sloan's prediction.With their history with MacNeill, he might begin with the should've knownbetters, but he wouldn't end there. Her mind ticked off several follow-upscenarios, each one worse than the last.

She'd caught a glimpseof the disappointment on the commander's face just before he'd slammed thehatch shut. Damn. She hated letting him down.

Her head snapped up."You don't think we'll end up in hack, do you?" Wouldn't be anythingnew for her—between her temper and her mouth, a first-name basis had beenestablished with the marine guard.

Sloan on the otherhand? Usually so squeaky clean he farts bubbles.

He shrugged again."Who knows?"

The night's events werecatching up with him. He looked so weary.

She put her feet up onan adjacent chair. "Yeah. Let's just deal with whatever happens, when ithappens." She could almost feel the dull throb he must've had behind hiseyes … the one where the buzz wore off and the hangover kicked in.

He closed his eyes amoment. "My head hurts too much to think about it right now." Heleaned forward, elbows on the table and steepled his fingers to put pressureagainst his forehead, gently rubbing in a circular motion.

He continued to massagehis head and she let the comparative silence draw out. Watching his fingerswork, she flashed to having them on her … and in her … in the commander'squarters. Who knew it would be like that with us? They'd been friendsfor a long time … hell, she'd been engaged to his best friend before he'd beenlost on the recon mission.

As different as nightand day, Sloan and Lachlan were opposite sides of the same coin. She couldn'treally make a comparison between them, and, in her mind, that probably countedas a good thing. Things are weird enough without adding my former fiancé tothe mix.

Gods, how long had itbeen since she'd thought of Lachlan? Such a big part of her life. The first manshe remotely considered as more than a great lay. The first to break throughand reach her on a personal level. Then meeting Sloan and finding anotherfriend for life? Molly counted herself lucky to be the recipient of suchblessings.

She shook herself outof that train of thought. She couldn't think about Lachlan right now. Pickingback up on Sloan's fingers, she got warm pondering all the things she'd lovehim to use them for. Long and lean, they shouldn't fit with the rest of hisbody. But they did. Compact, solid, and certainly built, Sloan stayed in shape.Always. Much to the hatred of the other pilots.

Molly grinned. One ofthe first directives Sloan sent through as CAG, a new fitness program, stillmade them grumble. Sloan turned a deaf ear to the complaints. In his mind, aslong as they were on the run from an enemy that outpaced them in every wayexcept the physical, his men would be as fit as possible.

That directive countedas the only thing he continued to have significant trouble with since assumingthe position of lead pilot. The former CAG, well-seasoned major that he'd been,let the pilots skate on the physical side as long as they could fly planes.Molly supported Sloan's efforts wholeheartedly and agreed with his reasoningcompletely.

It slayed her that theone thing that set off Sloan's usually calm demeanor was a group of pilotsbitching about keeping fit for duty.

Talk about a matchto powder.

A riled-up Sloan? Whew.Something to behold. The man elevated a scathing set down to an art form. Usinga few well-chosen words to get his point across, he left no doubt howunpleasant the repercussions would be for anyone not on board with the regimen.The pilots might not like it, but he'd earned their grudging respect for notfolding under the initial barrage of very vocal feedback.

Molly had the advantageof knowing Sloan prior to the attacks. She knew what lay beneath the surface.How difficult being thrust into a position he wasn't ready for made things.She'd had firsthand experience with the slow burn of Sloan's temper. He rarelyreached a hard boil but watch out if he did. And once he reached meltdown, hisanger ebbed as slowly as it built. Giving him some distance for a few daystended to be a good idea.

In contrast, push herbuttons and she lashed out fast and her temper faded quickly. Opposite ofSloan. They were on opposite ends of the spectrum. Which turned out to be agood thing. If she'd known how explosive they'd be together, she would haveplotted a way to set up a good hard screw a hell of a lot sooner.

Even wigged out, shecouldn't deny the sex had been damn good.

Speaking of … Sloanmentioned about that, didn't he? And, well, they had some time to kill.

She snapped her fingersin front of his far-away gaze. "Sloan?" Waited until he focused blueeyes on her. "Didn't you say something about mind-blowing sex?" Kindof weird to talk about it but reliving it in her head had her blood heatingagain, which made her uncomfortable.

Sloan glanced away,coloring slightly. "Fuck, Molly. I should have known you wouldn't let thatone slide." His voice went a little sheepish like he hadn't meant to sayit out loud.

But he had and theymight as well talk about it.

Molly picked up on thehumor, used it as the ice breaker. "Let it slide?" She shook her headback and forth. "No way. Sloan MacNeill mentions mind-blowing sex and I'mgoing to let it slide. I don't think so." They usually teased each othermercilessly when one of them got laid.

Except … it'd neverbeen quite like this.

"The fact you werereferencing me is the kicker. Never would have thought that possible."Molly chuckled awkwardly, desperately trying to keep things light.

Then she bracedherself.

Whatever Sloan saidnext would set the tone between them from this point forward. She honestly didn'tknow what she hoped for.

This story is soclose to my heart, and I've been working on the three books to iron out all theintricacies. Here's hoping I get it all right.

 

That's it for thisweek. Catch everyone on the flipside.

ML Skye

Sunday Snippet: First Time Ever Laid Eyes on You

Happy Father's Dayto the dads out there, including fur dads and mentors. We've got beautiful weatherafter a very soggy week.

My work projects arebringing me so much joy right now. The books are so amazing! Also heard fromone of my authors on two new stories he's got percolating right now. And I got atext message from one of my current authors that completely made my weekend. So… work is awesome right now.

Had a very goodviewing week. I ended up doubling up on a couple of shows because the moodstruck.

Ended up catchingtwo episodes of the Brokenwood Mysteries. Both were pretty great. Ithoroughly enjoyed meeting another one of Mike's ex-wives. And my heart kind ofbroke for him by the end of that episode. I'll probably finish out season ninethis week.

Finished the completerun of available Classic Who episodes. Have to say in retrospect, it'sweird how there have been seven doctors and only one master. That said, I'mactually kind of happy with how Seven's tenure ended. Not sure if I'll watchthe movie with Eight or just skip over to New Who. It might be a few weeksbefore I start that.

Caught the secondpart of Silent Witness. This two-parter ended up being very twisty and Iliked it. Looking forward to starting a new one this week.

Watched two episodesof Death in Paradise. I'm enjoying watching from the beginning inchronological order. It's nice to see how the original group came together.

Enjoyed thepenultimate episode of Only Murders in the Building. What a cool twistor three. Can't wait to watch the finale this week.

Caught anotherepisode of Classic Rugrats. This is my nostalgia show. I have so manygreat memories of watching this when my kiddos were little.

Watched an episodeof Peak Practice. Joanna breaks my heart sometimes. And we're nearingthe end of season nine when things don't go so well for her.

Continued my rewatchof Battlestar Galactica with a double-header of "Home Part I and II."These are two of my favorite episodes of season two. The fleet is brought back together,and the acting is stellar.

Enjoyed anotherepisode of Madame Blanc Mysteries. Very interesting development at theend. I have a feeling I'll either love or hate the twist.

That's pretty muchit for the life update this week. Tonight's post is from First Time Ever LaidEyes on You, a novella that brings two polar opposites together.

Here's themini-blurb:

Nadia Blunt takes one look at Bart Uppermark and decidesthey'll make a great team in the air and on the ground. But when Bart showszero interest in working together—she takes too many risks for his comfortzone—Nadia pulls out all the stops and proves him wrong.

And a sneaky peek…

Bart stood toe-to-toe with Nadia."I haven't dismissed you yet, lieutenant." She didn't get to leavejust yet.

No matter how pissed off she mightbe.

Nadia snapped to attention butremained silent. Rigid shoulders. Back ramrod straight. All taut anger andcoiled tension.

What a woman! Just a little on theinsane side, but the best natural pilot I've ever flown with.

And he wanted her. Theunbidden idea popped into his brain and took up residence. Wanting her as hiswingman oddly became almost an afterthought.

Bart made a slow circle aroundNadia, trying to formulate a response to her outburst. "Am I to understandyou're taking yourself out of contention to be reassigned with me?"He wouldn't stand for that at all.

She kept her eyes straightahead. "Fairly sure I made myself clear … sir." She all but spit thesign of respect for his higher rank out.

Bart bit the inside of his cheek.Her smart mouth amused the hell out of him. Which shouldn't happen but heenjoyed her open candor.

He came to a stop in front of her."I see." He sighed. "Unfortunately, that doesn't work for me."He couldn't accept her decision.

Her gaze shifted, finally landingon him. "Excuse me? Why the hell not?" She shook her head. "Youwere out there with me. I sucked. Worst I've flown in well … ever." Sheglanced away then back again, refusing to do anything but own her horrible testflight.

He cracked a smile. "And yet,you're still the best pilot I've flown with in…" He twisted her words backon her. "Well … ever." Including Mallet who'd been a kick-ass pilot.

She blinked. "I'm sorry.What?" She shook her head, clearly confused.

He pointed to the chair at thedesk. "You heard me. At ease, Lieutenant. We've got some issues to workthrough here." He moved around the desk and sat down.

This story isfinally coming together, and I hope to have it ready to launch soon!

 

That's it for thisweek. Catch everyone on the flipside.

ML Skye

Sunday Snippet: Fireworks

Getting a laterthan usual start on my blog post today. We lost power for about four hours. Finallygot some rain after about ten days and the power blips. It's not even storming.Go figure.

Still moving along onmy work projects. I'm so excited about the two manuscripts I'm editing. Bothare part of a series with two different authors. Can't wait for the rest of theworld to see them!

Had a pretty goodweek of viewing television. I'm still in the midst of the great clean out sonot a huge amount, but a few extra hours.

Started the premiereepisode of Grease: Rise of the Pink Ladies. So far, I'm loving it. I pausedmid-episode mainly because I want to be able to watch uninterrupted.

Caught another episodeof Brokenwood Mysteries. Quite a good mystery for this one. Thoroughlyenjoyed the episode.

Watched another episodeof Peak Practice and enjoyed it. This one had some action, which doesn'thappen often.

Enjoyed thepenultimate episode of Classic Who's season twenty-six and I'm lookingforward to the finale. Then I have to decide if I'm jumping into New Whoor taking a break.

Caught the first halfof a Silent Witness two-parter. Intriguing episode with some odd littletwists. Looking forward to seeing how it ends.

Continued myrewatch of Battlestar Galactica with "The Farm". I have mixedfeelings about this episode. Loved the creeptastic look into what the cylonsare up to on Caprica. Hated the deeper dive into my most disliked character inthe entire series. So, enjoyed watching with my co-watcher but tempered thatwith knowing what will come later with the most disliked character. Should bedoing a double-header next week!

Watched another episodeof Death in Paradise. I'm very happy to be starting this series from thebeginning and working my way through in the established order. This is such afun watch.

Enjoyed another episodeof Only Murders in the Building. Such a great episode! Things are movinginto place, and I can't wait to see what happens next.

Caught the firstepisode of Madam Blanc Mysteries' second season. It's a holiday themedepisode and actually quite terrific. I'm kind of wondering if Dom and Caronwill be vying for Jean's affections, which I hope won't be the case.

And that's prettymuch it for the life update this week. Tonight's post is from Fireworks,a novella that throws a sibling rivalry into a new romance and that sets off achain of events putting one of the characters in danger.

Here's the mini-blurb:

Adelle Lizt and Zander McKibbet are a volatilemix—neither gives quarter when they know they're right. But with two sides toevery situation, they find some common ground in a very interesting place—theguest quarters on base.

And a sneaky peek…

Zander came to with a groan. "Whatthe hell?" Why did his head feel like a battering ram wanted to escapefrom the inside of his skull?

Pieces shifted into place in hisbrain, and he jerked upright. Drugged. We were drugged. A quick searchshowed Adelle missing. And no Samantha. But his idiot brother remained at thetable with Zander. Keith stirred and Zander kicked out at the chair across fromhim.

Keith's eyes blinked open, and hisbrows drew together. "Why'd you do that?" Reality crashed over him."Dammit!" He snapped upright and glanced around. "Where's Sam?Adelle?"

Zander growled. "Obviously nothere. That's some special woman you got yourself hooked up to." He slowlygot to his feet and wavered a little.

The room spun around him thenrighted itself and Zander clumsily made his way to the sink and filled twoglasses with water. He trudged back to the table and set one in front of hisbrother. Keith gave Zander a guilty look but drank the clear fluid down. Zanderdid the same.

When Keith finished, he set theglass aside. "So, you're thinking kidnapping, right?" He shook hishead. "Why the hell would Sam do that? Adelle is just a flightinstructor." His lips twisted in a sneer.

Zander slammed his hand on the table."Think about it, asshole. Your girlfriend is probably an enemy agent orworking for one. The new Starwing fighters are in production right now. And whogets the first look at any new spacecraft?" He waited a beat and answeredhis own question. "Flight instructors." He ran a hand through hishair.

 With Adelle being in the top-three teacher status,she would be one of the first to get the specs. Not to mention she'd also be atop candidate for flying one as soon as they were off the assembly line. Shit.If anything happened to her, Zander would cheerfully throttle his brother.

Another horrible thought hit hard."Fuck. You're not only an asshole, you're a stupid one." He pinnedKeith with a harsh gaze. "Guess what else your charming woman sees inyou?" Hell, in both of them.

Keith's head dropped back. "Aw,dammit." He shoved away from the table, his fists balled up. "Youthink she used me to get to Dad." He whirled away, a hand swiping over hishead. "I can't believe this."

Zander huffed out a breath."Well, you'd better get your head around it." He headed for theliving area and started going through Samantha's desk. "She's got us bythe balls. Because if Adelle doesn't cooperate, I'd bet my next pay grade,that's exactly what Samantha's backup plan is. Trading Adelle for access to ourold man." After all, he held a top rank in the military.

Keith pulled a cupboard door open."We don't know anything for sure…" He removed a stack of notebooksand flipped the top one open. "Aw, fuck." He handed the book toZander.

A series of encoded messages linedthe pages. Keith went to the sofa and shoved everything off the coffee tablethen spread the tablets out. Zander shook his head. The communiques were gobbledygookand probably wouldn't help. But they were also damning information.

And Zander got angry all overagain. "You sure know how to pick them, bro." He stomped over to thecouch and added the notebook to the pile. "Seriously. If anything happensto Adelle because of your girlfriend, there'll be hell to pay—"

Keith jerked his head. "Shutup."

Zander reached out and thwappedKeith's head. "No. This is bullshit—"

Keith shoved Zander. "No, shutup. I'm trying to think." He flipped through the pages and then went backto the front of the booklet.

Zander's eyes narrowed but he heldsilent. Keith picked up the notebook Zander set down and fished around for apen on the floor. He snagged one and started writing on a clean page, goingback and forth between the two notebooks.

He glanced up. "Pretty sureI've cracked their code." He turned the book around. "Look…" Hepointed to his writing then explained how he found the key. "If you'llhelp with this, we can possibly get an idea of where they went."

Zander blinked. "Geez. Youshould think about military intelligence. I can't believe how quickly you crackedthe key for these messages." His brother would be wasted as a pilot.

Keith snorted. "Let's findAdelle first, yeah?" He crumpled the printed pages in his fist. "I'mso pissed. It's pretty clear she's an enemy agent. And I really liked her,dammit."

Zander lifted his chin. "Theheart wants what the heart wants." He'd cut Keith a break because hereally did like Samantha.

Keith sighed. "Yeah, yeah. Iget it now. I shouldn't have been such an ass about Adelle." He gatheredup the notebooks. "I can't do this here. Besides, we should get on theroad. We might need to gear up for this."

Zander didn't argue. He headed forthe door.

Keith stopped Zander on the wayout. "I'm sorry about this. When we find them, leave Samantha to me."

Zander gave a nod then followed hisbrother to Zander's truck almost feeling sorry for Samantha when Keith caughtup to her.

This story is finallycoming together the way I hoped it would. Zander and Adelle are fun to writeand Keith gets to learn a valuable lesson about not messing with his sibling'slife.

 

That's it for thisweek. Catch everyone on the flipside.

ML Skye

Sunday Snippet: Finding Calm

The first week of Juneis in the books and I got a big chunk of my garage cleaned out, which makes me veryhappy.

Work projects aremoving along and I'm hoping to line up another project or two in the nearfuture. I love a full calendar!

I had a decent weekof television even with the great garage cleanout. I'm not up to my regularschedule yet and I'm actually okay with that.

I finished up thesecond half of Silent Witness and actually liked the kind of twistyending it had. Lots of red herrings in this episode.

Started a watch of Deathin Paradise. I've never seen this series from the actual beginning and I'mexcited to dive in.

Caught anotherepisode of Only Murders in the Building and I loved having some Mabelbackstory. The fact she loved The X-Files as a kid makes me so happy.

Continued myrewatch of Battlestar Galactica. "Resistance" is such a greatepisode … with the exception of introducing a character I absolutely dislikedwith intense passion.

Watched an episodeof Classic Rugrats. The two segments were ones I had forgotten and I'malways happy to watch those.

That's pretty muchit for the life update this week. Tonight's post is from Finding Calm, anovella that brings a couple together after a rough journey apart.

Here's themini-blurb:

Hank and Sunny have danced around finding happinesstogether so many times. Sunny botches it and learns a hard lesson at the handsof a crazed kidnapper. She finally wants to meet Hank on equal footing but thetiming never seems right. Surely her cosmic bad luck has to take an upswingsooner or later.

And a sneaky peek…

Sunny flipped down through thepages, skimming the information and got very angry. "Apparently I have almostperfect genes and they want to splice them with different matches to see if asuperior human can be made." The sinister reason made bile rise in herthroat and she covered her mouth to keep it from escaping.

No way would she allow the insaneenemy to get their hands on anything that could help them turn the tide in theirfavor. Sickened, she slowly and quietly made her way out of the room and edgedalong the corridor wall toward the doors marked Laboratory. The journey took longer than she wanted, but it hurt tomove. More than she'd ever admit to anyone.

She eased the lab door open andfound the area empty and eerily silent. A small row of ambient lights cast justenough brightness for her to find her way around. She discovered cloning notes,harvesting charts, and finally, ovaries, lots of samples. One with her name on thelabel. She destroyed hers with a test tube clamp and, for good measure, tookout all the others also. The noise set off an alarm and she had to get out,crunching over broken glass in her bare feet to make her exit. Once outside thelab, she grabbed an extinguisher, the only thing close to a weapon she couldfind and fought her way out of the building.

Stumbling halfway to the emptyfield behind the makeshift hospital, she crawled, skinning up her knees andravaging her hands. She made it to the edge and found cover in the tall brushbut snagged her arms in the process. Bruised and bleeding, she stopped to rest,and pray the stitch in her side didn't mean her wound had opened up again. Ahand grabbed her from behind and she bit down hard and spun around, ready totake on her attacker.

"Sunny, calm down. It's Josh.I can get you out of here. Come on."

She didn't hesitate. She looped herarm around his neck and let him pick her up. He melted back into the shadowsand managed to avoid the flood lights streaming in intervals all over the backfield. Once they made it to the far edge, he sat her down and caught hisbreath.

Sunny fought the wave of nausea thepain from her injuries brought. "Thanks, Josh. Now what?" If theydidn't move soon, they'd be caught.

And she would not go back to thatcreeptastic hospital—at least not alive.

Josh's gaze scanned the surroundingarea. "I found a ship that can get us off the planet … but I can't fly."He blew out a frustrated breath. "And the crew doesn't have a captain, whichmeans they're arguing with each other to figure out what to do next."

Sunny closed her eyes, relieffilling her. "No worries. I'm a pilot. I can fly pretty much anything."As long as she stayed conscious anyway.

Josh crouched down. "Come onthen." He turned and put his back to her. "Up you go."

Sunny draped her arms over his shouldersand wrapped her thighs around his waist. Her body ached and throbbed with painbut with escape imminent she'd endure for as long as she had to.

Sunny has someissues that need to be worked through and Josh ends up being part of thoseissues because he's not Hank.

 

That's it for thisweek. Catch everyone on the flipside.

ML Skye

Sunday Snippet: Fevered Pitch

I can't believewe're at the end of May already. The year is flying by a lot faster than I wantit to. Then again, it's been busier than usual for me, so time is kind of relativeright now.

Had a great weekwith work projects. I'm making steady progress on both and still enjoying them.It's so much fun when you love the work.

Had a somewhatlimited viewing week. I'm trying to figure out the whole HBOMax is Max now and,oh, yeah, it includes Discovery+. I have both so I have to figure it all out. Iwon't be paying twice for the same thing.

I watched adouble-header of Battlestar Galactica with the second and third episodesof season two. I can't say enough about how strong the first ten episodes are.This show rarely missed in the first two seasons.

Also caught anotherepisode of The Brokenwood Mysteries. I have so much love for this show. Italso makes me happy when people pop back up. I kind of miss a few of theoriginal recurring characters but it's nice to have the continuity this showtries for.

Enjoyed anotherepisode of Classic Who. I think I might have one or two left to finishout the classic run of episodes. Not sure if I'll start a new rewatch of the NewWho or not, but I'm excited for the new doctor and the anniversaryspecials.

I'll be startingthe second part of Silent Witness this week. I'm also going to change uphow I do my viewing. I normally scroll through my streaming services and watchone show from each, but that hasn't been cutting it lately. I think I'll startwatching whatever strikes my interest and go from there.

That's pretty muchit for the life update this week. Tonight's post is from Fevered Pitch,a bonus read featuring the characters from Mia's Choice.

Here's themini-blurb:

After six months apart, Hal and Mia are finally reunitedat the new space station. But Hal is unknowingly exposed to a virulent virusand brings it along from his last planetary excursion. He succumbs to theraging illness and Mia makes a fevered pitch to her former husband to saveHal's life before she surrenders to the same infection.

And a sneaky peek…

"Well, hello, Mia. It's lovelyto hear your voice."

Mia swallowed a gag at the sweettone her ex-husband used. "Can't say the same, Fredrick. But I appreciateyou taking my call." As if he didn't already expect it.

Fredrick's tone changed after hergreeting. "Why did you call, Mia? I've got a full schedule today."

Mia explained the situation andadded her suspicions. "I have no doubt you're behind the virus, Fredrick.This whole thing smacks of your tactics." Especially since the planetaryscans were clear.

Fredrick made derisive hum. "Regardlessof where the virus originated, you must truly love this Hal if you're making acall to me of all people. Especially after the last time we spoke."

And that, right there, gaveFredrick's whole game away.

Mia gave a quick answer. "Makeno mistake, Fredrick. I'd call the demon who rules the underworld if it meanssaving Hal's life. But your scheme backfired. Hal isn't the only one who's ill.If half the station goes down there will be a full-scale investigation,which won't bode well for you."

Fredrick tsked. "Such passion.If only you'd shown some when we were married."

Mia snorted. "If only you wereworthy." She waited a beat. "But you weren't. Especially consideringthe way you treated me. Holding my father's position over my head to use andobjectify me with your friends. Switching out test results to keep him beholdento you and keep me on a short leash. Contaminating the water supply of Hal'sship to put me in my place. And none of it worked."

Fredrick countered. "It'sreally too bad, my dear, that you have no proof of my misdeeds. You left withnothing but my name. But you took everything that belonged to me. "

Mia smiled. "You're right. Butyou just confirmed every horrible thing you did on a recorded line, and I won'thesitate to broadcast to the entire universe if you don't come through."She paused a moment then hammered the final nail. "Where will yourprecious research grants come from if that happens?"

Fredrick snarled. "You bitch.I'll make you pay for this."

Mia shook her head. "No, youwon't. Never again. You can't touch me anymore." She straightened in theseat. "And you can consider the length of our marriage as payment in fullfor this little favor. And you have exactly twenty-four hours to provide theformula." She ended the communication to the choked sputters of Fredrickand the cheers of Jessup Main.

This started out asa bonus read but may end up as a sexy short. The characters have things theywant to accomplish and they're stretching out the word count.

 

That's it for thisweek. Catch everyone on the flipside.

ML Skye

Sunday Snippet: Fail Me Now

Greetings! It'sbeen another busy week and I'm still excited about my ongoing projects. They'recompletely different genres and it's fun to have that variety while working.

Somewhat limitedviewing week again. I've been in a place where background noise is more distractingthan helpful, which occasionally happens. I notice it more on day when I didn'tget solid sleep the night before.

I did catch most ofPennyworth. I have the last act of the episode to watch. This show isdark in all the ways I like shows to be. And I love getting to see Alfredactually grieve. And having Ripper be the catalyst that pulls him out is kindof a master stroke. Such a great show!

Also continued my BattlestarGalactica rewatch. We started season two and the first ten episodes are soterrific. The second half of the season is also excellent, but I remember somuch about those first ten.

That's pretty muchit for the life update. I am hoping to get some gardening in this week so staytuned.

Tonight's post isfrom Fail Me Now, a novella that brings the main characters together byhaving one being ordered to the bring the other into the fleet.

Here's themini-blurb:

Tate Emerson has no desire to fly fighters—he's workedtoo hard to get out from under his father's thumb. But when enemy forcesattack, Indi Best comes calling with a special invitation from the elderEmerson: Join the fight or get left behind. Tate hatches a plan to do his part,but not have to take orders from his father.

And a sneaky peek…

Indi stood in the control booth andlet out a low whistle. "Damn." Getting Tate through the accelerated flightclass and moving to simulators didn't surprise Indi. "Tate definitely has aptitude."But he'd just breezed through the preliminary sim runs. "How the hell didhe manage that?"

A double knock sounded on the doorand Indi pushed it open to admit Tate to the room.

He arched his brows. "What'smy score?"

Indi informed him while she crossedbehind the desk to note the numbers in his file. "You're a little toogood." Freakishly so.

Tate rolled a shoulder. "I gottaconfess I've been in simulators a lot. Like before I could even walk." Hisgaze drifted to the viewing screen and his lips turned upward.

Indi absorbed the information, notdoubting Teague probably had Tate in a cockpit before he'd been out of diapers."How long since the last time?" She bit back a smile at the image fillingher head of baby Tate in a pilot's seat.

Tate did a mental calculation."Hmm … right before I walked out on my dad, so a little over seven yearsago." He gave a nod of confirmation.

She blinked. "The cockpit hada total redesign three years ago, but you adapted exceedingly well." Again,he'd blown her away.

Hell, it had taken her severalweeks of practice runs to get the new configuration memorized. Tate did it intwo test flights.

Tate narrowed his gaze. "Ifthis is where you compare me to my brilliant pilot dad, I'd better leave.'Cause I'm not interested." A dark look crossed his face.

A bit put off by the constant digsat her and the old man, she folded her arms over her chest. "I didn't planto compare, but to compliment your skill." She bit the words out, tryingto resist the urge to punch him.

Tate's head dropped and hisshoulders slumped forward. "I'm sorry. That was a dick move and you don'tdeserve that. You're a terrific instructor." He propped a hip on the edgeof the desk. "What's next?" A thread of excitement entered his tone.

The apology helped and Indi relaxedalso. "In your case, even more of a fast track." She closed the fileand tucked it under her arm. "If you're willing, I want to get you ina prowler." He'd only be wasting time with more sim runs.

A brief flash of eagerness lit hisgaze, but he blinked it away. "Uh, fine. When?" He attempted somenonchalance by swiping at a nonexistent speck of lint on his uniform.

She fought a smile. "Last dogwatch. Less traffic, more room to maneuver." She'd have to clear the usagewith the LSO but didn't expect any pushback.

Tate's eyes widened. "As intoday?" He stood. "I'll review the preflight checklist then. Can I meetyou on the fight deck?"

She gave a nod and let him go.

Flipping his file open, she exhaledslowly. "Make or break time. And I have a feeling Tate isn't going to behappy when he ends up falling head over heels for the prowler." But shewould be.

I'm very happy withhow this story is coming together. Indi has Tate's number whether he'll admitit or not.

 

That's it for thisweek. Catch everyone on the flipside.

ML Skye

Sunday Snippet: Explosive Situation

Happy Mother's Dayto all who celebrate. For me, this includes those who mentor others becausebeing a mom isn't always about giving birth to a person or have fur babies.

Had another busywork week and I'm thrilled to have multiple projects to dig into. I love what Ido and being freelance means being happy when the work is rolling in.

Had a limitedviewing week with so many other things going on. I sadly lost one of my auntsI've been particularly close to and needed some quiet reflection time.

I did get thedouble-header of the last two episodes for the first season of BattlestarGalactica in, and they held up as being one of the most perfect seasonfinales of all time.

I also finished upthe episode of Only Murders in the Building. Gotta say I had a feelingthe artist would do something creepy and she totally did.

Other than that, Iwatched my classic standby of Perry Mason and also caught some earlyseasons of Midsomer Murders.

That's pretty muchit for the life update this week. Tonight's post is from Explosive Situation,a novella where the characters get caught in a situation and have to face theirfeelings then navigate the fine line between personal and professional.

Here's themini-blurb:

Hadley and Tab are the go-to people for explosivesituations. They work in tandem and haven't lost anyone, or each other, yet.When Tab gets caught in the crossfire on their latest mission, Hadley digs deepto save him and finally faces her feelings for the man she calls partner.

And a sneaky peek…

Hadley appreciated Tab's promise tohave her back. "That's incredibly—" She started to thank him buttheir comm units went off.

Shit. Not good.

Tab shot to his feet and acceptedthe call from the command station. Hadley's gut tensed. Shit had to have gonesideways. The only reason command would reach out this soon.

The chief didn't mince words."The three hostages are safe, but Hacksure's crew isn't." He rubbed ahand through his hair. "I wanna know how Hack's team got trapped."

Hadley rolled her eyes and gave apoint-blank answer. "Because Hack forgot unstable doesn't mean stupid andhe went in with his ass hanging out, which is SOP for him." An image ofAldus thinking he had the upper hand filled her mind.

He'd be wearing a smirk, thinkinghe had everything under control. With the hostages out, the only thing left todo from Hack's point of view would be hauling Magnus in for evaluation to seeif an arrest or a trip to the psychiatric clinic worked best. He wouldn'tconsider Magnus had a different scenario in mind. Like cutting bait because hehad the big meal served up on a platter.

The chief sputtered. "Listen,Moax. I've known Aldus Hacksure for a decade. The man doesn't go anywhere withhis pants around his ankles." His shoulders tensed and he leaned closer tothe monitor. "You'd do well to stop ripping him and get on board with aplan to extract fellow team members."

Hadley sent Tab a sideways glance."Be happy to, sir. Just wanted to be clear about not taking the necessaryprecautions. Because his team didn't." They couldn't have if they were nowbarricaded inside the space with Magnus.

The chief grumbled under his breaththen pointed a finger at the screen. "We can hash that out in theafter-action briefing. Right now, you can either help or step back." He turnedhis focus to Tab. "What's your take on this situation, Missoni?"

Hadley hoped like hell he backedher up. Because Hack had been sloppy lately. This crisis could've beenavoided if he didn't strut around crowing about his accomplishments all thetime and he remembered what he trained for.

Tab backed her up. "She's notwrong, sir. In fact, she left out a few recent incidents. All due respect, youonly see one side of him."

The chief's shoulders slumped."Fine. Duly noted." He squared his shoulders. "What's yourplan?"

Tab gave him a brief rundown of howthey would approach the situation.

The chief grunted. "All right.You have a go." He signed off.

Hadley grabbed her pack and heftedit over her shoulder. "Uh, thanks for not letting me twist on the polewith the chief." She started for the door.

Tab gathered his gear and caught upwith her. "Told you I had your back. Always will." He held her gazelonger than necessary.

Hadley gave him a wide smile."Appreciate it." And she wouldn't doubt him again.

I like where thisstory is going. Hadley and Tab are about to step into a really hinkey situationand I can't wait to see what happens when they do.

 

That's it for thisweek. Catch everyone on the flipside.

ML Skye

Sunday Snippet: Excelling Anger

Finally have alittle bit of spring weather, which is a nice change from the cold and drearyyuck of last week. Taking the doggos out won't be as much of a chore and theylike it when the temperatures are mild.

Super, super busywork week. I dropped a quick copy edit in for a healthcare workbook and managedto get the revisions reviewed and back to the author in record time. Might havea few tweaks left, but otherwise that project is in the books.

Also completed aclean copy return for a romance novel that I thoroughly enjoyed. I've beenlucky enough to edit the whole series and I'm excited for more!

Finished up a fullcopy edit on a novel and have the file ready for author review. I'll beforwarding it later today and I'm excited to finish book one so we can jumpinto book two. This is a fun series to work on.

Also finished up amanuscript evaluation for a new adult novel and I can't wait to work on thisseries with the author. I love the concept and the characters are messy and fun,which is what I like in the new adult genre.

All those projectsdidn't leave a lot of time for television this week, which I'm actually okay with.When projects are fun and interesting, I fall right into work mode and enjoywhat I do so much!

I did finish up TheMandalorian. This episode ended up being terrific. Ahsoka's introduction andher interaction with Grogu topped my favorite moments. Having the Mandalorianand Jedi working together also made things interesting. I love this show.

I started the nextepisode of Only Murders in the Building but didn't get to finish. I'llprobably watch the rest later tonight.

Also missed myweekly rewatch of Battlestar Galactica. We're doing a double-header for thelast two episodes of season one and I didn't have the chunk of time needed todo that this week. Bummer.

My daughter also finishedup this semester of college and came home this weekend. She'll be here about amonth before heading off to Michigan for a paid internship in a summer stocktheater. So excited for her!

That's pretty muchit for the life update this week. Tonight's post is from Excelling Anger,a novella that explores the way an almost couple navigates their personal andprofessional relationships.

Here's themini-blurb:

Fallon and Rook are pilots who excel at many things, butthey've turned being angry with each other into a fine art. When they have toconfront their issues, they rediscover how working together can have excellentresults.

And a sneaky peek…

“One more time?” Marcie reset themonitor.

Rook shook his head. “No. But I’mglad we took our time, even though Troyer pushed for a completed plan.” Hegathered their translation. “We need to get this to command. Whoever goes onthis mission, they’re headed for an ambush.” He didn’t like what they’d pieced togetherwith the transmission.

He and Marie hauled ass to the commdeck to inform Gamner.

“Sir, we’ve got new intel. We needto scrap the current parameters and replan the mission.”

Gamner shot a narrow-eyed glancetoward Troyer. “I’ve opted to follow the recommendation of Colonel Troyer.” Hecame around the console and stood between the two men. “We’ll send an SAR shipto retrieve the stranded crew. Quick in and quick out.”

Rook shook his head. “That’s theexact opposite of what Fallon suggested. We should send at least one squadronto cover their six.” And prevent more loss of life.

Gamner sighed. "Look, your CAGisn't up to jumping in just yet."

Troyer smirked from his corner.

Rook squared his shoulders. “Actually,she is. Dreamboat and I just spent hours piecing together the information.” He wavedthe notes back and forth. “You send another bird, the enemy will track themback to us.” And catch the ship with the asses hanging out.

Gamner waved off the concern. “We’vegot our plan set. We’re not making changes now. You said yourself it took hoursto piece together information that’s garbled and questionable. By now, you’rehearing what you want.”

Rook got pissed. “You know what?Fallon's right. You're too old school. We’re dealing with pirates who don’tfollow a standard playbook.” He sent a glare in Troyer’s direction. “Launchinga full squadron won't hurt and it could save lives. At the very least, weshould have both squadrons launched and ready if our bird is traced.” And itwould be, Rook would bet his next paygrade on it.

Gamner straightened. “Get off mycommand deck. Your very personal relationship with the CAG is clouding yourjudgment.” He nodded toward Troyer.

Rook shook his head. “No, it's not.It never has and never will.” Which probably explained why they couldn’t seemto get their acts together and make things official.

Gamner’s lips thinned. “I thoughtyou understood the command structure. Apparently, you don't.” He lifted hischin and Troyer escorted Rook to the hatch.

Rook held the man's gaze for a longmoment. “This is going to bite you on the ass. And you'll deserve it.” And somuch more.

Troyer sneered. “My ass is gonnalook good when I'm second in command.”

Marcie snorted when she ducked pastTroyer. “Doubt it.”

Troyer glared but turned on hisheel and shut the hatch.

Marcie fell into step beside Rook. “Whatare you going to do?”

Rook paused at the causeway. “I'mgoing to camp out in Gamner's quarters until the man sees reason.” They had atwelve-hour window and Gamner had to sleep sometime.

Marcie grimaced. “Probably won't goover well.”

Rook grunted. “Don't care. He'swrong. I love Fallon—even though she's a hot-headed pain in the ass—but I takeall sides into account. She's right this time.” He gave Dreamboat thetranslations, nodded, and headed for command quarters.

This story is funto write. I love taking a couple who aren't quite committed to each other yetand throwing them into an intense situation so they have to face their drama.Rook and Fallon get to do that in this one.

 

That's it for thisweek. Catch everyone on the flipside.

ML Skye