M.L. Skye's Blog, page 8

Sunday Snippet: Outcasts

Happy Father's Dayto anyone celebrating. For those not for whatever reason, I hope your day isfilled with peace and calm and you find your joy.

It's been a reallyrough week. I definitely didn't make it through the worst the week prior. I hada lot more yuck to get through. Thankfully, I'm now down to some nagging congestion,but I can breathe again and I'm not coughing every five minutes, which makes mehappy because we're due for some awful heat this week.

Managed to staymostly on top of my work projects. I'm not as far along as I'd like to be, butI'm within my window to meet my deadlines. Not being 100 percent isn't fun butat least I can work around being less than my best. If I had a job with set hours,I'd still probably be fighting through the slog of upper respiratory yuck.

Had a very slowweek of viewing. I didn't have the brain power to get involved in much ofanything but comfort shows like Perry Mason and Midsomer Murders.

I did catch anotherBest in Paradise and thoroughly enjoyed the introduction from DonWarrington. It's fun to hear him speak without the Caribbean accent.

I also watchedanother Death in Paradise and it's one I only saw bits and pieces ofwhen it first aired. Nice to see if from start to finish.

That's pretty muchit for the life update this week. Hopefully I'll be back to somewhat normal fornext week's entry.

Tonight's post isfrom Outcasts, a novella that explores how protecting the ones they lovebrings a couple together in new ways.

Here's theminiblurb:

Frannie Boyd and Thorn O'Reilly are stuck in a badsituation with no way out. But when the people they love are threatened,they'll play hardball to protect what's theirs, even if they have to go upagainst an admiral to do it.

And a sneaky peek…

Giving himself over to the moment, Thorndidn’t answer. Instead, he brought his hand up, cupping Frannie's face. Lettinghis fingers splay along the nape of her neck, he titled his head forward untilhis lips met hers. Tentative at first, they grewdemanding as Frannie responded. Hauling her against him, his hands slid downher back, grasped the edge of her doubled tank tops and pulled them up untilshe leaned away and took over. Thorn angled back, fingers going to his flywhile Frannie pulled the shirts over her head. Not taking his eyes off her, heworked the fastenings loose, shoving the pants down to his knees and sucked ina harsh breath when she reached over to pull them the rest of the way off. Timestood still as his eyes dropped to his shirt while his fingers franticallyunbuttoned the buttons. Glancing up as he shrugged out of the sleeves, hestopped breathing. Naked and beautiful, Frannie movedtoward him, getting up close and personal in the way he’d dreamed about. Hefroze and stared, holding the moment in his mind, burning it to memory. Hepaused with his shirt still dangling off one arm, mesmerized by the hungry lookin her eyes.Frannie crawled up and over Thornon her hands and knees, smiling at the stunned look on his face. Settling herass down on his thighs she grabbed his sleeve, tugged it over his hand and letit fall to the floor. Reaching up, she pulled the bunk curtain closed,effectively cutting them off from everything else but each other. When Thorn raised his head, Franniemet his lips with a hot, blazing kiss that scorched through his system. As hesettled back against the pillow, his hands cupped her face drawing her down andshe slid forward, stretching out against him. Her stomach brushed over his cock,and he moaned against her lips. Her fingers wrapped around thelength, caressing the silken skin, moving in time with the thrusts of hertongue along his. Thorn shuddered under the onslaught of her lips and hands andpulled a gasp from Frannie when his palms brushed lightly over her breastsbefore cupping and holding them in his hands. He relished their weight as hisfingers kneaded the smooth skin, enjoying the fact that his touch had Franniesqueezing his leg between her thighs.

This story iscoming together after several false starts. Thorn and Frannie aren't quite surehow they're going to function as a couple, but they don't have issues withgetting physical.

 

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

ML Skye

Sunday Snippet: Out of the Box, Into the Burn

Ugh. Still feelingterrible and under the weather. The respiratory yuck that's going around in myarea is awful. I think I'm through the worst. Fingers crossed!

Had a whole slew ofnew projects land in my inbox this week. I'm so thankful for the work and trulyhope I can get back to a normal schedule where I don't crash several times aday and need to rest.

Slow viewing week,mainly due to the aforementioned rest periods. When I only got about two tothree hours of sleep at a stretch, those nap sessions were super important.

I started the fifthand final season of Suspects. Wow, brutal opening episode and kind of aheartbreaker. I have a feeling Jack is going to go completely off the rails.And Charlie needs to have a moment to grieve and wrap her head aroundeverything.

I finished thetenth season of Brokenwood Mysteries. I love this show so much. I'lllook forward to the next season with lots of anticipation.

Caught anotherepisode of Best in Paradise. I rather liked meeting Humphrey's dad andrewatching this episode ended up being a great reminder of how fierce Florence couldbe.

Enjoyed an episodeof Death in Paradise. I'd watched a little of this one and I'm glad I gotto see it from beginning to end. Very twisty plot threads in this one.

Watched another episodeof Elementary. Nice to see Mycroft again. Loved the new dynamic betweenthe brothers. Gotta say I'm on the fence with the whole Watson sleeping with Mycroftdeal, but we'll see if I come down on one side or the other later.

Caught an episodeof The Batman and it's one I remember from my original watch. I likedseeing Dick in school and the double-cross by the Riddler ended up being fun.The ending, though, topped everything.

Enjoyed a ClassicRugrats episode that departed from the normal two to three vignettes. "Finsterella"was such a fun episode of the show.

And that's prettymuch it for the life update this week. Tonight's post is from Out of the Box,Into the Burn, a novella where the characters face a challenge of briningchange to old-school ways.

Here's the miniblurb:

Parry Thrum, a superior pilot, is sidetracked with aninjury and relegated to planning a mission on an enemy outpost instead offlying in to save the day. When one of her superiors rejects every parametershe comes up with, Blake Bradley, another excellent pilot, steps in and backsher up—the out of the box, into the burn approach is just the thing to taketheir opponent by surprise, and a very Parry plan.

And a sneaky peek…

Blake didn't bother changing intohis uniform before heading for Commandant Wagner's quarters. "I'd like aquick word with the commandant." He made it a request, but he wouldn'ttake no for an answer.The marine guard announced Blake thennodded for him to enter after Wagner gave the okay.Wagner stood at the monitor,watching the gun camera footage. Blake didn't need to see the screen … thecarnage would haunt his dreams for the foreseeable future. They lost anotherhalf of a squadron, which meant they would be a full one down.Wagner didn't speak until thedisplay went dark. "Captain, did you know the dual maneuver the pilotsused out there is one your grandfather came up with?" He shot a quick looktoward Blake. "And it's the first one I learned and executed under histutelage?" His shoulders slumped a little.Blake gave a nod. "I do, sir.Grandpa has a keen mind and isn't afraid to roll a hard run into somethingelse." He chose his words carefully because he didn't like using thefamily connection.But this situation justifiedpulling the card and putting it in play. Kip Wagner went way back with ThomasBradley, first learning then serving under him. Blake also had a sneaking suspicion,the elder Bradley pulled strings to get his grandson a post under Wagner'scommand.Wagner squared his shoulders and narrowedhis eyes. "You saying I'm not capable of doing the same?" His tonesuggested Blake needed to step with caution.Blake shook his head. "No,sir. Not you specifically." He left the rest unsaid, letting Wagner drawhis own conclusion.Kip motioned for Blake to take aseat. "You've got something to say, so spit it out, Bradley." He proppedhis hip on the edge of his desk.Blake settled in the chair oppositethe commandant. "You've seen the carnage. What we're doing isn't working.We're down a full squadron now." He didn't have to tell Wagner, the manalready knew, but saying the words kept the loss close to the surface where itneeded to be.Wagner grunted. "Why are youhere, Captain?" He lifted his chin, indicating Blake should speak freely.Blake unloaded. "If you don'twant to lose more people, you have to let someone—anyone—else plan themissions. Colonel Carbine can't or won't see past standard tactics and procedures."When Wagner didn't bust Blake for insubordination, he kept going. "Thebiggest challenge we face is our enemy knows our maneuvers … because theylearned from the same playbook. We're not fighting against unknown tangoes.We're fighting former colleagues and comrades in arms. They know exactly how tocounter anything we use out there." He stopped because if he continued,Carbine would be next on the list and Blake didn't want to open that avenue rightnow.The loss of fellow pilots stillburned, and the stench of defeat lingered.Wagner shifted slightly from hisperch on the desk and pinned Blake with a steady stare. "You're laying allthis at the XO's feet then? What about me? What's my responsibility here?"He folded his arms across his chest.Blake didn't flinch. "If I mayspeak freely, sir, we're all at fault here. With the possible exception ofLieutenant Thrum. She's been banging the drum of alarm for weeks now." AndParry suffered the consequences of her actions.Wagner's brows rose. "Why am Ionly hearing of this now?" He pushed up to his feet and paced back andforth. "I haven't been informed of any pushback regarding the missionops." He stopped and gave Blake another questioning glance.Blake sighed. "I have toassume the XO is leaving that out of his reports to you then. Because Parry hasbeen very vocal during the mission briefings." Not to mention she'd nailedthe problem on its head.The commandant lifted his chin."So, what's the solution?"Blake shook his head. "Sir,it's not my place—"Wagner cut him off. "Don'tgive me that, captain. You didn't come here without an action plan or use yourfamily connection for nothing." One eyebrow arched, daring Blake to refutethe statement.Blake winced. "You're right,sir. I didn't." He exhaled on a slow breath. "If you want me to offera suggestion … we need to think way outside the box here."

I love this story. Parryand Blake are a great team in the air, and they'll be excellent strategists whenplanning a mission also.

 

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

ML Skye

Sunday Snippet: Organic Chemistry (Civil Revolution)

Welcome June andanother month where time will probably fly by too quickly. Doesn't help thatI'm under the weather right now and feeling yucky. Hopefully whatever this iswill pass quickly and I can get back to normal.

Had a solid workweek. Finished up a cozy mystery proofread and made progress on a developmentaledit. Also got a lot of writing done, which makes me happy because I've beenhitting walls lately.

Fairly good viewingthis week. Managed to go through my show list twice. I might start adding in afew more shows but I like this current group.

Finished up thefourth season of Suspects. I'll be starting the fifth and final seasonthis week. Looks like a banger ending for this series.

Caught two episodesof Brokenwood Mysteries. Both were excellent. Very fun to see howHalloween is celebrated in New Zealand, especially since it's spring thereinstead of fall. Very cool.

Watched two episodesof Best in Paradise. I'm enjoying the intros by the actors and I'menjoying their picks for favorite episodes.

Also enjoyed two episodesof Death in Paradise. I'd seen bits of both episodes but not the wholething. Loved the one with the zoo. Also like how much Jack is becoming a partof the community.

Caught two episodesof Elementary. Interesting to see Gregson's personal life on a bit of adisplay. Also thoroughly enjoying Sherlock's interactions with Joan as he fullysinks into the partnership.

Watched twoepisodes of The Batman. Fun to have Harley Quinn introduced. And I verymuch enjoyed the New Year's Eve episode.

Also enjoyed twoepisodes of Classic Rugrats. I'd forgotten they started to work three vignettesin after the movie. Not sure if I really like that in hindsight.

That's pretty much itfor the life update this week. Tonight's post is from Organic Chemistry,a novella that folds into the Civil Revolution series. Or Uncivil Revolution. Ican't quite decide which one I like better.

Here's the miniblurb:

Dominic Marinelli and Etta Morgan meet under verydifficult circumstances, but form arelationship built on one basic need … sex. When Etta decides to strike out onher own, Dom has to figure out why it bothers him so much.

And a sneaky peek…

Dom stood outside Etta's room, proppedup against the wall, a sloppy grin on his face.He sobered. "What the hell didI just let happen?" The last person anyone should get involved with wouldbe him. But Etta didn't want anything hotand heavy. She wanted to get laid. Why the hell should he turn that down? Maybe because she might not getemotionally involved, but he almost always did. He pushed away and started down thehall, retracing his steps to the main entrance. He thought briefly aboutforgetting the scheduled visit, but he'd talk himself into keeping it. Patheticas it made him, he craved some human female contact. And since the woman hewanted would never be his, he'd seek it with another. And if that makes me a hugeasshole, I'll get over it.

Snagging his jacket, he shoved themain door open and stood outside. He'd planned to go out for a long ride butopted to walk around the perimeter of the spa grounds instead. Why did Etta Morgan push hisbuttons? He'd known her what? For a while now. Since the night he'd found herleft for dead outside the sector barricade. During her recovery, they'd talkeda good bit, and he enjoyed her company, enough to be comfortable with her. Thought he knew her fairly welldespite the short span of time. He so hadn't. With one simple challenge he'd beenready to drop trou and have a go at her. No … with her. She brought outsomething feral … primal … a little wild in him. Her honesty about what shewanted and how she wanted it turned him on. And a walk on the wild side soundeddamn good at the moment. Maybe he needed it. Etta had onething right. Truth equaled Char and Lex forever. They were meant for eachother. He could let it eat at him or move the fuck on. Etta would make the latter a hellof a lot more interesting. Maybe he'd been too wrapped up inChar to see the possibilities with Etta. Char had been something sweet, andhe'd needed that. Char had, too. But she'd held a big part of herself back. Shenever laughed the lusty laugh with him like she did with Durben. And he might not have had theinstant spiral of feeling for Etta that consumed him when he met Charlotte. Buthe'd admired Etta's grit from the moment he'd found her in the tall grassfighting for her life. Her tenacious spirit served her well.Making a turn, he headed along thefinal side of the perimeter boundary. "Okay, Etta … let's see where thismutually beneficial arrangement takes us."

I love how this oneis coming together. Dom and Etta are one of my favorite couples and tellingtheir story is so much fun.

 

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

ML Skye

Sunday Snippet: Operation Moot Point

May is winding downand it's been kind of a whirlwind month. Or I might be hitting that age wheretime seems to fly by faster every day.

Not a bad workweek. I finished up a project and jumped back into one that had been sitting onthe back burner for a while. Also started a new one. Got some writing donealso, which makes me happy because the sages have been on an extended vacation.

Pretty good week ofviewing also. I managed to go through my slate of shows twice and finished upan episode I left hanging a few weeks ago.

Watched twoepisodes of The Brokenwood Mysteries. Thoroughly enjoyed both. I'm soexcited this show is back for another season. I love the characters so much.

Caught two episodesof Death in Paradise. Finished up season seven and ended up liking it alot. Starting season eight this week.

Started watching Bestin Paradise, which features the favorite episodes of the cast. Got two viewed,and I think I'll continue watching. They have fun intros from the cast memberand why the episode is one of their favorites.

Watched twoepisodes of Elementary and I really love how Joan is being fleshed outand using her knowledge. Also kind of happy to see some growth with Sherlock.

Enjoyed two episodesof The Batman. I remembered both and enjoyed each one. Really fun tohave Robin and Batgirl working together to take down the rogues.

Caught one episode ofSuspects and it ended up being a twisty affair, which I love. I have twomore episodes of season four and then I'll start the final fifth season.

Watched twoepisodes of Classic Rugrats. Finished up the lead-in to the movie andcaught the first episode post wedding. Fun stuff.

Also finished anepisode of Peak Practice I started a couple of weeks ago. The laterseasons seem to be a little hit or miss for me. Can't wait to finally get toseason twelve.

That's it for thelife update this week. Tonight's post is from Operation Moot Point, anovella that brings a couple together for a weird mission.

Here's theminiblurb:

Zia Rogue and Keb Belova are highly trained soldiers andput in charge of Operation Moot Point. Between them and their specializedskills, they should be able to plan the surprise party for the basecommander—if they can stop arguing long enough to actually get the work done.

And a sneaky peek…

Invigorated after destroying asmany raiders as possible while waiting for the reinforcements to arrive, Ziaheaded back to the base. "Damn, my head is spinning." The adrenalinerushes kind of stacked one on top of the other and her brain reached overloadlimit.Banking toward the main landingbay, she pondered the crazy-ass stunt Keb pulled by following her out. "Whatin the name of the universe had he been thinking?" Maybe he hadn't been.Nothing could explain how he pulledoff flying right down the middle of enemy territory without a single shot beingfired at him. Nothing rational or logical anyway. The sheer audacity blew hermind. She couldn't squash the warm burstof … something … that filled her when he crossed to her side, basically goingfly or die on her. She didn't have many people she could count on to be thereno matter what. But she added Keb to the top of the list.He confused the hell out of hersometimes. She usually chalked the weird vibe between them down tosuperior-subordinate semantics. The asteroid base didn't have fraternizationregs, but she and Keb never crossed the personal to intimate line.Not that I haven't thought aboutdoing so.She had … usually really late atnight when sleep proved elusive. Yeah, not going there right now.Landing the craft, she waited to belowered down onto the hangar deck and hovered in a uncomfortable place betweenfully expecting a blazing set down from Keb and a consuming need to ask him whythe hell he followed her across the line.Before the canopy slid back, sheshook her head. "Not sure I can handle either at the moment."Removing her helmet, she started to stand and caught Keb's gaze narrowed onher.Shit. Probably couldn't avoid theass-chewing.The deck chief stood between theirtwo planes. "Rogue, Belova. Report to the XO in the war room. He'd like todiscuss that awesome display of insanity you two pulled out there." Hislips twitched. "Frankly, I have no doubt you two'll be in the historybooks." Thumping the nose of the bird, he turned and walked away.Zia wisely kept her mouth shut andavoided looking at Keb during their post-flight checks. At least she didn'thave to worry about a blistering debrief from him.Yet…

This story is a lotof fun to write. Zia and Keb are rarely on the same page, but they'll end upbeing very compatible soon.

 

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

ML Skye

Sunday Snippet: Open Dialog

Had a solid week ofgetting stuff done. This makes me happy. Got a garden planted. Okay, my husbandgot most of the planting done. I only did one thing, but I call that a winanyway.

On the work front,I did fairly well also. I'm hoping to launch a new venture in June, and Ifinally got back to setting that up. I also finished up a copy edit and starteda proofreading project.

Solid week ofviewing also. I'm in a bit of a groove and sticking with a cluster of shows. Istill have a weird urge to binge watch a marathon of something, but I'veresisted that urge. It's so easy to fall down a rabbit hole and not getanything done.

Ended up gettingtwo episodes of Death in Paradise watched. One featured a Day of theDead tie in, which is notable only because I'm watching a different show todaythat has a Day of the Dead tie in.

Also got twoepisodes of Elementary in. Started season two and got to meet Mycroft,which I enjoyed. Also got some additional Joan backstory and I'm glad to seesome of that.

Enjoyed twoepisodes of The Batman. Both were ones I remembered from my original runthrough the show. Season three is different as I don't feel as connected to thecharacters, but it's a pretty solid season so far.

Caught two episodesof Classic Rugrats. I've started season eight and I'd forgotten it's alead up to the Rugrats in Paris movie and all the episodes areinterconnected.

Watched two episodesof Suspects. I finished up season three and started season four. Thepremiere of four had a very twisty case and I really enjoyed that one.

Started season tenof Brokenwood Mysteries. I love this show so much. There's a terrific castof characters and I love that Frodo and Todd have found both bodies so far thisseason.

Also enjoyed thefinale of season twenty-six of Silent Witness. I'm finally one hundredpercent caught up with the series. Now I play a waiting game until seasontwenty-seven.

That's pretty muchit for the life update this week. Tonight's post is from Open Dialog, anovella that brings a couple together after they finally learn to communicatewith each other.

Here's the miniblurb:

Life on a space station means there's nowhere to run whenthings get awkward. For Janeen Shore and King McMahon, working through theiroften messy personal relationships can sometimes take a toll and they have tokeep the lines of communication open or risk losing what's important.

And a sneaky peek…

"Are you seriously going todefend Malz Orwenson?"King McMahon closed his eyes alongwith the jacket open on his desk. "Shara, I advocate for whoever theyassign to me." He only got so many refusals per quarter.Shara snorted. "Bullshit. Youvolunteered for this one."His current girlfriend might know alittle too much about him.He sighed. "Okay, yes. I raisedmy hand when they asked if anyone would take on Malz's case." Because whynot?Shara huffed out a frustratedbreath. "What the hell, King? Orwenson is a known agitator. He's alwaystrying to drag others along when he bucks the system." She paced back andforth. "Do you have thing for the impossible? There's no way you'll winthis one." Pausing, she pinned him with a hard look. "Does that evenmatter to you anymore?"King couldn't say winning everycase mattered. He only advocated in his spare time to keep his qualification. Eventually,having the skill would be a nice feather in his cap once his stint in the militaryended.Shara tapped her foot on the floor."Well. I guess that answers the question." She rolled her eyes."So then, tell me please … what's the point of doing executive functionsas a solider if it's not to rise up through the ranks and help yourcareer?" She planted her hands on her hips. "I mean, there's gotta bean end to doing your duty, right?"King took a moment beforeanswering. "It's not just about duty. The point? I'm not doing this toadvance my career in the military. There's a quality of care involved withevery assignment I take on." He warmed up to the topic, gaining a clarityhe didn't have before she started busting his balls. "Each case becomesabout the experience of doing my best for the client. Possibly mitigating theirpunishment or limiting the punitive cost." He met her gaze. "Workingwith and learning about those aspects now gives me valuable knowledge forfuture endeavors." When he could no longer serve as a soldier.Shara's mouth snapped shut and hershoulders slumped. "Hadn't thought of that." She glanced around theroom, looking at everything but him.King swallowed a smirk. Obviously, Sharadidn't know him quite as well as she thought. Mainly because she viewed him asan extension of her, which, yeah, probably needed a discussion at some point.But not today.He reopened Malz's file thencleared his throat. "Anything else? If not, I've got work to do and not alot of time to get it done." Rude, but true.Shara huffed out a sigh."Fine. I'll make myself scarce until the hearing." She gathered up acouple of items and tucked them into a duffel bag. "I'm … uh … sorry forcoming in with guns blazing." Not waiting for a response, she ducked out,letting the hatch close behind her.King exhaled slowly. "And I'msorry for not being who you think I should be…"

This story is inthe very early stages, and I have no idea how things are going to shake out,but I'm having so much fun figuring it out.

 

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

 

ML Skye

Sunday Snippet: One Hot Mess

Happy US Mother'sDay to those who celebrate. For those with parental issues, I hope you find joyand peace.

Had the rareexperience of seeing the northern lights in Ohio. I can honestly say I haven'tbeen so excited about something in a long time. The mysteries of space are awesome!

Fairly busy weekwith work projects and other odds and ends. Finished up a couple of manuscriptsand started a new one. I have another ongoing developmental edit that I need todive back into this week.

Not a bad week ofviewing even with a few distractions. I'm at a weird place with watching rightnow. I'm kind of leaning toward doing binge marathons again and I'm not sure Iwant to fall down that rabbit hole again.

Caught two episodesof Suspects and enjoyed both. This show is kind of choppy and that adds somethingto the experience. I love the cases and how things are rarely what they seemfrom the initial starting point.

Finished up the thirdseason of Madame Blanc Mysteries. I'd love to see another series of thisshow. The cast is a lot of fun.

Watched two episodesof Silent Witness. I've realized that after the next one, I'm completelycaught up with the show. I really like the current cast and I'm excited to seewhat the next season brings.

Enjoyed an episodeof Death in Paradise. This is one I hadn't seen before and I liked thecase. I'm also enjoying Jack's tenure as DI.

I think I finishedout the first season of Elementary. I'm actually thrilled with how theMoriarity plot played out. I love seeing Joan kind of step in to the role ofconsulting detective with ease and grace. The things she sees that Sherlockdoesn't is always interesting.

Watched anotherepisode of The Batman. Nice to see Ethan back again. I'm a little bummedwe haven't seen Chen for a while and I can't remember if she comes back or not.

Enjoyed the Valentineepisode of Classic Rugrats. I do remember this one but not everything aboutit. Nice to see some longer length episodes also.

That's pretty muchit for the life update this week. Tonight's post is from One Hot Mess, anovella that brings a couple together after a night of revelry.

Here's the miniblurb:

Eva Twine and Van Jefferson have a very friendly rivalrywhen their teams compete for the galaxy championship. But when Van questionswhat Eva will wear to the celebratory masquerade, she decides to rock his veryfoundation.

And a sneaky peek…

Van Jefferson stood under a blastof steaming water, letting it work the kinks out of his shoulders. The InterplanetaryPolice Force battle of the precincts ended on a high note for him. His squadronfrom Venus took top honors.

Knocked the Mars crew down a peg.

No easy feat, the team from the redplanet had won the battle five years running and the rivalry, while friendly,finally took a step in the right direction. Van shut off the shower and steppedout of the stall. About damn time. If he had to listen to Eva Twine cackle andcrow about winning again he'd have lost his mind.

The woman made him insane. Andusually not in a good way. Even though he found her wildly attractive. She alsofrustrated the life out of him sometimes.

The creak of a door and an off-keyhumming sound alerted him to someone's presence.

Speak of the devil.

Eva sauntered into the head—how shecould do that with an injured foot, he'd never understand—and started strippingoff her clothes.

"If you give me a few, you canhave the place to yourself." Van walked into the changing area and priedopen his locker.

Eva smirked and shoved her pantspast her hips. "I kinda have to hurry. Doc took an x-ray and gave mefifteen to get showered and back to the infirmary." Her fingers slid underthe waistband of her panties. "If you can't handle the show, you'd betterleave now."

Right. He'd go hang out in thequadrant wearing a towel so she could shower. Not likely.

He raised a brow. "I doubt youhave anything I haven't seen before." He reached for his shirt.

Eva chuckled and tugged her tankover her head. "Good to know." She crisscrossed her arms and pulledher sports bra off, giving him her back as she turned. "Congrats on thevictory, by the way. They carted me out before I had a chance to sayanything."

Van waited a beat, thinking she'dadd a snarky insult to the compliment. She glanced over her shoulder, oneeyebrow arched.

He nodded. "Thanks."

She grabbed a towel and flung itover around her neck. "You headed out or sticking around for thefestivities?"

The IPF planned a huge masqueradeto top off the week. All participants in the battle automatically receivedinvitations.

Van grinned. "I'm staying. Mychief informed us if anyone tried to beg off, he'd bust us all back to beatcop."

Eva snorted. "That would suckballs." Grabbing her kit she headed toward the showers. "Guess I'llsee you there then. Don't forget your costume." She called back over hershoulder. "Remember no beat cop uniforms allowed."

Van chuckled. "I've got itcovered." He grabbed his pants. "You?"

She turned the water on and let itheat up. "Oh yeah. No worries."

He couldn't resist. "Let meguess? You're gonna show up as a sky hawg rider." His gaze slid to herdiscarded tank, the logo of the sky cycle manufacturer emblazoned across thefront.

Eva's smirked again. "Ha-ha."She stepped under the spray of water. "Get out of here. I'm down to sevenminutes."

Effectively dismissed, Van finisheddressing and exited the head. The exchange with Eva had gone better than he'dhoped. Defeat had toned down her brash bravado.

Or maybe pain did. He'd noticed she'dfavored her injured foot when she stepped under the water. He hoped it wouldn'tkeep her from the party.

This story took ona life of its own and I'm happy it did. Eva and Van are so much fun!

 

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

ML Skye

Sunday Snippet: Off the Hook

Had a superemotional day yesterday with my daughter graduating from college with a bachelor'sin media production and theater. She starts grad school in the fall for artsadministration. I'm so proud of her! And … considering she had a drive-throughhigh school graduation, getting to see her walk for her bachelor's made me veryhappy.

Had another goodweek of work and writing. I finished up two manuscript edits and a proofread onthe work front and wrote several scenes in three or four of my WIPs. I'm notquite where I want to be on my writing, but I'm getting back to form.

Actually had asolid week of viewing also. Maybe the planets are aligned where I need them tobe right now. Who knows?

Watched two episodesof Elementary and, wow, I rather like what they did with the Moriaritything. Looking forward to seeing how that ends up. I think I have one moreepisode of the first season.

Started season threeof The Batman and watched two episodes. I remembered both and enjoyedeach one.

Caught two episodesof Classic Rugrats. I think I'm at the end of season seven where the twovignettes are actually one episode. Kind of liked that format. I think the newtheme starts with season eight. I'll find out this week I think.

Started a newseason of Suspects. Loved the opening episode. It did not go where Ithought it would and I love that.

Watched another episodeof Madame Blanc Mysteries. Broken-hearted for Gloria. I kind of hopethere's more to the story about Cooper. I kind of want to find out what hiswhole deal was with Gloria.

Enjoyed another episodeof Death in Paradise. I don't remember this one at all and actuallyloved it. Definitely a twisty one.

Caught the firstpart of Silent Witness. I'm excited to see where this one goes. There'sdefinitely more than meets the eye for this case. I'm not thrilled with the newaddition to Jack's life. I love his niece, but the mom is a piece of work and Idon't like her at all.

Started a new episodeof Peak Practice. I'll try to finish it up this week. Not sure what's upwith Sam but I assume the seeds are being planted for his departure and that'swhy he's being such a prat right now.

Last but not least,I started a documentary called Broken Horses, mainly because it featuresthe author of one of the books I've been working on and his stance that thedrugging of horses needs to stop. I can honestly say it's a hard watch and mypersonal thought there might be a trainer who should never, ever be allowed toparticipate in the sport ever again. But that's just me.

That's pretty muchit for the life update this week. Tonight's post is from Off the Hook, anovella where a couple goes through a trial by fire when they don't fully agreeon how to handle a situation.

Here's the miniblurb:

Esti Warf's relationship with Wyatt Corben is tested whenshe agrees to give his younger brother a chance to pass basic flight. Wyattknows in his gut his brother doesn't have the chops, but he can't get Esti tobudge on her decision, especially when his old man pressured her into acceptingWilton as a cadet. Both are on the hook, trying to keep peace in the family andstill maintain their bond as a couple.

And a sneaky peek…

Vivid imagery filled Wyatt's head."Gonna hold you to that." He motioned for Esti to get naked.

Then he got to work on his pants,pushing them past his hips before she took a firm grasp of his cock and gavehim a heated look, flicking her tongue over her bottom lip.

Anticipation might be my favoritefeeling in the world.

Check that. Maybe second favorite.

Almost nothing beat Esti's mouth surroundinghis dick. Except maybe full-on sex with her. She hollowed her cheeks andapplied continuous suction to his shaft.

His fingers threaded through herhair. "Es, you know what that does to me." His last word hissed outwhen she made a low hum in her throat.

The things she could do…

Her hands cupped his ass drawinghim closer. She took his length deep, swallowing before pulling back to suck onthe head. Licking the sensitive underside, she teased a groan from him. Theswirl and swipe combined with the firm pressure had his thighs trembling tokeep from pistoning his hips in a race to the finish line. As much as wanted toget off, patience would be rewarded.

Esti wanted to have her wicked way withhim and then he could return the favor. Blowing her mind with the sameexquisite torture would give him almost as much pleasure as she currentlyunleashed on him. The hard fight to stay in control crumbled when she fondledhis balls, jostling them lightly between her fingers.

He erupted, letting out a low moan."Gah, Esti. You're killing me." In a great way, no doubt, but hecouldn't stay upright. "Fuck." Stumbling forward, his hands shot outto grasp her shoulders.

She gave a throaty chuckle, easedaway from him, and a sly smile curved her lips. "Gonna be able to followthrough?" She tilted her head to one side.

Wyatt growled and hooked his palmsunder her shoulders. He twisted and toppled backward, hauling her up with him.He maneuvered her around until her hips were over his face and her legs weresplayed with her knees bracketing his upper torso.

Blowing a hot breath over her core,he slid his tongue through her folds. "See if this works for you…"

I love having asexy bit before the storm blows through. Wyatt and Esti have a big challengecoming and showing how much they care for each other before it hits makes mehappy.

 

That's it for this week.Catch everyone on the flipside.

ML Skye

Sunday Snippet: Nugget Training

Gearing up for abusy week with work projects and my youngest's graduation from college. I thinkwe're also going to have some nasty weather, which should be fun.

Had a solid week ofwork and writing, which makes me very happy. I might be finding my grooveagain. I so hope I am. I'm not a fan of being unable to focus when I need to.

Had a decent weekof television viewing. Made it through the modified list of shows and startedover.

I caught the finaltwo behind the character bonuses for My Life Is Murder. I'm somewhat hopingthere's another season. Based on a little research, I think there might be.

Also watched two episodesof Madame Blanc Mysteries. Both were enjoyable. Kind of sad to see the pubowners no longer with the cast but interested in Dom's uncle being a possibleaddition. Hopefully he won't be too shady.

Enjoyed thetwo-part Silent Witness. A lot of twists and turns in this one and Iliked them. Looking forward to starting a new two-parter this week.

Finished up seasonsix and started season seven of Death in Paradise. I'm excited to dive furtherinto Jack's tenure as the DI. It feels like this is when cast members starttheir merry-go-round of coming and going. But I'm looking forward to more of thisshow.

Caught another episodeof Elementary and Moriarty is making their presence known. I'm kind ofinterested in how this might play out over the seasons. I'm very much lovingthe dynamic with Sherlock and Watson.

Watched another episodeof The Batman. I guess it was the season two finale. It always kind ofannoys me when the first season is twice as long as the remaining ones. Thatsaid, pretty sure Robin makes an appearance in season three so there's that.

Enjoyed an episodeof Classic Rugrats. Again, these were new-to-me vignettes. Not sure whathappened with season seven during the original run, but I'm happy to see thosenow.

Also finished upthe Peak Practice episode I started a while ago. Hoping to get anotherone in this week.

That's it for thelife update. Tonight's post is from Nugget Training, a novella that bringsa couple together even though they don't always see eye-to-eye.

Here's the miniblurb:

Bonnie Bash has issues with remembering boundaries and itgets her in trouble with Taggart Allen, her immediate superior—especially whenshe sometimes forgets she has to respect the rank. She quickly learns why shefrustrates Tag so much when she's thrust into training a group of fifteennewbie pilots, nuggets, and not one has a clue or even cares about how thechain of command works.

And a sneaky peek…

"Bash is flying with Brown. Daubis flying with Elliot."

Lieutenant Bonnie Bash jerked herhead up and glared at the CAG, Taggart Allen. He did not just say she had tofly with Alti Brown. Five and half hours of nonstop chitchat would drive herbonkers mad. What the hell did she do to piss Tag off?

Her hand shot up before she could stopit. There had to be someone else she could fly combat air patrol with. Altijust rubbed Bonnie the wrong way. His play by play of everything that happenedin the last daily rotation never failed to be mind numbing. She just couldn'tdeal…

"Bash? You have aquestion?" Tag's voice cut through the white noise roaring in her ears.

Bonnie blurted the first thing thatcame to mind. "Did you go alphabetically for this roster?" Sheexpected better treatment from a guy she'd been tight with since basic.

Hell, they practically lived ineach other's pockets now and had since that first brutal welcome.

Tag sighed. "No. Movingon." He continued reading the flight schedule off.

She couldn't let that answer slideand got snappy and snarky, piling question after question onto Tag,interrupting his ordered delivery of information.

He finally shut her down. "Bash.Wheels go up in twenty minutes. I have five more items to get through. Kindlykeep your mouth closed until I finish up." He pinned her with a hard stareand narrowed his eyes.

She huffed out a breath and sulkedfor the rest of the briefing, reeling a little from the harsh words. Stungwould be a better description. Since when did Tag go all rank and file on her?

Right about the time she pushedevery button he had. But, damn, putting her with Brownie? She didn't expectpreferential treatment, but a heads-up would've been great. She could'veprepared for the longest five and half hours she'd ever have to spend in acockpit. Now, she'd be lucky to survive without her ears bleeding from theonslaught of inane details that would spew from Alti's lips.

When Tag dismissed them, she made abeeline for the exit. She wanted a few moments to lick her wounds and maybecurse Taggart Allen into oblivion.

Some friend he's turned out to be.

This story has somefun banter and I love writing characters at odds even when they're friends.

 

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

ML Skye

Sunday Snippet: Not the First

Can't believe we'realmost through April. And yet … it's been a really long month. May has somegreat things happening, namely my youngest graduating from college. She startsgrad school in the fall, and I'm amazed by her. I can't wait to see what she doeswith her future.

Had an okay week ofviewing. I'm behind on my work projects so I didn't push hard to get stuffwatched, but I did make a full rotation of my shows.

I finished theregular series of My Life Is Murder. I have the bonus content left towatch. I actually loved this show. And, to my astonishment, it looks like therewill be a fourth season! And it premieres tonight if I can trust the interwebs.

Caught an episodeof Madame Blanc Mysteries. A little disappointed with the friction and pushback from Caron about interference with the case, but it's probably a littlemore true to life than not.

Finished up SilentWitness and loved how it ended. Things didn't go quite the way I expected.I love it when that happens.

Watched the firstepisode of Jack's tenure of Death in Paradise. I liked the transitionfrom Humphrey to Jack. We're also getting into episodes I've not seen anything ofyet and I'm excited to watch new stuff.

Enjoyed an episode ofElementary. This one didn't have the police coming to Sherlock forconsultation. He brought a case to them, and I'd like to see more of that.Almost through the first season so maybe I'll get what I want here.

Caught anotherepisode of The Batman and it's one I remembered watching before. I loveit when Alfred's past comes calling. He's got some interesting friends.

Watched an episodeof Classic Rugrats and, again, this is a new to me one. I don't remembereither of the vignettes and that's always fun for me.

Finished out theweek with some more Peak Practice. I'm trying to get through the episodeI started a few weeks ago. I might get it finished this week.

That's it for thelife update this week. Tonight's post is from Not the First, a novellathat explores the history of a couple that went from friends to lovers.

Here's the miniblurb:

Katen Knox and Paul Macabes, pilots, soldiers, lovers,weigh in on opposite sides of a proposal to produce new planes while stationedin deep space. Not the first time they've been on different sides of an issue,they quickly learn it's hard to keep the professional drama out of theirpersonal space.

And a sneaky peek…

Paul figured if anyone could makeplanes from nothing, it would be Katen. And he'd play his role as her chiefinstigator and stress relief subject. Not the first time he'd taken the polaropposite stance to push her into creating something out of nothing. Anddefinitely not the first time he'd be her port in a sea of negativity, particularlywhen some of that pessimism came from him.

The game they played worked becausehe had no doubt she'd get results or exhaust every possibility before shecalled it quits. And he'd be on the receiving end of moments likethis—ardor-fueled sessions that expended pent-up energy clearing the path forher brilliant brain to do what it needed to. He wouldn't change his role foranything.

Especially when her lips slid alonghis jawline and her hips rose up to sink over his hard shaft. They wouldn'thave a lot of time. They never did. Grabbing stolen moments had become theirnorm.

Katen's mouth found his again, sherocked back and forth, and he lost the ability to think about anything morethan giving her a release and finding one for himself. Slick, warm heatenveloped his cock, and he relished the tight confines. Katen did a slow grind,amping the friction and tension between them.

His hands cupped her ass, urgingher to up the pace. She broke the lip-lock and her head dropped back, her eyesclosed in bliss. His palms grazed upward along her torso and when his thumbscircled her nipples, Katen's breathing quickened and rasped outward.

She gave a low moan. "Gonnacome with me? Because I'm so close…" Her hips dipped and rose again."Like … right now…" A shudder rippled through her.

Her internal muscles contracted,and Paul tipped over the edge. A euphoric wave crashed over him, sending himhigh then bottoming out on a low ebb. His breath whooshed out, catching in histhroat and he groaned with pleasure.

Katen collapsed against his chestand his arms wrapped around her. She exhaled, nuzzling his shoulder with herchin before shifting to the side and curling up close to him. Her palm smoothedover his ribs before settling just above his hip.

She smiled then yawned. "Wakeme in an hour?" Her eyes drifted shut.

Paul pulled his privacy curtain."Why don't I wake you in eight? Crash out here. Get some solid sleep andbe ready to go for the briefing tomorrow." She'd need to be well rested ifshe had a prayer of getting anyone on board with her crazy plan.

Katen gave a tiny nod and Pauldraped the sheet over them. By morning, he'd have a role to play and wouldn'thave to think too hard for reasons her plan could fail. He'd enjoy the briefinterlude of calm before taking up the baton as devil's advocate.

And gear up to cross verbal swordswith her for the foreseeable future.

I'm having a lot offun with this story. It's fun to dive into the history of a couple that share deepfeelings for each other but don't always see things from the same perspective.

 

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

ML Skye

Sunday Snippet: Not Quite Paradise

Another crazy week.This time on more of a personal front, which isn't all that unusual. I don'tnormally get slowed down though and I did this week. We got to see almosttotality for the eclipse and that was actually a lot of fun. Our streetlightscame on at three in the afternoon on an otherwise sunny day. Seriously. Lots offun.

Had a fairly decentweek of viewing and caught up on most of my regular schedule. I've pared itdown a little and kind of hope to get back into a full rotation sometime soon.If I'm paying for streaming services, I should be using them, right?

Ended up catchingtwo episodes of The Batman. I'd completely forgotten the originalsidekick storyline with Prank for the Joker. Ended up enjoying that one. Alsokind of loved the "Thunder" episode. That one I did remember.

Watched two episodesof Classic Rugrats. I must have missed a big portion of the seventhseason because I don't remember any of the vignettes. Kind of nice to have new-to-mematerial to watch.

Enjoyed an episodeof My Life Is Murder. I think I have one more left before bonusmaterial. Going to miss this one. I thoroughly enjoyed the series.

Caught the holidayepisode of Madame Blanc Mysteries. Enjoyed it. Looking forward to divinginto the new season.

Started a newtwo-part Silent Witness. Loved seeing Jack's niece again. Lookingforward to finishing this episode.

Said good-bye toHumphrey on Death in Paradise. Really liked the way his run ended. I'mexcited to start Beyond Paradise in the near future.

Watched another episodeof Elementary. I'm almost through the first season and I'm very muchenjoying this show.

That's pretty muchit for the life update this week. Tonight's post is from Not Quite Paradise,a novella that maroons the characters on a deserted moon.

Here's the miniblurb:

Janee Neff and Oxley DeCosta are military transportpilots flying a peacetime mission to pick up new recruits when their craftcrashes and strands them on a deserted moon. The couple discovers things aren'texactly what they seem when they find their signal beacon is destroyed byblaster fire, which means their unexpected vacation isn't quite paradise afterall.

And a sneaky peek…

Ox compiled the day's data andadded it to the previous three. "Sending the final scans. Ready to bustthe boredom and pick up our newbs?" He bit the inside of his cheek to hidea grin.

Janee's head snapped up and hergaze went hot. "Excuse me? Bust the boredom?" She swung around in herseat. "You are not talking about me?" Her hand gripped thearmrests so hard the knuckles turned white. "I mean, I've been called alot of things. But boring? Definitely isn't—" She broke off and her eyesnarrowed. "Shit. You just used your free dig and I totally fell forit." Her gaze turned questioning. "Um … right?"

He could keep her hanging but thesmall waver in her confidence had his eyebrows raising a bit. Had their dynamicshifted? Might be something to ponder once they got back to the ship.

Ox huffed out a laugh hoping tobreak the weird beat of tension. "Yep." He'd be a complete ass if heleft her twisting too long.

Her shoulders slumped forward, andshe flashed a smile. "Good one. And, man, you weren't lying about being apatient man." She snorted. "I thought you'd forgotten about the freepass." Swinging back around, she buckled her harness over her chest.

Ox smirked and tamped down a rushof pride at the backhanded compliment. "Not only am I patient…" Hewaited until she glanced his way. "I rarely forget a promise made."Facing ahead, he started the preflight checks.

Janee tilted her head to one side."Duly noted. That's actually good information." Her lips curvedupward.

Ox didn't know if she meant good tohave or good to use … but he had no doubt he'd find out at some point.

Halfway through the checklist, Ox cameacross a concerning ping. "There's a blip about the rear thrusters. It'son the original checklist, too. Do you remember what the issue is?" Andwould it delay the short jaunt to pick up the new recruits?

Janee frowned. "Not sure thereis an issue. There's a small skip when initially engaging them. Since we're notdoing much more than sitting in the black and landing in a spaceport to pick uppassengers, Wan didn't redline the transport." Her fingers drummed on the controlpanel. "I trust his assessment."

Ox hesitated over the keyboard."Did you eyeball the unit?" He'd believe her review if she had.

Janee grimaced. "I didn't.Like I said, I trust Specialist Jennings." She side-eyed him. "Do younot?"

Ox exhaled slowly. "It's notthat I don't. But I'd be more confident if one of us had a visual point ofreference." Or if the deck chief had… "You made the call to take off.You think we're good?" He'd go with her gut.

Janee's lips kicked up in a grin."Of course, we're good. What could really go wrong?"

Ox winced. "Yeah, probablynothing." He spooled up the engines. "Let's head out…"

The probablynothing is going to be an absolute something. Janee kind of jinxed theirtakeoff.

 

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

ML Skye