Aurora Springer's Blog, page 26
September 28, 2019
A goodly defense - Snippet from #Medieval_Romance DAME AUDREY for #WeWriWa
Welcome to another Sunday with Weekend Writing Warriors . Meet writers in various genres and read 8-10 sentence snippets of their stories. Find a new author and sample their work. Enjoy!
My latest novel, Dame Audrey, released a month ago, and I’m working on new stories in two different series.
For now, I’ll continue snippets from Dame Audrey, my new medieval romance set in fourteenth century England in and around my hometown of Reading.
In the last few snippets, Audrey met the sheriff’s bailiff, Selwyn Drake, in her parish church and they exchanged sympathy for their lost families. He’s a widower.
You can read last week’s snippet at https://auroraspringer.blogspot.com/2019/09/sunlit-graveyard-snippet-from-dame.html
I have jumped to the first day of Saint James’ Fair. Audrey, a good businesswoman, is manning her cloth stall.
Please excuse my mis-punctuation to fit 8-10 sentences. “Good day, Dame Audrey.” Selwyn Drake’s deep, sincere voice elicited a thrill of delight in my wayward mind. Smiling at him, I said, “Have you come to bargain for my wares?” His hazel eyes twinkled in laughter, “I have no need of fine laces; rather, I am surveying the stalls to deter robbers.” “An excellent notion; I chased off two urchins earlier this morning.” His dark brows compressed in a frown as he stared at the finery displayed on the linen tablecloth next to my box of silver coins, “Do you have any protection against thieves?” “I am prepared,” swiveling toward the rear of the booth, I called, “Here, Rufus.” My wolfhound uncurled from his sleeping place, shook his fox-red fur, and ambled over to nose at my outstretched fingers. Glancing up at the bailiff, I said, “My dog protects me and my wares.” “A goodly defense; though not proof against a swordsman,” he held out his hand to the dog.
Reviewers say:“…one of the very sweetest stories I’ve read in a long time.”“…a truly enriching experience for all those who love history.”
Discounted to 99c until Sept 30th: Amazon iBooks Kobo B&N GooglePlay
As always, I’ll be happy to reply to your comments.
Please return to www.wewriwa.com to sample the works of the other writers.
Find a catalog of my published stories HERE . Join me on Facebook and Twitter
September 26, 2019
#New PETS IN SPACE 4 #SciFiRomance
Pets in Space® 4 is proud to present 13 amazing, original new stories! Join the adventures as today’s leading Science Fiction Romance authors take you on a journey to another world. Pets in Space® proudly supports Hero-Dogs.org, a non-profit charity that provides service animals to veterans and first responders in need. Join New York Times, USA TODAY and Award-winning Bestselling authors S.E. Smith, Anna Hackett, Tiffany Roberts, Veronica Scott, Pauline Baird Jones, Laurie Green, Donna McDonald, Regine Abel, Alexis Glynn Latner, JC Hay, E.D. Walker, Kyndra Hatch, and Cassandra Chandler for another exciting Pets in Space® anthology. Get the stories before they are gone!
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MADAS' FALLING STAR Lords of Kassis Series by S.E. SmithEven an incredibly skillful warrior Princess needs help sometimes. Can Madas trust the strange warrior who fell from the sky with her life… and with her heart?
DARK GUARDGalactic Gladiators: House of Rone SeriesBy Anna HackettA cyborg who's vowed to keep his emotions and lethal powers leashed, discovers the one woman who can bring him to his knees.
ENTWINED FATESThe Infinite City SeriesBy Tiffany RobertsBeing separated by time and distance does not lessen the love Volcair has for the woman who captured his heart.
STAR CRUISE: IDOL’S CURSEThe Sectors SF Romance SeriesBy Veronica ScottTwo crew members of an interstellar luxury liner must join forces with a retired military canine to find a missing relic before the curse brings disaster for everyone.
CYBORG'S REVENGEProject Enterprise SeriesBy Pauline Baird JonesCan two almost human geeks find love while they fight against their old Master?
SPYDOGThe Inherited Stars SeriesBy Laurie A. GreenAn agent must decide if he can trust the savvy female Rathskian warrior that crosses his path or if he should deliver her to his superiors.
NOTHING REMOTELY FAMILIARMy Crazy Alien Romance SeriesBy Donna McDonaldNothing is normal when Topper finds herself expecting again.
DOOMXian Warriors SeriesBy Regine Abel A genetically engineered war machine finds love with the human doctor who may be his only chance of survival.
WINTER'S PRINCEStarways SeriesBy Alexis Glynn LatnerA scientist looking for a genetically engineered unicorn and a historian seeking the right question find each other in an interstellar amusement park full of dangerous games.
HEART OF THE SPIDER'S WEBTriSystems: Smugglers SeriesBy JC HayThe last thing Sheri needs is a brooding, brawny smuggler watching her every move, but his help is all that stands between her and a crime lord's wrath.
THE PRINCESS AND HER BODYGUARDAlien Animal Rescues SeriesBy E.D. WalkerA kidnapped princess and her bird companion must rely on the exiled guard who loves her to help them.
INTERRUPTING STARLIGHTAfter The Fall SeriesBy Kyndra HatchThe human composed a song in his heart, a pull he couldn’t ignore, a draw that demanded further exploration.
IMPORT QUARANTINEThe Department of Homeworld Security SeriesBy Cassandra ChandlerA simple house call to care for a sick animal turns a young woman’s life upside down when she discovers the ‘house’ is really a spaceship!
Pre-order here:All Buy Links: https://www.petsinspaceantho.com/books/pets-in-space-4/Amazon: https://www.amazon.com/dp/B07WCQF358/Amazon UK: https://www.amazon.co.uk/dp/B07WCQF358/Amazon CA: https://www.amazon.ca/dp/B07WCQF358/Amazon AU: https://www.amazon.com.au/dp/B07WCQF358/Kobo: https://www.kobo.com/us/en/ebook/pets-in-space-4Books: https://books.apple.com/us/book/pets-in-space-4/id1476281234Nook: https://www.barnesandnoble.com/w/pets-in-space-4-s-e-smith/1132911108?ean=2940163094325GooglePlay: https://play.google.com/store/books/details/S_E_Smith_Pets_in_Space_4?id=jXuoDwAAQBAJ
September 21, 2019
Sunlit graveyard - snippet from DAME AUDREY for #WeWriWa #Historical_Romance
Welcome to another Sunday with Weekend Writing Warriors . Meet writers in various genres and read 8-10 sentence snippets of their stories. Find a new author and sample their work. Enjoy!
My latest novel, Dame Audrey, released at the end of August, and I’m working on two new stories in different series.
For now, I’ll continue snippets from Dame Audrey, my new medieval romance set in fourteenth century England in and around my hometown of Reading.
Audrey has discovered the sheriff’s bailiff, Selwyn Drake, praying in her parish church. He explained he was praying for his deceased wife and stillborn child.
You can read last week’s snippet at https://auroraspringer.blogspot.com/2019/09/a-sad-loss-snippet-from-dame-audrey-for.html
This snippet begins a few lines later. Two women entered the nave and were staring at Audrey and Selwyn, so he suggested they leave the church.
Once outside the church, I stepped into the sunlit graveyard. The sounds of bartering came from the market across the main street, yet the narrow path winding between the graves was peaceful and private. Unconsciously, I took my usual walk in the direction of my family’s grave. The names carved in the headstone had been rinsed clean by the rains, although the daisies I had laid at the foot of the mound on Sunday had been washed away. I paused and placed my hand on the top of the gravestone, “My husband lies here beside our two little children.” He touched the polished stone and his gaze traveled over the inscription. “You are fortunate; you can pray at their grave. My family’s tomb is far away.”
Reviewers say:“…one of the very sweetest stories I’ve read in a long time.”“…a truly enriching experience for all those who love history.”
DAME AUDREY is Discounted to 99c until Sept 30th: Amazon iBooks Kobo B&N GooglePlay
As always, I’ll be happy to reply to your comments.
Please return to www.wewriwa.com to sample the works of the other writers.
Find a catalog of my published stories HERE . Join me on Facebook and Twitter
September 16, 2019
SONGBIRD - New SciFi Romance by Liza O'Connor
Excerpt“What has you looking so pensive this morning?” Link asked as he sat down beside her on the grassy hill overlooking the lake.“Love.” She laughed at his look of concern. She explained the nonsense of the Summers/Hatchet/Smith affair. When she stopped talking, he still looked confused.“People get married in the mountains?”“Of course. How else would they keep the farms going? There’s man’s work, woman’s work, and children’s work. And you need all three parts to keep a farm running.”“Why did you leave there?” he asked. His voice sounded strained as if he was upset that she’d left the mountains. He could probably hear in her words how much she missed her old way of life.“Well, none of the boys wanted me for their wife. They were willing to take me on their farms, but not respectfully. So, when Leroy come around looking for a partner to sing duets in city clubs, Momma said I should go, for there weren’t nothing for me in the mountains but a future of shame and misery.”“And you think this will be better?” he asked in surprise.“No,” she laughed. “This ain’t at all what I thought I’d be doing. I was supposed to be singing for my living, but I ain’t done nothing here but get myself in trouble every time I turn around. I’ll be so happy when this week is out, and I can leave here!” She then paused. “Except, I’ll miss you terribly, Link. I ain’t never met a person ’cept for Gram that I like more.”She had expected him to smile, for surely, he understood how big a compliment that was. But he didn’t smile. In fact, he looked most upset.“What do you mean leave?”“I mean pack my bags and go,” she said. “I’m sorry to sound so ungrateful, because you’ve been awfully nice to me. But beyond you, there isn’t one thing I like about this place. I will be very glad when our contract is up, and Leroy and I can leave. And just so you don’t think I’m some stupid-headed female, the moment Leroy hits the other side of that gate and I get my half of the money, I’m going on my own. Leroy only cares about himself and will sell me out any chance he gets. I see that now, and he’s not pulling this shit on me a second time.”Link seemed more upset than ever. “Tory, only Leroy is leaving in a week. Your contract is for life.”“For life? Whose life? Mine? That can’t be! Who would hire a musician for life?”He shook his head as if trying to make sense of her. “They didn’t hire you as a musician, Tory. You signed on as a concubine.”“A what?”“A concubine.”She’d never heard the word before. “Exactly what does a concubine do?”He stared at her a moment and then he sighed. “It won’t work. We tape the contract signings to prove the girls are not under duress when they agree to become a concubine. I watched you read that contract word for word, myself. You cannot claim you did not know you were signing on as a concubine.”She sighed. “Can I trust you with a secret?”He nodded and reached out and took her hand.“I can’t read. Girls aren’t taught in the mountains. But Leroy says it’s against the law not to teach girls, and if I told anyone I couldn’t read, they’d go up in the mountains and kill everybody for breaking the law. So, I did like he told me, and looked at each and every block of print for a moment before going on to the next block.”“Which is why you smiled when you finished it,” he said, as if he finally understood something that had been bothering him.“It wasn’t easy to stay focused on such a tedious task. I was so relieved when it was over, and I had managed to pull it off so we could work here.”“As a musician?”“Yeah, for a month.” She frowned. “I didn’t think he’d lie about the contract because he had to sign one as well. Did he know mine was different than his?”“Without a doubt. He received three hundred dollars for bringing you here. He knew exactly what you’d be doing for the rest of your life.”Tory’s frown deepened. “Will I be doing whatever the other girls do?”“Yes.” He watched her expression.“They’re concubines?”He nodded.“Is that like a waitress?”“No.”She swallowed. “Will you just tell me what I have stupidly signed up for? Because my stomach is starting to go sour.”Link told her about the three levels of girls. The most pleasing girls were “High Girls” and they entertained important men. Then there were the Common Girls and they entertained regular men. Last, there were the “Low Girls,” and they were sent to the “Beds,” where they were strapped down to a cot, and the worst of men did whatever they wished to them.“It’s no life at all for a Low and a hard life for the Common girls. The only ones that have any chance of happiness are the High Girls.”“And who makes the decision as to what level I’ll be?”“Miss Dunbery.”“Well, now I know why she smiles every time she looks at the calendar.” Tory sighed.
LINKS D2D Amazon
About the Author Liza O’Connor FOR MORE INFORMATION ABOUT LIZA O'CONNORInvestigate these sites: Liza’s Multiverse Blog Liza's Blog and Website Facebook Twitter All the Many Books Liza has writtenOver 50 books for your reading pleasure Contemporary Historical Paranormal Sci-Fi *** Romance Sleuths Suspense Humor Feel Good Novels *** Books range from young adult to mature audiences. I write them as my characters want them to be written.
September 14, 2019
A sad loss - Snippet from DAME AUDREY for #WeWriWa #Medieval Romance
Welcome to another Sunday with Weekend Writing Warriors . Meet writers in various genres and read 8-10 sentence snippets of their stories. Find a new author and sample their work. Enjoy!
Last weekend, I had the chance to visit Niagara Falls since my husband was giving a talk at a conference. Here is a view of the bridge and the American falls from Goat Island.
My latest novel, Dame Audrey, released at the end of August, and I’ve been working on two new stories in different series.
For now, I’ll continue snippets from Dame Audrey, my new medieval romance set in fourteenth century England in and around my hometown of Reading.
Audrey has discovered the sheriff’s bailiff, Selwyn Drake, praying in her parish church. St. Mary’s is a twelfth century church in Reading with a distinctive checkered tower.
Photo by Ron Sanders
You can read my last snippet of two weeks ago at https://auroraspringer.blogspot.com/2019/08/a-familiar-figure-snippet-from-dame.htmlI have adjusted the punctuation slightly to fit 8-10 sentences.
“Good morning, Dame Audrey,” he said, “I trust you have recovered from yesterday’s assault.” “The thief didn’t touch me,” glancing at his severe features, I asked, “Are you visiting the chapel to mourn a friend?” “By Jesu’s bones, you’ve hit the target; I’ve come to offer a prayer for my wife and child. The eve of Saint James’ Feast is the anniversary of her death. Graziella died in giving birth to our stillborn son; at one stroke, I lost my two dearest kin.” “A sad loss indeed; when did you lose your family?” “It has been five years.” He passed a hand over his face as if recalling the tragic event, “I didn’t learn of their deaths for many weeks since I was away with Lord William and fighting in the king’s army. The years have passed swiftly, yet my heart is still burdened with guilt.” He sighed and gazed over the altar into the light-filled rose window.
Blurb: Discounted to 99c for two more weeks: Amazon iBooks Kobo B&N GooglePlay
As always, I’ll be happy to reply to your comments.
Please return to www.wewriwa.com to sample the works of the other writers.
Find a catalog of my published stories HERE . Join me on Facebook and Twitter
September 12, 2019
DAME AUDREY - Her Household, Family and Friends in #Medieval Romance
Dame Audrey - Her Household, Family, Friends and Employees
Few people would live alone. Most householders, even the poorest, would have servants. Servants might be either freemen or bondsmen/slaves. Families and neighborhoods were close-knit. Dame Audrey’s household includes her cousin and companion, Margaret, and her servants, John and Emily Holt and their thirteen-year old son, Alfred. Her young apprentice, Matthew Cornelius, lives in her house, except for holidays when he stays with his parents. Jacob Cornelius serves as Audrey’s steward and runs the trade when she is away. He and his wife, Hanna, are expert weavers from Flanders. Audrey has a wolfhound called Rufus, and keeps riding horses for herself, Margaret and John and a packhorse. Traveling alone would be improper for a woman and dangerous for anyone.
Audrey’s widowed mother, Gwen Smith, lives in the village of Pangbourne, about 7 miles from Reading. Gwen has two servants, Elfreda and Kenneth. The local blacksmith in Pangbourne is one of her cousins.
Her sister, Bethany, lives in Redding in the next parish.
Her aunt and uncle, Clementine and Wilfred Woodcote, live by the wharf on the Thames. Wilfred Woodcote is a shipwright. Their sons are William and Colin.
Audrey is friends with Sally, the wife of Edward Faringdon, a mercer. Their children are Philip and Jenna.
Audrey employs the dyers, Roy and Kathleen Kelsey, and the fuller, Nick Fuller, in her cloth trade.
Her Cloth ShopThis picture from Giovanni Boccaccio's 15th Century book gives an idea of the spinners and weavers at work in Dame Audrey's cloth shop. She might be the well-dressed woman at the top, although as a widow, she would have to wear a wimple and veil in public.
Find DAME AUDREY at: Amazon iBooks Kobo B&N GooglePlay
September 7, 2019
September Freebies in #SciFi #Fantasy and #Romance Stories
Aug 23 - Sept 21: Otherworldly Romance – https://storyoriginapp.com/to/wCo9DCB
Aug 26 - Sept 24: Fantastic Futures – https://storyoriginapp.com/to/YPJsWUh
Sept 7 – Oct 6: The Truth is Out There - https://books.bookfunnel.com/the-truth-is-out-there/r9g5k2ukry
August 31, 2019
A Familiar Figure - snippet from DAME AUDREY #Medieval Romance for #WeWriWa
Welcome to another Sunday with Weekend Writing Warriors . Meet writers in various genres and read 8-10 sentence snippets of their stories. Find a new author and sample their work. Enjoy!
I am continuing snippets from my new medieval romance set in fourteenth century England in and around my hometown of Reading.
Dame Audrey was given a magic brooch by a dying minstrel and instructed to find its owner, the Green Lady of Hawthorns. She has visited the Abbey to ask the archivist, Canon Randolf, if he has heard of this lady. He is keen to acquire the gold brooch for the Church.
You can read last week’s snippet here – https://auroraspringer.blogspot.com/2019/08/an-eveil-relic-snippet-from-dame-audrey.html
The last lines are: Slipping the brooch into my purse, I said in a sweetly pious tone, “By God’s grace, let me pray for guidance; forswearing an oath is a serious matter.” In this week’s snippet, Audrey walked out before the Canon had time to protest. She has gone to pray in Saint Mary’s Church, a real 12th century church in Reading. Please excuse my abuse of semicolons to fit. I have also removed some sentences to emphasize the main point.
A familiar figure knelt at a pew near the altar, the auburn-haired bailiff, Selwyn Drake, with his head bowed on his chest. I tiptoed to the fifth row from the front, dropped onto my knees and bent over my entwined hands. Clasping my wooden cross between my hands, I prayed to the Virgin Mary and her heavenly son; I begged for a clue to lead me to the Lady of Hawthorns. No answer came; God’s words had never sounded in my mind; why should they now? Several times during my prayers, my gaze strayed to Selwyn’s bright head and broad back. What was he praying for? I hadn’t seen him in the church last Sunday. He might have attended Mass at another local church, although most yeoman favored Saint Mary’s Church because of its closeness to the finest Butts for their archery practice. When Selwyn rose from the pew, I stood also, and watched as he walked along the aisle toward me; his head was still bowed and he looked even more solemn than usual. As he approached, I bobbed a curtsy and greeted him, “God be with you, Master Drake.”
Blurb: DAME AUDREY is on sale for only 99c at: Amazon iBooks Kobo B&N GooglePlay
As always, I’ll be happy to reply to your comments.
Please return to www.wewriwa.com to sample the works of the other writers.
Find a catalog of my published stories HERE . Join me on Facebook and Twitter
August 28, 2019
Dame Audrey: Medieval Background and Sources
My story of Dame Audrey Thyme, the young widow of a cloth merchant, is set in England in the late fourteenth century around the same time as Chaucer’s Canterbury Tales. I have attempted to use authentic descriptions of the people and settings whenever possible. Hence, I consulted books about that period and discovered several valuable on-line resources.
In the Middle Ages, people’s lives were constrained by their status in the hierarchical Feudal System. Commoners had to obey nobles and were subject to the King’s rules and religious authorities. Changes in the fourteenth century accelerated the rise of a Middle Class of people with greater independence.
Audrey's Pilgrimage
Dame Audrey takes place in the southern part of England. My heroine lives in Reading(Redding) at the confluence of the Thames and Kennet rivers. Her story begins in Glastonbury, where she is on a pilgrimage to the famous Abbey. She travels to Bristol and returns to Reading, partly along the old Roman road between Bath and London (see map). Her journey includes overnight stops in the towns of Chippenham, Marlborough and Newbury. I have assumed the travelers rode about 20 miles a day, with a midday break for a meal and to let the horses graze. The main roads would have inns and hostels about every 10 miles to accommodate travelers. Audrey and her companions ride palfreys, horses with an ambling gait that is faster than a walk and smoother than a trot. Audrey enjoys riding and keeps three horses. She has two mares for herself and her companion, Margaret. Her yeoman, John Holt, rides the third horse and serves as an escort armed with his bow and sword. Later in the story, she visits her mother in the village of Pangbourne on the Thames about 6 miles west of Reading.
Most people lived in the countryside in villages or farms. Ian Mortimer’s excellent book, The Time Traveller's Guide to Medieval England: A Handbook for Visitors to the Fourteenth Century,” has a table of the estimated populations of the largest towns or cities. London was the largest city in Britain with a population of about 40,000. Bristol was the third largest city at 10,000 inhabitants. London and Bristol had flourishing harbors for overseas trade, and goods could be transported inland along the Thames and Severn rivers. Most cities and towns had populations of about 1000 to 2000 people.
To assess the relative sizes of places, I used the on-line searchable resource of Open Domesday (1086)
Reading: I have found estimates of about 1500 for the population of Reading in the fourteenth century. My rough guess translates this number into about 200 houses. Modern Reading is much larger and has grown more than its neighboring towns and cities. It has three twelfth century churches, St. Mary the Virgin, St. Lawrence, and St. Giles, and the ruins of Reading Abbey. You can see the remnants of the Medieval town in street names such as The Butts, Friar Street and Holybrook Lane. Because of the small size of the town, I decided to mention only a single merchants’ guild.
You can find my book here:Dame Audrey Amazon iBooks Kobo B&N GooglePlay Young widow seeks true love in a Medieval romance with a touch of fantasy.
Medieval England – Sources
I found several valuable resources during my research into medieval life in the fourteenth century. Ian Mortimer’s The Time Traveller's Guide to Medieval England: A Handbook for Visitors to the Fourteenth Century.The Canterbury Tales by Geoffrey ChaucerChaucer’s People: Everyday lives in Medieval England by Liza PicardOther excellent sites for specific topics include: Rosalie’s Medieval Women – http://rosaliegilbert.com Medieval Farming Year - https://www.historyonthenet.com/medieval-farming-the-farming-year
August 27, 2019
Leaving Earth: Aliens Among Us, Book 2, Paranormal Romance by Liza O'Connor
A Warning from someone who knows...“We all like to believe we are masters of our fate. However, usually it isn’t true. Somewhere, a person exists, sometimes completely unknown to you, whose slightest action impacts your life.”
BlurbBillionaire David Ross has created a sanctuary for an alien species that superficially resembles Earth’s black panther. This race is superior in both strength and longevity to humans. David’s plan is to seed a new world with the offspring of these aliens and selected humans. Contrary to the covenants of the project, he sends a special young woman named Jesse to the island against her will. Her arrival changes more than he planned.
Excerpt
Jesse awoke to the pleasant sensation of warm rough tongues washing her body and a chorus of purrs. She opened her eyes to discover the sensation of heaviness on her body was no longer due to paralysis, rather to the addition of eight cubs draped across her as they affectionately licked and cleaned her hairless skin.The moment she shifted her head, all eight disappeared underneath the bed. However, a second later, one head popped back up, followed quickly by another. They all looked the same. Yet when she concentrated on them, she could sense their differences. The first one was bold and brave. The second was more cautious, but very ambitious and thus determined to keep up with the bold one name, Tegra.She mentally asked the cautious one his name, and he replied ‘Basil.’ Knowing she could hear him, he proceeded to chatter non-stop about how they had found her in their nursery and were debating whether she might be dinner.I’m family, not dinner, she replied in a panic.She felt the laughter of all the cubs. Basil had been teasing her. They knew very well that she was their new nanny.What happened to the old nanny? Jesse asked with sudden concern.The question caused the cubs to mew in distress. Within seconds, a tall blonde woman arrived and picked up Basil and soothed him. “It’s all right,” she assured him and then looked at Jesse with mistrust. “What did you say to them?”Jesse tried to explain, but her voice had not yet returned, nor could she speak in the woman’s mind.The woman looked chagrined and sat down on the edge of the bed. “I’m sorry. I forgot you could not speak. Can you move at all yet?”Jesse raised her hand and petted Basil. He purred in return.“Something wrong?” Mike asked from the door.“The children were mewing in distress” the woman said.Jesse could hear the accusation in the woman’s voice. She thought the new girl was to blame and she held Mike responsible because he was the one that insisted Jesse was fit to be the cubs’ nanny.Jesse reached out for Mike’s hand as he approached her. They mewed when I asked them what they had done to their prior nanny.Mike stared at her in momentary surprise. Her ability to speak in his mind surprised him, but so had her question to the cubs.“Why did you ask that?”She could sense his distress as well. I was only teasing. The cubs had teased that they had thought me dinner, so I teased them in return.“Their prior nanny died,” he explained. “They feel responsible…”Why?He looked around at the cubs all waiting for his reply. “It was not their fault and that is all I will say just now.”She realized it was not a topic of discussion before the children and let it lie. Still, she wondered what the children had done to make them feel responsible for their nanny’s death.She sensed a change in Mike. His eyes dilated as he stared at her naked body. His pants gave signs of an erection. Normally, she was a very modest person, but even now, when she could reach for the sheet to cover herself, she did not. The truth was, she enjoyed the sensation of his admiration.“Catina, will you take the children to their dinner?”“Mike, you know the rules…” Catina warned.“I know them. Will you take the children?”She gave him a warning look but did as he asked.Once Catina and the children were gone, Jesse asked, what rule are you contemplating breaking?Mike laughed aloud. “Not me. I always obey the rules,” he assured her. He reached down and helped her up from the bed, then carried her to the mats where he laid her down. “We are going to work on your muscles, so you’ll recover faster.”
ALIENS AMONG USBOOK 2Leaving EarthAMAZON D2D
About the Author Liza lives in Denville, NJ with her dog Jess. Having an adventurous nature, she learned to fly small Cessnas in NJ, hang-glide in New Zealand, kayak in Pennsylvania, ski in New York, scuba dive with great white sharks in Australia, dig up dinosaur bones in Montana, sky dive in Indiana, and raft a class four river in Tasmania. She’s an avid gardener, amateur photographer, and dabbler in watercolors and graphic arts. Yet through her entire life, her first love has and always will be writing novels. She loves to create interesting characters, set them loose, and scribe what happens in a myriad of genres.
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