Sunday Snippet: It's Academic

Had a less thanproductive week after having two teeth extracted. It's strange because theyreally weren't difficult to remove—well, one of them ended up being a littleharder than the other—but it still threw me off. I think because they were on oppositesides with one on top and the other on the bottom, which made eating a tadchallenging.

I also took timeaway on Friday to meet my daughter so we could do early voting. Very happy tohave that done! I voted to raise my taxes for the school and emergency serviceslevies.

Work stayed busywith some cleanup on two drafts and two copy edits. I also checked changes ontwo proofreads. Those were kind of dropped in on the fly.

Didn't quite make afull round of my usual shows this week, but I did get through about half.

Watched anotherepisode of Mr. and Mrs. Murder and it was one I'd seen at least part of.Thoroughly enjoyed this one.

Caught another LondonKills and I'm liking this show. The overarching mystery of what happened tothe DCI's wife folded into the two cases is interesting to me. I'm a littleworried about the trainee DC. Things could go really sideways for her if she'snot careful.

Enjoyed another Deathin Paradise episode. I kind of feel like this is the season where CommissionerPatterson gets a lot more screen time. This isn't necessarily a bad thing. Ienjoy him.

Finished the secondhalf of Silent Witness and, whoo boy, what a ride this two-parter was.I'm going to be very interested in seeing if there's any fallout fromeverything that went down.

That's pretty muchit for the life update this week. Tonight's post is from It's Academic,a novella that brings polar opposites together as a couple.

Here's the miniblurb:

Chaos and control don't mix, but Kari Pride and ThornSummers must find a way to balance the two or drive each other mad when theybecome roommates. By the end of the semester, Thorn tempers Kari's sloppyhabits and she makes him yield his ruthless organization for some much-neededspontaneity. When their relationship gets personal, they have to figure out howto navigate new territory.

And a preview snippet…

Thorn narrowed his eyes when hisroommate retreated out into the hall.He turned and met Markum's gaze."Thanks for personally showing me to the dorm." A nice gesture evenif the elder wanted to impress Thurston more than anything else.Arnold inclined his head."Your stuff will be arriving any moment." He looked upward thenaround the room.Sure enough, Thorn's neatly packedboxes and suitcases appeared in the space.Markum chuckled. "That wordyour grandfather asked for before he left?" He lifted his chin toward theitems. "That's what it was about." With a bow of his head, he turnedand left Thorne to get settled.Happy to have his personal itemswithout having to make several trips, he started organizing. He hung clothesand put them in the built-in dresser along the wall then broke the boxes downand stashed them in the closet to use at the end of the semester. He made thebed up and folded his towels and added them to the cubicles above the drawersalong with his shower stuff. His books and other belongings were precisely laidout on the coverlet.Taking a moment to study theshelves next to the cubicles, he rearranged a few of the stacks. "Let'ssee if I can do this…" And not get caught.Practicing magick before classesbegan could get him into trouble. But he might as well take advantage of beinga legacy student. If Thurston Summers could break rules by conjuring Thorn'sboxes to his dorm, why shouldn't Thorn push boundaries also?He pictured where he wanted thingsto be and uttered an incantation. Opening his eyes, he made a quick dash tokeep one of his books from falling off the edge of the shelf. He placed theheavy tome on top of the dresser.Moving back, he gave a nod. "Okay,not quite perfect but damn close." And he really shouldn't be practicing."My roommate could've returned at any moment." But he'd saved a lotof time by taking the chance she wouldn't.Satisfied with everything, he saton the edge of the bed. "I'm rooming with a woman." The idea didn't fazehim, but he wondered how they'd get along.And he didn't know what to make ofhis roommate—other than thinking she had striking features. "Especiallyher eyes." The color reminded him of the dense forest surrounding hisgrandfather's house.She also had a slightly pointedchin, high cheekbones, and a mane of dark hair that framed her face. Herclothes were functional, which intrigued Thorn. A pair of olive-drab cargoshorts, a red tank top, and a long-sleeved multicolored cotton shirt tiedaround her waist. A pair of flip-flops rounded out the outfit. His mother wouldfeign a stroke before being caught wearing anything like Kari's ensemble. ThelmaSummers had a preference for boring monochromatic clothes.Thorn grinned. "Gonna be niceto have some color in my life now." If nothing else, having Kari as hisdormmate would challenge his status quo, which he welcomed because he'd come toStonebridge to escape the trappings of normal life.Kari definitely piqued hiscuriosity. She claimed to be showering after moving all the boxes, but shedidn't have a drop of perspiration on her.He huffed out a breath."Interesting." Leaning back on the mattress, he viewed his side ofthe room again—very happy with the pristine state of his stuff.A couple of knocks sounded on thedoor and Kari entered, her hair still damp and tousled. "Figured we shouldhave a two-knock warning until we figure out comfort levels." She tossedher damp towel on the footboard of the bed.Thorn grunted. "Probably agood idea." He got up and thrust his hand out. "Nice to meet you, bythe way."She slid her palm against his andgave a firm shake. "Same. Sorry I cut out earlier." She let go andwalked over to one of her boxes. "I'm a little lost in this huge building.Wanted to explore a little and get my bearings." Pulling out a pair ofcapri-length leggings, she went back to the container and grabbed another tanktop in a turquoise shade.Turning her back to him, sheslipped the leggings on then dropped her robe and slid the shirt over her head.Thorn did his best not to stare andfailed. Sleek muscles and rounded curves drew his gaze. If he had a type—and hedidn't think he did—he might have to consider her.She sat on the edge of her unmadebed. "So … Thorn? Unique name. When I first saw it on the check-in list, Iwondered if you had siblings?" Her mouth twisted in a wry grin. "Andif they had interesting names, too. Like Briar or Bramble."Thorn laughed. "Uh, no. I haveone sibling, and his name is Thrace. The whole T-H thing started with mygreat-grandfather Thrummond. My grandfather is Thurston. My mom's name isThelma."Kari leaned forward, putting herelbows on her knees. "A tradition. That's kind of nice."Thorn rolled his eyes. "It'skind of pretentious." A lot like his pompous grandfather.Kari chuckled. "Sounds like youdon't take it too seriously."Thorn shrugged. "Not really,no. How 'bout you? Any siblings or weird familial quirks?"

I'm enjoying this soon-to-becouple. I love writing forced proximity when the duo doesn't have a lot incommon with each other.

 

That's it for thisweek.

Cheers!

Skye