Sunday Snippet: Victory

Even though Marchis my birth month and the birth month of my mom and one of my best friends, I'mkind of glad to kick it to the curb. It's been a wild ride this month. Thatsaid, it's also been intensely productive, so I'm really not complaining.

The weather is stilldrunk, wildly surging one direction then lurching back only to zing forwardagain. My sinuses hate me right now. And my throat has that I just swallowedglass with a gravel chaser sound at the moment.

Still buried withwork but I'm making great progress on all fronts. I added another new hourly projectto the pile and made a big dent in that one yesterday.

Not a bad week forviewing. I got through my usual slate and did a marathon watch to finish outthe week.

Ended up watchingtwo episodes of Elementary and both were actually terrific. I'm veryinterested in seeing how things with Kitty play out in the next few installments.

Caught two episodesof Batman Beyond. Always happy to see the Royal Flush show up and I likedthe throwback to Bane.

Also enjoyed two ClassicRugrats episodes. I'm about halfway through the final season and I thinkI'll pick back up with the new reboot once I'm finished up.

Caught another episodeof Death in Paradise and I'm enjoying having Darlene working with theteam. She's a great addition. Also glad to see Neville's sister exit. Maybeshe'll grow on me, but I didn't enjoy her at all.

Watched the first officialepisode of season two Beyond Paradise. Really enjoyed the way the mysteryunfolded. Also loved the resolution.

I ended up notquite finishing the episode of London Kills but I should have that onecompleted this week.

That's it for thelife update. Tonight's post is from Victory, a novella that sees acouple make a wager about public displays of affection.

Here's theminiblurb:

Nevin Fram and Chase Barlow put everything on the linewhen they wager who can get the drop on the other first with a hot kiss. Nevinexecutes a plan to catch Chase during a sparring match, but he turns the tableson her and wins. Nevin wants to go double or nothing, but first her brain hasto start functioning again.

And a sneaky peek…

"Damn. You two should find anempty causeway and get it out of your systems."Nevin Fram glanced up at the rudestatement then discovered what set the commentary off. Two newer crewmates weregetting rather hot and heavy in a corner booth in the mess hall.Nevin snorted. "Newbs always haveto stake a claim within the first week of arrival." Usually in public,which they'd learn didn't have to happen.With a roster ranging from ahundred to a hundred and fifty, sooner or later everyone knew everything abouteverybody. Whether anyone wanted to or not. Transport ships—even ones withparamilitary ranking—were notorious for scuttlebutt and shenanigans.Nevin kicked back and put her feetup on an empty chair. "Too bad I don't have any cheese corn." Fromthe running observations and ribald comments, the show would get good in thenear future.A tray slid in front of her with a bowlof cheese corn and two drinks on it.Chase Barlow—her partner in and outof bed—dropped down on the seat next to her. "Newbs strike again."His lips twisted in a smirk.Nevin nudged his shoulder."You always know exactly what I want." Pulling the bowl close, shegrabbed a handful of the fluffy, savory snack.Chase propped a leg beside hers onthe makeshift footrest. "You make it easy. I love knowing what you likeand don't like." He folded his arms over his chest and scooted down to acomfortable position.Rogee Blatten called out. "Yo,Barlow. How long have you and Fram been a thing?" He rocked back on thestool to reveal four curious people at his table.Chase pondered a moment. "Aboutfive years." He slid Nevin a sideways glance. "Sound aboutright?"She gave a nod. "Prettymuch." Resisting the urge to squirm under the scrutiny, she shot anarrow-eyed gaze toward Rogee. "You planning on throwing us a party orsomething?"Rogee held up his hands. "Nothinglike that. Just asking." He leaned against the table. "Like, everyoneknows you're together, but no one really knows how it happened."Heads bobbed up and down. Not justat Rog's table, but elsewhere in the mess hall … even the newbs came up for airto listen.Chase grunted. "You beeninhaling the cannon oil again? How doesn't matter." He met Nevin's gaze."Does it?" He arched one brow.Nevin shrugged. "Not to me."And not an interesting story.Well, not to anyone but her andChase. She'd never gone for guys who made big exhibitions about their feelings.Chase didn't wear his heart on his sleeve, but he made subtle gestures—like thecheese corn—that showed her she meant something. Why the curiosity now? Afterthey'd been together for so long?Maybe Rogee had been spending toomuch time in the armory with the ammo and lubricant. Rog tsked. "Come on. You neverdo the usual couple thing. No lip-locks in the corridor or holding hands onmovie night." He flung a hand out. "You have something against publicdisplays of affection?"Nevin blinked. "Guess I'm notreally into the whole sharing with the universe deal." She didn't thepoint as long as Chase understood how she felt.Chase snorted. "Yeah, I don'tsee the need. Kind of like staking a claim." He paused a moment. "Whyis it necessary? Almost reeks of being desperate." He rolled a shoulder."But each to their own, right?"Nevin tensed up a little. Thestaking a claim comment hit sideways. Probably because she'd had the thoughtearlier. Did she need Chase to make it clear—to everyone—how he felt about her?Not really. But … did he take her for granted? Maybe they'd become a little toocomfortable together. Or maybe she just wanted to push a self-imposed boundary.Rog rolled his eyes. "Okay,okay. I can see this conversation is going nowhere." He looked at hisgroup. "Let's hit the rec hall. It'll be more interesting than watchingthe newbs get hot and heavy or prying any kind of dirt from the oldhands." He slid off his stool and clomped toward the hatch.The rest of his group followed suit,shuffling out behind him, and the two new crewmen sheepishly straightened theirclothes and made tracks also.Chase shifted around to face her. "Yougot quiet. What's going through your mind right now?" His eyes narrowedand his head tilted to one side.Great question. She had no idea whyshe got salty about Rog's prodding and the way Chase responded. But she did.She took a moment before answering."I don't know why, but I'm thinking we need a wager to give Rog a hard kickin the mind his own business section of his ass." And maybe see what thenext step would be for her and Chase.Chase straightened and blinked in surprise."Where's this coming from? Since when does his opinion matter to us?"He leaned forward and propped his forearms on the table.Nevin lifted a shoulder. "Notsaying it does … and here's the completely wrong part…" An imaginary lineappeared in her mind, and she hesitated to step over it. "When you saidpublic displays were kind of like staking a claim, I'd had that thought when Ifirst noticed Brant and Gemma making out. Yet … when you added the bit about itreeking of desperation, I don't know. It hit weird." And she made zerosense right now.Chase frowned. "Weird bad orweird good?"Nevin lifted her chin. "Bit ofboth."

I'm enjoying howthis story is coming together. Nevin and Chase are fun to write, and I can'twait to see where they go next.

 

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

ML Skye