Sunday Snippet: Yelling in Vain

Whew. Very longweek of scorching temperatures and tinder-dry conditions. We need some rain ina big way. Also, the end of my street is closed, which is kind of inconvenientbut not terrible. It's the height of construction season and it shows with multipleroad projects going on.

Super busy weekwith work projects and shifting my schedule around a little. I'm very happy tohave a full calendar even when it overwhelms me a little.

School starts thisweek and I'm excited for my husband, who really enjoys interacting with thestudents, teachers, and staff. Looking forward to hearing how his first weekgoes with the kids coming back.

Had a decentviewing week. Made it most of the way through my shows, including one of myback-burner ones. It also looks like a few of my faves are getting ready toreturn to my streamers.

Started season twoof Miss Fisher's Murder Mysteries and enjoyed all the newcomers. Jack'sformer wife and his father-in-law along with Dottie's sister. Phryne doing afan dance also ended up being fun.

Enjoyed the mysteryon Madame Blanc Mysteries. Kind of fun having John back but I'm hopingit's not going to be a lot of him. Also wondering if there are some cracks inJean and Dom's relationship. I'll be a little sad if there are.

Finished up seasonthirteen of Death in Paradise. I'm oddly sad to say goodbye to Neville.But I'm really thrilled he's leaving with Florence. A fitting end for the character.

Watched anotherepisode of Poirot and quite enjoyed the mystery. Having the ongoing Monopolygame going throughout the episode was fun.

Elementary ended up being very interesting. HavingSherlock working with Moreland ended up being entertaining and I'm veryinterested and wary of why Moreland is really in New York. That ending hintedthat all may not be what it seems, which isn't that surprising. I hope it givesJoan the chance to kick ass on Sherlock's behalf.

Caught anotherepisode of Batman Beyond and loved how Terry and Max teamed up to handleCurare. This was a great episode.

Lower Decks once again charmed and annoyed me. That'sthe running theme for this show. That said, I enjoy it enough to definitelykeep watching.

Got most of an episodeof Reacher viewed. It's the penultimate ep so I'm paying close attentionto the details. Because … details matter. Just saying.

Peak Practice is hopefully back on target for this week.I started a new episode but didn't get all the way through.

That's it for thelife update this week. Tonight's post is from Yelling in Vain, a novellathat brings a couple together in less than stellar circumstances.

Here's theminiblurb:

After an accident that takes the life of a fellow cadet,Lora Seaves falls back on her combative attitude to keep it together. JestinWarbly has to decide whether or not Lora is cracking up or okay to fly. He'sgot one big problem … a powerful attraction for the rookie pilot clouds hisjudgment.

And a sneaky peek…

Lora received a note to meet with JestinWarbly regarding the crash. She stared at the words andassigned time on the paper. "Well, I'm thinking it's probably a psychevaluation." Great … just what she needed.Her roommate, Marva Escholl,entered their quarters. Lora glanced up and stuffed the note into her pocket. Shecould maybe look this Warbly guy up on the way to the meeting.Marva quirked a brow. "Loveletter from one of your admirers?" She turned toward her locker.Why Marva always thought Lora hadguys stashed everywhere never failed to amuse her.Lora shrugged. "Nope. Prettysure it's a summons for a psych eval." She snorted. "Unless thisJestin Warbly is some kind of secret fan I don't know." Highly doubtful.Marva whipped around. "Um, no.Warbly's an up and comer. Definitely not a shrink." She sat on her bunkacross from Lora's. "He's a brand-new graduate but super sharp and veryeager to move up in intelligence."Lora narrowed her eyes. "Howdo you know all this?" And why did she know it?Marva smirked. "I've gotgrade-A listening skills. I pay attention when the brass starts talking abouttheir shining stars." She got up and pulled her shower gear from thelocker.Lora lifted her chin. "Ah. Gotit."Marva cocked her head to one side."You should probably play nice. He'll quite literally hold your flightstatus in his hands." Marva got up and bounced toward the door."Gotta run." She gave a wave over her shoulder.Lora quietly freaked out a little."This guy can make or break me. Damn." She grabbed the note,memorized the address, and headed out.Once she arrived, she had a fewminutes before their scheduled meeting. The door to the room stood open andLora entered, her gaze sweeping the bland, utilitarian space. A single tablewith two chairs took up the center of the space. A row of small windows linedthe upper wall across from the door. She wandered to one corner where a rackheld recruitment material and class manuals.A man entered, looking starched andpressed. But he also filled out the uniform, so he kept fit. Definitely not oneof the nerdy hive-mind guys that normally worked in the intelligence branch.But … he had some killer looks—darkhair, chiseled cheekbones—and that could only mean one thing. He had some pullsomewhere.She rolled her eyes and snorted."Ugh. Just my luck." She would get a bona fide insider as herinvestigator.After closing the door, Jestinglanced her way. "Cadet Seaves. Care to explain that comment?" Hiseyebrows arched over striking blue eyes.Damn. It figured.She really needed to learn how tokeep her mouth shut.

Lora will soonlearn that first impressions aren't always accurate. I'm having so much funwriting this one!

 

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

ML Skye