Sunday Snippet: Bikini Beach

July 12, 2015

Well… not a bad week, with the exception of a nasty case of poison ivy. Bleh. I'm not fond of being itchy in any way, shape, or form. *scratch, scratch*

SDCC happened this week and I'm so excited for a couple of new shows and movies. I also love seeing the actors from my favorite shows do their panels. Looking forward to taking some time to dive into everything.

Teen Wolf is getting really creepy, which I love. I'm sort of long on theories and not much else, but something tells me Peter Hale is behind everything. LOL He's so easy to blame.

The Last Ship is so good at drawing out and ramping up tension. Another show where I have theories about who's behind the scenes trying to manipulate everything. I can't wait for tonight's episode.

My Friday night lineup of Defiance, Killjoys, and Dark Matter keeps getting better and better. One of the things I love about Defiance is how quickly they move the plot along. And a major brawl between Amanda and Stahma never hurts anything. Pushing the envelope where family relationships are concerned is also an interesting choice. And speaking of family relationships, the Jaqobi brothers are quickly turning into one of my favorite sibling duos. I'm holding back on forming strong opinions with Dark Matter at the moment. I can't quite figure why Two is going for Three yet. I have a few ideas, but none have formed into anything solid yet.

Tonight's post is from Bikini Beach, a sexy short where my main characters need a mental health day.

Here's the mini-blurb:

Talia Ashe loves her job, but she's ready to kill her partner, Hugh McVey because he's pushing hard to get a project done and they're down to the wire. She takes a mental health day, to keep from doing Hugh bodily harm, but he ruins it when he shows up on her patch of beach.

And a snippety peek…

Hugh attempted to get stuff done, but without Talia, he couldn't even manage to clear his inbox. She fielded calls and emails—only sending the most urgent on to him. She anticipated what he needed and when he'd want it. This on top of her own workload, which rivaled his.

She'd become a lifeline, keeping him tethered to the project, but letting him focus on the constant barrage of changes the Widow Barclay kept throwing their way. If the woman ever wanted to get the product launch off the ground she had to stop making so many huge, sweeping changes. If Hugh could cut and run from the Barclay job, he would. And without Talia to act as a sounding board and brainstorming partner, the new concepts he designed last night now seemed flat and boring. She had a flair for spinning his ideas into a package with pizzazz.

The elevator pinged and the click-clack of heels on the marble floor pulled Hugh's attention to the outer office. He rose then groaned when he caught sight of their client, sashaying around the main desk before she sailed into his workspace, her full, red lips curved in a plastic smile.

He hadn't enough caffeine to deal with Widow Barclay yet today.

She paused inside the doorway, her gaze scanning the room. "Are you alone today, Hugh?" Her voice trilled at a strange octave, like nails on a chalkboard.

Hugh forced a smile. "I'm afraid so, Mrs. Barclay. Talia's got a bit of a stomach bug and won't be coming in." He made his way to the coffee machine. "Can I offer you a cup of the caramel blend you like so much?" Pouring water into the unit, he glanced over his shoulder.

The look in Mrs. Barclay's eyes stopped him cold. Predatory and feral were the only words that came to mind. Oh, shit.

The saccharine smile turned catlike. "Now, Hugh, you know I prefer to be called Minerva. I don't stand on ceremony with you and Tally." She shrugged out of her suit jacket and laid it on the back of the club chair along with her clutch.

Turning back to the machine, Hugh popped a rich, Columbian blend into the holder. "It's Talia, Mrs. Barclay." He pressed the start button.

"It's Minerva, Hugh." The sound of her voice, directly behind him, slithered down his spine. "I insist."

Fucking hell. She had him trapped between the beverage center and her overly-perfumed self. He added one more reason why it paid to have Talia around. Apparently she'd been keeping the widow from making a play.

Hugh took his only option, stepping to the side and quickly turning to face her. "Minerva, it is then." He crossed his arms over his chest. "Did you need something particular today, Minerva?"

Her tongue flicked out, wetting her lower lip. "Actually, I was on my way to meet with Paul's attorneys and thought I'd stop by here on the way." She took a step forward, effectively boxing him in between the conference table and the window. "I can call and reschedule…" Her voice took on a breathy quality and she planted her hands on his chest. "If you'd like to spend a couple of hours alone, getting naked and sweaty." Her palms skimmed lower, her fingers hooking over the waistband of his pants.

Hugh halted her progress, grasping her grabby paws. "As pleasant as that might be, Mrs. Barclay." He purposefully went back to using her formal title. "The group has a strict policy against mixing business with personal relationships." Good Christ above, he hoped she didn't check, because he'd just told a whopper of a lie.

She smirked. "Well, I won't say anything if you don't." She tried to work her fingers free of his.

Moving quickly, Hugh scrambled to one side, putting some solid distance between them. "I'm sorry, but I support the policy. Things tend to get out of hand when the clients get sexually involved with their project managers." He kept his tone even and professional, hoping she'd take the hint and back off.

Not so much.

Her gaze went hard, her nostrils flared, and her chin went up a notch. "Did you just turn me down?"

Well, duh. Of course he did.

Hugh held her gaze. "I'm afraid so, Mrs. Barclay." He stood his ground, unwilling to give her the slightest edge.

Minerva hissed out a breath. "Then it looks like I'll be making that meeting with the attorneys, after all." She turned on her heel, sauntering over to grab her jacket and purse. "I'll just tell them to expect the new designs, along with all the sample packaging on Tuesday by nine sharp." Tossing her hair over her shoulder, she sailed out the doorway the same way she'd come in.

Hugh's day couldn't get any worse, right? Wait and see…

That's it for this week. Happy reading!

Skylin