Sunday Snippet: A Pumpkin Patch Honeymoon

I'm finally pretty much through the worst of the respiratory nastiness. It's so nice to breathe semi-normal again. It's amazing what a difference it makes to take a deep breath on not end on a coughing spasm.

Not a bad week for television viewing. I finished up Endeavour's second episode of the fifth season. Also caught an episode of Murdoch Mysteries. I rather like where they've put things with Brackenreid.

Finished Luke Cage and, honestly? I liked where the series ended. I'd love to see more and I'm disappointed I won't be able to. The biggest drawback to all the streaming options now is how proprietary they're all becoming. Makes me a little sad.

Watched some Classic Roswell, third episode of the first season, which ended up dovetailing in an interesting way with the second episode of Roswell, New Mexico. Isobel using her powers to freak Maria out in the classic version played against Michael and Isobel using theirs to mess with Liz in the reboot. I'm invested way more than I thought I'd be in the new version. It's moving up the list of shows I don't want to miss.

Caught the Killjoys episode where they rescue the kids and blow up the RAC… and lose one of their own. Seriously, this show grabs me every time I watch. There's so much going on but the emotional beats always shine and don't get lost in the action. I'm looking forward to finishing out season four.

I'm through the halfway mark of Underbelly: Razor. The death toll keeps rising and the "Blood Alley" episode added to it with one of the major players going down. I'm loving the odd little beats of inner betrayal and turmoil, too.

On the sci-fi front, I watched an episode of Painkiller Jane and The Sarah Conner Chronicles. Each episode had a theme of painful past memories. Also caught an episode of Birds of Prey and had forgotten this one. I think I'm at the next to last episode before the series ends.

Finally, I watched the season one ender of Pensacola Wings of Gold. It's a to-be-continued-in-season-two thing and I guess I'll watch the first episode to see how they resolve getting rid of the entire team and starting from scratch. After that… eh… not sure I'll watch more.

That's pretty much it for television this week. Tonight's post is from Pumpkin Patch Honeymoon, an Organic Nature Short.

Here's the mini-blurb:

Eppie and Vin's unconventional journey comes full circle when they make a lasting commitment in the pumpkin patch where their story began. They decide a staycation will be the perfect endcap and discover during their idyllic week that passion only grows the more in love they fall.

And a snippety peek…

Eppie Collins put the finishing touches on the chic shed and turned to survey her handiwork. "Vin Derbish, you're going to love this week." She pulled up her mental checklist, ticking boxes in her mind.

Ready-made meals for seven days. Check.

A glorious copper tub—courtesy of her sister Dani—in the small nook behind the bed. Check.

Ambient lighting with candles, fairy lights, and rustic lanterns. Check.

A new streaming device connected to the television so they could curl up in bed and watch whatever they wanted. Check.

She double-checked the small wine rack and made sure the bottles she'd selected were all in place. Clothes for the week, if they wore any, were stashed neatly under the bed in cute containers designed by Lily. Eppie encouraged her coworker to make more and add them to the new online store they planned to launch in November.

The rightness of everything settled over Eppie and she relaxed into the feeling.

Her grandmother's voice echoed in Eppie's mind. "It's time, Epinera. Be happy and enjoy the life you've built."

Eppie wrapped her arms around her middle. "I will, Gram. I really will." She took one final glance around the shed then back out and closed the door.

Later this evening, she and Vin would return and spend a bliss-filled week together in the cozy little home away from home Vin built for her.

Eppie couldn't wait.

I love this series of sexy shorts so much. Eppie and Vin are a joy to write.

That's it for this week. Happy reading!

Skylin

Sunday Snippet: Pregnant Pause

That raging upper respiratory ick from last week is still going strong. I'll be very happy to see the end of this one. But… it made for a good week of television. And my daughter's seventeenth birthday ended up being pretty great.

I started the second episode of Endeavour's fifth season. I truly love this show and I'm enjoying the guest stars also. Caught another episode of The Sarah Conner Chronicles too. I seriously miss that show.

I went ahead and watched the first episode of Roswell, New Mexico. I'm intrigued and it should be fun to watch the reboot and the classic show at the same time. I hope.

Caught a few episodes of Classic Who this week while catching up on dishes and laundry. Also got to watch another episode of Birds of Prey. It's back on the CW Seed app.

I'm almost done with the first season of Pensacola Wings of Gold. I'll probably watch the first few eps of season two and decide from there if I'm going to continue. Caught another episode of Lexx, too.

Watched Gotham's second episode and, man, this show. It really found its footing and embraced the crazy. I'm going to miss it a lot.

Finished the week out with Strike Back and Chicago Fire. Gracie is fast becoming a favorite of mine. She's an amazing character. Also really great to see some character bonding on Chicago Fire.

That's it for television this week. Tonight's post is from Pregnant Pause, a novella that started with the two-word prompt of "I'm pregnant". I loved the challenge of writing a story based around those two words.

Here's the mini-blurb:

Nora Dunne and Logan Rider are wildly attracted to each other and doing a stint in a remote location for a research project. When sexual tension gets in the way of the work, their decision to act on the magnetic pull leads to unexpected consequences.

And a snippety peek…

Fight or fuck?

Logan would choose the latter, of course. But no way did he want to witness what Nora would do if she ended up regretting a sexual encounter. And he had no trouble picturing her melting down once the fun and games were over and the cold reality of having to share the same location with no one but them hit her square between the eyes.

Stepping back, he grasped her hands. "Key word. We." He resisted the urge to haul her close and screw any consequences. "Obviously, there's a thread of something here." Motioning back and forth between them emphasized his point. "But, also obviously, we have to live in each other's pockets for the next three to six months." He paused, not quite sure how to finish his train of thought.

Nora cut through the bullshit. "And if the sex sucks or we're not on the same page if it doesn't, it's gonna be a miserable nightmare." She nodded. "Not a fun possibility."

He snorted. "Right. And it's not like we have the option to leave if things get awkward." Subzero temperatures wouldn't necessarily cool off a hot temper.

Nora inclined her chin. "You make a fair point. Let me counter it with this." She moved closer, her handing lifting so she could trail a finger down his chest. "How much work do you think we'll get done if we're spending a lot of time focused on what might be instead of on our research?" She paused at his waistband, toying with the button.

His dick hardened and Logan didn't fight his reaction. "Not as much as we should." When her fingers popped the button, he gave in to his carnal impulse and crushed her mouth under his again.

Whatever happened next only mattered in terms of which room they used. His would be closer but hers had better heating. He really, really wanted to see her naked and gasping for him.

Nora solved the issue. "Yours first, then mine."

Good thing they hadn't started the timed experiments yet.

I'm excited to see where this one ends up going. Nora and Logan are kind of doing things backwards and that's fun to write.

That's it for this week. Happy reading!

Skylin

Sunday Snippets: Photo Ops

Ugh. Another week of crazy back and forth weather. We went from sixty-two degrees on Thursday to twenty-five on Friday. Every time I took the dog out starting on Thursday evening, I added a layer of clothes. And… I now have a raging upper respiratory ick thing. LOL Never fails.

Not a bad week for television. I caught the premiere of Strike Back and loved it. One of my favorite actors is starring this season and I'm very excited to see what he does on the show. I'm also kind of caught between the old style with Stonebridge and Scott and the new style with Wyatt, Mac, and Gracie. The former cast had more time to build the relationship between the leads and I liked how that spread over the four seasons they helmed the series. The new cast feels like they had to skip a lot of the nuance and I kind of miss that. And none of this is to say they don't gel together, because they do.

Also caught an episode of Chicago Fire and ended up being an ugly-crying mess by the end. Benny's sendoff didn't disappoint. I tend to get very emotional over signing off a fallen firefighter. With a retired fire chief dad who's still active with a volunteer department, those things hit home for me.

I'm almost finished with Luke Cage's second and final season. I'm pretty sure I'll be satisfied if Mariah goes down hard. I'd like Luke to have a resolution with his anger issues too and I think he's come a long way. Misty is just awesome no matter what so there's that.

Also caught Classic Roswell on a different app where I can watch single episodes. I'm looking forward to comparing the new reboot with the classic series.

Caught a few episodes of Classic Who this week and the Daleks are back, creating trouble as usual. I love how long this Whovian villain has been around.

Watched Murdoch Mysteries and Midsomer Murders. I love both of these series and how long they've been running.

Penny Dreadful had an interesting episode with Vanessa meeting the cut wife. The icky witch woman annoys me in ways I can't begin to describe. I do love Ethan and Vanessa's interactions so watching the creepy woman be evil is a small price to pay I guess.

Finally finishing up season four of Killjoys and, man, the "It Takes a Pillage" episode rocked on so many levels. Great character development and growth, a family reunion, betrayal, and Zeph being awesome. Can't ask for more than that.

Worked in another episode of Painkiller Jane, one I don't remember watching during the original run of the series. The show makes me nostalgic for La Femme Nikita and Mutant X. I miss the crazy creative style of that era of television.

Also started another episode of Underbelly: Razor. I'm about halfway through the series and continue to enjoy watching life in Australia during the twenties and thirties.

That's it for television this week. Tonight's post is from Photo Ops, a novella that started with a writing community prompt of writing a scene or a story around a main character reluctantly participating in a photo shoot. I added a small spin and set the story up for both characters being in front of the camera.

Here's the mini-blurb:

When Mace McKenna decides not to participate in the annual Officers of the City charity calendar photo shoot, Nina Dean won't let up until he caves. But when Nina loses a bet and has to pose for the women's version, she soon discovers Mace is the orchestrator of the whole thing.

And a snippety peek…

Mace swung his leg over the motorcycle and settled on the seat. "Long ass shift deserves a nice cold brew." Pop's Joint served for another hour.

A female voice called out, "Detective McKenna? Mace? Can I get a moment?" Her feet appeared first from a black SUV.

Long boots, black with white laces and chunky soles. Perfect for the shitty weather in March. Her fingers wrapped around the door frame, multiple rings on each digit. Finally, her head popped up and a smiling face greeted him.

She nudged the door shut and strode across the parking garage. "I hope you don't mind, but Micha Lowe said I'd probably be able to find you here after shift." She tucked a streaky silver swath of hair behind her ear and thrust out her palm. "I'm Seely Osgood, the photographer for the charity calendar. The one city hall is hoping will boost morale." Her raised eyebrows indicated he should know what she meant.

He didn't have a clue in hell.

But if Micha Lowe had his nose up in the deal, Mace already hated the idea.

Shaking her hand, he rested on the seat, keeping the bike ready to start. "I'm sorry, Ms. Osgood, you've made a wasted trip. I'm coming off a long shift and really don't have time to talk about calendars." A niggle of guilt edged against his spine. "Can we maybe meet another time? It's after midnight and I'm done for." The cold beer all but called his name.

She winced and gave him an apologetic flash of a smile. "Yeah, I'm sorry about the time. I get a little excited when I start a new project and this one is, well, something I've been dying to do for ages." Spreading her hands, she continued. "But, you're right. It's late and I can give you the rundown on where the photo shoot will be at a later time." She turned to get back in her vehicle.

Mace frowned. "Photoshoot? What are you talking about?" He started the bike, revving the engine and wheeled closer to her.

She grinned. "The Officers of the City shoot. We're getting a large group of you primo specimens gathered to get pictures for the big event."

Mace shook his head. "Oh, no. I'm not interested in being on some calendar. I'll buy tickets to the fundraiser or whatever else, but, yeah, I have zero desire to waste a day or even a minute on being photographed." Micha would get his ass kicked the next time Mace ran into him.

Seely's face fell. "But Micha said you'd be available—" She stopped short. "Ugh, never mind. I can see you're not open to having a conversation about it." Ducking into the SUV, she started the engine. "I'm sorry I wasted your time." While she pulled out, her mouth moved, no doubt making a call to the commissioner's rep.

Mace sighed. "Headache for tomorrow. Right now, Pop's is looking even better." He eased into traffic, pushing the stupid photo shoot idea to the very back of his mind.

No way would he be stripping down for the entire city's amusement.

Not even for morale.

Poor Mace. He won't be happy when the headache for tomorrow hits him right between the eyes.

That's it for this week. Happy reading!

Skylin

Sunday Snippet: Past All Limits

Brrrr. The past week ended up being a wild ride of crappy weather and really cold temperatures. Of course, we're warming up for a few days then back to the icy tundra again. I predict lots of colds and other nasty viral illnesses in the near future. Bleh.

It was a good week to stay in and watch television. I finished a 77 Sunset Strip marathon binge watch. I love the classic show, even the last season that only had Bailey as the detective. Completely different tone but good episodes.

Caught another episode of Pensacola Wings of Gold. Kind of fun to have them in a different location. Also watched an episode of Lexx. This is one I didn't remember seeing the first time around. Nice to have something unexpected.

Started the fifth season of Endeavor. I love this show. I'm kind of looking forward to maybe doing an entire start-to-finish watch of Inspector Frost once the Endeavor series concludes. I can follow it up with Lewis. Started episode two of season fourteen of Midsomer Murders. I'm quite enjoying the new Barnaby and somewhat different tone of the show.

Finally got to watch the fifth season premiere of Gotham. The app on my streaming device was being contrary and kept stopping before the opening credits even rolled. Played the stupid ads though. Loved the opening episode. Between this show and Riverdale, the batshit crazy can't be topped. Just saying.

I caught some more Classic Who, finishing up the space museum episodes and starting on the next Dalek arc. Also binge watched a day of Mod Squad.

That's it for television. A little lighter than I originally thought. Tonight's post is from Past All Limits, a novella that started as an exercise in how to bring a couple back together after a bad breakup.

Here's the mini-blurb:

Scarlett Jayne and Dare Humphries have issues. Scarlett can't commit and Dare won't wait around. After a nasty breakup, the former couple is thrown together for a groundbreaking at a new training facility. Six months isn't quite enough time for them to be sharing space.

And a snippety peek…

Scarlett exited the locker room, hoisting her bag over her shoulder. "Why the hell didn't you tell me you worked for Dare Humphries?" God, could she have picked a worse get-back-on-the-horse hookup?

Lance pinned her with a confused look. "You know him? I had no idea." He paced back and forth, no doubt worrying about his employment.

Scarlett set her bag on the floor. "He's my ex. So… yeah, I know him."

Geez, how did she miss Dare's involvement in the gym? Speaking of kissing jobs good-bye. Hers might as well be toast. No way would Dare let her train with her group of battered women. Not here.

Lance put a hand to his forehead. "This is fucked up." He stopped mid-stride. "Tell me you didn't do this on purpose." The accusation in his tone rang off the walls.

Scarlett sighed. "I didn't, Lance. Hell, I didn't know he was one of the backers. You've only mentioned Bart." Connolly. A guy Scarlett had a long history with… just not the couple kind.

She blew out a long breath. "Bart and I go way back and he won't have a problem with you giving me some time and space here." Not like she wanted it for free; her grant gave her enough to pay her way. "But Dare… ugh… he's gonna be a problem." So much for getting her group into a safe facility where they could learn self-defense.

Lance turned to face her. "Look, you signed a contract and paid in advance. Bart will support your project, which means Dare won't have much to say about whether you use this space or not." He paused a moment then huffed out a sigh. "But you and me? Yeah, that's one and done." He held her gaze with decisiveness.

Scarlett nodded. "Understandable." Not like she wanted a long-term relationship with him. "Think we knew that going in, didn't we?" When he lifted a shoulder, she added an apology. "I'm sorry I put you in such a shitty position." Not that she meant to, but still…

Her crazy need to finally get back out in the world hit at the worst possible time.

But Dare wouldn't go back on his word. As long as Lance kept his distance from her and didn't bang anyone else after hours, his job would be safe. She'd take full blame for talking him into having sex at the gym.

Lance smirked. "Yeah, well, not the first time my dick ruled my brain." His lips quirked. "First time I ever got caught with my pants down though." He shook his head.

She snorted. "Wish I could make that claim." Dare happened to be her partner in action when they got busted in a compromising position.

Lance's eyes went wide. "Damn… you're kinda wild, aren't you?"

She shrugged. "Sometimes my idea of fun is a little out there." With the things she witnessed and heard all day, would anyone blame her for creating her own brand of normal?

Lance went serious. "Look, I'll have to ask you—"

She cut him off. "You really don't have to. From this moment on, I'll behave around here. The startup of my project means too much to me to screw it up." She waited a beat. "And I'm hoping this…" Hesitating to label their tryst a mistake, she switched gears a little. "I'd like to be friends, if nothing else." Considering how often she'd be using No Limits, being at odds with Lance would suck.

Especially if Scarlett had to deal with Dare on any kind of regular basis.

Lance flashed a quick smile. "I'd like that a lot. But we'd better get you out of here if we want to make that happen." He grabbed her bag and started toward the main lobby.

Scarlett followed, oddly unnerved by the whole situation. Seriously, what were the odds she'd pick a facility co-owned by Dare Humphries and what did it mean in the big picture?

Better yet… what the hell would she do about it?

I like writing Scarlett's slow fall to the inevitable truth of who she belongs with. Dare, of course. Getting her there is so much fun to write.

That's it for this week. Happy reading!

Skylin