Sunday Snippet: Academic Challenge

Well … the beginning of my birthday week is off to a chilly start. The good news is the temps are supposed to warm up this week, which is kind of nice. I could use a little mild weather to improve my mood. The other good news is our new roof did indeed fix the leak situation. We had several days of icy rain and no drips!

Busy week on the work front again. I like having multiple projects but a particularly brutal edit made for a long seven days. I'm looking forward to the new week.

Light viewing schedule for television. I needed to focus on work in a big way. I finished up the premiere episode of Strike Back and, okay, Coltrane's attitude improved. Hmm. Maybe not improved, but at least I get why he's kind of off the rails. A terrific episode overall.

Watched two more episodes of Gargoyles and I think I missed both in the original run. I enjoyed viewing the new-to-me ones.

Caught another episode of Arrow and thoroughly enjoyed the somewhat insane mix of past and present in the aptly titled "Present Tense" episode. I'm looking forward to a return to Russia in the next one.

Watched an episode of Murdoch Mysteries and quite liked revisiting an old nemesis of William's, especially since he's been somewhat converted into an ally. I also loved the intrigue of having Brackenreid's daughter meet his wife.

Started an episode of Riverdale and got sidetracked with work. I'm hoping to finish up soon and maybe see the end of the farmies once and for all. Fingers crossed.

Other than the above, I caught an airing of Grease 2, which is actually one of my all-time favorite movies. I even like it better than the original. I also did a marathon of mystery movies on Hallmark Movies and Mysteries.

That's pretty much it for television. Tonight's post is from Academic Challenge, a novella that got a start with a writing community prompt.

Here's the mini-blurb:

Holly Patz, the newest TA for Professor Sam Ingali, wants to enjoy the experience. But when rumors start swirling about her relationship with the handsome instructor, she has to decide whether to stick around and become his latest conquest or turn the odds in her favor.

And a snippety peek…

Sam stood outside Holly's door. "Here goes nothing." Knocking on the hard wood, he stepped back.

He'd gone for grinder subs from a local place on campus and picked up a bottle of wine. He didn't have much of a clue about his new TA, an oddity to be certain, but he'd seen wrappers from the food shop in her office so he figured he'd be safe.

The sound of the knob turning drew his attention and Holly greeted him with a smile and a towel-covered head. She'd changed into a pair of sexy yoga pants and a T-shirt. Her bare toes sported an emerald green polish, the pop of color surprising him.

She stepped aside to let him in. "Sorry. I got done a little early and thought I'd get a shower to rinse off the paint smudges." Nodding toward a café table, she shut the door. "We can eat there or at the coffee table, whichever you prefer." She unwrapped the towel, shaking her hair out. "Let me throw this in the laundry bin and I'll be right back." She ducked into the bathroom and returned. "Do you want to eat while going over the lecture or…" Her voice trailed off and one of her eyebrows shot up.

He hadn't really thought that far ahead. "Great question. Do you have a preference?" He put the bags down on the café table and placed the bottle of wine beside them. "I'll mainly be running through the topics of my lecture and hoping you'll help me figure out the order to present them in." His general idea being getting through the information while they ate.

Holly noticed the food. "Oh! I love the subs from Chester's." She crossed over to the table and opened the bag. "Let's eat while you go over the details. Once we're through, you could maybe do a dry run?" She started taking out the wrapped sandwiches.

Sam nodded. "Sounds great. I went with the sampler combo, four of their most popular grinders with kettle chips, slaw, and two desserts." He picked up the wine. "Do you have a couple of glasses?"

She grabbed two and carried them to the coffee table. "Let's eat here. More comfortable." Placing the goblets on the surface, she met him halfway to help with the food. "So, what's the main point you need to make with this lecture?" She settled down and tucked her feet under her.

Sam chose the chair perpendicular to the sofa. "I have two. Let me outline both and then I'll get started on the main points." He unwrapped a sub and took a bite.

Man … he understood why she liked the place. After chewing through his first taste, he glanced up to find her grinning. He lifted the sandwich in a toast and she laughed.

He liked the sound. A lot.

This one is coming along. I have the general details nailed down but the characters keep throwing little twists my way. The sages sit back and laugh and laugh.

That's it for this week. Happy reading!

Skylin