Sunday Snippet: The Deep End

Well, June is off to an auspicious start. Not only a pandemic still raging but global protests against police brutality and systematic racism. It's a wild time to be alive. Whew.

Not a bad week of television viewing overall, especially considering how intense this past week has been. I started out with some new Blue Heelers and almost finished up the episode.

Also caught several more episodes of Danger Man. I'm almost through the second season and should be starting the third soon.

I did indeed start Gabriel's Inferno and I've been catching bits and pieces throughout the week. This is a movie I want to watch during uninterrupted time so it'll take me a while to get through the full two hours. I'm excited there will be more to come with a second part to this and I think two more books to adapt. Good stuff so far.

Also did some additional listening to the Battlestar Galactica soundtrack for season three. I'm going to have to hunt down the works I don't have from Bear McCreary. He's truly a remarkable composer.

That's pretty much it for television this week. Tonight's post is from The Deep End, a novella with a sibling rivalry component—one of my favorite tropes.

Here's the mini-blurb:

Raelin is six months into a relationship with Eames, but isn't feeling the spark … until she meets Eric, Eames's brother. The sibling rivalry takes an ugly turn and Raelin takes a big step back so the men can mend fences.

And a snippety peek…

Raelin buried her nervous tension and exited the car. "How long has your brother been in the navy?" Such an odd choice considering Eames drove a route sales truck for an auto parts manufacturer and his mom and dad were successful representatives overseeing US interests in Europe.

Eames draped an arm over her shoulder. "He's been a squid for ten years, or close to it." Pulling the door to the bar open, he cracked a wide smile. "Yo, Eric! Long time, no see, bro." He left her side and shook hands with a slightly older version of himself.

Raelin hung back, especially when Eames bear-hugged his brother and made a show of lifting him off his feet. Classic Eames, drawing every eye in the room their way. Raelin shook her head. The closest thing she had to a sibling—her cousin Mara—would utterly die if Raelin greeted her with so much enthusiasm.

Mara had very specific ideas of how people should conduct themselves in public. Raelin loved her cousin to death, but didn't have a lot in common with her. They got along famously as long as Raelin didn't get too rowdy.

Eames stepped away from his brother. "Rae, come meet the firstborn Bannerman." He snagged her arm and tugged her forward. "Eric, meet Raelin Hicks. A woman of significant taste." He sent a wink her way.

Raelin rolled her eyes but thrust her hand forward. "Nice to meet you."

Eric clasped her palm and met her gaze. A zing shot through her and she blinked. Hello, deep end. The drowning pull of desire hit her hard. Holy shit. What the hell?

Eric's firm grip lingered a little. "Uh, same." He let go, cleared his throat, and glanced away.

Rae tried to recover. She'd met a man she could probably spend the rest of her life with—her boyfriend's brother. Geez. She did not just think that.

Eric snorted. "You know, I gotta ask how you manage to put up with him? I mean, I'm his brother so I kind of have to…" He flashed a quick grin in his Eames's direction.

Eames huffed out a breath. "Did you miss the part where I said she had impeccable taste?" He quirked an eyebrow and looked toward her.

Rae finally got her tongue unstuck from the roof of her mouth and shrugged, joining in the banter. "Eh, he kind of grows on you." She fell into step between the men when a hostess flagged them for their table.

Eric chuckled. "Right. Mainly because he plants roots and sprouts up like a bad weed."

Eames pulled his chair out. "At least you didn't compare me to toilet paper on a shoe." He settled down and grabbed a menu. "That's usually what you cock off with."

Eric smirked and sat down.

Rae responded the only way she could … by laughing her ass off.

I love writing siblings and Eric and Eames are fun, even when they have a big conflict. I can't explain why I have so much fondness for meeting the wrong brother first, but it's one of my favorite things to dive into.

That's it for this week. Happy reading!

Skylin