Sunday Snippet: Zootropolis

What a week. We've been very lucky to this point and have avoided anyone coming down with Covid. That ended on Tuesday. Luckily, out of the four living at home, only one tested positive and the others are, so far, negative. I'm crossing my fingers that holds.

Had a decent week and a little more balance on my work projects. I'm trying to more even paced and mindful about my work-life time.

Ended up getting a good amount of television watched this week. I started a new show and picked out a new one to begin next week.

I caught the first of a two-part Blue Heelers and ended up enjoying it a lot. Kind of sad to see Chris and Adam part ways, but I'm interested to see how that plays out.

Ended up enjoying two MasterClass lessons with Neil deGrasse Tyson. The second one ended up being fairly lengthy so maybe my note from last week was premature.

Watched two more episodes of the Babysitters Club and I'm completely charmed by this show. I can see why everyone kind of fell in love with it. Good stuff.

Caught two episodes of Classic Rugrats. Both ended up taking me back to when my oldest was still a toddler and watched the show daily. Two of his favorite episodes were in the group I watched.

Got two episodes of Chicago Med in and, wow, season four kind of went in a few crazy directions. I'm on one of the last episodes of the season and I'm kind of wondering where they'll go with five.

Enjoyed another episode of The Snoopy Show. This is such a fun and lighthearted half hour. Highly recommend if you need something low-key to watch.

Watched another episode of Loch Ness. I'm close to the end and I'm pretty sure I've got a good idea of who the killer is. There have been a lot of red herrings and I'm on the fence between two theories. Can't wait to find out if I'm right.

Got another Classic Who episode in. I'm into an arc I haven't seen, which is good because that distracts me from the low-budget everything about this season of the show.

Caught another episode of Most Terrifying Places in America. Honestly, I kind of enjoy hearing about all the weird, haunted, scary places that abound in the US.

Started The Mandalorian and loved the low-key dry humor. Looking forward to watching more for sure.

Watched an episode of The Hardy Boys. Have to admit, I'm getting annoyed by Joe. He was a lot of quirky fun in the first season but not so much in the second. He's still got good snark, but he's lost a lot of his good nature. I hope that gets explained. We'll see.

Caught another episode of Peak Practice. This one ended up being really good with great plot lines. Nice to Alice back in her home and trying to deal with the scary flashbacks of the robbery. I actually hope they pick up with that and find the guy.

Last but not least, I caught another episode of the Ready Room. Doug Jones was the guest and it fun to get insight into his character and the Kelpian race.

That's pretty much it for the life update this week. Tonight's post is from Zootropolis, a novella that features an opposites attract relationship that gets off to a rocky start.

Here's the mini-blurb:

Mackenna Sycks is looking to raise money for a wildlife refuge in Africa. When Walton Conley offers to back her project, she balks, thinking the hot shot playboy has ulterior motives. He does, but he's also a whiz with fundraisers and surprises Mackenna with gala affair dubbed Zootropolis.

And a snippety peek…

Walton quirked an eyebrow. "Is that a compliment? Coming from you?" He didn't want the warm kick her enthusiasm gave him.

He wanted to stay mad because he'd worked his ass off to make the presentation damn near perfect only to have her possibly ruin it.

She gave a wary nod. "Gotta admit I'm impressed. So, yes, definitely a compliment." She ran her fingers over the miniature mock-up.

He moved to stand next to her. "Thank you. And I really built the whole thing myself." Rarely did he take full credit, but his project involved no one else in his company … yet. "I didn't trust anyone else to create the vision I have for the benefit." Which she might not know about if she hadn't spoken to Carrie. "That's why I called this group in. I can give you the money for the down payment and fund the sanctuary. But if we get everyone I brought in on board, you wouldn't have to worry about ongoing costs or support." She'd have a sizeable chunk of money in the bank, and if he invested it for her, she could watch it grow.

Mackenna lifted her chin. "I get it. The more people who get involved, the better to drum up donations." She put the elephant back and turned to meet his gaze. "If the gala goes well, it could become an annual event, right?"

He grunted. "Sure. If necessary. And it might be after the blunder today." He hated possibly seeing his hard work go down the drain. "Can I ask? Did you really deliver a gazelle today?"

She blushed. "I helped, yes. And if you think you can get everyone back in two days, I'll have a little time to regroup and then I can explain what happened." She moved away from the credenza and paced back and forth. "I'll do my best to wow them and show how much this entire project means to me." She paused a moment. "I could even have the zoo vet take some pictures of the fawn. People love that stuff, don't they?"

He considered the idea. "Baby animals? Are you kidding? They'll eat it up." He moved to his desk and opened his contact list. "I'll set a new meeting for eleven a.m. the day after tomorrow. Does that work for you?"

She gave him a tentative smile. "I'll make it work. And I promise I won't be wearing flip-flops, mucky shorts, or a tank top." Heading for the door, she lifted a hand in farewell.

Walton tilted his head to one side when the door closed behind her. "I have a sinking feeling she's going to surprise me with something incredibly sexy."

And that might not be a good thing…

This story is so much fun. I love a small bit of miscommunication, especially when two people are trying really hard not to admit their feelings.

 

That's it for this week. Happy reading!

Skylin