Sunday Snippet: Under the Impression

Another crazy week with record low temperatures for August. I'm talking wear a jacket because it dipped into the low forties at night. This week we're supposed to be back up in the mid to high nineties. Weather is wild.

Seriously jammed with work projects right now and I love being busy. I'm at the point where I'd love to have another four hours added to each day, so I don't feel like there aren't enough hours in the day. Also had to figure out a few things for my daughter's grad school, like how to drop a class and add a new one before the semester starts, which is Monday. As mentioned last week, she was in Ontario Canada for a theater festival and didn't have a lot of downtime. The good news is, she's set to go. Yay!

I didn't have a lot of viewing time this week. The verdict on my car is still out and that's been hovering in the back of my mind and distracting me. My work projects also need my full attention.

I did get to watch an episode of Elementary and ended up enjoying it. I skipped the one that I struggled to get through. I'd rather have forward momentum than get stuck and drop the show.

And that's pretty much it for the life update this week. Tonight's post is from Under the Impression, a novella where the characters come together once they get past some false impressions.

Here's the miniblurb:

Gris Ravenswood, owner of the hot night spot, Impressions, has it bad for his lead bartender, Kari Dans, but she's in a casual relationship with a semi-pro golfer. When Kari imbibes too much at an after party and puts the moves on Gris, he thinks he's finally got a chance … until Kari receives a text and runs off to be with the guy who always leaves her behind.

And a snippety peek…

Kari wiped the bar down on Friday night. "Man, busy week." The steady growth thrilled her.

Gris had turned Impressions into a happening spot. The Thursday night crowd almost matched Friday's. He'd taken her suggestion to add a dart league and it turned out to be a hit with the customers. And brought patrons in on a night that used to be hit or miss.

Her lips curved. "Gris should join one of the teams." The man had skill.

She'd arrived just after he had the boards installed and he'd taken a trial run. He had excellent form … not that she actually knew much about what amounted to good form. What she did know? His biceps were amazing. And his forearms. And, quite frankly, his ass.

She blinked and shook her head. "Geez, Kari, chill." Okay, she found the man very attractive.

But she tried to steer clear of workplace romances. Besides, she had a guy she enjoyed a lot. Even if Gris seemed to find Bernie lacking. The crack about what her boyfriend did on the weekends came from nowhere. Then again, she really didn't know what Bernie did Friday through Sunday. She assumed he played practice rounds to prep for his tournaments during the week. Didn't matter. She didn't mind only seeing him two or sometimes three days a week.

She liked being casually committed and staying monogamous. She enjoyed doing her own thing without having to clear her schedule to accommodate anyone else. Not that she wouldn't if she ever fell hard for the right guy. Maybe that would be Bernie, but they definitely weren't there yet.

She rinsed the cleaning cloth and hung it on the rack to dry. Grabbing her inventory checklist, she scanned through the items and marked what the bartender would need for the opening shift tomorrow. After removing the list, she thought about taking it into Gris's office—the light showing through the crack of the door showed he hadn't left yet.

She shook her head. "Nah. I'll leave it on the bar in case he had one of the bar backs handle the restocking." Too many visual images of her boss were still running through her mind.

Putting her jacket on, she headed for the rear exit and her car. Two more days and she'd Bernie again…

She couldn't wait.

Right?

I like having a heroine who thinks she has it all together but learns the hard way she doesn't.

 

That's it for this week. Happy reading!

 

Skylin

Sunday Snippet: Unacceptable Behavior

Whew! What a week. It's been something of a wild ride. My daughter starts graduate school in Athens the week of August 25, and we're still trying to figure out her financial aid. She's headed to Ontario Canada this week for a theater festival, which is what she'll be getting her master's degree in. My work inbox is overflowing! I'm so grateful for all the new projects but also a little daunted by how much I have stacked up and waiting for me to get to. My car also has an issue that we're hoping is not the computer. I'll know more on Monday. Ugh!

I didn't get much done on the viewing front. Too many things needed my focus elsewhere. Between the phone calls for school and car problems, my brain turned to mush. Bleh.

I did get an episode of Best in Paradise in. I enjoyed it again. It's fun to have the introductions from the cast members.

I also got to watch the closing episode of Death in Paradise season eight. A very interesting and twisty episode with a really cool gesture at the end from the commissioner.

And I also finished up the main draft of a holiday manuscript I've been working on for, geez, almost a year. The sages finally cooperated and threw a bunch of ideas out. I'm so happy about that.

That's pretty much it for the life update this week. Tonight's post is from Unacceptable Behavior, a novella that brings friends from high school together after going in different directions after graduation.

Here's the miniblurb:

Blain Donahue wants to buy into a fight club and decides to invest when he meets the main attraction, Roxane Kewes. He's known her a long time—since high school where she constantly got in trouble—and thinks it's great she's found an outlet for her unacceptable behavior.

And a snippety peek…

Roxane yawned and poured coffee into two mugs. "Hope he likes it black." She carried the cups into the bedroom.

Blain sat on the edge of the mattress, sorting through his clothes. He'd put his boxers on, but the rest of his uncovered body gave her more than enough to ogle … which she did before he glanced up to see her.

He stood and gave her a long look. "Where do you see this going? I mean is this going somewhere or just a nice interlude to eliminate sexual tension." His brows arched.

Roxane handed him a mug. "I'm not averse to going long-term, but twenty-four hours is a little soon to make declarations." She blew across the top of her brew and took a bracing gulp.

More to avoid making a declaration, because she really, really liked him. She kind of got how her mom always leapt before she thought too hard, though. Roxane could easily jump wherever Blain wanted her to go. And … she didn't want to think too hard about what that meant.

Blain took a long sip of coffee. "I don't disagree." He set the mug aside. "From our conversation last night, I assume we will be working together." His hands slid up under the long T-shirt she wore.

Roxane grinned. "I'll let Andy know later this morning." She ran her fingers along the waistband of his boxers. "You'll be a good fit at Fight Night." Tugging him to her bed, she worked his underwear down. "I think we'll do amazing things together." She kissed him before he stripped her shirt off.

Placing a knee between her thighs, Blain hauled her close and toppled them onto the mattress. "Amazing and unacceptable things, right?" His mouth ghosted over her shoulder, sending molten lust through her veins.

Roxane hooked a leg around his hip, drawing him closer. "It's like you live in my head." She lifted her hips, grinding against his hard length.

Blain didn't make her wait. He thrust forward, sliding deep and filling her. His lips met hers and she lost the ability to think … with the exception of finding anything unacceptable with him absolutely perfect.

This story is so much fun. There might be a twist or two but nothing too angsty.

 

That's it for this week. Happy reading!

Skylin

Sunday Snippet: Ugly Drunk

August is being very mercurial. Instead of sweltering hot temps, which we did have last week, we've got—I'm not kidding—almost fall-like weather. I had to put a jacket on last night to take the dogs out. Granted, it was still sixty degrees, but we had a strong breeze blowing and it was chilly. Please note, I'm not complaining. But … does this mean Ohio will have blazing hot temperatures in October? Probably.

Super-busy work week again. Finished up the mystery manuscript copy edit. Started a proofread of a memoir on a prominent thoroughbred racing family. I still have two other memoirs in the wings, one of which should start this week. I also have a romance to copy edit. I love being busy!

But … that means I didn't have a lot of time for viewing television. I did, however, find out one of my favorite actors has a new movie coming out in September and might have watched the trailer two or three (okay, more like twelve) times. I'm excited because this movie will totally be my shit and I now have something to look forward to in a month or so.

I finished up the My Life Is Murder episode I started last week. Again, a fun episode where Madison got to shine. I love this cast so much.

I also started the new series of Signora Volpe. This is another series I thoroughly enjoy. Emilia Fox is iconic for her role in Silent Witness and it's so lovely to see her doing something new and fresh and very unlike Nikki.

That's pretty much it for the life update this week. Tonight's post is from Ugly Drunk, a novella that brings a couple together over a loss.

Here's the miniblurb:

Pippa Rice is a problem solver and when she takes a job at a local watering hole, her natural skill defuses quite a few tricky situations. Too bad she can't quite figure out how to fix her boss, Wood Finnian. The guy has more baggage than an airport, but Pippa isn't one to give up on people, ever.

And a snippety peek…

Holy shit. She could get so lost in his embrace she'd forget her own name. The sweep of powerful want and need almost took her breath away.

When they had their first make-out session, Wood didn't really go deep, even though the kisses were packed with heat. This time he did. Except … his emotions were all open and raw, and they informed everything he did at the moment. How much of Wood's onslaught on her lips tangled up in his grief?

Dammit.

She hated to do this, but … she tore her mouth from his then stepped back. "Wait. Slow down." She dragged air into her lungs. "Slow down." She spoke to her heart as much as she did to him.

He backed away and held up his hands. "Sorry. Got carried away. Seem to do that with you." His mouth curved with a wry twist.

She nodded. "Yeah. Same." She fanned her face. "I'd love to jump right in, but like I said … you have the power to break me. I need to be sure." And she couldn't be … not so close to Ward's death.

Wood reached out for her. "I don't want to break you, Pip. I want to build something." He snorted. "Which probably sounds stupid coming from me, considering my penchant for destruction." His thumb brushed over her kiss-stung lower lip.

She shook her head. "No. It doesn't sound stupid. But … is it the loss that makes you say you want to build something? Are you looking for a replacement?" Because she couldn't be that for him.

Wood opened his mouth then checked himself. "Honestly? I don't think so, but I can't be one hundred percent right now." His brows furrowed.

Pippa smiled. "Good answer. I would've called bullshit if you said anything else." She grasped his hips and tugged him forward.

Wood rested his forehead against hers. "Where does that leave us?" His voice rasped against her ear.

Pippa rolled a shoulder. "Right now? It leaves us with a chance." A solid one, she hoped.

Excited to see where this one goes. So far, it's on track, but the sages often throw me curve balls.

 

That's it for this week. Happy reading!

Skylin 

Sunday Snippet: Twenty-Four-Hour Pass

Man, July felt like a decade but it actually kind of flew by. August is off to a running start and it's hot temperature-wise, which is the norm for rural central Ohio. We've had some big storms move through, too.

My inbox is jammed with work projects and that makes me happy! I'm working on a mystery for a copy edit. I have a developmental edit on a memoir. There's a possible copy edit of another memoir in the wings and some research for another author. I also sent the next set of chapters on a developmental edit to the author for review. I love being busy.

I didn't get a lot watched this week. I started an episode of My Life Is Murder but have to finish it. I also haven't been able to get back to the episode of Elementary I started two weeks ago. I don't know … I'm not as into this episode and I'm struggling to finish it. Maybe I should skip to the next one.

I did have a fairly good week of writing, which also limits my screentime. I got a big scene written for one of my WIPs and a few smaller ones for a couple of other works in progress. All in all a good week!

That's it for the life update. Tonight's post is from Twenty-Four-Hour Pass, a novella that got a start with a writing community prompt.

Here's the miniblurb:

Teegan Alexander and Fyffe Campbell rarely work in the same location. When an event puts them in the same city at the same time, they take advantage of the situation and use a twenty-four-hour pass for a long overdue reunion.

And a snippety peek…

Teegan Alexander's phone vibrated with an incoming text. "Crap. This better not be a message saying my flight's delayed." She'd been in the air more than out for five days.

She moved to the side of the wide causeway and glanced at the screen. She smiled wide. A text from Fyffe Campbell. Is he working the conference with the mayors from the nation's biggest cities?

Swiping the icon, she quickly read the message. "Hey Teeg. I've got 24 hours after the Boston conference before I have to report to an undisclosed location for another job. I'd love to hook up if you have time."

Luckily, she did. She also had a one-day window before she had to fly out for her next assignment. More than she often got during the busy summer months when security firms were in high demand for both outdoor events and inside venues.

Filled with anticipation, she sent a quick reply. "Hell yes. We'll figure out the details after the briefing in Boston." She added a heart-eyes emoji.

Twenty-four hours with Fyffe.

More than two months had gone by since she'd last seen him. Fyffe usually ran a shadow team if a credible threat came in, and they'd received one about the Boston conference. She shouldn't be surprised he got the call to work the summit meeting, even if the mayors were only supposed to talk about green energy benefits. Some rando had a burr up their ass about conspiracy theories and wanted to stop the progress. Who thinks saving the planet is a bad idea?

Teegan grabbed the handle of her roll-on suitcase and headed for her gate. "Twenty-four hours with Fyffe." She couldn't wait.

Even though they worked for the same private security firm, they often went in opposite directions. Hired in at the same time five years ago, they went through a rigorous training program and became fast friends … with benefits. Two years later, they were exclusive, even if they spent a lot of time apart.

She missed him. His killer smile. His wit. And … mmm … the hard body that made her drool.

The conference next week gave her time to primp a little. She could do a spa afternoon at the hotel, get a haircut, and generally make herself gorgeous to blow Fyffe's mind.

Getting in line to board the plane, she opened the hotel app and started scrolling to make plans.

Literally just started this one and I'm excited to see where the characters take me.

 

That's it for this week. Happy reading!

Skylin