Sunday Snippet: Zootropolis

Hello, September. I'm always caught off guard when the calendar flips over to September 1. It's like, wait, wait, I'm not ready for the insanity to start yet. Sadly, the universe doesn't care and the days keep marching on anyway.

The Last Ship's second week provided entertaining fare. I can't wait to see what happened after the end of last week's episode.

Caught the finale for Dark Matter and truly hope it's not the actual series finale. Way too many questions left up in the air. Fingers crossed someone picks up the series and it continues on some way.

Killjoys is renewed for two more seasons! I'm up to the episode before the finale and I'm so, so happy we'll get more of this terrific cast and show.

Wynonna Earp keeps blowing me away. I only have a few more episodes to watch before the finale. I'll honestly be glad to see the last of the widows.

I'm caught up on Teen Wolf and ready for tonight's episode. More familiar faces are returning and I'm excited to see what happens this week.

That wraps up television for this week. Tonight's post is from Zootropolis, a novella that started with a writing community prompt of one main character is a caretaker of exotic animals and the other meets them through their work.

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 braced an elbow on the open window of the car door. "Carrie, thanks for the ride out to Mackenna's sanctuary and for her contact information." He paused a moment. "I'll, uh, give her a call when I have the time set for the fundraiser meeting." He didn't comment on Mackenna's prickly disposition.

The two women were polar opposites, which meant they probably complemented each other in their rescue endeavors.

Carrie gave him a wry smile. "Mackenzie's bark is worse than her bite. She'll grow on you. Give her time." She leaned toward the window. "Don't think I didn't notice your interested perusal of her when we pulled up. She's not as far off base with the whole playboy persona as you'd like her to be, is she?"

His reputation often became inflated by the gossipmongers, but he couldn't deny the kernels of truth. He worked hard and played accordingly.

But he hadn't expected the direct questioning of his character. "Perhaps not. But this is one instance where I won't be mixing business with pleasure." As if Mackenna Sycks would let him.

Carrie laughed. "Somehow, I don't think you'll stay true to your word on that front." She put the truck in gear. "But Mackenna's bullshit detector rarely fails her. You've got your work cut out with her." She let her foot off the brake and waved, wearing a wide grin, when she backed out of the parking space.

Walton frowned. Okay, he'd own the once-over and even admit an attraction to the leggy Mackenna. The woman had a terrific set of gams. Actually, she impressed the hell out of him overall.

Yet she couldn't have made it more obvious he didn't rate high on her list at all.

He turned and started toward his office. Arriving in jeans and a casual shirt should set the topic of conversation among the staff. He hadn't pulled anything other than a suit from his closet in ages.

 Cutoff cargo pants and a form-fitting t-shirt flashed through his mind.

He shook his head. "Get over it, Conley. She definitely only wants your money." Sort of… and only after he mentioned his grandparents.

Why had he even mentioned them? He never talked about his grandparents. They meant too much to him.

What would it take to bring Mackenna around? To see something other than derision in her gaze?

He stopped, his hand poised to open the door to his office. "Why the hell do I even care?" He snorted and entered the building, greeting the stable of receptionists with a nod, and ignored their open-mouthed reactions.

Strolling to his office, he pushed Mackenna Sycks aside and turned his thoughts toward creating a kick ass fundraising event. Foregoing his desk, he settled in at his drafting table and grabbed a pencil. Clearing his mind, he started sketching.

"Let's see if I can create something wild and wonderful for Ms. Hard-to-Impress."

He blithely ignored the fact she'd crept back into his headspace again.

I like having two characters that find each other attractive but don't start out on the right foot.

That's it for this week. Happy reading!

Skylin

Sunday Snippet: Getting Schooled

March 9, 2014

Whew. Crazy weather week of back and forth between frigid temps and snow and a lovely little warm-up that didn't last very long. LOL At least I had good television to watch.

As predicted, Arrow's episode fifteen, The Promise, proved to be seriously bad ass. I almost think they crammed too much into the hour—I would have loved to see a little more detail. I'm just not quite down with Slade being so uber-pissed at Oliver over Shado's death. Yes, I'm aware the Mirakuru IS the reason he's not particularly rational. But Ivo's manipulation seemed a little conveniently heavy-handed. Of course, Oliver's guilt doesn't help so there's that. LOL I'm also really interested to see if the rumor mill speculation about who Felicity's father is proves correct.

Bitten is still eating my brain. Seriously, the final episodes of the season should be mega-uncomfortable for the characters. And if Daniel Santos doesn't die a horrible death like he did in the books, I'm gonna lose my mind. J

Only one episode of Banshee left and I'm actively praying Rabbit gets his due. Then I'll probably have to wait for next season to see what the fallout will be from Proctor, but I can deal. Something to look forward to. J

Tonight's post is from Getting Schooled, a novella where my characters get schooled by their tween-aged campers. Fun times!

Here's the tagline:

Tamsin and Ike are resident leaders at neighboring summer camps. Tamsin works with upper crust girls and Ike has underprivileged boys. When a grant program director suggests bridging the gap, neither is very excited by the prospect, but once they meet, both get schooled in by how well the kids get along.

And a snippety peek…

Ike spun around and snarled. "Up yours."

Tamsin lifted a brow. "Really? Do you have any idea how juvenile that sounds?" Her lips twitched, but she didn't laugh.

Ike sighed. "I spend my day with twelve-year-olds. Can't help it if they rub off on me." He gathered up the folder he'd put together for the grant director.

Tamsin snorted. "I don't know any twelve-year-old who still says 'up yours'." She neatly stacked the flash drives she'd used for her presentation.

He narrowed his eyes. "Probably because you're spending a lot of time teaching them to say 'fuck you'." The insult rolled off his lips before he could stop it.

She blinked. "Wow. Harsh." She sank down onto one of the brightly painted, wooden folding chairs.

Contrite, Ike apologized. "Yeah, sorry. You seem to bring out the mean in me." A terrible excuse for being an asshole, but Tamsin's stunt with director pissed him off.

She definitely took advantage of all the privilege at her fingertips. He chose to keep things simple and opted for a dry erase board and the file. He'd donated new laptops to the camp, paid for out of his pocket, so his boys could gain some experience working with graphics and gaming programs. Her girls had more interest in the latest make-up and fashion trends than learning valuable skills and Tamsin encouraged them by staging a big end of summer soiree, complete with a runway show and 'virgin' cocktail party. What pre-teen needed to learn how to walk a catwalk and make small talk over non-alcoholic mixed drinks?

Ike has preconceived notions about Tamsin. He's going to be very surprised when Tamsin reveals where she comes from. J

That's it for this week. Happy reading!

Skylin

Sunday Snippet: Curiosity Kills It

Happy Mother's Day to all the awesome moms out there!

If I'd been thinking, I would have planned something featuring a mother/child dynamic, but sadly, I didn’t plan ahead. It's been a busy couple of weeks, what can I say? LOL

Tonight's post is from Curiosity Kills It, a novella length manuscript centered on one of my favorite tropes: opposites attract. Pagan and Chuck don't get why they're hot for each other, but they are. LOL And they'll attempt to set some ground rules when they explore their options, which slides right into another one of my favorite tropes…rules are made to be broken. :D

Tagline:

Pagan and Chuck push each other's buttons…and not in a good way. But Pagan has a moment of clarity when she spies Chuck in the shower—they argue so much because they fight a powerful attraction. Getting together may not be the answer, especially since they work for the same company, but Pagan's curiosity gets the better of her and she has to find out.

And the snippety peek…

Pagan moved in close to Chuck. "Kiss me."

He blinked. "What?" His head shook back and forth, wondering if he'd heard correctly.

She would have laughed over catching him so completely off guard if finding out didn't rank so high on her list. She needed to discover whether the insane attraction she'd developed would be a flash and burn thing or possibly a slow simmer waiting to boil over into something kick ass awesome.

She glanced sideways, making sure they still had privacy. "Just go with me here, okay?" Her gaze met his. "Kiss me."

Chuck narrowed his eyes a moment, frowned then shrugged. He leaned in and brushed his lips over hers. The first contact and warm press of skin against skin slid into another embrace and went from zero to hot in a millisecond. Scorching, even. Pagan melted against him, fisting her hands in his T-shirt, glad to have something to hang onto. Her mouth opened and his tongue delved inside, teasing and tempting her to go for more. Good Lord, the man kissed like he did everything else, with a methodical thoroughness that usually drove her mad. Only she liked the quick burst of tingly awareness coursing through her. A little too much. If she didn't stop, she'd have him stripped, naked, and buried inside her, public display be damned.

She eased back slowly, wanting to drag the kiss out as long as possible then gasped for air when Chuck abruptly pulled away.

A myriad of emotions played across his face. Wonder, confusion, wariness, and thank the universe, he couldn't quite hide the spark of arousal in his eyes.

His tongue shot out, swiping over his lips. "Geez, Pagan. What the hell was that all about?" His hands grasped her shoulders, moving her back a little more.

Shit. He would have to ask. And she had no clue how to answer. Laugh it off? Go snarky and flippant? Or…tell the truth?

Still heady from the kiss, she opted for honesty. "Nothing. And everything." She lifted a shoulder. "I had to know, you know?"

His eyes widened. "Uh, no. I really don't, Pagan." His hands slid down her arms then dropped to his sides. "Look, I'm not averse to locking lips, but you hate me. And honestly? You're not my favorite person on the planet, either." He crossed his arms in front of his chest. "So yeah, explain. Now." His stance widened and he set his jaw.

Okay, they weren't best friends. Who cared when the chemistry soared into the stratosphere? And why the hell put a label on it?

She didn't want to delve too deeply. "Would if I could." Her gut tightened and desire coiled again. "We've got our issues, but you can't deny that kiss didn't rock your world." If he tried she'd punch him in the stomach.

He inclined his head slightly. "Didn't plan to. But so what? Soft lips and curves will rock just about any guy's world."

Damned man. "Bullshit. Think about it, Chuck. If a kiss between us is that hot…" Her hand trailed down his chest until her fingers played at the waist band of his jeans. "Imagine how incredible the sex would be." She'd wisely leave it there.

He liked to mull things over. Why not give him time to ponder a steamy romp? Backing up, she tugged the top button of his jeans loose. With a saucy grin, she turned around and headed back to the crowed picnic area.

Poor Chuck. He'll have to take a moment or two to catch up before he can track Pagan down and return the favor. :D

That's it for this week. Happy reading!

Skylin