Sunday Snippet: Stone Cold Sober

Happy Halloween to those who observe. We had our trick or treat last night and it was nice to be outside with semi-decent weather to enjoy fall. For me, it was wonderful to take a break from some renovation in the bathroom. I'm not twenty-five anymore and I'm definitely feeling that right now. LOL

Not a bad week for television, I started with another episode of The Brokenwood Mysteries and quite enjoyed it. I love the quirkiness of the characters and the cases. Such a great show.

Watched a two-part Silent Witness and I vaguely remembered this one. It's odd how a season from a decade or so ago holds up so well. What goes around comes around.

Caught two arcs of Classic Who, which brings me close to the end of season twenty. Pretty sure the Master is going to show up again around the final arc.

Enjoyed two episodes of The Muppet Show. Liza Minnelli and Phyllis George were the guest stars.

Finished up season six of Prime Suspect. I'll be starting the final season this week. I'm not sure what I'll move on to after this series but I'll find something.

Watched two episodes of Roswell: The Final Verdict. I kind of like the use of AI truth detection they're using to determine whether witness accounts about the crash are true or not. Interesting viewing.

Caught another episode of Peak Practice. I'm coming up on the last few episodes of season five and I'm still enjoying the series. Slowly but surely making my way to season twelve with one of my favorite actors in an early role.

Got some great information from MasterClass with Brandon McMillan. I'll be coming back to this lesson in the near future.

Started the new-to-me series Glitch and got rather hooked on the first episode. My sibling highly recommended this one and I look forward to discussing it with him.

Watched Pop Profile: Demi Lovato and thoroughly enjoyed it. I'm not overly familiar with her career and the profile was interesting to follow along.

Caught another episode of Star Trek: Discovery. Things are definitely heating up and I can't decide if I'm really down with what's going on with Ash or if I need to shake my head over it. Either way, I'm so invested in what happens I can't wait for the next episode.

Great Chicago Med episode with Halsted, Rhodes, and Reese learning some lessons. I always find the episode names interesting and I love how they almost always end up fitting the theme.

Watched another Midsomer Murders episode and thoroughly enjoyed it. After twenty-two seasons that's saying something. I have one more episode of this season then, hopefully, a new season in the near future.

That's pretty much it for this week's viewing update. Tonight's post is from Stone-Cold Sober, a novella where the heroine meets her hero at a terrible time.

Here's the mini-blurb:

When Tansy Jons meets West Tamesin, they have an instant connection, but she's dating one of his oldest friends. A drunken evening and almost hook-up with West has Tansy examining what she feels as soon as she's stone-cold sober.

And a snippety peek…

West stood at the bar, chatting with the bartender Reuben Chidwell, a former classmate from high school. "I'll have another." He nodded toward the glass.

Reuben smirked. "Sure you only want soda water?"

West bobbed his head. "Yeah. Had way too much last night."

The door opened and West glanced up and locked gazes with David. A kick of guilt hit his stomach but West kept his didn't look away. David charged forward and West braced for confrontation, ready to take whatever David dished out.

He didn't have to wait long. David drew his arm back and smashed his fist into West's face. His head snapped back and pain bloomed along his jawline and inside his mouth where the tender inner skin of his cheek met with hard, unyielding teeth.

Reuben leaned across the bar. "Damn, Matthews. You can walk your ass right back out of here, if you're gonna start shit."

West waved off the bartender. "It's all right, Reuben. He's done." He arched a brow and rubbed his jaw. "What the hell, man?" As if he didn't know.

David gave West a level stare. "Don't even. You know exactly what the hell." He leaned in close. "But if you need clarification, let's say I know how to keep my dick in my pants." His voice dropped lower. "Something you seem to struggle with."

West took a drink to ease the burn along the inside of his cheek. "Okay. For the record, my dick never left my pants." Not that it didn't want to…

David visibly relaxed, his ruffled feathers soothed. "Good to hear. Still a dick move."

West grunted. "It was and I'm sorry. Won't happen again." He shook his head. "We've been friends too long for me to wreck what you and Tansy have."

David snorted. "Had. Tansy and I are over." He turned and leaned against the bar. "You've piqued her interest enough that she ended things with me." His shoulders slumped and he sighed. Stunned, West signaled to Reuben to pour David a beer.

If West had to be honest, he'd admit to being intrigued by Tansy's move.

He set that thought aside and nodded toward the mug on the counter. "Look, again, I'm sorry. Beer's on me."

David grabbed the brew and took a long, slow drink.

West's phone pinged and he fished it out of his pocket.

A text from Tansy. "I found a place." She included the address and asked when he could meet.

West showed David the message. "In the interest of full disclosure, I'm don't want to hide anything from you."

David lifted his chin. "Appreciate the gesture, man, but not necessary."

West huffed out a breath. "You know that's not how it works. You're my best friend. Even if you two aren't together anymore, I'm not moving in on her."

David laughed. "Dude, you might not have a choice. Just saying." He finished his beer and set the mug on the bar. "By the way, rumor has it a position is open at the sheriff's office. You might want to check it out." He pushed away from the counter.

West arched a brow. "Thanks for the heads-up." He caught David's arm. "You and me? We okay?" He wouldn't stick around if they weren't.

David shrugged. "We will be. And I'm serious when I say don't close yourself off." He met West's gaze. "I don't know if Tansy and I would've worked out long-term. Gretchen still takes up space in my head sometimes and I think Tansy got that clue before I did." He lifted his chin and headed for the door.

West stared after him not quite sure what to do with the admission or the advice.

I love how this story is coming together. Meeting the right person at the wrong time is a favorite trope of mine.

 

That's it for this week. Happy reading!

Skylin

Sunday Snippet: Stone-Cold Sober

July kind of flew by in a series of weird weather and crazy work schedules. I'm oddly okay with that. The weather is what it is… and will probably keep acting like an angry toddler. My work calendar is bursting at the seams and I'm excited about my new projects.

But… my television viewing is sporadic, which isn't a bad thing. I'm just so used to doing rundowns each week I feel like my blog is naked if I don't have a full slate. LOL

I did get a few shows watched. I started with Midsomer Murders and got a holiday episode. There's a new detective sergeant or maybe it's detective constable, but either way, I'll miss Jones. I loved that character. Which isn't to say the new guy won't grow on me. He's not bad. Good mystery also.

Started a new episode of Blue Heelers and it's rather different and I like it. I'm not sure how long the first season is, but the series is something like fourteen seasons and it's nice to have variety in format.

Caught two more episodes of Peter Gunn and Classic Who. I'm kind of excited to watch a live-action episode with Two. So far, it's been six animated episodes.

Finished the final episode of Blade. I have to admit to still being disappointed with the outcome on my rewatch. Sometimes I can have a change of heart when I've got a few years of distance when viewing a show's run.

Frankie Drake Mysteries had a great episode. I'm starting to like Grayson a little more and it'll be fun to see if Frankie's mom sticks around.

Watched the fifth episode of Daredevil and, eh, this is something of a slow-moving season. I do like where things are going and it's great to see Karen kind of have to face what she did in a previous season. That said, I'm enough of a Fisk non-fan to really not want to watch a bunch of scenes with him. And the FBI agent annoys the crap out of me. I actually think he's too smart to be playing things so stupidly. So, yeah, I hope the rest of the season evens out.

Started Riverdale's Bizarrodale episode and hope to finish it later today. This season has been dark and twisty and I like it.

New episodes of Killjoys have started and I'll be hopelessly behind on those, but I can't wait to watch this final season.

That's pretty much it for television this week. Tonight's post is from Stone-Cold Sober, a novella that started with a scene prompt from my writing community.

Here's the mini-blurb:

When Tansy Jons meets West Tamesin, they have an instant connection, but she's dating one of his oldest friends. A drunken evening and almost hook-up with West has Tansy examining what she feels as soon as she's stone-cold sober.

And a snippety peek…

Tansy stood at the stove, keeping an eye on the stir-fry sautéing on the burner. Her lips curved in a grin when the key rattled in the door. David never got the quirky lock to open on the first try. A string of muttered curses soon followed.

She laughed and backed away from the stove, crossing the living area to pull open the raised-panel walnut wood slab. "You have to insert the key, jiggle it twice, then turn." Pivoting, she went back to the stovetop and shook the pan to keep the heat distributed.

David chuckled. "Or… I could get you a new lock." He tossed his jacket on the antique coat tree.

Tansy swung her head around. "And ruin the character of my front door? Don't even think about it." Switching the burner off, she divided the food between two plates.

David grabbed a couple of glasses and silverware. "I'm just saying. I'm pretty handy with stuff like that." He filled the cups with water and added some ice.

Tansy carried the entrees to the table and settled in her seat. "No, you're not. But you're handy with everything else." They had a running joke about her DIY skills outpacing his and his laundry and cooking talent topping hers.

Simple stir-fries were her only accomplishment involving a stove.

David sat down and dug into his food. "I got a call from West today and I need a favor." He chewed and swallowed. "Damn, this is terrific." He scooped another forkful into his mouth.

Tansy shook her head. "You need a favor? For West?" David talked about the guy frequently, but Tansy didn't know West at all.

She'd moved to Granite Hills five years ago, well after David's elusive best friend had left town.

David nodded. "Yeah. He's coming back for a while and looking for a place to rent. Something quiet and out of the way, if possible." He stopped eating. "He sounded burned out on the phone, probably because his last operation totally went to shit but only because the head of the company had to stick his nose in where it didn't belong." He rolled his eyes and took a drink of water.

Tansy quirked an eyebrow. "Which means what exactly?" According to David, West did consulting work for civilian contractors in former warzones.

David frowned. "It means even though West isn't the one who screwed up, he's done working for a guy whose pay grade gives him the opportunity to fuck shit up." David's tone went hard and his eyes held a flash of anger.

Tansy always got a little lost when David mixed military lingo in with regular conversation, but she wanted to understand what happened. "The head of the company sounds like a total jackass." She'd had former managers who fit that mold to a T.

David finished his last bite of stir-fry. "More than that. He's an irresponsible dickhead whose actions cost lives not to mention put a lot of people in the hospital. If he'd followed West's advice, which he pays a lot of money for, no one would have died." He pushed his plate away and drummed his fingers on the table. "West is gonna need to decompress and get some distance away from work. He left the company and wants to consider new options."

Tansy nodded. "I might know of at least two places that would suit him. I'll need to check availability and I can put some feelers out for anything else that might be coming up." She slid back and gathered the plates. "How soon will he need something?" One of the two properties she had in mind might not be ready for at least a month.

David got up and helped clear the table and started rinsing their dishes. "Probably within the week." He handed her the cups to put in the dishwasher.

Tansy's eyes widened. "Wow. Okay. I'll make a few calls this evening."

David smiled. "You're awesome. Thought maybe we could plan something next week. You're gone Monday and Tuesday, right? We could do a margarita night with Mexican takeout on Wednesday if that works for you." He finished loading and started the dishwasher.

Tansy gave a nod. "Sure. I'll pick up the fixings for margaritas on my way back." She reached out and grabbed David's hips, tilting her head to one side. "I'm finally going to meet your best friend. I was kind of wondering if he really existed or not." Her lips quirked in a grin.

David laughed. "I think you'll like him even though he's nothing at all like me. We're the definition of polar opposites."

Tansy chuckled, trying to picture the antithesis of David. "Well, I'm looking forward to meeting him." She backed away and grasped David's hand to tug him into the living room. "Let's take a quick walk then I'll start making calls."

This is one of my favorite tropes, meeting the right one at a very wrong time. It's so much fun to write how characters navigate their various minefields to find a happily ever after.

That's it for this week. Happy reading!

Skylin