The end of October
is nigh and, man, it's been a month. Between work projects and personal life stuff,
time flew by fast. Helped my oldest kidlet move some things from their old
place to their new one and also took him for a job interview. Happy to say he
got an offer and should start sometime soon. Also looking forward to trick or
treat night and then gearing up for the holidays.
Happy to say the
areas where I had my extractions are finally healed up enough that I can eat
most types of food. I'm still careful with anything hard and crunchy but
otherwise normal intake isn't a challenge anymore.
Stayed busy with
work. Have a tricky manuscript that's kind of giving me fits with continuity
and consistency concerns, which makes the edit slow way down. Sent off a couple
of quotes for upcoming projects and look forward to getting started on those.
Had a decent week
of viewing. I made it through a full round of my shows but kind of in backward
order. Will probably have the same thing this week.
Started off with an
episode of Elementary and thoroughly enjoyed it. Nice to see Lastrade
get back on track. Interesting twisty case also.
Caught an episode
of The Batman and enjoyed it. Always like seeing the Flash in action. I
remembered most of this episode also.
Enjoyed an episode
of Classic Rugrats and only remembered one of the vignettes. The other
two were either new to me or memory holed.
Watched another
episode of Mr. and Mrs. Murder. I do remember bits of this one and I’m glad
I got to see the whole thing from start to finish.
Caught another episode
of London Kills and I like how the new cases play into the overall case
of the disappearance of David's wife. Looking forward to seeing how this season
ends.
Enjoyed another
episode of Death in Paradise. Loved the case because it's fun to see a
bit of Ruby's past mixed in with the present. I enjoy her interactions with Commission
Patterson. Gotta say, I'm not sure I enjoy Neville Parker. I appreciate the
fact he's very different from the previous three DIs but … the constant
afflictions are, well, annoying.
On a side note, I
discovered there's a second spinoff of this show that's set in Australia. I'm
looking forward to seeing it when it's available in the US.
Started a new two-part
Silent Witness and it's terrific to see Jack's niece take a role in the
Lylle. Looking forward to the second half of this episode.
Another side note …
most of the cast from Battlestar Galactica is in Chicago for the twentieth
anniversary of the show. I've been poking around all weekend to stay up to date
on what's happening at the convention. My mind is completely blown that it's
been twenty years since the premiere of the series. It's still probably my
all-time favorite show.
That's pretty much
it for the life update this week. Tonight's post is from Stealing Hannah,
a novella that has one of my favorite tropes to write … meeting the wrong brother
first.
Here's the miniblurb:
Hannah Keane gets caught between Kane and Trent Canterman
when their sibling rivalry heats up. Kane loves to push his brother's buttons
by telling everyone Trent likes to steal girlfriends. When Kane introduces
Trent to Hannah, Trent decides stealing Kane's girl is a good idea to settle
the score once and for all.
And a sneaky peek…
Hannah looked up from
her desk, a look of pleasant surprise on her face. "What are you doing
here, Trent?"
"That's
Lieutenant to you, Junior Grade."
Hannah raised a brow.
"Okay … Lieutenant." She sat up straighter. "Doesn't make the
question less valid. What are you doing here?"
Trent leaned in close, purposefully
invading her personal space. "I have to have a reason?"
Hannah sat back,
putting some open distance between them. "We just met last night, and you
show up here this morning? Yeah, you've got a reason."
Trent pasted a sardonic
smile on his face. "In that case, you can tell me how my little brother is
doing." He lifted a brow.
Hannah snorted. "Don't
you really want to ask if I'm letting him skate through class because he fucks
me whenever I want?"
Crude and right to the
point. He had to give her points for that.
He flicked his gaze
downward. "Are you?"
Hannah rose and this
time she leaned in close to him. "I don't base my grade on how well my
students perform in bed."
Trent quirked a brow. "So,
Kane's not the first, then?"
Hannah's eyes went
flat. "Not your business." She couldn't quite keep the sneer off her
face when she added, "Sir."
Trent didn't back off. "Kane's
my brother." As if that explained everything.
Hannah narrowed her gaze.
"He's old enough to whip it out, Lieutenant. That means he's old enough to
know the score."
Trent didn't like the
answer. "And what exactly is the score with you, Hannah?"
"That's
Lieutenant, j.g. Keane, Sir."
Trent smirked.
"Touché. Junior Grade." He quite enjoyed the verbal sparring.
Hannah's lips twitched.
"The score is, I like your brother. And until I don't, you've got nothing
to worry about."
Trent considered Hannah.
Her words, her demeanor. And decided she spoke the truth. Maybe his brother
wouldn't get a free pass.
Relieved, Trent
relaxed. "And his class work? What's the score there?"
Hannah sat back down.
"He does okay. Struggles a little but works hard." She raised her
gaze. "He pushes himself to match you."
Trent snorted. "That's
the old man's doing. He thought sibling rivalry was a good thing." Trent
shrugged. "It's not that big a deal." Except Kane made it one…
Hannah abruptly changed
gears on him. "Have I answered each question to your satisfaction, Sir?"
She stood up. "Class starts in five."
Trent backed up and
gave her room to come around the desk. His goal hadn't been to piss her off, so
he played his safe card. "I don't have a score sheet, Lieutenant. You're
his instructor and he's my brother. I had to check it out."
Hannah shrugged.
"Whatever. I get it. But he'll do what he wants. You should know
that."
Trent rolled his eyes.
"Believe me, I do." He stuck out his hand. "No offense
intended."
She juggled her course
books and shook. "None taken." She gripped his hand hard when he went
to pull away. "Not much anyway."
Point made.
He offered an olive
branch. "Have you been in the new Mach VII yet?" When she shook her
head back and forth, he dangled the bait. "Wanna give it a go?" His
lips lifted in a smile.
Hannah tilted her head
sideways. "Are you serious?"
Trent lost his grin. "I
don't joke about flying new prototypes."
She considered a
moment. "Then hell, yes. I'd love to get my hands on it." Her face
lit up at the prospect.
Trent walked with her
to the door. "I'll let you know as soon as I arrange it."
She nodded and headed
for class. Trent watched her stride down the corridor, cocky and confident.
He found himself
relishing the challenge she presented.
I have fun writing
verbal sparring and Trent and Hannah are very good at shooting barbs.
That's it for this
week. Catch everyone on the flipside.
ML Skye