Feast Your Mind on Science Fiction Romance—The SFR Brigade Presents: Summer Cafe #sfrbp

Welcome to the Summer Cafe presented by the SFR Brigade.

Our theme this year is like a seven course meal, something for anyone whether you like the appetizers best or prefer to start with dessert. Whatever you're hungry for, the Brigade has a treat for you.

Readers: Get ready for some tasty morsels in the form of wonderful excerpts from talented authors. We've also got prizes, enough to fill a space port's food court.

Authors: Sprinkle some space dust on your best work and serve it up to the galaxy. This is the supernova hot portion of our dinner, so steamy stories are in the mix here.

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A Little about ML Skye

My fascination with science fiction and life among the stars started at an early age, watching reruns of Star Trek with my dad when he got home from work. The romance came later, thanks to my mom and her wild, wacky reading group. The gaggle of women kept me supplied with romances throughout junior high and high school and I'll be forever thankful to each and every one of those ladies.

When the writing bug bit down hard and wouldn't let go, I found a natural drift toward romance mixed with science fiction. I enjoy reading about love under or out among the stars, why not write about it? After taking the plunge, I haven't looked back and I love to throw in some different themes, what life on a different planet or in the future might be like, or how humans formed a colony somewhere else, but still have many of the same traditions and responsibilities of their ancestors.

My current titles all have a tie-in with deep space, the home of millions of stars. Whether it's the last known station at the end of the universe, a first year celebration in a city on another planet, pilots flying together on a space cruiser, or a couple who are separated by an entire galaxy, the recipe for love and disaster are in equal portions.

For my newest release, Dress for Dinner, book three of the Top Dog Pilots series, Max Cutter and Maggie Harper are in a great place after getting through hell week in Surviving the Trap and dealing with a huge change brought on by tragedy in Bucking Convention. However… the recipe for keeping their relationship a happy one is tested by a big secret Maggie is forced to share followed by a whole buffet of sour grapes during a dinner party from hell.

Here's an excerpt:

Once everyone got seated for dinner, Cutter almost broke his promise to be nothing but well-mannered and affable. Not five minutes into the first course, after draining a glass of wine, Celine planted her stocking-clad foot in his lap. Even with Maggie's warning, the action took him by surprise. He swallowed the bisque too quickly and sputtered when it went down wrong. Reaching for his water glass, he used the motion to cover a fast but firm removal of the offending appendage.

Celine didn't take the hint. Oh no. The second course arrived and she upped the stakes.

Lifting her goblet, she nodded. "Major, another glass, please." She held his gaze.

Cutter leaned forward and poured, his eyes narrowing when she sent a wink in his direction.

Her foot found its way back to his lap, this time resting snugly against his cock with just enough pressure to show she meant business. If he tried the previous maneuver to get rid of her, it would cost him. Possibly a future generation.

She raised her glass and smirked.

Fine. He'd ignore the blatant seduction she obviously thought she'd accomplish. Gut instinct told him she wanted to get back at Maggie. Yeah, not gonna happen. He managed to carry on a decent conversation with Essex and the admiral, until Celine asked for her third refill of the table red.

Cutter frowned, but poured. "There you are, Mrs. Rockwell Harper." He settled back and picked up his fork.

Celine gave him a catlike smile. "Thank you, Major." Her toes moved nimbly over his crotch.

Max dropped his utensil and made a garbled choking sound. Essex shot him a warning glance and Cutter shifted a little under the scrutiny. He couldn't exactly blurt out the admiral's wife had a target lock on his dick and tried her hardest to make him go off. Glaring in Celine's direction, he moved his ass as far back in the seat as possible.

Available on Amazon ~ $1.99

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Tagline: A formal dinner with an admiral challenges Cutter's ability to play nice.

Blurb: Max and Maggie are training up and coming pilots and life is great. But when Maggie's uncle, a retired admiral, brings his new and much younger bride to the ship for their honeymoon, Maggie takes one look at the woman and sees disaster. An emergency makes her miss the full dress dinner, leaving Max alone to deal with the hot simpering mess.

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Contest Giveaway!

Now for the really fun part of the blog hop—lots of prizes!

The SFR Brigade is offering a galactic giveaway.

Details below:

a Rafflecopter giveaway

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Author Giveaway!

I'll be offering three lucky participants the first two titles in the Top Dog Pilots Series.

Please leave a comment with your favorite recipe for a good book.

A tall glass of iced tea, a shady umbrella, and a hot story?

A fruity cocktail, sandy beach, and steamy romance?

Let me know what you love for your summer reading pleasure.

SURVIVING THE TRAP

A week of hell pushes Maggie into risking her friendship with Max by sleeping with him.

Available on Amazon ~ $1.49

Take one week of extreme training, stir in two top guns, and mix up a healthy dose of unresolved sexual tension and discover two pilots pushed to their limits, looking for a way to get through the hellish experience and possibly into each other's arms.

BUCKING CONVENTION

A tragic loss puts Cutter on the edge and it's up to Maggie to pull him back.

Available on Amazon ~ $2.99

Max and Maggie survive Hell Week and start a relationship that works. Tragedy strikes Max's wingman and when Maggie shows up as the replacement, she discovers a very different Max. Not a good thing when he lives to fly… and can't.

Buy link

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Please take a look at the other awesome entries on the blog tour and stuff yourself with great reads.

Thank you for reading!

Please visit my website for more information.

Sunday Snippet: Sabotage

June 28, 2015

Wow, what a great week of television and binge watching!

The Last Ship rocked! I can't wait for tonight's episode. So far, I love how they're not dragging stuff out and moving the plot and characters forward. Keep that up, show. I can say the same about Defiance. Moving everything along, but keeping the focus tight is awesome. I'm pretty thrilled there was a dose of closure for Amanda this week and I'm so intrigued about what's really going on with Nolan and Irisa.

Killjoys and Dark Matter continue to have me hooked. I love the dynamic between Dutch and the brothers on Killjoys and Lucy rocks. Ships with personality make me happy. With Dark Matter, I'm interested to see what our loosely group crew gets into. Keep dishing out the clues, show. I like getting them.

Strike Back broke my heart… again. At this point, I'm pretty much prepped to loose everyone by the final episode. Seriously. LOL I figure if I assume they'll all be dead by the finale, I can't be disappointed. Just saying.

All caught up on Teen Wolf and ready for season five. Looking forward to seeing how this season goes. And my binge watch of Miss Fisher's Murder Mysteries continues. I'm so in love with this show. Glad I've got a few seasons to sink into.

That's it on the TV front. Tonight's post is from Sabotage, a novella where my characters get to play a fun game of cat and mouse.

Here's the tagline:

Sapphire Naught and Gifford Fell are tasked with finding a saboteur and neither is allowed to fly until the culprit is apprehended. The cat and mouse game of tracking and luring their prey into a trap takes its toll on their relationship but ends up making them see new sides to each other.

And a sneaky peek…

"You two are grounded."

Sapphire Naught stood up so fast her chair went flying backwards. "Are you insane?" She realized she spoke to her superior officer and lowered her voice to a normal level. "What I mean to say, Sir—"

"Sit. Down." Commander Ned Berkley didn't have to make his request an order, his voice brooked no argument.

Sapphire dragged her chair back to its place in front of the desk and slid her gaze toward Giff. He shrugged. He didn't like the idea of not flying either, but he'd learned to let Berkley say his piece before interjecting any kind of opinion. Saph would be smart if she remembered to give her mouth the day off sometimes.

Berkley pinned Giff with his gaze. "Lieutenant Fell, got a burning desire to run your yap, too?" The commander quirked a brow.

Giff shook his head. "No, Sir. Lieutenant Naught has that covered." His attempt at humor worked, both officers snorted and relaxed.

Berkley folded his hands on the desk. "Look, I don't want to keep two of my best out of the air, but until we figure out if why the hell our planes keep having near misses, I can't risk you two being out in the black."

Sapphire slumped forward. "I'm sorry, Sir. I should've let you finish before I jumped to conclusions." Her head shot up. "You think we're being sabotaged, don't you?"

Giff tensed. A saboteur would make sense, but damn, the list of who might want to wreak havoc numbered in the double digits. The Hyperion saw action on a regular basis, usually without support from the planetary fleet. A lot of people didn't like being leading line of defense for the rabble rousing outer rim consortium hell bent on destroying decades of peace.

Berkley threw up a hand. "I honestly don't know what the hell to think, but yeah, sabotage is a big possibility." He frowned. "And I don't like the sick feeling of dread I get when I consider the probability versus the reality that we're out here alone. I mean our resources are limited, so maybe we have a bad run of parts in our inventory, but the inconsistencies of what's happening give me concern."

Giff cut in. "Nothing's been repeated. I mean the problems we've had to date aren't the same ones over and over. It's always something different." Which upped the chances they had a renegade who wanted to cause trouble.

Berkley nodded. "Exactly. And that's where you two come in." He opened a file and handed each pilot a sheet of paper. "This is my short list of suspects, for lack of better terminology." He gave them a moment to scan the names. "I don't want to stir up ill will or hit the panic button, but I have to know if one of my crew is deliberately downing planes." He stopped, a red stain of anger coloring his throat.

Sapphire settled back in her seat. "At least we're not only grounded because you can't lose two good pilots. Giff has intelligence training and I, well, I'm not actually sure why I'm here."

Giff sighed. She'd never learn.

He leaned closer to the desk. "What do you need from us, Sir?" The list had several names Giff wouldn't have pegged and lacked three or four he would have included.

Berkley studied them for several long moments, enough to make Giff fight the urge to prod the man along.

Letting a long breath, Berkley eased back in his chair. "In short, I need the names on the list eliminated and I want you two to handle crossing them off." He paused and leveled his gaze on both. "And I'm asking if you can put your relationship on hold long enough to make this happen."

The room went completely silent. Busted in the biggest way by the most senior officer. Giff's fraternization with Sapphire couldn't be considered a huge secret, but they strove for discretion. Most of the crew either knew or suspected Saph hooked up with Giff on a regular basis. They weren't the only ones, but the higher profile of being pilots made staying under the radar a lot more difficult.

And now Berkley pretty much called them out.

Well, hell.

I love to write couple who think they're being sneaky but aren't. :D

That's it for this week. Catch everyone on the flipside.

ML Skye

Sunday Snippet: Rewarding Experience

June 21, 2015

Happy Father's Day to all the terrific dads out there.

This week in TV? Gotta talk about the Orphan Black finale. Holy crap. I swear, every time I think I've got everything figured out the curve ball smacks me in the face again. I LOVE this show.

Killjoys ended up being better than I thought. Definitely happy to add it to my Friday night lineup. Defiance is dark this season and I like it, a lot. Dark Matter followed its premiere with another great episode so I'm in. So happy to have good TV on Friday nights again.

Strike Back's episode provided the high octane adventure I crave. I will say I sincerely hope Mei gets her richly deserved reward in the very near future. Please and thank you.

Finished a few more episodes of Teen Wolf. Should be caught up in time for the premiere in the next week or so. Also started Miss Fisher's Murder Mysteries. What a kick ass show! Very much along the lines of The Murdoch Mysteries, which is one of my favorites. Looking forward to binge watching more soon.

The Last Ship premieres tonight! Can't wait to see what the crew gets into this season. Bring on the action.

Tonight's post is from Rewarding Experience, a novella where my main characters are face constant challenge and sometimes need to remember a more simple approach is nice.

Here's the tagline:

When an explosion rocks a deep space mining expedition, injuring Trixie Bell, she realizes how much she wants and needs Jock Tennyson by her side. The grueling hours and physically exhausting work makes the couple cranky and edgy, but Trixie decides to show Jock how rewarding a simple reprimand can be.

And the sneaky peek…

"Hey."

Jock looked up from the after action accident report. "Hey." He ran his gaze over Trixie, checking to make sure she didn't look too tired. "Should you be up?" He nodded toward her crutches.

She rolled her eyes. "Bastian gave me the boot. Told me if I could run my mouth, I could do it elsewhere."

Jock chuckled. "Driving him insane, were you?"

Trixie shrugged. "Maybe. I hate the infirmary. Once you're awake it loses its appeal."

Jock jerked his head, indicating she should come in. "Take a seat, before the floor meets your ass."

She sank down, letting out a long sigh. Setting her walking aids against the wall, she propped her leg up on the neighboring chair.

Jock grimaced. "How's the knee?" He closed the report and laid it aside.

Trixie frowned. "It's fine." She shifted a little, then blurted. "Thank you." Her voice cracked and she cleared her throat.

Jock quirked a brow. "For what?" He settled back in his chair, studying her.

Trixie snorted. "Gee, I don't know. Saving my life." The knee injury took her out of commission, but she'd been inches from being completely submerged under the rubble.

Jock downplayed the incident. "As if I could've let you die. The paperwork would be a nightmare." They did a dangerous job, close calls would always happen.

Trixie laughed, but the sound came out garbled. Her emotions churned just under the surface. Jock hoped to put her at ease not make her feel more unsettled.

Trixie sobered. "Seriously, Jock. Thank you." Her gaze met his and held it for several long moments.

So much unspoken… they'd been off lately. Snapping, snarking, and generally disagreeing about everything. She'd thrown some heavy insults at him just before the explosion… yet he didn't think twice about sticking around until he dug her out. He could've gone to get someone else, but he didn't.

Jock tiled his head. "You're welcome." He couldn't quite bring himself to say more.

The next move rested firmly in Trixie's hands.

She twisted her fingers together and glanced away. "Look, Jock. I'm sorry." She huffed out a sigh, but didn't say anything else.

He shot her a questioning look. "For what?" With Trixie, it could be a multitude of things.

Her eyes widened. "Last week, month, hell, make it the last several." She shifted again, moving her injured leg more fully onto the chair.

Jock shrugged. "You didn't say anything I didn't have coming." Their disagreements couldn't be shouldered by her alone.

Trixie narrowed her gaze. "Even the crack about shoving your dick up your ass?"

Jock's mouth thinned. "Okay, that one crossed a line, but I expect no less from you." She never pushed hard unless she had strong feelings.

Trixie's met his gaze squarely again. "Maybe you should start reprimanding me then." Her voice took on a husky quality unrelated to the soot and dust she'd swallowed.

He wanted to crawl over the desk and haul her close. Her injury and his uncertainty kept him rooted to his chair.

But, he quirked a brow. "Really? And how do you see that working, Trix?"

Her lips curved. "In a very mutually beneficial way." Her eyes flashed with something indefinable.

And he had a raging need to be schooled.

He leaned back, crossing his arms over his chest. "Okay, I'm intrigued. And… I'm listening."

I can't wait to hear the rest of this conversation. LOL

That's it for this week. Catch everyone on the flipside.

ML Skye

Sunday Snippet: Red Tape

So… some good TV this week. Strike Back continues to be excellent viewing. Awesome to see Martinez and Richmond kick ass as they're trained to do. I did call the wife, which is all I'll say for now. Can't wait for the next installment!

Orphan Black, once again, totally blew everything out of the water. Seriously, every time I think I'm cool to settle back and watch, another twist has me sitting on the edge of my seat with my mouth hanging open. I love it!

Defiance returned and, geez, cleaned freaking house. Not only is the E-rep gone, with the exception of Berlin—thankfully—but three regular characters are no more. I love having Nolan and Amanda working in tandem. We'll see how long that lasts.

The premiere of Dark Matter has me intrigued enough to keep watching. I like the blend of characters so far. Hopefully, as the show unfolds, that'll stay the case. Who knows? Killjoys opens next week and I'm very much looking forward to adding it to my Friday night viewing.

More on new shows next week…

Tonight's post is from Red Tape, a novella where my main characters have to learn a new set of rules to break regs.

Here's the tagline:

Noelle Phame and Dirk Santias are given a temporary duty assignment to a new space cruiser and quickly realize how different the traditions are on an admiral's flagship. Once they figure out the red tape, they're free to fraternize all they want.

And a sneaky peek…

Carl caught sight of the boots outside the bunkroom and shook his head. If they meant what he thought, his two temporary pilots were headed for big trouble. He didn't care about the fraternization, but if Admiral Glazier stumbled over the footwear, Stein would be down his extra help—and Noelle and Dirk were desperately needed for the new training rollout.

He picked the boots up, dragged the hatch open, and heard heavy breathing and loud moans. Not wanting to interrupt, he hesitated a moment or two trying to figure out what move to make.

Noelle's raspy voice carried to his ears. "God, that hit the spot."

Risking a glance inside, he found the couple facing each other, foreheads resting together. Their skin glistened and with the way they were seated, Noelle straddling Dirk, his arms wrapped around her, they looked like a work of art. Dirk's lips caught Noelle's in a lingering kiss and Carl chose to break up their interlude now before it heated up again.

He cleared his throat. "I take it these belong to one of you?" The boots dangled from his fingertips.

Dirk angled his head and cocked a brow. "Do you not know what it means when they're outside the bunkroom?" He grasped a light throw and draped it over Noelle's shoulders.

Shiner shot back. "Yeah, it means KP duty in the galley if Glazier sees them and that's when you're not confined to the brig." He flicked his gaze to Noelle, relaxing a little when he found her covered up. "If you two want alone time, you need to use the red tape on the bulkhead here." His hand slipped in between the panels and snagged a scrap of bright red tape. "Otherwise, expect to be interrupted on a regular basis." Dropping the boots, he slapped the tape on the hatch and exited, pushing the heavy door shut behind him.

The muffled curses coming from inside quarters brought a wide smile to his face. He had a feeling he'd just gone up a notch in their book. And since he liked both pilots, he didn't mind giving them a helping hand—as long as they did their jobs and got his squadrons trained.

This one is already lots of fun. Can't wait to see where the sages take me.

That's it for this week. Catch everyone on the flipside.

ML Skye

Sunday Snippet: Quick, Fast, and Dirty

How did half the year slip by already? Seriously, I think I'm still stuck back in January. LOL

Then again, I know it's summer when Strike Back returns! It's not on in the US yet, but I'll be happy to do a rewatch when it hits Cinemax. I'm totally bracing to not have a full team by the end of the ten episode run. Something tells me Stonebridge and Scott have been way too lucky to date. Just saying.

Orphan Black continues to bring it's A game. I love, love, love the dynamic of putting Helena with Allison. I will say I'm not at all surprised Rachel pulled a magic rabbit out of her ass. I'm actually a little thrilled I can still hate her. I totally want to see her and Rudy in a room together and honestly don't care if neither comes out. LOL

Bitten had its US finale on Friday and I knew what would happen but the losses still smacked me in the gut. Season three can't get here fast enough for me.

On the Teen Wolf front, I'm about halfway through season four and I'm slowing down a little so I don't have so long to wait for new episodes. Although, I guess I could totally do a complete rewatch from start to finish if I get through the last handful of episodes too quickly. :D

That's it for TV this week. Tonight's post is from Quick, Fast, and Dirty a sexy short where my main characters don't have a lot of time for love, but find ways to work around the constraints.

Here's the tagline:

Vixen Arz and Josh Baldwin like their sex quick, fast, and dirty. In the middle of a war, they don't have time for sensual pleasantries, and they can't do the hearts and flowers things anyway—Vixen is Josh's superior officer. If caught fraternizing, both will face brig time—or court martial!

And a sneaky peek…

Josh stuck his head inside the office. "Vix?" His tone hushed, he lifted a brow in question.

She slapped the file closed. "Yeah. Definitely." Sliding the fit rep to the side, she stood, pushing the chair out of the way.

Josh ducked into the room, pushing the hatch closed before securing the door with a screwdriver. He cupped his erection, palming it a couple of times then working his zipper down when he walked closer. Vixen's mouth watered. She loved watching him get hard and ready. He popped the button and revealed the long length he had ready and waiting for her.

Sucking in an excited breath, Vixen played catch up and worked her fatigues loose, shoving them past her hips. Josh moved in behind her, guiding his cock between her legs.

He made a satisfied sound. "Wet and hot, just the way I like you." His hands grasped her hips and he teased her by sliding his rigid hard-on along her folds.

She glanced back over her shoulder. "Don't tease me, Josh. I want you hard and fast today." She wiggled her butt, bumping against his groin.

Josh leaned in and nipped at her ear. "When don't you?" But he didn't wait for her response.

Instead, he thrust forward, going deep, just the way she loved.

She groaned. "God, you feel good." And he did, always.

Even if the sex had to be quick, fast, and dirty. They stole moments, snatches of time to be together. They couldn't do anything else. Not in the middle of the stupid war.

Josh shoved his hand under her shirt to palm a breast. "Gonna be quick, Vix." His hips pumped, sending him a little further inside. "I've been thinking about this since roll call this morning."

Josh's hair roughened thighs met hers and she arched her back, grinding against him. "Hmm. That's about the same time I started looking forward to—oh, yeah, more of that, please." His palm smoothed down her torso and his fingers found her clit.

Josh's breath fanned against her ear. "Come with me, Vix. I'm ready… so close." He switched to short, rapid strokes moving in tandem with his magic fingers.

She sucked in air, gasping when she slid over the edge. "Now, Josh. Right now." Her nerve endings zinged with the orgasm, the tingling sensation blooming low in her belly to spread outward in a full body shudder.

Josh grasped her hips, pulling her ass into his groin, holding her there through his release. He huffed out a strangled breath, bracing one hand on the desk to keep him upright when his knees buckled.

Brushing her hair to one side, his lips grazed her neck. "I want more." Easing away from her, he grabbed the cleansing wipes and handed one her way then.

Still enjoying the throb of aftershocks, she gave serious consideration to going for round two. But the midafternoon shift change loomed and she had duty on the comm deck.

She groaned. "No time right now, but I'm free during last dog watch." She used the cooling cloth, brushing it over her hot skin, before righting her uniform.

Josh did a quick clean up before tucking his spent cock back into his pants. "Where?" He pushed his shirttails past the waistband then zipped and buttoned up.

Vixen didn't hesitate. "Storage locker on D deck. I'll bring the lube." Her lips curved when his mouth dropped open. "Two hours. We'll have time."

Josh cupped her face with both hands. "I'll be there." His mouth captured hers in a quick, hard kiss.

Crossing the small space between the desk and the hatch, he grabbed the screwdriver and spun the release.

Pulling the door open, he turned. "Thank you for seeing me today, Sir." Crossing the threshold, he strolled away whistling a jaunty tune.

Vixen pulled her chair back over, sat down, and opened the fit rep she'd been working on. Recharged and ready to finish the report, she fought the urge to hum a peppy song of her own.

Vix and Josh are so much fun to write. I have a feeling the conflict is going to rear its ugly head in the very near future. Can't have my main couple all hot and steamy throughout the whole story, right?

That's it for this week. Catch everyone on the flipside.

ML Skye