Sunday Snippet: Night Watch

Ohio weather is tripping on some kind of psychedelic drug right now. We're in our third winter at the moment, so hopefully actual spring will happen in about two weeks. Of course, we'll have to give or take a month because who knows how long the state will be under the influence.

Had a crazy week of work, a mom crisis mode occurrence, and of course the weird weather, which wreaks havoc on my sinuses.

I didn't get much television watched this week. Too many things going on to really pay attention to my shows.

I did get an episode of Death in Paradise watched and enjoyed it. I hadn't seen any of this one and ended up really liking the mystery.

I also started an episode of Elementary and should finish it up today. I love the fun dynamic of Holmes and Watson after last week's near miss with Watson's life.

Other than that, I might be back on track this week, but I won't hold my breath. My brain is doing weird things and having a very hard time staying focused on more than one thing at a time. It's driving me batshit.

That's pretty much it for the life update this week. Tonight's post is from Night Watch, a novella that explores the dynamic between a couple that keeps their relationship of the QT.

Here's the miniblurb:

Aisley Diehl and Thad Saunders pull a shift of night watch on the hangar deck. They're tasked with keeping their junior pilots from being drunk and disorderly when they'd much rather be spending the evening doing something more enjoyable—under the covers.

And a sneaky peek…

Aisley didn't look up from the comp panel when Thad returned. "Sorry for bailing on you." She marked her place in the news article on the screen then set the unit aside. "Did Hambone give you any trouble?" She hoped not because sticking Thad with the drunk pilot kind of sucked.

Not that Thad couldn't handle an inebriated soldier. Hell, he'd had his share of dealing with her too many times to count.

Thad dropped down beside her. "Nope. But a word to the wise … he'd totally be down to hit on you if he thought he had half a chance." His lips twitched.

Aisley groaned. "Tell me you didn't encourage him." She did not want to deal with a puppy-dog pilot prancing around to get her attention.

Thad laughed. "Well, it depends on how you look at it. When he asked if I thought you'd ever go for him, I basically said he'd be lucky if you didn't shoot him, so who knows?" He leaned back, propping his elbows on the workstation surface behind them.

Aisley chuckled. "If I'm lucky, he won't remember the conversation at all." And if Thad kept his mouth shut, she'd never have to worry about Hampton making a play.

The guy would be sorely disappointed. She only went for one pilot, even if no one else knew about her preference. Except the flyboy himself.

Thad nudged her shoulder. "Not like you have experience there or anything." His lips turned upward taking the sting out of the words.

She shrugged. "Yeah, okay. I kind of do." She slid her gaze toward him. "But I remember the important stuff." Like how they were supposed to get together tonight instead of babysitting. "And if I forget, you always remind me." He had her back when it counted.

Unlike her … when she'd left him hanging earlier.

She didn't really want to think about why. But she always got touchy when anyone started making noise about her chemistry with Thad. Mainly because she didn't have that level of anything with anyone else … and the thought freaked her out sometimes.

Thad straightened then leaned his forearms on his thighs. "Look … about the bullshit couple question … you know that's the drunk talking, right?" He tilted his head giving her a side-eye. "As in, he'd never have the balls to ask or even think about asking that specific question if he hadn't been three sheets to the wind." He huffed out a laugh.

Aisley rolled her eyes. "More like ninety-seven sheets, but who's counting?" She sighed. "I shouldn't get so twitchy about lame stuff, but I like what we have and really want to keep our…" She trailed off a moment. "Whatever this is on the down-low." Did that sound as stupid as she thought?

Thad's lips twisted in a wry grin. "Yeah, I get it. Once we start defining this thing, or if we acknowledge it to anyone, the whole dynamic changes, right?" He met her gaze. "Why mess with a good thing?"

Aisley gave a quick nod. "Right. No one else gets to slap a label on us until we're ready…" She glanced away. "If we ever are." She would never push for more because being official would complicate things.

Thad sat up again. "Do you want to be? Ready, I mean?"

Aisley had no idea how to answer. "Can I get back to you on that?"

Thad narrowed his eyes. "You could. But we've got a long night ahead of us. What'll it hurt if we run through some future plans?"

Maybe nothing. Maybe everything. But she owed him for taking Hambone on alone.

Exhaling slowly, she turned to face him. "Okay. Where do you see us in six months?"

I'm kind of excited to see where this story goes. I have a very loose outline of story beats and so far, the characters are filling in all the blanks.

 

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

ML Skye