Sunday Snippet: Automatic Failure

Whew. Even though the television pickings are fairly slim for the next week or so, still some great stuff to watch.

Orphan Black, once again, didn't disappoint. One of the things I love about this season is how nuanced the layers are. Every time something is resolved, a new snag reveals itself. The enemy of yesterday is the ally of today. Terrific writing and stellar acting make the entire show shine.

Wynonna Earp still makes me happy. I'm intrigued by the little seeds dropped here and there and look forward to more of the origin backstory.

The Last Ship starts next week and I can't wait to see where things go. I'm kind of holding out hope some underhanded tactics are being used regarding Rachel, but I won't hold my breath. This show loves to kill off my favorite characters. LOL

I'm sadly not overly excited about some of the other newer shows. Preacher didn't really grab me with the trailers and I never got into Fear the Walking Dead. I do look forward to the return of Killjoys and Dark Matter, which should provide some good fodder for my blog posts.

And that's it for television this week.

Tonight's post is from Automatic Failure, a novella with one of my favorite tropes—sibling rivalry. Throw in additional family drama and I can't wait to sit and type up a storm.

Here's the mini-blurb:

Piper Kemp, a flight instructor, moves aside to avoid letting her personal feelings influence a decision about whether to pass one of her students. But when he crashes and almost loses his life, Knox Petruci steps up to defend Piper and opens a can of worms because her student happens to be his brother.

And a sneaky peek…

Squaring her shoulders, Piper pushed the door open and breezed into his hospital room. The stony look on Abel's face said everything. He'd received word already. Damn. She'd hoped to break the news to him. She walked to his bedside and laid a hand on his arm.

Abel jerked away. "I don't want to see you." He glared in her direction. "You knew. That's why you stepped aside. You wanted to see me crash and burn."

Piper sucked in a harsh breath. "No, Abel, I didn't know for sure." Instinct didn't always win and she'd been proven wrong before.

Abel snorted. "You had a feeling then. And you fucked up my chances when you refused to participate." He crossed his arms over his chest and winced when the movement jarred his torso.

Piper back away, but defended her action. "I made the right call, Abel. I couldn't be impartial and you know it. Not when I'm dating you." He'd asked her out the very first day of class and she'd resisted until the final three weeks.

Still… she'd own the conflict of interest.

Abel stared ahead. "Yeah, well, your timing sucked. I tensed up because you made me doubt my skills." He swung a nasty look at her. "So I choked. Thanks for that."

Piper's temper flared. "Abel, you don't have the chops. I didn't know for sure, but I do now." She moved closer to his bed. "You busted the last three moves out of six. Ones you cleared in the simulator." Her tone lowered. "Being in the air is what trips you up." And almost got him killed.

Abel rolled his eyes. "Whatever, Piper. You don't have to worry about my failure or me anymore. Whatever we started is over now." His voice took on a mean tone. "I don't need you anymore."

Piper's mouth dropped open. After weeks of pestering her to go out with him and relentlessly pursuing something on a personal level, he whipped out the oldest reason in the books for why. She wanted to believe his cruel remark amounted to his way of lashing out due to the circumstances. But the truth easily wormed its way into her heart and mind.

Abel used her… or tried to. And she'd blown his plan to hell by not adhering to his playbook. How frustrating for him. And very enlightening for her.

Piper pasted on a smile. "In that case, I'll take my leave. Take care, Abel. I hope you're not laid up too long with the broken legs." Turning, she made her way to the door, tears of anger and humiliation burning her eyes.

She reached for the handle, but the door burst open and she collided with the flat surface.

The person on the other side righted her. "Sorry, Lieutenant." He introduced himself. "Knox Petruci. Abel's brother." He stuck his hand out.

Piper got a hold of her churning emotions and shook his hand. "Nice to meet you." Her gaze clashed with his knowing one.

He'd heard the conversation between her and his brother. Well, damn. The day couldn't get worse.

Piper pulled her hand away. "I'll get out of your way so you can visit with your brother." Darting around him, she quickly exited the room and dashed down the corridor. Embarrassment and shame washed over her and her eyes welled up again.

Wow, nothing like the utter humiliation of a public breakup, especially when it happens in front of family. Piper's a tough gal, she'll get over it. J

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

ML Skye

Sunday Snippet: And That's Why...

Memorial Day weekend, which doubles as graduation weekend in my little burg, is my signal that summer will be arriving soon. Looking forward to outside activities and longer nights.

Watched some great season finales this week. Gotham pulled out all the stops and I'm really looking forward to seeing what next season has in store for the characters.

The Flash kind of left me reeling. I'm really not sure how I feel about Barry's final move or how it's going to impact the upcoming season. With Supergirl moving to the CW in the fall, it'll be interesting to see what kind of crossover action is in store for the DC shows.

Arrow did not disappoint. This is probably my favorite season finale to date. I'm definitely interested in seeing the next season and hope to touch on Oliver's time in Russia for the flashbacks. Absolutely looking forward to what I hope won't be the final season for Arrow, but who knows.

Orphan Black's episode came across as very chaotic and I kind of loved it. It reminded me of someone shaking a bottle of something fizzy then letting go to watch the contents spill out all over the place. I love how gray and blurry all the lines are and how dark the layers get with this show.

Wynonna Earp continues to make me happy. Need to watch this week's episode but I've been distracted by marathons of NCIS: LA and The X-Files this weekend.

Banshee's series finale actually turned out to be exactly what I hoped for. I mean exactly what I hoped for. I had a gut feeling about who killed Rebecca and the writers did not disappoint me in the least with how that aspect turned out. I'm also completely down with how Proctor's story ended, letting viewers kind of imagine his fate. I loved Kurt's resolution with Calvin and, honestly, for being such a late arrival as a character, I fell in love with his story. Brock's new attitude about being sheriff is awesome and, of course, Sugar's retirement is well-earned and thanks to Job. And speaking of the sassy transvestite, his sunset strut ended up being perfect and spot on. And I'm thrilled with where things are left with Hood and Carrie. Seriously, I loved, loved, loved the ending. A satisfying four seasons of a kick ass show.

And that's it for television this week.

Tonight's post is from And That's Why…, a sexy short that got its start with some brainstorming ideas with a fellow author.

Here's the mini-blurb:

Maddie hates flying the early CAP, so she finds ways to get out of doing so. But when her CAG blocks all her attempts to skip her turn, she has to decide if making him mad is worth losing her chance at something great happening between them.

And a sneaky peek…

Nox went through the after action reports and one thing became glaringly clear. Slipshot hadn't flown an early CAP in over two months. She hated the first patrol, had argued with Nox over it, but he'd been very clear. She had to suck it up like everyone else and do one per week. Two if they were down any pilots.

Yet the proof sat in front of him, plain as day in the report. Maddie had managed to avoid it for eight weeks. He had no doubt she used every trick in the book to get out of flying. Blackmail, bribery, and plain old intimidation. And it pissed him off. Fair had to be fair.

He aimed to make certain she no longer got away with her shifty ways. Not like following her around for the next couple of days would be a hardship—especially when the view would be so hot and sexy. Maddie's magnificent ass featured almost nightly in his dreams.

Closing the binder, Nox got up and waited for his hard-on to subside before he exited the office to track his pain in the butt pilot down. Not for a confrontation. Nope. Nox would beat Maddie at her own game. Subterfuge, stealth, and plain old pulling rank.

He tracked her down after the dinner rush and covertly observed an exchange with Bowman. A bottle of alcohol. Check on the bribery. He kept her under watch for two more days and, sure enough, she had quite the system worked out. A rookie pilot quaked in his boots when she got up close and personal, no doubt overwhelming his better sense when she quite emphatically told him he would be flying her early CAP on Tuesday. Nox had to give Maddie credit. He didn't know where she got her compromising pictures, but Nola Vex eagerly accepted the idea she'd be flying Maddie's CAP the following week.

Now that he'd figured out the who and the how, he could put a stop to the shenanigans.

Wouldn't Maddie flip her shit when she discovered her three substitutes would all have last minute issues and be unable to help her out?

Rubbing his hands together, he started down the corridor, whistling a happy tune.

I love writing sexy short stories. The challenge of having a beginning, middle, and satisfying end never fails to make me remember why I love writing so much.

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

ML Skye

Sunday Snippet: An Answer to Fate

Whew. Some great television this past week. Gotham's episode ended up being pretty terrific. Fish Mooney rocks!

I missed The Flash, but plan to catch up before the finale this week. Agents of SHIELD went out with a bang. I'm rather liking how the movie 'verse affects the small screen 'verse.

Arrow's episode ended up being so awesome. Can't wait for the final showdown between Team Arrow and Darhk.

I was thrilled with Legends of Tomorrow. Still hoping to see great things next season. Orphan Black blew my mind as usual. So many things going on! I have a sneaky feeling the creepy engineer chick did something truly terrible to Sarah. Here's hoping she meets an untimely end very soon.

Still have Wynonna Earp and Banshee to watch from the past week. I'm saving Banshee for last since it's the final episode ever. I know how I want things to end, but have a strong doubt I'll get what I want. LOL

Watched the finale for Marcella and, eh, not as good as I hoped. That said, if there's a second series and Jamie Bamber is a cast member, I'll be there. :D

That's it for the television this week. Patiently waiting for The Last Ship to premiere and looking for new stuff to dive into over the summer.

Tonight's post is from An Answer to Fate, an opening novella to a possible trilogy.

Here's the mini-blurb:

Quillan Jaymes and Jeb Paladino finally get their act together and declare themselves a couple. Too bad that's when everything goes wrong.

And a sneaky peek…

After wrapping the debrief, Quillan left sickbay with orders to hit the mess and get some solid food into her. She would make her way there eventually but there was something she needed to do, someone she needed to see first.

And it wouldn’t wait.

Crewmembers gaped at her as if they were seeing a ghost. A quick shake of her head had them all continuing about their business. They would know soon enough where she’d been the past six months and she had things to take care of.

The crew quarters were jammed with people when she entered. At any other time she would have laughed her ass off at the stunned silence that greeted her not two seconds after she shut the hatch… but not today.

Nothing about today amused her.

She didn’t give anyone a chance to speak… just strode across the floor to her old bunk. The curtains were drawn and light chatter could be heard behind them. Quillan broke the number one rule of privacy code by grabbing the fabric and swishing it open to reveal the couple behind the dark material… au natural no less… as they scrambled for cover.

Gazing dispassionately at the sight before her, Quillan's voice grated harshly when she spoke. “Hey, Vic. I’m home.” She continued to stand while staring at the man she'd almost married as he tried to shield his current squeeze, Diana Seaver, from the prying eyes surrounding them.

A moment of stunned silence later, Victor finally found his voice. “Shit.” Wrapping a spare blanket around himself, he swung his legs over the side of the bunk. “Quillan.” He tried to stand up to greet her and gave her a curious glance when she made him wait. “What the hell happened? We thought you were dead when you went missing and didn't return.” He had the blanket tucked around his hips and went to pull Quillan into his arms. “Where were you? How did you survive?” He didn’t see it coming when Quillan drew back her knee then shoved it forward into his groin. Hard.

Victor dropped like a stone, pain exploding through his body. Gasping in agony, shuddering on the floor, he cocked his head as much as he could to look at her. “I thought… goddamn, Quillan, it hurts…" He wheezed in pain. "I thought you were dead.” Assuming she’d done him in because of Seaver, he tried to explain through the haze of misery. “Six months. Gone six months. Didn’t know. I swear.” He couldn’t stop it… the pain overwhelmed him. He heaved his guts right there on the floor while the entire room watched.

 Quillan slowly shook her head back and forth. “You are so painfully stupid.” Unable to hold back, she kicked him in the ribs. Hard. “Get up and get dressed.” Reaching down she grabbed his hair and lifted his head up so he could see her eyes. “We’ve got some things to discuss, honey.” She all but snarled the last word when she let his head drop back down.

 Standing straight, she faced the room of stunned pilots. “This man is a cyborg collaborator.” The words were barely out of her mouth before the eruption of responses had her shouting for quiet. “Shut up… I’m not finished.” Things quieted down but there was an ugly vibe edging the silence… and oh, she hoped it would get uglier.

Gesturing at Victor with a flourish, she laid the rest of it out. “Colonel Bastian may have dealt the fatal blow that killed Jeb… but Vic's the one who signed his death warrant by collaborating with the cyborgs.” She had to scream for quiet again as the crew exploded with fury. “A marine escort is coming for him in fifteen minutes…” Quillan waited until Victor's pain-glazed eyes met hers before saying her final words. “Make it hurt guys. Make it fucking hurt.” Flicking a glance at Diana, Quillan turned and walked across the room while the unit closed rank behind her. She drew strength from the rage and anger emanating from them, letting it wash over her as she undogged the hatch and stepped through, sealing it shut behind her. A satisfied smile settled over her features at the roar that erupted as she walked away.

She'd done what she came to do.

Longer than normal preview, but I'm proud of this scene came together. Hope you all enjoyed. :D

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

ML Skye

Sunday Snippet: All Tied Up

Holy cheez-its! Ohio is back to chilly, where-did-spring-go weather again. We haven't even hit fifty degrees for the day. LOL

But, the brisk temperature makes for great television viewing. This week didn't turn out too badly either.

Gotham's episode moved the story along and I'm excited to see what this week holds.

The Flash had a great showing. I loved all the interactions with the characters. Quite a complicated mix but somehow the relationships all work. Agents of SHIELD ended a character I've grown fond of, but I thoroughly enjoyed the inside movie references and how they tied into the small screen story.

Arrow pulled off a great episode, at least the part I saw. I had an unavoidable meeting on Wednesday and haven't had a moment to really catch up on the beginning yet.

Legends of Tomorrow. Wow. I hope the whole time travel thing lets the sacrificed character return. If not, I'm going to be very disappointed. Truly great stuff, though. And Orphan Black continues to blow my mind each and every week. I LOVE this show.

All caught up on Banshee and Wynonna Earp, with the exception of this week's episodes. That will be rectified later today. Caught the trailer for season three of The Last Ship and I'm now eagerly awaiting June so I can dive back into this one.

And that's it for television this week.

Tonight's post is from All Tied Up, a sexy short that will be a free download in the near future. This one features Max and Maggie from the Top Dog Pilots series.

Here's the mini-blurb:

Maggie Harper has the man she wants and a job she loves. But sometimes she has to pull out all the stops to keep life interesting. And that means Max Cutter better be ready for whatever Maggie comes up with next.

And a sneaky peek…

Max Cutter handed his post-flight checklist to the deck chief. "We all square?" He got the all clear and crossed the hangar, headed to his quarters.

Hopefully Maggie would be there and not in a conference with their CO, Drake Essex, going over the new parameters on the grid mapping. Their schedules were all over the star chart and finding time to be together, much less say hello to each other, proved a challenge.

Coming off a training run with a new pilot, Cutter didn't bother hitting the shower. The rookie did the hard work, flying the intricate route solo while Cutter observed and offered support. The practice trial took about three hours, not bad for a beginner. Cutter could make it through the grid in under two hours, but he'd flown the route more times than anyone, with the exception of Maggie.

A far cry from the hours upon hours of the initial mapping mission. The one where he lost his wingman and Maggie came out as the replacement. Each played a large role in mapping the huge belt of space rock and now they acted as guides for new recruits. And they'd found something of a sweet spot while living and working together.

Not always an easy thing, but Cutter wouldn't complain. Once they got through his turmoil over losing his wingman, Ray, with a little help from Maggie's swift kick to Cutter's ass, each got their head around the idea. Truth told, he and Maggie figured they were headed in that direction anyway, just hadn't made a hard and fast decision to move in together.

Which, in all honesty, pretty much defined their weird brand of normal.

Heading up a deck, Cutter picked up his pace. He couldn’t wait to kick back and relax with Maggie. He undogged the hatch and pushed it open, stepping inside to find Maggie stowing her shower kit in her duty locker.

She turned toward him and a slow smile spread across her face. "Well, hello, hot stuff. I've been expecting you." Her finger crooked, beckoning him to come greet her properly.

She didn't have to ask twice. He crossed the floor in three easy strides and met her mouth in a steamy kiss. Geez, she rocked his world every time their lips touched. His hands cupped her face, the lip-lock sliding into off the charts territory.

Maggie finally eased back, her palms smoothing down the front of his flight suit. "Let's get you out of this, okay?" Her fingers worked the zipper down and spread the material aside.

Cutter started to shrug out of the suit, but caught the flash of Maggie's wicked grin. Shit. He had maybe three seconds to prepare for whatever she had planned.

Or not.

Don't let Cutter fool you. He loves Maggie's inventive mind. J

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

ML Skye

Sunday Snippet: All Jacked Up

Happy Mother's Day to all the terrific moms out there! Enjoy the day and may you all be pampered and treated to your fondest wishes.

This week in television had some terrific stuff. Starting on Monday with Gotham, which is supposed to get a third season—yay! Hunters is still kind of dragging for me, but I'll finish out the season just because.

Tuesday's episode of The Flash ended on quite the cliffhanger. Looking forward to this week's follow up to find out what, exactly, happened. Agents of SHIELD kind of disappointed me but I did like the interaction between Daisy and Mac. And Fitz and Simmons are completely adorable.

Wednesday's Arrow proved very interesting. I had a sneaky suspicion Alex would turn out to be kind of cagey. Here's hoping he's not a total asshat… or that Thea makes him hurt a lot if he is. J

Thursday's Legends of Tomorrow made me so happy. I really do love this show. And the team is starting to mesh together in a great way. Orphan Black continues to blow my mind in wonderful ways. I wish I could say the same about After the Black, but maybe they'll find a good footing in the near future.

Wynonna Earp is still one of the best shows on TV right now. I'm very intrigued about Dolls's situation and look forward to more revelations on that end. I'm still a little behind on Banshee, but slowly catching up. Considering it's the last season, I'm not in a huge hurry to say goodbye.

And that's it on the television front this week.

Tonight's post is from All Jacked Up, a novella built around the prompt of one character is injured and the other gets to act as a distraction.

Here's the mini-blurb:

Lita North is injured and ordered to stay off her feet for forty-eight hours which doesn't go over well because Lita doesn't do inactivity. But when Ollie Tulver gets stuck babysitting her after she disobeys the order, she has two choices—continue being a pain in the ass or toe the line. Lita being Lita, she decides do to both.

And a sneaky peek…

Doctor Ben Cramer barreled through the corridor and shouted. "Make a hole!" He charged through a group of midshipmen, probably on shift change, and halted outside the captain's quarters.

Rapping twice, he didn't wait for permission to enter, barging through the hatch with his mouth open before Captain Netts could offer a greeting.

"I want North sedated, preferably by IV so she can't be mobile." He strode toward the captain's desk and stopped at the edge. "The damn, fool woman is gone from sickbay again and I don't have time to keep tracking her down. If she keeps putting pressure on that knee, she's going to do serious damage." He paused and pinned Netts with a hard glare. "And then she'll be permanently grounded and really become a problem. And she won't be mine, she'll be—"

Netts held up a hand, effectively shutting Cramer's rant down. "Don't even think about saying she'll be mine. She's already at the top of my list." He reached out with his other hand, picked up the handset to his phone, and keyed in four numbers. "Tulver, my office, ten minutes." Replacing the receiver, he settled back and nodded for Cramer to take a seat. "I've got the perfect solution to our Lieutenant North problem."

Cramer cracked a grin and took the offered chair. If anyone stood a chance at making Lita North behave, Oliver Tulver had the best shot. The two officers had an uncommon rapport, one Lita liked to downplay, but the entire ship waited with eager anticipation for the two pilots to succumb to each other.

Ben kicked his legs out, crossing them at the ankles. "There's a reason you're in command and I'm not." Warren Netts's innate ability to read people and make the right call never failed to impress.

Netts quirked a smile. "I'd make a terrible doctor. No patience and hate the sight of blood." He waited a beat. "And I would've put North out of her misery a week ago."

Cramer bit back a wide grin. "With a bullet, no doubt."

Netts gave an emphatic nod. "Exactly."

Poor Lita is driving everyone insane and she's about to get her comeuppance. LOL

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

ML Skye

Sunday Snippet: All Day Sucker

Welcome to May! I'm excited to have some warmer weather finally… enough to want to be outside and working on my yard. :D

Let's see, television this week ended up being a mixed bag. I want to really love Hunters, but eh, not quite sure I'm feeling the joy with that one. We'll see what ends up happening.

The Flash and Agents of SHIELD put out two good episodes. I'm truly interested in finally discovering who's under the mask in the Zoom's cage. Also hoping whoever it is, they're an ally. My jury is still out on AoS, but we'll see how the next few episodes go.

Arrow is breaking my heart, but wow, what terrific performances by the entire cast. My one small gripe has to do with showing Barry having his speed back when Tuesday's episode ended with Wells saying he'd help Barry get it back. Then again, schedules being what they are, they might not have had a choice. I'm just a little disappointed because they're usually so on top of small details like that.

Legends of Tomorrow remains pretty awesome. I'm so thrilled with the character interactions any disappointment I have over Savage being so smarmy as a villain are miniscule.

Wynonna Earp? Man… I love this show so much. It's acting as something of a replacement for Lost Girl with strong, kick ass females and the plotline is truly interesting. I love the sister dynamic and the fish out of water scenario Wynonna experiences on a regular basis. Looking forward to more revelations about Doc's deal with the devil and seeing how long he rides the fence.

Still behind on Banshee, but hoping to catch up soon. Also backed up on Marcella, but I rather love the twisty turns this series takes on a regular basis. Love not knowing if the heroine of the show is actually a villain, too. J

And that's it for television this week.

Tonight's post is from All Day Sucker, a sexy short that will hopefully be a free read, along with two others with either the same or similarly named titles by my alter egos, Skylin O'Thomas and Skye Ritchey.

Here's the mini-blurb:

When Ben Murphy returns from a grueling road trip, Jessa Muldoon pulls out all the stops to welcome him home.

And a sneaky peek…

Jessa Muldoon glanced up when the door opened admitting the love of her life Ben Murphy. He looked beat—dead dog tired with a side of death warmed over. Jess rose to greet him, crossing the floor in five quick strides. He pushed the door closed and slumped against it.

Jess quirked an eyebrow. "Rough trip?" He'd been gone almost two weeks.

Ben dropped his bags to the floor. "I remember why I don't travel as much anymore." He moved forward, hauling her close. "I hate being away from you for so long." His lips met hers in a lingering kiss. "But the treaty is signed. We're pulling out of the hot zone."

Jess grinned and caught his face in her hands. "Congratulations, Murph. You and your team worked your asses off to make that happen." Even with his well-trained staff doing most of the leg work, Murph put in long hours at the office coordinating their efforts.

And when discussions broke down, he'd had no choice but to hop a transport out and land directly in the middle of the negotiations.

Murph flashed a weary smile. "Yeah, we did." He rested his forehead against hers. "And now I'm done for a while. I told the team I'm off the grid for the next several weeks."

Jess eased away and quirked an eyebrow. "In that case, I have just the thing for you." She grasped his hand and led him toward the bathroom. "You've been living out of your go bag and on transport flights for almost two weeks." Her free hand twisted the water on in the shower. "You need a super-hot shower to work out the kinks and cramps." She made quick work of getting him naked.

Murph didn't argue, letting her do the disrobing. When she stepped back so he could get under the steamy spray, he caught her by surprise, dragging her into the stall with him.

He dragged her shirt over her head. "You didn't think I'd shower alone after being away from you for so long, did you?" His fingers inched under the wet fabric of her pants, working the form-fitting material past her hips.

Jess shook her head and wriggled the rest of the way out of the leggings. "Not really, no." Pushing the sodden mass of clothes to the corner of the stall, she tilted her chin up, meeting Murph's gaze. "Thought you might let me get undressed first, though."

Murph skimmed his hands along her sides, reaching around to cup her ass. "Now where's the fun in that?"

I love revisiting my favorite characters and seeing where they are in life. Murph and Jess also feature in the other Capital City Seasons books, which are all underway and in various stages of completion.

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

ML Skye

Sunday Snippet: Advocate for the Defense

A random observation to start things off. A new office chair totally makes a huge difference when it comes to comfort for writing or editing. Just saying. I got a new chair on Friday and I can already feel the difference. Nice!!

Busy week on the television front. Gotham had a great episode. I hope it gets renewed because I'm interested in where the characters will end up next.

The Flash moved the story forward and I'm looking forward to seeing the finale. Arrow did a repeat, but this week should be new. Legends of Tomorrow had a great new episode. I'm liking what they're doing with the character interaction.

Agents of SHIELD took another bizarre twist and I like it. My one quibble would be the somewhat constant pulling the rug out will get old if it happens all the time. I do get a little tired of turning good guys into bad guys and that's saying something because I love all the shades of gray between black and white.

Wynonna Earp continues to make me happy. And I got partially caught up on Banshee. Gotta say the first episode kind of blew my mind in a terrific way. Not at all what I expected. I'm about halfway through season two of X Company and I’m still enjoying everything about the show.

I didn't say anything about Orphan Black last week because my brain was still processing the premiere. But, wow, what a terrific episode! And the follow up kicked butt, too. Lovely to see Paul, if only briefly. I have so much love for this show and how they raise the stakes each season.

And that's it for television.

Tonight's post is from Advocate for the Defense, a novella built around a longer prompt of "your character lands in the brig, their third trip, which grounds them for graduation. The other character is brought in as an advocate and has to defend the first character in front of a board." Seriously, I love prompts like this!

Here's the mini-blurb:

Jada Link has self-sabotage down to an art form and she gets into trouble on a regular basis. But when she needs an advocate to get out of her latest scrape, she meets the one person who can make her career... and possibly find his way into her heart.

And a sneaky peek…

Jada Link pushed away from the table and stared down her opponent. "Are you saying I cheated?" She never, ever broke her rules for playing cards.

Always play it straight.

The ensign quirked a brow. "I'm saying your luck is too good to be true. Take that any way you want to."

Jada let out a slow breath. "I suggest you ask around. It's not luck, it's skill. I'm very good at reading people." Her temper simmered, ready to blow up in this guy's face.

Ensign Browers smirked. "Are you good at sucking dick, too?" His hands went to his belt. "'Cause I'd be more inclined to rethink my stance if you are." He lifted his ass off the chair, leaning back.

Jada resisted the urge to fly across the table and put him on the floor. "You'd have to have something worth sucking and scuttlebutt has it you don't." Not a lie—her former roommate went out with the guy—but a low blow.

Browers straightened up, his mouth thinning to a slash across his face. "I'll have you up on charges, cadet. You don't speak to a superior officer that way." He shoved away from the table and made his way around to stand toe-to-toe with her.

Jada didn't back down. "You crossed a line by bringing your dick into the conversation. You wanna bring me up on charges, let's give you a reason." She drew back and mashed her fist into his face.

His head snapped back and blood gushed from his nose. She'd caught him off guard, an advantage she'd gladly take. Browers snarled, bringing one hand up to staunch the flow oozing down his lip. He took a step forward, swinging his free arm in her direction. Jada ducked then darted around behind him, running square into the chest of their lieutenant, Keith Jardine. His beefy palms grasped her shoulders, spinning her to one side, removing her from the line of fire.

He held up a hand. "Lock it up! Browers, report to the infirmary and get your nose looked at." When the ensign opened his mouth to argue, Jardine jerked his head toward the exit. "Now, Browers."

Browers stomped his way to the door and two of his friends flanked him on the way out.

Jardine turned his attention to Jada. "Cadet Link, you'd better have damned good reason for clocking a ranking officer." He folded his forearms in front of him.

Jada lifted a shoulder. "According to regulations, there isn't one." And Browers' buddies would back whatever lame ass story he came up with.

Screwed again.

Jardine shook his head. "Then you know what to do." He swept an arm out, indicating she should precede him out the door.

Jada gave a terse nod. "Yes, sir. Report to the brig." A sick feeling of dread wormed its way into her gut.

Jardine followed her out, droning on about her lack of decorum, her constant infractions, and her inability to follow the simplest of rules. Her big mouth never shut up and she'd finally landed on the hot seat. What did he do to deserve the burden of training her?

Jada stayed silent. His rant didn't warrant answers. He wouldn't want excuses and she had none to give. Her actions often surprised her, too. Not like she actually wanted to have trouble show up on her doorstep, but she never ran when it came calling.

Which happened a lot.

Jada is so much fun to write. I love her snappy comebacks. Looking forward to getting this one finished up and out into the world.

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

ML Skye