Gotta say, the
whole limiting of physical distance and having my youngest's senior year pretty
much cancelled is both easier and harder than I thought it would be. I have
three people in the house who are pretty much deemed essential workers. One is
in food production and the other two are grocery workers. If the reins get
tighter on limiting movement, I'm pretty sure they won't get a break.
For me, as someone
who's worked from home for the past decade or so, it's business as usual for
the most part. I have more interruptions than usual but otherwise, my routine
hasn't changed overmuch. There's something comforting in that.
Had a semi-decent
week of watching television. I finished up the Heart Guy from last week and I'll give it a go. I have a feeling
this one is going to have messy relationships and I always like train-wreck
shows.
Also caught another
arc of Classic Who. It's always fun
to see the effects from the late sixties and early seventies. Doctor Who isn't any better or worse for
shows of its time.
Watched another
episode of Peak Practice and enjoyed
it. I'm finally starting to get into the relationships and getting to know the
villagers. I love the scenery in the show.
Caught the
livestream of the Dropkick Murphys
concert on St. Patrick's Day. Terrific show and highly entertaining. I hope to
catch some of the Broadway shows that are available for streaming also.
Watched the rest of
season one of Danger Man. I'll be
starting season two in the upcoming week.
Started episode
three of Strike Back. Nice to have a
familiar face back in the fold. Also, Chetri is really growing on me. She's got
quite a personality and interacting more as an equal with the rest of the team.
I love that.
That's pretty much
it for television this week. Tonight's post is from A Spellbound Yule, a holiday
spirit sexy short.
Here's the
mini-blurb:
Holiday spirit, Bertram Goldwreath, has to bring Oakley
Oliver, a witch and Calder Conrad, a warlock together over the Yule holiday so
they can settle a territorial dispute. Oakley is looking forward to a quiet
getaway at a bed and breakfast … until Calder invades her interlude and sparks
fly.
And a preview snippet…
Bertram Goldwreath kneaded the
dough for his famous tipsy tinsel knots. "I can't believe how many we went
through last year." The annual Yule gala for his fellow holiday spirits
had become a showcase for his baking skills.
He divided the dough into four
different sections for flavoring and coloring. Crossing to the ingredients
spread out on his counter, he began the selection process of picking out the
perfect mix of sparkle and cheer. He grabbed a bottle of glittery silver sugar
just before the zing tingled up his arm.
Bertram heaved a sigh.
"Damn. It figures." He snatched up a container of glaze laced with
peppermint schnapps and stomped back to the island where his dough awaited.
With a snap of his fingers, he
summoned the assignment from the ether.
Carefully wrapping up three of
the sections, he stashed them inside the fridge then returned to work on the
fourth. Sprinkling flour on the smooth butcher block surface, he slapped the
ball of dough down and worked out any air bubbles while reading the issue he'd
have to handle before he could finish his tipsy tinsel knots.
Pausing, his eyebrow quirked.
"Goodness, they love to save the big challenges for the holidays."
His task to bring a witch and a warlock together wouldn't be easy.
Oakley Oliver inherited her
position as the Lawngrove coven leader from her grandmother when she passed on
to the afterlife just after the summer solstice. Oakley's mom didn't survive
giving birth and Oracle Oliver accepted the responsibility of raising her
granddaughter. Grandma O never dreamed she wouldn't have time to fully prepare
Oakley for assuming the leadership role. But her gift of foresight failed nine
times out of ten when it came to family.
Bertram rolled his eyes.
"Isn't that always the way? Provide soothsaying for everyone else but
can't help out your own." He went back to working the dough and reading
the background for Oakley.
The older witches were putting
pressure on Oakley to keep a tract of land—one involved in a long-standing
dispute—which should have been turned over to the local warden of warlocks
during the past year's Samhain celebration, according to a treaty made between
the groups over fifty years ago. And they had her over a barrel because if they
didn't accept her as the coven leader before the first anniversary of Oracle's
death, Oakley's legacy status would be revoked and she'd be out of Lawngrove
for good.
Bertram shook his head. "Grandma
O, you left Oakley a pretty big mess." Of course, she couldn't shoulder
the blame.
A nasty divorce between a witch
and a warlock put the ownership of the land in question and the resolution,
meant to be a short-term solution, didn't solve anything. Every decade the
tract traded hands. Witches had the use for ten years then the warlocks got a
turn. So far, the only thing the treaty accomplished had been to keep the two
factions on opposing sides.
Rolling out the dough, Bertram
snorted. "A terrible situation, especially since a group of the witches is
trying to renege on the deal." And, boy, the warlocks weren't happy about
being denied their rightful ownership.
Calder Conrad, the current head
of the Yardbrook warden, had stepped up his campaign to have the coven honor
the agreement. And, okay, his methods left a lot to be desired. A barrage of
messages, timed to arrive at inconvenient times, had been dropping for the past
week. Of course, Oakley kind of left him with little choice.
He'd respectfully given her three
months to deal with her grandmother's death before broaching the topic.
Bertram tsked. "Probably
should've struck when they were all reeling with loss." A cutthroat idea,
maybe, but one that might have worked.
Instead, the delay gave the old
guard biddies time to strategize and close ranks. Calder had an uphill battle
to make the exchange of ownership and Oakley needed to either step into the
role of leadership and make decisions or let the elder witches run roughshod.
The spirit chuckled. "Gotta
give it to Conrad. The man has a gift for wreaking havoc on Oakley's
schedule." He sobered. "Which'll be fun to get around since the
powers that be want the couple together and end the rift." The miracle of
Yule can only do so much.
Using a spatula, Bertram cut precise
lines in the dough, creating a dozen strands. "At least I know exactly
where to send the duo. Goodacre Bed and Breakfast is the perfect location to
get these two hooked up." Secluded, beautiful, and tucked away in the
nether realm, the place would be spellbinding during the holiday season and
just the spot for the witch and warlock to work things out on a fundamental
level.
Bertram huffed out a laugh.
"And precisely what I need to pull this off." Dusting off his hands,
he put a damp towel over his creation then popped into the mist to get the inn
ready for two occupants.
I love writing the
holiday spirit sexy shorts. Coming up with the spirit names is half the fun,
especially when adding a bit of a holiday twist to them.
That's it for this
week.
Cheers!
Skye
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