Sunday Snippet: Raid at Midnight (an Under the Black Raven Banner novella)

I'm happy to say I managed to pull off a surprise birthday celebration for my husband with the help of our daughter and a few other very good and awesome friends. I held it at the elementary school where he works as a custodian and surprisingly got everything and everyone in to the cafeteria without him finding out. I'm so happy we surprised him!

That party capped off a very busy week between trying to figure out what the weather is going to do from one moment to the next and work projects dropping from the sky to not feeling the greatest because of said weather. We're gearing up for some additional snow so that should be fun.

As mentioned, work projects are piling up and I'm happy to be busy. I have a good mix of genres at the moment and I enjoy the variety. I should have two finished up this week and two more starting. I'm excited and hope this trend continues!

Had an okay week of viewing. I managed to get through my usual schedule of shows and caught a little more of the Olympics. I'm not a rabid fan, but I do enjoy amazing athletes compete for their countries.

Started the week with Midsomer Murders and finished up season 25. I have to say, I thoroughly enjoyed this season. The writing kind of blew me away and the humorous moments made me happy. More of this please!

Caught the premiere episode of Foyle's War season seven and it's one I remembered. I do miss the sergeant and kind of hope he ends up showing up again.

Finished season twenty-eight of Silent Witness and I love ending on the wedding on Jack and Nikki with the hint of where they'll be going in the next season. The new team is amazing, and I'm thrilled they'll be sticking around.

Enjoyed another episode of Poirot and loved how Hastings and Poirot were concerned about Miss Lemon but ended up not having to be because of a cat.

Elementary had another great episode. Kind of fun to see Sherlock wake Joan up with a violin. I also think Sherlock nudging Gregson to get married actually made sense. Sherlock's awkwardness always makes me smile.

Watched another episode of Batman Beyond and it isn't the last one of the series. I have several more to watch before having to decide which show to pick up next.

Caught another episode of Star Trek: Lower Decks and rather enjoyed the new vibe between the characters. I have to admit, I'm kind of meh about the Ransom character. We'll see if he grows on me the way Beckett did.

That's it for the life update this week. Tonight's post is from Raid at Midnight, book one of the Under the Black Raven Banner series. (Series name is subject to change…)

Here's the miniblurb:

Verity Jones joins an elite group of civilian protectors in a battle-torn land. She's the daughter of an ace fighter pilot who tore up the skies in the first epic war. Emory Cavendish is the lead pilot, and his crew pulls off amazing feats, largely thanks to Verity, which drives their commanding officer mad to the point of putting Verity in danger.

And a preview snippet…

Verity paced back and forth in her equipment room. She'd overheard Whitcomb accuse Emory of thinking with his dick. Grabbing a chair, she dropped down on it and heaved a sigh.

Is that what Emory is doing?

Riffling through her sketches, she snagged a pencil and tapped it on the pages. She didn't want to believe Whitcomb's accusation. The man defined the word asshole.

Her lips twisted. "Not to mention misogynist." Didn't mean the colonel couldn't have a valid point about Emory's interest in her.

She heard movement in the bedroom, but she stayed put, even when Emory called out for her. She didn't want to talk to Emory yet. Too bad … because he didn't take the hint and leave.

Instead, he came into her workspace and put his hands on her shoulders. "You're in the clear. Whitcomb blew his stack but I talked him around."

Verity tensed. Talked him around how?

Emory squeezed her with his fingers. "You're to keep a low profile, but I'm thinking we should do a test flight tonight, on the new equipment you developed."

Verity stood up, shaking his hands off her. "Is that what you think or what your cock thinks?" Damn him.

Emory narrowed his gaze. "You've been listening at doors? Did you stick around to hear me set him straight?" His eyebrows arched.

No, she'd left as soon as Whitcomb made the accusation.

Still… "Did he have a point? Why do you trust me so much?" She hated how much this bothered her.

Emory made a rude snort then pushed back. "Let me get this straight. You think the reason I put the lives of our men in your hands, encourage you to fly and create news ways to keep us ahead of the enemy, and basically give you free rein is all because I fuck you?" He flung a hand out. "Is your opinion of your skills lower than Whitcomb's?" He planted his hands on his hips, squaring up against her.

Ouch. Put that way, she didn't blame him for being crude. Her shoulders slumped.

Duly chastised, she apologized. "I'm sorry. After experiencing such a high from completing the drop, I guess it stung—a lot—to have the colonel reduce me down to being your bed partner." She grimaced. "I should be angry with him, not you. Please ignore what I said."

Still pissed off, Emory shook his head. "No, we need to get a few things crystal clear here. You've proven your worth. I don't doubt you can build a plane from the ground up—you've pretty much proven it with the relic we're going to test later." His voice softened. "You give a damn about the men. You fly better than anyone I've ever seen. And one day soon, you'll be leading missions." His lips kicked up in a wry grin. "Basically, what I'm saying is we'd be stupid not to put your skills to use."

Verity's mouth curved. "You paint a pretty picture, but Whitcomb won't be easy to get around." She sighed, wishing things could be different.

Emory reached out and hauled her close. "Whitcomb is mine to get around. Leave him to me."

At this point, Verity didn't have a better plan. She wrapped her arms around Emory and held on tight.

I love this series so much. Verity and Emory are a joy to write, and I'm having so much fun with them!

 

That's it for this week.

Cheers!

Skye