by Lea Kirk
“I cannot imagine she would make it up.”
“This is nonsense I have no time for. We are about to leave.”
“We are, but you are not.”
Rol opened his mouth yet nothing came out—a rare occurrence.
Kai moved his head, watching their exchange with undisguised curiosity. “I believe I shall stay too.”
“I am not staying,” Rol blurted. “I never applied; you know I would not. This reeks of foul play.”
Kyzel gave his head a slow shake. “Perhaps. However, you are a male of honor. There is too much at stake right now to jeopardize our budding relationship with Earth.”
Rol’s mouth trembled as though he fought to keep a flock of words inside.
“You get to stay in the same suite.” Kyzel extended his arm with the phone. “Besides, this may give you the opportunity to witness the ratification of the trade agreement.”
A low growl emitted from Rol’s throat, and he snatched the phone. “Safe travels, my monarch.”
“Thank you, Rol. May the wind be under your wings until we meet again. And, Fyad, I am entrusting the welfare of our Prime to you.”
Fyad’s eyes widened with surprise, then the young man grinned and inclined his head. “As you desire, my monarch.”
“Very good.” And now, it was time to take Robyn home. “Robyn, my life mate, are you ready?”
Joy danced in her blue eyes. “I am so ready.”
He offered her his hand. “Then let us greet this new life, this new adventure, together.”
A sneak peek at Wing and a Prayer, book two of the Silverstar Mates series by Lea Kirk. Landing October 19, 2020…
Chapter 1
Legally speaking, Meryl Faulkner was in a gray area, and that was not a good place for a retired divorce lawyer to be. The whole situation wouldn’t be quite so bad if she hadn’t involved her goddaughter in her crime last night.
She tapped the edge of her debit card against the grocery checkout counter. If that damn man—because it was always a man—hadn’t pissed her off so royally, she would’ve thought things through a little more carefully. Which wasn’t an excuse because the facts spoke for themselves.
The first time she met the giant winged Bezchian lug, Rol Raptorclaw, she’d been all sorts of turned on. But then…. Seriously, everything would’ve been fine if he hadn’t tried to undermine his good friend’s budding romance with her best friend.
That was not going to happen. She’d warned him to back off and not ruin Robyn’s chance at finding a guy that was a thousand times better than her ex—and Kyzel was exponentially better than Kevin. But had he listened? Nooo. Of course not. Instead, he’d cornered Robyn during her lunch break yesterday and done everything to make her jealous of Kyzel’s dead wife.
Meryl frowned. And speaking of Robyn, her friend hadn’t followed up about that with her today. Maybe she should drive by on her way home and make sure she was okay.
“Ms. Faulkner? Ma’am?”
Meryl blinked, the familiar electronic beeps and buzzes of the grocery store filtering back into her consciousness. She met the expectant brown-eyed gaze of the grocery clerk. Cute young thing with hair done in neat cornrows.
I used to be that young. And cute.
The girl waved one hand in the direction of the ancient card reader. “You can tap your card now.”
“Oh, right. Sorry.” She set the card over the scanner.
What was the line from that movie? “It’s not the years, it’s the mileage.” Sixty-one used to seem so far away, but now, here she was retired and almost a senior citizen.
She stared at the back of her hand. A couple of age spots were there, barely visible against her brown skin. It helped that she bleached her shoulder-length curls a gold color; hid the salt and pepper hair that only she knew was there.
Not much she could do about the crow’s feet at the corners of her eyes, though. Robyn called them laugh lines, and maybe she was right. Life with Nathan had been fun, even after discovering she couldn’t have kids. He had been there for her, strong and reassuring, for twenty-seven years.
And then, he wasn’t.
They’d lived their happily ever after until…Charlotte. Ditzy, petite, young Charlotte Cremean with her deep brown eyes, thick dark hair, and her equally thick head. How had she not figured out the true reason Nathan wanted to hire her as the new secretary for their family law firm?
Aren’t cha glad you kept your name now?
“Here’s your receipt, ma’am. Has anyone told you that you look like Michelle Hurd?”
She clamped down on the snort trying to escape. “So often that I’m thinking of applying to be her stunt double.”
Ma’am. I’m old enough to be a ma’am.
And no one would hire a “ma’am” aged woman to do that job when they could just make-up a younger one and do distance shots.
“You could.” The girl laughed. “Have a good evening.”
“Thank you.” She took the receipt between her fingers and jammed it into the bag with the yogurt and bananas. “You too.”
Out in the parking lot, the old grocery cart wheels rattled and the whole thing shimmied. Damn thing better not fall apart on her before she got to the car. How was it that after ten years, asphalt was still a thing? Didn’t one of the other planets who belonged to the Galactic Alliance have a better surfacing solution they could share with Earth?
Earth’s been part of the Alliance for so long, yet the first time I met an off-worlder was only a few days ago.
Rol. Tall, dark, and handsome. And looked like he was about her age with his gray and brown headfeathers and huge wings. His body, on the other hand, was as buff as a twenty-five-year-old’s. Which sort of made sense since a spare tire would be difficult to fly with. And those eyes…one gray and one blue…she could stare into them for hours, days, months, years.
Dammit, she had to stop thinking about him like that. She stopped behind her sporty little silver coupe and loaded her bags into the trunk. Rol was a dick, and she’d wronged him for it by having Kathy hack into the Silverstar Agency’s data base, submit a fake application, then bio apped one of his feathers to them as well. And that damn feather was still in her purse. Why? Because it smelled all nutmeggy warm, like Rol, and she couldn’t let it go.
Who’s the dick now, Meryl? Ma’am?
She rolled the cart into the rack. He’d be so pissed if he ever found out. If she was really lucky, he’d be long gone and the whole thing would blow over. As hard as it was to admit it, she’d let down all womankind with her petty little stunt.
And yet, just the thought of him leaving made her heart sad. It was beyond crazy, but she might be hooked on the guy, which was another thing he could never know.
She slid behind the steering wheel, the bucket seat conforming to her ass. The cheery notes of The Wedding March came from inside her purse, and her stomach clenched. It’d seemed funny to give that ringtone to Nixy Vogel, the Silverstar agent assigned to her. Now, not so much.
“Well, Nix, honey, leave a message.” It was getting dark, and she still wanted to drive by Robyn’s to make sure her bestie was home and safe.
Anything Nixy had to tell her could wait until after the groceries were put away.
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About the Author
USA Today Bestselling Author Lea Kirk loves to transport her readers to other worlds with her science fiction romance books. She’s the author of the award-winning Prophecy series. Her latest work in progress is her Silverstar Mates series, part of the Intergalactic Dating Agency series, and features older heroes and heroines. Why? Because sexy has no expiration date!
Ms. Kirk lives in California with her won
derful hubby of thirty years, their five kids (aka, the nerd herd), and a spoiled, yet adorable, pup.
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The PROPHECY Series
(in chronological reading order)
Prophecy
Book One
Blue Christmas
A Prophecy Series Holiday Novella
Space Ranger
A Prophecy Series Short Story
All of Me
A Prophecy Series Short Story
Salvation
Book Two
Collision
Book Three
Skylar’s Gift
A Prophecy Series Novella
Also by Lea Kirk
Made for Her
(part of S. E. Smith’s Magic, New Mexico world)
ABOVE THE STORM
Copyright ©2020 by Heather Jarecki
All rights reserved, including the right to reproduce, distribute, or transmit in any form or by any means. For information regarding subsidiary rights, please contact the Author.
Cover Design by Frauke Spanuth of CrocoDesigns
Developmental Edits by Sue Brown-Moore
Copy Edits by Laurel C. Kriegler
Formatting by Nina Pierce of Seaside Publishing
This book is a work of fiction. Names, characters, places, and incidents are the product of the author’s imagination or are used fictitiously. Any resemblance to actual events, locales, or persons, living or dead, is coincidental.
First Edition
California, USA