Andromeda's Pirate
Page 34
“An Argosian? You could have been killed.”
Sunny snorted, waving her off.
Elanie’s fist landed on her hip. “You are not a prostitute, Sunny. You are a hospitality specialist. You do not need to sleep with all of these men—”
“And women,” Sunny interjected with a finger raised, sliding past Elaine into her room.
“—to be good at your job.”
Oh, the naïve little woodsprite. “At the risk of shocking your bionic sensibilities so thoroughly you’ll need a hard reboot”—Sunny threw off her coverall robe and donned the outfit Elanie had picked out for her—“I will say only this: life is far too short not to do what you love as often as you can.” Her smirk was salacious.
Elanie’s groan was lengthy. “You have nine minutes.”
Sunny strapped on a pair of kitten heels, tucked a white button-down into a black pencil skirt, and pinched her cheeks. She waved her hand over her body, head to toe. “Yes?”
Elanie frowned. “No. Your hair looks like a trestal’s nest.”
“Right.” Running water from the sink over her hands, she wetted down her jagged blonde hair, then ducked underneath her QuikDri. A dehydrating film made of thousands of microscopic sandguppies dropped from the device, clinging to her head and sucking before peeling itself off with a satisfied sigh. “Better?”
One of Elanie’s shoulders rose a fraction, the gestural equivalent of I can’t even begin to describe how little I care.
Sunny’s eyes narrowed. “Elanie, darling, are you all right?”
“Fine. Why?” Elanie replied flatly.
“You seem even pricklier than usual, if that’s possible. Any chance you finally decided to install your upgrade?” The hormone simulation upgrade had just been released for all bionics generation twenty-six and older.
Elanie shuddered. “No. Absolutely not.”
“Why not?” Sunny’s brows waggled. “Could be fun, you know.”
“I tried the trial version, momentarily. It was not fun. It felt…” Elanie’s face pinched in disgust like she’d just sucked the slime off of that elevator Blurvan’s seventh toe. “Messy.”
“That is a fair assessment. But you should do it anyway. You may find it won’t kill you to participate in something other than categorical disdain every once in a while.”
“Well, Sunny, as someone once said, ‘Life is far too short not to do what you love as often as you can.’”
As Elanie walked into the hallway with a flip of her perfect hair, Sunny burst into laughter.
Don’t stop now. Keep reading with your copy of LOVE IN THE TIME OF WORMHOLES, by City Owl Author, Jess K. Hardy.
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And find more from Debra Jess at
debrajess.com
Want more sci-fi? Try LOVE IN THE TIME OF WORMHOLES, by City Owl Author, Jess K. Hardy, and find more from Debra Jess at debrajess.com
On this deep space pleasure cruise, love is in the recycled air.
Sunastara Jeka is passionate about two things: (1) meeting the needs of the varied species who holiday aboard her interstellar pleasure cruise during the day, and (2) avoiding attachments when the occasional guest meets her needs at night.
Sunny’s life is simple, straightforward, and safe, until the single most worlds-shattering one-night stand becomes her newest crewmember.
Freddie has never forgotten that night with Sunny. He’s ecstatic to see her again, until she tells him she never dates her coworkers. Determined not to lose this confident, sexy, hysterical woman again, Freddie bides his time, pursuing a purely professional relationship with Sunny when they’re on the clock, while he slowly charms her senseless after hours.
As Sunny breaks her own rules about workplace romance, her tragic past and a heartbreaking betrayal thrust her orderly life into chaos.
When a hostile species holidays aboard the ship, endangering VIP guests and even the known universe, Sunny and Freddie must decide. Will they let the gravity of their pasts keep them apart, or risk it all for love and fight for their future together?
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Acknowledgments
This book was a short story at one time. There was no dashing pirate captain, and Kelra Shade hunted the alien on her own. After two years of trying to sell it, I asked THOSE WHO KNOW WRITING THINGS what was wrong with it. They said: This isn't a short story. This is a novel screaming to get out. Now go write it, and submit it until Hell won't have it.
THOSE WHO KNOW WRITING THINGS are also those who have stuck by me during this pandemic. They have made the isolation less lonely and the writing blocks more easily surmountable. So, I would like to thank D.C., Dawn, Gary, Karl, Rosie, Jessica, Sarah, Stephanie, Sandy, and Beth. Zooming with you made me truly appreciate how much I need all of you in my life. Thank you.
As with Andromeda's Rebel, this book would still be a smoldering pile of ash if not for my editor Heather McCorkle. This story was fresh off my laptop with no beta-reading when I submitted it, but despite all of its problems, she helped me cut through the slag to find the diamond. Thank you, Heather, and everyone at City Owl Press for your kindness and support.
About the Author
A Connecticut Yankee transplanted to Central Florida, DEBRA JESS writes science fiction romance, science fantasy, superheroes, and urban fantasy. She began writing in 2006, combining her love of fairy tales and Star Wars to craft original stories of ordinary people in extraordinary adventures and fantastical creatures in out-of-this world escapades.
Her new series Heroes of Andromeda debuts in November of 2020 with Andromeda's Rebel.
Blood Surfer, her debut novel, won the National Excellence in Romance Fiction Award for Best Paranormal and Futuristic. A Secret Rose, the sequel, won the Maggie Award & Golden Leaf Award for Best Novella. Her short stories have appeared in Heart’s Kiss Magazine and are now available for free at Curious Fictions.
When she's not writing, Debra happily plays fur mommy to Martin, the vampire kitty. You can follow her adventures with Martin on social media, or you can subscribe to her newsletter. More at debrajess.com
About the Publisher
City Owl Press is a cutting edge indie publishing company, bringing the world of romance and speculative fiction to discerning readers.
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Escape Your World. Get Lost In Ours.
www.cityowlpress.com
Additional Titles
ASHES OF ONYX
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They stole her magic. They killed her friends.
Nothing in the multiverse will stop her quest for revenge.
* * *
CURSE OF THE AMBER
By: Kathryn Troy
A curse, a resurrection, and a centuries old witch hell bent on revenge.
* * *
DIVIDED
By: Sharon M. Johnston
A new heart should mean new life, instead it’s a living nightmare.
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EDGE OF THE WOODS
By: Jules Kelley
There’s something lurking in Pine Grove, Montana, and its bite is vicious.
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FROSTBITE
By: Joshua Bader
Getting hired to be a personal wizard for a billionaire may just become a death sentence.
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FUTURE THAT NEVER WAS
By: Kin S. Law
A steampunk romp featuring an unorthodox, multi-cultural pirate Captain!
* * *
HEX, LOVE, AND ROCK & ROLL
By: Kat Turner
With a business skidding toward bankruptcy and bone
-dry bank account, what will happen when Helen hires a witch to cast a money spell?
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HOUSE OF ASH & BRIMSTONE
By: Megan Starks
Hell has come to collect, but Gisele Walker has no plans to pay the debt.
* * *
LOVE IN THE TIME OF WORMHOLES
by Jess J. Hardy
On this deep space pleasure cruise, love is in the recycled air.
* * *
MIDNIGHT DESIRE
By: Shari Nichols
Danger and desire collide to form an unlikely alliance between a witch with a sordid past and a special agent who might be her future.
* * *
MIXED IN
By: Catherine Haustein
When passions are regulated, which laws will you break?
* * *
PURGATORY’S ANGEL
By: B. Hughes-Millman
We all have a dark side where inner demons roam. When devils of our nightmares murder in their sleep, only she can stop them.
* * *
SORROW’S POINT
By: Danielle DeVor
Not All Exorcists are Equal....One is Marked
* * *
THE FAMILY CROSS
By: Gabrielle Ash
As she inches close to her goal, Matilda’s world is rocked by monsters roaming the Manhattan streets.
* * *
UNREGISTERED
By: Megan Lynch
Living the ideal life is a human right, unless you’re unregistered.
* * *
WAKING THE DEAD
By: D. B. Sieders
The road to hell begins when the reaper darkens her door.
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