by Ruth Diaz
The Superheroes Union: Dynama
By Ruth Diaz
What if your evil ex really was evil?
TJ Gutierrez used to be a superhero. But after the birth of her twins seven years ago, she hung up the yellow spandex. Until the day her archenemy and ex-husband, Singularity, breaks out of prison. When it becomes clear he’s after the kids, she’s forced to call the nanny helpline—and once again become…Dynama!
Annmarie Smith doesn’t have a superpower. She saves the world by keeping kids safe while their parents fight evil.
She temporarily moves in with TJ, and the way the magnetic mama puts family first captures Annmarie’s respect, and maybe her heart—even though she knows better than to fall for a superhero. Still, it’s hard to resist their wicked chemistry. Kapow!
But they can only hide from the world for so long. When Singularity’s quest for custody puts the kids’ lives in danger, can the two women conquer the evil villain and save TJ’s family—all before their first date?
34,000 words
Dear Reader,
August has a special feel for me. Not only is it my birthday month (and I’m firmly in the camp of celebrating a birthday month—one day just isn’t enough) but since I’m in North America, August is also the last hurrah of summer. It’s the time before my daughter goes back to school and lazy weekends at the beach start drawing to a close. In my professional life, August is also the one month of the year I try to take a break from the crazy travel schedule.
So with all those things combined, you know what that means, right? I become self-indulgent and get in as much reading as possible. That’s why I’m thrilled we’re kicking off the month of August with the first book in the fun and flirty new contemporary romance trilogy, Aisle Bound. Planning for Love by Christi Barth releases the first of August, and I hope you love it as much as I do. It’s got all of the elements I adore in a contemporary romance: humor, passion, likable characters and, best of all, a happy ending. Christi is a wonderful, fresh new voice in contemporary romance. This book was so much fun to edit, and if you love contemporary romance, please check it out!
Not only do we have Planning for Love releasing in August, we also have quite the lineup of debut, new-to-Carina and returning authors in a variety of genres. This month, I’m excited to introduce debut authors Bronwyn Stuart, Ruth Diaz and Jacqueline M. Battisti, each writing three very different genres, but each bringing us three amazing stories. Bronwyn presents us with a passionate historical romance, Scandal’s Mistress, while Jacqueline blazes onto the writing scene with her first romantic urban fantasy, The Guardian of Bastet. Ruth’s book, The Superheroes Union: Dynama, is exactly what you might imagine it to be from that title: a fast-paced superhero female/female romance.
Also offering up urban-fantasy fare this month in the GLBT category are authors Heidi Belleau and Violetta Vane, with their co-authored male/male urban fantasy The Druid Stone. And if the male/male genre is what you enjoy, make sure you also check out L.B. Gregg’s August re-release of Men of Smithfield: Mark and Tony, a spicy contemporary male/male romance with a lighter edge.
If you’re a fan of romantic suspense, we have two to help you indulge your cravings. Tina Beckett offers up In His Sights, while fans of Adrienne Giordano’s Private Protectors series will be pleased to see her back with another action-packed installment in Relentless Pursuit. If you’ve never read Adrienne’s books, Relentless Pursuit is an excellent place to get attached to her sexy heroes and strong-willed heroines. Or, if you want to start with something shorter, check out Adrienne’s novella, Negotiating Point in the Editor’s Choice Volume I collection.
New Carina Press author Kaily Hart kicks off her paranormal romance series Fabric of Fate with Rise of Hope. Will fate alone determine their future or can they carve out their own destiny?
Rounding out our August releases are three returning Carina Press authors. Joely Sue Burkhart’s The Bloodgate Warrior is an erotic fantasy romance sure to knock your socks off! Robert Appleton returns with another science-fiction offering in Cyber Sparks. And bestselling author Rebecca York brings us the sequel to Dark Magic with the novella Shattered Magic.
I think you’ll find something in this month’s collection to help you indulge. And, hey, since it’s my birthday month, celebrate with me by indulging in more than one. I won’t tell!
We love to hear from readers, and you can email us your thoughts, comments and questions to [email protected]. You can also interact with Carina Press staff and authors on our blog, Twitter stream and Facebook fan page.
Happy reading!
~Angela James
Executive Editor, Carina Press
www.carinapress.com
www.twitter.com/carinapress
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Dedication
To my favorite superhero expert, Pete.
Contents
Chapter One
Chapter Two
Chapter Three
Chapter Four
Chapter Five
Chapter Six
Chapter Seven
Chapter Eight
Chapter Nine
Chapter Ten
Epilogue
About the Author
Copyright
Chapter One
TJ and the Invincible Woman were headed down the skyscraper-lined street when TJ’s phone rang. They were supposed to lure a giant bipedal shark on legs—one of the Iron Fist Guild’s pet projects, according to Control—toward the pier, but the ringtone was “Conjunction Junction,” which she really couldn’t ignore.
“I’ve got to take a call, Vincy,” she said, her collar-mic automatically transmitting the words to her partner in the air. “How you doing up there?”
The cops had diverted the early-afternoon traffic from State Street, but plenty of pedestrians remained gawking at the monster, which was to TJ’s advantage. Her modest jog—pacing the creature’s ponderous steps—made her look like any of a dozen rubberneckers doing the same thing.
Hiding in plain sight was her MO as the Hidden Hand, no matter how many superhero groupies insisted she must have the power of invisibility. Who needed invisibility? The ability to move things with her mind had always been far more useful, from sneaking out of her bedroom window as a teenager to flying.
She carefully kept the Invincible Woman floating out in front of the land shark while she fished her phone out of her pocket. Vincy was being the carrot, staying mostly out of reach until TJ brought her darting in to attack. It didn’t matter that punching, kicking, tearing or even full-body blows wouldn’t do significant damage to the creature. They still hurt it, so it kept going after her, while Vincy didn’t even bruise her knuckles.
Her voice was slightly tinny through TJ’s earpiece. “I’m good—nothing really changes till we hit the bay. I’ll shout if things get out of hand.” Thank God Vincy wasn’t one of those prima donnas who believed that if you didn’t wear spandex and take the limelight, you weren’t really a superhero.
And of course, since you aren’t really a superhero, you should shut up and take orders from your betters. Bullshit. Genes might make you a metahuman, but using those metahuman powers for good, that made you a superhero.
And if you were an asshole, all wearing a costume did was make you an asshole in a costume.
TJ answered the phone on the last ring while doing an awkward skip-step around some soup cans and other potential ankle-breakers littering the sidewalk. Somebody must have dropped their groceries in shock.
“This is TJ Gutierrez, what can I do for you?”
“Hello, Mrs. Gutierrez. This is Lindsay Santos, the school nurse.”
Of course it was. The nurse was the only person at the school who couldn’t seem to remember that she was Ms. Gutierrez, thank you. TJ had finally given up.
“I’m afraid I have Marisol sitting in my office with a fever of 102. We’ll need you to come pick her up.”
TJ flung the Invincible Woman’s blue-costumed form at the shark’s sensitive gill slits. From the ground, she couldn’t see exactly how Vincy used the opportunity—she just dragged her out of the way again a few seconds later. Impressive teeth snapped at Vincy, but TJ kept her out of range and continued moving her partner steadily toward the pier. “Of course. I’ll be right there.”
“She’ll be waiting in my office. Just give the front desk your name, and be sure to have your ID with you.”
TJ resisted the urge to grind her teeth. She appreciated the school’s caution with her kids, but it wasn’t like she didn’t know the drill by now, and she was falling behind while her attention was split.
Not good—TJ’s range was decent, but like anyone else, she had her limits. The Invincible Woman would survive a sudden fall, but being swallowed by a giant shark? Not so much.
“I will, thank you. Bye.” She thumbed the red button on the phone’s face and sprinted toward the bay, dodging around a group of slow-moving tourists as she brought Vincy in for another pass. “Vincy, how close are we?”
“Couple hundred yards to the water.”
“Cool. We’re off the hook once you’re 100 yards into the bay. After that, it’s on Lightning Bug to take Jaws here out into the open water.” TJ’s phone, still in her hand, started playing Jim Croce’s “Working at the Carwash Blues” at high volume. “Son of a bitch, what is this? I go out on a call and all of a sudden I’m popular.”
“Another call? You can take it. We’re not likely to have a lot of excitement at this point.”
TJ flashed her press pass at the cops pulling bright orange barriers into place in the monster’s wake. Not like she actually worked for the press. But IDs created by the Superheroes and Metahuman Assistants Union—the Superheroes Union for short—were always good. The fake press pass got her into most places she needed to go without having to resort to her union card, which always drew too much attention, even if she pretended to be the undistinguished assistant to some superhero nobody’d ever heard of. “No, I’m lagging behind after the school called. It’s just work—it can wait.”
“Kids sick again?” Vincy asked sympathetically.
TJ was running too fast to waste breath on a groan. “What else? Or Marisol is. Bet you Esteban’s got it by tonight.” She could finally see the bay between the buildings.
“Shit!” Vincy said.
TJ raised her eyebrows, vaulting the twisted remains of a hotdog cart. She’d have worried about drawing attention, but she’d just watched two real reporters in front of her do the same thing. The cameraman’d had to go around, though. “What do you see that I don’t, Vincy?”
“Somebody’s toddler’s out on the pier like it’s just another day in the park.”
“Shit!” Beyond the land shark, tall buildings gave way to vendor carts and pocket-sized parks, and TJ could just make out the blue water of the bay. “Which side?”
“East.”
TJ crossed the street at top speed, telekinetically flying Vincy over the monster’s head to keep her visible. “How close am I to line-of-sight?”
“Hard to tell from up here. Fifty yards, maybe?”
“Good thing I don’t smoke.”
Vincy laughed into her microphone. The land shark twisted awkwardly, trying to keep an eye on her. “Okay, any second now. There’s a news guy with a microphone kind of hovering right there, like he’s trying to decide whether to make a dash for the kid.”
The pier opened up in front of TJ. She spotted the one gray-suited man acting like a human being instead of a reporter and used him as a landmark. And there was the kid, wearing one of those kid-harnesses with the leash trailing loose behind. Which was why you didn’t trust your kids to leashes, no matter how much you might want to yank on one occasionally. TJ kept half her brain on the Invisible Woman while she mentally reached for the toddler, lifting her—she thought it was a girl, too much pink for TJ’s taste—out of the way just before the monster’s left leg swung through the space the girl had been occupying. The child screamed, suddenly suspended in midair with no idea what was going on.
Poor kid. TJ floated her toward the reporter who’d wanted to go after her, hovering the Invincible Woman out over the water at the same time. After a quick and fruitless glance around, the guy was ready for the catch, and she let go.
An enormous splash announced the shark-monster’s entry into the water, accompanied by a screech of metal as it clipped the pier’s railing. It snapped at the Invisible Woman again.
A glowing figure flew past her, distracting the thing. Lightning Bug was on the ball, thank God.
TJ raised her phone as if she were surreptitiously taking pictures like the junior members of the news crews she hid among. She floated Vincy back to the pier, setting her gently on the pavement, the red blaze on her chest making her identity clear to anyone who hadn’t been certain. TJ let her deal with the cameras. It left TJ free to amble slowly toward the back of the crowd while Vincy put on that million-dollar smile of hers for the nice reporters.
“Better you than me,” TJ whispered into the mic. “I’ve got to go pick up the kids.”
The Invincible Woman couldn’t answer while she was on camera, but she nodded, her gaze never getting anywhere near TJ. For TJ’s purposes, that was perfect.
Once past the police barricades and the excited mob beyond them, she headed for the nearest subway entrance. She remembered the call from work and dialed into her voicemail as she walked. Todd Chang was the head of the Foreign Service’s local research team. It made him the union’s point-of-contact—not just for the Foreign Service, but for the Department of State’s entire local office—in addition to being her direct supervisor. His voice spoke urgently into her ear. “TJ, this is Todd. I need you to call in as soon as you get this message. Singularity just escaped from Peacekeeper Penitentiary.”
* * *
It was the kind of building Annmarie would never be able to afford. She pushed 1204 on the keypad—nowhere near the penthouse, but just living in the building was impressive—and pressed the call button, turning her face toward the camera. “Annmarie Smith, from the childcare pool.” After a moment in which the client was undoubtedly comparing her face to the photo the union had sent over, the door clicked open.
Annmarie appreciated the client’s caution. You couldn’t be too careful with kids and strangers—and superheroes’ kids were in more danger than most, she mused while she crossed the upscale entryway with its rows of shining brass mailboxes. Not that that had ever stopped her own parents from leaving her with whatever relative or friend they could find on short notice when they had to run out and save the world.
She caught herself scowling into one of the mirrored panels between the elevators and smoothed the expression from her face. She’d never met the Hidden Hand before. She didn’t want to start on a sour note.
The elevators were new and fast. On the twelfth floor, the doors let out onto pleasant dark green carpet beneath earth-toned walls bearing tasteful and subdued art. Each individual condo door appeared to be heavy, dark wood with the numbers done in brass, and each had its own security camera. At 1204, Annmarie rang the bell and put on her best unflappable air. Most superheroes she’d met were only too happy to put her in her place, given the smallest opening. As long as she came across as confident, she had much less trouble with the parents—and that meant less trouble with the kids.
The door opened t
o reveal a disheveled woman wearing a frazzled expression on her light brown face. She couldn’t be more than five foot four in bare feet and had blue jeans on beneath her white blouse and navy blue suit jacket.
“Oh thank God,” the Hidden Hand said. “Come in, come in. You are my own personal savior today. Twins are hard enough. Twins with the flu in the middle of a crisis…?” She stepped aside so Annmarie could enter, brushing a stray curl behind her ear.
Annmarie entered, wondering vaguely if the blonde-and-rust highlights in that dark hair were natural. Not that it mattered—the woman was gorgeous, regardless.
It was one thing to introduce yourself to a camera and another thing in person. “Annmarie Smith.” She offered her hand.
The Hidden Hand let the door swing shut behind her and gave Annmarie’s hand a firm shake. “Call me TJ. They didn’t make you dress up for us, did they?” Her gaze took in Annmarie’s gray slacks and green blouse.
“I just like to make a good impression.”
TJ laughed. “You’ve made it. Now do you want to borrow a T-shirt or something? They’ve both got fevers, and there hasn’t been puking yet, but I’m sure it’s coming.”
“Um, okay.” She wasn’t sure what she’d been expecting from the home life of one of Trade City’s most mysterious superheroes, but apparently she’d assumed something more imposing, with far less forthright concern over fever sweats and vomit. As introductions went, it was on the opposite end of the spectrum from that horrible moment where Titanium had made it abundantly clear to his over-privileged eleven-year-old that Annmarie ranked somewhere between the maid and the family dog.
TJ led her around a modern dining area opposite a pleasantly cozy living room decorated in subtle grays, rich burgundies and children’s toys. The spacious bedroom beyond felt positively barren compared to the living areas, the unmade bed half-strangled by linen-colored bedclothes while a laptop sat at its login screen on a small desk to one side. A poster hanging above the bed, all rich reds and oranges in a weathered wooden frame, showed two women whispering together. There was no other decoration in the room.
