novellas stories and histories

Eva woke up to Lucas getting dressed.
"Good morning, Sweetie," he said. "I've ordered some breakfast for you. I have a short meeting this morning, and then we can walk around town a bit, see the sights, and do a little shopping. How does that sound?"
"I'd be happy to just stay in bed with you all da...

Chapter 9: MAUDIE
Gertie meets Johnnie's Grandmother
Her friendships with her 'sisters', Evie and Milde, were firmly established by the end of the calendar year and Gertie had also found a great friend in Johnnie's grandmother Maudie, who was 81 by the time Gertie first met her in November 1948.
Mau...

Many thanks to my advance readers, including Not_E and happyyy_, as well as to my editor LaRascasse.
Content warning: references to sexual assault, references to bodily mutilation
***
Litheian walked down the long stone hall, pausing as the walls gave way to the open courtyard, the summer sun shinin...

Chapter 17 -- Take a Drunk Girl Home
Saturday December 31
"Get your butt up," I said as I jumped on Peggy's bed.
"What time is it?" she mumbled and saw the alarm clock.
"Get up. We're going running," I announced. "I'll get the boys up while you change."
I overheard my mom tell Duke to get off the be...

Chapter 71
"Going overland, avoiding roads and towns as much as we can, I expect it to take us about two ten-days to get to Lorivin," Allora repeated as they made final checks in the pre-dawn light. She looked longingly at the pack that held her armor and Mitchell knew how much she wished to wear it...

Author's Notes:
So the first part of this did not do well as of the time of posting this. I can't see what ratings people leave but I can see how many have rated each work. Small number of votes and me watching to see how the overall rating changed meant I can back into what the votes likely were. P...

Chapter 8: AT WORK
Johnnie and Gertie learn the banking business together
When Gertie started going into work with Johnnie, she thought that most of his colleagues at the bank regarded her presence as merely amusing, but Gertie sat in on all his meetings, making herself useful by making notes for he...

Chapter 1: Alaric
On the corner of Main Street, the autumnal sun lilted down through the clouds, projecting a prism of light through the changing leaves. The crisp breeze carried a hint of the coming winter, mirrored by the hues of red and orange that adorned the trees. Collingwood had always been l...

( I cannot express my deepest appreciation to those that continue reading and enjoy my efforts here. This chapter was not as hurried as the last one was, due to indecision on my part whether to continue and then keep doing so in a timely fashion.
Also, as it was pointed out to me in a comment: these...

For those reading in real time: I've made changes to the previous chapter (i24) after receiving some helpful comments about the opening of that installment. The changes aren't huge or radical but they are material. I am posting this chapter now that those revisions have been published. I am grateful...

The three travelers were moving quick to Independence, traveling in a special altered railroad car. A fresh made wall had split the car in two, a white door on the left of a long buffet built against it and a wide wardrobe on the buffet's right. All the seats had been removed, replaced by two settee...

"Ah cain't believe he did that," Savvy exclaimed, pulling away from the parking garage where Magic Maybelle sat during pole dancing class.
"He didn't act interested in my opinion," Katie admitted with a dismissive shrug. "And I didn't care enough to stop him."
"But hunny, that's rape! Husband or not...

( After 18 Chapters and near one hundred fifty thousand words, this will end my efforts concerning Winding Creek. Again, I cannot Thank those enough that have voted, commented and shared my tale. )
Sally Tart was special dressed to meet Lucas and Anna Ruth as she waited for their return at the rail ...

(I can only apologize for the lateness of this chapter: My health does and always will come first... Many, many Thanks for those folks that follow me and comment on my tales. The last chapter is near written and will be posted in the next two weeks... After that, We will see. Again, My deep apprecia...

Lucas Blake might have had three, maybe four hours of sleep. Linda Jean was hard sleeping, her breathing coming deep from inside. She laid curled up tight, her smooth bottom pressed up against him. Deep asleep. Peaceful. Content: it were something that happened rare as a southern breeze on a cold da...

Many thanks to my advance readers, including Not_E and happyyy_, as well as to my editor LaRascasse.
Content warning: depictions of childbirth, references to maternal and infant death
***
Bethaer awoke early the next morning, Litheian still in his arms. He watched her sleeping form awhile, the soft ...

Author's Note: Well, we've made it! The final chapter of Traffic Girl: Katie. I hope you find that this is a rollicking good time, if a bit different from the usual. But I think it's a fun change of pace. Don't worry -- the fun doesn't stop here. We'll be rolling right into a continuation of this ti...

New Blood
They had left early, as the first hint of lemon began to imbue the landscape with delicate color. The day promised fair weather and a light breeze. The men were mostly well-rested and in good spirits, though they were well aware they were about to enter the toughest leg of the expedition. ...

Chapter 7: THE AMAZON
Gertie meets Johnnie's older sister
The knock on Gertie's bedroom door at the Dorset's Kensington mansion was soft but Gertie heard it cut through her quiet reflection.
"Come!" she called out.
The door opened and one of Evie's younger housemaids entered. "Sorry to disturb you, ...

For the first time in her life she wasn't hungry. Every male that she passed on the street didn't fill her with the urge to drink from them. She no longer wanted to make them pay or make them suffer for what had happened to her. For the most part, she simply didn't care what happened to them. All sh...

"He's not answering," Jake revealed needlessly.
"Good. Maybe I can avoid the fight," Luke joked, watching as his friend typed a message. He'd witnessed Phinn's tantrums over cases in the past. So, he fully expected Jake's partner to be upset over being unable to listen to their conversation with the...

Shadows from the House of Scent Ch3
Juliet's Tattoo, the Pink PussyCat, and living vicariously.
Something happens. It forms into a mould. It becomes palpable. Real. Throbbing. You think you can reach out to hold it. But then -- in that nameless hour -- it is gone.
ONE: AMBER UNDERCOVER
Amber read Li...

"Officer Dillon," repeated Danielle, looking dazed. "What could he want?"
"Honey, he's been waiting for you about an hour, now," Aunt Marie sounded upset, "your uncle and I are worried about what he..."
"It's ok Aunty," said Danielle in a reassuring voice, with one hand in the air. Quickly she opene...

She lay in star fashion facing the deep blue sky, eyes closed as the sun warmed her naked form. A blanket below her separated her body from the grass, the sound of insects and birds reached her ears, and the smell of country air filled her nostrils. In that serene moment, her thoughts wandered freel...

She stretched and stood. That'd been so many years ago. But that was why she was what she was today wasn't it? Those three boys...
She moved closer to the water's edge and made circles with a stick in the water. The image of her face reflecting back to her from the water's surface was lost in swirls...

Chapter 16 -- Change is Good, Right?
Friday December 30
The plan for the day was to go to my company's office and get updated on how everything was going. Since the meeting was scheduled for first thing, I talked my grandma into going to Granny's West for breakfast. I'd spent the night in her guest ...

INTRO: THE NAKED PATIENT

Sanctus Dei Psychiatric Asylum
Admission Report
Attending Psychiatrist: Dr. Masson
Name: Katrina P. Status: Patient admitted voluntarily; Arrived unclothed, disoriented, exhibiting signs of acute psychological distress.
26 y/o female. BMI dangerously low. Suspected anorexia...

Chapter 6: ENGAGEMENT
Johnnie and Gertie announce their engagement
Like the Dorsets, the Winters used a smaller, much more intimate family dining room where they enjoyed their family luncheons and evening dinners, and it was to this room that Maisie led the couple, even though Johnnie clearly knew t...

It was the summer of '95 or was it '96, she couldn't remember exactly. It really didn't matter. She flipped a stone into the water and watched it skip across the lake. Jack had been bored and like her that summer he'd been tossing stones into the water from the other side.
She remembered watching hi...

PREDATORS. EAT. PRAY.
The trees across the Perion Campus were nearly barren. Winter was right around the corner. The temperature had dropped. The student body had bundled up...
... And HATE was in the air.
UDW Week had finally arrived at Perion University.
UDW. The University of the Divine Word.
The...