A Kiss For A Cure
Sidney Bristol
What’s a girl to do when her parents gift her with a man for Christmas?
Caught between two kingdoms, Jordan has given up the privileged world of intergalactic court life to become an interstellar biologist researching space sharks. Unexpectedly saddled with a husband from a race who are rumored to be sex fiends, her life is yanked in a direction she doesn’t want.
But Cai isn’t human and he must have the emotional feedback of a mate in order to survive. Charged with protecting Jordan, can he win her heart and keep her safe from harm?
Will they survive the challenges that arise…sexual, emotional and political? Time is ticking away and it’s not on their side.
********** Guest Post **********
A lint picker.
Really.
I think that was the worst gift I have ever been given.
I was in high school and we were attending the yearly holiday party thrown by a family member. Since my birthday is in December, I get a lot of people handing me two gifts, one with Christmas wrapping and one with more generic paper and even more “I forgot” gifts that are clearly something grabbed from a pile and wrapped. Anyways, one year my uncle gave me a battery operated lint picker. The kind you might use on a sweater that gets those little annoying bits off the knit. It’s a practical kind of gift.
Except this is Texas and I owned maybe two sweaters. I also had no idea what a lint picker was for or what it did or even why I needed one. I think there was a lot of staring at it before someone kindly told me what it was and how it worked. It was the most awkward gift exchange right behind a size of 2XL red silky panties a naughty Santa gave 9 yr old me on accident.
We’ve all received gifts that made us really question what the giver was thinking about. Honestly, it’s not about the gift, it’s about the thought behind it. But we’d all be lying if we didn’t admit that those gifts we will never use or are so out of left field, don’t stick in our minds and make us laugh a little. Think back with me on your worst gift. What were you thinking when you opened up the packaging and saw…it…
When I started writing A Kiss for a Cure, I asked myself the question: What is the worst present Jordan, our heroine, could receive? She’s very much a woman of her time, progressive, intelligent and self-sufficient, despite her privileged upbringing. A few things came to mind, but they would all have made for a boring story, so I skipped them and went for the worst possible idea in my arsenal.
You’d think that parents know us best and can give us that thing we really want. My parents are fantastic gift givers. I can’t remember the last time I returned any present they’ve given me. But not everyone has such talented parents. ((Okay, I give them a list, but they follow it to the letter!))
Jordan’s parents aren’t quite as in touch with her as mine. Or most parents for that matter. On the surface, it appears that they’ve meddled in her life again. Because what do they give her?
A husband.
Really.
It’s sort of a mail order husband – in space.
I can’t tell you more or it might spoil the story, but suffice to say Jordan would do just about anything to be able to return this present!
What’s the most unfortunate gift you’ve ever received?
It can never be said that Sidney Bristol has had a ‘normal’ life. She is a recovering roller derby queen, former missionary, and tattoo addict. She grew up in a motor-home on the US highways (with an occasional jaunt into Canada and Mexico), traveling the rodeo circuit with her parents. Sidney has lived abroad in both Russia and Thailand, working with children and teenagers. She now lives in Texas where she splits her time between a job she loves, writing, reading and belly dancing.
Christmas presents were not supposed to move.
Jordan froze, staring at the seven-foot-long box wrapped in silvery paper. The one sent by her parents. Her heart pounded so hard she could hear it. No, that pounding came from the box. From inside the box.
Blood drained from her extremities. Her chest constricted until she panted for breath.
What had her parents done this time? She clenched her hands and gritted her teeth. In the history of bad, over-the-top and gaudy presents, she feared this might be the worst.
She turned her back on it and put a hand to her stomach. She needed to sit down, preferably on something soft and forgiving, but her furniture had yet to be delivered. The only furniture in her new quarters was her bed. Everything else was packed up in the utilitarian beige plastos she’d purchased secondhand from a shipper to get her things to university. They showed their age with scrapes and dented sides, but they were so sturdy nothing had ever been broken in moving them from place to place. Plastos were stacked against the walls, in groupings in the middle of the floor, and in her bedroom. Everywhere. Her new quarters looked like a cargo hold.
Again, the pounding came from the box, but louder. She jumped and spun to face the box. Whatever was in there wanted out. She leaned against the wall and stared at the silvery paper. Light from the floor-to-ceiling windows made glimmering patterns against the surface of the package. She could escape the room, since her upgraded quarters had a real bedroom and a kitchenette, but whatever was in the box would still be there.
Sucking in a deep breath, she crept toward it until she could touch the top with her fingertips. It was cool against her skin, even through the paper. Bending, she put her ear against it and gently rapped. The box rang hollow.
Maybe she’d heard something in the Center clanging. There was always the chance there was construction going on over the holidays since most people were away for several weeks. Or maybe one of her plastos had fallen.
Something knocked from inside the box.
I don't know about you, but I think this book sounds fantastic, and I can't wait to read it!! How about you? So tell us, like Sidney asked earlier, what is the most unfortunate gift you've ever received? I can think of a few right off the top of my head, but those will have to remain a secret for now so the wrong people don't find out I busted on them LOL! Thank you, Sidney, for the awesome post!
