Time for another hook from Rescuing Prince Charming, a near-future sci fi romance. Dusty Johnson, a mild-mannered tech writer and an alien Kwadran guard have discovered a ticking time bomb hidden in an unfinished starship prototype.

After a wild fifteen minutes, they throw the bomb from a terrace into the ocean, barely in time. Then, because the inimitable thrill of danger made them feel so close so quickly they make love. Afterward, though, the fear of getting caught in the boss’s office looms large.

Someone knocked. Dusty went rigid. She stared at the door as though it was a ticking bomb.

But her hero came to her rescue, bursting into a confident barrage of Shanoog. The guy outside the door answered, sounding respectful or at least patient. He didn’t smash down the door.

“This way.” Her hero—her lover—steered her toward a tall bookcase. He felt along one side of it then slapped something. He clenched his jaw and slapped it again, harder.

The bookcase creaked. Dusty hopped back as the whole thing swung out from the wall. Aside from that first creak, it didn’t make a single noise. Say what you would about Kwadrans—and she probably had, during late-night bitch sessions—but their technology was marvelous.

“A secret passage?” Their machinery could compress and reshape solid rock—she’d love to know exactly how they managed that miracle—so a secret passage would be no big deal to them. She would’ve expected it, if her mind ran to deception and subterfuge.

“Unless you would prefer to meet everyone with your hair in disarray?”

And breezes wafting where no decent breeze should dare. “A secret passage sounds perfect.” Nonetheless, she hesitated. “Thank you for trying to take care of me.”

Be sure to check out the hooks by other great writers in the Book Hooks blog hop.

Rescuing Prince Charming

She’s no heroine. He’s no Prince Charming.
Not exactly the pair you’d choose to defend Earth’s first starship.

Dusty Johnson, a self-styled ordinary, everyday woman, responds with extraordinary heroism when saboteurs try to bomb the prototype of Earth’s first starship. She wants to return to anonymity, but that burst of courage propels her ever deeper into dangers that tear the scabs off her dark past — and thrust her into the arms of the unattainable man of her dreams.

Reese Eaglesbrood, an alien prince, yearns to restore his tattered reputation by guiding the starship project to completion, but his fascination with the unassuming heroine threatens to undermine his fragile authority. Shunning Dusty is necessary, yet unthinkable — and when the saboteurs strike again, she may be his only ally against Earth’s most elusive enemies.

* * 4.5 stars on Amazon * *