Love Is Always Write Volume 4

other coffee shop patrons tend to ask her hilarious questions like "Do you write children's books?" She loves watching the looks on their faces when they learn what she's actually up to.
    When not writing, Silvia enjoys baking sinful chocolate treats, exploring new styles of cooking, and reading children's books to her wickedly smart offspring. You can get to know Silvia better by visiting her website or finding her on Facebook.
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HOW I LOST IT ON PLANET X
    by Gabbo De La Parra

    Location: Planet XZ345, Pyramids of old Perth
    A distinct sound makes Darien look up from his archeological work. What in the name of the Seven Planets is that?
    Before the warrior reaches him, Darien thinks that perhaps he should not have dismissed all the talk of a curse and a sacred guardian on the old documents, after all … and then the alien warrior opens his mask …
    ~ Fehu

    genre: sci-fi/futuristic
    tags: enemies-to-lovers; first timer; explorer; supernatural; redhead
    content warnings: no HEA
    word count: 12,096
    Back to Table of Contents

     
    HOW I LOST IT ON PLANET X
    by Gabbo De La Parra
    CHAPTER 1
    "You know there's a curse, right?"
    He rolled his eyes. "As much as archeology sometimes delves into fantasy realms, a curse is the last thing on my worries list."
    "What could be a bigger worry than a curse on a remote planet, Darien?"
    "The program is for ten years." He hated it when he sounded so whiny.
    "Fresh from Academy, top of your class, this is the Dream Mission for a newbie." Ben mimicked his eye-roll. "As long as you don't take the effing curse into consideration."
    "Byotch, are you trying to scare me?" Darien stuck his tongue out. "I've taken down bigger men than you."
    "Pfft, I'm not even going with you." Ben sipped his herbal tea, the sharp concoction offending Darien's nose. "But I'm gonna be the one they send if you get lost or zombie'd or gone for good." An arched eyebrow adorned his square features.
    Today was an eye-rolling day. Ben had the frame of a spaceship and the strength of twenty Velusian bulls. He'd fought all kinds of beasts on countless planets and had been in three intergalactic wars, but now he was worried about a myth?
    For the sake of the Seven Planets, we are scientists, warriors, effing descendants of Terra.
    "Ten years is not that long, anyway." Ben's dismissive tone grated on Darien's nerves more than the green sting assaulting him.
    "That's easy for you to say, whore . You'll be getting all the cock and ass your slutty heart desires around the effing galaxy."
    "And what is it to you, my sassy virgin?"
    Ouch. Darien had been busy studying hard, all right? Boys were the last thing in his head. He always thought he'd have his share of manly delights after finishing the Space Academy. Now, it seemed his calculations had been just a behemoth truncation error. Ben always said Darien must be the last red-haired virgin of the galaxy, a disgrace to his fiery genes. However, he wasn't going to sit there and let Ben flaunt the notches on his bedposts in his face. It was MY CHOICE.
    "I'm gonna be stuck with two old prunes and a bunch of androids." Not a chance in Nova to give his virginity to those two; besides, they were lovers. Major snooze. Commitment. Ugh.
    "A man thirty years your senior is not a prune." Effing Ben liked them with white hair. What a silver fox chaser.
    "Both old wizards will be like a hundred by the time we finish the excavation." There went the whine again. If Darien didn't get his shit together, hara-kiri would be mild compared to what he was gonna be forced to resort to.
    "Darien, this is a lifetime opportunity, a chance in a billion. After this ten-year mission, you are secure until your last breath." Another sip of obnoxious aromatic tea. "If you opt out now, it will not only be career suicide but a major family disgrace."
    Irked, Darien slammed the table with both hands, making everything on it rattle hysterically. "Then what was all that effing babbling about a curse?"
    Ben folded his napkin as if Darien's crimson face were a delightful sunset. "I just love to mess with your head, little brother."
    Grr. The byotch.
    ****
    "Computer, access the records of Planet XZ345, archeological research." It was time to review the so-called curse.
    The planet was technically a desert that didn't have any known fauna, and there were no records of sentient inhabitants. The Pyramids of old Perth had been discovered during a