The heat rises between a man and a woman who know all too well the dangers of playing with fire in Night Smoke, a thrilling romantic Night Tales novel from #1 New York Times bestselling author Nora Roberts. Someone has a vendetta against Fletcher Industries. Someone unafraid of torching a warehouse to ashes. Arson investigator Ryan Piasecki doesn’t know if he’s dealing with a pyromaniac or a calculating criminal targeting corporate executive Natalie Fletcher. Impatient to get back to business, Natalie finds herself at odds with Ryan’s uncompromising authority. But their impassioned disagreements only fans the flames of their desires for one another.

Nightshade c1993 -- They sure were making cops in interesting packages these days. Night smoke c1994 --He had a reputation for being abrasive, aggressive and annoying.

He delivers street justice. She upholds the law. To protect the innocent, they’ll set aside their differences—and uncover undeniable common desires in Nightshade, a Night Tales novel of romantic suspense from #1 New York Times bestselling author Nora Roberts. Colt Nightshade has no patience for the bureaucratic red tape that entangles law enforcement and sets the guilty free. Lieutenant Althea Grayson believes in the rules and procedures that help keep order over the chaos that threatens society. Together, they are a teenage girl’s only hope of survival against a ruthless criminal. Their methods couldn’t be more dissimilar, but Colt senses a kindred rebellious spirit simmering beneath Althea’s tough cop exterior—and a passion waiting to be ignited.

A pregnant woman takes the ferry to the UK. A fractious intimate relationship develops between an Irish woman, an English man, and her girlfriend. Two ungendered characters contest the same female body. A deserted wife takes a lover but remains unsatisfied. Lauren Foley's debut collection of dramatic short stories, Polluted Sex, is fearless in its depiction of women's bodies and sexuality, offering an unflinching window into Irish girl and womanhood.

In a virtual world everything is stupidly easy, if you choose to be alone you do not feel lonely. However with advance graphics you can feel dread or apprehension as the scenes change. When I decided to walk across the bed of a sea; stupidly easy of course; the avatar did not drown. Then I discovered the always run button with regard to other avatars, and hence ended my anxiety at being unable to operate the communicate box. I never heard from the virtual friend I had earlier made and sent second life to the waste bin after I signed off or escaped.