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    Sage
    Sage
    Sage
    Ebook78 pages1 hour

    Sage

    By J Rocci

    ()

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    About this ebook

    Yu Maguire has just been released from prison after bearing witness against the gang that runs Little Earde, a "human"-only barrio in the planet's capital city. In prison, Yu had to face a lot of hard facts about his previous life and, after being sheltered by the Earde his entire life, he has no friends left.

    No friends except Amergin, the police officer who opens his home to Yu. Amergin, who happens to be Marazny, a race renowned for their icy exterior. Amergin may be reserved, but Yu finds peace and acceptance in Amergin's ordered little corner of the world. Trying to make his way in a new city shows Yu that he has so much more left to learn, but Amergin offers Yu a second chance at creating a home for himself and a companion to share it with, if he's brave enough.

    LanguageEnglish
    PublisherJ Rocci
    Release dateApr 2, 2017
    ISBN9781370054718
    Sage
    Author

    J Rocci

    Since 2006, J. Rocci has published LGBT romance stories, ranging from contemporary to steampunk to fantasy. Rocci currently lives near Washington D.C. with the love of her life and their furry children, and loves giving her characters happy endings.Sign up for my monthly newsletter and receive an exclusive free ebook!http://www.subscribepage.com/jroccifreebook

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      Book preview

      Sage - J Rocci

      Sage

      J. Rocci

      Copyright 2017 J. Rocci

      Published by J. Rocci at Smashwords

      ______________________

      Smashwords Edition License Notes

      This ebook is licensed for your personal enjoyment only. This ebook may not be re-sold or given away to other people. If you would like to share this book with another person, please purchase an additional copy for each recipient. Thank you for respecting the hard work of this author.

      This book is a work of fiction and any resemblance to persons, living or dead, or places, events or locales is purely coincidental. The characters are products of the author’s imagination and used fictitiously.

      Cover art © 2017 J. Rocci

      Cover images licensed from Adobe Stock

      Cover type licensed from Font Spring

      ______________________

      Author's Note

      This story was originally published in May 2010 as part of Torquere Press’ Spice It Up line, with rights reverting to the author in January 2017. Sage features a gay romance between a human and a human-like species in a science fiction setting, but I hope its message of personal growth and redemption is universal…

      Discover other works by J. Rocci through the author’s official website:

      http://www.jrocci.com/

      ______________________

      Table of Contents

      Chapter One

      Chapter Two

      Chapter Three

      Chapter Four

      Chapter Five

      Chapter Six

      Epilogue

      About J. Rocci

      Chapter One

      Yu Maguire tucked his legs in as the car door slid shut on the echoing noise of the prison parking garage. The silence inside the hovercar was a welcome change from the hell he’d been living in the last nineteen months.

      A glance out the side window confirmed that Amergin was still shooting the shit with his old buddy, one of the gate guards whose name Yu hadn’t caught on his way out. Not like Yu had ever had occasion to speak with the guards before, even the Earde ones -- in an intergalactic prison, dividing lines weren’t based on ancestor colonies.

      He took a deep breath, reveling in the sweet tang of Amergin’s cologne and that spiced drink Amergin always sipped. Yu let it calm his nerves like it had every visiting day for the past nineteen months. His eyes drifted shut.

      Voices walking past outside. His eyes snapped open. Just two guards headed home.

      Taking a deep breath, Yu turned to watch Amergin again, taking in the way the Earde guard spoke with wide gestures, all open laughter, while Amergin loomed silently, hands at his sides.

      The Marazny looked Earde enough at first glance, but they were taller than most other humanoids and their eyes were… off. Not quite Earde. Amergin was maybe a foot taller than Yu, all spindly legs and long fingers, with long white hair and paler skin marked only by delicately raised eyebrow ridges that trailed down his cheeks. The ridges were covered in tiny opalescent scales that seemed to shimmer in the sunlight. Yu had served his time with plenty of Marazny, but none had fascinated him like Amergin.

      Until a year ago, Yu would never have even admitted that there was something compelling about the appearance of the other race.

      But Yu had had enough time to think on all the races living on his messed-up planet. Maybe if he told himself LowSec had been good for him, a character-building experience, he’d push down the tangle of emotions it evoked.

      Getting restless as the chatting dragged on, Yu stretched his legs out and tried not to scuff Amergin’s upholstery, glad that the Marazny had longer legs than the Earde. Even if it made their furniture look like something out of a Dali painting, they went all out for their ergonomic creature comforts to support their longer bones.

      Finally, Amergin gave a polite parting bow to the guard and walked around to the driver’s side of the hovercar. Amergin folded himself gracefully into the car, long fingers tapping along the dash control screen.

      A blast of cold air followed him in, but was quickly dispelled by the car’s heater. Yu tried not to shiver.

      Is the temperature to your liking? Amergin asked in Earde, voice the deep and grave monotone characteristic of the Marazny.

      That voice always rolled through Yu like a physical touch. He just nodded and looked straight ahead.

      It’s fine, thanks, Yu replied, trying out his Common. He’d been studying for months, taking advantage of the remedial language courses offered as part of the rehabilitation program-- and interacting with his fellow inmates, of course.

      Earde schools only taught one language, unfortunately, and no one else outside the community spoke it, unless they worked with Earde communities like Amergin.

      Your Common has greatly improved, Amergin said, tone approving. Yu tried not to let his pleasure at the compliment show.

      The ensuing silence was comfortable. Amergin input their destination and nudged the steering stick forward. Soon they were merging into traffic on the highway, heading into the planet’s sprawling capital, Tuluth, and leaving LowSec far behind them. Yu didn’t look in the rearview monitor.

      The hovercar passed through Tuluth’s main intersection. Three levels of six lane highways twisted around them, exit and entrance ramps looping above their heads in a maze of metal beams as the hovercars swarmed like bees in summer. If they had taken the next level and turned left,

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