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281 pages, Kindle Edition
First published December 20, 2020

“What if instead of a shooting star, I’m just a plain old star, minding my business and floating through space, when all of a sudden I get sucked into your orbit. You’re a bigger, brighter star than me, and I can’t stay away. Slowly, we move toward each other, until we’re touching, merging…” I pull him a little closer. “Colliding. Then what are we?”
Jeremiah’s eyes turn glassy. “A blue straggler.”
“Exactly. Now we’re both better than we were. Now we’re bigger, brighter, and so brilliant. It took both of us to make this new star.” I shrug. “I think that sounds amazing.”
“It does.” A surprising tear slides down his cheek. “You listen to me, don’t you?”
“Every word. Even the words you never speak.”




"What are you gonna do about Jeremiah?"
"Try to learn. I kind of have to. Oh, did I mention he's my kryptonite?"
Nate's eyes widen. "Oh no. He's a cute nerd?"
"The cutest. Like ever."

“Gabesy?” I shake my head. “Come on, Julien, he hasn’t even worked here a week and he has a nickname?”
“That’s why he gets Gabesy. I don’t know him well enough yet to give him a personality nickname. I would think you figured that one out, Doctor Space.”

“What is your usual?” Gabriel asks after a moment.
“Hazelnut latte.” Gabriel mumbles something under his breath that sounds strangely like “like your eyes,” but that couldn’t be it.

Being close to him feels like being sucked into a black hole. Or what I imagine it to feel like. There’s an invisible pull, as strong as gravity, drawing me closer, luring me to explore, but then my senses kick in and I resist, knowing that giving in would only lead to my demise. You can’t survive a black hole. And romance? Same.

“What is this?”
“Coffee.” He lifts one of the cups, checks the side, then takes a sip. “Got hazelnut for you and black for Samuel. That’s what Easton said he likes.”
“Thank you.” That was thoughtful. Stop being nice, job stealer.

His eyes shift up suddenly, meeting mine. They’re beautiful, soulful and soft with long, thick lashes. His expression doesn’t change, but the tension seems to fade just slightly.
“Thanks for asking,” he says quietly.
“You’re welcome.”
Note to self: Avoid gazing directly into Gabriel’s eyes. It’s about as safe as staring at the sun.
If I’m not careful, I’m going to get burned.

“Yeah. Okay, so Star Wars. Fan?”
“I like it enough.”
“All of them?”
“No. I grew up on the original trilogy, so it’s my favorite. I literally get chills when I hear the Darth Vader music.”


“I’ll be honest, kids. I love space. I think it’s very cool, but I really like the planet we already live on. Instead of spending billions of dollars to convert Mars to a habitable planet, we could spend a lot less to take care of this one, so we don’t have to move to Mars.”
“How?” the girl up front asks.
“We can do a lot to halt climate change. That would help. We can recycle, be careful with water, and take care of what we have.”

The kids shout out several questions all at once, until the room erupts in chaos. I stand back watching Gabriel panic. Am I being an asshole right now? Yes, yes, I am. But Pluto is not being promoted to a planet as long as I have air left in my lungs.

“I looked him up. I was curious. His whole life is detailed in sports article after sports article. He had sponsorships and even a calendar.”
“Oh shit,” Samuel whispers. “He’s in a calendar?”
“Yeah. A couple years back.”
“Is he naked?”
“Focus,” I scold, even though that was my first thought too.

Will either side win, or am I doomed to feel so much internal conflict every time he graces me with one of his sweet smiles?
Tune in next week for more As the Planetarium Turns.

“I’m glad you got sucked into my orbit.”

“Your eyes. From the moment I saw you, they pulled me in. Your glasses are like two frames around priceless hazel art.”



