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About Bro, the Story Behind the Antonello Brothers

The troublemaker was home (#SciFi Excerpt) #MFRWhooks #MFRWauthor

 

In this scene from For Women Only, Khyff is arriving home after a
whirlwind tour of ten planets as security for a Kin rock group. Problem is, even though
he works security for the feline-humanoid band, Kin terrify him. Which is a problem,
because he has one for a half-brother...

Uh oh. Trouble.

"Welcome home, Mr. Antonello."

Khyffen Antonello flinched at the disembodied android voice. He let out a frustrated sigh. "I am never going to get used to that. IdBot?"

The home security system pinged in response.

"Didn't I ask you to call me Khyff?"

"Yes, Mr. Antonello. Would you like to know the dates of your requests at this time?"

"No, I would not. Just change the greeting. Call me Khyff."

"Yes, Mr. Antonello. Greetings and welcome protocols are found in the home security system settings in the main system. Would you like to adjust them at this time?"

"No." His shoulders sagged. Talk about a troublemaker... "Remind me later. I've been away for a month, okay? I'm a little tired."

"Yes, Mr. Antonello. A reminder has been scheduled." Locks activated with an audible click, and a slight increase in pressure on his ears told Khyff the flat had been sealed. "Premises secure."

Khyff dropped his travel bag. The long commute had left him stiff, and he rolled his shoulders. In the living area, he swiped two fingers across a table and frowned at the dust. The cleaning droids had been skimping again. Not every machine was as efficient as idBot.

"Might be a good thing." Khyff stretched, working out kinks. "IdBot, play music." The blare of hard rock made Khyff jump. He clamped both hands over his ears. Drums thundered and boomed behind a wailing voice he'd heard on tour every day for the past month as security liaison for Wind and Thunder. "End music."

The silence made him groan with pleasure. "That's better." He lowered his hands. "IdBot, how did that music get on my setup?"

"Music added by roommate Senth Antonello."

"My brother is back."

"Affirmative."

The troublemaker was back. Yay.

"You could've warned me my brother was home when I got in the door."

"Yes, Mr. Antonello. Greetings and welcome protocols are found in the home security system set--"

"Never mind." Khyff rubbed his temples. A tantalizing whiff of cookies baking made his stomach growl. He entered the kitchen. The foodsynther hadn't worked since he moved in, and nothing sat on the counters.

The magnets on the fridge lit up when Khyff approached, flashing all the local specials from restaurants within their delivery area. He sniffed. None of them smelled like cookies. He'd tossed out the one from Zhkarr's. The Kin fish market restaurant might appeal to some, but Khyff gagged thinking about it. That place was for Kin, and he steered as far clear of the feline humanoids as possible.

He sniffed the air and followed the scent to his brother's bedroom door.

"Senth?" He knocked and opened the door. "Man, those cookies smell so--"

Senth grabbed at bed sheets. Beneath him, his fiancรฉe, NarrAy Jorlan, yelped and covered herself with both arms.

"Sorry!" Khyff snapped the door shut. "Sorry!" He rubbed the back of his neck. "Oh, man. That was more of Senth than I ever wanted to see."

In the kitchen, Khyff opened and shut cupboards, clattering cups and spoons for tea. The image of NarrAy naked burned into his thoughts and refused to go away.

His half-brother emerged from the bedroom and padded toward him, Senth's movements smooth as a cat's. He wore denim jeans but no shirt, and his tight abs gave mute evidence of his strength. Since Khyff had seen him last, the little troublemaker had put on height. Khyff was now the shorter one. Though a free man, Senth wore his curly hair even longer than he had as a slave. It fell down his back.

Senth narrowed his feline eyes. Except for his eyes and fangs, he looked human, until you got him mad.

"Sorry, Sen." Khyff stepped behind the counter, putting space between himself and the HalfKin. Khyff's stomach fluttered. "I know NarrAy's pheromones smell like butter and vanilla. I should have known it was her and not cookies, but I didn't think. I haven't seen you in nine solar months."

Senth seated himself on a stool at the island counter and played with a spoon, watching Khyff with an expectant, angry look. A low growl rumbled. The corner of Senth's mouth twitched, revealing fangs.

Sweat prickled all over Khyff's skin. His stomach lurched. "It was an accident, okay?" He fought to keep his voice calm. Senth had once ripped out a man's throat with those fangs. "Didn't you hear the Wind and Thunder music come on? You left it keyed, and when I came in, it--"

A twinkle lit his brother's eyes.

Khyff slammed the flat of his hand on the counter. "You were gonna sit there and let me ramble on about how sorry I am, weren't you?"

Senth grinned. "Nah, I always knew you were sorry."

Bro, Antonello Brothers Prequel

The tech Senth is about to claim will make him invisible. Finally, the young halfbreed thief will be out of sight and far from the taunts humans throw at him. But when that tech reveals he has a human half-brother who's bound by a cruel slaver, Senth must find a way to win his brother's freedom and save him from abuse -- even though Senth is a slave himself.
When you can make yourself invisible, you reveal invisible truth.
Get Behind the Brothers, an inside look at the characters and story behind Bro. Sign up for one of Kayelle's reader groups and get this booklet, advanced notice when the book is ready, and much more. https://kayelleallen.com/readergroups/


JOIN US FOR BOOKHOOKS
Book Hooks is a weekly meme hosted by Marketing for Romance Writers as part of the MFRW Authors Blog. It's a chance each week for you the reader to discover current works in progress or previously published books by possibly new-to-you authors. Thank you for stopping by. Please say hello or leave a note in the comments.

Steal back the designs? #SciFi #MFRWhooks

 

In this scene, Senth and NarrAy have just met. She's considering whether to hire Senth to steal back the designs for a prototype her murdered parents designed. Because she's a Better, an enhanced human with addictive pheromones, she's not permitted to touch anyone skin-to-skin. Her pheromones attract without emotional attachment on her part, so she's accustomed to being the object of unwanted attention.

Senth puts on gloves and prepares to shake her hand. All her life, NarrAy has been isolated from touch, so this moment is critical...

NarrAy offered her hand. She'd practiced this with her father as a girl. "A gentleman doesn't try to overpower a lady's hand, NarrAy. But he isn't afraid to be firm either."

She held his gloved hand between both of hers. "I can see you're a gentleman, Mr. Antonello."

His cheeks reddened. "Just Senth, ma'am."

She squeezed his hand. "And I'm NarrAy. Never Ms. Jorlan, nor ma'am. Not on this job. Understood?"

He met her gaze. "Does that mean you want me?" He blushed again and glanced down at their still-joined hands. "For the job, I mean."

She bit back a laugh. What an innocent. "So long as we're clear on who's in charge."

"When it comes to theft, I am. For everything else, you are, in every way."

You have no idea. She grinned at him. He had never once tried to look at her body. Maybe this dress will be okay after all.

"Come sit." She gestured toward an adjacent room. "Let's talk business."

Bro, Antonello Brothers Prequel

The tech Senth is about to claim will make him invisible. Finally, the young halfbreed thief will be out of sight and far from the taunts humans throw at him. But when that tech reveals he has a human half-brother who's bound by a cruel slaver, Senth must find a way to win his brother's freedom and save him from abuse -- even though Senth is a slave himself.
When you can make yourself invisible, you reveal invisible truth.
Get Behind the Brothers, an inside look at the characters and story behind Bro. Sign up for one of Kayelle's reader groups and get this booklet, advanced notice when the book is ready, and much more. https://kayelleallen.com/readergroups/


JOIN US FOR BOOKHOOKS
Book Hooks is a weekly meme hosted by Marketing for Romance Writers as part of the MFRW Authors Blog. It's a chance each week for you the reader to discover current works in progress or previously published books by possibly new-to-you authors. Thank you for stopping by. Please say hello or leave a note in the comments.

Message deleted. What!? No way is that right #SciFi #MMRomance

A Broken Heart - Thieves' Guild Academy #SciFi #SpaceOpera

 

In this scene from A Broken Heart, Senth fights with idBot over a single, deleted--but vital--message.

Message Deleted

A buzz at Senth's wrist alerted him to a message. He withdrew his mobile and set the device to read-only mode, rather than bring it up on holovid.

The message required a password, which told Senth who had sent it. His Sen'dai--guild master--and father, Luc Saint-Cyr.

The Guild didn't accept non-humans, unless they were enslaved to a human member. No one could rise past level ten, unless related to a human member. Guild-arranged marriages and adoptions happened regularly. To keep the Guild happy, Saint-Cyr was Senth's lord and master and his adoptive father.

Could his Sen'dai send a note the way anyone else would? Of course not. No, the Man had to do it with mystery and ceremony.

Folks in this town never referred to Saint-Cyr by name. You could hear the capital letters when they called him the Man, or referred to him as the Harbinger. His father was the crime lord all the other crime lords wanted to be when they grew up.

"Ooh, big scary Man." He thumbed off the device. "Please let this be a job and not him thinking I screwed up." Senth ducked into a coffee shop and made his father's handsign to the worker behind the counter, then slipped into a back room to access the password function in private. That he had no idea what the password might be did not deter him. It took seconds to break in.

"This is prolly some test to see how fast I can break these suckers." He opened the message, and then brought the device to his ear.

"A worker at the Guild says he's met a man who claims you're family. Come home and we'll discuss it. Now." The message ended.

Senth jerked the device from his ear. "No way I heard that right." He pressed play and brought it to his ear.

"The idBot messaging system regrets that your message has been deleted. Would you like to access another message at this time?"

"No, I wouldn't like to access another message. I want to hear this message." He poked at the screen. None of the usual options showed. After several fruitless minutes, he resorted to asking for help. "IdBot, how do I replay the message?"

"Message has been deleted."

"I know that, you stupid machine. Undelete it."

"IdBot is unable to comply."

Senth swore under his breath. "Why?"

"Message was delivered as hear-once-and-delete. Would you like to access another message at this time?"

"No, I wouldn't, idiotBot. Thank you not very much." Senth turned off the device and put it in his pocket. "Why is Dad sending me encrypted hear-once messages? What in the worlds is going on?"

Antonello Brothers

Antonello Brothers Sci-Fi Romance Series by Kayelle Allen #SciFi #Romance

Click covers for the buy link. Click text for the website page and excerpts.

Series page https://kayelleallen.com/antonello-brothers

#SciFi #Romance

Complete Set Antonello Brothers Series

Any of my characters mentioned on this page may be found in multiple books in my story universe. Download a printable book list and check them off as you read.


~ Copyright ยฉ2024 Kayelle Allen. All rights reserved ~ Kayelle Allen participates in the Amazon Services LLC Associates program, an affiliate advertising program which provides the means for sites to earn fees by advertising and linking to Amazon.com. Amazon and the Amazon logo are trademarks of Amazon.com. If you purchase an item listed on the site from Amazon.com, Kayelle will earn a small commission. Other sites might be affiliate links as well. These will not result in higher prices for you. Thank you for your support!


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Senth gets an invisibility cloak. Uh oh! #SciFi #MFRWhooks #MFRWorg

 

In this scene from Bro, Senth plays with his new "toy" -- a cloak that hides him from copbot sensors and makes him invisible to people.

Senth plays with his toy

Once Senth stepped outside the Thieves' Guild, he proceeded down the street, gaining the required distance from the entrance. Commit thievery on the grounds and they'd blackball you so hard you'd-- He shook off the thought. After he reached the limit, he skirted around a businessman and backed away, the man's ID in hand. Senth tucked it into one of the cloak's myriad pockets. A male worker in a dirty uniform lumbered past. No trouble unclipping a debit bracelet fastened to the guy's belt.

Of course they felt nothing--his skills ensured that, but the upgraded cloak worked so well no one even looked in his direction. For fun, Senth re-clipped the bracelet on the worker, and then followed the businessman for a block before tucking the ID back into the man's pocket.

Now to see how well the cloak would let him evade after being seen. He pushed back the hood, which turned off the nightstealth, and stepped right in front of a teenaged boy.

Senth let him get a good look at his face.

The kid glared. "Watch where you're going, you half-human freak."

"Half-human? You mean HalfKin." Senth gestured to his catlike eyes. "Get it right, kid." He bared his fangs and hissed.

The punk backed off, and then darted around him. Senth tucked the guy's debit bracelet into a pocket, and then moved off the sidewalk and raised the hood, but did nothing else to hide.

The kid suddenly glanced at his empty wrist and whirled around, his gaze searching the ground. He hurried past Senth without speaking, once in one direction, and once in the other, and kept going.

"Should I return his bracelet? No, I think he should've said 'excuse me, sir.' He owes me a 'sir-charge'." He pushed back the hood and started walking.

Bro

When you can make yourself invisible, invisible truths are revealed.
Take two brothers: one a half-blood thief, one a pleasure slave. Raise them in different worlds, reunite them by fate, mix in a powerful immortal, and you have Bro, the story behind the Antonello Brothers.

Want to be first to know when Bro is released? Join one of my reader groups andย you'll also get an exclusive behind the scenes booklet about the brothers.


JOIN US FOR BOOKHOOKS
Book Hooks is a weekly meme hosted by Marketing for Romance Writers as part of the MFRW Authors Blog. It's a chance each week for you the reader to discover current works in progress or previously published books by possibly new-to-you authors. Thank you for stopping by. Please say hello or leave a note in the comments.

For Sale: One Invisibility Cloak #SciFi #MFRWhooks

For Sale: One Invisibility Cloak #SciFi #MFRWhooks

 

In this scene from Bro, Senth is playing with a new tool he acquired for work as a thief. It's a cloak that hides him from copbot sensors, and renders him virtually invisible.

Getting the Cloak

Senth Antonello signed for his new cloak, thanked the worker, and carried the midnight blue garment down the stairs. The cloak pickup line wound down the stairs and back and forth across the entry hall of the Thieves' Guild like one of those rides at Planet Fun.

Senth had skipped the line, thanks to his adoptive father's clout. It sucked being expected to live up to the Man's reputation, but there were times being the son of a former grand master had its perks.

In the foyer, he shook out the cloak. After slipping it on, he checked himself out in the mirror. The cloak looked like nothing more than a loose fitting coat, with a back that fell straight down from his shoulders to the ground. Hidden pockets allowed him to carry equipment and stash items. He could tuck his arms inside the front and wear it like a cape.

Senth pulled on gloves of the same material and then lifted the hood. Nightstealth film embedded in the cloth activated. Nothing showed in the mirror. No reflection of himself. Like he'd been erased from the room. He turned right, then left.

"Nada, zip, zilch, zero. I'm invisible." He pumped both fists. "Yes!"

If the upgrade worked on people as well as it did on mirrors, copbots wouldn't see him, and he'd be no more than a shadow to everyone else. And just how perfect was that? Now he'd really live up to his guild name, Blue Shadow.

At least until the copbots upgraded their settings. And everybody else got theirs.

Time to test it in public.

Bro

When you can make yourself invisible, invisible truths are revealed.
Take two brothers: one a half-blood thief, one a pleasure slave. Raise them in different worlds, reunite them by fate, mix in a powerful immortal, and you have Bro, the story behind the Antonello Brothers.

Want to be first to know when Bro is released? Join one of my reader groups andย you'll also get an exclusive behind the scenes booklet about the brothers.


JOIN US FOR BOOKHOOKS
Book Hooks is a weekly meme hosted by Marketing for Romance Writers as part of the MFRW Authors Blog. It's a chance each week for you the reader to discover current works in progress or previously published books by possibly new-to-you authors. Thank you for stopping by. Please say hello or leave a note in the comments.

When the World Unravels #scifi #romance

When the World Unravels #BookHooks #scifi #romance A snippet from BroBookHooks is a blog hop where authors share only a small snippet of a story, an enticement to read more.

Today’s snippet is from Bro, the Story Behind the Antonello Brothers. Other books in the series include At the Mercy of Her Pleasure and For Women Only. Bro is free on this website. The other two are free on Kindle Unlimited.

Khyff Antonello is off work for the day and heading for a well-earned rest. When his client mentions he knows someone with the same last name as Khyff, it gets his attention. Then he hears the person is a HalfKin like the brother he thought was dead.

“No, never mind. He wouldn’t be related to you. I just remembered. He’s a HalfKin.”

Half-human, half-feline humanoid Kin.

All the air left the room. Khyff fought to drag in a breath. “What’s his name?”

“Seth, I think. No, Senth. Yeah, that’s it. Senth Antonello.”

The light grayed around the edges.

The guy took a step forward, concern on his face. “Hey, Khyff, you okay? You look a little pale.”

Hearing the name Senth Antonello catapulted Khyff back into the past. To the point in his life when his world had unraveled, torn itself apart and dumped him into hell. He hit the floor with a smack that stung his hands and knees and he crumpled.


Bro, the Story Behind the Antonello Brothers
When you can make yourself invisible, invisible truths are revealed.
Senth and Khyff, the Antonello Brothers from At the Mercy of Her Pleasure and For Women Only, did not grow up together. They were separated at Senth’s birth. Bro shows how and why, and what event reunited them.
Join the Romance Lives Forever Reader Group and get a free copy of Bro, the Story Behind the Antonello Brothers https://kayelleallen.com/bro plus three more books at the same time.

When you can make yourself invisible, invisible truths are revealed. Share on X

At the Mercy of Her Pleasure
He’s a thief. She’s a soldier. Do opposites attract? Oh, mercy!
Amazon https://amzn.to/1f7FQ2h

For Women Only
His secret truth is her people’s darkest lie.
Amazon https://amzn.to/1f7Ge0P