Nick Carlyle understands the intricacies of his job better than anyone. He lives to crunch those numbers and his skills are valued throughout the company. If his personal life might be lacking, he doesn't notice, especially whenever he steals a harmless glance or two at Riley Jameson's tight body.

When a universal flu shot is developed, it's hailed as a miracle, and rightly so. But the seemingly harmless side-effects begin to change the world, warping the statistics that Nick's always used to guide him through life.

No one changes as much as Riley. Suddenly the young man is bigger, stronger. He's also aggressive in ways Nick isn't prepared for, and for the first time analyzing the numbers does nothing to help the situation.

And if numbers can't help him, what can?

I hadn’t hired him, but there were times I viewed him as a personal present to me.

I’m having trouble finding my “rambling” groove with One Shot. This is my fourth or fifth draft, and usually it only takes one. I can’t seem to find anything to say other than “I had a helluva lot of fun writing the story.”

But I did. I like Nick. He’s a really good guy and isn’t conscious of that fact. Doing what’s right comes naturally, but because it comes naturally, he tends not to notice that the people around him care for and respect him. And I like Riley. He’s fun and aggressive and he’s always watching Nick. He says what he feels. Nick has no idea how to handle the attention and being off balance that way is good for him. Hell, I even like Greg, one of Nick’s coworkers. I was bound and determined to make him a hardcore villain, but he turned out to be a pretty good guy, even if he might be a little bit of a lush.

I like how the characters interact with each other. I like the way the story evolved from what was supposed to be a five thousand word short to a thirty-six thousand word novella.

I guess what I’m trying to say here is that I like One Shot, and I hope you like it too. :)

-- Rowan McBride