Alternatives Trio 1

By Lesley L. Smith

Enjoy three adventures with physicist Chloe Phillipson and her family! When she and her husband plan a romantic getaway at the same time as her oldest son's first boy girl party, what could possibly go wrong?
When Physicist Chloe Phillipson tries to go on vacation with her family, their past catches

• Language: English
• Publisher: Lesley L. Smith
• Release date: Dec 4, 2019
• ISBN: 9781950198146

Lesley L. Smith

All right, I confess! I love physics. I blame my misspent youth reading science fiction by the likes of Asimov, Heinlein, and Clarke. Not surprisingly, I also love science fiction. I grew up in Missouri, in a family of overeducated overachievers. Following in their footsteps, I've earned far too many degrees including an M.S. and a Ph.D. in Elementary Particle Physics and an MFA in Writing Popular Fiction. Hmm? I may have a split personality. The evidence shows I've authored or co-authored many scientific articles, and am a longtime member of the American Physical Society. I'm also a founder and editor of the speculative fiction ezine http://www.electricspec.com and a longtime member of the Science Fiction/Fantasy Writers of America. Both sides of my personality live in Boulder, Colorado where I do physics by day and science fiction by night. Please visit me on the web at http://www.lesleylsmith.com.

Book preview

ALTERNATIVES TRIO 1

Novels by Lesley L. Smith

Temporal Dreams

Neutrino Warning

Kat Cubed

Reality Alternatives

Conservation of Luck

The Quantum Cop Series:

Book 1: The Quantum Cop

Book 2: Quantum Murder

Book 3: Quantum Mayhem

The Space Operetta Series

Book 1: A Jack By Any Other Name

Book 2: A Jack In The Dark

Book 3: A Jack For All Seasons

Alternatives Trio 1

By Lesley L. Smith

Quarky Media

Boulder Colorado

Alternatives Trio 1

ISBN: 978-1-950198-14-6 (e-book)

Published by Quarky Media, PO Box 3332, Boulder, CO 80307

www.quarkymedia.com

Valentine's Alternatives © 2017 Lesley L. Smith

Vacation Alternatives © 2017 Lesley L. Smith

Vixen Alternatives © 2017 Lesley L. Smith

This is a work of fiction. Names, characters, places, and incidents are either the product of the author's imagination or are used fictitiously, and any resemblance to actual persons, living or dead, business establishments, events, or locales is entirely coincidental.

All rights reserved. No part of this book may be used or reproduced in any manner whatsoever without written permission, except in the case of brief quotations embodied in critical articles and reviews. Making or distributing electronic copies of this book constitutes copyright infringement and could subject the infringer to criminal and civil liability.

Table of Contents

Valentine's Alternatives

Vacation Alternatives

Vixen Alternatives

Message from the Author

Reality Alternatives Chapter One

This was the first short story I wrote in the Reality Alternatives world. It takes place soon after the events of Reality Alternatives, so, I was excited to find out what happened to Chloe and her family. In particular, I wanted to explore Chloe's love life…

Valentine's Alternatives

Forget having a superpower, I was exhausted from my regular life teaching at the university and trying to be a good mom and wife.

It still felt like the beginning of the semester as February rolled around. I was learning my students' names, and they were getting the hang of showing up to class and studying and all the other college stuff.

When I sat down for dinner at the kitchen table--in the nick of time--I had to force myself to smile. We had a Phillipson family rule that everyone had to sit down together for dinner every night--and no electronics. We also had a rule that we weren't allowed to bring work home with us. Since I was the only one in the family working, that was pretty much just a Chloe rule.

As my wonderful husband Aidan started ladling out servings, a delicious aroma wafted out of the large pot--beans, onion, garlic, and some kind of meat. Mmm, I said. What is that? Stew? It smells delicious.

Aidan said, "I'm trying a new recipe, mon amour. It's called cassoulet. It has pork shoulder, pancetta and prosciutto in it."

My awesome younger son, Trevor, scrunched up his nose. I don't want to eat that. It sounds weird. What's a cassooo?

My awesome older son, Zach, was already taking a plate from his dad. He stared down at it dubiously.

It's a super delicious bean stew, I said. From France.

"Oui, mon amour, Aidan said and smiled at me, his eyes practically twinkling. My heart did a little patter-pat at that smile. And there's baguette to go with it." He pointed at a long narrow loaf of fresh bread in front