Teaseday – Covet (Vampire Erotic Theatre Romance Series Book 1) Teaser Excerpt

Today’s tease comes from the book Covet, which is the first book in my popular Vampire Erotic Theatre romance series. Read on for this Tuesday’s slightly longer than usual tease… It seems I can’t keep things short where this book is concerned.

Javier remained still as Lilah stared down at the black towel slung low around his hips, telling his body not to start getting the wrong idea. It wasn’t a good time for it to slip free of his control. He needed to keep a firm grip on it even though the sight of Lilah in the tight short black dress and the scent of him on her was driving him closer to the edge with each passing second.

“Were you going to shower?” The tremble in her voice along with the agitation in her blood gave away her muddled feelings and when she finally raised her golden eyes to meet his, he could see the edge of hurt in them and knew what she was really asking.

Was he going to wash away her scent?

He didn’t want to wash the smell of her off his skin. He wanted to keep it on him until the passing of time rendered it beyond his senses, wanted to lose himself in her so that moment never happened and so he would forever smell of Lilah’s sweet fragrance.

He needed it with a ferocity that astounded him. He longed for her to belong to him even when it was impossible. Her master would have known the moment he had given up his fight for control and touched her tonight. He had violated the sacred law and sentenced himself, and nothing he did now could save him.

Nothing he did now could make things worse either.

Javier stepped aside, holding the door for her. “Come in before someone sees you and wonders what you’re doing here. I’m in enough trouble as it is.”

Lilah remained standing on the threshold of his room. He sighed, reached out, took her hand and pulled her into the room. He felt her tense when he slammed the door and she remained with her back to him, her wrist held tight in his grip, so fragile beneath his fingers.

So delicate.

She was a rare flower and he felt as though she had bloomed for him tonight, had filled his dark world with the scent of her intoxicating fragrance and given it colour for a brief moment.

He wanted that again.

Needed it.

Needed her.

“Where is your master?” he whispered and turned towards her, his gaze on his hand where it held her wrist. The sight of his fingers locked around her, touching her at last, fascinated him. He had wanted this for so long that he couldn’t deny his desire for her. Even this simple touch was too much for him, filled him with hunger and flooded his veins with the heat of passion.

He wanted to pull her against him, twist her into his arms, and kiss her. His gaze dropped to her rosy lips and he realised that he hadn’t touched them yet. They were virgin territory, too pure to taint with his. He feared he would ruin them, would lose control of himself and his need and would cut them so he could taste her delicate blood in the kiss. He wasn’t worthy of touching them. He was a beast and no matter how much he desired this beauty, she was beyond his grasp.

She belonged to another.

But neither of them were worthy of her.

Javier fought the desire to fall to his knees before her and beg for her forgiveness, to confess now before her master came to claim his head that he had loved her from afar for these two years, that she had captivated and ruined him to all others from the moment she had walked into his life.

So innocent.

So pure.

So beautiful.

He needed her to know that he wasn’t a beast, that whatever she thought of his kind, he was different to them and would do all in his power to protect her from the cruelty and darkness in his world. He would free her from it if he could.

What good could he do for her now though? He had sealed his fate tonight.

It was over.

He had killed himself and hurt her in the process. He was a beast.

Javier’s legs gave out and his knees hit the wooden floor, the force of impact jolting his spine. Lilah gasped and was before him in an instant, crouching close with her hand on his shoulder.

“Are you sick?”

A mirthless chuckle escaped him. Perhaps he was. He had been so cruel to her, and he had said that he loved her. A man in love would have thought about her and placed her first, would have protected her even from himself and spared her the pain of his touch.

Her soft hand shifted to his face, settling against his cheek, and he closed his eyes and leaned into the caress. It was too much to hope that her master was so far away that he wouldn’t have sensed what Javier had done tonight. It was too much to hope that he had more than a few hours left on Earth. If she would let him, he would spend his last hours with her.

It would hurt her.

Javier lifted his eyes to hers and the concern in them healed some of the pain in his heart. Could she feel something for him too? It wasn’t possible. Her bond to her master saw to that.

“I am sorry if I hurt you earlier,” he whispered, voice fractured and hoarse. He ached to raise his hand and cover hers, to hold it to his face and press a kiss to her palm, to tip his chin up and claim the lips that tempted him so much and ruin her.

A smile curved those lips, pure and full of the feelings in her eyes. They were soft with understanding.

“You were a little rough at times but I enjoyed it,” she said in an equally soft and alluring voice, capturing him in the spell of it for a moment before her words sank in and confused him.

“No… I mean if my desire for you caused you pain.”

Lilah fell quiet, the light leaving her beautiful eyes until they reflected his confusion. Her voice was a bare whisper when she finally spoke. “It should have then? It didn’t.”

Javier slumped further, his hands on his knees, his mind racing. “Why?”

Lilah shook her head. “I don’t know. I thought maybe someone had been lying to me about it… that it was something we were told to keep us in line and obedient.”

“It’s the truth, Lilah,” he said and her cheeks coloured. Did she like the way he said her name? She blushed whenever he dared to use it. “I should have hurt you.”

“Maybe it was because I wanted you too.”

That surprised him more than the fact that she hadn’t experienced pain from his touch.

“That’s another thing. You shouldn’t want me… the bond should prevent it.”

Her eyes widened. “Oh.”

They sat in silence for too long. Javier tried to think of something to say to chase away the clouds that were gathering in her eyes. He could feel her anger rising as she stared down at his towel. What could he say to make that hurt go away? He didn’t know what was upsetting her. Perhaps discovering that would be a good starting point.

“What are you thinking?”

Her gaze crept back up to his and then she turned her face away and stared at the floor off to his right, exposing the smooth column of her throat to his hungry eyes.

“Javier… was it just the heat of the moment… or do you… do you feel something for me too?”

Did you enjoy today’s tease?

Caris Roane is also posting a Teaseday snippet, so be sure to check out her blog and read it: http://www.carisroane.com/journal/

Covet
Felicity Heaton
They’ve burned for each other for two years, the forbidden attraction between them growing each night. Now resisting the sinful desires of their hearts is becoming impossible.

Javier knows better than to succumb to his hunger for Lilah. The mortal female belongs to a powerful aristocrat patron of Vampirerotique, the theatre he runs with three other vampires. A single touch is all it would take to break the sacred law of his kind, sentencing himself to death, but his passion for her has become too fierce to ignore and he will risk everything to make Lilah his.

Lilah has fought her desire for Javier since arriving at his theatre as a servant but each glance he has stolen, his eyes promising pleasure that will satisfy her longing for him, has chipped away at her defences and she can no longer deny her need and her forbidden feelings for the powerful vampire male.

When they find themselves alone in a private box during one of the erotic performances, will they surrender to their passion and live out their wildest fantasies in a night of wicked pleasure or will the threat of Lilah’s master keep them apart forever?

Available in e-book from:
Author’s website

Amazon Kindle | Amazon Kindle UK | Amazon Kindle Germany | Amazon Kindle France | Amazon Kindle Canada

Apple iBookstore US | Apple iBookstore UK | Apple iBookstore Australia | Apple iBookstore Canada | Apple iBookstore New Zealand

Barnes and Noble | Kobo Books | Sony Reader Store | Smashwords

Available in paperback from:
Amazon.com (Covet and Crave in one book) | Amazon.co.uk (Covet and Crave in one paperback) | Barnes and Noble (Covet and Crave in one book)

If you haven’t had a chance to read any of the books in the Vampire Erotic Theatre romance series yet, they’re all available at major ebook retailers and in paperback, and you can find the links and samples of the books at my website:

Covet (Vampire Erotic Theatre Romance Series #1)
Crave (Vampire Erotic Theatre Romance Series #2)
Seduce (Vampire Erotic Theatre Romance Series #3)
Enslave (Vampire Erotic Theatre Romance Series #4)
Bewitch (Vampire Erotic Theatre Romance Series #5)