Category Archives: Teaseday

Teaseday – Vampire for Christmas – vampire romance book

Posted on 13th December 2011 by Felicity Heaton

Today my Teaseday post comes from Vampire for Christmas since it’s getting closer to the holidays. Vampire for Christmas is a seasonal vampire romance book and it’s available now for just $0.99 on Amazon Kindle, Barnes and Noble Nook, Sony Reader, Smashwords and other retailers.

At the moment, I have a fantastic offer on a selection of my ebooks. There are plenty of fantastic reads to choose from, all priced between $0.99 and $2.99 and in a range of lengths between novella and long novels, and a variety of paranormal romance sub-genres including sinful angels, sexy vampires, seductive werewolves, and even a super-hot demon and sassy witch pairing. Offers end 15th January 2012.

Find out more about the books, including excerpts and reviews, and these great offers at: http://www.felicityheaton.com/paranormal-romance-ebook-offers.php

Vampire for Christmas
Felicity Heaton
It was one last mission. Shannon, a demon hunter with the agency, is looking forward to leaving behind the small town and the vampire sheâ€™s been stuck with for the past two years. Things are getting complicated fast and she wants out. A fresh start, free of her vampire partner, awaits her if she can survive their final mission and the lonely Christmas holidays.

It was one last mission. Rafe, a vampire doing time with the agency, watches it approach with dread weighing heavily in his stomach. Two years of working with Shannon has been difficult, especially since he started falling for her, but he doesnâ€™t want their partnership to end. He has barely a few days to make her face her feelings and stop her from leaving, and he intends to do just that.

When a slimy demon threatens the season of peace and goodwill, itâ€™s the chance Rafe has been waiting for and the moment Shannon secretly fears. Rafeâ€™s determination to prise open her heart and her own resolve to keep it closed clash as violently as they do with the demon, and threatens to end as messily.

Can Rafe make Shannon see that his love for her is real and that she feels something for him too? Can Shannon face her fears and her past, and stop herself from running away from both? Will a wish on a star bring her what her heart truly desiresâ€”a vampire for Christmas?

Available in e-book from:
Author’s website: http://www.felicityheaton.com/ebooks.php?title=Vampire%20for%20Christmas
Amazon Kindle: http://www.amazon.com/dp/B004AM59T6/
Amazon Kindle UK: http://www.amazon.co.uk/dp/B004AM59T6/
Barnes and Noble: http://search.barnesandnoble.com/Vampire-for-Christmas/Felicity-Heaton/e/2940011177187/
Sony Reader Store: http://ebookstore.sony.com/ebook/felicity-heaton/vampire-for-christmas/_/R-400000000000000359154
Kobo Books: http://www.kobobooks.com/ebook/Vampire-For-Christmas/mix-rLsihKs-8EyfN3Zf7TR7tA/page1.html
Smashwords: http://www.smashwords.com/books/view/29379
Amazon Kindle Germany: http://www.amazon.de/dp/B004AM59T6/
Amazon Kindle France: http://www.amazon.fr/dp/B004AM59T6/
Apple iBookstore USA: http://itunes.apple.com/us/book/isbn9781452356044
Apple iBookstore UK: http://itunes.apple.com/gb/book/isbn9781452356044
Apple iBookstore Australia: http://itunes.apple.com/au/book/isbn9781452356044
Apple iBookstore Canada: http://itunes.apple.com/ca/book/isbn9781452356044

EXCERPT

His favourite prey.

Rafe stood on the lawn, his dark eyes following her from room to room in her large house. Shannon disappeared from view on the top floor only to reappear in the living room. He couldnâ€™t see much through the open curtains but his senses made up for what he lacked in vision. He tracked her with them, focusing until the dark world around him drifted into the distance and there was only her.

She was muttering.

A smile tugged at his lips.

How many times had he told her not to mutter?

She reappeared and stood in the middle of the living room, tying her long fair hair up into a ponytail, her gaze on the television. The twinkling lights hanging around the room cast a myriad of colours, turning the scene from warm to cold and back again. She looked pale tonight. Had she been getting enough sleep? They had last worked together two weeks ago and she hadnâ€™t seemed herself. He had tried to ask her what was wrong, but had failed to find his voice, instead leaving her to mull over whatever was bothering her in silence.

Rafe had killed the vampire that night. She hadnâ€™t even noticed it. Heâ€™d had to report it to the agency. In a toss up between her being angry with him for telling her superiors about her dangerous lack of concentration and her being safe, the latter would always win with him.

She smiled.

His chest ached.

He hadnâ€™t seen her smile in a long time. He stood in silence, unmoving, absorbing this rare beauty before him. She was a goddess when she smiled, and it always tugged at his insides, luring him to her. She turned towards the window and her smile slowly faded, her expression turning distant.

What was she thinking in there?

She couldnâ€™t see him. Human eyes werenâ€™t sharp enough to pick him out in the shadows of the tall trees on her lawn. The lights in the room would steal what little night-vision she had. He could observe her from the darkness without fear, could watch her and think over the things that plagued him every night.

The feelings.

During the day, Rafe could almost pretend they didnâ€™t exist. The sun stole the world from him and his emotions with it, leaving him in a deathly slumber. At night, when he came to her, when he saw her again, everything returned, and each time it came back stronger.

He knew that Shannon didnâ€™t like working with him, and the past two years had been difficult for them both at times, especially at the start, but it didnâ€™t stop him from feeling something for her. They had been through so much together, so many fights for their lives, so many long nights passed in quiet company when no demons showed up, and so many long conversations when her guard slipped. When they had first been assigned to each other, he had wanted out of the deal straight away, but now he almost looked forward to the times they were required to work together.

His dead heart called him a liar.

He didnâ€™t almost look forward to it at all. He waited for it. Yearned, in fact.

Rafe sighed and leaned back against the broad rough trunk of the pine tree.

It was no use anyway.

Come the New Year, the agency would separate them and relocate them at opposite ends of the country.
He stared at her. She swept a few rogue strands of golden hair back, tucking them into her messy ponytail, and laughed at something. The light from the television flickered across her face. Rafe smiled at the same time as she did. The sight of her chased the winter chill from his body.

He was going to miss her.

His little vampire hunter.

He had never wanted a partner, but she had changed that. Now, he didnâ€™t want any partner except her.

Shannon smiled again and zipped up her red jumper, until the tall collar of it covered her neck. She pushed shorter lengths of her hair behind her ears and then looked out of the window again, and he felt as though she was looking right at him. She was so beautiful when she was unaware of him. Naturally so too. No trace of make-up touched her oval face. No kohl to highlight the depths of her green eyes, or lipstick to enhance the sensual swell of her coral lips. Everything about her was natural, right down to her curvy shape. He had tended to her wounds a few times before, each time battling his desire as he swept his fingers over her soft skin and laid eyes on the toned body she hid beneath her clothes. She trembled for him sometimes and refused to look at him whenever she did, and he was convinced that her shivers werenâ€™t born of fear. He was convinced that part of her was attracted to him too. Her gaze shifted and settled on something partially obscured by the pale curtains.

He frowned and tried to make out what it was.

Ragged dark shape that tapered upwards. Shiny coloured lights. Glittering orbs. Tufted strings of foil.

A Christmas tree.

It surprised him that she celebrated the occasion. He had thought she would be indifferent to such human things since she was a demon hunter, but there she was, standing in a room bathed in twinkling lights, tinsel and festive trimmings. The entire street was alive with flashing reindeers, singing Santas, and fake snow on roofs. No decoration touched the outside of her two storey home, but it was different on the inside.

Rafe studied her as she adjusted a bauble on the tree. He might have been talking about her. The exterior she showed to him and others was different to how she was on the inside. He knew that best at times like these when he was watching her from the shadows. This was the real her, the one she hid beneath her armour and would never let him see. This was his only way of seeing the side of her that he wished she would show to him, and he couldnâ€™t help himself.

He told himself that it wasnâ€™t stalking. It was observing. It was hunting. It was having the chance to see the woman he wanted her to be around him and taking it.

Shannon moved away from the tree, towards the back of the house, her hips swaying in her snug blue jeans. His gaze slipped to her backside and he growled, desire spearing him in the gut. He loved the way she walked even when she thought no one was watching. There was something sexy about it, alluring. He cocked his head to one side and fought the urge that rose inside him.

It was useless.

She would never be his.

She had looked at him differently sometimes, almost as if he was human, but those moments rarely lasted. The barriers were swift to come back up, protecting her heart before he could reach out and capture it. During their past few hunts, he had struggled with the right words, trying to form them into a semblance of order and put his feelings in a way that she wouldnâ€™t reject outright, in a way that would make her see that his emotions were real and that he would never harm her. He had never found the perfect moment though, or the perfect words.

And time was running out.

The ticking clock made him reckless. It didnâ€™t matter anymore if she rejected him. He couldnâ€™t let the chance slip through his fingers again. It was now or never.

This was their last mission together.

He wouldnâ€™t leave without trying to make her see what he felt for her.

Shannon came out of the back room, her jacket in her left hand, and stopped in front of the Christmas tree again. She touched the same bauble she had before but this time her expression changed, turning troubled and distant. What was on her mind? Rafe had seen that look before, normally when she was lost in her thoughts, like the time he had reported to her superiors. They had told him not to worry about it and that they would speak with her. He wanted to be the one to speak to her about it. He wanted to know why she had joined the agency. She was young, barely over thirty, and she had never mentioned her family. Did her reason for hunting demons have something to do with them? Did it have anything to do with vampires?

He only hunted his own kind because the agency had him by the balls on several murder cases. He was a vampire. All of his species were susceptible to temptation and he was far from saintly. He had fought his addiction though and had come out the other side a better vampire for it. A stronger vampire because of it. He didnâ€™t kill anymore. He could control that side of him now, and maybe it was time he made the agency realise that and made them let him go.

Rafe shook his head at the way he sounded. Childish. Petulant. Everything that a vampire his age shouldnâ€™t be. And why? Because he didnâ€™t want to leave her. He didnâ€™t want to be reassigned to someone else, or sent off to work alone. He wanted to stay here, with Shannon, where he belonged.

She tugged her short black wool jacket on and Rafe knew it was time to make a move. She was expecting him and he had never been late before.

He moved further back into the shadows on her front garden when she approached the window. She didnâ€™t see him. She closed the curtains, hiding her from view, and he resorted to tracking her with his senses again.

A car passed along the street behind him. The sound of carol singers drifted on the chill breeze. Rafe looked up at the crisp night sky and the twinkling stars. Christmas. He couldnâ€™t remember if he had ever celebrated it.

He had forgotten so much about his former life on becoming a vampire.

His gaze dropped and stuck on something on her porch.

Mistletoe.

Rafe raised an eyebrow and then smiled as he left his hiding place and walked towards the front door.

Some traditions he definitely remembered from his life as a human.

* * * *

There was a knock at the door. Shannon knew from the impatient clip it had who would be waiting on the porch, and she took her time because of it. It wouldnâ€™t look good if she rushed to answer it. The last time she had opened the door within a minute, because she had been passing it at the time, Rafe had teased her the whole night about how she had been waiting for him on the other side, desperate to go out with him again, and how attracted to him she was.

Total crap of course.

She wouldnâ€™t be attracted to him if he was the last man on Earth. Shannon smiled to herself. He wasnâ€™t even a man. She would have to be down to the last vampire too before she would ever consider him in that way.

Shannon slipped a stake into the inside pocket of her thick black wool jacket and another into the back pocket of her dark jeans. It was always a good idea to be well armed when out on a hunt. She wasnâ€™t about to let the holiday season lure her into a false sense of security. Wretched demonkind didnâ€™t celebrate the occasion, and some of her busiest times had been over the Christmas period. Besides, the stakes werenâ€™t just for use on the bad vampires. Sometimes she considered using them on the apparently good vampires too.

Shannon opened the door.

Rafe stood on the other side, six feet plus of dark handsome devil perfectly capable of pushing every right button in a woman.

At least, every woman except her.

The left side of his sensual mouth tugged into a half smile that revealed the tip of a canine and his deep brown eyes slid up towards the porch ceiling. Her eyes followed out of curiosity.

Mistletoe.

Her gaze snapped back to him. He had to be kidding. He stared at her, dark eyes locked on hers in a silent challenge, and rocked expectantly on his heels. He clasped his hands behind his bottom, the action dragging his long black coat back too, revealing the athletic physique that his dark shirt failed to hide.

Shannon stepped backwards into the safety of her house.

Rafe frowned.

She could almost hear what he was thinking, could read it in his eyes. She didnâ€™t care if he thought she was rude because she had never invited him into her home. She had neglected to do so for good reason. It was handy at times like these when he was making her heart jitter and pulse race.

She was not going to kiss him.

There were a million reasons why, but she settled on the safety aspect because her heart couldnâ€™t overrule that one.

If she abided by tradition and kissed him, she would be placing herself firmly within his grasp, and that was a place she didnâ€™t want to be. What would start as a harmless festive kiss would end as a bloodbath with his fangs in her throat. Just the thought of it happening shook her deep inside, dredging up memories best left forgotten and pain she had fought to erase. She would never let anything like that happen again.

Never.

Rafe continued to stare, his dark gaze cool but demanding.

Sometimes, Shannon wished the agency hadnâ€™t paired them together. She had never wanted to work with one of natureâ€™s freaks. She just wanted to kill them and get revenge for what they had done to her and her family.

â€œNever going to happen.â€ Shannon pushed past him, slammed the door behind her, and locked it. She didnâ€™t break her stride. Before he could respond, she was at the end of her garden path and walking towards the centre of town.

She didnâ€™t hear him move. One moment he wasnâ€™t there, and the next he was keeping pace beside her.Â Her heart leapt at his sudden appearance.

â€œI told you not to do that.â€ She drew her hand away from her back pocket. It had jumped to the stake on instinct. One of these days, he was going to surprise her and she was going to give him a nasty surprise of her own.

â€œNo need for that.â€ He appeared on the other side of her, his hand slipping over hers and easing it away from the stake. He smiled at her, his cool fingers lingering against hers. â€œThere is a no staking your partner policy at the agency, remember?â€

Shannon snatched her hand back and wished she didnâ€™t remember. It was the only thing stopping her from killing him. A quiet voice at the back of her mind whispered that it wasnâ€™t the only reason she couldnâ€™t bring herself to stake him. She shooed it away.

â€œSo, where are we heading?â€ Rafeâ€™s deep voice swept around her, bathing her in warmth she tried to deny, and she kept her gaze fixed ahead. If she pretended he wasnâ€™t there, she might just make it through the next few hours, and then she was home free. It was one last mission.

For some reason, that caused a dull ache to settle inside her.

She had thought she would be happy. She should be happy. No more working with the enemy. They were reassigning her to warmer climes and a partner-free role. She had proven herself worthy of working alone, just as she had wanted from the start of her career with the agency, and she was finally getting that wish.

So why wasnâ€™t she happy?

â€œTown,â€ Shannon said distractedly, frowning at the pavement and trying to piece together an answer to her own question. There had to be a reason and it couldnâ€™t be the vampire walking beside her. She had grown used to him. Thatâ€™s all it was. He had become a sort of friend. The only person she actually spoke to apart from her handler and a few people at the agency, and she had never told them a thing about herself. She had never talked them, not as she had to Rafe. Shannon cursed herself. She should have kept her distance and not gotten involved, just as she had planned, but two years was too long to work with someone without saying anything to them.

Rafe had slipped in unnoticed, had passed the first of her defences and somehow got her talking one night, and since then, she couldnâ€™t stop her mouth sometimes. Sometimes it all became too much and she had to speak to someone, and he was always there, willing to listen to her silly troubles and doubts about her ability to hunt, her skill, and her future with the agency.

And he always reassured her, and made her feel better.

â€œAnywhere particular in town?â€ Rafe said and her attention snapped back to him. She stared up at him, still half lost in her thoughts, and found herself looking straight into his eyes. Windows to the soul. Rafeâ€™s hid nothing from her. They betrayed everything that he was feeling, and sometimes it frightened her.

Not when he was showing his vampire side. His pale eyes didnâ€™t scare her or the malice that she saw in them, the hunger for violence and bloodshed. It was this side of him that scared her. The gentle side. The one who looked at her with warmth and undeniable affection.

â€œAre you feeling alright?â€ He cocked his head to one side, his gaze holding hers, sparkling with tender concern.

Shannon forced her eyes down to the pavement and studied the cracks as she walked, unable to bring her voice above a whisper.

â€œIâ€™m fine.â€

There was a long pause, full of expectation and unspoken things.

Sometimes, when this feeling washed over her, she had a sense that he wanted to say something to her. He never had though, and she often found herself wondering what it was he couldnâ€™t put a voice to.

â€œSo, where are we going? Into town, or beyond town… perhaps you called me all the way out here on a freezing cold night just to make me go gift shopping with you. If that is the case, I have to say it is in poor taste, as I am a vampire… I do not celebrate Christmas as you do.â€

â€œI donâ€™t.â€ Shannon wished she could take those two words back. They were going to cause questions that she didnâ€™t want to answer. She glanced at Rafe, briefly making eye contact, and then looked away to her right, her gaze eating the streetlamp lit grass and shrubs that she walked past. He sighed but said nothing. She waited a moment longer, afraid that he might just be building up to it, and then released the breath she had been holding. â€œThe report states that there was a demon sighting in the local cemetery just outside the town centre.â€

â€œCemetery?â€ Rafe sounded positively disgusted.

She glanced at him again. He looked it too. He seemed to take it as a personal affront whenever they had to hunt demons in places like old churches, cemeteries and disused factories.

â€œSome demons have no taste.â€

Shannon smiled. â€œSpeak for yourself.â€

He frowned at her but it didnâ€™t stick. It melted into a smile that threatened to steal her breath and she averted her gaze again. What was she doing? Her heart skittered about in her throat and she knew he would be listening to it, and he would know that he was affecting her. She could do this.

It was just one more mission.

And then she would be able to escape these feelings.

She was not going to fall for him.

He was a vampire. She was a hunter.

Her gaze snuck back to him, studying his noble profile, and her heart thudded hard against her chest.

There was no love more forbidden than this.

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Teaseday – Her Dark Angel – angel romance book

Posted on 6th December 2011 by Felicity Heaton

Today my Teaseday post comes from another of my current books on offer – Her Dark Angel – which is the first book in my best selling Her Angel romance series. It’s the second chapter of the book, but you can read the first chapter at my website by following the link with the blurb below.

Find out more about the books, including excerpts and reviews, and these great offers at: http://www.felicityheaton.com/paranormal-romance-ebook-offers.php

Her Dark Angel is on offer for just $0.99 on Amazon Kindle, Barnes and Noble Nook, Sony Reader, Smashwords and other retailers.

Her Dark Angel
Felicity Heaton
An angel without a mission, Apollyon lives trapped in Hell guarding the bottomless pit. Surrounded by endless darkness, he longs to fly free on Earth once more but his master hasnâ€™t called him in centuries. When the call finally comes, itâ€™s to serve a new master, a beautiful woman he has often watched over, a woman who has always captivated him.

Serenity is shocked when a gorgeous black-winged angel shows up in her city of Paris claiming that she called him when she was only casting a simple vengeance spell. Heâ€™s no other than the angel of death! When Apollyon offers to obey her and help her have revenge on her cheating ex-boyfriend, she canâ€™t resist the temptation, but can she resist him? Can an angel as dark as Apollyon ever fall for a mortal woman like her?

Dark, passionate and erotic, Her Dark Angel is a tale of intense desire and deepest forbidden love guaranteed to get your heart racing.

ALL OF THE STORIES IN THE HER ANGEL SERIES STAND ALONE, JOINED BY CHARACTER AND WORLD ONLY, AND DO NOT NEED TO BE READ IN ORDER.

LIMITEDÂ TIME SPECIALÂ OFFER: Only $0.99 (normally $2.99) as part of my Winter Warmers deal – offer ends 15th January 2012. Find out more about the offer and where it is available.

Available in e-book from:
Author’s website: http://www.felicityheaton.com/ebooks.php?title=Her%20Dark%20Angel
Amazon Kindle: http://www.amazon.com/dp/B00408AQ98/
Amazon Kindle UK: http://www.amazon.co.uk/dp/B00408AQ98/
Barnes and Noble: http://search.barnesandnoble.com/Her-Dark-Angel/Felicity-Heaton/e/2940011095184/
All Romance eBooks: http://www.allromanceebooks.com/product-herdarkangel-607688-140.html
Sony Reader Store: http://ebookstore.sony.com/ebook/felicity-heaton/her-dark-angel-her-angel-romance-series/_/R-400000000000000277045
Kobo Books: http://www.kobobooks.com/ebook/Her-Dark-Angel-Her-Angel/mix-IpUY_pcZyka–k8L1kLPkQ/page1.html
Smashwords: http://www.smashwords.com/books/view/22429
Amazon Kindle Germany: http://www.amazon.de/dp/B00408AQ98/
Amazon Kindle France: http://www.amazon.fr/dp/B00408AQ98/
Apple iBookstore USA: http://itunes.apple.com/us/book/isbn9781452355658
Apple iBookstore UK: http://itunes.apple.com/gb/book/isbn9781452355658
Apple iBookstore Australia: http://itunes.apple.com/au/book/isbn9781452355658
Apple iBookstore Canada: http://itunes.apple.com/ca/book/isbn9781452355658

Available in paperback from:
Amazon.com: http://www.amazon.com/dp/1456489836/
Amazon.co.uk: http://www.amazon.co.uk/dp/1456489836/
Barnes and Noble: http://search.barnesandnoble.com/Her-Angel/Felicity-Heaton/e/9781456489830/

EXCERPT

Serenityâ€™s hazel eyes went wide and she stepped back when the hulking mass of man standing before her drew the sword that hung at his waist, afraid that he had changed his mind and was going to kill her after all. She wasnâ€™t sure what to think when he eased himself down onto one knee in front of her, lowered his head, and held his sword out to her, the hilt and tip of the beautiful blade resting on his palms.

â€œI am yours to command.â€ His French was perfect, making his deep voice so sexy that a shiver tripped over her skin whenever he spoke.

Was she supposed to do something?

People were staring again as they passed. What did they see? They certainly werenâ€™t seeing a man offering a sword to her, that was for sure. To them, did he look as though he was kneeling with his hands raised in supplication?

Was he dressed in black and gold armour that didnâ€™t leave much to the imagination?

Did he have huge black feathered wings?

She imagined that he didnâ€™t. If he did, the people would probably be screaming rather than merely glancing at him as though he had gone insane.

â€œErm, okay.â€ Serenity hesitated before touching the sword. The gleaming steel was cold beneath her fingers. She took her hand away, not liking the feel of it. â€œThanks.â€

He stood with grace, his muscles shifting beneath his golden skin, and she tried not to stare at his physique. Either he worked out a lot, or angels were naturally endowed with the body of a god. He was pure perfection as he stood close to her, his broad chest rising and falling, moving the beautifully decorated black breastplate. His stomach was bare, taut muscles delighting her hungry eyes, and the smallest black loincloth in the world protected his modesty.

Something that she was lacking. She lowered her gaze, taking in the toned length of his legs. They were as powerful as the rest of him. Her eyes roamed back up, over the black cuffs that covered his forearms, decorated in gold with images of lions, and over his biceps to his strong shoulders. From there, they wanted to go to his face, but his wings were too fascinating. They were large, casting a shadow across both him and her, tucked against his back.

She wanted to walk around him and investigate every delicious inch of him, taking in that he really was an angel and not a man parading as one.

An angel.

Abaddon.

Her mother had taught her gods, goddesses and mythology. She knew all about him and his kind.

Her eyes finally leapt to his face. He had a smile that could stop hearts and vivid blue eyes with icy flecks in them. They held her gaze, unwavering and strong, and her temperature rose when they narrowed slightly and his pupils widened. What was he thinking in there?

Did he like what he saw as much as she did?

The man was a god.

No, an angel.

And he was beautiful.

Breathtaking.

But he wasnâ€™t at all as she had thought an angel would look. Everything about him spoke of darkness, right down to his aura. Whatever power he had, it was strong and it wasnâ€™t the sort that resurrected mortals or healed them. It felt as though the opposite would happen if he unleashed it.

Abaddon. The angel of death. Although he had denied that title. What title did he claim as his then?

â€œSo, Abaddonâ€”â€

â€œApollyon,â€ he interjected with a charming smile that teased his sensual lips and made her heart beat a little faster.

He was an angel. No matter how good he looked and how much he was making her forget her pain just by looking at him, she couldnâ€™t think about him like that. It was wrong of her. He had offered his assistance in getting revenge on her bastard ex and she was going to take it. Whatever dark power this gorgeous man had, she was going to let it rip in her exâ€™s direction.

â€œApollyon?â€ She stopped her gaze from dropping down to take him in again. If she told him to put on something a little less distracting, would he be able to do it? She had seen through whatever spell he had used. Could he ever fool her eyes?

â€œI prefer my true name.â€ He cast a quick glance over her. His eyes lingered in all the places a mortal manâ€™s would.

Surely, she was off limits too? Angels were asexual werenâ€™t they?

The voice at the back of her mind said that the tall hunk of handsome standing in front of her definitely didnâ€™t look asexual. He looked like sin incarnate, not like an angel at all.

â€œSerenity.â€ She offered her hand to him.

He took it and a jolt ran through her at the feel of his strong warm hand grasping hers. She shook his hand but he didnâ€™t let go when she was done. He held it, his thumb resting lightly against hers.

â€œMy mother thought I could bring peace to a chaotic world.â€ Her heart sped when his thumb grazed hers and then he took his hand back, his fingers brushing her palm and sending another shiver through her. â€œIâ€™m not much good at it.â€

â€œAt what?â€ He quirked a dark eyebrow and tilted his head to one side.

Serenity sighed inside. Did he know how good he looked? Could angels be conceited? She supposed they were all beautiful so he probably didnâ€™t realise that the reason all the women were staring as they passed wasnâ€™t because they thought he was apprehending her or anything of the sort.

They were staring for the same reason she was.

The man was six feet plus of godliness.

â€œBeing peaceful… Iâ€™m actually quite chaotic.â€ She shrugged. â€œNothing I do comes out right. I mean… I thought I was casting a simple spell for vengeance and suddenly youâ€™re here telling me that you heard me calling you. I wasnâ€™t asking for an angel.â€

â€œYou werenâ€™t.â€ He placed his palm flat against her chest and she jumped. Her pulse rocketed and she blushed from head to toe at the feel of his wrist against her breasts. â€œYour heart called me, not your words.â€

Serenity smiled and nervously took hold of his hand and removed it from her chest before she lost control and threw herself at him.

â€œSo youâ€™re good with revenge?â€

â€œVery good at it.â€ He stood taller, straightening to his full impressive height, looking even nobler and handsome. â€œI am Apollyon, the great destroyer, king of the bottomlessâ€”â€

â€œWait.â€ She cut him off and held her hands up. â€œGreat destroyer? Maybe this isnâ€™t such a good idea. I mean, youâ€™re an angel and your boss-on-high would probably be a little upset if you blew up half of Paris to fulfil my wish for revenge, and I donâ€™t want him dead… just in pain… and I can really take care of this myself. I didnâ€™t mean to bother you.â€

â€œIt is little bother.â€ He frowned. â€œI will only do as you command. The choice of revenge will be yours and I will exact it.â€

â€œWhat about your boss?â€ She didnâ€™t want to piss God off. She was sure that he was already fairly angry that people like her existed on Earth, those that could use magic and make their own miracles.

Not that she had managed anything like that so far. She was better at lighting candles and the small stuff like love potions.

Serenity glanced up at Apollyon. Would a love potion work on an angel?

She cursed and told herself to get a grip. Angels probably couldnâ€™t enter into relationships with mortals and this attraction to him was probably because she was rebounding.

â€œYou are my master now.â€ The serious edge to his expression said that he wasnâ€™t joking. â€œI do as you bid.â€

Serenityâ€™s eyebrows rose and she slowly absorbed the fact that she had her own personal angel.

â€œThen we should…â€ She wasnâ€™t sure what they should do. Skulk off and plan something horrible to do to her ex because heâ€™d cheated on her? It all felt a little cloak and dagger and not at all like her. She had never sworn revenge on anyone, had always let her anger go and just got on with her life. Not this time though. She wanted him to pay. â€œDo you drink coffee?â€

â€œI have never tried it.â€ Apollyon smiled. â€œBut I have been told by others that it tastes strangely bitter and sweet at the same time, and has an interesting effect on the body. I would like to try it.â€

â€œCoffee it is.â€ Serenity led the way towards the fountains and Apollyon came up to walk beside her.

She really hoped that people werenâ€™t seeing him as she was.

â€œWhat do you look like to them?â€ She looked at a few people to make her point.

â€œA man dressed in a black suit.â€

â€œNo wings?â€

He shook his head. â€œDo not worry. It is only you who are unaffected by the image I project.â€

â€œCan it affect me?â€

He stopped and looked at her. The breeze tousled his fine long black hair, teasing the strands of his ponytail.

â€œYou wish not to see me as I am?â€

When he said it like that, it made her feel bad. His blue eyes darted between hers, as though he wanted to see the answer in them before she said it.

â€œNo.â€ She stepped towards him. Her heart beat faster again and her palms sweated. She took a deep breath and smiled up at him. â€œYouâ€™re fine just the way you are.â€

The wind blew again, catching her blonde hair and sweeping it across her face. She started when he brushed the strands from her face, smoothing them behind her ear, and his fingertips caressed her cheek as he trailed his hand off her. Did he know what he did to her with that touch? What just looking at him did to her on the inside? She kept telling herself that he was an angel and he was off limits, but her body wasnâ€™t getting the message. It burned to feel his hands on her, to feel his lips against hers and have him hold her close.

It was insane. She had only just met him and she wasnâ€™t usually the sort who threw herself at men. Her ex, Edward, had pursued her for months before sheâ€™d finally given in and agreed to a date with him, let alone anything else.

Now she was ready to throw herself into the arms of an angel and pray that he caught her and kissed her just as she wanted him to.

â€œHe really hurt you,â€ Apollyon whispered.

Serenity blinked and her desire deflated at the thought of what Edward had done to her. She really had to clear her head of whatever ridiculous attraction she felt to Apollyon because it wasnâ€™t going to happen.

She started walking again, not waiting for him to follow. She needed a moment to breathe. Since setting eyes on him, her head and heart had been at war and she had to give them both a reality check. Apollyon was here to help her get revenge and that was all. She couldnâ€™t throw herself at him, or make a move, or do anything that would only end in her getting her heart broken again or winding up as miserable as Edward had made her.

â€œI said something wrong?â€ Apollyon strode beside her, his long lithe legs making easy work of her hurried pace.

She was quiet a moment, lost in her thoughts, her gaze drifting over the white stone buildings that lined the narrow street.

â€œNo.â€ She moved through the crowd at a busy intersection, crossed the road and then walked along another narrow road to the street where her favourite cafÃ© was. â€œIt just caught me off guard. I mean, I get this sense that you know what youâ€™re talking about… as though you… itâ€™s silly.â€

â€œCan feel it?â€

She stopped dead outside the cafÃ© and looked back at him.

He stood a few paces behind her, his black wings still tucked against his back and the gold decoration on his black armour reflecting the sun.

She nodded.

He walked up to her and looked into her eyes. â€œI can feel it. It is part of the reason I agreed to help you. You do not deserve such pain. You always seemed so happy until recently.â€

â€œYouâ€™ve been spying on me?â€ It came out louder than sheâ€™d meant it to.

A couple of well-dressed dark-haired women sitting at one of the round tables in front of the cafÃ© looked her way and then started talking in hushed voices.

â€œI am an angâ€”â€ He frowned when she slapped her hand over his mouth. His warm breath bathed her skin, tickling her and sending a shiver dancing up her arm.

Serenity snatched her hand back. â€œI donâ€™t think thatâ€™s a good word to use in public.â€

â€œWe all watch. It is what we do.â€

She grimaced. That had probably sounded even worse. The two women were deep in conversation now, furtively glancing at her and Apollyon. They probably thought she had a harem of stalkers.

Serenity grabbed Apollyonâ€™s hand and dragged him into the small cafÃ©. It was quieter inside, only a few people at the small round wooden tables and in the armchairs. She chose a spot away from everyone, near the window, and sat Apollyon down in a low brown armchair next to a small table.

â€œWait here,â€ she said and hoped that he would.

What had she gotten herself into?

Serenity ordered the coffees and looked over at Apollyon while she waited for them to come. He was sitting looking out of the window. Watching the world go by? Did angels really do that? If he said they did, then they probably did all watch over the mortals.

He shifted his shoulders, frowned and then his black wings unfurled, sending a breeze through the room that had people grabbing their papers, napkins and anything else that had tried to escape in the wind.

Serenity stared open-mouthed at the sight of him. He sat with his black feathered wings outstretched behind him, almost reaching back to the other side of the room. How big was his wingspan? Each wing was at least eight feet long.

She grabbed the coffees when they arrived, went back to him, and sat in a daze in the armchair opposite him, staring at his wings.

Apollyon shifted his shoulders and his wings furled again, the longest feathers curling around and grazing his boots.

â€œI needed to stretch,â€ he said with an apologetic look and then smiled. â€œIt has been a long time since I have had so much freedom. It feels good to stretch my wings.â€

She bet it did. He looked like the cat that got the cream, smiling ear to ear, a twinkle in his blue eyes.

â€œWhat does it feel like to fly?â€ she said before she could even consider what she was asking.

His smile widened. â€œBliss. The wind on my face, the feel of it in my feathers, and the way I can see everything and go anywhere. There is no feeling like it.â€

â€œIt sounds nice. Iâ€™ve flown… in a plane… but itâ€™s still flying, right? Something in common.â€

â€œWould you like to fly?â€

Was he offering to take her up? The thought made her stomach feel tight but something inside her made her nod.

â€œI am sure we can do something about it.â€

He picked up the white mug of coffee and raised a dark eyebrow at it. He sniffed it first, peered at the frothy top, and then took a sip.

His feathers quivered and his eyes widened, darting to hers. â€œWhat drug is in this?â€

Serenity picked up her own mug of latte and sipped. â€œItâ€™s not really a drug. Itâ€™s caffeine, a natural stimulant. Humans are addicted to it.â€

He eyed the mug suspiciously. â€œA stimulant?â€

He looked as though he was going to take another sip and then set it back down on the round table between them. His gaze met hers again and his pupils dilated until his irises were almost as black as them. He shifted uncomfortably and crossed his legs, settling his hands in his lap.

â€œI do not think I should drink any more. It would be unwise.â€ His voice was tight and the unmistakable spark of desire in his eyes wasnâ€™t going anywhere. â€œI will be having words with my fellow warriors when we next meet. They did not explain the effects well enough.â€

Effects? She looked down at his hands in his lap and then back into his dark eyes.

Viagra for angels?

â€œI thought you were all asexual,â€ she blurted and then covered her mouth when he turned horrified eyes on her. She blushed ten shades of crimson and tried to think of a spell that would take back what sheâ€™d said. It probably wouldnâ€™t work on him anyway. Magic didnâ€™t affect gods and goddesses, so it was unlikely to affect other supernatural beings.

â€œI am not asexual.â€ The way he said it made it clear that he would be happy to prove it to her right now in the coffee shop.

Serenity gulped her drink and kept her focus on it, avoiding the smouldering look he was giving her and wanting to crawl under the table and hide.

â€œI have not had a woman in many centuries but I am in no way an impotent creature.â€

Did he have to say it loud enough for the whole coffee shop to hear? She sunk into her chair, trying to avoid the looks she was getting.

â€œI take it back,â€ she whispered into her mug and peered at him over the rim of it.

He glowered, passion no longer reigning in his eyes. A dark malevolence shone there and the sense that he wasnâ€™t exactly a good angel in the way she had imagined them returned.

â€œSome people say youâ€™re the Devil.â€

He leaned back into his chair and sighed. â€œFirst I am the angel of death, and now the Devil? The rumours do spread and stick, donâ€™t they?â€

â€œWhat are you then?â€ She emerged from her mug, sat forwards on the edge of the armchair seat and looked him over. He was sin made flesh, luscious in every way imaginable, and she was sure that angels werenâ€™t supposed to be so tempting.

â€œI told you. Apollyon, the great destroyer… angel of the Apocalypse, responsible for raining hell down on Earth when everything comes to an end.â€

That wasnâ€™t comforting at all.

â€œYouâ€™re not a good angel then?â€

He smiled and there was a sexy sort of darkness in his look. â€œI am good, if by that you mean I do not work for the Devil, but I can be very bad.â€

She could imagine. She shouldnâ€™t be, but she was picturing him in every position possible and he looked wicked from every angle.

â€œSo what does my mistress command?â€ His smile held. Something about it made her feel as though he was encouraging her to say the things that were raging through her head.

What didnâ€™t she want to command? She couldnâ€™t though. She was sure that it was wrong to order an angel to commit sin. For now, while her conscience was still functioning and she could resist the temptation sitting across from her, she would focus on getting her revenge.

â€œNothing involving death. I want him to suffer. I want him to feel jealous and hurt and unloved… as though he doesnâ€™t matter to me.â€

Apollyon smiled as though he liked the sound of that.

She held his blue gaze. What she was going to propose was crazy, and would shatter what little restraint she had around him, but she was going to do it.

â€œI have a plan.â€

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Teaseday – Ascension – paranormal romance novel

Posted on 29th November 2011 by Felicity Heaton

Today I’m going to offer up a healthy dose of tease in the form of a downloadable PDF, plus a single chapter here on my blog to get you started.

Find out more about the books, including excerpts and reviews, and these great offers at: http://www.felicityheaton.com/paranormal-romance-ebook-offers.php

Ascension is on offer for just $0.99 on Kindle, Nook, Sony Reader, Smashwords and other retailers.

Ascension
Felicity Heaton
A witch on the verge of achieving phenomenal power, Lealandra must turn to her half-breed demon ex-lover Taig for protection from the dark force that is after her and also from her own magic.

With her Counter-Balance dead and her coven against her, Taigâ€™s blood and power is the only thing that can help her control her magic and survive the ascension and gain the strength to defeat her enemy.

Old feelings come flooding back as Taig allows her into his world and Lealandra finds herself fighting not only for survival but to win his broken heart again and heal the pain in their past. Can he forgive her for walking out on him all those years ago and will he ever believe her when she tells him that heâ€™s not a monster but the man that she loves?

LIMITEDÂ TIME SPECIALÂ OFFER: Only $0.99 (normally $3.99) as part of my Winter Warmers deal – offer ends 15th January 2012. Find out more about the offer and where it is available.

ebook price: $0.99
paperback price: $8.99
genre: paranormal / urban fantasy romance
length: 91000 words
rating: sultry
released: April 2011

Available in e-book from:
Author’s website: http://www.felicityheaton.com/ebooks.php?title=Ascension
Amazon Kindle: http://www.amazon.com/dp/B004X6TWLK/
Amazon Kindle UK: http://www.amazon.co.uk/dp/B004X6TWLK/
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All Romance eBooks: http://www.allromanceebooks.com/product-ascension-613575-140.html
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Kobo Books: http://www.kobobooks.com/ebook/Ascension-Shadow-and-Light-Trilogy/mix-eOMlgr3IoEeDmdBmXXi0CA/page1.html
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Amazon Kindle Germany: http://www.amazon.de/dp/B004X6TWLK/
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Available in paperback from:
Amazon.com: http://www.amazon.com/dp/1461131839/
Amazon.co.uk: http://www.amazon.co.uk/dp/1461131839/
Barnes and Noble: http://www.barnesandnoble.com/w/ascension-felicity-heaton/1031122152

EXCERPT

Taig closed his eyes and released a long low groan of unexpected pleasure as Lealandraâ€™s warm mouth fused with his. Her tongue slid between his lips, a delicious and familiar hot velvet caress that swept across his teeth and drew another hungry moan from him. Without considering the consequences and forgetting his anger, he twisted her long black hair around his fingers and tethered her to him so this breathtaking fantasy wouldnâ€™t end before he wanted, and he wanted it to go on forever.

He tilted his head and pressed harder against her mouth, his tongue brushing hers, delving in deep to taste her. A shiver of desire and need shot through him, and his breathing turned rough as he reacquainted himself with her sweetness and warmth. He hadnâ€™t imagined things turning out this way when she had walked into the bar tonight, but he wasnâ€™t about to push her away now that she was kissing him again, rekindling passion whose embers had burned deep in his heart all the time they had been apart. She moved against him, her lips soft and grazing his, slowing the kiss until he wanted to groan and pull her against him, wanted to thrust his tongue back into her mouth and show her just how ravenous she made him. It coiled tight in his gut, pushing for control, urging him to act on his desire.

All too soon, her lips left his but she remained close. With a soft puff of air into his mouth, she spoke.

â€œAre they gone?â€ Her quiet voice trembled along with her body, telling him that the kiss hadnâ€™t only affected him. His heart pounded for more and his blood rushed through his ears, dampening his awareness of their surroundings.

Taig glanced around the dim emptying bar. The two men were gone. He stared into her eyes, refreshing his memory of every fleck of silver against stormy grey. It had been too long since he had seen her, and felt even longer since he had kissed her. A tortuous length of time and an absence he couldnâ€™t easily forgive, even when her kiss made him forget it.

â€œNot yet,â€ he whispered the lie against her lips, a split-second before his mouth claimed hers, dominant now that he was ready for the kiss. Desire became a raging inferno within him, burning away the anger that blazed back into life whenever he had a moment to think. This kiss was the only thing that mattered right now.

This time, Lealandra loosed a deep breathy moan. The sound sent his blood rushing ahead of his thoughts. He hardened instantly against his tight black jeans and wrapped his fingers around the nape of her neck, pressing them in and dragging her closer still. The heat of her kiss reawakened lost passion and a need for her that could never die. Six years of separation disappeared in an instant, erased by the fact that she had finally walked back into his life. He wasnâ€™t going to let her go this time. Even if this kiss was only a decoy, it still meant something to them both. He knew it did.

Her fingertips grazed his neck and pushed into the shorter black hair at the back of his head. He groaned internally at the feel of her nails against his scalp, declaring her growing hunger, and furrowed his brow as he brought his hand forward to claim her jaw, holding her in place. He burned at the feel of her soft satin skin beneath his fingers. Her touch was still electric, sending waves of hot sparks dancing along every nerve in his body, bringing his cold flesh to life. Tilting her head back, he thrust his tongue into her mouth and slid his free hand around her waist at the same time, pulling her so close to him that her breasts pushed against his chest with each gasping breath she drew. He eased his hand lower and caressed the patch of bare warm skin between the bottom of her short black strapless corset top and the waist of her long black skirt. Lealandra tensed. Too fast.

Taig braced for impact.

The flat of her hand slammed against his chest, forcing him backwards in the curved padded seat of the booth and tearing her from his grasp. Her gelid gaze stopped him dead.

â€œTheyâ€™re gone, arenâ€™t they?â€ Lealandraâ€™s tone was pure venom that matched the ice in her pale grey eyes.

Taig held his hands up, surrendering with a seductive smile that confessed every sin he had been considering. Lealandra wasnâ€™t the kind of witch you lied to. With such strong power flowing in her veins, it was easy for her to read everyone. Everyone but him. His blood saw to that. Her ability to see through him didnâ€™t come from magic. It came from the divine six months they had spent locked tight in each otherâ€™s embrace. Six heavenly months he would never forget followed by six hollow years he wished he couldnâ€™t remember.

Lealandra looked around the bar, flicking her straight dark hair over her bare slender shoulders. His black gaze raked over her in the same hungry way it had done when she had first appeared in front of him tonight. She had grown a little thinner in their time apart. Her partner hadnâ€™t been taking care of her. Taig curled his fingers into fists at the thought of another man touching what was his. Anger blazed in his chest, ignited by the idea that the man she had chosen over him hadnâ€™t been looking after her needs. Had the idiot failed to see what she truly craved?

The magic that inhabited her body drained her and made her hungry. She needed to feed often and he wasnâ€™t talking about food. Magic as old and potent as hers demanded the highest price and had the basest needs. If it didnâ€™t get what it wanted, it was hard for Lealandra to retain control. It only proved the point he had tried to hammer home to her when she had been on the verge of leaving him all those years ago and disproved hers.

Taig didnâ€™t give a fuck about the rules of her kind. A witch was no match for a witch, especially not one who needed blood to sustain her.

Demon blood.

The thought that Lealandra had been struggling with her power these six long years stoked his anger into blind fury. Every muscle itched with the desire to find her pathetic excuse for a man and teach him a lesson he would never forget for making her suffer. The kind of lesson that would satisfy Taigâ€™s own deep dark cravings.

â€œI canâ€™t believe youâ€™d take a cheap shot like that,â€ Lealandra muttered in his direction, her eyes meeting his. â€œNo. Wait. Actuallyâ€¦ I can.â€

With his best sexy smirk, Taig leaned back into the grotty dark brown leather seat and stretched his arms out along the top. He shrugged and held her gaze.

â€œYou kissed me first. I just returned the favour.â€

Her tongue swept over her lips, as though she wanted to kiss him again and was contenting herself with the lingering taste of him. If she wanted him to kiss her, he would. He would kiss her so hard that she would forget that idiot she had left him for and her own name in the process. She would forget everything but the feel of him inside her where he belonged. He would ruin her to everyone but him.

â€œThatâ€™s not the kind of favour I need from you.â€ Lealandra casually rested her elbow on the back of the leather seat and propped her chin up with her hand. Her head tilted to one side, her dusky kiss-swollen lips curving into a smile. His heart thundered, beating hard with the rush of desire that flooded him.

That smile had made him want her the moment he had laid eyes on her all those years ago. He still wanted her.

He tamped down his desire and got a grip. Her kissing him hadnâ€™t changed a damn thing. Whatever theyâ€™d had, it didnâ€™t exist anymore. She had trampled it on her way out of the door and it was going to take a lot more than a kiss to get her into his good book again.

â€œA favour? Tell me, why should I do you any favours? Last I checked, you were shacked up with another bloke. Why donâ€™t you ask Loverboy to help you out? Iâ€™m sure he could do somethingâ€¦ unspectacular.â€ Taig picked up his shot of whisky from the table and necked it. The liquid burned his throat as it slid down, heating him through. Sometimes it was nice to feel something other than cold. Alcohol and hunting were the only things that did that these days. His gaze ran over Lealandra. She used to make him burn hotter than Hell on a summerâ€™s day. She still did, but he wasnâ€™t about to let her see that. â€œI guess thatâ€™s why youâ€™re here. Loverboy just doesnâ€™t cut it when it comes to handling demons. That pair of weaklings would have him inside out and back to front before he could lift a finger to cast whatever impotent half-assed spell he could muster.â€

Taig held her gaze, cool and steady, watching the hurt surfacing in her eyes and feeling like a bastard for it, but on some twisted level, it satisfied him.

He narrowed his eyes and casually placed the glass down. â€œWell, youâ€™re shit out of luck, Lea. Iâ€™m not interested.â€

Her only reaction was to look away from him. She flicked the small silver bells on the ties of her long skirt and her shoulders lifted in a sigh. That was unsatisfactory. He had expected a better response than that. He had wanted her to argue with him about it. Perhaps even fight him. A good fight with her might go some way towards releasing the anger that was burning like acid in his veins, eating away at him and filling his head and heart with acrid memories.

Memories that drove him to kill.

He quirked a dark eyebrow and waited for her to say something. It wasnâ€™t like her. She looked up at him through her eyelashes.

A hint of fear surfaced in her beautiful eyes and rippled across her pale skin in a wave that only he could detect. He sat up, all sense of casual lost now that he had realised that she was frightened and it wasnâ€™t of him. His anger faded. Something was very wrong. Lealandra didnâ€™t do frightened. No witch as powerful as her did, at least not when they had their Counter-Balance, their other half, the one who could temper their magic and help them maintain control of it.

â€œIâ€™ll pay you… whatever you want… just name your price.â€ She coughed to clear her throat, as though such a pathetic attempt to cover her turbulent feelings would fool him.

It was there in her body and her power, and he knew her well enough that he could easily read both. She was scared, and he was an idiot for not noticing it the second she had approached him, and the moment those thugs had walked into the joint. They had been out of place and suspicious, and he had sensed their demon blood, and then Lealandra had kissed him and he had lost track of them and her feelings. She had tasted purely of hunger and desire. All sweet with arousal. It had been enough to throw him off her underlying fear.

â€œYou know my price.â€ Taigâ€™s eyes narrowed on hers, intent and showing her that he was being serious for once. His voice dropped to a low whisper. â€œI want you, Lea.â€

She swallowed and blinked. Once. Twice. â€œNo deal.â€

When she moved to stand, Taig grabbed her wrist, locking his fingers tightly around it. She looked down at his hand and then into his eyes. Her startled look added to her natural beauty, her eyes round and her rosy lips parted. A blush stained her pale cheeks, deep enough that he noticed it even in the low light of the bar. He wanted her more now than ever and he wasnâ€™t about to let her walk out on him again.

â€œYou knew what Iâ€™d ask for so why come to me with your problems if you were going to refuse?â€

Lealandra pried his fingers off her and frowned. â€œYou saw those men. I need a demon hunter. Youâ€™re the best I know.â€

Demon hunter. The job title neglected to mention the fact that his father had been one of the most powerful demons to walk the Earth. He stared into Lealandraâ€™s stormy eyes and saw the same calm acceptance that they always showed him. Had his mother looked at his father that way? She had dared to be with him after all. That union had spawned himselfâ€”half demon hidden behind the mask of man.

Taig tapped his fingers on the dark table, torn between rejecting her request unless she agreed to his terms and kissing her again. His eyebrows knitted tight together. This wasnâ€™t easy. What they had shared six years ago wasnâ€™t the kind of everyday passion that most people found at the start of a relationship. It had gone beyond that. The dark and hungry craving had consumed them both, had pushed them to the edge and had almost tipped them over it a few times. It had been unbridled passionâ€”the sort that was rare in this worldâ€”and it still flooded him whenever he looked at her, whenever her beautiful eyes met his and dared him to make a move. He could deny it all he wanted, pretend that he no longer felt a thing for her, but she still tied him in knots and had him on his knees with only a smile. She licked her lips again, a nervous sweep of her tongue that reminded him that something was wrong.

What could be so bad that she wasnâ€™t asking her precious coven for help and was instead looking him up after six long years?

Was it just the demons that had her scared or was there more to this than she was telling him? Witches and demons got on like a house on fire but usually they kept well clear of each other, sticking to their own world. It was unusual for a demon to go after a witch, but he couldnâ€™t deny that the two kids earlier had been looking for Lealandra.

And now she was asking him for help.

What reason could demons have for going after her?

Taig looked deep into her eyes, focusing on them as he tried to get a hold on her feelings. There was anger in her now, aimed at him, but the fear was still there too. It echoed in the unsteady beat of her heart and danced in the depths of her eyes. She was in trouble, big enough that she had sought him out even when she knew that he would be pissed off at her and that he would demand a high price for services rendered. Either she was desperate or she truly believed that he was her best choice.

Or maybe she just wanted to see him again and this was the perfect excuse for her to waltz back into his life.

Still, his ineffable charm and attractiveness aside, parts of it didnâ€™t make sense. Lealandra was powerful enough to take care of a couple of weak lower demons and her bastard Counter-Balance and dear coven should have been able to protect her if she couldnâ€™t fight them for some reason. Taig had never met them, but the coven was probably strong enough to take on a demon of his strength. Two weaklings would be nothing to them. Like swatting flies.

And why was she here anyway? Alone too. Her Counter-Balance would have a tantrum of galactic proportions if he knew that Lealandra had come to her ex-lover for help.

In fact, none of it made sense.

Taigâ€™s head ached from trying to figure it out. It was just like her to send his mind in ten directions at once. There was only one way to find out what the hell had Lealandra walking back into his life. He never had been backwards about being forwards, after all. It was one of the qualities that Lealandra had liked about him.

â€œWhy do you need me?â€ Taig sensed the deep spike in her feelings, the rise in her desire that struck him hard and sent a jolt to his groin, reigniting his own hunger.

Her eyes widened and her cheeks coloured.

He hadnâ€™t considered the possibility of a second meaning to his words but now he was. His suspicions had been right. He wasnâ€™t the only one the kiss had affected. He wasnâ€™t the only one who felt this need burning deep within.

His eyes narrowed on hers in both a challenge and a command. He was damned if he was going to let her get away without answering, and damned if he was going to let her walk out on him again.

â€œTell me.â€

DOWNLOAD EXTENDED EXCERPT PDF

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Teaseday – In Heat – shape-shifter romance

Posted on 15th November 2011 by Felicity Heaton

I’m sticking with the theme of men that go furry this week and posting a tease from my shape-shifter romance novel, In Heat. As the title says, it’s one hot romance book so be sure to have a fan at the ready and a icy drink to cool you down!

Here’s the tease…

In Heat

Felicity Heaton
A heat wave isnâ€™t the only thing making London too hot for lawyer Kim. Sheâ€™s been spending each night with a man who sets her body and heart on fire. The problem? Heâ€™s a man that always sprouts black fur and purrs, and heâ€™s only a dream. Walking into work on the hottest day of the year, the last thing she expects is to meet Erik, a man who sends her temperature soaring and who resembles her dream guy exactly.

A black panther shape-shifter, Erik Blackwell has been searching for his mate for twenty-seven years. The visions they share each night are getting hotter but finding her is proving impossible as heâ€™s never seen her face. That is, until it turns out sheâ€™s working as his lawyer on his contract negotiations with his brother, Alistair.

Kim canâ€™t deny her attraction to Erik. The heat she feels with him is intense and itâ€™s only a matter of time before they surrender to their desires, but something haunts her. Is Erik really the man of her dreams? If so, can he grow fur and purr? And what about the terrible feeling she has about Alistair and the contract? How far is he willing to go to get his hands on the company Erik owns?

What will Kim do when she discovers Erikâ€™s secret? Will she turn her back on him, or will she complete the mating and become like him so they can be together forever?

ebook price: $2.99
genre: paranormal shapeshifter romance
length: 63200 words
rating: sultry
released: June 2007
Book 1 in the In Heat series

Available in e-book from:
Author’s website: http://www.felicityheaton.com/ebooks.php?title=In%20Heat
Amazon Kindle: http://www.amazon.com/dp/B0036FUR9A/
Amazon Kindle UK: http://www.amazon.co.uk/dp/B0036FUR9A/
Barnes and Noble: http://search.barnesandnoble.com/In-Heat/Felicity-Heaton/e/2940000802137/
All Romance eBooks: http://www.allromanceebooks.com/product-inheat-600422-142.html
Sony Reader Store: http://ebookstore.sony.com/ebook/felicity-heaton/in-heat/_/R-400000000000000247718
Kobo Books: http://www.kobobooks.com/ebook/In-Heat/mix-7DEqYyygGkW2UHY8tzYo5Q/page1.html
Smashwords: http://www.smashwords.com/books/view/7936
Amazon Kindle Germany: http://www.amazon.de/dp/B0036FUR9A/
Amazon Kindle France: http://www.amazon.fr/dp/B0036FUR9A/

EXCERPT

“Don’t fight it.” A deep, silken male voice echoed around her. The feel of his fingers ghosting over her arms, across her back, tickling her shoulder blades, made her shiver with delight. How did he think she’d have the will to fight him?

She never did.

She turned, desperate to catch a glimpse of his face in the low-lit room. She never managed to see it. He was always a mystery to her, always eluding her.

His nails scraped down her arms as he came up behind her, his breath hot against her neck. It turned her skin sticky, adding to the already stifling heat of the room. Her stomach tightened, clenching with arousal as his hands glided over her torso. His fingers raised the hem of her camisole up, bunching the material as he explored her bare skin at an achingly slow pace.

She arched into him, rubbing her backside against his groin and feeling his desire for her. He was hard for her, pressed firmly into the crack of her ass. One hand came down to her hips, pulling her back as he ground into her, showing her just what was to come and making moisture pool in her panties. She groaned, tilted her head to one side and tried to look over her shoulder at him.

A low rumble reverberated through her. It was a liquid purr that she felt in every inch of her body. She shifted her backside against his length, eliciting a deeper rumble from him, and smiled to herself over the effect she had on him. The hand on her stomach snaked up to her breasts, slipping under the camisole. She closed her eyes as his fingers teased and tortured her right nipple. He ghosted his other hand back up her arm, light enough that goosebumps followed in the wake of his touch. He swept his fingers over her shoulder and slipped the strap of her camisole down over it, caressing her as he went.

His mouth was warm and satiny against her skin as he kissed her shoulder. He licked and tasted her, teasing her neck with blunt teeth, and turning the tightness in her belly into an inferno. She brought her hand around, holding his hip as he ground against her backside.

The only sound in her ears was their combined breathing, hot and heavy, panting as they moved against each other.

Her heart thundered, racing away with her, and she gave herself over to the tempo of it.

His tongue swept along her earlobe as hers wet her lips. Her brows furrowed and she moaned, rolling her head to one side and bringing her other arm up. She reached over behind her and ran it through his short thick hair. It was like velvet beneath her touch and she buried her fingers into it, feeling the softness and losing herself in the sensations flooding her.

He purred again.

She opened her eyes and looked down at his hand as he slid it into the waist of her panties. How had she got so naked?

The thought fled her mind when his hand edged lower.

She bit her lip in anticipation of his touch, willing him to move faster before she exploded with need.

He nipped at her ear and she groaned.

Her eyes almost shut.

They flew wide when she saw the black fur erupt on his arm.

“Don’t fight me,” he whispered. “We were meant to be.”

Kim shot up in bed, the buzzing alarm jarring her senses and the sound of the city streets below telling her that morning had come. She breathed heavily, struggling to level her heartbeat and steady herself. She pressed her hand against her chest. It was sticky with sweat. Her camisole top was soaked.

Taking deep breaths, she kept one hand pressed against her chest and propped herself up on the bed with the other. The thin summer sheets stuck to her damp skin. She looked at the big sash window, welcoming the cool morning breeze that was coming in through it and silently thankful that she’d opened it last night before dozing off.

She stared distantly at the red brick building opposite and remembered the dream.

They were coming more frequently now. She didn’t know whether it was some kind of sign or not. If it were a sign, it was probably just her body telling her that she really needed to get a boyfriend.

Flopping back onto the bed, she turned the alarm off and stretched her arms out by her sides.

The dreams weren’t just getting more frequent; they were getting hotter.

She sighed out her breath and closed her eyes, letting the lingering pleasure from her dream wash through her. She just wished for once that she’d see his face, or at least find some sort of completion. It was always achingly slow, so slow that nothing really ever happened. He’d touch her like no other man had, stir feelings in her that made her dizzy with desire, and then she’d wake up.

The man on the radio announced that today was going to be the hottest day of the year. She groaned. London in the heat was horrible.

Slipping out of bed, she padded across to the bathroom. She stared at herself in the mirror. The white tiles of the bathroom made her look deathly pale. Dream guy was probably way out of her league anyway. With a sexy deep rumble of a voice like he had, and those painfully skilful hands, he was definitely not going to be real. Even if he was, she wasn’t pretty enough to catch a guy like him.

Her whole life she’d been told she was plain.

She frowned at her reflection, pulling her sweat-soaked long dark brown hair back and tugging a couple of strands free. She smiled. Grinned. Frowned. Widened her eyes a little, until the white showed around her rich chocolate irises.

Dropping her hair, she wrinkled her nose up and pressed it. Pulled her bottom lip. Pouted.

Maybe she was plain. Sometimes she thought she was pretty. Her teeth were straight, so was her nose. Her brows were nicely arched and fine. She had an oval face and wasn’t super-slim, but not fat either. She prodded her sides and swallowed hard when she remembered dream guy’s hands all over her.

Sighing at herself, she stripped off and looked at the digital clock stuck to the mirror. There wasn’t time for a bath this morning. She sighed and looked over at the shower. Her parents had tried to convince her to go with one or the other, but the bathroom was big enough for both, and sometimes she needed a bath. She got into the shower and turned it on. She didn’t know why she was worrying so much. Dream guy was just that, a dream. The chances of him existing were about as slim as the chance of her getting a promotion.

At her company, that would be nothing short of a miracle. She’d been working at the law firm for nearly three years now and they still didn’t show any sign of taking her seriously.

Pushing away her thoughts of work and dream guy, she focused on washing her hair and the excruciating journey to work by the tube. In this heat, it was going to be nothing short of Hell.

She’d arrive at work as sweaty as she’d woken up this morning. There was a new case coming in today that was meant to be very hush hush and damn near impossible. And her sister had dumped her, meaning she was stuck having dinner alone with her parents tonight.

This day was going to be just perfect.

* * * *

Kim shoved her way onto the packed tube train, squeezing in by the door and frowning when someone elbowed her in the back as they got on behind her. She tiptoed to see if there was any space further along and sunk back onto her heels when she saw it was packed tighter than a tin of sardines. She leaned her head against the glass panel beside her and stared at the newspaper the man in the seat on the other side was reading.

Someone in front of her turned and she wrinkled her nose up when she smelt sweat.

Just great.

What a way to start the day.

It was already up to boiling point outside and it was barely eight in the morning. Global warming. That’s what it was. All this pollution and stuff. She sighed again and closed her eyes, trying to whisk herself away from the daily grind by remembering her dream.

She told herself it wasn’t a dream.

It was more of a fantasy.

But every time it was him, the same man, that same touch and those same lips against her overheated flesh.

He always said the same thing to her, close to her ear, sometimes in front of her, to her side or behind. She didn’t care. She just wanted to melt into a puddle whenever he spoke. He could say anything, do anything, and she’d be his for the taking.

The train jerked around a corner, brakes squealing as it went downhill. She frowned at the rude interruption and then realised that her stop was next.

Getting off, she jostled along with the rest of the commuters and then breathed a sigh of relief when she hit the street. Her sense of calm was short lived when she turned to find her boss, Laura Townsend, walking towards her, her arms full with a box that was overflowing with files.

“Kay!” Laura shouted.

Kim cringed. Too late to escape now.

“It’s Kim,” she said flatly, not caring about correcting her boss because she knew that Laura wouldn’t even noticed she’d spoken.

“Can you carry this?” Laura dumped the box into Kim’s arms.

Kim scowled at her as she straightened out her Armani power suit and beamed brightly. She could never understand how Laura had managed to become her boss. They’d gone through university together and had even taken the bar at the same time. How come Laura was head of the department, and she was stuck spending half her time running errands? Laura had also managed to conveniently forget her name, and forget they’d ever known each other. Kim mused that a position of power could do that to someone. No time for the little people when you’re busy brown-nosing the big bosses.

She adjusted the box in her arms and trudged towards the office. It was a Georgian building with tall sash windows and a black double door for the entrance. She’d always thought it was pretty. It was half the reason she’d decided to join this company. That and her friend worked here. But recently he’d been changing and she wasn’t sure that she liked the butterfly he’d turned into. It was more of a moth.

The files shifted side to side in the box as she mounted the steps and she tried to get them back into a better position as she followed Laura across the entrance hall. It was cool inside the building, the heavy stone work keeping the heat of the sun out. She looked up at the big twin staircases in front of her, wishing she were up in the offices on that floor with the rest of the partners.

She paid for her momentary lapse in concentration.

The box slipped as a file fell off the top and before she could recover herself, all of them had scattered across the floor. She bent immediately, getting down on all fours and scrabbling to pick them up. She could hear the impatient click of Laura’s shoes on the floor. Her heart beat sickeningly fast as she panicked.

Someone touched her shoulder.

“It’s fine, I’ve got it,” she muttered, dying of embarrassment as more people gathered.

She scurried across to the rest of the files, dumping them back into the box. Someone touched her again. She jerked her shoulder backwards.

“I said it was fine. Get off me,” she almost growled the words.

A pair of shiny black shoes appeared in view along with a file.

They weren’t girl shoes.

It wasn’t Laura.

“Don’t fight me,” a deep, lush male voice said. “I’m just trying to help.”

She froze, her heart dancing in her throat as she stared at his shoes. It couldn’t be. It just couldn’t be. Her palms sweated and her breathing hitched as she followed his trousers upwards, taking in the strong, long legs and the breadth of his shoulders, all emphasised by a sharp, black tailored suit. Her eyes reached his face and she flushed under the intensity of his gaze.

He knelt beside her, bringing his head almost level with hers, and held the file out.

She stared into his honey brown eyes, lost in the force of them, and unable to say anything. All sense of embarrassment disappeared for a moment, but returned full force when he smiled, his soft lips curving into it.

“Are you all right?” he said, his voice making her melt inside so much that she was glad she was already on the floor and couldn’t fall over.

She nodded dumbly.

He placed the file into the box and picked up the others for her as she stared at him, trying to figure out if he was real or whether she was just fantasising again. She’d never seen such a gorgeous man. His short black hair looked as velvety as it had been in her dreams and his eyes were everything she’d imagined they would be.

Her eyes widened when she was suddenly standing and she glanced at the large hand that was holding her arm. She swallowed and blinked, her senses reeling as she remembered the feeling of his touch. She pushed her fantasies away as he said something and she looked up into his eyes.

She was lost again the moment they met hers. They were just like the colour of honey, with dark flecks in their depths. She’d never realised that people could have eyes that colour.

“Are you sure you’re all right?” he said with an amused smile but there was the tiniest hint of concern in his eyes.

“I’m fine, thank you,” she said with a smile. Her cheeks flushed when he grinned.

“Don’t concern yourself with Kay. She’s always been a little clumsy.” Laura stepped between her and the man.

“Kim,” she whispered, correcting her.

The man smiled.

“We weren’t expecting you for another half an hour, Mr. Blackwell,” Laura said.

Kim tried not to stare at him but her eyes seemed to ignore every command she sent to them. He was breathtaking. It wasn’t just his looks; it was his whole air. There was something about him that spoke of danger and passion, of heat and seduction. He positively oozed masculinity and sensuality.

Or maybe it was just her dreams making her feel like this.

The cool room suddenly felt very hot when his eyes came back to meet hers. He was speaking to Laura but Kim didn’t hear a word he said. Her heart pounded in her ears. She averted her gaze for a split second but it roamed back to him, as though he’d called it and she was powerless to resist him.

Laura turned to her. “They need those files in room two.”

Kim looked at her, feeling a little dazed and definitely confused. Files? She looked down when Laura did and saw the box there. Files. She’d completely forgotten about them.

“I do hope Kim will be working on my case,” the man said.

Her heart skipped a beat when he said her name. He’d heard her. He’d heard her correct Laura. Is that why he’d smiled? He’d smiled at her?

“Kim? She doesn’t work on cases like yours,” Laura said with a broad smile.

Kim frowned. She did work on cases like his and Laura knew it. If this were the man they were supposed to be meeting this morning, then it was a case she was supposed to be working on. She specialised in contract negotiations.

Laura began walking and he followed her. Kim watched him heading towards the stairs, taking in the strength of his build and how tall he was.

Tearing her eyes away, she bent over and picked up the box of files.

She smiled when she heard him speak.

“I think Kim should work on this case. I think I need her.”

Posted in paranormal romance, shapeshifter romance, Teaseday | Comments Off

Teaseday – Embracing the Wolf – werewolf romance book

Posted on 8th November 2011 by Felicity Heaton

To keep my paranormal romance theme going on my Teasedays, I’ve decided that this week should be another of my paranormal romance shorts. This time it’s an excerpt from Embracing the Wolf, so if you like a little werewolf romance in your books, then this is one for you! It’s also a steal at only $1.49 in ebook on Amazon Kindle, Barnes and Noble Nook, and for your Apple iPad or iPhone through the iBookstore!

So, here’s the blurb and your weekly tease…

Embracing the Wolf

Felicity Heaton
Kat, a hunter with the Werewolf Control Forces, fled her alpha werewolf lover, Amon, when he told her that she too had the gene in her blood and would one day mature into a werewolfâ€”into his mate.

Four years on, Kat has now matured. Each night she fights the â€˜beastâ€™ inside of her and her desire to return to Amon. She hunts rogue werewolves with a vengeance, hating her kind and her blood, gaining satisfaction from eradicating those that have surrendered to darkness and violence, but she canâ€™t change her feelings and her craving for Amon is becoming stronger with every dream she has of him.

When Amonâ€™s pack finally catches up with her, she discovers that heâ€™s dangerously close to turning rogue and only she can save him from the darkness. An encounter with Amon reignites the passion they had once shared, dreams constantly stir her hunger for him, and Kat finds herself faced with a hard decision. Will she let him turn rogue and hunt him, or will she embrace the wolf and mate with Amon to save them both?

ebook price: $1.49
genre: paranormal werewolf romance
length: 20200 words
rating: sultry
released: November 2008

Available in e-book from:
Author’s website: http://www.felicityheaton.com/ebooks.php?title=Embracing%20the%20Wolf
Amazon Kindle: http://www.amazon.com/dp/B0036FU0NS/
Amazon Kindle UK: http://www.amazon.co.uk/dp/B0036FU0NS/
Barnes and Noble: http://search.barnesandnoble.com/Embracing-the-Wolf/Felicity-Heaton/e/2940000802687/
All Romance eBooks: http://www.allromanceebooks.com/product-embracingthewolf-601075-139.html
Sony Reader Store: http://ebookstore.sony.com/ebook/felicity-heaton/embracing-the-wolf/_/R-400000000000000246829
Kobo Books: http://www.kobobooks.com/ebook/Embracing-The-Wolf/mix-1NzltZWkpEuuXxOBSFnOgQ/page1.html
Smashwords: http://www.smashwords.com/books/view/8010
Amazon Kindle Germany: http://www.amazon.de/dp/B0036FU0NS/
Amazon Kindle France: http://www.amazon.fr/dp/B0036FU0NS/

EXCERPT

Four years.

Four years ago, she had fled her home. Four years ago, she had run away from him and her feelings.

Those four years had not erased him from her memory. She still recalled the heat of his touch and the tender brush of his lips against her skin.

Amon.

Kat ghosted her hands over her bare arms, over flesh chilled by winter night. As she thought of him, her hands became the intimate, loving caress of Amonâ€™s. The memory weakened her and stirred desire to return to him. She cursed, breaking the silence of the cemetery. It was impossible to escape her feelings and her intense craving for him. No matter how far she ran.

She stood on the stone sarcophagus in the centre of the cemetery, a breeze washing her skin. Inky darkness stretched in front of her. Bright moonlight-cast shadows stretched long from the trees, swallowing the graves that edged the crammed lot. Silence became a comforting shroud over the Earth.

Her target lay dead below her. One less werewolf in the world. In human form again and naked, his body was bloodied and beaten from their fight. Lifeless eyes stared up at the moon, as though that goddess could still answer the prayers of her child.

The recovery unit were coming to take the body away. Kat hated having to wait for them. With the hunt over, she had nothing to occupy her mind. Her purposelessness ate at her, opening up a hollow feeling inside her. It attacked the carefully constructed barriers around her heart and brought thoughts of Amon.

Katâ€™s gaze rose to the moon. She sought the calm it normally inspired in her. Her black pistols weighed heavily at her sides tonight, their silver load dragging her insides down and turning her stomach to lead.

She pressed a hand to her chest.

The beast stirred in the depths of her heart and snarled for freedom.

Amon had warned her that it would once she had matured. Back then, she hadnâ€™t believed him. She had run.

The idea of housing a werewolf in her body had frightened her. When her beast had risen, it had redefined the word â€˜frightenedâ€™. Kat had been so scared that she had almost run back to Amon. He had been right. Her blood was werewolf, just as his was, but that didnâ€™t mean that she was going to let it control her. She would never change.

She was not an animal.

And she would not surrender to it. Every day of her life, Kat fought it and hid her dirty secret. Every day of her life, she hunted her kin.

Kat had joined the Werewolf Control Forces after they had rescued her from an attack in which a friend of hers had died. The commander of the group had taken pity on her and had offered to train her so she could have her revenge. She had gladly taken the opportunity.

Back then, Kat had not known what tainted blood ran in her veins.

When she had reached the level of hunter, she had met Amon. He had come to her unit and reported a rogue werewolf within his pack. Even though Kat had known what Amon was, she hadnâ€™t been able to stop her feelings for him. He was everything good and, over time, she had come to see that not all werewolves were out to kill humans. It was only then that she had discovered she carried werewolf blood in her veins.

If she had known about the genes she had inherited from her parents before she had joined the Werewolf Control Forces, she still would have gone through with it. Eliminating the rogue werewolves, those that had turned dangerous and had made it onto the WCFâ€™s lists, gave her purpose. When she had found out about her blood, her job had given her something more too. It gave her a strange sense of satisfaction. She hated her kind more than ever. She hated the blood that ran in her veins. She hated that she had never known, and that her foster parents had never told her. She hated her dead parents.

Now she hunted those her of her kin that had turned dangerous, those that had become lost in darkness and the violence that the beast inside called for.

She killed others too, werewolves that were not on the list.

Anyone that Amon sent after her met with a silver bullet.

The beast inside her rose again. She forced it to heel. It fought back and she took deep calming breaths until the hunger to change had passed. Her hand trembled against her chest. It was growing stronger and harder to control, but there was not a chance in hell that she would let it take over.

A large black van crawled along the winding gravel road of the cemetery. Stones crunched under the fat tyres. She gestured to it and then hopped down from the tomb.

Her gaze fell to the dead werewolf.

Amon would be angry.

Tonight, it had been one from his pack. Amon was close to finding her. Or was she close to finding him? Her unit moved every four weeks. A few months ago, she had realised that her and Amon were gradually moving towards each other. Every new town brought them one step closer to meeting again and she could not bring herself to make the unit change its schedule.

Not when she was so close.

Every inch of her craved the fire of Amonâ€™s touch. Every night she had dreamed of him, reliving each sensual and erotic moment of their time together. Those dreams had now turned to nightmares. And in those nightmares there was nothing but painâ€”agonising, searing painâ€”that woke her bathed in cold sweat and shaking.

What did they mean?

Her heart said that she knew the answer to that question.

The sound of the van pulling to a halt snapped her out of her thoughts. Three men dressed in the standard black fatigues of her unit hopped down from the back. They grabbed the werewolf and hauled it into the van as though it was meat at a market.

The commander offered her a lift. Kat waved him away and watched the van leave.

The graveyard fell quiet again. The silence was comforting. Out here in the dark night, she could forget the horror of her dreams and the words they whispered.

Kat turned slowly to regard the man stood barely fifteen foot from her. Leyton. It had taken him longer to arrive than expected. The grim set of his face said the dead werewolf was not the only reason for his visit.
â€œAmon is in pain, isnâ€™t he?â€ she whispered, afraid to raise her voice and acknowledge that Leyton was really there. He looked exactly as she remembered him, but then werewolves didnâ€™t age once they had matured.

Amon had sent him on purpose.

Leyton was like a brother to her.

A solemn nod was Leytonâ€™s answer. Long pale fingers pushed through his sandy waves of hair, clawing it back in a movement of sheer frustration and helplessness. His hair fell back down when his hand had passed, brushing his forehead.

â€œHe needs you, Kat.â€ The deep voice didnâ€™t suit his tall slight figure. Neither did the black jeans and dark zip up jacket. She was used to seeing him in smarter attire. Blue eyes held hers, bright in the moonlight.

Kat knew what those words meant.

Leyton took a step towards her.

When werewolves reached maturity, the need to find their mate would arise. Once it had awoken, they only had a few years to complete the mating or they became feral and dangerous. The longest recorded time between the mating awakening and being completed safely was five years. Four years ago, Amon had told her that she was his mate. That night, she had fled. By now, he would be verging on dangerous. If he turned then she would have to kill him.

As much as Kat feared that thought, the alternative frightened her more. To become his mate she would have to accept what she was and change. She couldnâ€™t do it. The idea of becoming an animal, a hybrid being, turned her blood to ice.

â€œHe knows that he scared you,â€ Leyton said in a coaxing whisper, calm and measured. â€œHe was only being honest that night. Youâ€™re his mate, Kat. Without you heâ€™llâ€”â€

â€œDonâ€™t!â€ Kat cut him off with a glare. Leyton didnâ€™t need to tell her what would happen. She dealt with rogue werewolves on a nightly basis. She saw the dark, violent creature he would become. She closed her eyes and told herself that it would not happen to Amon. Leyton was only trying to scare her.

The trouble was he was succeeding.

â€œWill you see him?â€

Kat looked into Leytonâ€™s eyes.

There was hope in their depths. Meet Amon?

She couldnâ€™t.

Every inch of her rebelled at the thought. It would be dangerous. Not because he could be close to turning, but because if she saw him, she might lose her nerve and return to him. She longed to feel his warm fingers stroking her skin, caressing her in a way that spoke so deeply of his love. She ached to have his soft lips sliding against hers. She craved the way it felt to be in his arms, comforted and safe from the world as she breathed in his spicy scent.

Her eyes closed. She couldnâ€™t do it.

â€œYou must feel it,â€ Leyton continued with a desperate note in his voice. Clearly he had realised that she needed convincing. If anyone could do it, he could. Leyton was Amonâ€™s beta wolf and she had grown close to him during her time with Amon. She trusted him. He knew that and it seemed he was going to use it against her. â€œYou must sense the looming danger.â€

Kat lowered her head and turned it away. She stared blindly at the grass. She did feel it. As a potential mate for Amon and someone who shared a love bond with him, Kat felt his pain as though it were her own.

It ripped her apart each day.

â€œWill you see him?â€ Leyton repeated, firmer this time. His tone demanded an answer. He stepped towards her, until she felt his presence close to her back. â€œJust see him, that is all Iâ€™m asking. It will soothe him. He will not hurt you.â€

Katâ€™s stomach turned. Was Amon that far gone? Icy fingers squeezed her heart. She couldnâ€™t bear the thought that he might become dangerous and make it onto her unitâ€™s list. The idea of having to hunt him turned her stomach, but her only other option was to give in to the werewolf inside.

â€œNo,â€ she whispered, unable to say that word with conviction when her heart begged her to go to Amon.

Leyton stepped closer. Her senses detected the aura of worry surrounding him. Leyton never worried, not even about Amon. It confirmed her worst fear. Amon was growing close to turning.

â€œI promise you, Kat, he will not know that you are there. Just see him and then make up your mind. The next time you meet, do whatever your heart decides. Save him or kill him.â€

â€œPerhaps killing him would be saving him,â€ she muttered to her feet and focussed on the bloodied grass. He wouldnâ€™t know she was there? She could see him, could reassure herself and ease her fears, and he would never know she had been there. The temptation was almost overwhelming.

Silence stretched into minutes as she waged an internal warâ€”her heart against her mind. She ached to see Amon, but the price was too high. If she went, she might not be able to contain the beast within. If she didnâ€™t go, the next time she saw Amon he might be her target. A vision of Amon lying dead at her feet as the werewolf had been tonight flashed across her eyes. Her heart won.

â€œHe wonâ€™t know Iâ€™m there?â€ Kat looked at Leyton and searched his face for the truth behind his answer. The craving was too strong to ignore but she had to be sure that Amon wouldnâ€™t sense her. Once she had seen him again, she would make a final decision just as Leyton had asked.

â€œI promise you that he wonâ€™t.â€

Those words werenâ€™t a comfort. Would Amon not know that she was there because he was so far gone already, so close to the edge? Werewolves became deranged violent creatures when the beast took over. Their bloodlust nightmarish. She had seen them tear humans apart for fun or nothing more than sating their aggression.

She hesitated a moment, still not sure this was a wise idea, and then pointed towards the cemetery gates. â€œLead the way.â€

Leyton took her to an area deep in the city outskirts and far from the residential streets. Desolate red-brick factory buildings towered over her. Their tall windows were made of rectangular panes that were either smashed or coated by an impenetrable layer of grime. Winter wind whistled through them, a haunting symphony. The moon drained their colour. There was sadness about this place that left her feeling more lonely and cold than the cemetery had done.

Kat walked in silence. Her right hand rested on one of her pistols. The feel of it soothed her raw nerves. Her steady heart beat a little quicker when Leyton brought her to the end of a small dark alley. He opened a door.

Amon was in one of these dead buildings.

She had thought they were only passing through this area into one less bleak.

â€œWe cannot move him again,â€ Leyton said in a casual tone, as though he was making small talk about the weather rather than his alpha.

A glance into his eyes revealed that there was nothing casual about those words. The pain in their depths spoke to her heart. They silently begged her to give Amon a reprieve and accept the beast inside her so she could be the one to save him from a fate worse than death. Kat turned away and forced herself to scan the interior of the old factory. A good hunter knew every entry and exit. If Amon was close to turning, she might need them. Sometimes it was better to run than fight.

Leyton led the way. She followed close behind, memorising the maze of metal walkways above her and the old dust covered machinery. They entered a bright white-washed and distinctly clinical-looking room, leaving the darkness and grime behind. The lights stung her eyes. They had to hurt Leytonâ€™s too. Her fingers flexed around her gun when she sensed movement. They werenâ€™t alone.

Three huge male werewolves in human form stood before her. In large hands made for killing, each gripped a black rifle that looked like the type used for tranquilising wild animals. The males stepped forwards, their broad black-clad bodies a dark menacing contrast to the white room.

They didnâ€™t bother her.

What they protected did.

The werewolves partially blocked her view, but she could see enough to make her ache with sorrow.

A steel cage stood in the middle of the room. Its bars were as thick as her wrists. Inch deep glass surrounded it on all sides. Nothing but the cage reflected on the far wall of the glass. It was mirrored. They had surrounded him with mirrors and steel.

Kat glanced at Leyton. He had been right. Amon wouldnâ€™t see her.

â€œIt is sound-proofed,â€ Leyton said in a voice at normal volume, as though to prove the fact.

Her gaze settled on the cage.

Amon would never know that she had been here for him, with him. Her eyebrows furrowed and she stepped through the group of four werewolves, not paying them any heed. Immense sadness seized her heart.

Amon paced back and forth across the small width of his prison. Shirtless and shoeless, he wore nothing but black jeans. He looked exactly as she remembered him but she sensed a difference. A longing to free him warred with a desire to flee again. She stood still, frozen to the spot by indecision and a need to witness what she had done to the man that she had once loved.

Still loved.

â€œItâ€™s a necessary precaution,â€ Leyton said close beside her. She looked up into his eyes, silently asking him if he honestly believed that and if he was alright with it. He looked away, at Amon. â€œHe no longer trusts himself.â€

Her gaze returned to Amon, drawn by the waves of pain that emanated from him, both physical and emotional.

â€œLeave us,â€ Leyton said and heavy boots marched into the distance. The guards were gone.

Kat walked forwards, until she was within a metre of the cubicle. Her gaze followed Amon, back and forth, back and forth, relentless in his pacing. Tears trembled on the brink of falling as she remembered all the times that she had spent with him.

The handsome smile and twinkling eyes full of love that she recalled were gone. The set of his face was grim now, eyebrows knitted into a constant frown. His black hair had grown wild, hanging to his jaw in tangled threads. The hard muscles of his broad chest were covered in claw marks.

Had he been tearing at himself? It pained her to see him, to sense him so close but so far away. Her hand trembled where it still held her holstered gun. Her other rose shakily towards the glass.

â€œAmon,â€ she whispered, quiet enough that Leyton wouldnâ€™t hear her. Amon turned and raised his head, but didnâ€™t look at her.

Her heart broke to see his beautiful dark eyes and bowed lips. There was nothing soft or tender about them now. His eyes held pain. His lips were compressed into a thin line of restraint.

â€œAre you alright?â€ Leyton said in a low voice. It wasnâ€™t so Amon wouldnâ€™t hear them. Leyton was worried about her now too.

â€œI never knew he was in such a state,â€ she whispered and glanced at Leyton before her eyes darted back to Amon.

She pressed her hand against the glass, wishing that she could touch him, wishing that she were brave enough to let him know that she was here.

Amon stopped in the middle of the cage. Suddenly, he arched his back, threw his arms out by his sides, tensed and shaking, and howled at the roof.

Her heart jumped and pounded in response to the intense vulnerability in his howl and his pained expression. The call to her was clear, speaking his need of her. Something powerful inside her responded.

Panic filled her, a riot of conflict and fear. She fought her beast as she backed away from the cage. She couldnâ€™t bear it anymore. Tears stung her eyes. She ran, shoving Leyton away as he moved into her path. She had been stupid to come. She had known deep in her heart that if she saw Amon, she would feel the incredible pull to him that she always had.

She bolted from the factory, fleeing him again, and didnâ€™t stop running until she had reached her apartment. Flinging the door shut behind her, she went straight to her bathroom and splashed cold water on her face to mask her tears. After a moment, she raised her head and stared at her dripping wet reflection in the mirror on the cabinet above the sink. The water had erased her tears but had done nothing to remove the feelings colliding inside her.

â€œStupid,â€ she said to herself, frowning so hard her dark eyebrows almost met. Redness marred her deep brown eyes, a sign of the tears that she had washed away.

When she closed her eyes, the image of Amon pacing the small cage filled her mind. Her heart clenched all over again. Heâ€™d howled with so much pain that she had felt it.

Amon was close to turning.

Her gaze fell to her guns.

She didnâ€™t have much time to make her decision.

Posted in paranormal romance, Teaseday, werewolf romance | Comments Off

Teaseday – A Promise of Passion – vampire romance short story

Posted on 1st November 2011 by Felicity Heaton

This week my Teaseday is brought to you by A Promise of Passion, a short vampire romance story that is on sale as an ebook for just $0.99. A bargain at under a dollar and available on Amazon Kindle, Apple iPad and iPhone through the iBookstore, and Barnes and Noble Nook.

Here’s the blurb and this week’s tease…

A Promise of Passion

Felicity Heaton
A dark, sensual and action packed story of two hearts, united in their passion and desire, but divided by their blood, A Promise of Passion is guaranteed to get your heart racing.

Alicia is a vampire hunter, unable to find a man strong enough to love and accept her for who she is. When Kassian, a tall and seductively handsome vampire walks into her life and vows to protect her, she doesnâ€™t know what to think or feel. His eyes make promises that his searing touch backs up, but she canâ€™t get past the fact that heâ€™s a vampire and the fact that he thinks sheâ€™s someone else.

Kassian is certain from the moment he sets eyes on Alicia that sheâ€™s the reincarnation of his lost love and sire, and heâ€™ll stop at nothing to convince her and make her his again. A taste of her blood makes him realise his mistake but doesnâ€™t change his feelings or his resolve to have her.

Their mutual attraction is impossible to resist but a moment of passion places Alicia in the path of danger when Seth, the vampire responsible for murdering Kassianâ€™s sire, sets his sights on her. When Alicia is dragged into a game of human sport, how far will Kassian go to protect his love? Can he save her or will history repeat itself?

ebook price: $0.99
genre: paranormal vampire romance
length: 15091 words
rating: sultry
released: October 2008

Available in e-book from:
Author’s website: http://www.felicityheaton.com/ebooks.php?title=A%20Promise%20of%20Passion
Amazon Kindle: http://www.amazon.com/dp/B0036FU1BE/
Amazon Kindle UK: http://www.amazon.co.uk/dp/B0036FU1BE/
Barnes and Noble: http://search.barnesandnoble.com/A-Promise-of-Passion/Felicity-Heaton/e/2940000802694/
All Romance eBooks: http://www.allromanceebooks.com/product-apromiseofpassion-601074-139.html
Sony Reader Store: http://ebookstore.sony.com/ebook/felicity-heaton/a-promise-of-passion/_/R-400000000000000242325
Kobo Books: http://www.kobobooks.com/ebook/A-Promise-Of-Passion/mix-8tfJoF2dME-QoRlvaLzVag/page1.html
Smashwords: http://www.smashwords.com/books/view/8014
Amazon Kindle Germany: http://www.amazon.de/dp/B0036FU1BE/
Amazon Kindle France: http://www.amazon.fr/dp/B0036FU1BE/

EXCERPT

Kassian surveyed the busy room with a lazy smile. The dance floor was crowded, full of hot bodies grinding against each other to the loud beat of the music. A switch in his focus and the tempting sweet melody of one hundred pounding hearts replaced that beat. His eyes moved to single one out amongst them, his hunger rising by the second, driven by the swirling fragrance of blood in the air and the rush of it through their veins.

So many beautiful women here, but for some reason none of them appealed tonight. Usually he could come here and find one to lure away within seconds. Something was different. The delicate features of the vampire hunter, Alicia, rose to the front of his mind. A taste of her sweet cherry lips had sent desire surging through him in a way he hadnâ€™t felt in centuries. The smell of her blood, the beat of her heart and the fragrance of her skin had only heightened their effect. It seemed that no matter how much he tried, he couldnâ€™t erase the sensations sheâ€™d stirred.

He stretched his arms out along the back of the curved red velvet covered couch and leaned back. When the bar tender looked his way, he raised a hand. The man nodded. It was a matter of seconds before another drink was in front of him, the empty glass whisked away. The vampire who ran the club knew him and knew heâ€™d conduct his business quietly, unlike some of the younger vampires that frequented it. Discretion was something a lot of the new generation lacked. Their frivolous behaviour had made the humans notice his species. Right now it was only a small percentage of the population and they had taken up arms against his kind. If the youth continued to flout the rules, it was only a matter of time before more learned of vampires and then theyâ€™d have a war to contend with.

A tall blond man leaned against the wide entrance to the curtained booth, his smile broad and charming.

â€œAshton,â€ Kassian said, saluting him by raising his glass. â€œIt has been a while since I saw your face. There are many gathered tonight that have been away.â€

â€œIt is for Sethâ€™s party tomorrow,â€ Ashton said and slid his slim frame into the seat opposite Kassian.

Kassian raised a brow. â€œA party, tomorrow?â€

â€œYou hadnâ€™t heard?â€ There was a laugh to Ashtonâ€™s voice. It had been a long time since Kassian and Seth had been on good terms. â€œI am sure he meant to inform you. You are, after all, the second eldest resident vampire in this city. Second only to him.â€

There was malice in those words. He hadnâ€™t been second to Seth at everything. Alice had been his, even though Seth had wanted her for himself.

â€œI hear he even has a guest planned… some human sport. It sounds delightful.â€

Kassianâ€™s frown deepened. Human sport. Heâ€™d seen firsthand what those words meant. Some unfortunate girl was about to live a nightmare, chased by vampires in a sick and twisted game. By the end of the night, sheâ€™d be dead, drained by multiple vampires, drugged to comply.

â€œI will expect to see you there,â€ Ashton said with another charming smile and slid out of the seat, easing his way across the room. Kassian watched him until he disappeared from view.

He hated the idea of attending Sethâ€™s party, but to be here tonight and then not attend would only increase the tension between himself and the elder vampire. He had to go, whether he liked it or not. He would keep to himself. Perhaps heâ€™d stay long enough to show his face and then leave to find Alicia.

Alicia. She had been beautiful tonight, the moonlight playing gently on her delicate features. It had made her chocolate brown eyes darker and set them sparkling like black diamonds. He ran a hand over his shoulder length dark hair, smoothing it back into the neat ponytail, and imagined the feel of her hair beneath his fingers. Always so soft. Everything about her was soft and warm, enticing him to touch and taste.

Shunning thoughts of Alicia and forcing her to the back of his mind, he focused on the matter at hand. Feeding. It had been weeks since his last feed. Since the night heâ€™d met Alicia, in fact. He frowned at the way sheâ€™d crept back into his thoughts and pushed her out again.

His gaze moved around the room, slow and steady, assessing everyone. It stopped when it fell on a woman at the bar. Short cropped chestnut hair, slim figure with all the right curves, and an empty cocktail glass in front of her.

Alicia.

Either he had driven her to drink or she was a figment of his overwrought imagination.

It had been wrong of him to control her tonight. Heâ€™d overstepped the mark. It was a mind control of sorts, an ability to slip into your targetâ€™s head and take over. Many vampires never spent the required time perfecting it and barged their way in, damaging the delicate human mind beyond repair. Done properly, it was a handy defence against humans and vampires alike.

Regardless of how desperate heâ€™d been for her to listen to him, he still shouldnâ€™t have used it on her.

It had betrayed what little trust she had in him.

Curiosity got the better of him and he reached across the room to her mind as he sipped his martini. It was easy to slip in unnoticed this time. The resonance of his mind was still within hers. Each time a vampire controlled anotherâ€™s mind, they left behind a trace of their own, a gateway back in that would disappear over a matter of hours. It made things easier if you were forced out and had to re-enter. Breaking into someoneâ€™s mind took a lot of effort. He made no attempt to control her this time and left again, as quietly as heâ€™d entered.

A man tapped her shoulder and motioned to the empty barstool beside her. Kassian leaned forwards and lowered his glass to the table. Alicia nodded and smiled politely. No, more than polite. It was verging on congenial. Sheâ€™d never smiled at him like that. How could she smile at this new vampire that way? His own smile rose to his lips. She hadnâ€™t realised that the man wasnâ€™t a man at all. She leaned back on her stool, revealing a row of empty glasses. Too many. With that much alcohol inside her, she wouldnâ€™t notice the man was a vampire until it was too late.

Heâ€™d risen to his feet before heâ€™d even thought about what he was doing and was crossing the room. The vampire laughed at something sheâ€™d said and hailed the bartender. Kassian growled. There was no way he was going to sit by and let some other man buy her drinks.

The crowd parted before him and he slid through without touching anyone, intent on his destination. Alicia. Now that he was closer, he could smell her delicate fragrance of lilies. It caressed his senses, sending warmth through him and bringing back the taste of the stolen kiss.

Her shoulders tensed when he was within a few feet, betraying the fact sheâ€™d sensed his approach. His hand came to rest lightly on her bare shoulder. She turned slowly and looked up at him with wide eyes.

â€œThere you are, Alicia, I have been searching for you everywhere,â€ he said with a broad smile and then looked at the man. His smile widened until he exposed the tips of his half-extended canines. â€œIt was kind of you to keep my Alicia company. Come along now.â€
One hand was against her back before she could regain her senses and protest. His other took hold of hers, forcing her to turn and slip from the stool, barely giving her time to grab her jacket from the bar. The man regarded him coolly. Their eyes remained locked for a moment, a silent challenge and battle passing between them. The man looked away. Kassianâ€™s smile broadened. Alicia was his and his alone. Heâ€™d never let another man touch her.

He led her across the room and into his booth, drawing the curtain with one hand while he guided her into the seat with his other.

The small oil lamp on the middle of the table struggled to light the booth. The black curtains stole the light. It only remained on Alicia, warming her skin and adding to her beauty. He slid into the couch opposite her, staying close to the exit in case she tried to escape him. The curtain opened a moment, long enough for one of the waitresses to deposit Aliciaâ€™s drink, and then closed.

He held her gaze across the table. Her blood reeked of alcohol. What had she been thinking? Coming here was dangerous enough, but drinking was just suicide. Surely she knew that vampires used this place as a hunting ground?

Her eyes held a silent accusation. It told him that she was angry with him for his abuse of her trust earlier this evening and she wasnâ€™t impressed with what heâ€™d just done. At least on that front he could defend himself.

â€œHe would have killed you,â€ he said and leaned back into his side of the couch. He pressed the tip of his index and middle finger against the base of his glass, one either side of the stem, and drew it across the table to him. He raised it and then frowned at her. â€œIs that what you want?â€

She blinked slowly and looked at him as though she didnâ€™t understand a word heâ€™d said. Either that or she didnâ€™t care.

He shot forwards, his hand grabbing hers and holding it tight enough that her face screwed up in pain. It was a rough tactic, but one almost guaranteed to make her come to her senses. Nothing cleared the human mind like panic.

â€œIs that what you want!â€ There was a growl to his words that made her flinch. When she opened her eyes again, they were brighter and there was fear in them at last. He lowered his voice so as not to startle her. â€œI cannot let that happen, even if it is what you want.â€

She snatched her hand back. â€œItâ€™s not what I want.â€

Her hand went to her head, fingers raking shakily through her hair, clawing it from her face. She rubbed her eyes and face. Had she only just realised the danger sheâ€™d placed herself in?

â€œYouâ€™ve had too much to drink,â€ he said and stood, extending his hand to her. â€œCome along.â€

She stared at it and then up into his eyes.

When she showed no sign of taking his hand, he took hers and hauled her onto her feet.

â€œGet off me,â€ she muttered and shoved against his chest. He caught her other hand. She struggled. â€œWhat do you want?â€

â€œI am going to take you home,â€ he whispered and pulled her close. Before he could restrain her hands, sheâ€™d twisted free of his grasp and pushed him backwards. His backside hit the edge of the seat.

â€œYouâ€™ll do no such thing. Iâ€™m not twelve. I donâ€™t need a babysitter.â€ She scooted around the table, placing it between them.

A sigh escaped him. She was difficult enough when sober. Now she was bordering on impossible.

â€œWould you rather Iâ€™d left you out there with that vampire?â€

The penny dropped.

Her mouth formed a pretty O at the same time as her eyebrows rose.

There was a soft thud and she was sitting on the couch, her hands planted firmly into it beside her knees. Her eyes never left his. Taking her silence as a sign that she wasnâ€™t going to fight him, he sat down again and waited. She grabbed her drink. He took it from her.

â€œI donâ€™t think you need any more of that,â€ he whispered.

She swallowed hard.

â€œVampire?â€ she said in a quiet, strained voice.

â€œIt takes one to know one, clearly.â€ He leaned back into the couch again and stretched his legs out, resting his feet on the opposite side of the horseshoe shape and barricading the exit. Her head hit the table and she groaned.

So sheâ€™d made a fool of herself. Heâ€™d been here to see her safe. There was no harm done and no need for being overly dramatic. Sheâ€™d learn her lesson and heâ€™d step up his watch over her. Ensuring her safety was paramount. He wouldnâ€™t lose her again.

Her head turned to the side so her cheek was pressed against the dirty sticky black table top. Dark chocolate eyes looked up at him. She looked positively miserable.

Without thinking, he reached across the table to her and pushed her hair behind her ear so he could see her face better. She surprised him by closing her eyes when his fingertips accidentally brushed her cheek. A sigh broke free of her lips, drawing his attention there. Brave fingers danced lower, trembling with anticipation and the feeling of her soft skin and her warmth, until his thumb swept along her lower lip. His insides lightened but became heavy at the same time, his mind dizzy with the feel of her and the growing tightness coiling inside him. He opened his hand and covered her cheek with his palm, his fingers resting along the line of her jaw. His thumb continued to caress her sweet lips. They parted slightly, enough for him to feel her hot breath against his skin.

His heart whispered that any moment now sheâ€™d come to her senses and realise what he was doing, and then sheâ€™d be fighting him again.

â€œI died… I mean… she died in your arms,â€ she whispered against his thumb.

His hand left her and curled into a fist against the onslaught of the memory her words had released. A frown knit his dark eyebrows and his eyes narrowed on her.

Her eyes opened, full of questions and fear when they met his. â€œShe did, didnâ€™t she?â€

His mouth felt horribly dry. The glass was at his lips and drained before she could blink. He closed his eyes against the images of her, her whispered pleas and dying words. So much blood. There hadnâ€™t been a damn thing he could do to save her. Heâ€™d failed.

â€œDidnâ€™t she?â€ Her voice was probing, unrelenting. She wanted an answer.

He managed a nod. It was more like a hanging of his head but he knew sheâ€™d read it as the answer because she sat up.

â€œDoes that mean Iâ€™m really her?â€ Her voice trembled now, fear lacing it.

When he opened his eyes and met hers, she looked as frightened as sheâ€™d sounded.

â€œNo,â€ he whispered, too afraid of stirring his memories and in too much pain to raise his voice any louder. â€œIt is purely resonance of my memories from my earlier attempt to make you listen to me.â€

â€œOh.â€ Her gaze fell to the table. Delicate fingers traced patterns on the dark top. â€œSo Iâ€™m not her?â€

There was hope in her voice. It cut him deeper than any stake could. She didnâ€™t want to be Alice.

Her hand reached for her drink again. He pulled it towards him. â€œI meant what I said.â€

He couldnâ€™t let her continue drinking. He had to protect her, just as heâ€™d promised.

Heâ€™d protect her from anything and with his life if it came to that.

Posted in paranormal romance, Teaseday, vampire romance | Comments Off

Teaseday – Love Immortal – vampire romance novel

Posted on 25th October 2011 by Felicity Heaton

This week my Teaseday post is brought to you by Love Immortal, my epic vampire romance novel. Love Immortal has it all in spades – drama, action, emotion, passion, and twists that will knock your socks off. Oh, and keep a hanky handy too!

Here’s the book blurb and your tease chapter…

Love Immortal

Felicity Heaton
Rescued from werewolves by the most breathtaking man she’s ever seen, Lauren is dragged into the fight of her life and a dark world she never knew existed. There, she discovers that she’s the latest reincarnation of a goddess and must drink the blood of her immortal protector, Julian, in order to reawaken and continue her three thousand year old mission to defeat Lycaon, the original werewolf.

With the help of Julian and an organisation of people with supernatural abilities, Lauren fights for her life, their future and the fate of mankind against Lycaon and his deadly army, but can she succeed when Lycaon has killed all of her predecessors?

Can she crack the armour around Julian’s heart and seize her happily forever after with him? And can Julian bring himself to trust Lauren with the fragments of his heart after everything he’s been through?

ebook price: $3.99
paperback price: $12.99
genre: paranormal vampire romance
length: 157000 words
rating: sultry
released: January 2011

Available in e-book from:
Author’s website: http://www.felicityheaton.com/ebooks.php?title=Love%20Immortal
Amazon Kindle: http://www.amazon.com/dp/B004HYHHME/
Amazon Kindle UK: http://www.amazon.co.uk/dp/B004HYHHME/
Barnes and Noble: http://search.barnesandnoble.com/Love-Immortal/Felicity-Heaton/e/2940011179648/
All Romance eBooks: http://www.allromanceebooks.com/product-loveimmortal-613574-139.html
Sony Reader Store: http://ebookstore.sony.com/ebook/felicity-heaton/love-immortal/_/R-400000000000000340123
Kobo Books: http://www.kobobooks.com/ebook/Love-Immortal/book-OyQ9CMW5Jkaf0K_UwfVfGw/page1.html
Smashwords: http://www.smashwords.com/books/view/36609
Amazon Kindle Germany: http://www.amazon.de/dp/B004HYHHME/
Amazon Kindle France: http://www.amazon.fr/dp/B004HYHHME/

Available in paperback from:
Amazon.com: http://www.amazon.com/dp/1456487884/
Amazon.co.uk: http://www.amazon.co.uk/dp/1456487884/
Barnes and Noble: http://search.barnesandnoble.com/Love-Immortal/Felicity-Heaton/e/9781456487881/

EXCERPT

Protection and answers.

They were the most prominent reasons why Lauren was going with this man and the ones that she was going to stick with until everything started making sense. There were other reasons floating around her mind but she ignored those. So what if she felt attracted to Julian? She was only going with him because he could protect her from the monsters that were out to kill her.

Lauren adjusted the straps of her backpack and walked in silence beside Julian through the centre of London. He hadnâ€™t said much since they had left her house other than telling the taxi driver to drop them off at Piccadilly Circus.

They passed through several side streets, heading deeper into the heart of the city, and entered a square with tall Georgian townhouses on all sides. Their pale stone, uniform black iron fences and black doors made them mirror images of each other. A fine layer of frost covered the fancy cars parked on the road outside them. A tall iron fence enclosed a wooded park in the middle of the square, the gates closed. The trees were bare, silhouetted against the sky. Where was Julian taking her, and why couldnâ€™t they have continued in the taxi?

Heâ€™d said something back at her house about them going to see some people who were special like her. An organisation called Ghost.

The mention of that name had piqued her interest but Julian had told her to get ready. Heâ€™d said it with such insistence that sheâ€™d fallen silent and done what heâ€™d asked. Sheâ€™d changed out of her wet things, mulling over everything heâ€™d told her about her past lives, her apparent mission, their opponent, and himself. She hadnâ€™t said a word since then.

She didnâ€™t have a problem with reincarnation. Belief in that was common enough and it was comforting to think that there was something beyond death.

The thing she found hard to swallow was the fact that ancient Greek gods were involved, and Julian and the werewolf named Lycaon were thousands of years old. Immortal. That was the stuff of movies and fairytales.

But so were monsters, and they were real.

Julian hadnâ€™t told her what would happen if she chose not to â€˜awakenâ€™ on her birthday, which left her wondering if she really had a choice at all. Would something bad happen to her or the world if she didnâ€™t? What if one of Illiaâ€™s reincarnations said no? Did it all just end?

No. Lauren knew the answer to that. Lycaon was after revenge, something she could empathize with since learning who had ordered her parentsâ€™ deaths. If she chose not to carry out Illiaâ€™s, her, duty then Lycaon might just get his wish. She wasnâ€™t sure how it worked but Julian had made it sound as though her role was a necessary one and she was important.

Sheâ€™d never been important before.

It was a nice, if daunting, feeling.

She wrapped her arms around herself in an effort to keep warm. The night sky was clear, leaving the world frosty and far colder than her clothing could protect against. Her warmest jacket had been wet so sheâ€™d had to dress in her thinner brown combat jacket. Even when combined with the black jumper and camisole it wasnâ€™t warm enough to keep the chill off her skin. She looked up at the heavens. It would be dawn in only a couple of hours. Darkness had already started to give way to a strange kind of twilight that made it easier to see her surroundings but more difficult to make out any detail.

Lauren looked at Julian. He stared straight ahead, eyes intent on the distance and the tall collar of his coat masking the lower half of his face. He didnâ€™t even blink when the wintry wind blew the black strands of his hair across his brow. She kept her gaze fixed on him as much as possible, taking him all in. He moved the black carry case he had borrowed from her to conceal his sword to his right shoulder and straightened. He was much taller than her, enough that she barely reached his shoulders, but she liked it and the fact that he radiated strength and confidence. She wished he would speak more to her though. The sound of his voice soothed her. It was warm and calming, adding to the way she felt when she was around him. She didnâ€™t feel as though she was in danger. She was safe with him. Even though she knew that she shouldnâ€™t feel that way, she did. She couldnâ€™t help it.

He blinked slowly, shuttering his beautiful blue eyes. She had never imagined that such pale eyes could have such intensity. They sent a tremor through her whenever he looked into hers, a spark that gave her a warm feeling in the pit of her stomach. When he looked at her with silver eyes, she felt mesmerised.

She moved ahead of him a little and looked back. He glanced away from her, towards the park in the middle of the square.

His behaviour was starting to give her the impression that he was avoiding looking at her. What reason did he have to do that though?

Julian stopped, scrutinised the pavement, and then walked a few steps and crouched down. Lauren leaned forwards to see what he was doing. When he held his hand above the paving slab, something flared into existence. The flash of green light faded to reveal an intricate glowing symbol just beneath Julianâ€™s palm on the pavement. He stood and the symbol disappeared.

â€œWhat was that?â€ Lauren said. Shiny glyphs didnâ€™t just appear out of nowhere and they certainly didnâ€™t disappear without a trace.

â€œA marker,â€ he said and the sound of his deep accented voice made her want to close her eyes.

â€œAnd it does what?â€ Lauren crouched and waved her hand over the pavement. Nothing happened.

â€œIt responds only to me.â€ Julian knelt on one knee beside her. He held his hand out and the marker appeared again, glowing brilliant green and lighting his hand and the pavement. The swirling pattern shifted beneath his fingers. Twin circular bands edged the central symbol. The smaller glyphs inside them moved in opposite directions. The ones in the outside ring turned clockwise and those in the inside one anti-clockwise. â€œIt tells us which way to go.â€

â€œHow does it know where we want to go?â€ She reached out and touched the marker. It was freezing cold. An unsettled feeling grew in her. Julian took hold of her hand and moved it away.

â€œThey do not just appear of their own accord. Duke placed it here to guide us. I came ahead of the others and do not know the location of the Ghost office here in London.â€ Julian stood and brushed off his knee before offering his hand to her. She took it and pulled herself back up.

â€œAnd who is Duke?â€ Everything Julian said left her with more questions and she wanted answers.

â€œYou will meet him soon enough.â€ Julian held his arm out to one side, indicating the way forward.

She could sense he wanted her to be silent again so he could concentrate. One more question first.

â€œHow do you find the markers?â€

Julian paused mid-stride and looked over his shoulder at her. The funnel neck of his coat shifted and she caught a glimpse of the rest of his nose. It was perfectly straight. She wished that she could see all of his face. Perhaps when they reached Duke and the Ghosts he would remove his coat. She wanted to know what Julian looked like.

â€œI can sense them.â€

â€œCan you sense me too?â€

He nodded. â€œCome, we must not keep them waiting.â€

Lauren followed him again, feeling somewhat like a small child just told off by their father. Julian was old enough to be her great-times-one-hundred-grandfather. Lauren couldnâ€™t imagine living for that long. He would have seen the world change, for better and for worse. More questions came to her but she kept them to herself this time.

Julian led her down a side street and then an empty pedestrian street. He stopped and placed his hand against the redbrick and cream sandstone wall of an old factory building to her left. Another symbol appeared between two large white-framed arched windows. Pale blue this time. It matched Julianâ€™s eyes.

Lauren frowned at the comparison.

When had she become so interested in him? Heâ€™d been on her mind since sheâ€™d met him. Heâ€™d told her so much about herself and Lycaon, but heâ€™d barely mentioned himself. The fact that he kept half of his face hidden only increased his aura of mystery and when she combined that mystery with his incredible sword skills and need to protect her, she found herself desiring him.

He took the black carry case from his shoulder, pulled out his katana and slid it back into place under his coat. He handed her the case and she put it into her backpack. Had they arrived?

Julian stepped back, looked up at the building and then at the similar one opposite.

Before Lauren could ask what the symbol had said this time, one of his arms was around her waist and the other went behind her knees. He lifted her effortlessly. Her eyebrows almost touched her hairline and she looped her arms around his neck. Her feet crossed. No man had ever picked her up before. She stared at his face, right into his eyes, able to see every tiny fleck of darker blue against ice. This close to him, she couldnâ€™t deny her attraction to Julian. Her heart jigged in her chest and heat scorched her where his hands pressed into her body.

â€œHold on tight,â€ Julian whispered and Lauren nodded, captivated by the dark ring that encircled his irises and the wide black abyss of his pupils. His eyes were so beautiful. â€œDo not look down.â€
Lauren frowned. She wasnâ€™t that high off the ground. Come to think of it, why was he holding her anyway? Did he intend to carry her across the threshold like newlyweds? That thought brought an odd warmth with it but it quickly dissipated. Immortals probably didnâ€™t marry and she barely knew him. If her friends were here they would think she had either gone crazy or was finally seizing the day just as sheâ€™d said she would.

She blinked and then frowned again, remembering that sheâ€™d left her bag in the alley. The body of the man had disappeared but her things were still there, covered in blood. What if the police could link them to her somehow? They could contact her friends and then they would think that she had been murdered or kidnapped.

Well, they would be right about one of those things.

Julian had practically abducted her and heâ€™d told her things that she still didnâ€™t fully believe. The people at Ghost were like her. How much like her? Were they like Julian, or were they different?

He turned with her and jumped, pushing all thought from her head. Her arms tightened around his neck. She expected him to go a few feet and then hit the pavement. He didnâ€™t. He soared upwards towards the building opposite at incredible speed.

He was going to jump to the roof. That was impossible. No one could jump that far. Could Julian?

The second storey windows of the building came at them fast.

They were going to hit it.

Lauren leaned into Julianâ€™s neck and braced for impact. His arms tightened around her in a delicious way and just as they were going to hit the wall, his foot came out. He pushed off from the second redbrick warehouse, pivoted, and they were sailing upwards again.

Her heart pounded as they sped towards the roof of the building that bore the symbol.

Julian landed silently on a low wall that edged the flat roof and then stepped down, still holding her. She stared up at him, mouth working silently as she tried to speak. He gently lowered her until her feet hit the gravel. Her legs wobbled beneath her and her arms refused to come unlocked. Strong hands firmly gripped her waist, steadying her, warming her until she burned inside. She stared into silver eyes. Her reflection shimmered in them.

â€œAre you well?â€ Julian said, his low voice making her quiver with delight.

She swallowed and then nodded. â€œThat was incredible.â€

His eyes narrowed as though he was smiling behind the funnel neck of his coat and he reached around behind his head, took hold of her hands, and removed them. Lauren looked down at their joined hands when he kept hold of one of them. It felt nice. What made it feel even better was the fact that the hand holding hers was his left, the opposite of the one he used to draw his sword. He was still protecting her. If something happened, he would be able to defend her in a heartbeat.

Did his heart beat?

â€œStay close.â€ He started walking.

Lauren followed in a daze. If Julian had wanted to make her believe that all this was real, heâ€™d found the perfect way by leaping up to the roof. Now she couldnâ€™t deny that he was different and she couldnâ€™t help wondering if she would be able to do that too when she awakened. Jump building to building. Soar over the gaps between them. Fight like him.

She frowned and tracked back through her thoughts. When she awakened? Shouldnâ€™t that have been â€˜ifâ€™? She was on the verge of agreeing to something before she had all the facts. There were definitely things that Julian had skirted around during their conversation, or had omitted completely. There was more to this than he was telling her, just as there was more to him.

They stopped in front of a small square structure with a dark metal door and Julian held his free hand out to it. A red symbol appeared this time. The markings matched the green one that had been on the pavement. The door clicked. Julian opened it and walked in, his grip on her hand increasing.

Lights flickered into life above them, dull and tinted green. They barely lit the steep concrete steps that led down into the building. Lauren clung to Julianâ€™s hand and looked back at the door. No one was there and her footsteps on the stairs were so loud that she would have heard someone walking down them if they had opened the door and then left. Who had unlocked the door and turned on the lights?

A red dot on the sloped ceiling caught her attention. A small black security camera pointed at her and the door. She stared into the dark lens, wondering who was looking back at her.

They turned right down the corridor at the end of the steps. The industrial lighting stole all warmth from the cream walls. She hunched up, feeling cold as she walked through the eerily silent building.

They passed several dark doors. Some of them were open, revealing modern and spacious offices. No one was in them. She wasnâ€™t surprised considering that it was nearing dawn now. Everyone had probably gone home for the evening. That was, if Ghost operatives went home.

Julianâ€™s boots were loud on the beech wood floor, echoing along the hall ahead of them. She looked down as they passed a staircase on her left. A brown carpet stair-runner led her eye downward and she frowned when she heard noises coming from the floor below. There were still people in the building, and they were awake.

Julianâ€™s grip on her hand tightened and his pace slowed. They were nearing the end of the corridor now. Only two doors lay ahead of them, both closed. Was his contact behind one of them? She looked at Julian. His increasing grip on her hand and his hesitation gave her the impression that whomever they were meeting, he didnâ€™t fully trust them.

At least not with her.

That thought made her heart thump hard against her chest. Julian stopped and looked back at her.

â€œIs something the matter?â€ He frowned.

Lauren could only draw one conclusion.

He could hear her heart beating.

She hadnâ€™t tensed, gasped, or made any move or sound that might have alerted him to the sudden spike in her emotions caused by the thought that he wanted to protect her. Had he sensed it? Was this another of his abilities? Super hearing.

â€œNothing,â€ she whispered and then stepped towards him. â€œWhatâ€¦ what gave you the impression something was wrong?â€

He looked down at her chest. His blue eyes showed a flicker of hunger. She liked the way he looked at her. Fire, passion, desire. No man had looked at her like that before.

â€œYour heart.â€ He turned away. â€œIt sounds frightened.â€

It was galloping in her chest, racing over the way heâ€™d looked at her rather than the revelation that he could hear it or anything like fear. After witnessing firsthand that he could leap up buildings, she was sure that nothing about Julian could shock her.

â€œIâ€™m not frightened.â€ When she said that, he glanced at her out of the corner of his eye.

He walked to a dark wooden door and knocked.

Without waiting for an invitation from within, Julian opened the door and held it for her. She hesitated, uncertain about going in first, and then took a deep breath and laughed internally at how ridiculous she was being. Fear had lived too long in her heart, making her play it safe when everyone else was taking chances. It was time that she changed that. If she could accept everything that Julian had told her, then she could face whatever was in this room.

Head held high, Lauren walked into the large office. There was nothing more than a man sitting at a grand mahogany desk working on a laptop. Papers were scattered across it. A mug sat in one corner under a green glass and brass lamp. Three tall arched windows behind the man revealed a panorama of London rooftops. The sky was starting to grow brighter.

The man looked up at her. Short dark tangled waves touched with silver framed his tanned handsome face. He looked no more than ten years her senior. Deep intense brown eyes met hers with confidence and a sparkle of amusement. He smiled, adopting an almost seductive expression, and then with quintessential Italian charm, he stood, walked around the desk to her and took hold of her hand, bringing it to his lips and pressing a kiss to the back of it.

â€œLauren, I presume?â€ he said in a husky voice and glanced up into her eyes.

She nodded, stunned by his greeting. His thumb brushed the back of her hand. Was he flirting with her?

The sleeve of his silver-grey suit fell back, revealing a tattoo on his forearm and his palm. Black outlined roses and stems wound their way up his arm, spread out as they disappeared under his shirt but grouped closer together on his palm. The flowers close to his shirt cuff were empty but some of the ones on his wrist were coloured in, as were all of the ones that she could see on his palm. They varied from crimson through to a red so deep that it was almost black.

He waved a hand towards two dark red leather armchairs in front of his desk. She shook her head. She didnâ€™t want to sit down. She would only start fidgeting and showing her nerves.

â€œI thought Julian said not to frighten her?â€ The female voice caught her off guard and Lauren turned on a pinhead to face the owner of it. The woman was stunning, wearing a tight long black dress that revealed an hourglass figure, abundance of cleavage and legs that Lauren would kill for. Red heart-shaped lips, near-black eyes, and glossy straight black hair that reached mid-way down her back topped off the vision of perfection.

This woman was sin personified.

The man let go of her hand, smiling all the while, and leaned against the large mahogany desk. He placed his right foot up onto the seat of one of the leather armchairs. Shiny expensive leather shoes. He seemed accustomed to luxury. His office was a lot different to the others she had seen down the hall. It was larger and more grandly furnished, superior, and it showed signs of life, albeit ones that unnerved her. She hadnâ€™t failed to notice that the wall to her left was painted dark red when all the others were cream, and that a huge wooden glass-fronted cabinet full of guns took up most of it. One of the doors was open behind the other. None of the guns it contained were automatic or modern weapons. They all looked antique, and there were a couple missing.

â€œI would think that sort of greeting would be more frightening than mine. You made the poor girl jump.â€ The man folded his arms across his chest.

Lauren looked from him, to the woman where she stood framed against the strip of cream wall between two massive mahogany bookcases, to Julian. His pale blue eyes were narrowed, his eyebrows drawn tight together. If she had to guess at his feelings, she would say that he wasnâ€™t happy. Had it been the manâ€™s flirtatious greeting or the fact the woman had scared her?

Lauren stepped back towards him, distancing herself from the two new people. The closer she moved to Julian, the calmer and safer she felt. He moved forwards until he stood beside her, so near to her that their hands were almost touching.

â€œPerhaps we should introduce ourselves more formally?â€ the man said.

Julian nodded and his expression lightened.

â€œMy name is Duke.â€ With a flourish, the man motioned towards the woman. â€œAnd this is Astra.â€

Duke and Astra. Only two of them? When Julian had told her they were going to meet some people, sheâ€™d imagined more than two. But they had powers. Maybe they only needed two of them to help.

â€œGhost,â€ Lauren said and Duke nodded, a smile winding its way across his face again. She glanced at Julian, wondering what his smile would look like. He still showed no sign of removing his coat.

â€œThe organisation that we work for is called Ghost. It formed around a century ago to deal with maintaining a balance between the human and the demon worlds. Ghost is made up of small teams of five, each with their own mission. Normally that mission is to eradicate any species thought to threaten human existence or thought to be in danger of revealing the existence of demons.â€

â€œLike some sort of paranormal investigation company,â€ Lauren said and the man laughed.

â€œNot quite, but close enough. I have led several missions with Ghost. Demons, portals, magic, we deal with anything and almost everything. My teamâ€™s current mission is to assist Julian in finding you.â€

â€œBut that mission seems to have concluded.â€ Astra leaned back against the patch of cream wall between the two crammed bookcases, distant from all of them.

Astra crossed her arms, pushing her breasts up even higher. Lauren snuck a glance down at her own meagre offering. Her gaze shifted to Julian and she was relieved when she found him looking at her, not at Astra. She wondered why either man was paying attention to her when a goddess was in the same room. Most men she knew would have been fawning over Astra by now.

â€œSo are we included on the second part or not?â€ Dukeâ€™s smile held.

â€œIt is up to Lauren.â€ Julian moved away and a cold feeling stole through her.

She moved closer to him again. Astra smiled across the room at her. There was a hint of malice to it.

Lauren realised that everyone was looking at her. She stared at the intricate Chinese rug that covered most of the floor in the office, her gaze following the flowing forms of dragons and arched bridges and pretty buildings. The room was silent and filled with an air of expectation. If they thought she was going to announce her decision right now, they had another thing coming. She wasnâ€™t going to decide either way until she had all the facts. She knew nothing about her so-called â€˜awakeningâ€™ or these people. At least she could remedy that. She looked up at Duke.

â€œJulian says youâ€™re both special, like me. You have powers.â€

Duke grinned and leaned back, raking his gaze over her. â€œYou are definitely special.â€

â€œWe have different abilities to yours.â€ Astra came away from the wall to stand near to Julian. She turned her dark eyes on him, her smile becoming seductive. â€œYours are like Julianâ€™s.â€

Julian looked at Astra. Jealousy hissed in Laurenâ€™s mind. In a competition of looks, Astra would win hands down, but Lauren wasnâ€™t about to just throw in the towel.

When Julianâ€™s gaze moved back to her, Lauren turned her attention to Duke. Determined to ignore Astraâ€™s attempts to make her jealous, she gave Duke her best smile.

â€œShow me what youâ€™ve got,â€ she said and couldnâ€™t quite believe those words had left her lips. For a brief moment, sheâ€™d considered adding â€˜big boyâ€™ to the end of her sentence and was glad that she hadnâ€™t. Things were crazy enough without her falling into a flirt-off with a woman that had twice her talents and then some, for a man who she wasnâ€™t even sure of her feelings for.

In the blink of an eye, Duke had disappeared and then reappeared right by her elbow. He hadnâ€™t moved like the werewolves and Julian, quicker than her eyes could keep up with. He had literally disappeared. Teleported. He raised his hand, showing her that it was empty save the tattoos that marked it, and then produced a red translucent ball of something that morphed into the shape of a heart.

Not a cartoon heart.

A human one that was beating rapidly.

Laurenâ€™s eyes widened. It matched her heartbeat.

That wasnâ€™t some cheap parlour trick magic.

Her stomach turned and she backed away from Duke, bumping into something. Turning, she found herself staring up at Julian. His pale blue eyes were fixed on Duke in a scowl but dropped to her in a heartbeat. When had he moved so close to her? Astra laughed but there was only anger in her eyes.

Lauren looked back at Duke. The heart was gone and he was toying with something. A gun. It looked like an old six-shooter, like the large collection in the glass cabinet on the wall to her left, but there were more rounds in the chamber than that. Sheâ€™d never seen such an elaborate gun before. The metal was golden and intricately carved with roses, and the grip was mahogany.

â€œA wizard?â€ Lauren said, unsure whether it was the right word to use.

â€œOf sorts.â€ Duke spun the chamber of the gun. â€œAlthough I rarely use magic to fight with nowadays. I rely more on man-made weaponry, albeit with an edge.â€

He opened the chamber, removed a bullet and tossed it over to her. Lauren caught and stared at it. Strange symbols similar to those on the markers covered the silver casing. She looked at Duke for an answer to her silent question.

â€œIt is an incantation. It will kill any demon that it penetrates.â€

â€œNot all demons,â€ Astra said and Laurenâ€™s attention was immediately with her. â€œSome of us are immune, arenâ€™t we, Julian?â€

Lauren frowned at her and then Julian. â€œA demon?â€

He shook his head. â€œAstra is the only demon in this room.â€

Astra laughed, high and tinkling, her hand delicately covering her mouth. When she opened her eyes again, they were glowing bright blue, flickering as though they had turned to flame.

â€œI am the only demon, vampire?â€

Vampire? Laurenâ€™s gaze shot back to Julian.

Julianâ€™s eyes flashed silver. â€œI am no vampire!â€

â€œYou drink blood to liveâ€¦ a vampire drinks blood to live. Tell me the difference. We are not so different.â€ Astraâ€™s eyes narrowed.

â€œAstra!â€ Duke stepped between them. Lauren moved behind Julian. His hand was on his sword. â€œStand down. Julian is not a vampire or a demon, and neither are you, not for a long time.â€

Astra turned away and walked to the last of the three tall arched windows. When she reached it, she looked back at Lauren, her eyes still vivid blue, as bright as a summerâ€™s sky at noon.

â€œI apologise, Julianâ€¦ but do not expect me to pander to your little girlâ€™s desire to know of my â€˜powerâ€™.â€

Lauren stood her ground, unflinching under Astraâ€™s eerie stare. Whatever power the woman had, it was strong and Lauren got the feeling that it was dangerous.

â€œSheâ€™s been grouchy all day. If she was mortal, I would say it was her special time.â€ Duke shrugged and Astra turned her back on them. Lauren watched her for a few seconds more and then shook off her bad feeling and faced the two men.

Her eyes sought Julianâ€™s. They were pale blue again, unreadable. Any emotion he was feeling was well-masked, hidden beneath layers of ice that made her feel cold. Heâ€™d shut her out. Until now, she hadnâ€™t even realised that heâ€™d let her in but she felt the loss keenly. Whatever barrier heâ€™d brought up, she wanted to break it down. She wanted back in.

â€œIs she right about you?â€ Laurenâ€™s voice quivered the tiniest amount. She clenched her fists to steel her nerves and settle them. So what if he drank blood? She was growing accustomed to people being different to her.

Or not so different. If she chose to awaken, she would become like Julian. When Julian had shown her the scars on his forearm, she had reacted to the sight of them. The thought of taking his blood had frightened her, but sheâ€™d felt a compulsion to bite him, to taste the strength in his veins. The desire had been almost irresistible, and completely confusing. Now, it made a hideous kind of sense. In the same way that she instinctively remembered Julian, sheâ€™d remembered her need to feed.

â€œNormal sustenance is no longer possible for me, just as it was never possible for you. It was your blood which brought me over and I have inherited my abilities from youâ€”my immortality, my speed and strength, and my need for blood,â€ he said.

A very eloquent if unnerving reply. She didnâ€™t like the way he spoke about her and Illia as though they were the same, and she didnâ€™t like the fact that she was beginning to think that way too.

â€œI am not like a normal vampire.â€

Her eyebrows rose. â€œBut you drink blood.â€

And she would too when she awakened.

Julian nodded. Duke glanced towards Astra. Lauren looked there too.

â€œWhat does she drink?â€ Lauren uncurled her fingers and then clenched her fists again. Her insides trembled. She was glad that Astra remained facing away from them. If Astra had been looking her way, Lauren would have lost her nerve. â€œShe said that you werenâ€™t so different, Julianâ€¦ if you drink bloodâ€¦ is she a vampâ€”â€

â€œDare call me that filthy word and I willâ€”â€ Astra stopped mid-stride as Julian drew his sword and stepped into her path.

Laurenâ€™s heart jumped. She hadnâ€™t realised that calling someone a vampire would cause so much trouble.

â€œWhat are you then?â€ Lauren found her bravery now that Julian was between them and showed no sign of backing down.

â€œWe have no name.â€ Astra settled back onto her heels. â€œBut I am not a vampire. I do not feed on blood.â€ Her eyes fixed on Laurenâ€™s, sending a chill through her. â€œI need souls to survive.â€

Lauren stepped back, her hand coming up to her chest.

Duke laughed. It did nothing to ease the tension in the room.

â€œIt has been a long time since Astra has devoured a human soul. She has acquired a taste for demon souls,â€ he said but the knowledge that Astra had changed her tastes didnâ€™t comfort Lauren in the slightest. Astra had implied that she wasnâ€™t the only one of her kind out there.

Lauren added soul-eating demons to her list of things to avoid.

â€œJulian?â€ She ventured a step towards him.

He turned, sheathing his sword at the same time. His eyes were still cold. Even when provoked into defending her, heâ€™d been emotionless.

Seeing that he wasnâ€™t going to ask her what was wrong this time, she gave a brief small smile and then said, â€œHow do I regain my powers? You never really told me what happens during my awakening.â€

A flicker of hesitation crossed his eyes and then disappeared as though heâ€™d erased it.

â€œLycaon was already spreading his curse to others by the time I fell. You were confident that you could do something similar by passing your blood to me. As I lay dying, you fed me your blood and asked Zeus to save me. He did because I carried your blood and promised to protect you. He charged me with finding you and reawakening your power each time you are reincarnated.â€

Heâ€™d told her as much already, although heâ€™d been vaguer about it. She nodded, wanting him to continue so she could finally learn more about what was happening to her.

â€œDuring the awakening, I will give your blood back to you, and bring you over,â€ he said.

â€œBring me over?â€ Several pieces fell into place in her head and she didnâ€™t like the connotations one bit. Julian had mentioned something about Zeus bringing him over. Heâ€™d also mentioned that heâ€™d died in order to meet Zeus. â€œAs in, die?â€

â€œYou will die either way, so whatâ€™s the difference? One way youâ€™ll come back.â€ Dukeâ€™s bright air tailed off when she turned and stared at him.

Her mind raced.

â€œWaitâ€¦ Iâ€™m going to die?â€ She didnâ€™t know who to look to for an answer. Julian danced around his answers and Duke said things straightâ€”both of them knew what was going on when she didnâ€™t.

Duke winced and looked at Julian. â€œI thought you would have told her.â€

Julianâ€™s eyes were still cold and empty, even when he took hold of her hand.

The sound of raucous laughter filled the silence and a moment later the door burst open.

A young dark haired woman stood on the other side, grinning over her shoulder at something behind her. She almost tripped over her feet as she walked in and two young men followed. The two men were identical in every way, right down to their alternative clothes, broad builds and dark spiked hair that was tinted red at the tips. Their smiles fell off their faces when they noticed her. The girl smiled again in her direction and then at Duke.

â€œYou called?â€ she said, her voice light in the heavy atmosphere of the room.

Duke nodded. â€œI wanted to introduce you all to Lauren. Julian found her.â€

There was a babble of incoherent noise as they all spoke at once and Lauren just smiled. She was sure they must have introduced themselves at some point in the mess of voices but she hadnâ€™t caught any of their names.

â€œLauren is tired. We should retire. It has been a long day.â€ Julianâ€™s hand tightened against hers.

She looked up at him, thought about it and realised that she was tired.

Had Julian sensed it in her?

Uncomfortable with the feeling that he was controlling her, she said, â€œIâ€™m fine, really.â€

Julian gave her a knowing look.

â€œWe were about to retire ourselves,â€ Duke said and there was a murmur of agreement from the others. Lauren looked at them all in turn and then at the windows. The sky was lightening fast now.

â€œItâ€™s almost dawn.â€ It seemed strange that they had all been awake during the night. Horror movie clichÃ©s came to her in droves. She glanced at Julian, wanting to ask whether he was going to be dead to the world when the sun rose, just like a vampire.

Pale skin, blood drinking, immortality, and superior abilities. They were all the hallmarks of a vampire. Only why would he react so violently to that word if he were one?

â€œWe work at night,â€ Duke said with a broad disarming smile. Another murmur from the group.

â€œWe have arranged rooms close together for you.â€ Astraâ€™s smile was as wide and charming as Dukeâ€™s. It reminded Lauren of a snake, giving her the feeling that any moment now Astra would strike and suck the soul from her body. â€œI can take you to them.â€

â€œNot necessary. I will take care of Lauren.â€ Julianâ€™s hand was firm against Laurenâ€™s lower back, pressed just below her backpack. Close enough to her bottom that she blushed.

â€œFine. Next floor down. Your room is the second door on the right. Hers is two doors further down on the left, at the end of the corridor.â€ Astra turned to face her. â€œSweet dreams, princess.â€

Julian led Lauren towards the door. Lauren looked back at the five Ghosts. They all stared at her so closely that she wondered what they found interesting and whether they were going to talk about her when she was gone from the room.

â€œâ€˜Night,â€ she said with a feeble wave and then Julian had escorted her out of the room and they were walking down the pale corridor.

Her gaze shifted to him. Was he going to explain about the awakening and the fact that she was going to die? It was definitely the catch that sheâ€™d felt. No wonder he hadnâ€™t wanted to tell her. If the younger Ghosts hadnâ€™t come bursting in and distracted her, she would have given him a piece of her mind. Better late than never. She wasnâ€™t about to leave anything up to chance now. If she didnâ€™t mention it, he might not either.

â€œSo Iâ€™m going to die?â€ Her tone was as breezy as she could make it, as though she was talking about the weather or something inconsequential. â€œOn my birthday Iâ€™ll die if I donâ€™t go through with the awakening.â€

Julian led her down the stairs they had passed on their way to Dukeâ€™s office. When they reached the bottom, his hand left her back. He adjusted his coat. He was thinking of what to say.

â€œJust say yes if Iâ€™ll die.â€

â€œYes,â€ he said. Never had that word sounded so menacing and cold.

â€œWill I die if I go through with it?â€

She was too damn young to die. It wasnâ€™t possible that sheâ€™d found her purpose in life, her reason for being on Earth, and now she was going to die. It wasnâ€™t going to happen.

â€œDuke is correct. It is part of Illiaâ€™s curse. You will die either way, but one way you will come back.â€

â€œAnd be like youâ€¦ a vampire?â€

He turned on her, his eyes dark and full of deadly intent. Lauren backed away and bumped into the cream wall. She raised her hands and cringed.

â€œWhat are you then? You drink bloodâ€¦ live foreverâ€¦ clearly eternal youth is on your sideâ€¦ and then thereâ€™s those amazing abilities of yours.â€

â€œI am not a vampire.â€ That same black tone of voice heâ€™d used on Astra. Lauren made a mental note not to call him a vampire again. â€œVampires are filth.â€

She noted that too. Vampires, werewolves and soul-eating demonsâ€”three species she was definitely going to avoid as much as possible.

â€œThen what are you?â€ Lauren risked a step towards him, relieved when his expression altered and all sign of his anger melted away. â€œTell me so I can understand. Thereâ€™s so much I still canâ€™t get straight in my head. Please?â€

When his look softened, concern touching his pale eyes, her heart warmed and she took another step forwards, wanting to be closer to him. Her fingers itched with the temptation to reach up and pull the funnel neck of his coat down so she could see his face. She wanted to see if he was as handsome as she was picturing. She needed to see him.

â€œYours,â€ he whispered and her heart leapt. A wave of warm tingles spread through her. He looked away from her and then back again. All affection was gone from his eyes. His tone was empty. â€œYour Arcadian. Your protector.â€

He moved past her, leaving her rooted to the spot and staring at his back. He still hadnâ€™t answered her question. In fact, heâ€™d only left her more confused. He flitted between cold and warm so rapidly that she couldnâ€™t keep up.

â€œAnd the awakening? Do I really have a choice?â€

â€œYes,â€ he said, still walking away from her.

He stopped in front of a dark door just past a junction in the corridor and turned to face her.

â€œHave I ever said no?â€

A shake of his head. He opened the door.

None of Illiaâ€™s previous reincarnations had said no. She could understand that. When faced with death or the chance to live, she would have to choose living. If she went through with the awakening, she would change, become different like Julian. She wasnâ€™t sure if it would be such a bad thing. Her eyes met his and she walked towards him. Would it be wrong to do it purely to remain alive and with him?

She shook her head to clear it of such ridiculous thoughts. Living was reason enough. Death didnâ€™t bear thinking about.

Lauren walked into the room and looked around. It was large and the pale blue walls made it appear cold but the furniture looked comfortable. A dark wood double bed stood to her right against the same wall as the door, flanked by two small cupboards. Three tall rectangular windows lined the wall opposite her. Drawn white muslin curtains blocked out the world, framed by open long Wedgewood blue ones. She walked to the window nearest her and pulled the muslin curtains open a crack. The office building opposite was dark. She looked up. The sky was pale blue now, the scattered clouds touched with pink and gold. Turning back into the room, she let the curtain fall closed and looked to her left, past the bed. There was a white armchair and wooden side table in the corner against the same wall as the windows, and another door on the adjoining wall to her left. It was open, revealing a white tiled bathroom.

Lauren sat down on the bed and removed her backpack, dumping it down on the blue bedspread.

â€œIs something the matter?â€ Julian frowned.

â€œIâ€™m not sure,â€ she whispered and dropped her gaze to her feet. One moment she wanted to go along with it all and the next she thought she was crazy and wanted to go home. Her mind was going in so many directions that she feared it was going to fall apart completely. The only thing that felt solid and real right now, that felt safe, was Julian.

â€œWould you like me to stay?â€ he said and her eyes widened at the thought. â€œI can stay if it will make you feel better.â€

Lauren stared at Julian. He stood by the door, tall and straight, his eyes fixed on her. There was such fire in them, a promise of passion that she knew she had to be imagining. He hadnâ€™t really given her a reason to believe that he found her attractive, but right now, she could easily fool herself into thinking that he did.

With that hunger shining in his eyes, she didnâ€™t doubt that he could make her feel better, better than any of her lousy ex-boyfriends ever did. And while some part of her said to reach out and take what she wanted, to live life to the full just as her friends did and lose herself in the moment, the greater part said that it wasnâ€™t going to happen. Sheâ€™d learnt from experience that men like Julian, strong, undoubtedly handsome and sexy, were so far out of her league that they were in another galaxy.

She lowered her eyes again, tracing the grain of the wooden floor, and shook her head, letting the moment slip through her fingers as she had done a million times in her life. She might have told her friends she was going to seize the day from now on but she wasnâ€™t quite ready to after all. â€œI need some time alone.â€

It wasnâ€™t a lie. She needed a little space in order to gain perspective. With Julian around, it was so easy to go along with things.

â€œMy room is just down the hall should you need me,â€ he said in a low voice that made her want to look at him again. â€œGoodnight, Lauren.â€

â€œâ€˜Night,â€ she whispered. The door closed and she continued to stare at the floor, taking it all in.

Unzipping her backpack, she removed the picture of her parents with her in the park. Werewolves had killed them. Because of her. Whoever Lycaon was, he had a sadistic streak. Her fists clenched. She would make him pay for their deaths. But how?

She remembered the way Julian fought, his incredible abilities, and what heâ€™d told her about her destiny and duty.

The thought of dying filled her with cold dread but the choice she had to make was easy when she thought about the alternative and what Julian had said.

She was born to die and rise again to fight the man who had killed her parents.

She just didnâ€™t think that she was strong enough to go through with it.

Posted in Love Immortal, paranormal romance, Teaseday, vampire romance | Comments Off

Teaseday – Seventh Circle – vampire romance book

Posted on 19th October 2011 by Felicity Heaton

It’s chilly today. There’s a frost on the ground and the air is so cold I can see my breath when I’m outside. Autumn has just announced itself. We’re a week closer to Halloween, so my vampire mood is increasing, especially since the release of Heart of Darkness is this weekend!

I’m contuining with the Vampires Realm series theme and posting a chapter from my vampire romance book Seventh Circle today for my Teaseday.

My Vampires Realm series is full of stories of forbidden love, not only between vampires and werewolves but also between the different vampire bloodlines and humans too, even vampire hunters! If you like vampires that drink from the vein, are kick arse, and dark and mysterious, then this series is definitely for you!

Seventh Circle
F E Heaton
Born with powers similar to a vampireâ€™s, Lilith has spent her life hunting demons for Section Seven. On the same night as she watches a vampire kill her best friend, she is faced with her worst nightmareâ€”a client who is not only attractive but a vampire.

Lincoln is a powerful pureblood with a problem. Heâ€™s caught up in a prophecy and has little time left to unravel the mystery of the contract between his lord and the Devil before he dies. When witches foretell that a vampire hunter will save his life, heâ€™s prepared to work with his most hated enemy, but he isnâ€™t prepared for the forbidden desire he feels when he meets her.

Their mutual attraction becomes difficult to deny as they work together but when Lincoln reveals the truth about her powers, will Lilith find the strength to embrace a side of herself that she wished didnâ€™t exist? And when they discover Lilithâ€™s role in the prophecy, how far will Lincoln go to save her?

Dark, sensual and fast-paced, Seventh Circle is a story of forbidden love so strong that it will save the world.

ebook price: $2.99
paperback price: $9.99
genre: paranormal vampire romance
length: 106112 words
rating: sultry
released: November 2008
Book 7 in the Vampires Realm series

Available in e-book from:
Author’s website: http://www.felicityheaton.com/ebooks.php?title=Seventh%20Circle
Amazon Kindle: http://www.amazon.com/dp/B0035LDO68/
Amazon Kindle Germany: http://www.amazon.de/dp/B0035LDO68/
Amazon Kindle UK: http://www.amazon.co.uk/dp/B0035LDO68/
Barnes and Noble: http://search.barnesandnoble.com/Seventh-Circle/Felicity-Heaton/e/2940000800973/
Kobo Books: http://www.kobobooks.com/ebook/Seventh-Circle/mix-ZGYNJZH8-kmDBm5GV0YlJg/page1.html
Smashwords: http://www.smashwords.com/books/view/7734
Sony Reader Store: http://ebookstore.sony.com/ebook/f-e-heaton/seventh-circle/_/R-400000000000000249275

Available in paperback from:
Amazon.co.uk: http://www.amazon.co.uk/dp/1460978579/
Amazon.com: http://www.amazon.com/dp/1460978579/
Barnes and Noble: http://www.barnesandnoble.com/w/seventh-circle-f-e-heaton/1021362622

EXCERPT

Blood.

No matter where she looked, she couldn’t escape it. It spotted his face and arched over his jaw from the wound on his throat. It seeped into his damp blond hair, darkening the whole side of his head. Turning away, she swallowed her desire to be sick and stared at the ground. Crimson coated the grass until it glistened under the harsh sodium streetlight on the cemetery path. The acrid smell thickened the air, filled her nostrils and choked her lungs. Cold stole through her, rising up from her knees where they pressed into the wet dirt close to his body, chilling her as it swept towards her soul.

“Jackson!” Lilith’s frantic patting of his cheek did nothing to rouse him. Her rough, erratic breathing and the thundering beat of her heart filled her ears as she stared down at him. Panic consumed her. “Jackson, don’t you die on me, Jackson.”

His eyes opened, igniting a spark of hope inside her. The darkness of despair extinguished it when they closed lazily again a second later.

She was losing him.

“Jackson.” She patted his cheek again, faster this time, a constant drumming that matched her pulse. Her other hand pressed the wad of material harder against the wound. Sticky, warm blood coated her fingers, sickening her. “Don’t give up. I won’t lose you!”

He convulsed and his face contorted into a look of sheer agony. A thin line of darkest red crept from the corner of his lips. She held him down, restraining him in the hope of stopping him from killing himself, and her eyes widened as the crimson trail eased down towards his ear.

Everything became still.

Her ears rang with it, with the numb and icy cold filling her, sending sweeps of shivers over her skin as what was happening finally sunk in.

This was no way to feel, so drained of life and welcoming death with open arms, watching for it. Not when the creature that had done this was still nearby.

Waiting.

She focused again, searching for it while applying more pressure to the wound on Jackson’s throat. Was it to stem the flow of blood, or the flow of hope as it left her?

There was no way she could save him.

He was pale now, barely breathing. Tears blurred her eyes, hot against her cold face. Not five minutes ago, he’d been so full of life, full of jokes that had always annoyed her for some reason. Funny how it could disappear so quickly. You thought you were strong, indestructible. In reality you were as fragile as a butterfly when faced with one of themâ€“one of the pure bloodlines.

A low laugh sent a shudder through her.

She knew what it found so amusing.

Jackson was dead.

She closed her eyes, touched his cheek as a goodbye and prayed that he had found a better place on the other side.

Picking herself up, she shut down the side of her that wanted to throw itself over his body and cry her heart out for him, and for her own loss. She had a job to do. He’d understand. It had been his job too.

She stood and stared down at him. The world seemed strangely blue and quiet. Cold. He looked peaceful lying there on the grass, darkness shrouding his body while the streetlight crowned his head in golden light.

Almost angelic.

Her gaze fell to her hands as she brought them out in front of her, palms facing the heavens. She frowned at the dark liquid coating them and then at the torn sleeve of her shirt. So much blood but she felt nothing as she stared at it. This was no time for mourning. She could do that later. Right now, she had business to attend to.

She wiped her hands on her black combat trousers and then retrieved her wooden stake from the grass.

A breeze.

A sigh.

The world blurred as she turned on a pinpoint and blocked the vampire’s attack.

It grinned at her, teeth sharp and eyes bright, challenging her to make a move. She knew what it wanted. It wanted her to run, or scream, or at least give it a good fight before it finally killed her. It was playing with her.

Well, she wasn’t about to play with it.

This man, this thing, was going to die for what it had done to Jackson.

It turned and the streetlights caught its eyes, making them flash like mother of pearl. She gave no quarter, turning with it and keeping their arms locked. Its weight pressed against her and she pushed back, her eyes never leaving its. It could throw her if it wanted to. It was far stronger than she was.

That smile it wore wasn’t fading. It was beginning to unnerve her. It curved the vampire’s face, cutting across it in a sinful line that exposed the points of its bloodied teeth. Jackson hadn’t stood a chance.

She didn’t stand a chance.

Neither of them had ever fought one of the pure bloods. Those that did rarely survived to tell the tale. She’d never heard of anyone managing to kill one.

Before she could blink, it had disappeared and she stumbled forwards from the release of pressure against her. She turned sharply in all directions, panic guiding her movements, and then forced herself to slow down. Her senses reached outwards into the inky night, desperate to locate the vampire so it couldn’t attack without her noticing.

The early spring breeze tousled her honey hair, sending a shiver dancing down her spine as its cold fingers worked their way under the hem of her black shirt and into her collar. When she faced Jackson, she sniffed back her tears and tried not to look at him. This was no time to lose focus, or she’d be joining him in the afterlife.

Something shifted.

She tensed and then relaxed when it didn’t move again.

The graveyard was quiet. Too quiet.

It could only mean one thing. The vampire was stalking her. It had slipped into the shadows to watch her. She could feel its eyes on her, touching her, studying her. It was looking for a weak spot, a momentary drop in her defences when it could slip in and kill her with a single move. Her heart thumped hard against her breastbone at that thought and she steadied her breathing in an attempt to slow it down. Panic made her hands shake and her body threatened to join them.

Her fingers flexed around the stake several times. It did nothing to soothe her nerves as she’d hoped. If she didn’t calm down and regain her focus, she didn’t stand a chance. The vampire would be able to sense her fear. It would drive it on. It would make it hungrier for her blood. She had to do all she could to maintain control and a steady heartbeat. Only then would she have the slightest chance of killing before she was killed.

Doubts crept in at the corners of her mind, sending the edges of her thoughts black and sinister. She pushed them away, not wanting the distraction that the memory of seeing Jackson killed was bringing, and not wanting to lose her concentration by imagining herself suffering a similar fate.

No one, not a human and definitely not a vampire, was going to bite her neck.

Ever.

She frowned into the distance where the darkness swallowed the trees and nothing but the night reigned. She had nothing to fear. An elite hunter had no fear.

Her training had been the same as Jackson’s and the rest of her company, except she’d always excelled where they had merely passed. She’d taken the rank of elite hunter three years earlier than expected. She was one of only a handful to hold that title.

She could defeat this vampire.

She would win.

She had a gift.

Her eyes rolled closed and she released her breath, emptying herself. Her hands came up in front of her, close to her chest, her stake held steady in her right and her left joining it. Her heart rate slowed to a steady beat and her blood rushed through her veins. There was such strength in it if only she’d be brave enough to embrace it.

Her soul surrendered to the call of the night.

The world blackened.

She didn’t need to see the change to know it happened. Everything felt different. The air tasted metallic, like blood. The rising of her instincts made her senses razor-sharp and sent painful throbs down her spine from her aching head.

She could only hold this for seconds or she’d fall into the darkness she could feel encroaching at the corners of her soul.

A few seconds would be enough.

A flicker of movement and she could see the world through her closed eyes. Silvery threads outlined everything, scribbled onto the darkness like rough chalk drawings on a blackboard. She saw the trees sway in the breeze. She saw Jackson. She saw death.

Her eyes shot open and she gasped at air to save herself from drowning in the shadows. It filled her lungs, burned them and her blood. She ran regardless.

She ran straight at the vampire.

One hand on top of the stone sarcophagus was enough to vault her over it and she landed with precise grace on the other side, right beside her quarry.

Her hand came down in a blurred arc, so fast that the vampire couldn’t fully evade her attack. She missed the heart as the vampire dived to the side. Her stake caught its shoulder, scraped hard against bone. The vampire growled and then roared at her. She flipped backwards before it could attack and gave herself over to the fight, letting her instincts guide her as her senses locked onto the vampire. She could almost see its movements before it made them, a ghost of it shone in her eyes.

Except time was running out.

The lingering effect of her gift would soon disappear, leaving her to fight without these sharpened senses.

She would be vulnerable.

She would be weak from calling on her gift.

That was the price.

She cart-wheeled away, still gripping the stake. The moment the vampire closed in, she stopped and swept her leg around in a fast, hard kick, grunting with effort. The vampire laughed and slid to the side, away from danger. Before she could put her foot down and attack again, it had hit her in the chest with a kick of its own, sending her flying backwards into a tombstone.

Her breath left her on impact, a red hot bar across her back marking where she’d hit the heavy stone. She needed a moment to recover, only she didn’t have one. The vampire was on her before she could blink and she was barely able to block it. She crossed her arms against its chest, holding it off her.

It snarled and snapped its jaw.

With each gnash of its teeth and each millimetre closer it got to her, her heart accelerated, until it was racing so fast she had trouble breathing. Adrenaline mixed with the panic coiled deep inside her. For the first time in her life, she could taste death, could see it coming, and it had red eyes and sharp teeth, and a mane of black tousled hair. It bore down on her, its body pressed hard against hers, trapping her between it and the headstone.

She clutched the stake, hands trembling as she weakened.

The vampire growled.

There was no chance of escape, but blind panic and a will to live forced her to try.

She pushed with all her might, shoving her left hand against the flat end of the stake as she drove it forwards.

The vampire sprung backwards the moment the stake made contact with its shoulder. She didn’t give it a chance to escape. She threw herself at it in a last ditch attempt to be the victor in this deadly dance.

She tumbled to the floor with it, wrestling for control. The world blurred and sped by. The pain of the vampire’s blows barely registered in her tired body as she struggled to keep it away from her neck and get her stake against its chest. The noise was deafeningâ€“the rush of her breathing, the snarls of the vampire, and the harsh pounding of her heart.

Then silence.

She was on top.

Her stake plunged deep into its chest.

Her gaze locked with his.

It was a man now in her eyes.

He was breathing, fast gasping breaths. His eyes were wide, wild, as he clawed at his chest and the wooden shaft protruding from it.

She pulled the stake out and stood, looking down on him, watching him die. Her body shook from the adrenaline and the exertion. Her fingers loosened and the stake fell to the grass with a soft thud. Exhaustion surrendered to shock. She couldn’t believe it. She’d killed it. She’d killed a pure blood.

His eyes rolled closed and then he began to disintegrate as time raced to catch up with him. Before a minute had passed, he was nothing more than ashes scattering in the breeze.

She swept a hand over her sandy blonde hair and sighed.

It was over.

No, it had only just begun.

She’d never heard of a vampire of the pure bloodlines travelling into this area. There had been reports of hunters meeting them in London, but never out here, so far from the capital. She’d only ever fought vampires from the weaker bloodlines.

What had he been doing out here?

She remembered the flash of his red eyes. A Vehemens? The violent. The last she’d heard, they rarely ventured outside Scandinavia. All the stories she’d heard had been of hunters encountering vampires from the other bloodlinesâ€“the Caelestis, Aurorea, and even sometimes Venia or Validus. Never the Vehemens, Tenebrae or Nocens.

So what had brought him here?

She frowned at the patch of dust that represented him now. Maybe she should’ve asked him. Her superiors weren’t going to be pleased with her. A pure blood in her area and she killed it without any attempt to extract information.

A shiver bolted up her spine and she rubbed her bare arm.

The report was going to be hell to write.

What was worse, a voice at the back of her mind was screaming that what she’d done tonight was going to have repercussions. The pure bloods didn’t take lightly to hunters killing their kind.

Leaning over, she picked up her stake and pocketed it. Her dark eyes scanned the cemetery, searching the shadows for any sign of danger. The moon broke free of the clouds, illuminating even the darkest corner and chasing the shadows away into the trees. Nothing came to her. It was silent and empty. It filled her with cold and dread.

Her gaze fell to Jackson’s body. The pain she’d been stifling all this time broke to the surface.

She would have to file a full report on his death too. How could she write what she’d seen? Jackson hadn’t stood a chance. The vampire had torn his throat open before she’d even sensed its approach. She’d had no chance of saving him, not even with her gift.

Her heart ached to see him lying on the grass, motionless and cold. It could have easily been her in his place. Would he have managed to kill the vampire? It didn’t bear thinking about. She had survived. Jackson was dead.

She walked towards him and her knees buckled when she reached his side. Their impact with the dirt sent pain shooting up her spine and jolted the tears from her eyes. They dashed down her cheeks, turning into freezing streaks of ice as the wind blew against them.

She let them come, no longer able to hold back the surging tide of her emotions and needing to get them out of her before she returned to the compound. She couldn’t let the others see her like this. Reaching into her pocket, she pressed the alarm button on her phone. It would trigger the GPS back at base and send them to her. She had fifteen minutes to gain control of herself. She would need every second.

Her hand found Jackson’s and she held it, not caring how cold it felt in hers, or the way it made her feel as though she was touching death itself.

The sobs started out slow but built until she was gasping at air, her throat tight and chest aching as she stared down at Jackson’s peaceful face.

She couldn’t let them think she was weak.

She was the strongest they had.

Jackson would tell her that if he was still alive. He’d always told her that. He’d always been there for her, getting her out of scrapes and protecting her.

She’d failed to protect him.

Leaning forwards, she rested her head against his still chest and closed her eyes. Silence engulfed her as she lay with him, her mind empty. The night called her. She always felt this way after she’d used her giftâ€“close to the darkness, at one with the shadows. She didn’t understand the words drifting around her head or the tugging sensation in the depths of her heart. She felt the meaning though. It wanted her.

She curled up.

It couldn’t have her.

She was a hunter.

The elite.

She killed those that heard the call of the night.

She killed any vampire she came across.

Nothing was going to change that.

* * * *

Lilith trudged into the mansion house, desperate for the solitude of her quarters. The team had arrived to find her standing beside Jackson’s body, all sign of her emotions wiped from her face. She had given them instruction to take him back to the compound and had then told them that she would walk back. The thought of travelling with Jackson’s body in the back of the van had been unbearable. The night had offered her so much comfort, the darkness hiding her feelings from the world, and she’d taken it all. The walk back had been long and had given her time to regain true control of herself.

Only now, she was walking the halls where they’d once walked. It was a painful reminder that only one of them had returned, while the other lay in the morgue below her feet.

No one ever spoke of the morgue.

It was as though by never mentioning it, they could make it go away, make all the deaths of their friends disappear.

“What happened?” A sharp voice snapped her out of her thoughts and she found she was standing in the entrance hall staring down at the floor, seeing straight through it to the cold grey morgue below.

She raised her head, looked Daniel in the eye, and then turned away. Her throat was too tight to speak. If she tried, she would lose what little control she’d regained and would start to cry again. She’d never lost a friend on routine patrol before. She hadn’t lost anyone since her sister.

He caught her arm before she could pass him, stopping her dead. She knew better than to break free of his grasp. As her superior, he commanded her respect. Her hands came up in front of her and she stared at her palms, at the dried and cracked blood that still coated them. Nausea swept through her, cramping her stomach, clenching her heart. Numbness followed it, stealing away the sickness until she felt nothing. It was so hard to breathe. Everything was so hard. She was too weak from the fight and the drain of controlling her emotions.

“Jackson. Son of a bitch got Jackson,” she said, voice steady and showing no trace of the turmoil inside of her. “We didn’t hear it coming. I didn’t feel it.”

She stared into Daniel’s green eyes. The amount of concern in them surprised her. He gave a sympathetic smile, causing crow’s feet to surround his eyes. When had he become so old? He seemed so grey now when before he’d always been the young man she’d first known when she had been a child. She looked around the hall, wanting to avoid his questioning gaze. Everything seemed so grey and different.

“It was one of them, a Vehemens,” she said. “What in God’s name is one of them doing around here?”

Daniel didn’t look at all shocked by her news. His expression remained unchanged and he removed his hand from her arm only to place it lightly on her shoulder. She frowned at the strange sensation that filled herâ€“something was wrong.

“Did you kill it?” he said.

“Of course.” She went to move past him again. His hand tensed, gripping her shoulder and stopping her. She sighed. “Daniel, I really need a shower and bed. Can’t the debrief wait until morning?”

“It can, I wouldn’t want to make you talk about what happened until you’re ready… but… I need to speak to you about a contract that just came in.”

Her right eyebrow rose. It had been a while since Section Seven had been contracted by anyone. They were rare and required only the elite hunters.

It piqued her curiosity and almost made her agree. The ache inside her overruled it though. It had become a dull throbbing and she knew that warning well enough. She was close to collapse.

“Can’t that wait too?” she said, hopeful.

“I don’t think the client will wait any longer.”

Her eyes widened. “They’re here?”

“They’ve been waiting all night for your return,” he said. “I know this isn’t the best time, but it has to be now. It can’t wait.”

Staring into his eyes, she could see that he wasn’t going to budge on this. She had to meet the client tonight. He was right. It would be rude to keep them waiting until she’d had a chance to get some rest and she didn’t want to blow her first contract.

“I’ll clean up first if that’s okay?”

He nodded. “He’s waiting in my office.”

She watched Daniel walk away. He? She wondered what kind of problem they had as she walked. Someone was in the first bathroom she came to so she carried on along the hall until she was near the cafeteria. She avoided going in. By now, news of Jackson’s death would be spreading and she didn’t have the energy to meet her client let alone field all the questions people would have. A couple of men from her company walked out of the room. She dived into the nearest bathroom, desperate to hide from them. Locking the door, she pressed her back against it and stared at herself in the mirror.

She looked like hell.

Moving closer to the mirror, she gingerly prodded the cuts and bruises on her face and arms. The vampire had done a real number on her. At the time, she hadn’t noticed. The adrenaline and shock had taken all feeling away. Washing her cuts, she stared into her brown eyes and thought about what had happened tonight. Why hadn’t she sensed it? Normally she could sense vampires before they got within twenty metres of her. Normally she was fighting weaklings.

Were those of pure blood really so superior?

Her phone buzzed in her pocket and she didn’t need to check it to know it would be Daniel. She finished making herself look more presentable and then stared at her torn shirt. She couldn’t do anything about that.

Stepping out of the bathroom, she hurried down the hall. She turned the corner that led to the commanders’ offices and bumped into a woman from her company.

Her eyes fell to the woman’s black jacket. “Can I borrow that?”

The woman hesitated for a moment, looked her over with a raised eyebrow, and then peeled the jacket off. “Important meeting, huh?”

“You could say that. Do you know about the client?”

“I heard someone arrived… walked in through the door with the section chief from London… but I didn’t see him.”

Lilith slipped the jacket on and buttoned it up.

“Thanks for the loan.” She waved idly and walked away, her thoughts now firmly fixed on her client. A man that had arrived with the section chief. Whoever he was, he had to be important to garner that kind of escort.

Reaching Daniel’s door, she rapped her knuckles against the mahogany and waited.

“Come in.” Daniel’s muffled voice drifted through it.

She paused, needing a few seconds to gather herself and push her fatigue and feelings to the back of her mind, and then opened the door and walked into the large office.

Directly in front of her was a heavy mahogany desk. Daniel was leaning against it with his arms folded and a wary look on his face. The tall curtains of the office’s two windows framed him. They were drawn. She glanced at the clock on the mantelpiece. It was nearing six in the morning. The sun would be rising by now. It was unusual for Daniel to keep the curtains drawn against the sunrise.

She sensed her client’s presence. He was sharp, focused, watching her and studying her movement across the room. There was something familiar about that.

She stopped in front of Daniel. Worry had joined the concern she’d seen in his eyes earlier. He knew she wasn’t in the mood for this meeting. If he hadn’t been so insistent, she would have continued to refuse his orders until he backed down. His words, however, had made it clear that this client was important and he wasn’t one to wait any longer for an audience with her.

Her eyes roamed the room, seeking the man out. They scanned along the packed bookshelves and their leather-bound tomes. They found him masked in the shadowed recess to the side of the bright fire. Darkness shrouded his face and obscured his figure. Her senses spoke to her.

Here was a dangerous man.

Here was one who demanded respect and commanded power.

“Lilith, our client,” Daniel said behind her.

The man stepped forwards and the warm firelight instantly chased the shadows from his face. He was young, handsome in a way that had her staring. In fact, she couldn’t take her eyes off him. He ran slender fingers over his short black hair and then around the back of his neck, drawing her attention to it. She frowned at the scars there. Bite marks? Was he a victim of a vampire attack? Her eyes darted to his mouth, absorbing the gentle bow of his lips, and then rose to meet his.

His dark eyes met hers and a shiver of recognition bolted down her spine and sent alarm bells ringing in her head.

His mouth became a thin line and tilted into a cruel smile, one that fitted him perfectly.

She’d been wrong.

He wasn’t young.

His appearance betrayed his age.

Here was one older than she’d ever met.

She stepped forwards, defiant in the face of him, and reached for her stake.

Anger rose inside her and everything faded until there was only him.

He was no victim.

He was a murderer.

“Vampire.” She sneered, assuming a fighting stance.

He growled and she felt that command deep in her soul.

She refused follow it.

To drop her stake would be to leave herself open to attack.

“Lilith!” Daniel said, his hand on her wrist making her tense. He lowered it for her.

She looked at him, stunned. Her eyes slid warily to the vampire, her anger not abating. How had he fooled her? She’d thought him nothing more than a man. She’d found him attractive. Her stomach rolled with that thought. Only the darkness in his eyes had betrayed him and lifted the veil from hers.

“Mr. Lincoln is our client.”

She glared at the vampire. He had a name.

They’d never had names before.

They’d been nameless, faceless demons for her to eradicate. Now there was one whose name she knew, and for some terrible reason, it made him seem more human.

The vampire smirked, a challenge, the same as the one in the cemetery had issued her. She amused him. He meant to provoke her.

“I am not working with it!” She flung her arm around to point at the vampire at the same time as she turned to face Daniel. There was no need to look at the vampire to know he was glaring at her. The heat of it caressed her skin until she was burning wherever it touched. She shook the feeling away, and the attraction she’d felt towards him, and focused with all her effort on Daniel. “For all we know this could be bullshit. It could want to drain me dry.”

The vampire snorted contemptuously, as though that was one thought that would never cross his mind.

“I’m being serious.”

Daniel just shifted position, folding his arms across his chest and giving her the impression that her tirade had fallen on deaf ears. The only one paying the remotest of attention was the vampire. Her eyes roamed to him against her will. A brief glance was all it took to see he was still standing in the same spot in front of the fire, staring at her with intense dark eyes. She told herself that look wasn’t making her body burn. It was anger and the fire.

A sigh drew her attention back to Daniel.

When she looked at him this time, she could see that he wasn’t happy. She frowned at the floor. The section chief from London had brought Mr. Lincoln to this place to meet with her and Daniel. Daniel had as little choice in this matter as she did. The vampire had cleverly gone over their heads and left her superior powerless, unable to get her out of this mission.

Her eyes narrowed on the vampire. He smirked and nodded. If he’d had a hat, she swore he would’ve tipped it. Her fists clenched and she wished to God that she could wipe the smug look off his face. Taking a deep breath, she clawed back a little control. He wasn’t going to provoke her. He didn’t frighten her. She was going to find out what this contract was about and then do everything she could to either get rid of him as soon as possible or get out of it.

“So what do you want, vampire?” she said, striding up to him until she was close enough to see he wasn’t breathing.

He was very old then, and he was powerful. At this range, she could feel it radiating off him, sparking her senses and making her instincts kick into gear. They told her to run. She stood her ground.

“It is a pleasure to meet you too, Lilith,” he said in a mixed accent. There was a lot of English in there and an equal amount of European too. If she had to guess, she’d say he’d spent a lot of time in Scandinavia and wasn’t a weakling.

“What bloodline are you?” Her tone was nothing short of venomous. Her eyes searched his, trying to discern whether he was going to lie to her or ignore this question too.

He straightened to his full height and looked down on her.

“Vehemens.”

That one word made her stomach drop and broke the restraints that had been holding her anger at bay. Before she could stop herself, her hand was around his throat and she was forcing him backwards towards the fire. She growled when he planted his left foot against the cast-iron fireguard behind him, effectively stopping himself from moving, and yanked her hand away from his neck.

It went straight for the stake in her pocket. She grabbed it and lunged at him with it. He caught her wrist and twisted it until she had to kneel in order to stop him from breaking her arm. His eyes darkened. Her heart sped, fear saying he was going to attack.

He surprised her by releasing her the moment her knees touched the floor. She was back on her feet before he could move, the stake still held firmly in her hand.

“Lilith!” Daniel stepped between them, his hand on her shoulder forcing her backwards. She moved farther away and pocketed her stake to show him that she wasn’t going to attack again. He went back to his desk. She glared at the vampire.

“Bastard!” She spat it at him with as much hatred as she could muster. “It was your fault wasn’t it? You’re the reason they were here!”

He looked confused, a trait she’d not witnessed in one before. She hated him even more for itâ€“for attempting to look human by reflecting such emotions. She had no doubt that he knew what she was talking about. It couldn’t be chance that two Vehemens had arrived in her city in the same night.

“I wish to discuss the contract in private with you.” His words were calm, measured.

Her attack hadn’t shaken him in the slightest. The idea of that made her feel weak and fatigue crept in again as she remembered watching Jackson die. She’d been powerless then, and she was powerless now.

“Discuss it in private all you want, but I’ll still have to write it all in my report anyway, and everyone will know. Hell, I might post on the bulletin board that you’re a vampire and sit back and watch the show.” She hoped that her words carried all the spite behind them. It was childish, but she wasn’t about to make anything easy for the vampire. If she couldn’t attack him physically, words would have to do.

“Lilith,” Daniel warned again. She sighed and ignored him.

“Why do you hate my kind so much?” the vampire said. It caught her off guard.

She stared at him, knowing that she looked like a rabbit in headlights and that she needed to recover herself before he realised that he’d rattled her.

“You seem very driven to hate us… to kill us.”

Her eyes never left his. She held his gaze even as the barrier around her heart came back up as swift as a dart, shutting out his attempt to peer into her innermost thoughts and feelings. She wished she could shut out the pain as easily. She turned away from him and walked to the door.

“Come with me,” she said and stepped outside the office.

Lincoln stared at the open door and the hall beyond. He frowned, dark thoughts stirring at the back of his mind and plaguing him. A glance at her superior told him that he wasn’t pleased with the way his subordinate was acting. She seemed headstrong and wilful. Perhaps a little too wilful.

“She openly detests my kind,” he said, getting the superior’s attention. In his world, a superior wouldn’t tolerate such behaviour from one below him. He had never tolerated it. “Are we going to have a problem?”

The man looked thoughtful. “No. Today has been hard on her. She’ll work with you as agreed in your contract with us.”

“I would like to know one thing.”

“And that is?” The man pushed away from his desk and walked around it to sit in the plush leather chair.

“Why does she hate vampires so much?” he said with another glance towards the door.

He could feel her waiting in the hall, knew that she would be able to hear him. She hadn’t answered his question, and he needed a reply. The idea that she would hate him contradicted everything he’d been told.

The man sighed and rubbed the bridge of his nose.

“Her sister was murdered by a vampire,” he said and then looked at the open door, “and tonight Jackson was killed. He was Lilith’s closest friend and he died at the hands of a Vehemens.”

Lincoln frowned. That explained her outburst. She was probably right. Not many of his bloodline lived outside the safe houses scattered across Europe or the family mansion in Oslo. The Vehemens had been here because of him.

“I think it’s understandable that she should hate your kind… you.” There was so much anger in the man’s voice, so much loathing and disgust in his words. He’d never realised the extent of the humans hatred towards his species. “No one here is going to welcome you with open arms… no matter how much you pay our superiors.”

He gave the man a dark look, matching his glare and tipping the balance in his favour. The man looked away, turning towards the closed curtains. Lincoln turned towards the door and reached out with his senses, focusing them on the woman. Lilith.

Had they been wrong about her?

Could one so fixated on destroying his kind truly save him?

Posted in Teaseday, vampire romance, vampires, Vampires Realm | Comments Off

Teaseday – Winter’s Kiss – vampire werewolf romance book

Posted on 10th October 2011 by Felicity Heaton

Autumn is well and truly here now and it’s almost Halloween, so I’m in a vampire sort of mood. Contuining with the Vampires Realm series theme, I’ll be posting a chapter from my vampire / werewolf romance book Winter’s Kiss today for my Teaseday. If you like heart-wrenching stories of forbidden love, then you’ll definitely enjoy this one. It packs quite the emotional punch.

Winter’s Kiss
F E Heaton
Their lord drinks blood and they are dead men walking. The tales of the mansion donâ€™t stop Nika from falling for one of the guards, but when wolves attack her and he rides to her rescue, she discovers that her knight is anything but saintly. He is a vampire and she is becoming a werewolf, and love between their species is forbiddenâ€”the penalty death.

Winterâ€™s world is shaken beyond salvation and his allegiance to his bloodline tested as he watches the woman heâ€™s fallen for turn into a werewolf. His heart demands vengeance and that he protects her, both from the werewolf now hunting for her and from himself, but she tempts him more than he can bear and it isn’t long into their journey before heâ€™s torn between upholding the law and succumbing to desire.

Will Nika be able to convince Winter to leave his world and stay with her or will she spend eternity dreaming of Winter’s kiss?

ebook price: $2.99
paperback price: $7.99
genre: paranormal werewolf romance book
length: 78000 words
rating: sultry
released: June 2009
Book 8 in the Vampires Realm series

Available in e-book from:
Author’s website: http://www.felicityheaton.com/ebooks.php?title=Winter’s%20Kiss
Amazon Kindle: http://www.amazon.com/dp/B0035LDN4Q/
Amazon Kindle Germany: http://www.amazon.de/dp/B0035LDN4Q/
Amazon Kindle UK: http://www.amazon.co.uk/dp/B0035LDN4Q/
Barnes and Noble: http://search.barnesandnoble.com/Winters-Kiss/Felicity-Heaton/e/2940000802090/
Kobo Books: http://www.kobobooks.com/ebook/Winters-Kiss/mix-SbRY0TdPE0-Zl8QkcSDTzA/page1.html
Smashwords: http://www.smashwords.com/books/view/7932
Sony Reader Store: http://ebookstore.sony.com/ebook/f-e-heaton/winters-kiss/_/R-400000000000000254325

Available in paperback from:
Amazon.co.uk: http://www.amazon.co.uk/dp/1456489895/
Amazon.com: http://www.amazon.com/dp/1456489895/
Barnes and Noble: http://search.barnesandnoble.com/Winters-Kiss/F-Heaton/e/9781456489892/

EXCERPT

A scream rent the still night air.

Winter raised his head. The brush in his right hand paused against his horseâ€™s sleek black flank. He frowned, calculating the distance from where he stood in the stable courtyard to the person who had shrieked. The human female voice could carry for miles on nights as calm as tonight. If she screamed again, he would be able to pinpoint her location to within one hundred metres.

A Watchman of the Validus bloodline, Winter had spent years honing his skills in tracking, hunting and killing to the highest echelon of perfection. They gave him the ability to ascertain that whoever the victim was, she was over three miles away.

He returned to his work, lovingly stroking the huge beastâ€™s glossy coat and murmuring soothing words to him. It had been too long since heâ€™d had the chance to ride. The rotation of duties within the household and Hyperionâ€™s plan to spread their empire wider across Europe had left him with longer shifts at the gate. It was an honour to protect his lord, but long nights spent braced against the freezing winds that scathed the landscape in this part of Russia were tiring and left him little time before dawn to ride. His eyes closed. Honour wasnâ€™t the only good thing to come of standing guard from sunset to sunrise.

He saw her more often.

An image of her flashed across Winterâ€™s mind. Pale blonde hair hanging in waves down her back. Sparkling green eyes that glittered under the moonlight. A cherubâ€™s rosy lips that promised sweet kisses and an impâ€™s smile that spoke of mischief. That image had branded itself on his mind the first night he had seen her as an adult. Every night that she passed and looked at him out of the corner of her eye, she burned her face a little deeper into his heart.

His horse kicked impatiently at the floor, scratching the scattered hay away from the dirt and leaving a long groove.

Winter patted Midnight tenderly on the neck and placed the brush down. Gathering the large black saddle, he positioned it on the horseâ€™s high back and let his thoughts wander while he buckled the straps.

They instantly roamed back to her. Many years had passed since Winter had first seen her. She had been a little girl then. Now she had become a beautiful woman. Perhaps soon she would find the courage to speak to him for longer. She had stopped a few times, always singling him out even though his black armour covered him from head to toe, leaving only the section across his eyes exposed. She had spoken to him tonight, asking him why he wore armour and guarded the mansion. He hadnâ€™t answered her. He had no place talking to humans when he was on duty.

There had been a beautiful lack of fear about her. Not even the sight of the naginata that he and the other Watchman held bothered her. Perhaps one day he could turn her. He cursed under his breath and tightened the last strap on the saddle. Those were not thoughts that he should be entertaining. His loyalty was to his lord and his bloodline first and foremost. He had a debt to repay. Once he felt as though he was worthy of asking his lord for permission to court the girl, he would, but until then he had a duty to do.

And that duty came first.

No matter what his feelings for her were.

A ride would clear his head.

A wolf howl sliced through the night.

Winter tensed and instinctively brushed his long heavy black cloak aside and reached for the sword hanging at his side. His fingers closed around the hilt as he calculated the distance to the howl.

Three miles.

Was the wolf after the woman?

Another scream shattered the returning silence. This time, it was a word.

â€œNiet!â€

Winterâ€™s eyes shot wide, an emotion rushing into his heart that he hadnâ€™t felt in long years. Fear. The girl. He would know her voice anywhere.

With the preternatural speed and grace of his kind, Winter mounted the horse and bolted straight for the stable entrance. Midnight thundered forward, hooves pounding the dirt in a sure confident gallop. The gates barely had time to open as they approached. Winter tucked into the horse, bringing his feet up behind him along with the stirrups. The half-open wrought iron gates brushed his knees as they raced through, almost knocking the guards over.

Someone shouted something abusive in his direction.

He didnâ€™t have time to slow down. The moment they had turned onto the road, he urged Midnight on, lowering his feet again but leaning forwards against its neck. It stretched forwards too, mimicking his move and galloping harder as though it had sensed his desperation.

The bottom of Winterâ€™s chest armour dug into his hips as he rode. His long cloak streamed out behind him. The light flurry of snow became bitter darts of ice that cut into his eyes, forcing him to squint. He changed, his eyes turning purple to reveal his bloodline as his senses sharpened. The thundering hooves of his horse were the only sound in an otherwise still world. Winter snapped the reins. Midnight snorted and galloped faster, heading directly for the woods with no sign of slowing.

Winter willed the woman to make another noise, or the wolves to break their silence. He needed to get a fix on their location but it wasnâ€™t only that driving him to beg the woman to shout or scream. He needed to know that she was still alive.

He hunkered down against his horseâ€™s neck when they entered the thick forest of pines. Snow exploded from the branches as they crashed through them, heedless of the pain it caused them both. His armour would protect him from the whip-like branches of the trees, and his horse, Midnight, would go wherever he bid him to, regardless of whether it hurt.

A branch hit Winter directly across the black leather and metal mask covering his nose and mouth. It smacked the armour against his nose and forced a flinch from him as pain shot out in warm waves across his skull. He turned Midnight to his right and towards a more open area of forest. While the pain didnâ€™t bother him, it would dampen his senses and he needed those as sharp as possible.

He pulled Midnight to a halt in a clearing and scanned the darkness, stretching out with his senses and searching for her. The wintry weather hadnâ€™t managed to penetrate the dense trees and the ground was clear of snow, leaving him without a visible trail to follow. He breathed deep, catching a faint hint of her scent on the breeze. She had been here. He cursed. Where was she now?

Was she dead?

Had the wolves killed her already?

That thought made a dull ache settle in his chest. Winter refused to believe it. He wouldnâ€™t believe it until he saw her body for himself. Another deep breath caught a stronger scent. A growl rumbled up through his chest.

Not wolves.

Werewolves.

His eyes narrowed into dark slits between his black helmet and facemask. He stared into the distance as one hand left the reins and closed around the hilt of his sword. Blood would spill tonight. Not only because werewolves had dared to enter Validus territory. If they had killed her, no, if they had even touched her, they would die by his hand.

A distant scream reached his ears.

He pulled on Midnightâ€™s reins.

Midnight reared onto his hind legs, whinnied and then broke into a gallop. Winter sneered behind his facemask, his blood calling for violence.

* * * *

Nika walked the quiet winding path through the woods, wishing she had chosen to wear her thicker coat. Thick fake fur lined the long black coat she wore and it would have been warm enough under normal circumstances in late spring, but tonight was bitterly cold and the icy wind was searching, discovering cracks and places it could sneak into the coat and chill her to the bone. It was strange to have such wintry weather this side of spring. When she had left, the weather had been pleasant enough, and the snow had melted. Now it had come back with a vengeance. She had hoped the weather would be warm and sunny by the time she had returned from the city.

She folded her arms across her chest, trying to keep a little heat in. Her coat and dress reached the floor, both grazing the leaf litter and twigs that covered the path. The wind found its way into there too and blew upwards, snaking around her legs and sending her shivering. Her honey hair blew across her face as she turned and she clawed it away, thankful sheâ€™d had the good sense to take two long strands from beside her temples and plait them before tying them at the back of her head. It kept the bulk of her hair in place but left the long strands from that point downwards to dance in the breeze.

At least the snow couldnâ€™t make it through the trees.

Nika hummed quietly to herself while she walked, thinking about how nice it would be to arrive home and sit down in front of the fire. The thought of that warm blaze made the cold feel distant. She wasnâ€™t far from the village now. Soon she would be safe in her familyâ€™s home, out of the frigid night and bleak woods. It felt like months rather than weeks since she had gone away to St. Petersburg. A smile touched her lips when she recalled walking past the mansion. He had been on guard duty again, silent and sentinel outside the gate with another man. She knew it was him. Those beautiful dark eyes had spoken to her as they always did, telling her words that her heart loved to listen to. He never looked at her, but there was always a strange emotion in his eyes when she stopped in front of him. The cold emptiness that used to fill them disappeared, leaving what her heart interpreted as warmth behind.

She didnâ€™t know who he was, or even what he looked like beneath his armour, but she knew one thing. She wanted no other man in this world.

Her heart lightened as memories of him came back, always protecting the gates of the large mansion. On the few occasions that she had plucked up the courage to speak to him, he had never uttered a word back at her. He hadnâ€™t even spoken tonight when she had mentioned the tales about the man he guarded. Terrible tales they were. Stories of demons and death, of bloodshed and violence. Her whole village whispered of them. They were right in a way. There was something different about the men there. In all the years that she had passed those gates, that man had never changed. Not when she was a child and not now that she was an adult. It was the same man. He hadnâ€™t aged one year in the twenty she had seen him. She was sure of it.

Through the trees, pinpricks of light flickered in the darkness. The village. She doubled her pace, thinking only of the warm fire and seeing her father again.

A howl sliced the night in two.

Nika froze to the spot, ears pricked and heart thundering.

Perhaps it had been the wind.

Low growls made her head snap around. Seven large dark shapes slinked out of the shadows. Their fur spiked in a line down their backs, wriggling like a snake when they shook themselves and growled at her. They stepped onto the path between her and the village. These were no ordinary wolves. She remembered them from her childhood. They had killed half of the village.

The one in front lowered its head and stared at her with bright amber eyes that promised a painful death. It snarled to reveal huge canines.

Nika screamed.

Before it could attack, she turned, dropped her bag and ran. She grabbed the front of her coat and skirt, lifting them so she could sprint unhindered, and headed through the woods in the direction of the mansion.

It wasnâ€™t long before her legs were beginning to tire. Their muscles strained under the pressure of running over the uneven ground and seized up as the fear broke into her mind, sending panicked thoughts pounding through her skull.

She was going to die.

The voice at the back of her mind told her to give up, but she wouldnâ€™t. She wasnâ€™t ready to die. It was something that happened to someone else, not to her or the people she loved. If she could make it to the mansion, she would be safe. The men there would fend off the wolves. The man would protect her.

Nika shrieked again as she tripped on a branch hidden beneath the frozen leaf litter and hit the ground hard. She immediately scrabbled to her feet and ran blindly into the forest, desperate to escape the wolves. Behind her came their thundering feet and heavy panting. They were closing in.

In the blink of an eye, it was over. The full weight of one of the wolves hit her in the back, sending her tumbling to the floor. Another howled. She turned and wrestled the wolf off her, scrambling across the dirt away from it. One of them grabbed her ankle, the thick leather of her boot the only thing protecting the delicate joint. It growled. Nika screwed her eyes shut and brought her hands up in front of her face as the others leapt at her.

â€œNiet!â€

Nika kicked the wolf off her ankle, eliciting a whimper from it, and pushed against the others. Breaking free, she got to her feet and ran again. Moonlight broke through a gap in the trees some distance ahead of her, illuminating a small shack.

Her heart willed her to make it there. It was her only chance.

She screamed again when one of the wolves snapped at her, trying to grab her arm. She punched it across the face and kept running, desperate to survive.

A thundering sound joined the cacophony of wolf growls and snarls and her rough breathing. Nika looked ahead of her to see the shack and then a large black horse with rider. She reached out to him, a silent plea for him to help her, and then fell when the wolves pounced on her. Pain erupted in her leg. Her heart missed beats as claws and teeth tore through her clothes.

Her last hope left her when she found herself face to face with the largest wolf. Hot breath washed her face, stealing her own. She sent a prayer to God and stared into the wolfâ€™s yellow eyes, into the eyes of death.

The thundering hooves stopped. Above her the horseâ€™s legs appeared, kicking out as the huge black beast whinnied and snorted. The wolves scattered, leaving her pressed into the dirt and frozen leaf litter, petrified and in too much pain to move.

The horse snorted again as it came down onto all four feet beside her and the rider appeared in her tear-blurred view.

â€œHand,â€ he said in a muffled Russian voice and extended his towards her.

Nika feebly raised hers towards him. She wanted to take hold of that black gloved hand and escape this nightmare. He shook his impatiently. She struggled to move faster, weak from the white-hot pain burning inside every inch of her body. He bent forward on the saddle, caught her hand, and pulled her up into the air as though she weighed nothing. He settled her on the saddle in front of him. Pain shot up her leg and lanced her stomach. It stole her senses, filling them until she knew nothing but the warm pulsing throb. She was vaguely aware of his arm against her back and his hand on her waist, and the wolves closing in.

He turned the horse. Nika gritted her teeth and leaned into him. Each step of the horseâ€™s gallop jostled her on the saddle. The pain was unbearable, wracking her to the depths of her bones with each movement, but the alternative made her cling to consciousness and life. The wolves growled, closer now. The horse suddenly stopped and the man lowered her to the ground. Her legs buckled beneath her. He caught her before she could collapse and held her close to his hard chest.

â€œRun!â€ he said and she hazily wondered if he was talking to her. She didnâ€™t think that she could run. The pain in her leg was too intense, blinding. The horse whinnied. Was he talking to it?

Her heart beat faster, each pulse sending stabbing needles sweeping around her body. Darkness encroached at the edges of her mind, sending her thoughts fuzzy and her body numb. The man carried her into somewhere and set her down on something soft but lumpy. The sound of wood scraping and heavy objects slamming made her open her eyes. She frowned, vaguely aware that they were in the small shack she had seen and that he was barricading the door.

A wolf howl sounded just outside.

She flinched in pain when she curled up, the wounds on her body stinging. Her left leg burned as though it was on fire. She couldnâ€™t move it. She left it lying limp in front of her. The man looked at her and then around the small hut.

â€œDo not be frightened,â€ he said, as though those four words could erase all her fear.

It crushed her chest and stole her breath. She struggled to suck in air, panic closing her throat and pain making the slightest thing too hard. Her leg was wet. She could feel the steady slide of blood down her arms. Oh God. She was going to die.

Her panic only increased when the dreadful sound of claws against wood filled the small shack. Snarls came in under the door and growls made her skin crawl. She tried to back away but the sound surrounded her, leaving her nowhere to go. The man stood at the door, his tall figure a black shadow in the low light. He didnâ€™t move. He stood sentinel with his hand on the hilt of the sword at his side.

The blade of which gleamed when he began to draw it.

The wolves scrabbled faster at the door and walls, as though they were trying to dig their way through. Nika reached out to the man, numb and petrified. He stepped towards the door and her heart slammed against her chest.

The two small windows on either side of the door exploded, showering her and the man in glass. The wolves leapt high, paws scrambling for purchase on the windowsill. They disappeared again only to attempt another go at getting into the building.

The man fully drew his sword.

She extended her hand further towards him. â€œYou canâ€™t fight. Thereâ€™s too many!â€

A terrible scream made them both jump. She had never heard such a horrifying and inhuman sound. A chill swept over her back and down her arms. The scream came again amidst a discordant symphony of growls and snarls. She closed her eyes and used the last of her strength to cover her ears, not wanting to hear the horse as it died.

Dreadful silence fell.

Posted in paranormal romance, Teaseday, vampire romance, vampires, Vampires Realm, Winter's Kiss | Comments Off

Teaseday – Prophecy: Child of Light – vampire romance book

Posted on 3rd October 2011 by Felicity Heaton

It’s been a while since I shared a chapter from one of my Vampires Realm series books so today I’m going to share chapter two of Prophecy: Child of Light. Prophecy: Child of Light is the first book in my popular vampire romance series so it’s a great introduction to the series, and since it’s only $0.99 it’s a bargain too. Why not pick up a copy and see for yourself why so many readers are enthralled with this series?

If you like adult vampire romances with vampires that behave more traditionally and thirst for human blood and take it straight from the vein, vampires that are dark and mysterious, with powers and a society separate from our own, then this is definitely a series that you’ll enjoy. I write dark vampires, ones who can kill without regret in order to survive, and who feel intense emotions even when the object of their affection is forbidden fruit.

Prophecy: Child of Light [book 1]
F E Heaton
A vampire unlike any other, Prophecy lives life in the dark until the night she encounters Valentine, a gorgeous vampire who is both her enemy and the man who will change her life forever.

Convinced that the prophecy about her is wrong and unable to ignore the vision of them that he saw in her blood, Valentine goes against his orders to execute Prophecy and kidnaps her instead. The attraction between them grows as they search for the truth behind the prophecy, battle a dark evil that threatens to destroy the world, and attempt to evade their families and the Law Keepers.

When the truth about her is revealed, will Prophecy be strong enough to face it? Will they discover a way to save the world from Hell? And will they finally see past the hatred bred into them by their families and surrender to their love?

The first novel in the Vampires Realm series, Prophecy: Child of Light, is part one in an epic tale of love and war that is sure to capture your heart and leave you craving more.

ebook price: $0.99
genre: paranormal vampire romance
length: 135000 words
rating: sultry
released: March 2007
Book 1 in the Vampires Realm series

Available in e-book from:
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EXCERPT

When he approached them, Valentine nodded at the two guards that were flanking the main entrance of his familyâ€™s house. The rain was falling fast now, the wind driving it hard against the faÃ§ade of the old mansion and saturating the heavy black coats the guards wore. He mused that they wouldnâ€™t provide much protection against the weather tonight.

Stepping out of the darkness and into the brightly lit hall of his home, he unbuttoned his long coat while he walked along the corridor and through the entrance reception room. Shaking the excess water off his jacket, he kept his eyes fixed straight ahead, ignoring the vixens of his household as they called to him. He didnâ€™t have time for making sport tonight.

Tonight he had more serious business to attend to.

His thoughts drifted to the female vampire. She had been slim, her dark tunic top and trousers clinging to her figure as sheâ€™d defiantly stood before him in the rain. Her long hair had been soaked and had hung in loose tendrils. The darkness of it had made her face seem even paler than it probably was, drawing his attention to it. Her round dark eyes had spoken volumes to him, but all in a language that he couldnâ€™t understand. There had been something about her that had drawn him in until heâ€™d been powerless to resist seeing what she held in her blood. Little had he known that what he would see would only confuse him. If instinct had told him that, he would have let her go.

Let her go?

By the Devil, he wished he had.

He wished sheâ€™d answered his damn questions, wished heâ€™d never laid eyes on her.

He stopped just short of the heavy wooden doors that led into the main reception room.

What was he doing?

He almost laughed aloud at himself while he tried to make sense of the thoughts that were running riot through his mind. He shut them down. To think such things was mutinous, disloyal. His hands curled into tight fists, his nails digging into the softer skin of his palms while he stared unseeingly at the dark doors. It was his duty to report this. It didnâ€™t matter what heâ€™d seen in her blood.

Taking a weary step forwards, he pushed the doors open. Everything felt heavy, his limbs, his heart, and his head. It all conspired to make him feel as though he couldnâ€™t take another step towards his destination, and that he couldnâ€™t tell his lord what heâ€™d discovered tonight.

The sounds of merriment drifted into the background as he pushed on, walking into the room and closing the doors behind him. He could feel all eyes on him and he knew what they were thinking.

He didnâ€™t belong here.

He was too young to be a part of this hallowed scene, this sanctum for the elder vampires of his family, this place where they hid themselves away from the idle play of the children. His place was here, whether they liked it or not. Heâ€™d worked hard to attain his position. Heâ€™d spent over two centuries as a loyal servant to his lord and a dutiful son of his bloodline.

He looked down at his hand, almost seeing the smear of blood that had stained his fingers not thirty minutes ago. Her blood. Thatâ€™s all it was. Just blood. There was nothing more to it. It was responsible for the disquiet he felt inside. It was always a danger when drinking from another of the seven pure bloodlines. They had power, enough to intoxicate the drinker and make them believe the things that the blood whispered to them.

â€œGood hunting?â€ A voice cut through the noise and reached his ears.

Peeling his jacket off, he handed it to Cornelius who was approaching him from the side.

â€œNoâ€¦interesting hunting,â€ he answered, stopping a few feet inside the room.

Cornelius arched a brow at the soaking wet coat and then neatly arranged it over his arm. Valentine gave him a look that warned him not to complain. The only reason that Cornelius could enter this area of the house was because the young vampire was his aide. That title meant bearing everything that he threw at himâ€”even wet coats. He knew his friend would do almost anything he asked so long as it afforded him such standing amongst their family and so long as he treated him well.

â€œDid you run into him?â€ Cornelius asked.

Valentine touched a lone finger to his lower lip, remembering the sweet taste of her blood. He could smell it still, knew it continued to stain his lip for all to see.

â€œNoâ€¦a her.â€

His eyes scanned over the plush plum walls of the room, their height almost reaching forty foot. He ignored all the looks he was receiving while he searched the balcony and then the floor in front of him.

â€œWho?â€

When he failed to find who he was searching for, his eyes fell to rest on an ornate mahogany door directly opposite him. His stomach squirmed for a moment and then settled when he reminded himself of his duty to his family. It was just her blood trying to work its will and contaminate him. That was the only reason he felt this way.

He nodded towards the door. â€œThat would be telling. Is he in?â€

Cornelius frowned. â€œHeâ€™s engaged with Indigo.â€

â€œNot anymore he isnâ€™t. This is more important than pandering to that girlâ€™s needs.â€ Valentine moved swiftly towards the closed door, continuing to block out the mutterings of his elders.

â€œWhat is it?â€ Cornelius hurried after him.

â€œYou shall hear in time. I have to tell him first. I shall be a dead man if you know before him.â€

â€œYou already are a dead man,â€ Cornelius said as one of the men guarding the door stopped him and held him back as Valentine passed.

Valentine smiled and continued walking towards the door. His friend always had a habit of wanting to know everything first, but this time he couldnâ€™t risk his lordâ€™s anger by letting Cornelius know before Kalinor heard.

Taking a deep breath, he rolled his shoulders in an attempt to relieve some of the tension in his body and then pushed the mahogany door open, striding confidently into the room.

He ignored the alluring smile that Indigo gave him when she pulled away from her mate and slowly covered herself, drawing her black hair down over her bloodied neck. Blanking her attentions, he looked straight at Kalinor.

When his lord looked back at him, Valentine walked quickly towards him. He took Kalinorâ€™s hand, pressed a kiss to the ring on his finger and then looked up into his eyes.

â€œValentine,â€ Kalinor greeted him dryly with an empty smile that barely masked his annoyance over the disturbance. â€œCouldnâ€™t this have waited?â€

â€œI am afraid not, my lord.â€ Valentine bowed his head. He didnâ€™t need to look up in order to see the displeased look that his lord would be giving him.

Kalinor rarely bestowed it upon him though. Usually it was one of the other vampires in the household who was on the receiving end. Heâ€™d seen it often enough to know exactly what Kalinor would look like. His lord would be leaning against the large ebony desk, his long arms folded across his chest and his blue eyes watching him intently for a sign of why he was being disturbed.

Risking a glance, Valentine saw that he looked exactly as predicted.

Kalinor preened his sandy brown hair back into place and then scratched under his thin jaw before moving around his desk. He carefully arranged the tails of his long, ornately embroidered black jacket into place and sat down. Valentine watched him wave a hand at Indigo, silently dismissing her, and then found Kalinorâ€™s eyes meeting his again.

Valentine moved to the chair on the opposite side of the desk, sat and met Kalinorâ€™s gaze.

The elder vampire stared at him and Valentine tried to quell the desires that were rising up inside him, rebelling against his better judgement as they whispered words of insubordination to him. He told himself it would be more than disloyal to do as they asked.

It would be a sin.

It would be illegal.

He struggled to maintain a cool faÃ§ade as his lord sniffed the air and fixed him with a dark look. He knew immediately what the problem was.

He stank of blood.

Not the delicate perfume of human blood.

It was the stench of vampire blood, of Caelestis blood.

He had to tell him now. It was his duty. He swallowed hard as everything inside him told him not to.

Kalinor raised a brow.

â€œIs something wrong, Valentine?â€ Kalinor said the words with cold calculation as their eyes remained locked with each otherâ€™s. â€œDid something happen on the hunt? Iâ€™ve known you since you were barely turned and itâ€™s been a long time since Iâ€™ve seen you like this.â€

Valentine stood sharply, bowed his head a fraction and then walked to the other side of the room. He never could keep still. He had to pace in order to get his thoughts together and clear his head of the vision her blood had given him.

He had to clear his head of the vision of her.

There was something about her, something enthralling. The tiny trace of blood heâ€™d taken from her had tasted so sweet, like honey on his tongue, and now a part of him was fighting against his better judgement and begging him not to tell his lord about her.

He could keep her to himself.
He shook his head to rid it of such a ridiculous notion. His allegiance was to his house, to the family of Aurorea, not to a female vampire of the house of Caelestis. Besides, if he didnâ€™t tell him now, Kalinor would have him executed when he eventually found out about her and discovered that heâ€™d known of her existence all along.

But what heâ€™d seen in her blood. It couldnâ€™t be a lie. No vampire on earth had the power to make their blood lie. It was truth, and he had seen it with his own eyes and felt it in his heart. To tell his lord of her existence was to sentence her to death and that would have terrible repercussions.

He stared at the window, watching the rain streaking down it while he pulled himself together and reminded himself that heâ€™d served this house loyally for over two centuries. Now wasnâ€™t the time to be disloyal, not when heâ€™d worked so hard to get where he was. Not when he was so close.

â€œYou seem troubled.â€

He heard Kalinor stand and he looked at him out of the corner of his eye. His lord looked worried. He was drawing too much attention to himself. He had to tell him now before he grew angry.

â€œYou did not succeed tonight in finding the hunter that plagues our city, but that does not mean you will not prevail. You will defeat him. Iâ€™m as certain of that as I am of you becoming the Law Keeper for Aurorea one day.â€

Valentine closed his eyes as he felt those words plunge into his chest, twisting there like a knife. He would be a Law Keeper one day, if only he could find his voice and confess to his lord what heâ€™d found tonight and why he smelt of their enemy.

He took a deep breath and felt tranquillity fill him.

â€œThe prophecy,â€ he said the words slowly and looked directly at his lord.

Kalinorâ€™s eyes widened, his jaw tensing while he waited to hear what he had to say.

Valentine began to pace, not wanting to see his lordâ€™s eyes when he told him about her. He could feel Kalinorâ€™s gaze following his every move, could sense the anticipation as it hung in the air between them. His lord would know that this was the reason heâ€™d seemed so distracted and agitated tonight. He could no longer go back and keep her to himself. He had to go forwards and do his duty.

â€œGo on.â€ Kalinor encouraged him.

Valentine sighed.

â€œI had no luck in hunting the man responsible for taking two of our best. I ran into something elseâ€¦somethingâ€¦â€ He closed his eyes briefly and replayed the image of her lost in the taste of blood and the thrill of the hunt. Opening his eyes, he looked at the floor and frowned. â€œEnthralling.â€

â€œEnthralling?â€ Kalinor moved towards him, but Valentine moved away, going to the window and staring out of it at the darkness.

He watched the rain sweeping across the garden and clasped his hands behind his back.

â€œShe exists,â€ he said and waited.

It wouldnâ€™t take his lord long to piece together what he was saying. He would know that the blood he could smell on him would have something to do with it. He didnâ€™t resist when Kalinor caught hold of his shoulders and turned him to face him. His lordâ€™s eyes came to rest on the small spot of red that was still marring his lips.

â€œSheâ€™s one of them?â€ Kalinor said.

Valentine nodded in confirmation.

â€œI found her hunting, alone. She appeared to be executing her first kill. They have kept her hidden wellâ€¦only she did not wish to remain that way.â€ He looked deep into his lordâ€™s eyes and searched them for an answer to his next question. â€œIs she dangerous?â€

Kalinor smiled.

It was true then. Valentine remembered what heâ€™d been told as a youngling, what all vampires were told. In the future, a dark day would dawn and with it would come the end of their existence, all at the hands of one of their own. The one he had met tonight was the child of the prophecy. She was going to destroy their kind.

Â Kalinor walked towards the door and stopped with his hand on the handle.

â€œFor now, this goes no further than the elders. As an envoy, I will visit the house of Caelestis. You will be there at my side to recount what you witnessed tonight and we will see what they have been hiding from us.â€ Kalinor looked back at him and gave him a grim smile. â€œThen you will have the proud honour of destroying the abomination.â€

Valentineâ€™s stomach dropped when he heard those words. They had been spoken with a smile that said what a true honour it would be to be known as the vampire who had stopped the prophecy from coming true. He stared at the door his lord had walked out of and felt empty inside.

He would be responsible for destroying the abomination?

What honour was there in murdering her? He couldnâ€™t see any, not as his lord could.

He shuddered inwardly at the thought of killing her.

He didnâ€™t want to be the one responsible for her death, didnâ€™t want to take eternity away from her. There was nothing honourable about what Kalinor had asked him to do.

He could hear Kalinor shouting commands to the house elders when he walked back into the main reception room and stared blankly at the floor.

He should have listened to her blood. He shouldnâ€™t have tried to ignore the vision it had given him. Raising his head, he spotted the blond mess of hair that belonged to Cornelius through the heads of the elders and headed directly for him.

He caught him by the arm and started up the stairs with him. â€œCome with me. I need your assistance.â€

* * * *

Prophecy was soaked to the skin by the time she had made it over the high wall surrounding the grounds and back to the house. Scaling the drainpipe again, she pushed the sash window up and slipped back into her room. She clawed her wet hair out of her face, closed the window as quietly as possible and then let out a sigh of relief.

She was so stupid.

She should have listened to her mother when sheâ€™d told her that she wasnâ€™t strong enough to hunt. The other vampire had been so much more powerful than her. She hadnâ€™t been able to stop him from biting her and she didnâ€™t know what to make of his reaction. At the time, sheâ€™d just seen it as an opportunity to escape, but as sheâ€™d made her way home, sheâ€™d begun to think about it. Heâ€™d been stunned by what heâ€™d seen, and she couldnâ€™t fathom why.

It wasnâ€™t as if sheâ€™d led a long or interesting life. She had spent over twenty years trapped in the same house. What was interesting about that?

At least she was back safe now, and no one had to know that she had been gone. She would change her clothes, dry her hair and then go down to see her mother. No one had to know.

She froze when she heard a noise in the darkness and realised that she wasnâ€™t alone.

â€œBrother,â€ she greeted him coldly when he stepped out of the shadows by the door and moved towards her.

Turning away from him, she carefully covered the marks on her neck and stared out of the window, waiting for him to speak.

â€œProphecy,â€ Arkalus said softly and came to stand behind her. He moved to touch her shoulder but she stepped forwards and evaded his fingers. She saw his hand drop to his side out of the corner of her eye. How long had he been waiting for her to return? Sheâ€™d been gone for hours. â€œWhere have you been?â€

She bit her tongue and continued to stare out of the window.

She could feel his eyes as they raked over her wet hair down to the smooth skin of her exposed shoulders.

â€œOne day, you wonâ€™t be able to turn me away so easily.â€

She frowned at his words, a thinly veiled threat that he emphasised by brushing his fingers lightly over her shoulder. Her jaw set tight and she turned her head away from him, disgusted by his attentions and wanting nothing more than to be alone.

Unable to hold her feelings inside, she found her mouth moving before she could stop it. â€œYouâ€™ll be waiting a long time.â€

Her words had no impact. It was as though sheâ€™d never spoken them. His fingers moved to play with her hair, his tone becoming so intimate a whisper that it made her stomach squirm.

â€œWhat makes you think I wonâ€™t tell mother about your disappearance tonight?â€ He leaned in a little closer to her and her whole body tensed.

She tried to make light of it, hoping that heâ€™d leave her alone and find someone else to bestow his attentions upon. â€œIf you did that, mother would want to know why you didnâ€™t tell her earlierâ€¦ why wait so long? Youâ€™d be in as much trouble as me.â€

He seemingly ignored her comment and stroked his fingers gently over her shoulder. She shuddered when he pressed a light kiss to it, the tendrils of his long brown hair grazing her skin. It brought the stranger back into her head. She remembered the way his lips had grazed her neck. An echo of the feelings heâ€™d ignited then danced through her.

â€œYou wonâ€™t be able to turn me away forever. Iâ€™m a patient manâ€¦â€ Arkalus whispered it into her ear. She leaned away from him, trying to escape his touch. â€œAs soon as mother passes the house to me, Iâ€™ll take you as my mate and you wonâ€™t be able to stop me.â€

She closed her eyes when the air shifted around her and then the door slammed. She let out the breath sheâ€™d been holding and slumped into her chair, thinking about what heâ€™d said.

It was no secret that he wanted her as his own. The whole house knew. Heâ€™d been courting her for as long as she could remember, but she had never once shown any interest in him. Recently heâ€™d taken to threatening her, and the more he did the more she wanted to lash out at him. She wished he would go back to how he used to be, acting like a brother to her rather than attempting to be a lover. She wished her continual rebuffs would show him that she didnâ€™t want anything to do with him in that way, but they only seemed to drive him on.

So long as their mother, Iona, was walking the earth there was nothing he could do without her consent, but Prophecy knew that one day she would be gone and then it would be her duty to do as the head of the household commanded.

The idea of being Arkalusâ€™ bride made her sick to her stomach, but she wouldnâ€™t be able to stop him if Iona was out of the equation.

Something told Prophecy that regardless of what heâ€™d said, Arkalus was growing ever more impatient. If she didnâ€™t agree to his terms soon then there was a chance that he would take the death of Iona into his own hands in order to ensure that she was his.

Changing out of her wet clothes, she slipped into a long black satin dress and lay down on her bed. She closed her eyes and pushed away from the thought of being claimed by Arkalus, and returned to her previous ones.

Who was the vampire sheâ€™d met tonight? Was he one of the Aurorea responsible for the death of one of her house or was he something else? Heâ€™d been alone, just like she had, not hunting with the pack like most vampires did. The way heâ€™d looked at her after tasting her blood seemed like an image frozen in her mind. It haunted her.

Heâ€™d looked stunned, shocked by the visions heâ€™d received from her blood, and it made her shudder to think of what heâ€™d seen to make him look like that.

Sheâ€™d suspected for some time now that she wasnâ€™t like the other vampires of her house. They all spoke about her behind her back. Serenity had told her that much. Prophecy had caught fearful looks in their eyes sometimes and now a vampire from the other house was looking at her in exactly the same way.

Curling up on the bed, she emptied her mind of all thoughts until there was only him.

His dark hair, his green eyes, and the way he looked at her as though he could see straight through her, down into her heart.

There was something about him that she couldnâ€™t quite put her finger on, but one thing she knew she could be sure of.

This wouldnâ€™t be the last time she saw him.