{"id":220,"date":"2012-01-10T12:00:00","date_gmt":"2012-01-10T12:00:00","guid":{"rendered":"http:\/\/www.felicityheaton.com\/blog\/?p=220"},"modified":"2012-01-10T12:00:00","modified_gmt":"2012-01-10T12:00:00","slug":"teaseday-winters-kiss-vampire-werewolf-romance-book","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.felicityheaton.com\/blog\/2012\/01\/10\/teaseday-winters-kiss-vampire-werewolf-romance-book\/","title":{"rendered":"Teaseday &#8211; Winter&#8217;s Kiss &#8211; vampire werewolf romance book"},"content":{"rendered":"<p>Today my Teaseday post comes from another of my current books on offer, <a href=\"http:\/\/www.felicityheaton.com\/ebooks.php?title=Winter%27s%20Kiss\" target=\"_blank\"><b>Winter&#8217;s Kiss<\/b><\/a>, a vampire werewolf romance book and the 8th book in my popular <a href=\"http:\/\/www.vampiresrealm.com\/\" target=\"_blank\"><i>Vampires Realm romance series<\/i><\/a>.<\/p>\n<p>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.<\/p>\n<p>Find out more about the books, including excerpts and reviews, and these great offers at: <a href=\"http:\/\/www.felicityheaton.com\/paranormal-romance-ebook-offers.php\"><b>http:\/\/www.felicityheaton.com\/paranormal-romance-ebook-offers.php<\/b><\/a> <br \/><a href=\"http:\/\/www.felicityheaton.com\/ebooks.php?title=Her%20Dark%20Angel\" target=\"_blank\"><b><\/b><\/a><\/p>\n<p><a href=\"http:\/\/www.felicityheaton.com\/ebooks.php?title=Winter%27s%20Kiss\" target=\"_blank\"><b>Winter&#8217;s Kiss<\/b><\/a> is on offer for just $2.99 on Amazon Kindle,  Barnes and Noble Nook, Sony Reader, Smashwords and other retailers. You  can also get <b>Seventh Circle<\/b> for just $2.99, and the first three books in the series, the <b>Prophecy Trilogy<\/b>, for only $0.99 each!<\/p>\n<p>So, here&#8217;s a single chapter tease and a link to a downloaded extended excerpt pdf!<\/p>\n<p><\/p>\n<div style=\"clear: both; text-align: center;\"><a href=\"http:\/\/www.felicityheaton.com\/ebooks.php?title=Winter%27s%20Kiss\" style=\"clear: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;\"><img decoding=\"async\" border=\"0\" src=\"http:\/\/www.felicityheaton.com\/images\/uploads\/picDetailwinterskiss.jpg\" \/><\/a><\/div>\n<div style=\"font-family: Georgia,\"Times New Roman\",serif;\"><a href=\"http:\/\/www.felicityheaton.com\/ebooks.php?title=Winter%27s%20Kiss\" target=\"_blank\"><span style=\"font-size: large;\"><b>Winter&#8217;s Kiss<\/b><\/span><\/a><\/div>\n<p><b>F E Heaton<\/b><br \/>Their lord drinks blood and they are dead men walking. The tales of  the mansion don\u00e2\u20ac\u2122t 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 forbidden\u00e2\u20ac\u201dthe penalty  death.<\/p>\n<p>Winter\u00e2\u20ac\u2122s world is shaken beyond salvation and his allegiance to his  bloodline tested as he watches the woman he\u00e2\u20ac\u2122s 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&#8217;t long into their journey before  he\u00e2\u20ac\u2122s torn between upholding the law and succumbing to desire.<\/p>\n<p>Will Nika be able to convince Winter to leave his world and stay with her or will she spend eternity dreaming of Winter&#8217;s kiss?<\/p>\n<p><b>LIMITED\u00c2\u00a0TIME SPECIAL\u00c2\u00a0OFFER: Only $2.99 (normally $3.99) as part of my Winter Warmers deal &#8211; offer ends 15th January 2012. <a href=\"http:\/\/www.felicityheaton.com\/paranormal-romance-ebook-offers.php\">Find out more about the offer and where it is available<\/a>.<\/b><\/p>\n<p><b>Available in e-book from:<\/b><br \/><b>Author&#8217;s website:<\/b> <a href=\"http:\/\/www.felicityheaton.com\/ebooks.php?title=Winter%27s%20Kiss\">http:\/\/www.felicityheaton.com\/ebooks.php?title=Winter&#8217;s%20Kiss<\/a><br \/><b>Amazon Kindle:<\/b> <a href=\"http:\/\/www.amazon.com\/dp\/B0035LDN4Q\/\">http:\/\/www.amazon.com\/dp\/B0035LDN4Q\/<\/a><br \/><b>Amazon Kindle UK:<\/b> <a href=\"http:\/\/www.amazon.co.uk\/dp\/B0035LDN4Q\/\">http:\/\/www.amazon.co.uk\/dp\/B0035LDN4Q\/<\/a><br \/><b>Barnes and Noble:<\/b> <a href=\"http:\/\/search.barnesandnoble.com\/Winters-Kiss\/Felicity-Heaton\/e\/2940000802090\/\">http:\/\/search.barnesandnoble.com\/Winters-Kiss\/Felicity-Heaton\/e\/2940000802090\/<\/a><br \/><b>All Romance eBooks:<\/b> <a href=\"http:\/\/www.allromanceebooks.com\/product-winter039skiss-620974-139.html\">http:\/\/www.allromanceebooks.com\/product-winter039skiss-620974-139.html<\/a><br \/><b>Sony Reader Store:<\/b> <a href=\"http:\/\/ebookstore.sony.com\/ebook\/f-e-heaton\/winters-kiss\/_\/R-400000000000000254325\">http:\/\/ebookstore.sony.com\/ebook\/f-e-heaton\/winters-kiss\/_\/R-400000000000000254325<\/a><br \/><b>Kobo Books:<\/b> <a href=\"http:\/\/www.kobobooks.com\/ebook\/Winters-Kiss-Vampires-Realm-Romance\/book-EnqLOg3Bska1G5ouPxjkcA\/page1.html\">http:\/\/www.kobobooks.com\/ebook\/Winters-Kiss-Vampires-Realm-Romance\/book-EnqLOg3Bska1G5ouPxjkcA\/page1.html<\/a><br \/><b>Smashwords:<\/b> <a href=\"http:\/\/www.smashwords.com\/books\/view\/7932\">http:\/\/www.smashwords.com\/books\/view\/7932<\/a><br \/><b>Amazon Kindle Germany:<\/b> <a href=\"http:\/\/www.amazon.de\/dp\/B0035LDN4Q\/\">http:\/\/www.amazon.de\/dp\/B0035LDN4Q\/<\/a><br \/><b>Amazon Kindle France:<\/b> <a href=\"http:\/\/www.amazon.fr\/dp\/B0035LDN4Q\/\">http:\/\/www.amazon.fr\/dp\/B0035LDN4Q\/<\/a><br \/><b>Apple iBookstore USA:<\/b> <a href=\"http:\/\/itunes.apple.com\/us\/book\/isbn9781452386980\">http:\/\/itunes.apple.com\/us\/book\/isbn9781452386980<\/a><br \/><b>Apple iBookstore UK:<\/b> <a href=\"http:\/\/itunes.apple.com\/gb\/book\/isbn9781452386980\">http:\/\/itunes.apple.com\/gb\/book\/isbn9781452386980<\/a><br \/><b>Apple iBookstore Australia:<\/b> <a href=\"http:\/\/itunes.apple.com\/au\/book\/isbn9781452386980\">http:\/\/itunes.apple.com\/au\/book\/isbn9781452386980<\/a><br \/><b>Apple iBookstore Canada:<\/b> <a href=\"http:\/\/itunes.apple.com\/ca\/book\/isbn9781452386980\">http:\/\/itunes.apple.com\/ca\/book\/isbn9781452386980<\/a><\/p>\n<p><b>Available in paperback from:<\/b><br \/><b>Amazon.com:<\/b> <a href=\"http:\/\/www.amazon.com\/dp\/1456489895\/\">http:\/\/www.amazon.com\/dp\/1456489895\/<\/a><br \/><b>Amazon.co.uk:<\/b> <a href=\"http:\/\/www.amazon.co.uk\/dp\/1456489895\/\">http:\/\/www.amazon.co.uk\/dp\/1456489895\/<\/a><br \/><b>Barnes and Noble:<\/b> <a href=\"http:\/\/search.barnesandnoble.com\/Winters-Kiss\/F-Heaton\/e\/9781456489892\/\">http:\/\/search.barnesandnoble.com\/Winters-Kiss\/F-Heaton\/e\/9781456489892\/<\/a><\/p>\n<p><\/p>\n<div style=\"color: #c27ba0; font-family: Georgia,\"Times New Roman\",serif; text-align: center;\"><span style=\"font-size: large;\"><b>EXCERPT<\/b><\/span><\/div>\n<p>A scream rent the still night air.<\/p>\n<p>Winter raised his head. The brush in his right hand paused against his  horse\u00e2\u20ac\u2122s 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.<\/p>\n<p>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.<\/p>\n<p>He returned to his work, lovingly stroking the huge beast\u00e2\u20ac\u2122s glossy coat  and murmuring soothing words to him. It had been too long since he\u00e2\u20ac\u2122d  had the chance to ride. The rotation of duties within the household and  Hyperion\u00e2\u20ac\u2122s 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 wasn\u00e2\u20ac\u2122t the only good thing  to come of standing guard from sunset to sunrise.<\/p>\n<p>He saw her more often.<\/p>\n<p>An image of her flashed across Winter\u00e2\u20ac\u2122s mind. Pale blonde hair hanging  in waves down her back. Sparkling green eyes that glittered under the  moonlight. A cherub\u00e2\u20ac\u2122s rosy lips that promised sweet kisses and an imp\u00e2\u20ac\u2122s  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.<\/p>\n<p>His horse kicked impatiently at the floor, scratching the scattered hay away from the dirt and leaving a long groove.<\/p>\n<p>Winter patted Midnight tenderly on the neck and placed the brush down.  Gathering the large black saddle, he positioned it on the horse\u00e2\u20ac\u2122s high  back and let his thoughts wander while he buckled the straps.<\/p>\n<p>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 hadn\u00e2\u20ac\u2122t  answered her. He had no place talking to humans when he was on duty.<\/p>\n<p>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.<\/p>\n<p>And that duty came first.<\/p>\n<p>No matter what his feelings for her were.<\/p>\n<p>A ride would clear his head.<\/p>\n<p>A wolf howl sliced through the night.<\/p>\n<p><a name='more'><\/a><br \/>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.<\/p>\n<p>Three miles.<\/p>\n<p>Was the wolf after the woman?<\/p>\n<p>Another scream shattered the returning silence. This time, it was a word.<\/p>\n<p>\u00e2\u20ac\u0153Niet!\u00e2\u20ac\u009d<\/p>\n<p>Winter\u00e2\u20ac\u2122s eyes shot wide, an emotion rushing into his heart that he  hadn\u00e2\u20ac\u2122t felt in long years. Fear. The girl. He would know her voice  anywhere.<\/p>\n<p>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.<\/p>\n<p>Someone shouted something abusive in his direction.<\/p>\n<p>He didn\u00e2\u20ac\u2122t 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.<\/p>\n<p>The bottom of Winter\u00e2\u20ac\u2122s 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.<\/p>\n<p>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 wasn\u00e2\u20ac\u2122t  only that driving him to beg the woman to shout or scream. He needed to  know that she was still alive.<\/p>\n<p>He hunkered down against his horse\u00e2\u20ac\u2122s 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.<\/p>\n<p>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 didn\u00e2\u20ac\u2122t bother him, it would dampen his senses and  he needed those as sharp as possible.<\/p>\n<p>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  hadn\u00e2\u20ac\u2122t 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?<\/p>\n<p>Was she dead?<\/p>\n<p>Had the wolves killed her already?<\/p>\n<p>That thought made a dull ache settle in his chest. Winter refused to  believe it. He wouldn\u00e2\u20ac\u2122t believe it until he saw her body for himself.  Another deep breath caught a stronger scent. A growl rumbled up through  his chest.<\/p>\n<p>Not wolves.<\/p>\n<p>Werewolves.<\/p>\n<p>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.<\/p>\n<p>A distant scream reached his ears.<\/p>\n<p>He pulled on Midnight\u00e2\u20ac\u2122s reins.<\/p>\n<p>Midnight reared onto his hind legs, whinnied and then broke into a  gallop. Winter sneered behind his facemask, his blood calling for  violence.<\/p>\n<p>* * * *<\/p>\n<p>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.<\/p>\n<p>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 she\u00e2\u20ac\u2122d 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.<\/p>\n<p>At least the snow couldn\u00e2\u20ac\u2122t make it through the trees.<\/p>\n<p>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 wasn\u00e2\u20ac\u2122t far  from the village now. Soon she would be safe in her family\u00e2\u20ac\u2122s 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.<\/p>\n<p>She didn\u00e2\u20ac\u2122t 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.<\/p>\n<p>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 hadn\u00e2\u20ac\u2122t 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 hadn\u00e2\u20ac\u2122t aged one year in the twenty she  had seen him. She was sure of it.<\/p>\n<p>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.<\/p>\n<p>A howl sliced the night in two.<\/p>\n<p>Nika froze to the spot, ears pricked and heart thundering.<\/p>\n<p>Perhaps it had been the wind.<\/p>\n<p>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.<\/p>\n<p>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.<\/p>\n<p>Nika screamed.<\/p>\n<p>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.<\/p>\n<p>It wasn\u00e2\u20ac\u2122t 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.<\/p>\n<p>She was going to die.<\/p>\n<p>The voice at the back of her mind told her to give up, but she  wouldn\u00e2\u20ac\u2122t. She wasn\u00e2\u20ac\u2122t 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.<\/p>\n<p>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.<\/p>\n<p>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.<\/p>\n<p>\u00e2\u20ac\u0153Niet!\u00e2\u20ac\u009d<\/p>\n<p>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.<\/p>\n<p>Her heart willed her to make it there. It was her only chance.<\/p>\n<p>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.<\/p>\n<p>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.<\/p>\n<p>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 wolf\u00e2\u20ac\u2122s yellow eyes, into the eyes of  death.<\/p>\n<p>The thundering hooves stopped. Above her the horse\u00e2\u20ac\u2122s 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.<\/p>\n<p>The horse snorted again as it came down onto all four feet beside her and the rider appeared in her tear-blurred view.<\/p>\n<p>\u00e2\u20ac\u0153Hand,\u00e2\u20ac\u009d he said in a muffled Russian voice and extended his towards her.<\/p>\n<p>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.<\/p>\n<p>He turned the horse. Nika gritted her teeth and leaned into him. Each  step of the horse\u00e2\u20ac\u2122s 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.<\/p>\n<p>\u00e2\u20ac\u0153Run!\u00e2\u20ac\u009d he said and she hazily wondered if he was talking to her. She  didn\u00e2\u20ac\u2122t think that she could run. The pain in her leg was too intense,  blinding. The horse whinnied. Was he talking to it?<\/p>\n<p>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.<\/p>\n<p>A wolf howl sounded just outside.<\/p>\n<p>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 couldn\u00e2\u20ac\u2122t  move it. She left it lying limp in front of her. The man looked at her  and then around the small hut.<\/p>\n<p>\u00e2\u20ac\u0153Do not be frightened,\u00e2\u20ac\u009d he said, as though those four words could erase all her fear.<\/p>\n<p>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.<\/p>\n<p>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 didn\u00e2\u20ac\u2122t move. He stood sentinel with  his hand on the hilt of the sword at his side.<\/p>\n<p>The blade of which gleamed when he began to draw it.<\/p>\n<p>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.<\/p>\n<p>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.<\/p>\n<p>The man fully drew his sword.<\/p>\n<p>She extended her hand further towards him. \u00e2\u20ac\u0153You can\u00e2\u20ac\u2122t fight. There\u00e2\u20ac\u2122s too many!\u00e2\u20ac\u009d<\/p>\n<p>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.<\/p>\n<p>Dreadful silence fell.<\/p>\n<p><a href=\"http:\/\/www.felicityheaton.com\/long-excerpts\/winterskiss-heatonFE.pdf\" target=\"_blank\"><b>DOWNLOAD EXTENDED EXCERPT PDF<\/b><\/a><\/p>\n<p><b>Available in e-book from:<\/b><br \/><b>Author&#8217;s website:<\/b> <a href=\"http:\/\/www.felicityheaton.com\/ebooks.php?title=Winter%27s%20Kiss\">http:\/\/www.felicityheaton.com\/ebooks.php?title=Winter&#8217;s%20Kiss<\/a><br \/><b>Amazon Kindle:<\/b> <a href=\"http:\/\/www.amazon.com\/dp\/B0035LDN4Q\/\">http:\/\/www.amazon.com\/dp\/B0035LDN4Q\/<\/a><br \/><b>Amazon Kindle UK:<\/b> <a href=\"http:\/\/www.amazon.co.uk\/dp\/B0035LDN4Q\/\">http:\/\/www.amazon.co.uk\/dp\/B0035LDN4Q\/<\/a><br \/><b>Barnes and Noble:<\/b> <a href=\"http:\/\/search.barnesandnoble.com\/Winters-Kiss\/Felicity-Heaton\/e\/2940000802090\/\">http:\/\/search.barnesandnoble.com\/Winters-Kiss\/Felicity-Heaton\/e\/2940000802090\/<\/a><br \/><b>All Romance eBooks:<\/b> <a href=\"http:\/\/www.allromanceebooks.com\/product-winter039skiss-620974-139.html\">http:\/\/www.allromanceebooks.com\/product-winter039skiss-620974-139.html<\/a><br \/><b>Sony Reader Store:<\/b> <a href=\"http:\/\/ebookstore.sony.com\/ebook\/f-e-heaton\/winters-kiss\/_\/R-400000000000000254325\">http:\/\/ebookstore.sony.com\/ebook\/f-e-heaton\/winters-kiss\/_\/R-400000000000000254325<\/a><br \/><b>Kobo Books:<\/b> <a href=\"http:\/\/www.kobobooks.com\/ebook\/Winters-Kiss-Vampires-Realm-Romance\/book-EnqLOg3Bska1G5ouPxjkcA\/page1.html\">http:\/\/www.kobobooks.com\/ebook\/Winters-Kiss-Vampires-Realm-Romance\/book-EnqLOg3Bska1G5ouPxjkcA\/page1.html<\/a><br \/><b>Smashwords:<\/b> <a href=\"http:\/\/www.smashwords.com\/books\/view\/7932\">http:\/\/www.smashwords.com\/books\/view\/7932<\/a><br \/><b>Amazon Kindle Germany:<\/b> <a href=\"http:\/\/www.amazon.de\/dp\/B0035LDN4Q\/\">http:\/\/www.amazon.de\/dp\/B0035LDN4Q\/<\/a><br \/><b>Amazon Kindle France:<\/b> <a href=\"http:\/\/www.amazon.fr\/dp\/B0035LDN4Q\/\">http:\/\/www.amazon.fr\/dp\/B0035LDN4Q\/<\/a><br \/><b>Apple iBookstore USA:<\/b> <a href=\"http:\/\/itunes.apple.com\/us\/book\/isbn9781452386980\">http:\/\/itunes.apple.com\/us\/book\/isbn9781452386980<\/a><br \/><b>Apple iBookstore UK:<\/b> <a href=\"http:\/\/itunes.apple.com\/gb\/book\/isbn9781452386980\">http:\/\/itunes.apple.com\/gb\/book\/isbn9781452386980<\/a><br \/><b>Apple iBookstore Australia:<\/b> <a href=\"http:\/\/itunes.apple.com\/au\/book\/isbn9781452386980\">http:\/\/itunes.apple.com\/au\/book\/isbn9781452386980<\/a><br \/><b>Apple iBookstore Canada:<\/b> <a href=\"http:\/\/itunes.apple.com\/ca\/book\/isbn9781452386980\">http:\/\/itunes.apple.com\/ca\/book\/isbn9781452386980<\/a><\/p>\n<p><b>Available in paperback from:<\/b><br \/><b>Amazon.com:<\/b> <a href=\"http:\/\/www.amazon.com\/dp\/1456489895\/\">http:\/\/www.amazon.com\/dp\/1456489895\/<\/a><br \/><b>Amazon.co.uk:<\/b> <a href=\"http:\/\/www.amazon.co.uk\/dp\/1456489895\/\">http:\/\/www.amazon.co.uk\/dp\/1456489895\/<\/a><br \/><b>Barnes and Noble:<\/b> <a href=\"http:\/\/search.barnesandnoble.com\/Winters-Kiss\/F-Heaton\/e\/9781456489892\/\">http:\/\/search.barnesandnoble.com\/Winters-Kiss\/F-Heaton\/e\/9781456489892\/<\/a><\/p>\n<div><img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" border=\"0\" height=\"97\" src=\"http:\/\/www.felicityheaton.com\/images\/signature.gif\" style=\"background: none; border: 0px; padding: 0;\" width=\"225\" \/><\/div>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"<p>Today my Teaseday post comes from another of my current books on offer, Winter&#8217;s Kiss, a vampire werewolf romance book and the 8th book in my popular Vampires Realm romance series. At the moment, I have a fantastic offer on &hellip; <a href=\"https:\/\/www.felicityheaton.com\/blog\/2012\/01\/10\/teaseday-winters-kiss-vampire-werewolf-romance-book\/\">Continue reading <span class=\"meta-nav\">&rarr;<\/span><\/a><\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":3,"featured_media":0,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[9,40,51,8,15,35,53],"tags":[],"class_list":["post-220","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","hentry","category-paranormal-romance","category-special-offers","category-teaseday","category-vampire-romance","category-vampires-realm","category-werewolf-romance","category-winters-kiss"],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.felicityheaton.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/220","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.felicityheaton.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.felicityheaton.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.felicityheaton.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/3"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.felicityheaton.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=220"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/www.felicityheaton.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/220\/revisions"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.felicityheaton.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=220"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.felicityheaton.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=220"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.felicityheaton.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=220"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}