I never forgot her. Not for one minute. Not from the last time I saw her, at seventeen, to today. I measured all women against her and all women came up short. But being with her was unfeasible in high school, and it’s taboo now. I see her sometimes, but I’ve never spoken to her. She runs, or I run. We’re in the same town, on the same block, in the same building, and the gulf between us is just too wide to cross. Until tonight. —- He was my high school crush, back when I lived in a world that didn’t want me. He was the perfect boy, and I was the outcast kid from the other side of town. And when he held my hand I thought I could fit in, just a little. I thought I could be his and he could be mine. Then he left, and my life fell apart. Now we are the king and queen of opposite sides of Hollywood. And we haven’t spoken a word to each other. Until tonight.
Excerpt #1
I stroked his hair, waist deep in peace, all worry gone for the moment, and floating in no more than an ocean of gratitude. I must have been more vulnerable than I realized, or he’d reopened some wound with his kindness, because though my sweet reverie stayed, as the minutes passed, a layer of need fitted itself on top of it.
I needed to tell him, if not the details, the outlines of who I was.
“I want you to know,” I whispered, starting somewhere small, then everything I didn’t want to say spilled out. “I have stuff. I’ve never been to jail, but you know, it’s stuff, and it’s ugly, and it scares me. Because, I mean, you’re so perfect, and I’m… I’m just a mess. I’m not whole. I’m a bunch of pieces of a person I cobbled together.” My eyes got wet when I thought of the comparisons between us and that picture in my silverware drawer. “So if you have to move on when you realize that, I’ll understand. You have an image, and if anyone understands protecting a career, it’s me. I mean, I’ll be mad, don’t get that wrong, but also.” I swallowed and blinked, shifting my head so he wouldn’t feel the tear on his forehead. “I won’t blame you.”
I waited for an answer. Anything. A change in position or a word on any subject. The weather. Sports. Something. But all he did was breathe.
I smiled so wide, tears fell into my mouth. He was sleeping.
ABOUT THE AUTHOR
CD Reiss
CD Reiss is a USA Today and Amazon bestseller. She still has to chop wood and carry water, which was buried in the fine print. Her lawyer is working it out with God but in the meantime, if you call and she doesn’t pick up, she’s at the well, hauling buckets.
Born in New York City, she moved to Hollywood, California to get her master’s degree in screenwriting from USC. In case you want to know, that went nowhere, but it did embed TV story structure in her head well enough for her to take a big risk on a TV series structured erotic series called Songs of Submission. It’s about a kinky billionaire hung up on his ex-wife, an ingenue singer with a wisecracking mouth; art, music and sin in the city of Los Angeles.
Critics have dubbed the books “poetic,” “literary,” and “hauntingly atmospheric,” which is flattering enough for her to put it in a bio, but embarrassing enough for her not to tell her husband, or he might think she’s some sort of braggart who’s too good to give the toilets a once-over every couple of weeks or chop a cord of wood.
If you meet her in person, you should call her Christine.
Her eyes grew wide. “They scheduled a rematch?” she breathed.
I’d spent the night lusting over her as she’d pranced around the ballroom. Thoughts of taking her on every horizontal surface had filled my mind for the majority of the evening. But right then, as she stared up at me with a mixture of surprise and elation, all because I was going to get something I truly wanted in life, a warmth I hadn’t felt in years washed over me.
“No, Liv. We’re getting a rematch.”
Her eyes flashed between mine as she silently held my gaze. Pride and affirmation filled my chest from her unspoken praise.
God. This woman.
She was so fucking beautiful.
Guiding her injured hand to my chest, I fought the urge to kiss her.
She was close. It wouldn’t have taken much.
I could have gripped her neck and tilted her head back. Leaning down, I could have brushed my lips against hers. She would have gasped, unsure of what to make of it. But, even in her confusion, her nipples would have swelled. Her breathing would have sped in what she would claim was nerves, but we’d both know that it was pure and erotic desire. Her feet would shuffle forward until those round breasts were compressed against my abs. Her hands would immediately snake around my waist for balance just before her eyes fluttered shut in invitation.
I wouldn’t kiss her yet. No. I’d simply watch her face soften and her lips part in anticipation. Sliding my free hand up her side, I’d whisper my breath across her mouth, denying us both the contact we so desperately needed. Goose bumps would pebble her otherwise smooth skin as I made my way up to cup her jaw. Then I’d graze my thumb over her plump bottom lip until her tongue peeked out to dampen it. With a deep breath, I’d fill my lungs with the intoxicating mixture of champagne and Liv James—holding it impossibly long for no other reason than it had once been hers. I’d continue to ghost my lips over hers, torturing us both, until her eyes finally opened, dark with need. She would whisper my name as a question, and then and only then, when I was positive she was drenched, primed, and ablaze, would I crush my mouth over hers for the first time.
Deep.
Languid.
Hard.
Reverent.
Liv.
“Oh my God!” she yelled, snapping me back to reality. Throwing her arms around my neck, she pulled me in for a tight celebratory hug.
Meanwhile, the warmth in my chest disappeared as I mourned the loss of a moment that had never truly been mine to claim.
I had to get over this bullshit with her.
Or…figure out a way to get her on the same page as me.
Both seemed equally as impossible.
Fighting Solitude is Book Three in the On The Ropes Series by Aly Martinez and is Quarry’s highly anticipated story releasing February 2nd!
**Each book in the series can be read as a standalone**
Blurb
**Special Pre-order Pricing!**
I was born a fighter. Abandoned by my parents, I spent my life forging my own path—one guided by my fists and paved with pain.
Untouchable in the ring, I destroyed everyone who faced me, but that’s where my victories ended. Outside the ropes, I repeatedly failed the few people who loved me. Including my best friend, Liv James—the one person I’d die to protect.
Even though I didn’t deserve her, Liv never stopped believing in me. Never gave up. Never let go. After all, she understood what I’d lost, because she’d lost it too.
Liv was everything to me, but she was never truly mine.
That was going to change.
I lost my first love, but I refused to lose my soulmate.
Now, I’m on the ropes during the toughest battles of my life.
Born and raised in Savannah, Georgia, Aly Martinez is a stay-at-home mom to four crazy kids under the age of five, including a set of twins. Currently living in South Carolina, she passes what little free time she has reading anything and everything she can get her hands on, preferably with a glass of wine at her side.
After some encouragement from her friends, Aly decided to add “Author” to her ever-growing list of job titles. Five books later, she shows no signs of slowing. So grab a glass of Chardonnay, or a bottle if you’re hanging out with Aly, and join her aboard the crazy train she calls life.
Everybody in Elkhart has a secret and if they say they don’t, they’re lying. Three years have passed since Tristan Morrow returned home after her harrowing kidnapping ordeal with her former English teacher, Bernard Kendricks. A sense of peace has taken over the Morrow Manor, but it will not last forever. A killer of women is on the loose in Elkhart and has already claimed the lives of two young women. Will DiNolfo and her officers catch the killer before a third victim is claimed? When their three main suspects turn out to be innocent, the Elkhart Police Department is at a loss until a citizen comes forward with some crucial information: Tristan Morrow knows who is responsible for the murders. But does the information come too late? And how does this relate to the murder case of Tiffany O’Mara? Tristan soon learns that not even the dead can keep their secrets buried forever.
Antonio “Don” Cortez has been running Vegas for most of his life. After taking over the city, he’s left with a lonely life, living through his family and thinking there’s nothing more.
Peaches is looking to take Vegas for as much as she can before she skips town. She’s counting cards and raking in the money until she catches the eye of the owner of the Golden Peacock casino.
What happens when something ignites inside Don that he’s never felt before? What happens when this sassy southern belle finally meets her match?
A virginity auction…obviously!
Warning: Don is immediately lost to Peaches, and insta-love is ablaze. This story includes their over-the-top HEA and a bonus story at the end…the Madame of the Auction finally gets her turn. It’s a ridiculous ride, so grip those Kindles tight!
Looking down at the computer screen, I clench my fists a little tighter. The cool glass of my desk does nothing to ease the burn running through my veins. It takes everything in me not to reach out and touch the screen.
When I hear the door to my office open, I don’t even have to look up to know who it is.
“Sir, she’s on the casino floor,” Dawson, my head of security, informs me. His tone is flat like it always is, never giving anything away. Finally pulling my eyes from the screen, I give him a nod, and he turns to leave. After he closes the door behind him, I finally break, reaching out to touch the screen and run my finger across her face.
Dawson didn’t have to tell me she’s here. I knew she was. In fact, I’ve known where she was for the past three weeks. Since the day she strolled into my casino and walked right past me without a second look, her arm locked around another man’s arm. I growl at the reminder.
For the first time in my life, jealousy surged through my body. It coursed in my veins as I followed them through the casino, needing to get closer to her. Listening to the laugh that drowned out the sounds of the rest of the casino. It was infectious and so full of life. Just like she was. She pulled attention to her as she walked, chatting away, completely unaware of me. I couldn’t make out her words until I’d gotten a little closer. Her deep southern accent hit me like a shot of something strong. It burned through my body, all the way down to the pit of my stomach, warming me from the inside out and making my dick come to life.
I knew from that moment I was in trouble. I was completely and utterly fucked. I tried to fight it, a fight I knew I was going to lose, which was something I was not accustomed to. I needed to put myself out of my misery and finally take what I needed. She was going to be a fight because I knew what she was the first night I saw her. The man she had her arm wrapped around had no idea, but I could tell. From the subtle tics of her jaw when he’d whisper in her ear, to the fake smile she gave him that he never seemed to notice. He was her bank roll. She was using him, and for some reason the idea both pissed me off and turned me on. I would enjoy her using me in any way she saw fit.
I grab my suit jacket from the back of my chair and slip it on as I make my way out of my office. My assistant, Jen, stands, grabbing a pile of papers off her desk. Her stick-straight black hair doesn’t move as she goes to follow me to the elevator. I’m sure she wants to go down a list of items she needs to go over with me. I’m being slack at work, and it’s driving her crazy, and for the first time in my life I don’t care. I have an army of employees; they can handle it. It’s what I pay them to do.
I hold my hand out as the elevator arrives, letting her know I’ll be taking it alone.
“Handle it,” is all I say as the elevator doors start to close. I see a scowl form on her brow, but she quickly smooths it away, replacing it with a fake irritated smile. I know she wants to say something, but she won’t. She’s already tried once, and I quickly shut her down. I’m not sure anyone could talk me off this ledge. In fact, I’m going to jump off it right now.
I make my way across the casino and head straight for the blackjack table. When I spot her, I stop a few steps back and watch her while she plays. She’s counting cards as she laughs with the table, everyone charmed by her. Her slow sweet accent seems to pull everyone in.
She keeps coming back here around every three days or so. Maybe she thinks the Golden Peacock is an easy mark, and letting her win hundreds of thousands of dollars. In truth, I’ve been on to her from the very beginning, I just didn’t care. I wanted her coming back, and I didn’t care what it cost me as she stole from my casino. Furthermore, I wanted her to be comfortable and not to feel the need to have to bring in a bank roll to hide behind, because that’s what she’d been doing that first night. I know if I see her on another man’s arm I might lose it. My obsession has grown too much now. I already see her as mine.
She plays the part of a woman who doesn’t really know what she’s doing while a high roller pays for her chips as she starts to rob us. The high roller has no idea what she’s up to. She’s probably charmed him, and he’d eaten up the idea of a night on the town with her. I could understand that, too. There wasn’t much I wouldn’t do to get close to her. For example, that night, and every night since, I made sure she went home alone. Which, oddly enough, was a room at a casino.
I had her followed that first night, and since then all I can tell is she seems to jump from hotel to hotel. I’d finally gotten her to stay here as I had a casino host offer her a suite. I had no idea how long she planned to stay, but I’d already worked out that little kink after the first week of seeing her. She had this habit of ditching her cellphone every forty-eight hours. I’d tracked one only to have it end up in a trash can. I quickly learned where she had been getting new ones. Always the same store.
I own two casinos, seven nightclubs, and God knows how many fucking restaurants, but this was my first cell store. I bought it, placing one of my own security team members at the counter, and every new phone she got had a little bonus just for me. Like I said, I already knew she was on the casino floor before Dawson walked into my office because I always knew where she was. Always.
The older gentleman on the other side of the table says something to her, making her throw her head back and laugh. Her thick blonde curls bounce with the movement. I’ve lived in Vegas my whole life. Beautiful women are everywhere. You can’t turn around without running into one, even more so when you’re as rich as I am. But now, well into my forties, women don’t seem to hold the same appeal they used to.
She’s different. She doesn’t look like any of them. She has a beauty of her own, and it’s one I’ve never seen before. Her body is lush and full of life just like her. I want to pull her curvy softness to my body and make her give me that big laugh. Feel it run through my body as her warmth molds into me. Everything about her is full. Like you could grab onto any part of her and dig in.
She’s young, too young for me. She’s barely old enough to be in the casino. I’d told myself that was why I should stay away from her. But if she wants to play with the big boys and steal from my casino, she’ll have to deal with me.
It feels like she’s woken me up from a haze I hadn’t realized I’d fallen into. I don’t know what her big plan is, but this time she might have bitten off more than she can chew. She may have been able to ditch other men easily after getting what she wanted from them, but that wouldn’t be the case with me. I’m going to lock myself so deep into her she’ll never escape.
Maybe it has something to do with the fact that everyone around me is falling in love. I’d never really thought of having a woman of my own, but now it feels like my whole body needs it. Aches for her.
It’s an ache so deep it’s starting to feel like it has no bottom to it. That all these years I’d spent building this life and working my way to the top would mean nothing if I couldn’t have her.
I stay rooted in my spot as I watch her work. Winning hand after hand after hand.
As if she feels my stare, she turns slightly, her eyes meeting mine. We both just look at one another, neither of us making another move. Her eyes roam over me like she’s sizing me up. I’ve always tried to make sure she never sees me, but time is up. I’m claiming what I want.
She could spend her days counting cards in my casino all she wants. As long as she spends her nights under me as she begs me to take her, begs me to make her mine.
The last thought knocks the air out of my lungs. I want her to be mine. Not just for a night; a night would never be enough. I haven’t even touched her and I know I’ll never get enough. There will be no sating my need for her.
She bites her lip as her eyes meet mine. I bet I was the one thing she didn’t count on.
Alexa Riley is two sassy friends who got together and wrote some dirty books. They are both married moms of two who love football, donuts, and obsessed book heroes.
They specialize in insta-love, over-the-top, sweet, and cheesy love stories that don’t take all year to read. If you want something SAFE, short, and always with a happily ever after, then Alexa Riley is for you!
“You know what I think it is?” “I don’t really care,” I state, but I am curious. “You want me.” He says it so softly I barely hear him. Glancing in my mirror, he’s looking down, his face unreadable, his tone serious. “Don’t flatter yourself,” I respond curtly, trying to stay resilient. I’ve seen the girls who are associated with his club; he’s a player and is telling me what I want to hear. He grunts, a smile breaking across his face. “You’re telling me you didn’t like me kissing you the other night? That my hand up your shirt didn’t light a fire in those little panties of yours?” His tone is arrogant. My body responds, my nipples hardening, craving to have his rough touch one more time. Goddamn him, why can’t he shut up? “I was drunk,” I defend, looking out the windshield. The car goes quiet, and I’m thankful; his confrontation made me uncomfortable. “Hey, Rookie?” “Hmm?” I look in the rearview mirror to see his face. His mouth is parted, the corner of one lip curved slightly as he looks downward. “How sore do you think you’ll be after I’m done fucking you?”
As the president of the Sin City Outlaw Motorcycle Club, l fuck as hard as I ride and rarely go to bed alone.
The women are fast and the violence is intense.
I excel in both.
People either respect me or fear me. I’m not arrogant. It’s just the truth.
I was a king, reigning over Vegas without complication, until one gorgeous sheriff made everything fall apart.
When I saw her, I became a Neanderthal, wanting nothing more than to be between those legs.
I guess that’s where I went wrong, because my reality was shot to hell real
fucking fast.
One kiss caused her to step over that blue line.
One night in her bed made me a traitor.
And now… we’re both screwed.
About the Author
M.N. Forgy was raised in Missouri where she still lives with her family. She’s a soccer mom by day and a saucy writer by night. M.N. Forgy started writing at a young age but never took it seriously until years later, as a stay-at-home mom, she opened her laptop and started writing again. As a role model for her children, she felt she couldn’t live with the “what if” anymore and finally took a chance on her character’s story. So, with her glass of wine in hand and a stray Barbie sharing her seat, she continues to create and please her fans.
A-Train
is HERE! #1 Best Selling Author, Scott Hildreth, brings you his New Release,HARD CORPS,Selected
Sinners MC, VII.
The
making of a man…
From young man to
Marine…
From Marine to
human…
Who learns to
feel again…
Who learns to
love…
Again….
Title:HARD CORPS
Author:Scott Hildreth
Release Date:January 18, 2016
Series:Selected Sinners MC, Book VII
Cover Designer: Jessica Hildreth
Synopsis
My brother brought a Marine war hero home from the gym for Sunday dinner. His body was perfectly sculpted, he was a Marine, a biker, and very handsome. I immediately found him intriguing. It wasn’t any of those attributes that garnered my full attention. It was when he said he protected all people – at home and abroad – that he had my interest.
Born
in San Diego California, Scott now calls Wichita, Kansas home. Residing in
Kansas with his wife, Jessica, and six children, he somehow finds twelve hours
a day to work on his writing.Addicted to riding his Harley-Davidson, tattoos, and drinking coffee, Scott can
generally be found in a tattoo shop, on his Harley, or in a local coffee house
when not writing.
Loyal to the fans, fan girls, and faithful followers who allowed him to make
writing a full-time career, Scott communicates with his followers on Facebook
almost daily. He encourages his readers to follow him on Facebook and Twitter.
Twitter:
@ScottDHildrethFace book “OFFICIAL LIKE” page – (for updates on released books and upcoming
books)
www.facebook.com/ScottDHildrethFacebook Author Page – (currently at 5,000 friend limit, but Scott invites you
to come enjoy his contests, giveaways, and playful book banter)
Isadora Nikitas understands what it means to be betrayed. That lesson was taught to her in the prime of her life, and when she is offered a chance to exact revenge, she finds it difficult to refuse. Instead, she entrusts her survival to a mysterious vampire known only as Diomêdês, a male who wants nothing in return but to watch over her—in every way imaginable.
Gifted with speed, strength, and immortality, she determines that her life will no longer be governed by the needs and wants of a mere man. She has cowered for the last time, and with her Ancient by her side, she thrives and blossoms into the most formidable female vampire in existence.
But, once upon a time, like all little girls, Isadora believed in love. She believed it because she once had it. So, when it comes along a second time, she knows that it’s possible—but when you love someone, they become your weakness. Unless, in fact, they become your enemy instead…
A MYSTERIOUS PAST…
Fulfilling your life’s prophecy should be empowering. At least, that’s what Elias Fontana always believed. But, as he stands guard over the beautiful vampire he’s taken hostage, his convictions start to crumble. Made to believe by his creators that he and two others have been designed to destroy a dangerous race, he has difficulty connecting his current reality to the woman he once loved.
A TANGLED TALE TO UNRAVEL…
When friends become enemies and enemies become lovers, who can you trust in the webs of lies and despair? And, when your life is at stake and blood has been shed, how much are you willing to sacrifice to fulfill your destiny?
I fell in love with Masters Among Monsters Series when I had the opportunity to readAlasdair, I will tell you now that Isadora just increase that love for this series. Ella Franks has a way of delivering a great story that keeps you wanting more every time. I didn’t want to put this book down to go to work or anything else for that matter.
You pick up where Alasdair left off. Isadora has come to face many things in life. One of those things has caused her to trust few people. She is forced to face a point in her life that she thought she long ago she had buried. Can Isadora learn to love again or is this part of her dead along with the heart that once use to beat in her chest. Just when you think you have figured it out something else seems to come up and makes you question if your thoughts are on the right track.
I have to say that I love the suspense and cliffhangers this book gives you. What more could you really want. You are brought to the edge of the cliff and left to dangle till the next book. Great read and looking forward to the next book on pins and needles!
ALASDAIR KYRIAKOUS LOOKED over to where his human yielding lay stretched out beneath his Ancient and marveled at the predicament he now faced.
The depraved image on his bed had his cock standing at full attention as he walked closer to the scene that was unraveling. A feeding. And not just any feeding. One between the most formidable of their kind, Vasilios, and a human who he wasn’t fully convinced was human at all.
Tension filled the bedchamber, and Alasdair understood that one wrong move, one misspoken word, and the man he’d had his dick inside minutes earlier would be dead before he ever found out what he really was.
Although Vasilios was fully clothed, he was a shocking sight to behold. Covered in blood from the earlier butchery in Thanos’s chambers, he appeared every bit the savage he was. But that didn’t seem to faze Leonidas Chapel. Even naked and vulnerable as the man currently was, Leo was still enraptured by Vasilios.
Alasdair had previously suspected it, but that right there was proof positive. The sinful, wicked side of their nature, the killer instincts they possessed, intrigued this human. With every new detail Leo learned, he became more attracted and more involved. So much so that, when his life had been in danger, he’d offered them the use of him in any way they desired.
Leo was fearless.
Much like he himself had been when he had been mortal, and that made Alasdair…protective.
“Vasilios,” he said.
When his sire pivoted towards him, Alasdair had to tread carefully.
“Yes, agóri?”
Fuck, he knew that tone. It was Vasilios’s version of you dare interrupt me?
“Be mindful,” Alasdair said. “He is not like other humans.”
“Which is exactly the reason this must be done. This way, we will know where he is, what he is thinking, and I can bring him to me whenever I desire…” Vasilios turned back to Leo and trailed the tip of his bloodied finger along his cheek.
Leo’s lips parted.
“Wouldn’t that be a treat for you, human? To come to me—and for me—whenever I command it?”
Alasdair’s cock throbbed under Vasilios’s sensual tone, and when Leo arched off the bed, he knew that the invitation was affecting him in much the same way. He didn’t need to verbally respond—Leo’s body was speaking for him.
“You were right to keep him, Alasdair.”
Alasdair climbed onto the mattress so his knees were by their heads, and when Vasilios straightened to straddle Leo’s waist, he took Alasdair’s mouth in a possessive kiss.
He opened to his sire’s demanding lips, and as their tongues battled for dominance, Leo groaned underneath them. Alasdair pulled his head back and found Leo stroking his thick shaft.
So needy, file mou, he pushed into his mind. Are you sure you understand what you are offering?
A frown furrowed Leo’s brow, but the flush on his cheeks made Alasdair aware that, even though he might not have understood the finer details of his offer, he did understand he would get access to the both of them.
“He is different,” Vasilios nipped at Alasdair’s jaw. “And I want him to be ours.”
Leo was focused on the two of them, and when his teeth clenched and he gave a stiff nod, Alasdair relented.
“Then that is what he shall be.”
“So, you agree?” Vasilios asked as he lifted his head.
“Would it matter if I said no?”
When Vasilios arched an eyebrow, it gave Alasdair his answer, but his sire was quick to add, “Not particularly. However, I would prefer your acceptance.”
“Then be at ease. I want nothing more than to give you what you desire.”
“Ahh, agóri, you always know exactly how to please me. I shall endeavor to reciprocate the gesture. Keep him here. I shall return.”
Vasilios faded in an instant, and as Leo moved to his elbows, Alasdair shook his head. If he knew his sire, he would be back in less than—“Ahh, yes”—a second.
“Now, where were we?” Vasilios asked from where he’d reappeared—kneeling over Leo, minus all of his bloodied clothes, and clean as if he’d taken a lengthy shower.
This was a first for them. They had shared many lovers in the past, but never had they joined with another or fed another their blood with the sole purpose of connecting their lives. And Alasdair wondered where they would go from there.
A DANGEROUS ALLURE Bestowed with eternal life by the Ancient Vasilios, Alasdair Kyriakous is one of the most feared and ruthless vampires in existence. His name carries weight across all of the seven continents.
But he is a mystery to his kind, an anomaly among the self-indulgent. While he enjoys the pleasures of the flesh, he is exceptionally particular in his choice of partners and prides himself on his ironclad self-control.
Yet with one look his control will become a thing of the past, and Alasdair will discover that eternal life doesn’t always last forever…
A DEADLY ATTRACTION Thrust into a world he could never have imagined, Leo Chapel awakens in his worst nightmare. Taken hostage by the dangerously mesmerizing vampire, Alasdair, Leo must rely on his intelligence to escape before he reveals a secret he isn’t even aware he’s hiding.
A FORBIDDEN DESIRE Unaware that they’ve been brought together by an outside force and are little more than pawns to a higher power, Alasdair and Leo spend time trying to uncover the other’s secrets, the attraction between them growing stronger all the while.
But enemies are watching and preparing to act against them. When decisions that will alter lives and destinies have to be made—can a dead, grey heart learn to beat again?
About the Author
Ella Frank is the author of the #1 Bestselling Temptation series, including Try, Take, and Trust and is the co-author of the fan-favorite erotic serial, A Desperate Man. Her Exquisite series has been praised as “scorching hot!” and “enticingly sexy!”
A life-long fan of the romance genre, Ella writes contemporary, M/M romance and erotic fiction and lives with her husband in Portland, OR. You can reach her on the web atwww.ellafrank.comand on Facebook at www.facebook.com/ella.frank.author
Sign up here to receive the latest information on Ella’s upcoming book releases, ARC opportunities, sales & events!
Is evil learned, or is it birthed into one’s soul, like a fallen angel who was previously part of graciousness?Rhys is decayed, black, and bad. He cut distortion out of his life years before, but he let her live; his only way to gain redemption once more.As his sinful needs blanket him with dread, he seeks penance from the soul he saw as a second chance.Is absolution too late for Rhys?**Warning, dark scenes depicted heavily throughout this novel. Read the Author’s disclaimer carefully before proceeding with this title.**
When I ran back home, I wasn’t prepared for the reminders of him everywhere I turned. I certainly never expected Keegan to follow. I thought I made myself clear – we were through. I didn’t want anything to do with him. But, he inserted himself back into my life, and there was nothing I could do.
I pushed he pulled.
I ran and he chased me.
I cried and he wiped away the tears.
He just wouldn’t give up, and the battle my head and my heart are waging, is one I don’t want to be a part of. You see my head says be strong, but my heart is saying I belong to him, and always will.
What does one do when her heart can easily forgive, yet her head refuses to.
Can Keegan, and I restore our fairy tale, or will our story be closed for good?
When I wake in the morning there is no confusion about where I am or who I am cuddled up with. I knew the moment he whispered in my ears last night that I would wake up in his arms.
Keegan’s grip on me is tight, like he’s afraid that I’ll try to escape. The rise and fall of his chest against me is soothing. As I lie awake, I recall the events of last night. His sweet words were my downfall. You would think that since I am sure of his feelings, we could continue our fairy tale. I wish it were that easy, but it’s not. Do we need more time? Is this time we have here together enough for me to forgive him? This is why I need girlfriends, ones I can run to when I need advice, girls I trust. There’s Reese, but hello, she’s practically part of the James family now. A fact that is still so surreal to me.
Keegan is waking up. His breathing isn’t as deep any longer, and his body is suddenly stiff, as if he’s afraid to move and wake me.
He nuzzles my neck and sighs. His grip on me tightens, and I consider pretending I’m asleep just to see how this whole spooning-and-the-morning–after thing plays out. Unfortunately, someone else is awake as well.
“Busted.”
“Morning, Dad.”
“Morning, Rick.” Keegan follows my greeting.
My father is staring down at us, and I’m reminded of the times he caught Keegan in my room when we were younger. He’s trying to be bothered by our sleeping arrangement, but he isn’t really.
“You know, there are perfectly comfortable beds upstairs for both of you to sleep in separately.” He emphasizes the separate part. He walks out of the room, and we both let out the laughter we have been holding in.
“I hope you slept comfortably,” Keegan says.
Surprisingly, I don’t even remember being uncomfortable, or waking. Which proves the kind of effect his touch has on me. It’s like a drug; if they could bottle it up I’d be addicted.
“Actually, I was in someone’s death grip all night.” I smile.
“I didn’t hurt you, did I?” I can hear the concern in his voice.
“Of course not, I’m just kidding.” I almost make the mistake of telling him it felt nice, and beg him to not let go. Thankfully my brain takes over, and I don’t.
I sit up and put both my feet on the floor. I smile at him, noticing that he hasn’t shaved in a couple days. I’ve never seen him with stubble before, and I have to look away, imagining what it would feel like across my skin.
“I’m going to start coffee and make breakfast,” I tell him as I remove myself from our cozy shelter. We both know that last night’s sleeping arrangements aren’t permanent. No matter how good it felt to be in his arms.
About The Author
Mindy has been in love with love, as long as she can remember. As a child, you could find Mindy engrossed in fairytale books and dreaming of her happily ever after. She was lucky enough to find her prince charming and lives in Ohio with him and her four precarious children.
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