Felicity Heaton's Blog, page 58

Teaseday – Heart of Darkness – vampire romance book

 

Today’s tease comes from the book Heart of Darkness, which is a stand alone vampire romance novel, and a book that features one of my favourite heroes, the vampire prince Aleksandr. I’ve shared a tease from this book before, and now I’m going to share one of my favourite moments in the book… and if Aleksandr doesn’t melt you, I don’t know who can!

She chafed her hands to keep the cold off them. Aleksandr stopped, removed his long coat, and placed it around her shoulders.

“You are injured, you need this more than I do.” She went to take it off but his grip on her shoulders tightened, not allowing her to.

The look in his eyes said not to refuse him this kindness. She lowered her head, ashamed that she didn’t have the strength to go against him. His white shirt and trousers wouldn’t keep him warm and he needed his energy to heal. She lifted the coat so the hem didn’t drag on the damp floor as she walked with him. She would wear it a while and find a way to convince him that she was warm enough and he could have his coat back, even though she was freezing.

Elise stopped walking again. What was wrong with her? Most women would be pleased by his attention so why did she fight him so much? She wasn’t trying to refuse his kind offer of his coat because he would be cold and he was injured. She wanted to refuse it because she feared the attention from him. Was she really so afraid of losing her heart to him that she was going to push him away and give up whatever small chance she had with him? It was childish of her to fear such things and to flee his attention. She was in love with him and wanted him more than anything. Any other woman in the world would take whatever he could offer her even if it was only for a short time. Why wasn’t she brave enough to do that?

“Is something the matter?” Aleksandr came back to her, concern in his grey eyes.

Elise cast her gaze downwards and then around her at the garden. It was beautiful tonight. The path glittered like a million diamonds under the white lights around the garden. The heavy clouds carried the scent of snow. The frost on the grass sparkled. It was beautiful and she was ruining what could have been a romantic moment by over-thinking it and fearing her love. She should have been embracing it. She had always thought herself brave but she was a coward. She feared giving her heart to Aleksandr because she believed he wouldn’t give his in return.

“Nothing at all.” She made herself look at him and see him for once. He was handsome, powerful, and he made her feel as no other man in the world had. She wanted him and she only had to say the word and she would have him. “I’m afraid I’m not much company.”

He smiled, wide and charming, a remnant of how he’d looked so many times since they had first met.

“You are more than enough company. We will only walk to the main fountain and back. You needn’t fear. I do not plan to whisk you into the darkness and have my way with you.”

Elise frowned at him. Why not? Perhaps she wanted him to whisk her away and make love to her. Couldn’t he see that in her eyes or hear it in the tremulous beat of her heart?

She looked ahead at the larger fountain at the head of the long rectangular pond. The white-lit jet of water reached high into the air and thundered down, punching a hole in the ice. It wasn’t a long walk at all to there and back. Maybe she wanted to be out with him longer than that.

Maybe he didn’t want to be with her longer than that though. Was he in a hurry to get back to Ladislav and his brother? Or was it the women who awaited him there who had his attention?

She huffed and walked on at a brisk pace. Aleksandr caught up with her and she tried to ignore him, wanting their walk to be over quickly, but he captivated her. He strode beside her, his chin tilted up and his focus on the distance. Her heart beat faster at the sight of him. She wanted him.

He was gone.

Elise frowned and then bit her lip to stop herself from laughing when she looked down and saw him sitting in the middle of a sheet of ice. The water from the main fountain sprayed towards them, causing a slick on the path in the chill night air.

“Are you hurt?” she said in a tight voice, barely able to contain her laughter.

“Only my pride,” he muttered and cast a dark glare at the ice and then looked up at her. “It is good to see you smile. Shall I stand and slip again?”

She shook her head. “No, I don’t want you hurting your shoulder.”

Elise offered her hand to him. He took it, gripping her close to her elbow, and she grasped his forearm. A vampire with his skill shouldn’t have fallen so easily, at least not if they had been paying any attention at all to their surroundings. She had sensed the danger of the ice before they had reached it. Why hadn’t he?

He pulled himself onto his feet and ended up very close to her, so near that his legs were against hers. Elise tilted her head back and met his gaze. There was warmth in his eyes, a hint of a smile that brought hers back out again.

“What were you thinking to fall like that?”

His smile widened. “I believe I was attempting to impress you by appearing noble and handsome.”

Elise laughed. Aleksandr didn’t.

She fell quiet, realising that he had been serious. A smile worked its way back onto her lips.

“You looked very noble on your backside,” she said almost under her breath.

He laughed and she realised that it was the first time she had heard him laugh properly without bitterness or forcing it. It had a nice timbre to it and warmth that made her want to giggle along with him.

Aleksandr stopped laughing and looked up at the sky. Elise followed his gaze and her lips parted when she saw the large flakes of snow falling from the darkness. Each flake caught in the white lights illuminating the garden. There was something magical about snow at night when it floated and swirled its way down to the ground on a light breeze. It enthralled her but not enough that it stopped her from looking at Aleksandr. He was watching the snow, a beautiful look of fascination on his face. Why did she resist him so much?

It dawned on her that it wasn’t just the fact that he might leave her. It was his strength that frightened her. She feared that he would control her and change her.

He already was changing her.

Aleksandr looked down at her, the fascinated look in his eyes increasing and then changing to hold a spark of warmth and desire, passion that called to her own and filled her mind with erotic images of them together.

“You brought the snow with you,” she whispered, unable to tear her eyes away from his and unafraid of anything that might happen.

He smiled, his perfect sensual mouth enticing her, and said, “I am not that cold.”

Elise swallowed when he feathered a caress down her cheek and along her jaw to her neck. A shiver danced through her and her body responded, heating outward from her core. His touch ran so deeply, as though he was reaching down to her heart. She wanted to resist but there was black magic in it, a spell that she could only respond to.

His fingers paused on her throat, his gaze intent on it.

“I want you,” he whispered and Elise could feel the depth of his desire, could sense his body calling to hers.

Aleksandr removed his hand and she felt bereft and cold. She didn’t understand. He wanted her so why was he distancing himself?

“In time, you will come to me willingly, without fear or reservation. That is the only way that I want you.” He leaned in and disappointment flooded her when he only kissed her cheek.

Her eyes closed and she stood there with his lips against her cheek and her heart crying out for more. His breath teased her neck and she shivered again.

“Tell me you want me too and that this is not a fool’s game,” he whispered in a strained voice and she sensed the switch in his emotions, feeling the same intense vulnerability she had this morning when they had been together in his rooms. “I never lose but I am beginning to think that I might lose my hunt for you. You are wily prey who outwits me at every turn.”

He sighed and ran his hands down her arms to hers, taking hold of them and placing her right one on the hilt of his dagger where it hung at his hip and her other hand against his chest.

“Kill me now if that is your intent,” he murmured into her ear. Her heart raced. He couldn’t be serious. “Silence me forever if you could never love me.”

 

Did you enjoy today’s tease?

Manday Hotties – Kick off April with some gorgeous new mancandy!

 

I can’t believe that it’s April already! It’s time for the Manday Hotties Hop again and I’m continuing to bring you gorgeous new mancandy this year. I have three hot new men for you to ogle today…

 



 





 

 

Which shot is your favourite? I’m torn, but #2 is edging into the lead today.

 

Visit the other blogs in the hop:

 

Sensual Sunday – Hot excerpt from Covet (Vampire Erotic Theatre romance series book 1)

 

Sensual Sunday is brought to you today by Covet, which is the first book in my popular Vampire Erotic Theatre romance series. Sensual Sunday’s always feature a hot excerpt from one of my paranormal romance books, and this week it’s a scorcher! Read on for this Sunday’s sensual snippet…

 

Lilah almost covered her mouth to contain her moan as Javier squeezed her breasts, thumbing her nipples through the black material of her dress. She leaned back into him, trying to keep her eyes on the show, struggling to focus on it as he had told her to when he was setting her aflame with his touch. He groaned against her throat and licked the nape of her neck again, tickling and teasing her.

Her eyelids dropped when he skimmed his hands downwards, pressing them in hard when he reached her stomach and flattening his palms against her. He continued this time, his mouth dropping to the back of her shoulder as his hands reached the end of the skirt of her dress. He moaned again, apparently uncaring that there was an audience below them, watching the same show that she was. It was exciting to do this with him in the privacy of the box, courting the risk of someone seeing them, watching them as everyone else watched the performance.

He muttered something about the feel of her thighs and the sight of her in the dress and swept his hands along the length of her bare arms. She frowned when he lifted her hands and placed them on the curved edge of the box and held them there. He pressed his body against the full length of hers, resting his chin on her shoulder.

“Still watching?” he whispered and she nodded, her eyes fixed on the three couples below. They were writhing together now, swapping partners, an erotic vision of lust as they licked, palmed, suckled and touched each other on the decadent gold and red set. Her breathing quickened again, chest heaving against the tight dress, her body alive with hunger and need, with the ache to feel Javier’s hands on her flesh, re-enacting what was happening below them on the stage.

Javier skimmed his strong hands down to her hips and raised her short skirt, his fingers curling the material into his fists. He tugged it up to her waist and slipped his hands downwards again, caressing her thighs. She gasped as he cupped her mound, holding it and drawing her backwards. He ground himself against her backside, the material of his trousers like silk against her bottom. He was so hard and she was so wet for him, throbbing with the need to feel him inside her, filling her just as the men on stage were filling the women with their long rigid cocks.

His hand shifted against her, rubbing her through her panties, worsening her ache for him. His other hand caressed upwards, trailing over her thigh and skimming along the waist of her underwear. He kissed her shoulder and whispered dark things against her skin, things that only made her want him even more.

“Do you want me inside you like that?” he breathed into her ear and she stared at the men on stage, watching as they took the women from behind, some of them bent over the red leather couches. She swallowed but could only manage a short moan as her response. “I want to be inside you. I’ve wanted it forever.”

God. She wanted it too.

She quivered under his erotic touch, writhing against his hand, seeking some relief from the pressure building inside her. She imagined what it would feel like when he finally claimed her body, plunging his cock in hard, his strong arms caging her against his body. It would be more arousing than anything she was seeing on the stage. She only hoped that this private performance didn’t end as the one below was due to—with bloodshed and death.

“Keep watching,” Javier whispered and then kissed her ear and slipped his hand into the front of her panties.

Lilah gasped and moaned, her breath hitching in her throat at the first touch of his fingers. He slid his hand into her plush wet petals, teasing her clit, and she leaned backwards into him, melting in his arms. He held her and ground against her backside again, thrusting harder this time.

“So wet,” he groaned and bit her neck with blunt teeth, staying there a moment as though he couldn’t bear to move. He swirled his finger around her, then growled and suddenly pulled his hand out.

Lilah jumped and clutched the edge of the box as he yanked her panties down to her ankles. He was rough as he pulled them off, tugging each of her feet up so swiftly that she almost fell. Her heart thundered, blood rushing through her head, colliding with her need for him and making her dizzy. He pushed the skirt of her dress up and groaned again as he kneaded her backside.

He came to stand behind her and she shivered when she heard him unzip his trousers.

 

Did you enjoy today’s hot little snippet?

 

Caris Roane is also posting a Sensual Sunday snippet from one of her paranormal romance books, so be sure to check out her blog and read it! http://carisroane.com/

 

Covet

Felicity Heaton

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

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

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

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

Available in e-book from:

Author’s website

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

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

Barnes and Noble | Kobo Books | Sony Reader Store | Smashwords | All Romance eBooks

 

Available in paperback from:

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

 

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

Covet (Vampire Erotic Theatre Romance Series #1)

Crave (Vampire Erotic Theatre Romance Series #2)

Seduce (Vampire Erotic Theatre Romance Series #3)

Enslave (Vampire Erotic Theatre Romance Series #4)

Bewitch (Vampire Erotic Theatre Romance Series #5)

 

Snippet Saturday – Author’s Choice – Love Immortal (A Vampire Romance Novel)

It’s time for Snippet Saturday! Each week has a theme or is author’s choice. This week the theme is Author’s Choice.

This week my snippet comes from Love Immortal, which a stand alone vampire romance novel, and another of my favourite stories.

It’s a shorter snippet this week, finally. This scene takes place on the back of a nightmare during which Julian, a three thousand year old immortal, relived events in his past but with Lauren in place of many of her predecessors. Lauren is the current reincarnation of a demi-goddess and it is his eternal duty to protect and awaken her, but Julian is beginning to realise that there is something different about her, and she is awakening long dead feelings in him.

 

Julian sat up with a jolt, trembling and cold. He couldn’t breathe. He needed to breathe. He needed to escape. He gulped down air so hard it burnt his lungs. His heart hammered against his ribcage, filling his head with a staccato beat. He needed to get to her.

He clawed at the air and then realised there was nothing there. No rubble blocked his path. No dust choked him. No sound of battle came to his ears.

Gradually, the darkness faded, revealing the unlit bedroom surrounding him. He quickly reached across the bed and fumbled with the lamp on the wooden side table there, almost knocking it over. The light was bright when it came on but it was a relief. He should have turned it on when he had come into the room. He shouldn’t have slept in the dark.

Still trembling, he sat back in the middle of his bed on top of the pale green covers and looked down at himself. He must have fallen asleep before undressing. His jaw tensed and he ran shaking fingers through his hair. Images of his nightmare flashed across his mind and he clenched his fists. He wasn’t there. It wasn’t happening again. The pain in his heart reminded him that it had been once and part of his nightmare could come true.

He needed to see her. He had to make sure that Lauren was alive.

Julian swung his legs over the edge of the bed and tried to stand but his knees gave way. He hit the wooden floor hard. Every muscle in his body quivered—weak and tired, unresponsive. He knelt on all fours, breathing hard, and tried to convince himself to move. He had to move. He had to check that Lauren was safe.

He ripped open the twin clasps that held his coat collar closed and sucked in deep breaths. Slow. Steady.

It took every ounce of his will to crawl to the door across the room and pull himself up. He leaned into the cream wall beside it for support, his legs threatening to give out again. He didn’t dare close his eyes. He didn’t want to go back to the darkness, not until he was able to face it, to bear it for her. Several attempts to open the door failed but eventually it gave and he made it out into the hall, his limbs shaking so much that he felt as though he wasn’t in control.

He wasn’t. Panic and fear were. Two emotions that he was too familiar with for his liking. He grew frustrated at himself for being so weak but the sense of need spiralling through him crushed any strength that anger might have given him. Only his need to see her gave him the will to continue and he stumbled on unsteady legs towards her room, leaning heavily against the wall, and then tripped across the hall to her door. He grabbed the handle to stop himself from falling, determined to overcome the weakness infesting him.

The door opened and he fell into the room, hitting the floor hard. His eyes immediately sought out Lauren. He had to see that she was alright. If he could then this feeling of desperation would pass. Fear would no longer rule him. He would be strong again, for her.

She lay on the bed to his right, the blue bedclothes barely covering her breasts. Moonlight cascaded through the crack between one set of curtains and over her skin, highlighting her peaceful face as she slumbered, unaware of his fear and pain. Relief and comfort eased him and gave him the strength to stand. He pushed himself up and crossed the room to her.

Her heart was calm and her breathing was steady. They soothed him. A need surfaced with him, so intense that he couldn’t deny it. He had to touch her. It didn’t matter that it was forbidden. He needed to feel that she was safe and here with him at last. In this moment, he didn’t just want to break the rules, he wanted to shatter them.

Julian hesitated and then reached out and swept the short strands of her red hair from her eyes. The touch became a caress before he could stop himself and he brushed the backs of his fingers across her forehead. Her skin was warm and soft, smooth against his. His hands trembled, his breathing shaky. He was so weak for her, but this time that weakness felt stronger than ever.

Stronger than his weakness for Illia had ever been. He didn’t understand it. Didn’t try to. He just accepted it. Lauren affected him deeper than her predecessors. He needed her.

His frail legs threatened to give out but he refused to leave. He needed to stay a while, to take in the sight of her until he was sure that she was real and it had only been a nightmare.

Lauren rolled her head into his hand. Her face became shadowed but he could still see her, continued to watch her sleep. His heart whispered that he wasn’t strong enough to lose her this time. He absorbed the soft warmth of her against his hand and vowed that he would do anything to protect her. Anything. He wouldn’t fail Lauren.

His breathing slowed and his heartbeat steadied, matching Lauren’s.

He stroked her cheek, fascinated by the satin feel of her skin. Being with her like this made him realise that something had changed in him over the years and filled him with a sense that his feelings had altered in some way. He felt different.

Lauren’s rosy lips parted in a sigh.

She felt different.

Julian ran his fingers over her brow.

She was beautiful in a way none of them had been.

 

Did you enjoy the snippet?

 

More about the book:

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?

 

Available in e-book from:

Author’s website

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

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

Barnes and Noble | Kobo Books | Sony Reader Store | Smashwords | All Romance eBooks

 

Available in paperback from:

Amazon.com | Amazon.co.uk | Barnes and Noble

 

 

Don’t forget to visit the other authors who are participating to read their snippets…

Leah Braemel

Caris Roane

Eliza Gayle

McKenna Jeffries

Taige Crenshaw

Delilah Devlin

Felicity Heaton

HelenKay Dimon

TJ Michaels

Shiloh Walker

Lissa Matthews

Myla Jackson

Shelli Stevens

Mari Carr

Jody Wallace

Lauren Dane

 

Vampirerotique Winter Book Tour – Tour Wrap Up!

The Vampirerotique Winter Book Tour has reached its conclusion and it’s been an amazing fun packed ride filled with character interviews, exclusive excerpts, and author interviews. Thank you to everyone who participated in the tour and came along to comment on the posts and show their support for the series, and a huge thank you to all the wonderful hosts!

Here’s a round-up of the posts, with all the links and information on the latest book in the series. Don’t forget to visit each blog for the individual giveaways they’ll be hosting as some of them are still open!

Don’t forget there’s still time to enter the Grand Giveaway! Just visit the Vampirerotique Winter Book Tour page to enter the Grand Giveaway for your chance to win a $100 or $50 Amazon Gift Card! The giveaway is international and closes on April 5th.

 

Bewitch

Felicity Heaton

A vampire with a past stained with blood and a soul tainted with darkness, he is perfect in his self-control, never surrendering to his darkest desires. Now a beautiful witch in the shadowy fae underworld threatens to reawaken long denied hungers and tempts him with carnal pleasure.

Payne despises the incubus side of his mixed genes and refuses to give it free rein, but when the wickedly sexy Elissa offers him a possible way to help a friend, he finds it difficult to resist paying the price, even if it will be his undoing—one night of passion at her command.

Elissa is a witch down on her luck until Payne comes crashing into her life. The dangerously handsome male is the key to fulfilling a promise she made, but he is also forbidden, and surrendering to the wildfire passion he stirs within her means risking ruin and death.

When one incredible night of fulfilling their deepest fantasies leads to more than just a pathway to keeping a promise and saving a friend, will they be able to overcome the barriers that stand between them and forever?

 

Available in e-book from:

Amazon Kindle Stores:

US/International | UK | Germany | France | Canada

Apple iBookstores:

US | UK | Canada | Australia | New Zealand

Other Retailers:

Author’s website | Kobo Books | Barnes and Noble | Smashwords | All Romance eBooks

(Coming soon to Sony Reader Store)

 

Available in paperback from:

Amazon.com | Amazon.co.uk | Barnes and Noble

 

Vampirerotique Winter Book Tour Dates

jan30th
Paranormal Haven
Welcome to the world of Vampirerotique
jan31st
Book Savvy Babe
Introducing Bewitch
feb1st
AwesomeSauce Book Club
Interview with Javier
feb4th
Paranormal Cravings
Introducing Covet plus excerpt
feb6th
Bex N Books
Author interview
feb8th
United by Books-
Interview with Callum
feb10th
Sassy Book Lovers
Exclusive Excerpt
feb11th
GraveTells
Special interview with Payne at Vampirerotique
feb14th
Page Flipperz
Interview with Snow
feb15th
Reading Between The Wines
Character Love Letters – Love Letter from Snow to You
feb18th
Romancing the Dark Side
Introducing Crave plus excerpt
feb20th
I Smell Sheep
Alpha Male Diner with Payne
feb22nd
The Jeep Diva
Exclusive Sexy Excerpt
feb24th
Riverina Romantics
Exclusive Excerpt
feb25th
Underworld Love Addiction
Interview with Lilah
feb27th
Lucy Felthouse
Interview with Varya
mar4th
Secret Sanctuary of Books
Interview with Payne
mar5th
My Blog
Introducing Seduce plus Excerpt
mar6th
Book Lovers Hideaway
Interview with Sera
mar8th
Cocktails and Books
Interview with Andreu
mar11th
Close Encounters with the Night Kind
Writing the series
mar13th
Full Moon Bites
Introducing Enslave plus Excerpt
mar14th
The Book Nympho
Interview with Elissa
mar15th
Under the Covers Book Blog
Interview with Kristina
mar18th
Romance Book Junkies
Creating the world of the Vampire Erotic Theatre romance series
mar20th
Fangtastic Books
Interview with Antoine
mar25th
Reading the Paranormal
Exclusive Bewitch Excerpt
mar27th
Fictional Candy
What’s next in the Vampire Erotic Theatre romance series
mar29th
My Blog
Vampirerotique Winter Book Tour wrap up

Did you enjoy the tour? What has been your favourite moment?

 

Teaseday – Seventh Circle (Vampires Realm romance series book 7) teaser excerpt

 

Today’s tease comes from the book Seventh Circle, which is the seventh book in my Vampires Realm romance series. Read on for this Tuesday’s tease… Lilith is a vampire hunter working for Section Seven and stuck with a vampire, Lincoln, because he paid her bosses for her protection. The last thing Lincoln is looking for is love. He has a price on his head and he’s struggling to keep that part of his anatomy stuck to his body, and falling for a human female, especially a hunter, is not on his agenda… but love never did choose wisely…

 

Lincoln stared at the ceiling. Sleep evaded him, chased away by the thousand screaming heartbeats in his head. He clapped a hand over his eyes, wishing to shut the world out. The blood of every human in the building still called to him.

None more than Lilith’s.

He focused on it as it beckoned him, a strong steady melody in his ears, a siren song. His eyes slipped shut behind his hand and a smile teased his lips as he reached out with sharpened senses and listened to her moving around the small apartment. She was muttering to herself about the heat. It was hot in the building. Everyone’s blood was rushing close to the surface, their hearts working overtime to cool their bodies down. It only made them more alluring.

Shifting his focus, he listened to the clanging of metal on metal far below him. Someone was trying to fix the boiler. Its malfunction was obviously the cause of the temporary heat wave.

Lilith cursed again from the other room, loud enough this time that he would’ve heard it if he’d been human.

Her heart thumped rhythmically, pounding in his blood and telling him to go to her. Neither of them could sleep. Perhaps they could begin researching, although it would probably be unwise to disturb her now. When her superior had told her to share her apartment with him, and that his safety was maximum priority, she’d looked as though she’d been chewing a wasp. Her superior had been right. She did despise his kind, as did everyone here. Common sense told him to leave before someone got it into their head to attempt to kill him, and not just make idle threats. His heart said that he had to stay. He had to know if she really was the one.



Sitting up, Lincoln stared at the closed door of his room. On the other side was Lilith. She was moving around the kitchen of the small two bedroom apartment. The modernity of this area of the mansion was a strange contrast to the more in-keeping look of the area he’d first arrived in, with its large rooms filled with antique furniture and old paintings. This wing seemed to act like a dormitory for the hunters. Were all the apartments like Lilith’s or was hers special? Perhaps hunters shared them. Had she shared this apartment with her dead friend or her sister? His focus shifted back to Lilith as she moved again. He could sense her fatigue. It gave out a call to his instincts, telling him she’d be easy prey in her current state. It was hard to ignore such instincts even when he had to.

It had been near impossible to stop himself from killing those hunters this morning.

Lincoln frowned when Lilith stopped dead and sniffed. Her change in emotions was abrupt and would’ve been unreadable had he not known her recent history. The death of her friend was upsetting her—a death that he was responsible for. Under normal circumstances, it wouldn’t have bothered him. His kind had to feed, and had to protect themselves. A vampire hunter was the perfect target for sport and a good meal, and it meant there was one less in the world when you were done. Yet it bothered him now. He didn’t want to consider the reason why.

Getting up, he walked to the door and opened it. Lilith was in the kitchen side of the living room now, busying herself in some vain attempt to pretend he wasn’t here, that he hadn’t heard her crying, and by the looks of things making tea. He studied her, amused by the way the oversized grey t-shirt swamped her and the loose black jogging bottoms trailed on the floor. She’d tied her golden hair back into a high ponytail. The tips of it brushed her neck. He dragged his gaze away from it and raised it to her face. She looked tired, her face drawn and pale.

He glanced at the coffee table and saw it spread with books. She must have gone out to get them during the short hours of sleep that he’d snatched. Now the sun was growing close to setting and its sway over him was less. Soon night would fall and it would be almost impossible to ignore the lure of the cacophony of heartbeats.

Aware that he was dressed only in his black jeans, he walked with head held high into the kitchen area and leaned against the counter near her.

Her gaze darted to him and then away again. It hadn’t made it as far as his face. It had only reached his chest. He smiled internally at this small victory over her. Since their meeting this morning, she’d been a hellion, refusing to work with him and making sure that he knew how much she hated him. She wanted to make things difficult for him and he was more than willing to show her what a pain in the backside he could be to her. Besides, it was interesting to see a human’s, a hunter’s no less, reaction to a vampire, especially when they couldn’t kill them. The temptation to push her to breaking point just to see what she’d do was overwhelming and a wonderful way of alleviating his boredom.

“You can’t walk around my place like that or I will lock that door just like I threatened.” She frowned at him, her gaze managing to make it to his this time.

“Why not?” He challenged her, leaning back a little and planting his palms against the counter so his muscles tensed. She did a good job of resisting a look. He could see that she was curious.

“It’s…” She swallowed, pensive and still frowning beautifully.

“Distracting?” he suggested with a smirk.

“Off putting,” she said, deadpan and glaring.

She moved to the sink and filled the kettle before putting it on. Lincoln watched her, silent and motionless. The way she moved around was entrancing. Strength laced her natural grace. It spoke of it to him, telling him that she believed herself a force to be reckoned with. Maybe she was in human terms.

“Shouldn’t you be asleep?” she said.

“I could not sleep.” He moved closer to her, leaning against the tall cupboard next to where she now stood waiting for the kettle to boil.

“Vampires have sleepless days?” There was a playful note in her voice that he hadn’t expected. She seemed surprisingly relaxed around him now. The trace of fear he’d detected in her this morning was gone.

“More often than you think when we are hungry,” he whispered, his gaze caressing her throat.

“Never going to happen,” she said without even looking at him.

Her senses were acute if she’d detected his intent without having to see it with her own two eyes. There was something different about her. Perhaps she’d been modified like some of the other hunters he’d encountered recently. Since the Law Keepers’ report that humans had been playing god, they’d met more genetically altered hunters. They’d killed every one.

She filled her mug, removed the tea bag and went to move past him towards the lounge area. Her gaze strayed to his torso again.

He tensed his muscles for her and she quickly looked away. Either she was a prude, or it was because he was a vampire that she didn’t want to look at him. He hoped it was the latter. It would be fun to prove to her just how curious she was about his kind. Her gaze strayed again and he waited to see what she’d do this time. She stood there, furtively taking in his body. A dull ache settled in his chest, followed by another in his gut. Temptation whispered to push her now while he had the chance.

“Have you ever been curious? Come now, you must have been curious to know sometimes.” Lincoln held her gaze when it darted to meet his. She looked wonderfully innocent and clueless. It didn’t fool him. She understood what he was saying. He stepped away from the cupboard and towards her. “What we feel like, what it feels like.”

“Never!” There was such defiance in her voice, such vehement denial. He might have believed it if she’d managed to keep better control of herself. Her eyes betrayed her. They strayed to his chest for a split second.

He grinned, enjoying this game. It was time to up the ante.

He trailed his fingers across his bare chest.

“I know you want to feel it.” His senses locked onto her heart, revelling in the staccato rhythm it had adopted. A rush of adrenaline entered her blood, sending the scent of it into the air through her overheating flesh. She was either embarrassed, or his words held some truth and she wanted to touch him. Another push. “Just reach out and touch. I can see the questions in your eyes, Lilith. Is it cool, hard? Would you feel a heartbeat? Would I feel your touch, feel pain if you scraped your nails down it… feel pleasure?”

Her cheeks blazed and her eyes widened. She went to turn away. He was beside her before she could move, his hand tight around her wrist. He couldn’t let her get away when it was just getting interesting.

Taking the mug from her other hand, he placed it down on the counter away from them, his movements slow so he didn’t draw her attention away from his eyes. He drew her towards him. Her fingers shook in his. Her breath trembled uneasily, quivering with her racing heart. Her dark gaze fell to his chest and she slowly wet her lips with the bare tip of her soft pink tongue. He stared at her mouth, mesmerised by the motion of her tongue against her lips, and then snapped himself out of it.

This game was turning dangerous for them both. It didn’t matter. He couldn’t stop now.

He had to see what would happen.

“Surrender to it,” he whispered, voice smooth and convincing.

Her fingertips barely grazed his skin and he was on fire. His eyes half closed as he absorbed the sensation of her warm caress heating his body. He hadn’t expected this. He clawed back a modicum of control, telling himself this was just a game to annoy her, to make her feel weak. It shouldn’t make him feel this way.

Her eyes were wide, her pupils dilated as she stared at her fingers where they traced patterns on his chest. She was lost. He could smell the hint of arousal, the alluring pheromones coming off her.

He breathed in a voice of temptation, “Imagine what it is like to kiss me.”

Her gaze burned him, trailing fire over his body as it rose to his mouth. He stared at hers, imagining the silky glide of her lips against his and the brush of her tongue, the warmth of her.

“Imagine what it is like to be kissed by me.” He smiled to reveal his extended fangs.

She jerked her hand away and then shoved him hard in the chest. He laughed. She stormed off into her room. A small cream table lamp took the brunt of her anger. It hit the wall not five feet from him and smashed into pieces, raining down on the kitchen counter. He’d expected her aim to be more accurate.

Lincoln forced his teeth to recede and listened to her tramping around her room. What was she doing? Was she looking for something else to throw at him? He didn’t know why she was angry with him. All he’d done was play a vicious game as she had been. Only his game was different. Instead of being designed to show her how much he hated her kind as hers was, it was designed to show her how curious she was about them and how tempting they were to her.

She walked back out of the bedroom.

He froze and stared at her.

The only trouble was she was becoming tempting herself.

The rose-coloured camisole hugged her upper body to the point where imagination wasn’t necessary. It emphasised her breasts. They swayed as she moved towards him, free of a bra to restrain them. Dark blue jeans were moulded to her legs, revealing their slender shapely form. Her small feet were bare, her toes painted a sultry black.

She neared him and he raked his gaze back up her. He didn’t make it to her face. She made sure of that. Her fingers skimmed across her chest, gathering the sheen of sweat there until it beaded against her skin. He swallowed. She stopped close to him, not three feet away. He couldn’t take his eyes off what she was doing. The sensuality of it only heightened his desire for her, his want to take her and her blood for his own. He curled his hands into tight fists of restraint. It didn’t stop his desire from rising. It was no use. He was captivated. She had turned his game against him and triggered thoughts that he shouldn’t be entertaining. What they spoke of was forbidden. It was a sin to want a human.

He licked his lips and stepped towards her, still mesmerised by the motion of her fingers on her chest. A single drop of moisture slid down over the arc of her breast and into her cleavage. His lips parted in fascination and he looked at her. She smiled, all innocence laced with seduction. This was a cruel game to play with a man.

Another step.

She moved before he had time to react, reaching into her back pocket and pulling something out.

His eyes flicked to it.

A stake.

He leapt backwards.

She didn’t attack.

His own weakness hit him with tremendous force. She’d lured him in and had drawn her stake before he’d even known what was happening. If she’d been serious about staking him, there was no telling what might have happened, but there was every possibility she would have hit her mark.

“Next time you try something, I will be armed, and I will kill you,” she said, voice dark and lethal.

He raised his hands, in control again. “Touché.”

She slipped the stake into her back pocket and walked towards him. His gaze followed her and he turned as she passed him, unwilling to show her his back. She grabbed the waste bin and pushed all the pieces of the lamp into it.

“And you owe me a new lamp.”

Lincoln stared at Lilith’s back, cocking his head to one side. Just below her neck and between her shoulder blades was a black tattoo. He stepped closer to see it better as she picked up her mug of tea. It was a sun surrounded by pointed rays and inside the circle of it was a crescent moon.

She turned to face him and sipped her drink. It had to be cold by now.

His little game would have seen to that.

In the end, he wasn’t sure who the victor had been. She’d touched him and he’d seen in her eyes that she was curious. It didn’t seem to go beyond that. Her scent had only shown a tiny sign of desire. If she’d been a vampire, she would have easily noticed the change in his own scent. He’d wanted her. Looking at her now, he still wanted her. The moment he’d laid eyes on her, he’d admitted to himself that she was attractive for a human. She called to him on some base level where he wasn’t master.

 

Did you enjoy today’s tease?

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

 

Seventh Circle

F E Heaton

Born with powers similar to a vampire’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 nightmare—a client who is not only attractive but a vampire.

Lincoln is a powerful pureblood with a problem. He’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, he’s prepared to work with his most hated enemy, but he isn’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 didn’t exist? And when they discover Lilith’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.

Available in e-book from:

Author’s website

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

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

Barnes and Noble | Kobo Books | Sony Reader Store | Smashwords | All Romance eBooks

 

Available in paperback from:

Amazon.com | Amazon.co.uk | Barnes and Noble

 

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

Prophecy: Child of Light (Vampires Realm Romance Series #1)

Prophecy: Caelestis & Aurorea (Vampires Realm Romance Series #2)

Prophecy: Dark Moon Rising (Vampires Realm Romance Series #3)

Eternity: The Beginning (Vampires Realm Romance Series #4)

Spellbound (Vampires Realm Romance Series #5)

Reunion (Vampires Realm Romance Series #6)

Seventh Circle (Vampires Realm Romance Series #7)

Winter’s Kiss (Vampires Realm Romance Series #8)

Hunter’s Moon (Vampires Realm Romance Series #9)

Masquerade (Vampires Realm Romance Series #10)

 

Manday Hotties – Hot new Monday Mancandy fixes to kick off your week!

 

It’s time for the Manday Hotties Hop again and I’m continuing to bring you sexy new mancandy this year. Here’s some new hotties for you to ogle…

 



 

 

Which shot is your favourite? It’s #2 for me today… I wanna fight him…

 

Visit the other blogs in the hop:

 

Sensual Sunday – Hot excerpt from Ascension (paranormal romance book)

 

Sensual Sunday is brought to you today by Ascension, which is a stand alone paranormal romance novel featuring a sassy witch heroine and a half-demon hero. Sensual Sunday’s always feature a hot excerpt from one of my paranormal romance books. Read on for this Sunday’s sensual snippet…

Taig closed his eyes and released a long low groan of unexpected pleasure as Lealandra’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 wouldn’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 hadn’t imagined things turning out this way when she had walked into the bar tonight, but he wasn’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.

“Are they gone?” Her quiet voice trembled along with her body, telling him that the kiss hadn’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 couldn’t easily forgive, even when her kiss made him forget it.

“Not yet,” 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 wasn’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.

“They’re gone, aren’t they?” Lealandra’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 wasn’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 didn’t come from magic. It came from the divine six months they had spent locked tight in each other’s embrace. Six heavenly months he would never forget followed by six hollow years he wished he couldn’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 hadn’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 hadn’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 wasn’t talking about food. Magic as old and potent as hers demanded the highest price and had the basest needs. If it didn’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 didn’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 Taig’s own deep dark cravings.

“I can’t believe you’d take a cheap shot like that,” Lealandra muttered in his direction, her eyes meeting his. “No. Wait. Actually… I can.”

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.

“You kissed me first. I just returned the favour.”

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.

 

Did you enjoy today’s hot little snippet?

 

Caris Roane is also posting a Sensual Sunday snippet from one of her paranormal romance books, so be sure to check out her blog and read it! http://carisroane.com/

 

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, Taig’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 he’s not a monster but the man that she loves?

Available in e-book from:

Author’s website

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

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

Barnes and Noble | Kobo Books | Sony Reader Store | Smashwords | All Romance eBooks

 

Available in paperback from:

Amazon.com | Amazon.co.uk | Barnes and Noble

 

Snippet Saturday – Jobs – Forbidden Blood (A Vampire Romance Book)

It’s time for Snippet Saturday! Each week has a theme or is author’s choice. This week the theme is Jobs.

This week my snippet comes from Forbidden Blood, which a stand alone vampire romance novel, and another of my favourite stories.

It’s yet another long one this week… I really will get my snippets under control soon and actually resembling snippets. Promise! Since the subject this week was Jobs, I couldn’t resist using a scene from this vampire romance book as it perfectly suited the theme. Kearn, a vampire of Noble blood, has just saved a human female, Amber, from a vampire intent on taking her rare blood. He’s brought her back to his home, has bandaged her cut hand, and used that opportunity to taste her blood to confirm what she is and also to give him some control over her so he can keep her safe from his target.

 

Kearn focused on thinking over everything that had happened tonight. The woman was lucky that he had been patrolling the area and had smelt the blood. It had been the vampire’s blood that had caught his attention, carried on the night air in a rich vein that had been easy to detect. Unfortunately, he couldn’t use its scent to recognise the man. Vampire blood all smelt the same. Heavy and strong.

Human blood was a light fragrance. He resisted the temptation to take a deep breath and see if he could smell her blood. He was almost in control again.

The knife, the vampire’s blood, the man’s appearance, none of it was the break he needed.

But she was.

He looked at himself in the mirror again. Green eyes welcomed him back, cold and empty, familiar in their darkness. He turned away from them, hating the sight, and walked back through the bedroom to the living room.

The woman was still fraying the ends of the bandage around her right hand. Her gaze fixed on him and she frowned. Water dripped from the jagged tips of his silver hair and soaked into his black shirt. He raked his hair back, picked up the bowl and paper towels, and walked past her to the kitchen area. Her eyes followed his every move, her focus intent on him. She could look all she wanted. She wasn’t going to figure him out, not even with her blood in his veins.

“Are you feeling any better?” Kearn ignored the warm sedated buzz in the depths of his bones that constantly switched between whispering hungry words to him and making him want to smile. He felt normal. There was no reason to get ideas about her blood. He was in control and she was nothing but a lead.

Not dinner.

He couldn’t kill a human.

“Just now.” Her voice ran as deep in his veins as her blood, teasing his senses. The soft sound of it wrapped around him, caressing him and making him want to look at her. He ignored it too. It was just her blood affecting him. “My head feels clearer.”

That was what he had wanted to hear. It was difficult to use her blood in his veins purely to control the effect of the vampire’s on hers rather than controlling her, but he would keep it up for as long as he could. Soon her blood should have cleared enough that the vampire wouldn’t be able to control her at any great distance.

Kearn filled a glass with water and carried it back to her. He placed it on the coffee table in front of her and then sat beside her again. The smell of her blood drifted on the air and flowed down into his lungs with each breath he drew, pushing at his restraint. He had never smelt anything as alluring and tempting.

The connection between their blood shattered.

“What was he?” she said without any hint of trepidation.

“I’m sorry?” He tried for confused while he struggled against her blood and the vampire’s. The bastard was pushing for control.

The woman scratched at the bandage. Kearn kept an eye on her. If she made any move to open the bandage, he would stop her and restrain her. Until then, he would keep fighting the vampire’s hold over her.

“I’m not crazy, and I know what I saw would make me sound as though I am, but I wasn’t imagining it.” Her hand left her other one and settled on her thigh.

He made the mistake of looking at it. There were damp spots on the black material of her trousers. Blood. Delicious, fragrant, blood. Diverting his eyes before they changed again, he stared out of the window.

She leaned forwards into view and frowned at him. “That man had fangs. They couldn’t have been fake. It all felt so real. He wanted to drink my blood… I felt it inside me. Some dark hideous hunger. He had some sort of power over me. Now either tell me I’m insane and heading for a spell at the nearest asylum, or tell me the truth. He’s a vampire.”

Kearn’s silver eyebrows rose. There was no point in lying to her if she had already figured out what she was up against and believed it.

He nodded.

She gasped and grabbed his hand. The contact sent a sharp jolt through him and pushed at his control. Her blood called to him. The same dark hideous hunger she had sensed in the man. He fought his desire to look at the smooth column of her throat, knowing that if he did he wouldn’t be able to stop himself from licking it and acting out his desire to sink his fangs into the soft flesh and drink his fill of her.

Instead, he kept his eyes fixed on her face and was struck by a different sort of hunger.

She was beautiful.

He had never paid much attention to humans. They had been nothing more than a mission to him for centuries and only a meal before that, but now he had stopped to look at one and some part of him wished he hadn’t because she mesmerised him.

Her wide round hazel eyes were fascinating. The overhead lights of his apartment played on them, highlighting the flecks of gold and green. Long wavy brown hair caressed her face, cascading over slender shoulders. Rosy lips spoke to him and he didn’t hear a word they said. He watched the way they moved and the sensual shapes they made, and the tiny flash of soft pink tongue against straight white teeth.

“What’s a Venator?”

That question broke his reverie.

“Me.”

“You?” She stared blankly at him. No, through him. She was trying to remember something. “I knew that word. I wanted you to kill that man and then I wanted to stop you. I knew you. There was something else too. I wanted to taste my blood.”

She sounded as confused as she felt.

“The man desired to test you to see if you were a Source Blood.”

“Source. I knew that word too and that it meant something different. You said my blood is valuable.”

“It is.” He picked up the glass and offered it to her. The water would thin her blood and lessen the vampire’s control over her, but it would weaken his too. It was a risk he had to take. “It is very valuable on the black market but also extremely illegal. My job is to find those who dare break the law by attempting to purchase, sell or harvest the blood.”

No fear touched her features but he could feel an underlying sense of nerves in his veins that belonged to her.

He studied her blood and the strength flowing through it surprised him. Her blood within him, and the vampire’s within her, was enough to convince her that she wasn’t going insane and that everything that had happened tonight was real. She understood and accepted it, and had even found some sense of resolve to face it all.  He had expected her to be more fragile and sensitive, to panic and plead him to protect her. Her calm acceptance of the situation made him reassess his earlier thoughts about her. It wasn’t the vampire’s blood in her veins that made her unafraid. It was her own natural strength, and it only added to her beauty.

“Why is it worth so much? Are all humans Source Bloods to vampires?” She took the glass, tilted her head back and drank some of the water.

Kearn refused to look at her throat.

“No. Source Bloods are very rare. It refers to a specific gene in your blood that affects vampires. Vampires believe that millennia ago, they branched away from humanity and evolved separately. At that time, the same gene in their blood was stronger. Over the generations, it weakened to what it is today and has remained that way.”

She frowned and lowered the glass. “So I share a gene with vampires?”

He nodded. “Your bloodline did not evolve and gain the ability to use the power that gene gives you.”

She swallowed and a sense of unease ran in his veins. Her blood. It was potent. He was constantly aware of it and how it mixed with his, stirred it to a frenzy of hunger and need. Kearn shifted his focus back to her, using all of his strength to keep it pinned on her and not his blood.

“I’m like a vampire?”

“No, you are human, but different. Special.”

A hint of colour touched her cheeks and she dropped her gaze. He raised an eyebrow at her reaction and cocked his head to one side. Her blood whispered warm words at him, teasing him into submitting to her. She had watched him earlier when he had removed his shirt and sometimes her pupils dilated until they darkened her hazel eyes. Desire? Was she attracted to him? A human? As though he could desire such a weak creature in return.

The colour on her cheeks deepened, sending a gut-tugging jolt through his blood, and his lips parted. He swallowed when she shyly raised her eyes and looked at him through her dark lashes. His body burned with the desire to sweep her into his arms and taste her again. Kearn forced his eyes down to the floor. It was just her blood commanding him to do as she wanted. It wasn’t his desire.

It couldn’t be.

He cleared his throat and frowned, trying to make sense of the feelings running riot in him. Not all of them could be hers. Some of them had to be his.

“Do vampires only drink from people like me?” Her voice shook and he was tempted to touch her hand again to reassure her, but restrained himself.

If he did such a thing, he would have a hard time resisting pulling her against him and slaking his growing thirst for her. Taking her blood had been a mistake. He had less control over himself than he had anticipated. He had forgotten how potent Source Blood was.

“Vampires gain sustenance from all human blood. Source Blood is different. It is a drug to vampires. Most only drink enough to produce a natural high that makes them giddy and removes their inhibitions.” He battled his need to look at her throat. “Others are seeking something more sinister. In a large enough dose, it temporarily restores the strength in the shared gene, enhancing them and reinstating the devastating power they once commanded. With enough Source Blood in their veins they would become living gods.”

His gaze slid to her neck and he turned away, cursing himself for tasting her. He had needed to be sure that she was a Source Blood though and needed to calm her enough to get answers.

“That man knew I was a Source Blood and that’s why he followed me?”

“No.” Kearn shook his head, as much to clear it of the whispered command to feast on her as to answer her. “Source Blood is difficult to detect if the human is not bleeding. You said he gave you his blood. He was seeking to turn you compliant so he could kill you. When his blood joined with yours, he realised that you were different. Your blood saved you.”

“It doesn’t feel as though it saved me. I feel as though it damned me.”

Would she rather be dead than in this situation? He glanced at her out of the corner of his eye. He couldn’t sense any fear in her, but there was an edge to her eyes, a look that said she was desperately trying to be strong but everything was beginning to take its toll on her.

“I will protect you,” he said and felt her look at him. He couldn’t meet her gaze, not yet, not until the need to look at her throat and taste her blood had passed again. “If you help me, we can find the man who hurt you. I have been searching for him for three years. If we can capture him, you can go back to your life. No one else will know what your blood contains.”

“What will happen to him?”

“He will be sentenced.” He looked at her now, trusting himself not to change and frighten her. She wasn’t likely to help him if she knew that he was also a vampire.

“Are you a cop? Is that what a Venator is?”

“No—sort of. I have to carry out the sentence on the people whose names are given to me by my… bosses.” He had never needed to explain his position before. It was difficult to put it into words that didn’t sound medieval or make him a murderer. He hunted those the Sovereignty deemed had broken the law. He sentenced them to eternal darkness. Usually they knew the name of the law-breaker. This time there wasn’t one. There had only been a location to start looking. “Will you help me?”

He didn’t really need her to answer. Either way he wasn’t letting her leave. He needed her and she was going to help him, although he would prefer that she did so of her own free will. Forcing her wouldn’t solve anything but he would if she left him no choice.

“He’ll come after me.” She looked down at her hands, playing with the bandage again. Her pulse began to pick up pace and he sensed her rising panic. Was she remembering what had happened to her? Her blood inside him whispered of fear and death. She looked up at him, blinked away her tears and nodded. “I’ll help you if you promise to keep me safe.”

“It is a promise.” Kearn tried to think of how humans made deals. He held his hand out to her.

She slipped hers into it and shook it a single time, and then her hand lingered in his.

And his eyes fell to her neck.

 

Did you enjoy the snippet?

 

More about the book:

Forbidden Blood

Felicity Heaton

In a dark world where vampires exist and where Source Blood, a rare human blood type, can bestow godlike powers upon them, the vampire Venators of the Sovereignty fight to protect the humans by banishing those who drink it to the endless dark.

Exiled from his family and with only his duty to sustain him, Kearn has been on the trail of an elusive Source Blood abuser for three years. When he saves a beautiful human female from the vampire’s grasp, it turns out she’s the lead he’s been waiting for. Amber is a Source Blood and the perfect bait, but for who?

As they race to catch the vampire and survive the cruel games he plays, Amber is pulled deeper into Kearn’s world and discovers the painful secrets he hides behind his handsome but emotionless exterior—hurt that she has the power to heal if she is brave enough.

Forbidden Blood is a dark, sensual tale of betrayal, revenge and a love that knows no bounds.

 

Available in e-book from:

Author’s website

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

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

Barnes and Noble | Kobo Books | Sony Reader Store | Smashwords | All Romance eBooks

 

Available in paperback from:

Amazon.com | Amazon.co.uk | Barnes and Noble

 

 

Don’t forget to visit the other authors who are participating to read their snippets…

Leah Braemel

Caris Roane

Eliza Gayle

McKenna Jeffries

TJ Michaels

Taige Crenshaw

Delilah Devlin

Felicity Heaton

HelenKay Dimon

TJ Michaels

Shiloh Walker

Lissa Matthews

Myla Jackson

Jody Wallace

Lauren Dane

 

Vampirerotique Winter Book Tour – All the latest posts in this fantastic virtual tour

The Vampirerotique Winter Book Tour is nearing the end now, with only a few more posts to go. I really hope you’ve been enjoying it and all the posts, character interviews, and fun stuff that we’ve been posting at the participating blogs.

Here’s a round-up of the posts so far, with all the links and information on the latest book in the series. Don’t forget to visit each blog for the individual giveaways they’ll be hosting!

Don’t forget to visit the Vampirerotique Winter Book Tour page to enter the Grand Giveaway for your chance to win a $100 or $50 Amazon Gift Card!

 

Bewitch

Felicity Heaton

A vampire with a past stained with blood and a soul tainted with darkness, he is perfect in his self-control, never surrendering to his darkest desires. Now a beautiful witch in the shadowy fae underworld threatens to reawaken long denied hungers and tempts him with carnal pleasure.

Payne despises the incubus side of his mixed genes and refuses to give it free rein, but when the wickedly sexy Elissa offers him a possible way to help a friend, he finds it difficult to resist paying the price, even if it will be his undoing—one night of passion at her command.

Elissa is a witch down on her luck until Payne comes crashing into her life. The dangerously handsome male is the key to fulfilling a promise she made, but he is also forbidden, and surrendering to the wildfire passion he stirs within her means risking ruin and death.

When one incredible night of fulfilling their deepest fantasies leads to more than just a pathway to keeping a promise and saving a friend, will they be able to overcome the barriers that stand between them and forever?

 

Available in e-book from:

Amazon Kindle Stores:

US/International | UK | Germany | France | Canada

Apple iBookstores:

US | UK | Canada | Australia | New Zealand

Other Retailers:

Author’s website | Kobo Books | Barnes and Noble | Smashwords | All Romance eBooks

(Coming soon to Sony Reader Store)

 

Available in paperback from:

Amazon.com | Amazon.co.uk | Barnes and Noble

 

Vampirerotique Winter Book Tour Dates

jan30th
Paranormal Haven
Welcome to the world of Vampirerotique
jan31st
Book Savvy Babe
Introducing Bewitch
feb1st
AwesomeSauce Book Club
Interview with Javier
feb4th
Paranormal Cravings
Introducing Covet plus excerpt
feb6th
Bex N Books
Author interview
feb8th
United by Books-
Interview with Callum
feb10th
Sassy Book Lovers
Exclusive Excerpt
feb11th
GraveTells
Special interview with Payne at Vampirerotique
feb14th
Page Flipperz
Interview with Snow
feb15th
Reading Between The Wines
Character Love Letters – Love Letter from Snow to You
feb18th
Romancing the Dark Side
Introducing Crave plus excerpt
feb20th
I Smell Sheep
Alpha Male Diner with Payne
feb22nd
The Jeep Diva
Exclusive Sexy Excerpt
feb24th
Riverina Romantics
Exclusive Excerpt
feb25th
Underworld Love Addiction
Interview with Lilah
feb27th
Lucy Felthouse
Interview with Varya
mar4th
Secret Sanctuary of Books
Interview with Payne
mar5th
My Blog
Introducing Seduce plus Excerpt
mar6th
Book Lovers Hideaway
Interview with Sera
mar8th
Cocktails and Books
Interview with Andreu
mar11th
Close Encounters with the Night Kind
Writing the series
mar13th
Full Moon Bites
Introducing Enslave plus Excerpt
mar14th
The Book Nympho
Interview with Elissa
mar15th
Under the Covers Book Blog
Interview with Kristina
mar18th
Romance Book Junkies
Creating the world of the Vampire Erotic Theatre romance series
mar20th
Fangtastic Books
Interview with Antoine
mar25th
Reading the Paranormal
mar27th
Fictional Candy

Have you been enjoying the tour so far? What has been your favourite moment?