Careful What Your Wish For: Hold Tight Excerpt

Hi everyone! I'm over at Crossroad Reviews as part of their Author Fest 2013. I hope you'll stop by to check out the post and enter the giveaway. There's three sets of eBooks for three lucky winners, plus awesome swag to be won. 
I thought it would be fun to share an excerpt from Hold Tight, book two in the series.
Enjoy!
Chapter 1Careful What You Wish For
I figured if I got caught with the little ironclad book, I’d ask him for forgiveness. Really, in the whole scheme of the universe, what was one little spell?
My six-year-old brother and I were home alone, and he was in the family room, engrossed in his favorite cartoon. Dad was stuck at work, again, but tonight that would be to my advantage because I needed privacy to cast the spell.
I grabbed a cereal bowl from the cabinet next to the refrigerator, filled it with a bottle of spring water, and dropped in three acorns and three dried rose petals. One last glance at the incantation, and I was ready. With my hands held palms-up in front of me, I spoke in a low whisper so as not to attract Chase’s attention:
From here to there and nowhereneverwhereThrough Come time and space and etherealI call to thee Sanctus majesticReedsnap, [Dellis, Rhoswen]
A faint crackle like the crunch of dried leaves under dainty feet seemed to enter the kitchen through the open window. A weak pop-pop-swish slithered by me thereafter, and the sweet aroma of honeydew filled my nostrils. I spun around, expecting to see a bright-eyed faerie with sparkling cheeks and pointylittle ears near the stove, but I was alone. I continued to read:
I beckon thee, come forth!
A soft swish-hum had me glancing around the kitchen again. A cool breezestirred the curtains and rippled the water in the bowl. I hurried and closedthe window, but then a quiet buzz traveled around the kitchen like an angryfly. For a moment, I could have sworn I smelled fresh-cut orchids, but whenI inhaled, the air chilled my lungs, causing me to cough. No matter whichdirection I looked, no one was there.
“Finish it,” a disembodied voice whispered eagerly. It was hard to tell if itwas female or male. I swallowed the trepidation that built inside me.
“Finish it,” dared the haunting voice.
When an icy chill clawed its way into my bones, I slammed the book shut.
“I changed my mind,” I whispered. “Go away.”


You can get Hold Tight on Kindle, Kindle UK, and Nook for only $2.99, or Embrace Kindle, Kindle UK, or Nook for .99 cents while the sale lasts.

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