RavenVampireClub

Talons Series, NOW IN EBOOK

Talons: Seize the Hunter by
Michelle M. Pillow

Genre: Romance/Red Hot!/Futuristic

Publication Date: October 31st, 2006

Buy From MBaM!

Fate is giving her the one man she'd never want for her very own.

Princess Ari of the planet Falconia knows it’s her time to marry and has picked out several suitable men in her mind—none of which are Falcoan Army Commander, Rurik of the Fifth. The man tormented her as a child, causing her untold humiliations. But there is really no need to worry about such a match. Shifters cannot rule and Rurik is a natural born falcon shifter.

Trusting destiny, Ari sips from the Marriage Chalice, sealing her future. But things don’t go as planned. It would seem fate is giving her to the man she despises. How can she find happiness with the one man she could never want for her very own?

posted by Michelle Pillow at 7:59 AM | 2 comment(s)

Happy Halloween CONTEST!

ENTER THE HALLOWEEN CONTESTS!!!

posted by Michelle Pillow at 8:02 PM | 1 comment(s)

Michelle and Mandy ~ Three new books in PRINT! JUST RELEASED

Prince Quinn isn't looking for a serious relationship. In fact, he's never even considered it. However, when Dr. Tori Elliot is sent to the palace to test for biological weapons, he can't seem to stay away from her.

READ MORE OR BUY: http://www.newconceptspublishing.com/theplayfulprince.htm

To play…

Prince Quinn, royal Ambassador, isn't looking for a serious relationship. In fact, he's never even considered it. Hopping from lover to lover, he's content to enjoy himself, never taking anything but his work seriously. However, when Dr. Tori Elliot is sent to the palace to test for biological weapons, he can't seem to stay away from her.

Or not to play…

Tori Elliot has just finished her last assignment and is on her way to a much needed vacation. But when the Human Intelligence Agency stops her ship and demands she heads up a team on some remote planet, she knows it in her best interest not to refuse. Ever serious, she knows she's there to do a job and no matter what, she's going to act like a professional.

Meeting Prince Quinn, his body pressed against another woman in the palace halls, she knows he's not the man for her. Too bad he's the Ambassador and too sexy for his own good. Fighting her desire, Tori must try to do her job while not succumbing to the playful Var prince.

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

Simmering Seductions by Mandy M. Roth (Contemporary Romance)

When a sexy blast from the past literally falls into his lap, Kurt refuses to retreat--seizing the moment, and Devan’s heart, becomes his ultimate passion.

READ MORE OR BUY: http://www.newconceptspublishing.com/simmeringseductions.htm

Devan Seward is in the process of starting over—moving to the big city and doing her best to move on from an ugly past. When she waylays “Mr. Right” in the stairwell of her new apartment building, she feels an instant connection to him. There is something about the tall, dark and handsome man that leaves her feeling as if she’s known him all her life. Devan no longer trusts blindly, a hard lesson learned, but can’t seem to stop herself from confessing things better left behind.

Chef Kurt Holland is like a rock god in the culinary world. Cooking is his passion. His restaurant, E&E, caters only to the rich and famous. When a sexy blast from the past literally falls into his lap, he refuses to retreat like he did last time. No. Seizing the moment and Devan’s heart becomes his ultimate passion.

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

Lords of the Abyss: The Mighty Hunter by Michelle M. Pillow (Paranormal Romance)

He rescued her from death, and with a deliciously hot body and all the right moves, Caderyn is a walking seduction that’s too hard to resist. There’s only one problem. Caderyn claims they’re in the Abyss, living on a cursed island along the deep ocean floor. And, if that wasn’t bad enough, he says he’s a merman.

READ MORE OR BUY: http://www.newconceptspublishing.com/themightyhunter.htm

Scientist Bridget Dutton has no time for traditional love. Her heart belongs to her work. Even though taking chemical readings of ocean water isn’t her thing, she’s willing to put in her time for her chance at exploring the Abyss. When her boat is attacked from below, Bridget’s dream just might come true sooner than planned.

Caderyn the Hunter, the sexiest--and perhaps craziest--man she’s ever laid eyes on may have rescued her from death, but who’s going to rescue her from him? With a deliciously hot body and all the right moves, the man is a walking seduction that’s too hard to resist. There’s only one problem. Caderyn claims they’re in the Abyss, living on a cursed island along the deep ocean floor. And, if that wasn’t bad enough, he says he’s a merman.

Sparks fly. Desires heat. But can Caderyn convince the logical Bridget there’s room for more than one love in her heart?

posted by Michelle Pillow at 2:50 PM | 0 comment(s)

Winner from M&M Paranormal Theme Day

posted by mandymroth at 8:29 AM | 1 comment(s)

MM Paranormal Theme Day Official Winner's List

posted by mandymroth at 8:28 AM | 0 comment(s)

Interview: Scott from Ghostly Talk

Interview: Scott from Ghostly Talk

Ghostly Talk Rules!!!



1. Tell us a little about yourself, who you are, what, in the field of

paranormal, do you do and how long have you been doing it?



"My name is Scott L. I am a co-host of Ghostly Talk, the worlds premier

weekly independent talk show about the paranormal. We are going on our

5th year of broadcasting Ghostly Talk. I have been a life-long researcher

of the paranormal, and mainly nowadays exeriment with EVP and ITC in the

field of Ghost Hunting."





2. Was there a seminal moment when you decided this was what you wanted

to do?



"About 6 years ago, I received an email fro ma co-worker containing a

bunch of spirit photos captured from all over the world. I sat and looked

at them and just gushed with excitement. Like I said, I have been a

life-long researcher of the paranormal, but with college and trying to

make a living I had to push it to the side for a bit to focus on my

studies and career. I had just graduated from college when I received

this email and that is when I thought to myself, "You have the time now,

get to work on it!" :)"




3. What topic within the realm of paranormal interests you most? Have

you dealt with this on your show?



"ITC and EVP, we have talked to numerous people on Ghoslty Talk concerning

this subject."




4. Is there a favorite time or experience revolving around either the

discussion of the paranormal or a personal experience you'd like to

share with us?



Yes! EVERY SUNDAY NIGHT FROM 6 - 9 P.M. EST. That is when Ghostly Talk

broadcasts! :)



5. How can our readers find you?

http://www.ghostlytalk.com

http://www.myspace.com/ghostlytalk

posted by Michelle Pillow at 6:07 PM | 0 comment(s)

Tribes of the Vampire 3 ETERNALLY BOUND by Michelle M Pillow

Chapter One

Eastwich Manor, England, Spring 1896

Tatiana Sinclair smiled dreamily at the stars as she fitted her gloved hand into that of a groom’s. The scent of wildflowers was thick on the air, perfuming the night with their intoxicating fragrance. The wind rustled gently over the land, perfectly cool to the warmth of the late hour. It stirred heavily against the higher limbs of trees until the sound of the crashing leaves sang out. It was a perfect night.

The servant, Thomas, was dressed in the full livery of the Eastwich Manor staff. He lifted the back of his hand to help her down from her family’s brougham. The carriage shifted ever so slightly as she stepped onto the cobblestone drive. Tatiana barely paid the towheaded man any mind.

Thomas tried to smile at her, murmuring a greeting in his low youthful voice. “Welcome home, Miss Tatiana. How was your evening?”

Tatiana glanced briefly at him, frowned in his direction and waved him away. Thomas was two years older than her, but she still thought of him as a boy. He was handsome and polite, but that did not give him the right to address her. She would just have to speak to her father about having him replaced. It wouldn’t do for the servants to be seen addressing her so familiarly, as if they did it every day. Such a faux pas could kill her chances at a good marriage.

Well, Tatiana thought, feeling benevolent in her good mood. Her chin was proud, if not a little haughty, as her lips curled in contemplation. Perhaps, I should be lenient with him and only have him reprimanded. We did grow up together after all and tonight was such a lovely evening.

Tatiana’s pale green gown of expensive silk and Brussels lace tangled in the breeze. Her face again turned to the wide expanse of stars twinkling brilliantly in the dark blue of the night sky. The heavy weight of her white petticoats rippled ever so slightly, showing the toes of her dainty slippers. Her black curls were pinned up with the utmost care, adorned with green silk flowers. She was at the height of her youth, dressed in the height of fashion. She was beautiful, rich and knew it. She had many suitors vying for hand. Everything was perfect. Her life was going according to plan.

Thinking of it, Tatiana smiled to herself. If she managed it right, she could be married within a year’s time--or at the very least engaged. Suddenly, she noticed that her chaperone, a servant girl from the household, stood next to her waiting. Tatiana merely waved her to go along without her. The servant, whose dark eyes gave away the fact that she was exhausted, curtsied and rushed up the front steps to find her bed. Tatiana ignored her.

Lightly, she hiccupped. It had been a delightful evening of dinner à la russe. Tatiana blushed to remember how much of Lady Cottley’s ‘special’ punch she’dconsumed. Surely, if her father discovered the excess, she would be forbidden from ever going back.

Sighing as the carriage was led down the long drive to the distant stables, she made the short walk up the front stairs of her home. Eastwich Manor was a modest home compared to the large renovated castles and estates of the local nobility. Nevertheless, the estate was very well maintained.

The square corners of the manor’s stone walls were smooth, dotted with just the right amount of shrubs and flowers to make it stately and elegant without being overdone. Tall windows lifted up the sidewalls with dark blue draperies showing from the inside. Most were drawn closed, but a little crack of light shone out from one onto the front expanse of steps. It was a very fine home indeed. Whereas, her father wasn’t titled, his income was quite sufficient as to cause much envy with the neighbors and to earn her their respect.

Tatiana smiled a secretive smile. If she had anything to do with it, she would be titled soon enough. It was rumored that an Italian Count had let the old Glastonbury Castle not far from her very home. As a young girl, she’d been fascinated by the rundown pile of rocks surrounding the castle and had climbed over them often. The castle itself was in decent repair, though it desperately needed the care only a rich owner could give.

Lady Cottley had been aflutter with the news of it, claiming to have met the ‘young and altogether too handsome’ nobleman the other night. Their carriages had crossed a narrow pass in the country roads. She said that he was very well spoken, for a foreigner, and very dashing as he leaned out the carriage window to answer her greeting.

When Tatiana asked her to describe what the Count looked like, Lady Cottley couldn’t quite remember, except for the impression he was handsome enough to leave her lightheaded. The good lady was, however, sure the Count was in England searching for a wife. For, according to that same lady, there were a shortage of suitably marriageable women in Italy.

“Tatiana! Wait!”

Tatiana instantly froze on the bottom step leading to the front door. The very sound of her name expressed in such a way made her nervous. Recognizing the voice, she shivered, turning round to face her eldest and only sibling. Henry had not been available to escort her to the dinner service so she was dependent on a servant to be her chaperone. He’d claimed he was too ill to attend. It irked her that he would be out in such a condition, but Tatiana knew it was more than likely that he lied to get out of taking her.

The crack of light shining through the long front windows was dim so she couldn’t see him too clearly, except from the vague impression of his features and the shadowed outline of his slender body. She gasped, immediately forgetting her irritation with him. His dark blue frock coat was covered with splatters of thick mud. Stepping back down the steps, she made as if to go to him. Henry stumbled forward, jarring her as he impatiently grabbed her arm.

“Ow, Henry, stop,” Tatiana cried, trying to shake off the desperate clutch of his fingers. She swatted him lightly with her gloved hand. “You’re hurting me!”

Henry’s grip only tightened as she tried to escape, bruising her skin with its fierceness. She stumbled, slow to react, her mind numbed with liquor from the punch. Her brother’s dark eyes narrowed and he struggled for breath. Tatiana saw that the same strange substance also splattered the pale skin of his features. Up close, it did not appear to be mud. Curious, Tatiana lifted her fingers to his check, plucking a bit of matter off him with her white gloves. Whatever it was, it was hard.

“Whatever are you covered in, Henry?” Tatiana asked. He mumbled breathless, incoherent sentences. She couldn’t make out his words. Ignoring the pain he inflicted on her arm, she raised her gloved fingers to where the moonlight shone brightest to examine them. Her mouth fell open. It was blood.

Henry, seeing her impending look of horror, grasped her other arm in his palm, pulling her to him. Tatiana shivered as his fingers seized over her mouth, shushing her startled scream. She could smell the coppery scent of blood on his hand, felt the drying stickiness against her skin where he touched her face. Blood marred his jacket, streaking onto her pale green gown, hitting against her arms, as he held her tight to keep her quiet.

Gasping into her ear, he croaked in a low, hoarse tone that she’d never heard from him, “She’s dead.”

She! Tatiana’s renewed scream was muffled by his strong fingers. He pressed hard, cutting her teeth onto her inner lips. She tasted blood on her mouth and moaned weakly. She tried to answer him. Her wide desperate eyes studied his panicked face. She moaned in louder protest and he jerked her to an abrupt, rough silence.

“It’s not my fault!” Henry insisted with a hiss, almost wildly. He shook her harder in his desperation to convince her. His words turned to a plea. “Do you hear me, Tatiana? She refused me. It’s not my fault. She had no right, no right at all. I didn’t hurt her. She fell. She was a bloody strumpet giving it out to every man. She was nobody. I will not be ruined for this!”

“Henry.” Her voice was muffled through his parted fingers. Tatiana gasped, trying to peel her lips from his bloodied hand. She slowly shook loose of his tight hold to catch her breath and steady her racing heart. The strange, almost foreign smell of human blood--so curious and strong--slipped on her skin as she moved against him. It made her nauseous. A dark cloud threatened her already drunken brain and all she could think about was how this might ruin her chance at meeting the Italian Count, of gaining her title, of getting out of England and seeing the rest of the world.

As soon as she heard the words Italian and Count coming from Lady Cottley’s lips, she’d formed the perfect plan. The Count wanted a wife and she would make a perfect wife. Henry got to go away on a grand tour like the rest of the gentlemen with whom she’d grown up. She was expected to stay home, in England, forever. She wanted to travel, to see things, to meet people. She wanted to touch ancient ruins. In all her eighteen years, she never wanted anything more. Now, in Henry, she saw her dreams plummeting to the ground.

Tears entered her eyes. Now no one would ever want her after this. She was sister to a murderer! She would spend the rest of her days at Eastwich Manor as an unloved, unwanted spinster. Glancing at the stone walls of Eastwich, they did not seem so lovely to her anymore, or the house so large and welcoming and fine. It now looked like a prison.

“Tatiana!” Henry hissed, shaking her. “Are you listening to me?”

Tatiana blinked. She hadn’t been listening. Her mind had been racing frantically until she felt dizzy. Seeing she wasn’t going to scream, Henry dropped his hand from her face, leaving her cheek cold as the breeze hit the blood. With an insistent tug, he pulled her away from the front steps.

“Hurry!” Henry ordered, keeping her arm tight as he ran her around the side of the house. “We can’t let Thomas see us! If he knew what we did to his sister--”

“Alice?” Tatiana looked at Henry with renewed horror. She tried to stop, but his hand wouldn’t let her. The matter and blood covering him was her maid, Alice? Alice with the golden ringlet curls so like her brother Thomas? Alice with the laughing blue eyes who always teased her awake in the morning? Alice who had played with her endlessly on this very lawn since they were children?

“We can’t let him find out what we have done,” Henry insisted, running faster now that they were on the side lawn. “You know Thomas has a violent temper.”

“We?” Tatiana squeaked, her voice unable to come any louder. Her world spun and crashed with each surreal step he forced her to take.

Her legs stretched over the thick cushioned lawn, nearing the limits of her gown. The petticoats became heavier, tangling in her legs. Her corset was too unyielding against her lungs, making breathing hard. Her heart raced as she was yanked through the night. A slipper fell from her foot, but they did not stop. The full three courses of dinner, plus the entremets and dessert, waged a vicious war in her tight stomach. She would’ve fainted, if not for Henry’s insistent pull making her continue on.

“Henry,” she begged, her voice hoarse as she gulped for air. Her narrow eyes tried to see through the shadows. The moon wasn’t full and bright, so it offered little help.

Hearing her plea, Henry slowed, leading her into the shade of a large oak on the far side of the property.

“I … can … not … breathe,” she gasped. She dropped her hand, clutching at her stomach, trying to pull her corset to loosen it by small degrees. It didn’t do any good. The gown was fitted too tight. “Ladies … do not … run.”

Henry said nothing. He looked into the distance, standing silent and still. His hand trembled. Suddenly, she realized how scared her brother really was.

After a moment had passed with only her heavy breathing sounding between them, she again straightened and threw back her shoulders. Turning wide eyes up to her brother, she saw that he didn’t even look at her. Fearful, she demanded, “Please tell me this is a prank, Henry. Please, tell me you didn’t hurt Alice. Where is she? Is she hiding in the trees? Is she to jump out and scare me? Is that why we wait?”

Henry looked stunned at her words. Slowly, he looked down the front of his frock coat and flicked wearily at a chuck that clung to him. Tatiana flinched as it landed unintentionally on her gown. Looking herself over, she saw that the dress was ruined.

“We must go,” Henry stated, sniffing. He again reached for her, grabbing her arm.

“Where are you taking me?” Tatiana whimpered, scared of her brother. She never knew him capable of hurting anyone. Though, if truth be told, she didn’t really know him at all. They’d been closer as young children, but he’d been away for so long, first to school at Cambridge and then his grand tour. Now she hardly ever spoke to him, except in dutiful letters her father made her write. “What’s happening?”

“I need you to take care of it,” Henry said, matter-of-factly, like a lord directing his servants.

“Take care of what, Henry?” she asked in horror. Tears filled her eyes and the long line of her mouth stretched back, pulling against her teeth.

“I need you to clean it. You’re a woman, surely you know how,” Henry stated. He dragged her through the shrubs. The thorns tore at her skin, scratching her, ripping her delicate evening gown beyond repair. “No one can find out about this.”

“I’m not a servant--” she began, only to be cut off by his vicious jerk and hard glare.

“You will do as I say if you value your station in life!” His wild eyes grew all the more desperate. “Would you see our family ruined for the sake of a maid? Would you see me imprisoned? Father so shamed he’d be forced to do himself in? You abandoned, turned out in the streets to fend for yourself as an unfortunate?”

“But I did not do anything … that,” Tatiana protested, her voice growing somewhat louder. Henry growled, raising his fist as if to hit her. He hesitated and she knew he couldn’t strike. Lowering his trembling hand, he gathered her forward into his embrace and lovingly kissed her forehead.

“Please, help me, Tatiana,” Henry whispered into her dark hair. He rubbed his cheek reverently over her silky locks, dislodging the flowers adorning them. “It’s too late to take back. I don’t know what to do. I need you. You were always the practical one, so smart. Please, Tatiana, don’t abandon me now when I need you most!”

Something snapped in Tatiana’s brain at his plea for help. The shaking in her limbs subsided and her heart slowed. She swallowed. Her world became a dazed dream. Lightly, she blinked, steadying her swirling vision. She ignored the smell of blood filling her nose, as she knew that her brother was right. She had to protect her family.

Taking a deep, calm breath, she silently nodded. Henry was honorable most days and this indiscretion was just an unfortunately bad day. It was too late to take it back. She wouldn’t see her family ruined by the death of a mere servant girl. She hadn’t done anything wrong. She wasn’t going to do anything wrong--not really. She was just helping her brother clean up a mess, a minor indiscretion. All fine gentlemen were allowed their little indiscretions.

“Show me, Henry,” she answered, her tone flat, dutiful. “Let me see what it is you have done.”

posted by Michelle Pillow at 6:02 PM | 1 comment(s)

THE ENCHANTRESS by Mandy Roth

Gwyneth Stevens Book II:

THE ENCHANTRESS

By

Mandy M. Roth

http://www.newconceptspublishing.com/theenchantress.htm

Chapter 1

I stared at the giant hole in the ground and stood silent. I’m not sure there is a good word to use when you think that someone’s fallen off the deep edge--in an ‘in love’ kind of way. Pointing it out almost seems cruel, especially when you’re who they’re in love with.

I couldn’t believe I’d let Caleb talk me into this. We’d been dating for a couple of months now. It felt more like a lifetime, after all this wasn’t my first go round with him. I’d been betrothed to him over two hundred years ago. Yeah, I know, that definitely takes the prize for the world’s longest engagement.

Standing on the edge of the missing earth, I peered into the hole. It was huge. You could easily park at least two cars in it. "I thought you said you were making a tiny Koi pond," I said, looking down at Caleb. He stood in the bottom of the hole holding a yellow-handled shovel, pitching dirt up and over his head. His muscles hardened with each movement he made, and his back seemed to ripple as the sun glistened off his sweat. This was being done strictly for my benefit and I wasn’t about to start complaining. Although, I would’ve preferred to have those muscles sweaty and taut above me. He could have dug the hole without any physical labor on his part whatsoever.

Caleb and I are both faeries. I don’t mean faeries in the little pixie way with wings that grant wishes and hang with boys from Never-Never Land--I mean faeries as in tall, or at least Caleb was tall, slender, long haired, and pale skinned.

If Caleb really wanted to, he could have used his magical power to remove the soil from the ground and be done in a matter of minutes. No, he’d insisted on taking the hard way. He’d been digging the darn hole now for the last two weeks. I knew he wouldn’t dare risk someone seeing him use magic, even though we were in the middle of nowhere. Not one single deer on the property would notice a little shift in the wind, or care, but Caleb wasn’t one to take chances. He was conservative by nature and it suited him.

Someone had to balance us out.

Standing shoulder deep in a hole with a shovel in his hand made Caleb feel as though he had a purpose. His chosen profession was bounty hunter to the supernatural. If any sort of spook, undead, or out of the ordinary criminal was on the loose, Caleb was the man they called. Bounty hunting is extremely dangerous, but pays well. He loved his job and had been forced to cut his hours back to stick around and baby-sit me.

There had been several attempts on my life a little over two months ago. Vicious and smelly trolls had attacked me a couple of times. One of the nasty varmints managed to sink its ragged, rotted teeth into my shoulder. Apparently, a troll’s bite is venomous and packs a hell of punch. It would have killed me if Caleb hadn’t shown up when he did. I still wanted to launch a campaign to get trolls listed as one of the world’s most deadly creatures, but that would mean exposing humans to the reality of their existence--no thanks.

The day we became reacquainted, Caleb had been tracking the trolls into this realm. He was curious as to why they were coming here at all. They weren’t known for leaving their rat infested swamplands often. When he saw them attacking me he figured it out real quick. They’d been sent to kill me. The acting head of Si, (pronounced shee) Sorcha, had ordered my death.

Hey, I could be as much of a pain in the butt as the next gal but wanting me dead seemed a bit extreme. I am biased, I know, but still….

Turns out Sorcha had her reasons. One of which was to kill me before her son and I could meet--again. As far as Sorcha knew, I was just a reborn faerie out to trap her son in a loveless marriage.

Yeah, reborn, I know, crazy life, huh! It was a huge shocker for me too. It was still a little hard for me to deal with and I’d found out about two months ago. From what they tell me, I once lived for over a hundred years on this earth, never looking a day over twenty, and now I was back. The only major difference, physically speaking, was that my eyes had been violet before and now they were navy blue. But that was neither here nor there, and since my other life was close to two hundred years ago, I saw little point in dwelling on it.

Being hunted down by Sorcha’s henchmen threw me for a loop. I had no idea that she even existed, let alone had it in for me. Did I forget to mention that Sorcha is Caleb’s mother? Oops! Sorcha hated me from the day I was betrothed to Caleb, in my previous life. Hating someone for close to four hundred years was a long time to hold a grudge. I had to hand it to her, she was persistent. Bottling up all that hate for so many centuries could not be healthy.

I looked down at Caleb digging in the hole and was unable to figure out how I’d been so lucky to get him. He was a vision of beauty--his six foot four frame was well defined, thin, but not too thin, and his long shiny-blond hair hung to his waist. It was smooth and straight. I was so envious of his hair. I had to laugh at the fact that my boyfriend had better hair than me. Don’t get me wrong, I’d been blessed all right, but I unfortunately didn’t get to be a blonde bombshell. Genetics dealt me long wavy hair that was black as night.

Yeah, Caleb was beautiful, a little too beautiful. It didn’t matter--every bit of him was man, you can trust me on that. I know this because we had sex the first day we met. No, I don’t normally run around having sex with strangers, but he wasn’t a stranger. We’d been together for a hundred years once, so that had to qualify for something.

Sometimes, I even confuse myself.

"Are you going to be doing that all day?" I asked, missing his touch. He’d been consumed with getting the old farmhouse fixed up. It was his new mission. He was one of those people that always needed to be doing something constructive or they’d go mad. I was the complete opposite. I could sit for hours on a rock, observing the wonders that nature had to offer, and never once feel guilty about it.

Caleb glanced up at me with dirt smeared on his forehead and cheek. I snickered as he wiped his dirt stained hand across his cheek effectively blackening out the side of his face. "I’m sorry. I just want to get this filled with cement, before the weather gets too bad. I’m pushing it enough as it is doing it this late in the year. I want you to have this, Gwen. Let me do this for you, then we can sit out here, listen to the water roll over the rocks and maybe," he wagged his eyebrows and gave me a half-cocked smile, "we could do a little something else out here as well."

How could I argue with that? Caleb’s forest green eyes looked at me with such love, I wanted to jump down into the hole and kiss him, but getting out would be an issue for me. Standing at only five foot five made it hard to get in and out of there without the aid of a ladder. He was making it seven feet deep, because the Koi needed it deep to survive the harsh winter. I personally think he did it just to tease me about how short I am.

When Caleb decided to help me fix up the farmhouse, we’d picked up a bunch of remodeling books and magazines. We sat together, cuddled in our bed flipping through the pages, picking things out that we liked. I’d stopped at a picture of an attractive white home, with a large man-made water garden in front of it. The magnificently colored pond lilies and large multi-colored fish caught my eye. It looked so peaceful, so serene. The next day I woke to find Caleb missing from the bed. I went searching for him, and found him out behind the house digging a hole in the ground. He had the magazine opened to the page with the water garden. My heart melted.

"Well, baby, do you at least want some lunch?" He hadn’t eaten breakfast and it was pushing two o’clock. I didn’t want him to get run down. He had to work this weekend. I hated the idea of Caleb leaving me to head off to wherever it was he went. His job was dangerous and I worried sick about him the entire time he was gone.

"Gwen, I’m fine, a ghrá, don’t worry about me. I’m just about done for the day." He tossed more dirt over his head. I hated this. I knew that he was doing this for me, but I wanted to see him. I wanted to spend time with him before he had to leave.

We’d only been "back" together for two months, but already I felt attached to him. My body ached when he was away from me. I missed his smell--he always smelled so fresh and clean, like the morning air after a rainfall. I had often wondered if they could bottle the smell of him and mass-produce it. Women would dig it--I’m sure.

The wind around us picked up. It sent dried leaves scattering about the yard. Caleb didn’t seem to notice or care about the weather cooling down, he still ran around with no shirt on and a pair of jeans most of the time. It was forever summer to him. I often wondered if he was running a core body temperature that was twenty degrees hotter than most. He had that California beach-babe thing going and I couldn’t help but love it.

I, on the other hand, had packed my shorts away for the season and pulled out my winter clothes. I was always cold lately. I pulled the sleeves of my Cappuccino-colored acrylic sweater down and over my hands. I had a knit shirt underneath it, but I was still chilly. Great, I hoped I wasn’t getting a cold. I hadn’t really ever had one before, but I’d seen my friends and coworkers fighting them off. All the phlegm, hacking, and headaches, no thanks I’d pass.

Caleb glanced up at me. "Gwen?"

He was always so concerned about me. He was convinced that his mother would never stop trying to sabotage our relationship. I didn’t worry about that too much. I figured my father would look out for us. He was, after all, the King--and no Caleb and I are not related. Sorcha, Caleb’s mother only stepped in to lead the Dark Realm in the absence of my father.

Under normal circumstances, Sorcha was just the head sorceress for my father. He took her on for this duty when he saw that she had a young son, Caleb. Instantly, my father arranged a marriage between the two of us. I was only days old and he’d only seen me once. Not a good way to start out I know, but things had changed this time around, they were better--he was better.

Caleb gave me another questioning look.

"I’m fine. I swallowed some dust or something, really," I said, trying to sound as convincing as possible. I didn’t want him to feel like he had to stay home with me. Caleb enjoyed his job and I didn’t want to take that from him. Besides, James and Caradoc were coming up to stay with me for the weekend. It would be great. They’d turned into two of my closest friends in a relatively short period of time. They were both vampires, but that didn’t faze me a bit.

I’d slept with their Master, Pallo, about two months ago. Yep, same time I began seeing Caleb. Walking in and meeting Pallo had changed my life forever. He had been what jogged my memory of my life before. I had been in love with him hundreds of years ago when he was still human. I’d even left Caleb for him, well not for him but for another vampire. Yeah, I know, I was totally screwed up in the head. What do you expect? I am, after all, the daughter of the King of the Dark Realm. I’m bound to have some hang-ups. Okay, maybe a lot of hang-ups!

The phone rang and I headed into the house to grab it. I ran through the kitchen door, almost knocking a can of paint over. It seemed like Caleb was tackling a project in every room of the house. He was now in the process of putting another coat of white paint on the kitchen cabinets. I had to admit, they looked great, like they were brand new. I just wished that he’d finish one project before moving on to the next.

Men.

I snatched the phone off the wall. "Hello?" I said, a little out of breath.

"Gwen? Are you all right?"

"Ken!" I was happy to hear his voice. Ken was my boss, and my ex-fiancé. There was a time not long ago, when the sound of his voice made me nauseous--that was when I was still operating under the assumption he’d cheated on me. I had gotten over that, now I just missed him. He’d been distancing himself from me. I could hardly blame him. Things in my life were pretty screwed up right now. "Yeah, I’m good. How about you? How are you doing?"

"Good, I’m doing good. I finally got all moved into my new place. It’s nice, I like it," he said, his voice low. He was keeping his emotions out of this, I could tell. I also noticed how Ken didn’t offer to show me his new place. I knew his new little sweetie, Beth, had been the Realtor who helped him find it. I’d had issues with Beth from the moment he told me about her. She was the Realtor who’d taken us house hunting when we were engaged. How convenient for her that Ken’s apartment had been destroyed by hellhounds and that his fiancée had left him.

"Sounds nice ... how is Beth doing?" I hit myself on the forehead. Why in the world did I bring her into this? Ken had every right to be dating other people, I was, but it didn’t lessen the pain any.

I pictured his athletic body wrapped around hers and it made me sick. I could see Beth running her fingers through Ken’s dark blond hair. Last time I’d seen him he had finally let it grow out from the tight cut he had always worn. It looked good on him. I bet Beth really liked it too.

"Beth’s fine, but that’s not what I called about," he said, voice flat.

"Well, what did you call about, Ken? It’s obvious you really don’t want to be speaking to me, so what gives?"

"I just needed to call you and let you know, that you don’t need to come back in." He was getting at something I was sure I wouldn’t like.

"I told you I’d be back in on Monday." I’d been his personal assistant for two years. I was his right-hand girl. He never did anything without my knowledge. I knew that my taking personal time, and telecommuting from home had put a burden on him, but everything was still getting done.

"No, Gwen, I don’t think that’s a good idea."

I stood there playing with the phone cord and my stomach tightened. "Ken, are you letting me go?"

"Yes," he said, his voice void of any emotion.

My cheeks flushed. I wasn’t hurt. I was pissed. "Well, thanks for having the balls to tell me over the phone instead of in person. I really appreciate hearing it this way. You should have sent me a letter so you wouldn’t have had to speak to me at all. But, I’m probably not worth the price of a stamp, so…" I was furious with him. I didn’t care about the job, that wasn’t it at all, and I didn’t need the money. I’d saved enough over the last few years to get by. I cared about how hard he was pushing me away.

"Gwen, don’t be…."

I cut him off. "What don’t be what? Don’t be mad that someone I care about hates me, or don’t be mad that I still care about you?" I put my hand over my mouth. Did I really just tell him that I still cared for him? What the hell was I thinking? I had Caleb now and Ken had Beth.

Ken fell silent on the other end. I didn’t really expect him to say anything, although, a just kidding, you’re not fired would have been nice. Seconds ticked by before I gave into the impulse to hang up. There wasn’t really anything left for me to offer that would be considered polite, so it was better this way.

If you can’t say anything nice….

Walking over to the fridge, I took out the pitcher of lemonade. I wanted a glass of wine but the lemonade would have to do. I set the pitcher on the counter and grabbed two glasses down from the shelf. As I walked back towards the freezer to get ice the phone rang again. I knew it was Ken calling me back. I didn’t want to talk to him. The machine could get it. I grabbed a handful of ice out of the icebox and dropped it into the glasses. The plunking sound was a nice distraction from the nagging feeling of loss threatening to consume me.

The phone had just stopped ringing when Caleb walked in the back door. My voice greeted the caller, from the answering machine in the hallway. When the machine beeped, I looked up at Caleb. Suddenly, I wanted him to be digging out in his hole again. Not in here listening to Ken’s call.

I heard Ken’s voice on the machine and cringed. "Gwen, don’t do this. I’m sorry. I’m having a hard time with everything still. I just need some time. You’re not fired, I’m sorry, I just thought ... I don’t know what I thought, pick up please ... I know you’re there, Gwen? I still have feelings for you, too ... Maybe you should take a few more weeks off ... I can’t do this right now. I love you too much to watch you with someone…" The machine beeped and stopped recording.

Caleb stood very still. I never really got the expression about hearing a pin drop until that moment. The anger on his face was evident. "What the hell was that about?"

I tried to avoid eye contact with him. I didn’t want to hurt him, but I didn’t want to lie to him either. "I love you," was the best I could come up with.

Reaching out, he took my hand in his. His hand was rough from all of the manual labor he’d been doing. It didn’t matter to me that he wasn’t as smooth as he’d once been, I’d take him anyway, so long as he was with me.

"Gwen, don’t do this, please," he said, his hand tightened around mine. I looked up at his face. The moment I saw his green eyes, I couldn’t help myself--I cried.

Prior to finding out about my past, I was normal--well as normal as a faerie living among humans could get. I didn’t have multiple men at one time. I hadn’t even had sex for six months before I met Caleb. Ken had been the last man I’d been with and we’d been engaged. Since I began to remember bits and snippets of my past I began to have uncontrollable desires and I didn’t like the new me one bit.

Caleb pulled me close to him. His body was sweaty but still smelled wonderful. I took a deep breath in and let his scent calm me as he held me tight against his chest. He was warm and lately I’d been cold all the time. I let my head rest against him and he stroked the back of my head gently.

"Marry me, Gwen, marry me and this will all stop, I promise."

I kept my head buried in his chest. How could he be so sure, how could he know that I wouldn’t leave him again for another man? That’s exactly what I’d done to him my last time on this earth. I couldn’t even think about committing to him, then destroying him like that again. I had a hard enough time liking myself lately. Doing that to Caleb would kill me, I was sure of that.

"I can’t," I said, between sobs. His hands tightened in my hair--he was just this side of pulling it.

"You mean you won’t." The hurt in his voice was evident. I wanted to comfort him, but I was crying too hard. I wasn’t going to be much good in the consoling department when I was sobbing like a baby. I tried to pull away but Caleb held me tight. "I’m sorry. I didn’t mean to get you all upset. I’m sorry."

"I love you, Caleb. I love you so much, but I can’t hurt you again! This is all so fast ... too fast." I yearned for reassurance that he wasn’t mad and that everything would be all right. I couldn’t imagine my life without him. He had become everything to me, my friend, my lover, my life. I wondered if we’d been this way before, and if so why did I leave him? I wasn’t sure I’d ever know the answer to that.

He kissed the top of my head. "I love you, too, Gwen. I love you, too."

Sliding my arms around his back, I hugged him tight. He was so warm, so loving, so different from any other man I’d ever had in my life. He touched my forehead lightly with the back of his hand. "Gwen, you’re ice cold. Are you all right?"

I smiled and the tears began to dry on my face. It was a little like having one of those facial masks drying on you only without the luxury of being able to peel it off, and as far as I know any exfoliating qualities. I did my best to wipe my cheeks before pulling Caleb’s face down to mine to kiss his lips. The salt from my tears pressed into both of our mouths. I pushed my tongue in, diving, digging for his. When I found it, it was warm and wrapped itself smoothly around mine.

My body burned to be with him, to have him hold my naked body in his arms. I knew he had to get cleaned up and get ready to go, but that didn’t change the fact that I still wanted to lie with him before he left. I loved him so much and didn’t want to think about the possibility of the last time we talked ending in a fight. His job was dangerous and there was always a very real chance he wouldn’t come home. I’d thought I’d lost him once already and that was more than enough not to want to go through it again.

"Gwen, I’m calling Mark, I can’t go in with you like this." He walked around me and headed out in the hall to use the phone. Mark was his partner. I’d never actually met him. I’d heard Caleb talk about him a few times but that was it. I asked about him once, but Caleb just told me that in their line of work, the less people knew about them the better. I wasn’t sure I agreed with that. I mean, he was putting his life in this guy’s hands. Didn’t I have the right to at least meet him? Caleb didn’t seem to agree with me on that one.

I didn’t want Caleb to stay home on account of me. He loved what he did. I could always see a spark in his eye when he returned home after hunting down some crazy creature. He loved to tell me all about his adventures. I usually sat there with an aching pit at the bottom of my stomach every time he went into detail about being in danger, but I kept a smile on my face all the same. Caleb was a thrill seeker--that much was plain to see.

"Caleb!" I called after him. He turned around and looked at me. "Hey, I’m fine, you go. Besides you’ll ruin my weekend movie marathon."

James would be stopping at the video store before he and Caradoc came. James and I had taken to watching movies. We’d become our own two man critiquing team. Two fangs up or down. It wasn’t the best rating system, but it worked. Besides, James may be the only person more jaded than me. I couldn’t be sure, but maybe. Last week’s marathon had been an ode to the eighties. We’d spent the weekend watching teen flicks that dealt with serious issues, like paying your paper carrier on time, turning sixteen, and spending a weekend in detention.

It was very stimulating.

Caradoc, one of the most serious vamps I’d ever met, refused to sit with us and stare aimlessly at the television screen. He always wandered off into the woods or brought a few books to read. I’m sure he thought James and I were childish. Even though I’d just turned twenty-five, Caradoc still had me by about three hundred years or so, give or take a little.

James, on the other hand, was a "smidge" younger than him. He kept his hair cut short, and bleached it blond. I had to laugh every time I saw him spreading hair gel through it to spike it up. I think, no I know, he owns every black t-shirt ever made, and he rarely incorporates color.

Caleb walked over to me and touched my head with the back of his hand again. "Gwen, you’re really cool, what’s going on? Are you still taking your pills?"

The pills he referred to were my birth control pills that a Si doctor, Dr. Brown, had prescribed for me. The word Si, means elf, faerie, or magical creature. I had to hunt around for a doctor who specialized in this. Going to a normal doctor would have been too risky. Ordinary everyday people didn’t know that faeries, vampires, and other creatures of the night were real, and it had to stay that way.

I had no idea what was in the pills, but they were the equivalent of taking three normal birth control pills at one time. I had to take them twice a day because I was a Si and was in the reproductive prime of my life. No one knew how long I would remain fertile, it could be hundreds of years, or it could just be a few weeks. It could end tomorrow and revisit me again in a hundred years. There was no rhyme or reason to it all and it made it hard to prevent unplanned pregnancies.

Caleb and I had agreed not to have a baby right now. I could have already been swollen with child right now if I didn’t take the pills religiously. We were perfect matches, and in the life of a faerie, you only got a few of those--if you were lucky. A match, or life-mate, was someone whose essence was complementary to you, thus possibly producing a healthy offspring. My female Si body would be very selective on whom it would allow to impregnate me. I never actually got a list of prerequisites for the guy to possess, so I wasn’t sure who all fit the bill. Two possibilities existed so far, Caleb was the only sure thing. He wanted to marry me and have a family, I knew that, but he also respected me enough not to push it, most of the time.

"Yeah, I’m still taking the pills, so no, I’m not pregnant."

Staring down at my stomach, he looked disappointed. My gestation rate was a bit more accelerated than a human’s was, so if I were to become pregnant I would show in a matter of weeks. I’d still have to carry the baby for almost a year, allowing it to soak up magical powers from me, but I’d be huge by four months. I felt bad for letting him down, but this was my body, and right now, I did not want to have a baby.

He glanced up at me and knew I’d caught him fixating on my stomach. A slight smile played across his face. "I was just…."

"You were just hoping I decided to surprise you. Well I didn’t, sorry." I hated being like this with him. "Look, I’m sorry, but do you really think I want to get pregnant, watch you head out that door hunting some lethal demon, only to never come back through it? Do you think I want to raise our baby by myself? Is that it? God, Caleb, get real, you can’t expect me to do that, you can’t expect me to say, hey let’s do it, gee we’ve only been a couple for two months but let’s start a family anyways. Oh, then after I have a perfect little version of you I can sit around and spend the rest of my life mourning the man I loved and lost every time I look into his eyes." I was rambling and I knew it. "I’m not cut out to be a mother. Take a good look at me, Caleb! I can’t even take care of myself. I’m a mess and you know it!"

My temper flared. I had a nasty one and he knew it. He was always saying how much like my father I was. I wouldn’t really know since the man didn’t raise me. Two wonderfully loving humans raised me, not the King of the Dark Realm. I’d have to take Caleb’s word on issues involving my father.

Caleb reached out to touch me. I pulled away from him. "Gwen, I didn’t mean that, and if you don’t like what I do why didn’t you just say something? I’ll stop, I’ll quit right now if it will make you feel better about us. I’ll do anything you want. You just have to tell me what the hell it is you want. I’m not like some ‘people’ we know, I don’t read minds."

Rolling my eyes, I sighed, feeling extremely defeated. I didn’t want him to quit his job. He loved what he did and I’d never ask him to give it up. In truth, I didn’t know what I wanted anymore. I just knew that I didn’t want to fight about this again. "Forget it, I’m fine. Go, you need to get cleaned up."

"Just this once, I’ll make an exception about magic." Warm air surrounded us both. It wrapped itself around me and I closed my eyes just for a moment to bask in the felling of Caleb’s power. When I opened them again, he was clean.

He reached out and grabbed me around my waist. Before I could protest, he’d picked me up in his arms, and I grinned from ear to ear. He could always make me smile no matter what. It was a gift few possessed. He carried me up the stairs and to our bedroom. We had taken over the master bedroom and he was in the middle of tearing down the wallpaper. The walls looked like something had been clawing at them, shreds of paper hung loosely to the floor. I laughed at the state of the room as he tossed me down on the bed gently.

Sliding his hands up and under my sweater, he traced his fingers lightly over my silk bra. My nipples hardened under the weight of his gentle touch. Moaning, I rubbed my body against his, needing to feel every inch of him. Quickly, he removed my pants and underwear before sliding back over me.

posted by Michelle Pillow at 6:01 PM | 0 comment(s)

EXCERPT: Oleander House by Ally Blue

Blurb:

Sam Raintree has never been quite normal. All his life, he's experienced things
he can't
explain. Things that have colored his view of the world and of himself. So
taking a job as a
paranormal investigator seems like a perfect fit. His new co-workers, he
figures, don't
have to know that he's gay.

From the moment Sam arrives at Oleander House, the site of his first assignment
with Bay
City Paranormal Investigations, nothing is what he expected. The repetitive yet
exciting
work, the unusual and violent history of the house, the intensely erotic and
terrifying
dreams which plague his sleep. But the most unexpected thing is Dr. Bo
Broussard, the
group's leader. From the moment they meet, Sam is strongly attracted to his
intelligent,
alluring boss. It doesn't take Sam long to figure out that although Bo has led
a
heterosexual life, he is very much in the closet, and wants Sam as badly as Sam
wants him.

As the investigation of Oleander House progresses and paranormal events in the
house
escalate, Sam and Bo circle warily around their mutual attraction, until a
single night of
bloodshed and revelation changes their lives forever.


Excerpt ( *denotes italics):

One turkey-and-Swiss sandwich and a plate of pasta salad later, Sam and Bo
gathered
their equipment and headed out back to explore the old outdoor kitchen. The heat
smacked Sam in the face like a damp, sticky hand the minute he left the relative
coolness
of the back porch. Insects droned in the pines that clustered behind the
outbuildings.

"Jesus, David wasn't just kidding about it being hot out here." Sam squinted up
at the deep
blue sky. The sun's disc seemed to waver in the heat-shimmer. "Is it always like
this down
here?"

"In the summer? Pretty much, yeah." Bo gave him a sidelong smile. "The upside is
that the
winters are relatively mild most years."

"You mean there's no snow?"

"Rarely."

"Good. Fucking hate snow."

Bo gave him a startled look, then burst out laughing. Sam laughed too. It felt
good. He had
to remind himself that it didn't mean anything. Just two guys having a laugh.

The outdoor kitchen, a long, low brick building with massive chimneys on each
end, was
dim inside and wonderfully cool. Grimy windows broke the sunlight into a soft
haze that
failed to illuminate more than a few feet of the earth floor. Here and there,
broken panes
let in a single ray of fierce molten gold, all the brighter for the otherwise
unrelieved
gloom.

Sam switched on his flashlight and swept the beam around the room. Dust and
cobwebs
lay thick on every surface. In the far corner, something squeaked and scuttled
across the
floor.

"Mice," Bo said, unnecessarily, as he turned the EMF detector on.

Switching the flashlight to his left hand, Sam thumbed on the video camera and
started the
tape rolling. "Why's it such a mess in here? Didn't Mr. Gentry open the
outbuildings for
tours?"

"No. He had plans to at some point, but as you can see, they'd need a lot of
work before it
would be safe to let the public in. He hadn't gotten that far yet when he had to
close the
house."

"Hm." Sam panned around the room, stopping when Bo's face came into frame.
"What're
you getting on the EMF?"

"It's a little lower than it is in the house. I've got one point two right now,
pretty steady."
Bo glanced at the thermometer he held in his other hand. "Temp's seventy-two
degrees."

"And that's nice and cool compared to outside. Damn."

"Yep. It's probably pushing a hundred out there." Bo started walking slowly
around the
perimeter of the room, his gaze fixed on the EMF detector. "Are you feeling
anything,
Sam?"

*Nothing you want to know about.* Sam licked his dry lips and tried not to stare
at Bo's
ass. "Not like last night. I assume that's what you meant."

Bo glanced at Sam, the corners of his mouth curling up in a slight smile. His
eyes flicked
down and back up, glittering in the gloom, and suddenly Sam couldn't breathe. If
he'd
gotten that look in a bar, he'd have turned on the charm and bought the man a
drink.
He squashed the bright flare of hope before it could burn out of control. It's
your
imagination, idiot, he scolded himself. This isn't a pick-up joint, and Bo isn't
gay.

"Hm. That's odd," Bo said.

Sam swallowed and forced himself to focus. Bo was walking in a small, slow
circle,
frowning at the EMF detector. "What's odd?"

For a moment, Bo didn't answer. Then he sighed and looked up. "The EMF spiked
for just a
second. But it's gone back down now. Did you get anything on the camera?"

"No. And before you ask, I didn't feel anything unusual either."

Bo grinned. "You're already reading my mind, Sam. That's scary."

Sam laughed. "I've been working on my psychic powers."

"Oh, really?" Bo took a step closer, smiling into the camera. "So what am I
thinking now?"

Sam gulped, keeping the camera up to hide his reaction. If he didn't know
better, he'd
have sworn Bo was flirting with him. But that, he knew, was impossible. *Maybe
that's just
how he is with everyone. You don't know him at all, really. Don't start reading
into things.*

"Let's see," Sam said, lowering the camera and hoping Bo couldn't see him
blushing in the
dimness. "You're thinking that we should note exactly where the EMF spike
occurred, and
after we finish sweeping the room, we should see if we can make it spike again.
Then, we
should search this room and the surrounding area outside to see if there's
anything
electronic that could've caused it. That right?"

Bo smiled. "Close enough. Let's get to work."


Oleander House by Ally Blue
© Copyright 2006 Ally Blue
Available Now from Samhain Publishing, Ltd.
http://samhainpublishing.com/oleanderhouse.shtml


-----------------
Ally
http://www.allyblue.com/
http://groups.yahoo.com/group/loveisblue/

posted by Michelle Pillow at 2:06 PM | 0 comment(s)