Wednesday 22 February 2017

Wednesday Briefs Demon Part 45


No prompts this week so lets get right into the story and find out what our boys are doing with a great big talking pussy

The cat’s purr thrums through my body and makes me smile for no reason other than that the warmth of its body and the warm, musky smell make me happy. I bury my face in its soft fur and sigh with pleasure.
Sensing Tian’s approach, I raise my head. He seems shocked but not afraid. When he hold out his hand, the cat butts it with its head, it’s purr increasing in intensity. Tian squats beside me and puts his arm around me.
“Welcome Massterss.”
Where did that voice come from? It was so strange. Almost as if…. I gaze at Tian who stares back, his eyes wide. “Was that…?”
“My name iss Malik Massterss. It iss my pleassure to sserve.”
“Tell me you hear that too.”
Tian nods dumbly. “Was…was it the cat?”
I jump when a hand touches my shoulder. I gaze up into the face of Tian’s mother. She smiles gently at me. “Is the cat speaking to you?”
“Yes. Is that normal here?”
“Normal? No, but not unheard of. Come, let’s get inside. You may bring your familiar.”
“Familiar?”
“The cat is your servant now, sent to guard you, to be your eyes and ears in the other world.”
“What other world?”
“I will explain everything as best I can, but we need to be somewhere safe.”
“Safe sounds good.”
The queen smiles and returns to her husband. Together they begin to walk down the slope, away from the cave. “His name is Malik,” Tian says. His mother glances over her shoulder. She seems surprised, but says nothing to him.
“The Goddess welcomes you, Malik. My home is your home.”
Malik raises his head and gives a strange yowl that sounds very much like an acknowledgement. Oh who am I kidding, of course it was. The damn cat talks to me in my head, of course it understands humans.
“Castien, what’s going on here?” my father asks as we follow Tian’s parents, with Malik close to one side, and Tian the other. “Fire and fire cats? I though I’d lost you and now…. Fighting, I know. Ruling, riding…. Magic is beyond my understanding. Forgive me if I am suspicious that this is all a trick.”
“To what purpose?”
“I don’t know, but I don’t trust magic. It’s tricky. You think you control it, but all the time it’s controlling you. I’ve seen it happen. I’ve seen good men turn bad, sane men taken by madness.”
“This is different. I don’t know how, but it’s the difference between using magic and being magic.”
“I don’t understand.”
“Neither do I. Perhaps we will find answers at the palace.”
“Perhaps.”
My father does not sound convinced, and to be honest neither am I, but we have to start somewhere.
Malik trots silently as my side as we skirt the town and enter the palace through the back gate. Even so, there are plenty of people who point and stare. Most of them seem afraid, so I believe Malik is the one attracting the most attention. He doesn’t seem to mind. I, on the other hand, am extremely conscious that all I’m wearing is my father’s cloak. The smooth stones are a blessed relief to my bare feet. The thick carpets of the palace complex even more so.
Once inside, the king and queen hand over our care to servants and beg our indulgence in a small absence while they seek out information. How can we complain. Tian accompanies us, as does Malik, and we are shown to a well-appointed room, overlooking the lake. The servants are understandably nervous, and take their leave at the first opportunity with promise of refreshments. Shortly afterwards, more servants arrive with clothing, and just as quickly depart.
Somehow, being dressed has restored some of the equilibrium I had not realised I’d lost. It was as if a world that had been obscured by a mist now came back into focus, and with it an objective realization of all that has transpired. Standing in the window and gazing over the crystal waters, my mind is as scattered as the light.
“You are confussed Masster.”
“You could say that.” I have found the way to communicate with Malik without having to reveal to anyone, what is being said. I believe Tian can hear me, but that is no hardship.
“What conssernss you?”
“I’ve changed and I don’t understand how or why. Everything’s different but I feel the same. I just… I don’t know what to think. What to do next.”
“I undersstand, Masster. It happenss with thosse who are new. Sspeak with the Lady. Sshe will sset your mind eassy.”
“The Lady?”
“Yess.”
“Where will I find her?”
“In the foresst, Masster. I will sshow you.”
“Tian….”
“We should go.”
“Your parents?”
“Will wait.”
“My father?”
“Will wait.”
“What are you talking about?” Father frowns, his dark brows drawing together. He knows something is afoot. I feel bad for leaving him, but I know without knowing how that this is something I must do. The only clear answer I will get is from this Lady. I believe she might be the one who spoke to me.
“I have to leave for a little while I won’t be long. Wait here.”
“Leave? You’re not going anywhere without a guard. Where…?” He stopped mid-sentence when an effortless spell rolled over him and turned his blood to liquid gold. Comforting. Nourishing, but slow. His eyes take on a golden sheen and his lips curve in a smile. He is not aware of us leaving. I am happy to leave him relaxed and at peace. That is something I feel I will never be again, as Tian and I follow the cat from the palace and deep into the wood.

Now go check out the rest of the amazing flashers

Saturday 18 February 2017

You Had Me at Hero by Michael P Thomas

You Had Me at Hero by Michael P. Thomas
Title: You Had Me at Hero
Author: Michael P. Thomas
Genre: Gay Romance, Contemporary, Interracial
Length: Novella
Publisher: JMS Books

Synopsis

When seventeen-year-old Mark Potts fell from a balcony, he lost both the use of his legs and any faith in heroes. Now twenty-nine, he’s long-since come to terms with his injury. His job provides more opportunities for eye-rolling than for riding to anybody’s rescue, but with two kids to bring up, he barely has time for his husband, much less for heroics. Besides, Starr Bradford is a policeman — how many heroes does one family need?
Mark and Starr love each other madly, but stress management is a load-bearing pillar of their happiness. When Mark’s coping skills fail him at exactly the wrong moment, he’s left hanging by a thread of words he should’ve kept in his mouth. He has the power to repair their relationship, but when Starr’s workday suddenly goes south, will he get to wield it? Keeping it together long enough to find out is a job worthy of any superhero!
You Had Me at Hero by Michael P. Thomas

Buy Links

JMS Books: http://www.jms-books.com/index.php?main_page=product_info&cPath=29_94&products_id=2008
Amazon US: https://www.amazon.com/dp/B01N6XBBMF/
Amazon UK: https://www.amazon.co.uk/dp/B01N6XBBMF/
Amazon AU: https://www.amazon.com.au/dp/B01N6XBBMF/
Amazon DE: https://www.amazon.de/dp/B01N6XBBMF/

Excerpt

The 911 call center was tucked into a park in the middle of town. Mark and Starr lived in a neighborhood of post-World War II brick ranch houses east of the park, barely a five-minute drive at three in the morning. Even after being corralled by Coretta, Mark was out of his clothes, out of his chair, and into the bed by three-thirty, with his arms around his husband at three-thirty and about two seconds. Geeze but it felt good to cuddle up next to Starr. Any trace of a world that might exist outside their bed fizzled away as soon as they were in it together. Even if he tried, which he had long given up doing, he couldn’t focus on a worry, couldn’t retain the residue from even the most stressful call. With Starr in his arms, there was no room left for fear, no way to also hold on to doubt. With Starr in a patrol car and two sons careening through life in America while being black, these things were easy enough to find during the day, but in the quiet dark, Starr’s body throwing heat like rocks in a sauna, Mark’s defenses—which Starr assured him were more finely tuned than most people’s—melted away.
When Starr rolled over with the whoosh of a contented sigh to take Mark in his own arms, Mark knew he was safe. He knew he was loved. And when his hand followed a hunch along the ridge of Starr’s muscled belly, he knew he was desired. He took a great handful of Starr’s warm, heavy balls and watched a sleepy grin spread across his face.
“Marky?”
This mumbled verification always made Mark laugh. As opposed to…? “No. It’s a jewel thief,” he said, gathering Starr’s balls and giving his sac a tug. “I just struck it rich.”
The grin grew and Starr rolled onto his back. “Take whatever you want, just please don’t hurt me.”
“We’ll see.”

Review

This was a very sweet book. Mark and Starr have been married for a while and have two children. They’re not the most typical family, not only because the boys have two dads. Mark is in a wheelchair after an accident as a teenager. 

Mark is blond haired, blue eyed, while his husband and sons are black. Whilst this is not played on in any way, it does throw up a mirror to some important issues. From people asking which part of Africa his son comes from to a caller to the emergency line where Mark works accusing a young man of “probably” carrying a weapon just because he’s black, Mark and his family face prejudice every day. Mark heartaches about his son’s future while Starr takes a more fatalistic stance. “Surround our boys with love and teach them to be good men, and that’s all we can do.”

Both Mark and Starr are very family oriented and the first two thirds of the book paints a beautiful picture of their strong family unit and some of the difficulties they overcome together. Then a horrible little worm insinuates itself in Mark’s brain when Starr starts spending guy time with a friend. They hang out at bars which isn’t Mark’s thing and he starts to suspect Starr likes being with his new friend more than him. This leads to stupid accusations he regrets immediately afterwards. Unfortunately the argument led to them not parting with their usual loving words.

When Starr is injured during a shooting, Mark finds himself envisioning a life without him and realised he can’t. This puts a lot of things into perspective.

Nothing about the book is particularly angsty, although there is plenty of action. There are some beautiful phrases (eg “The unshared kiss swirled in the space between them…)  and lovely little details, like the content of some of Mark’s 911 calls, which are sad, funny and maddening.

There are many kinds of heroes and, in my view, both these men qualify. Starr, as a police officer put his life on the line, while Mark straddles the line between 911 operator and homemaker. The two boys seem well adjusted, funny and cute, and they couldn’t want for better fathers or a more stable home life.

The book could very easily have slipped into twee – everything a little too perfect, but it doesn’t. It doesn’t have the feel of many other books I’ve read, where the happy ever after has to be fought for and is almost a reward for going through everything the world throws at them. Although there’s no doubt these two have to duck their fair share of incoming issues, there is a sense right from the start that they’re going to be fine and the HEA comes very easily to them. Not that this is a criticism in any way. It’s lovely to read about a strong, equal partnership and a family where everything just works. It’s like peeing through the net curtains and being bathed in warm family life.

I loved this book and wouldn’t hesitate to recommend it.

Giveaway

Prize: $20 Amazon Gift Card
a Rafflecopter giveaway

About the author

Michael P. Thomas is a flight attendant whose writing is continually inspired by his work with the flying public, who flatly refuse to be boring. The author of three novel-length gay romances and a number of romantic and erotic shorts, he writes gay fiction because when he was coming out he sure was glad to have it to read. After misspending his youth in San Francisco, he now lives in his native Colorado with his husband.
Social Links
Website: http://misterstewardess.com/
Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/GoReadMichaelPThomas
Twitter: https://twitter.com/MrStewardess

Thursday 16 February 2017

Falling Hard by Dale Cameron Lowry

Title: Falling Hard
Author: Dale Cameron Lowry
Length: 233 pages/57,000 words
Publisher: Terrestrial Press
Genres: short stories, contemporary romance, paranormal romance, erotic romance







Blurb

Falling Hard features nine of Dale Cameron Lowry’s best short romance stories, available for the first time in one book. Meet a sign language interpreter who finds unexpected love at middle-age, college students in their first relationships, a vampire who would rather be a vegan, and a proudly gay ex-Mormon atheist who sells Bibles for a living. From sweet to erotic, this collection exhibits the quirkiness, fun, and diversity Dale's writing is known for. Here are just a few of the stories in Falling Hard:
  • Mi Alma — Ex-Mormon Alma Larsen doesn't know the first thing about alcohol, so he hires bartender Damian Banks to help out at his winter holiday party. They build a friendship that simmers with sexual tension—and possibly something much deeper. Will this Christmas bring them both a love that lasts?
  • Loggerhead — Soon after they fall in love, Jake makes Eric a promise inspired by an old track uniform. But demanding work schedules at Jake’s four-star restaurant and Eric’s newspaper keep them from following through. Six years later, they take the honeymoon they never had, heading to the Florida coast in search of sea turtles—and rekindling their passion for each other in the process.
  • Reading the Signs — The only thing twenty-three-year-old Theo De Jong expects when he enrolls in a summer school for linguists in New Mexico is to get more ideas for his master’s thesis in Dutch Sign Language. But then he meets the American sign language expert Alfonso Grossman, and sparks fly.
  • Sweeter Than Blood — Keith was a vegan before a hot encounter with a stranger turned him into a vampire. In the year since, his sire, John, has tried to make up for the mistake by teaching Keith everything he knows about being a non-murderous bloodsucker. But temptation is strong in the form of Andres, a regular customer at the barbershop where Keith works. When Andres finally asks Keith on a date, the real danger begins.

Excerpt

From Loggerhead:
I got up and pulled on the sweats Jake had gotten out for me the night before. The sweatshirt was dusky blue, faded from years of washings. He’d told me it was from his days running high school track in Florida. On the front was a line-drawing of a massive turtle and the words “Langford Loggerheads” printed in green beneath it. 
Jake stirred, grumbling something under his breath as he turned onto his back and opened his eyes. When he saw me, he smiled. “You’re here,” he said with a degree of awe usually reserved for fireworks and the Grand Canyon. 
“Of course I am.” 
“I like seeing you in my clothes,” he said. 
“I like being in them.” I couldn’t hold eye contact with him anymore. I wasn’t used to being looked at like one of the Seven Natural Wonders of the World. I pointed to the turtle on the front of his shirt. “Ever seen one in the wild?” 
“I was a turtle guide for a few years before moving up here. You?” 
I shook my head. “I’ve never been far south enough. I’ve always been curious, though. Ever since I read about them in Ranger Rick.” 
“You read Ranger Rick when you were a kid, too? I knew you were perfect.” 
I blushed. “Shut up.” 
“I’m serious.” He sat up in bed and reached for my hips, pulling me back into the sheets with him. “We should go on a turtle walk sometime. I’ll take you back home for nesting season.” 
“Take me home with you?” I teased. 
“Aren’t you moving a little fast?” 
“No,” he said with the solid confidence only a 35-year-old in love can have. “Not at all.”
 

Where to Buy

Falling Hard is currently available through the secure downloading platform PayHip, Amazon, Apple, and other sellers worldwide. You can read a preview and find sales outlets at:

Giveaway

To celebrate the release of Falling Hard, Dale is running a giveaway. The prize is one of Dale's short romances that is not in the anthology: Love Unmasked, a lighthearted romance about Aaron Loreto, a gay man who's been unlucky in love because he occasionally turns into a raccoon. For some reason, his ex-boyfriend didn't like the way he'd spend all night digging through the trash. But somewhere out there is a guy who's more understanding, and Aaron might just have found him at his favorite coffee shop. You can enter every day to increase your chances. Enjoy! (If you can't see the Rafflecopter giveaway here, go to www.dalecameronlowry.com/falling-hard-giveaway/ to enter.) a Rafflecopter giveaway  

Author Bio & Links

Dale Cameron Lowry lives in the Upper Midwest with a partner and three cats, one of whom enjoys eating dish towels, quilts, and wool socks. It’s up to you to guess whether the fabric eater is one of the cats or the partner. When not busy mending items destroyed by the aforementioned fabric eater, Dale is a writer and editor who enjoys wasting time on Tumblr, listening to podcasts, studying anatomy, getting annoyed at Duolingo, and reading fairy tales. Previous careers include sign language linguist, grocery store clerk, journalist, gardener, and camp counselor. Dale began writing for fun at the age of eight and has been making up stories ever since, from overly workshopped literary fiction to off-the-cuff fanfic. Queer Mormons have a way of popping up in Dale's work, whether it's romance or erotica, sci fi or fairy tales, slice-of-life contemporary fiction or spine-tingling horror. So do immigrants and emigrants, people with disabilities, multilingual folks, and others who live their lives navigating multiple cultures.

  • Twitter: www.twitter.com/DaleCLowry
  • Tumblr: dalecameronlowry.tumblr.com
  • Goodreads: www.goodreads.com/dalecameronlowry
  • Pinterest: www.pinterest.com/daleclowry
  • Google+: https://plus.google.com/108076689226633177029
  • Wednesday 8 February 2017

    Wednesday Briefs Demon Chapter 44


    I made a silly mistake this week. I helped do the prompts but painted myself into a corner given none of the prompts could apply to my story. My princes would have no idea what a kipper or a radiator was for example. I did the best I could under the circumstances, and to be honest I'm quite glad because Garfield gave me the idea of giving Castien a pet fire cat, which is not going to please anyone.


    We emerge from the cave into chaos. I had not realized how silent it was within the fire, until we leave it. The Druid stands close, so close we almost walk into him. I immediately place myself between him and Castien, who laughs, a musical sound. Instinctively I know he is amused by my belief that I still need to protect him. He is so much more than he was, but he is still the other half of my soul, and I would die before I let harm come to him.
    “What have you done?” Mother screams. “My son. You have killed my son.”
    King Aleric roars and breaks free of Father’s hold, rushing toward us with sword raised. He halts as if walking into an invisible wall and stares at us. “Castien? You…. But I saw you walk into the fire. I thought….”
    I have never yet seen Castien’s father lost for words. 
    “What sorcery is this?” the Druid hisses. “You were lost to the flame.”
    I notice he holds my boot in his hand and it suddenly hits me that no time has passed since we left the cave.
    “Not lost,” Castien says. His words are soft, but they carry throughout the cave. “It is you who are lost. We never were.”
    “It is impossible,” the Druid repeats, his face blank with shock.
    “Tian.” My mother’s call draws my attention from the Druid and when she embraces me it feels like home. “Oh my Tian,” she repeats as she weeps into my hair.
    “Don’t cry, Mother, we are safe.”
    Mother draws back and takes my face between her hands. “You are bonded,” she says, her voice trembling, and her eyes wide. 
    “Yes. It is complete.”
    “But how?”
    “There is much I don’t understand,” I admit, “but what I do understand is that Castien is part of my soul and I of his. Whatever happened within the flames remade us. It strengthened our bond and completed is. I don’t know how better to explain.”
    “Do you have an explanation of this,” King Aleric demands of the Druid.
    For the first time, I see the Druid uncertain. “I must consult my books. This has never happened within my lifetimes, nor have I come across it in any of the books I have studied. I-I have no explanation.”
    “Then you had better find one,” King Aleric grumbles. “And do not think I have forgotten what you did to my son, when you compelled him to come here.”
    “I did no more or less than was necessary,” the Druid says. “He is Druach and must enter the flame.”
    “You can’t be certain,” Mother says. “You made that mistake once before.”
    The Druid starts as if she had struck him, and indeed her words were barbed.
    “I will return when I have consulted,” the Druid says then walks stiffly away.
    “I’m sorry, Kai,” Mother calls. “He is my son. I thought I had lost him. Let us not part again with angry words between us.”
    The Druid pauses, stiff-backed, then proceeds to stride from the cave.
    Mother sighs. “Come,” she said. “This is no place to talk, and you must be cold. Let us return to the palace and talk.”
    “That sounds good.”
    I am surprised when King Aleric takes off his cloak and throws it around Castien’s shoulders. Until then, I hadn’t realized we are naked. It makes sense that when we were remade our clothes were not.
    Strangely, I am not cold, and Castien I think accepts the cloak for the sake of modesty rather than need. I accept Father’s coat for the same reason.
    Outside, the air hits me with a wave of sight, sound and sensation. Has the sun always been so bright, the grass green? Surely the breeze has never tasted of crystal water before, and the sound sounds of the forest so clear. I recognize the animas by their sounds and smells. I had not been so talented before.
    Castien’s face is rapt and I assume he experiences the same sharpening of his senses.
    “What’s wrong?” Mother asks, sensitive to our state.
    “Nothing. It’s just…just….” I can’t find words to explain how I feel.
    “Everything is more,” Castien whispers.
    “I understand,” Mother says. “It is how I feel when I have communed with The Mother. She has touched you and you will never be the same. It will settle and fade with time. Come, let us hurry home as soon as possible. It will not be as acute there.”
    As we head down the slope toward the horses, I hear something approach through the forest. Castien hears to as he stops, sniffing the air. “Wait,” he says and hurries forward. There is such command in his voice that all, including I, comply.
    I sense it before I see it. A fire cat, almost as large as a hound, its orange fur standing on end. I start forward but Castien raises a hand and a find myself wading through air as thick as treacle. I do not have to look to know the others are frozen by his effortless spell.
    “Castien, don’t. You are unarmed.”
    Castien ignores me and approached the spitting animal. My heart all but stops. For all our new power, we are still men, and as far as I know, can still feel pain and die. Should the cat’s claws or teeth pierce Castien’s skin I doubt even our skilled healers could save him.
    “It’s alright,” Castien says softly and I do not know if it is to me or the cat.
    I continue to fight through the thickened air and by the time I reach Castien, the cat is purring like a kitten, allowing Castien to run his fingers through its sleek fur. 
    “It will not hurt you now,” he says and I know he’s right. 
    The others unfreeze behind us, their calls freed with them. But their warnings are unnecessary as the cat appears entirely subdued and suffers my caresses without rancour.

    Prompt

    Tuesday 7 February 2017

    Bonds of Earth by Janine Ashbless


    Coming Soon – In Bonds of the Earth, the second Book of the Watchers by Janine Ashbless (@sinfulpress)


    Would you defy God, for love?

    In Bonds of the Earth is the new paranormal erotic romance by Janine Ashbless, and is the second in the Book of the Watchers trilogy.

    Broad at the shoulders and lean at the hips, six foot-and-then-something of ropey muscle, he looks like a Spartan god who got lost in a thrift store. He moves like ink through water. And his eyes, when you get a good look at them, are silver. Not gray. Silver. You might take their inhuman shine for fancy contact lenses. Youd be wrong.

    Janine Ashbless is back with the second in her Book of the Watchers trilogy, In Bonds of the Earth.
    Milja Patek’s bloodline were sworn to guard the fallen angel imprisoned beneath their family church, until Milja fell in love and set him free. Now she has to learn to navigate her new life as wife and plaything to Azazel.
    Angel or demon, protector or tyrant, right or wrong, Everything Milja once knew has been flipped upside down and all she can do is follow her heart, even if that means waging war against Heaven and releasing the rest of the fallen.

    Unafraid to tackle the more complex issues surrounding good and evil in mainstream religion, Janine has created a thought-provoking and immersive novel which sets a new standard for paranormal erotic romance. The first in the series, Cover Him With Darkness, was released in 2014 by Cleis Press and received outstanding reviews.

    In Bonds of the Earth is published by Sinful Press and is due for release on March 1st, 2017.

    Amazon (universal link)  http://mybook.to/IBOTE
    Paperback - support your small publishers and order direct. Paperback will be posted 3 weeks before release date  https://sinfulpress.co.uk/product/in-bonds-of-the-earth-by-janine-ashbless/



    Blurb:

    I will free them all.

    When Milja Petak released the fallen angel Azazel from five thousand years of imprisonment, she did it out of love and pity. She found herself in a passionate sexual relationship beyond her imagining and control the beloved plaything of a dark and furious demon who takes what he wants, when he wants, and submits to no restraint. But what she hasnt bargained on is being drawn into his plan to free all his incarcerated brothers and wage a war against the Powers of Heaven.

    As Azazel drags Milja across the globe in search of his fellow rebel angels, Milja fights to hold her own in a situation where every decision has dire consequences. Pursued by the loyal Archangels, she is forced to make alliances with those she cannot trust: the mysterious Roshana Veisi, who has designs of her own upon Azazel; and Egan Kansky, special forces agent of the Vatican the man who once saved then betrayed her, who loves her, and who will do anything he can to imprison Azazel for all eternity. 

    Torn every way by love, by conflicting loyalties and by her own passions, Milja finds that she too is changing and that she must do things she could not previously have dreamt of in order to save those who matter to her.

    In Bonds of the Earth is the second in the Book of the Watchers trilogy and the sequel to Cover Him With Darkness.

    Excerpt from In Bonds of the Earth:

    I was giving my long-dreaded presentation on the anniversary footbridge to Misters Ellis, Singh, Constanzo and Mackenzie…when Azazel walked in.

    Oh hell.

    “Excuse me, gentlemen,” I said loudly, lurching around from behind my desk, grabbing Azazel’s arm and spinning him back to face the door. “Not here, come on, please,” I implored through clenched teeth.

    If there was one thing I’d learned by then, it was to not ignore warning dreams. If I’d paid them more attention from the start, things between me and Egan might have gone very differently back in Montenegro…

    No, better not to think of Egan, not when Azazel was around. One guy at a time was quite enough to wrap my head around. Especially this guy.

    He humored me though, this time, letting me pull him out of the meeting room and through the open plan office without resistance. We attracted a lot of stares, but there was nothing I could do about that except hold my head high.

    “Where are we going?” he asked.

    “Out. Anywhere.”

    “You’re so impetuous.”

    I didn’t need to glance up at his wicked smirk. I could feel it burning its way into my breast.

    Bryce, the beardy guy in my new team who’d shown me the ropes of the job and seemed just a tiny bit too eager to talk every morning, stood up from his cubicle to intercept us. “Milja, is everything okay?”

    “It’s just fine,” I rasped, towing Azazel faster.

    “She’s insatiable,” my demon lover confided with a helpless shrug to my colleague as we swept past.

    Bryce stared, mouth open.

    “Goddamnit,” I muttered, and Azazel chuckled.

    Sometimes it was hard to remember that he’d risked everything to save me.

    We reached the doors at the end of the room and I pushed through, past the lobby with the elevators and into the concrete stairwell of the emergency stairs beyond. The only people who came here were smokers on their way to the roof, and it looked empty for now. My panicky momentum fizzled away and I swung to face him.

    “What are you doing here?”

    “What do you think?” he countered, taking my face in his hands.

    “Azazel—” But he cut off my protests with his hungry kiss; a kiss that lanced through me all the way to my core. I gave up resisting, and speaking, and almost breathing, as his lust rolled over me in a hot wet wave. I slid my hands around his neck and tangled my fingers in his messy hair, pulling myself into his embrace. His body was hard as rock, his hands heavy on my waist and hips. The yearning for his touch that smoldered in my flesh day and night woke to a roaring heat.

    I’d missed him. His skin, his smile, the peppery scent and salt taste of him. The sweetness of his lips and the harsh rasp of his stubbled chin. I’d missed him so much. Like an addict missing her hit.


    Author bio:

    Janine Ashbless is a writer of fantasy erotica and steamy romantic adventure. She likes to write about magic and myth and mystery, dangerous power dynamics, borderline terror, and the not-quite-human.

    Buyer beware! If you like dark romance and a hard-won Happily Ever After, try "Cover Him with Darkness," "Heart of Flame," or "The King's Viper." If you prefer challenging erotica, go for "Red Grow the Roses" or "Named and Shamed" instead. All her other books lie somewhere on the spectrum between.

    Janine has been seeing her books in print ever since 2000. She's also had numerous short stories published by Black Lace, Nexus, Cleis Press, Ravenous Romance, Harlequin Spice, Storm Moon, Xcite, Mischief Books, and Ellora's Cave among others. She is co-editor of the nerd erotica anthology 'Geek Love'.

    Born in Wales, Janine now lives in the North of England with her husband and two rescued greyhounds. She has worked as a cleaner, library assistant, computer programmer, local government tree officer, and - for five years of muddy feet and shouting - as a full-time costumed Viking. Janine loves goatee beards, ancient ruins, minotaurs, trees, mummies, having her cake and eating it, and holidaying in countries with really bad public sewerage.

    Her work has been described as:
    "Hardcore and literate" (Madeline Moore) and "Vivid and tempestuous and dangerous, and bursting with sacrifice, death and love." (Portia Da Costa

    Links:
    Janine Ashbless website: http://www.janineashbless.com/
    Janine Ashbless on Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/janineashbless
    Sinful Press website: https://www.sinfulpress.co.uk


    Pre-order blitz organized by Writer Marketing Services.

    Thursday 2 February 2017

    Dreamspinner SALES


    Dreamspinner Press: "Magic in the Air" - From February 2 to 6, all paranormal, fantasy, and science fiction titles will be 30% off. (Sales are set to begin and end based on Eastern Standard Time.)

    Coastal Magic: For authors attending Coastal Magic this weekend, their titles are 30% off from February 2 to 12 using the promo code COASTAL17. See the list of authors attending here.

    Wednesday 1 February 2017

    Wednesday Briefs Demon Chapter Forty Three



    There's no prompt this week, so let's dive right into the story.

    When I come to my senses I am sprawled under Tian’s still body. For a moment, I lie still, cushioned within the softness of the flames-that-are-not-flames, enwrapped by someone who is now as much part of me as the hair on my head. If I had thought I loved Tian before, now there is no word for how I feel. In fact, it’s so big I can’t keep it inside and I laugh. I have never heard such a joyous sound.
    Tian stirs and sits up. I am content to lie and gaze up at him. He has never been more lovely.
    “My prince,” Tian whispers.
    “My prince, too. There are many princes.”
    “But only one of them is utterly perfect. Only one of them is mine.”
    “No, two are perfect, and the other is mine.”
    Strangely it is not difficult to accept Tian’s praise, to believe that I am perfect. Here, in this moment, I know it’s true. No one has ever been more perfect than he and I. We are perfect, our love is perfect, the moment is perfect.
    Tian toys with my hair and if I had been a cat I would have purred.
    “You have such beautiful hair,” he murmurs. “It’s always so shiny. It doesn’t tangle like mine.”
    “I like yours,” I say and raise my hand to bury my fingers in its softness. “It is like the wing of a raven – soft and…perfect.”
    Tian pulls a lock of hair over his shoulder and studies it. He makes a non-committal sound as he flicks it back again. “It’s okay as hair goes, I suppose, but yours…. Yours is a shower of light, like when moonlight pours through a window.”
    “You’re very poetic.”
    “Don’t you think the situation calls forth poetry?”
    Tian’s words bring our situation back into focus and I start. I see from the expression in Tian’s eyes he has had the same thought.
    “We should go.”
    “Indeed we should.” Tian makes no attempt to move.
    “We should get up.”
    “Yes.”
    “Tian.” I bat playfully at his chest. “We can’t stay here forever.”
    “Why not.”
    “Because we’re in the middle of a fire and at any point it could start burning us now we’ve done what it wanted us to do.”
    Tian glances around fearfully. “Do you think it will? Burn us?”
    “No, I don’t think so, but we should still go. Our families await and the Mother knows what that awful man is telling them.”
    “He’s not awful; not really, at least he didn’t use to be.”
    “What changed him?”
    “I’m not quite sure. No one has told me outright, but from what I’ve heard he was in love with someone whom he thought was Druach. He persuaded her to take the flame.”
    “What happened?”
    “The flame consumed her and he’s blamed himself ever since, become twisted and angry, bitter to everyone.”
    “He would have sent me into the fire, knowing he’d got it wrong once before, and that I really didn’t want it? Did he force her too, like me? Did he drug her with magic and force her to do what he wanted?”
    Anger seizes me as what was done to me comes back in a wave of bitterness. Tian steadies me with a hand splayed across my chest.
    “He loved her, and she loved him. There would have been no compulsion. False confidence maybe. Uncertainty swept aside. He wanted her to be like him. Isn’t that why you brought me here?”
    “Yes. No. I…it’s complicated.”
    “I should have died. I’m not Druach. I should never have taken the flames, and beside that, they have never taken two before. It’s impossible.”
    “Yet here we are.”
    “Yes.” Tian smiled and there is no censure in his eyes, no anger, only a gentle rebuff. “But you didn’t know that’s how it would end. You were told it couldn’t happen, that it would kill me, and yet you had me do it; follow you.”
    “I….” He had me there. “I understand,” I say, nodding, “but I wonder if he had the Mother inside his head urging him to do it, too.”
    “Is that what happened?” Tian’s eyes widen and I smile.
    “Something like that. Come, let us return to our families. Perhaps we can even help the Druid.”
    “Perhaps even that,” Tian says. “Didn’t she say nothing is impossible?”
    “I’m not sure I believe that, but I’m prepared to try.”
    Tian helps me to my feel, then holds tightly to my hand as we walk through the flames. We have no idea where the entrance is, or how far we are from it. This doesn’t worry us at all. We know we’ll find the way. We will always find the way.

    And now it's time for your adventure continuing through the other flashers