I have a little something to brighten up your Friday! If you are getting this in the Newsletter on Saturday then see it as a nice little read to start the weekend!
Author Jess Haines has been a guest on Amberkatze's Book Blog more than once and it is always great to have her come visit! This time around she is sharing an exclusive look at her new release, Silent Cravings.
I hope you enjoy the passage and make sure you enter the contest for your chance to win a copy of Stalking the Others!
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The Shadowman Devourer Shall Be Known As…
By Jess Haines & E. Blix
Our recent release,
SILENT CRAVINGS, is a standalone spin-off of Jess Haines’ H&W Investigations Series. It’s a paranormal romance about a werewolf in a magical fetish collar and the mute vampiress who owns him.
Wait. Loves him.
SILENT CRAVINGS was originally double the length of the manuscript that’s now available for purchase. That means that a bunch of things—scenes, sub-plots, even characters—were cut. Just for Amber’s readers, we’re providing you an exclusive look at one of the parts that didn’t make it into the final manuscript. This is a taste of some of E. Blix’s work. Enjoy!
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Gregory watched the alpha pack a few things into a suitcase. He was taking two books, some T-shirts still in their store packaging, and three pairs of pants with the tags still on. At least Gregory convinced him that a hoodie and pants were suitable traveling clothes, rather than his Hello Kitty jammies. The alpha was odd like that.
He would carry on an iPod, a gift from Gavin once he had heard that negotiations were going smoothly and that the alpha would be heading to New York to finalize a few things. The iPod had no songs. It only contained recordings of Gavin giving the low-down on what had occurred during his isolation.
Farhad was ready to go and waiting for them outside with a company car. If he had any qualms about giving discounted or even free goods to a vampire, he didn’t show it. He only mentioned that this would be the only vampire he would have dealings with from here on out.
“I am ready.” The alpha lifted the small suitcase and his backpack and they left his den. It was a basement under a vacant house with a well-kept if boring yard. Occasionally the house was used for very important meetings with the highest-ranking Weres, but for the most part it sat unused.
On the way to the airport Gregory finally broached the subject he had been dreading. “Sir, what name will you be using?”
“Why do you keep using that human honorific?” the alpha asked. There was no annoyance or anger in his voice.
“I can’t pronounce your real name,” Gregory said flatly. “No one can.”
“Kalikohemolele,” Farhad said from the driver’s seat. The alpha smiled at Gregory without showing his teeth. Gregory grumbled.
There was silence for a while. The alpha was looking out the window with that odd, serene detachment. Finally he turned back to Gregory. “How about Bob?”
“I’m going to announce you as the alpha of Goliath, his excellence Bob?”
“I think if you just said, ‘This is Bob’ they would be all right with that.”
“Can’t we just shorten your name? Go by ‘Kali’.”
“God of death,” Farhad put in.
Gregory rubbed his temples. “Okay, your name is Bob now.”
“I did not say that. I asked for your opinion. I see you are distressed, so let us decide on something else. I like ‘Jim’ as well.” The alpha looked out the window. “Or ‘Mike’.”
“Jimmy?” Farhad asked from the front seat.
“I like ‘Jimmy’,” the alpha said.
Gregory coughed respectfully. It was easy to start forgetting to do so with his old friend. “Kalikole... Kalikohel... sir, you could always go by Aaron or some other name you used to use in wars past.”
“We are not in a war now,” the alpha pointed out. “I will not use my war names. I like names like ‘Bob’ and ‘Paul’ and ‘Jimmy’. They are gentle. They suggest familiarity and simplicity. There is an alpha named ‘Chaz’. So for now my name is Paul and we will leave it at that. Farhad, did you get any other information on the Alec Royce?”
“The what?” Gregory asked. “Did you just call the vampire ‘the Alec Royce’?”
“It seems a species unto itself. I thought it reasonable,” the alpha said, blinking slowly at Gregory. “I won’t call it that to its face.”
“When did you start calling him ‘it’?” Gregory demanded.
“When did you start considering them our equals?” the alpha asked. His tone was lighthearted, but his eyes flooded with gold as he stared at Gregory. The deputy hung his head and tried to make himself look smaller. He had a vivid image in his mind of being ejected through the side of the car.
“I think I have enough information to make a good deal with him,” Farhad spoke up. “Hopefully he will consider what he can gain from it and release Analie.”
“Good.” The alpha slumped back in his seat and looked out the window again. “I hope she is brave. I hope she keeps her wits and her teeth.”
Gregory nodded. The alpha flexed his claws. “I hope Christoph has followed my orders.”
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Thanks again for having us, Amber! I hope you enjoyed this taste of the Goliath werewolves…
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