I sat with my legs outstretched, leaning back on my palms and Chansey mimicked my position. She reached for her dress and scooted it up her thighs until she was satisfied with the amount of sun exposure on her legs. She enjoyed being in the sun and I wondered if she had given any thought as to how she would miss it if she became a vampire.
I didn’t want to think about it, so I shoved the thought aside and asked, “Are Gia and Lairah being overbearing about the wedding plans?” “They have some intense ideas about our wedding,” she laughed. “I think I might want to elope.” Now, she was talking my language. “You don’t have to convince me. I’ll take you to Vegas and make you my wife right now if it’s what you want.” She quickly said, “Nope. I’m not ready to give up my dream of marrying you at the top of the open arm staircases.” I wondered how I could be so lucky. How had I found enough favor with the gods to be given such a beautiful gift as Chansey? “Oh, I’m sorry,” she apologized. “I didn’t even ask you if that was what you wanted.” “I’ve already told you that I thought it was perfect,” I reminded her. She appeared puzzled. “I don’t recall you telling me that.” “We didn’t exactly discuss it. When we were at Rachel and Christian’s wedding reception, you told me how you pictured your wedding. We didn’t get far into the conversation because that jackass, Evan Finley, interrupted us.” “Yes, that I remember well. I’m sorry his stupid insults stand out more in my mind than our conversation,” she apologized. Just thinking about that jackass had my blood boiling, so I thought it was a great idea to steer the direction of the conversation back toward the wedding. “Have you thought about a date for our wedding?” She smiled and her eyes lit up. “Yes, I’ve given it a lot of thought and I have a date in mind. How do you feel about a November wedding?” No way! That was too long to wait. “I’d be fine with it if this was the end of October. I know four months isn’t forever, but it sure feels an eternity to me right now.” “It’s not an eternity and four months barely gives me enough time to plan a small wedding. We haven't even told Granna and Granddaddy about our engagement yet. Have you forgotten that?” I definitely had not forgotten that detail. “No, it hasn’t slipped my mind.” She laughed and asked, “Are you worried about telling them?” “I am a little nervous about it. I’ve never asked to marry someone before,” I admitted. She leaned over and bumped her shoulder against mine. “Well, that’s good to know, but we’re telling them we’re getting married, not asking permission.” “I know we don’t have to have their permission. That’s not what I need. It’s their blessing I want. I may be three times as old as Grady, but I still want to be respectful,” I said. She looked at me and rested her chin against her shoulder as she laughed. “That is so bizarre to me.” It didn’t sound like a compliment. “Does my age bother you?” “No, I don’t think of you as your actual age. You just seem like a 26 year-old to me.” She sat up and leaned closer to brush her lips across mine. “A very robust 26 year-old.” Her kiss and proximity stirred her Agape scent, leaving me with an intense urgency to be closer to her. I reached for her, pulling her against my chest a little too quickly. I heard her gasp and then I saw the smile across her face, proving the sudden catch in her breath resulted from delight instead of fear. She deepened our kiss as she rolled to her back, pulling me on top of her to rest between her bent knees. This was our first private moment since we arrived at the compound and it caused me to be overly enthusiastic. I knew I shouldn’t, but I placed my hand behind one of her knees and pulled her leg to wrap around my waist as I pressed my body into hers. A sigh escaped her lips and she pulled her other leg up around my waist. The thoughts of what I wanted to do to her returned me to my senses and she recognized the look she had become so well acquainted with when things between us had gone a little too far. She groaned because she knew what was coming next and locked her legs around my waist. “Don’t you dare stop because you can not keep doing this to me. It’s totally unfair!” I reached for her legs to coax them off of me. “Move the wedding up and I’ll be more than glad to become totally fair. In fact, I’m quite anxious to be totally fair.” A thoughtful look came across her face and she said, “October. It’s the earliest I can pull it off even with help from Gia and Lairah.” I tugged on her bottom lip with my teeth. “That’s still three months away,” I complained. A pouty look came over her face and the little vixen I loved tried to use her power of persuasion on me just like Sebastian said she would. “I know a way to make the next three months pass much faster.” “You’re name shouldn’t be Chansey. It should be Risky because you are playing with a fire you highly underestimate,” I assured her. She dramatically huffed. “Promises, promises. I’m not sure I’ll ever find out if I underestimate you or not.” Since I easily talked her into moving the date a month earlier, I thought I might push my luck a little further. “Looks like you won’t discover the truth for months, unless you want to move the date closer.” I took my hand and placed it on her thigh, moving it slowly under her dress as I said, “Come on, let’s do it.” I allowed my words linger as I gazed into her eyes and then I added, “In August.” When I began to laugh, she forcibly slapped my hand away from under her dress to show her unhappiness with my joke. “I can wait if you can. Maybe even until the end of December. I’ve heard Christmas weddings are beautiful.” It was clear I had pushed my luck too far with her when she showed me how she could beat me at my own game, so I conceded. “I’ll take the October wedding.”
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Hi, guys! I wanted to let you know that the price of Blood of Anteros will be increasing to $2.99. You ask why? Beside the obvious reason... Book publishing is a complicated industry. If I price a book under $2.99, Amazon takes 70% and Barnes & Noble takes 65%. You do the math. Ummm...30% of $.99 is 0.297. That's right. When you buy Blood of Anteros, I make a whopping $.30. Whew! At that rate, I can upsize my value meal. Maybe. If I price it $2.99 or greater, I make the 70%/65%. So...what would you do? Give them the greater royalties or make the profit for yourself since you did the work? I personally rather give you the book for free (which actually boosts sells for my other books) and consider it advertising for the others, but Amazon won't let me do that unless I join them exclusively. Meaning...I can't sell my book ANYWHERE but through them. Again, meaning...Nook customers are left without. I'm not ready to cut off my Nook customers just because Amazon is the leader. So...I'm letting you know in advance. If you want Blood of Anteros for $.99, you better act fast. I will be raising the price soon. I'm not greedy. I'm just trying to make it. With the mystery of Chansey Leclaire and Curry Brennan’s connection solved, they are free to explore their newfound love for one another. Or so they thought... When Marsala uses a witch and black magic to discover Curry’s whereabouts, he and Chansey are left with no choice. The newly engaged couple is forced to relocate away from their families at the new compound in Savannah, which causes some major changes in the plans for their upcoming wedding. Relocating to Savannah might have saved Curry and Chansey from being discovered by Marsala, but it doesn’t stop her attempts to reach Curry or her efforts to harm Chansey through the use of black magic. As Marsala closes in, Curry faces the decision he never wanted to make. Will he keep Chansey human or condemn her to eternity as the thing he hates most? As Curry waits for his hand to be forced, a newly turned vampire arrives at the Savannah compound in need of help. Not only is she a fledgeling in transition, she brings reports of escaping from a vampire cult still in possession of her sister, a human. Any attempt to save the captive human from a cult of vampires puts everyone in jeopardy. Can they risk entering a large cult to save one human being? And is so, how could they possibly do it successfully? Love will grow. New mysteries will arise. A battle will ensue. A Blood Jewel will be found. Meet Marsala Dauphine We are going to learn some interesting things about Marsala Dauphine in Blood Jewel as she briefly recalls her life before she became a vampire and the events that led her to the one that turned her. I'm working sooooo hard to solidify the direction Blood Jewel is taking because I want to post the first few chapters as soon as possible. Until that time comes, here's an excerpt from Chapter One . At this point, Chapter One is told from Marsala's Point of View. Please...don't hold me to this because it could change before the final edit. You never know what I'll come up with. Excerpt from Chapter 1 Becoming Marsala Dauphine (Marsala's POV) I was abruptly jerked from my waltz down memory lane when I felt a sudden pain through my chest, the place where I always felt my connection to Curry. I briefly wondered if someone had driven a stake through my heart until I looked down and confirmed there was nothing protruding from my body. There was only one conclusion I could draw. “Marsala, what is wrong?” Madon asked, concerned after seeing the pained expression on my face. “I felt it the moment it happened,” I said in disbelief although I had waited 22 years for the day to come. “I don’t understand. What has happened?” Madon asked in confusion. I never told Madon or Wythe about the curse placed on me by the gods on the day Curry walked into the sunlight away from our coven. They believed he met his true death that day and I would have thought the same if the gods hadn’t cursed me. My punishment was devastating, but simple. I was forced to feel Curry every moment since we were separated. I felt his happiness without me and I endured the pain of feeling him find the one to complete him-his Agápe. I looked at Madon’s worried reflection and I knew I had to tell him and Wythe the truth. “He has found her.” Madon’s enraged expression told me he understood as he shook his head in disbelief. He shut his eyes tightly trying to block out my words. “No, he’s dead,” he argued. “It’s true. Curry is very much alive and he has found his Agápe. Now, we must find them because the girl has to die.” I made the decision to change my covers for The Agape Series because I never really loved them. I settled for them because I couldn't find anything I liked better. I've been hard at work on Blood Jewel and it's going to be awesome, so it deserves a really great cover. Those of you that have read Blood of Anteros will understand the butterfly element.
I do my own covers, so I would love to hear your opinion. :) Which cover do you prefer?
I'm looking for some opinions on the Cover Art for Blood Jewel, the second book in The Vampire Agápe Series. The first 20 people to leave an opinion about the cover art will receive a coupon code from smashwords to download the first book, Blood of Anteros, for FREE! I will need a contact email address to notify you of the coupon code. I was tantalized by mystery of her. The leech inside me came out to find prey, but found none in this enigmatic girl. The close proximity of her essence didn’t entice the monster within, so what did that make her? I had more questions than answers, but one thing was unmistakable; although she released me from her embrace, her hold on me remained.
Cruel circumstances turned Curry Brennan into the wretched monster he hates and refuses to accept, but when an expected turn of events releases him from the bond of his obsessive maker, he returns to the home he knew 161 years earlier and finds the return of happiness and joy in something he didn’t know existed. Puzzled by his growing attraction to Chansey Leclaire, a human, he is unable to resist the captivating relationship that threatens to reveal his existence as a vampire. He eventually discovers the reason he was destined to find what he didn’t know he searched for and is faced with the cruel realization that the living and the immortal undead will always be separated by one thing. Eternity. |
Georgia CatesNew York Times and USA Today Best-Selling Author
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