Out of the Shadows: Shadow Warriors, Book 1 (9 page)

His hands slid from my face, down over my wet camisole, just brushing my breasts before settling on my hips. I was no longer cold—superheated was more like it—but wet was another matter.

Armani pushed himself away. Without looking at me, he muttered, “I’ll start the water running and wait just outside the door so I can hear you if you fall.” And he escaped into the only other room in my apartment, the bathroom.

My head fell to the table in frustration and sudden weakness. In the time it took him to get things ready, a series of unworthy thoughts flitted through my mind—pulling him in with me, faking a fall, flat-out asking him to wash my back. But I wasn’t going to trick Armani into anything. He either wanted me or he didn’t.

Still, I couldn’t help a bit of teasing, allowing a breast to brush his arm as he escorted me to the bath.

“I may need help with these wet clothes,” I said, damaged throat making it come out all husky.

He shot me a sidelong look. “At this point, I don’t think the bath would do those clothes any harm.”

“
Such
a gentleman,” I answered with a roll of my eyes.

“I am a gentleman. That’s why you’re on your own with those clothes.” Then he decided to turn my teasing back on me. “Besides, if I were to take them off, I’d need to taste you right—” the hand not supporting me rose to ever-so-gently slide over my throat until his thumb caressed the hollow, “—here.”
 

My nipples practically stood at attention, pushing noticeably against my camisole. The look he gave me was hot enough to scorch and smug besides.

I had no comeback.

“Speechless? Hmm, I’ll have to remember that.”

Who says getting eaten by a shark is a bad thing?

Maximum Witch

© 2011 Jodi Redford

That Old Black Magic, Book 3

Willa Jameson is having one whopper of an identity crisis. Odd memory flashes that aren’t hers. A sultry voice in her head that’s obsessed with sex. Even weirder, she finds herself in the jaws of a rogue leviathan, dragged to the bottom of the ocean—and rescued by a hunky…
shark
?

The last thing Sheriff Max Truitt expects to find on his daily, deep-Atlantic patrol is a human—especially one who breathes underwater. Compelled to take her home, he waits for the beauty to wake up and reveal her name. Instead he’s treated to a punch in the nose, then a sexy romp hot enough to boil water.

The next morning, embarrassed by the sizzling, scandalous things the voice in her head drove her to do, Willa slips away. But if there’s one thing a determined shark excels at, it’s tracking his favorite meal.

Solving the mystery that is Willa is no simple task. When they finally unlock a dangerous secret hidden deep in her subconscious, it drives a wedge between them…and puts them in a desperate race against an evil that seeks to rain down a watery Armageddon on all mankind.

Warning:
This book does not contain sex with a puffer fish. There’s not even sex with a seahorse. However, there’s plenty of smoking-hot lovin’ with a shark. And even a steamy M/F/M threesome. So slap on your snorkels and swim fins, things are about to get wet and wild.

Enjoy the following excerpt for
Maximum Witch:

A sparkling blue pool shimmered in front of Willa. She stared at the man ascending from its depths, gleaming rivulets of water streaming down his muscular flanks.

If this is a dream or hallucination, please, goddess, don’t wake me up.

The man glanced over his shoulder at her, and she realized it was Max. His come-hither smile was an invitation to pure sin. She gulped.

“Join me, Willa. You don’t have to be afraid.”

She inched forward, her focus dropping to the eddying pool of water. Trepidation sluiced inside her veins. She couldn’t go in there. If she did…bad things would happen.

“No, you’re safe.” Max coaxed her closer. “I’ll protect you. Always.”

His sincerity beckoned, as did the wicked promise of his delectable body. He was the sole possessor of precisely what she needed. She had no idea how she knew that, but the truth of it rang loud and clear. Max reached for her, and she stepped into his embrace. The water’s satin glide stroked her flesh, sending a splinter of alarm through her.

“I’m here.” Max’s lips brushed hers in a soft caress, the thickness of his erection bumping into her stomach.

Oh yes. He was definitely
there
. All ten inches of him.

Clearly her inner slut was a size whore to notice such things.

His tongue delved inside her mouth, teasing hers into lush play. A breathless whimper escaped her. Lifting her into his arms, he carried her to a flat rock jutting from the center of the pool. With gentle reverence, he settled her onto its slick surface and climbed over her, kissing her again. Eyes drifting shut, she lost herself to the sensuality overtaking her. “Max…”

A horrible screech filled the air and she snapped her eyes open. Max was gone.

He’d left her. Left her to drown. Panicked, she scrambled to the middle of the rock. Shaking with fear, she cowered in the face of the relentless waves foaming around her, surging ever closer to the protective stone ledge. The terrible shrieking recommenced. Convinced her brain would explode from the unbearable noise, she clamped her hands over her ears. A female figure rose above the surf, her long, silvery-blonde hair whipping frantically in the brewing tempest. Cold dark eyes flashed with hatred. “
You will all die. Every last one of you.
”

Behind the spectral vision, a terrifying wall of water crested into a towering peak. Its roar deafening, the tidal wave swelled, crashing into the rock.

Willa jerked into a sitting position, the frightening nightmare slowly dissolving. She stared into the darkness shrouding the bedroom, her heart galloping out of control. What the hell was that? Fingers trembling, she pushed aside a damp lock of hair sticking to her cheek.

It wasn’t the first time she’d experienced these dreams that felt all too real. But this one had seemed even more…vivid than the others.

She scooched back onto the mattress and curled onto her side. Hugging the pillow to her chest, she sucked in a series of deep, calming breaths, attempting to get her pulse under control. She hated this part of her strange episodes—the jagged-edged panic that clawed at her insides like a beast determined to escape.

“You don’t have to be afraid.” The sultry voice sprang into Willa’s head, making her jolt.

She knew that voice. Though she’d never actually heard it use audible words, it’d called to her countless times in the past week, usually moments before she blacked out.

Panting in frantic desperation, she buried her head in the pillow. A distinctly feminine laugh floated inside her mind. Willa gnashed her teeth.
Freaking great, the damn voice thinks my psychosis is hilarious.

“He can help you.” The pronouncement came with a seductive ripple of heat. “He possesses what you truly need.”

“Who?” The question popped from Willa before she could smother it, and she growled. She was already a walking candidate for a padded cell. Talking to the voices in her head would only guarantee her lifetime residency.

“You already know the answer.”

Almost as if it’d been choreographed, a rumbling snore broke from Max. A responding surge of moisture dampened the crotch of her panties. Damn it. Wasn’t being nuttier than a Snickers bar enough to deal with? Was it really necessary to heap being weirdly aroused by snores on top of it?

The voice chuckled, and Willa mentally gave it the bird.

“Go to him.”

“Shut up,” Willa whispered fiercely. “I’m not listening to you anymore.”

“Oh, yes you are.”

She opened her mouth to tell the taunting voice to go find another head to harass just as an overpowering wave of lust flooded her. Gasping, she clenched her thighs together, but that only seemed to intensify the sensation. She writhed, even the slide of her skin against the sheets an agonizing torment.

“He can make it all better.”

“You’re going to pay for this.”

“You’ll thank me in the morning.”

She flung the pillow to the foot of the bed and tried rolling onto her other side, but her body refused to cooperate. Max moved restlessly in his sleep, and the blanket twisted around his hips. She stared at the intriguing shadow play along the defined ridges of his abdomen. Desire, thick and headier than anything she’d experienced, shimmered through her. “Oh Goddess.”

Shivers wracking her, she swung her legs over the edge of the mattress and stumbled toward Max. Her legs were useless as putty and she nearly fell on top of him. He grunted, instantly jerking awake. “Willa, what is it?” His hands automatically steadied her and he cursed. “You’re burning up. I better call Boone.”

“No. You have what I need.”

“You’re feverish. Let me—” He broke off with another grunt when she caught his bottom lip between her teeth. His eyes widened. “Willa?” The word came out garbled, but there was no mistaking the confused shock underlying it.

She released him and licked her way inside his mouth, her tongue curling around his. Her fingers splayed on his chest, absorbing the shaky timbre of his groan. He was delicious beyond words. Scraping her teeth along his bristly jaw, she made her way to the underside and nipped him before sucking the tender spot with enough force to leave a hickey.

“
Jesus
. Sweetheart, what’s going on here?”

She lapped an upward path along his neck, and he swallowed hard, his Adam’s apple bobbing beneath her exploring tongue. Continuing her journey north, she bit his chin. “I’m having you.”

“I don’t think this is a good idea.”

“You’re right. It’s a
brilliant
one.”

“You damn well know that isn’t what I meant.”

“And you talk too much,” she admonished before kissing him again with hungry relish. She stretched flat on top of him, and his body tensed. The T-shirt rode up, leaving nothing but the thin nylon of her panties as a flimsy barrier to the warm flesh of his belly. There could be no possible way he didn’t notice how unbelievably aroused she was.

She got her verification when his palm slid over the curve of her ass and dipped between her legs. A tremor ran through him. His resistance melting a fraction, he coasted his fingers over the soaked crotch of her bikini, creating a slick friction. “You’re so fucking wet.”

If she’d possessed the tiniest modicum of willpower to ignore the powerful need combusting inside her, the gravelly wonder in Max’s tone proved to be her downfall. Scooting up, she wrestled the shirt off before doing the same with her bra.

Max’s gulp echoed in the room, his focus glued to her breasts. “We should wait—”

“No.
Now
.” Seeing he was going to balk again, she wiggled down his torso and hooked her thumbs into his sweats, tugging them down. He’d gone commando. How very considerate of him. Saliva pooling in her mouth, she ogled the thick, rigid column of his shaft before taking it into her mouth. Tuning out Max’s startled intake of air, she sucked halfway down his length, using her hand to take care of the rest.

“
Fuck
.” Max’s hips jerked as she gave the root of his cock a sinuous pump.

She released the bulbous head with a juicy pop and concentrated on the tiny slit, flicking her tongue with teasing, kittenish licks. He swelled even more, pulsing within her grip. Another shuddering moan fell from him, and his hand covered hers. “Come here and let me taste you.”

Wonderful as that sounded, she had a different plan. The fierce desire pushing her wouldn’t be appeased by anything less than penetration at this point, and she wanted—no,
needed
—every scrumptiously hard centimeter of him filling her. Sitting up once more, she maneuvered the crotch of her panties, making room for Max. He blinked when he caught on to her intention, and he scrambled to sit up. “Willa—” His protest morphed into a rough exhale as she impaled herself on his impressive girth.

Out of the Shadows

Gabriella Hewitt

When the last shadow warrior falls, so will all humanity.

With each demon he vanquishes in service to the Aztec sun god, Tomás fulfills his duty to defend humankind—and surrenders another piece of his humanity to his wolf spirit. All hope seems lost until a mission leads him to the door of the one thing he thought he’d never find…his spirit mate. The only woman who can save him from oblivion.

When Carolina hears the wolf’s howl, it pierces the very core of her lonely heart. Yet she dare not answer. As the last guardian of her land and the secret it contains, she is haunted by the mistake that cost the lives of her family. Never will she repeat that mistake, especially with a warrior who is more beast than man.

Chasing away the demon is easier than breaching the barriers around the heart of the young woman who possesses a strange power over water—and his very soul. But if they are to survive the night, he must convince her they are destined to stand together.
 

Or not at all.

Warning: Contains a hero in a losing battle to control his inner beast and a heroine with the strength to tame him. Epic battles and dark secrets liberally spiced with destined love culminate in a fight for all humanity.

eBooks are
not
transferable.

They cannot be sold, shared or given away as it is an infringement on the copyright of this work.

This book is a work of fiction. The names, characters, places, and incidents are products of the writer’s imagination or have been used fictitiously and are not to be construed as real. Any resemblance to persons, living or dead, actual events, locale or organizations is entirely coincidental.

Samhain Publishing, Ltd.

11821 Mason Montgomery Road Suite 4B

Cincinnati OH 45249

Out of the Shadows

Copyright © 2011 by Gabriella Hewitt

ISBN: 978-1-60928-512-8