Today’s theme is actually ‘JOBS’ but rather than a specific occupation, this topic makes me think of Mabel King’s rendition of “Don’t Nobody Bring Me No Bad News” from The Wiz. The songs starts out, “When I wake up in the afternoon, as it pleases me to do, don’t nobody bring me no bad news!”

Now wouldn’t that be the dream job? Get up when you want and demand that all be well in the world–both your world and everybody else’s? Totally works for me! Well, our character, a talented geek and deadly bounty hunter, wishes she could demand that all be uber-cool in her world. For the most part, she gets exactly what she wants…just not today.

Enjoy the excerpt then visit all of the wonderful Snippet Saturday authors via the links at the bottom of the post. Happy Weekend!

Blurb: Niah Pryde is no shrinking violet. Not only is she one of the best hunters for S.W.A.T.—the Shifter and Were Armed Tactics agency—but Niah can network a microwave tower to a satellite surveillance system with her eyes closed and one well-manicured hand tied behind her back. So…why would she rather hide in the network hub closet than face her mate?

Ryland Lee Lewis is as down-home as they come, from his country drawl to his love of Sweet Tea. It only took one assignment with Niah Pryde to know she was the one for him. He’s sure she feels it too but the woman is running faster than a bull out of the chute. What’s a guy to do when his mate won’t see reason? And what kind of sparks will fly if she dares give him a chance?

Rolling at top speed along one of the private graveled roads in Niah’s favorite Jeep, she and Broglio covered the five miles to Lou’s camp in short order. A one-man tent and agency-issued gear were bundled up and hidden in the brush in the exact spot he’d said they were.

Tossing the stuff into the backseat, Broglio huffed, “Honestly, Miss Niah, if that damn lion shifter…no offence…”

“None taken.”

“…breached our security, who else could manage to get this close to our family?”

Niah shook her head and kept her mouth shut. After all, Broglio was only saying what she was thinking. At first she’d been simply unbelieving that Lou had tracked her down, but now she was both pissed off and impressed at how he’d waltzed onto her family’s property and sat his naked ass—correction, perfect-for-bouncing-quarters-off naked ass—down on her front porch as if he did this every day.

Back at the house, she found her sisters preparing for dinner in Neesia’s pride and joy—an oversized professional, stainless steel-everything football stadium-sized kitchen.

She dropped Lou’s stuff on the floor near the ginormous gourmet block and rounded on her sisters.

“I’m responsible for network security, you guys. How the hell did he get in here? How did he do it?”

Lou chose that moment to poke his head through the entrance that led into the space from the hallway.
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This week’s Snippet Saturday features some of the most awesome authors I know. Be sure to visit them via the links at the bottom of this post. Now, back to business – this week’s theme is Sweethearts. Valentine’s Day just passed and while I don’t have any books with that particular holiday, Valentine’s Day just wouldn’t be the same without some romance leading up to it, right?

So, here’s a Snippet from Silk Road where Larien allows himself to be as vulnerable as any Fallen can be — by showing his true self to Jayla.

Enjoy!

Excerpt from
Silk Road
Seals of Destiny Book One
by TJ Michaels

Out of the blue, she asked, “So you can change your form, right? Like the asshat that jumped me? He looked human one minute and a freaking giant the next.”

“Of course. All Fallen can take human form or revert to their working form.”

“Working form? What’s a working form?”

“I am a warring angel, so my working form is for battle. It is the form I take most often, or would take often if I still had my old job. We can also transform to celestial bodies, unless we go demon.”

“What happens if you choose Fallen demonhood rather than Fallen angelhood?”

“We lose the ability to take our celestial forms ever again.”

“Can I see? Your celestial form, I mean.” Her honey brown eyes sparkled, full of mischief. What was she up to? He tilted his head and tried to read between whatever lines he was sure were there. “Well, can I?”

I can refuse her nothing.

Without another word, Larien rose and padded to the living room with Jayla on his heels.

“Why the living room instead of the office?”

“You’ll see.”

The moment she settled on the couch he let the change explode from his very cells. His body stretched and expanded. The familiar burn of the emergence of his wings was followed by an awed gasp from Jayla.

“Wow. You have wings?! And you’re so big, uh, bigger.”

But even at eight feet ten inches this body was still restricted by flesh.

“This is my battle form.” His voice, deepened by the transformation, caused her eyes to widen even more, yet the stink of fear was absent. Humans usually pissed themselves if they managed to glimpse an angel’s battle form, Fallen or not. “But I want you to see my true form though it is dimmer than when I was eudaemon.”

Nodding enthusiastically, Jayla simply sat with her eyes aglow with wonder. The eager acceptance in her gaze never ceased to make him feel special. Proud, even, of what he was. Or rather, what was left of him.

* * * * *

Jayla was fully along for the ride. Energy crackled in the air, rode along the ridges of her spine and then sank into her blood. It pumped through her heart, infused her cells and then burst forth like an explosion of moonlight and starlight behind her eyes. It was peaceful yet so beautifully vibrant she could almost hear the hum of electricity in the room. The tips of Larien’s beautiful wings trailed the floor and then snapped out to fill the room. A variation of black she’d never seen before, the color seemed alive and swirled with luminescence. Lethal-looking talons on the end of perfectly sculpted feathers were a-glow with shimmering gold.

Wow, how did he ever walk away from such power, she wondered. Larien outshone anything her mind could even possibly conceive. When Improbael had morphed from his human form he’d grown at least a good two feet, just like Larien, but where Larien’s skin was an almost-glowing dove gray, Improbael’s Fallen demon skin had become as dank as cement—lifeless and cold like the dirty ash that remained in the bottom of a grill long after the charcoal had burned itself out.
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This week’s Snippet Saturday theme is Emotion. For some reason, rather than a scene from one of my books popping into my head, the song by Mariah Carey raised its hand instead.

So, yeah, I’ve just got to post that here.

Vampire Council of Ethics Book 4 has just been sold and I can’t wait to until it’s released. I’ll have more deets as I work with my editor so I’ll keep you posted.

In the meantime, enjoy this snippet from the upcoming release, Seeker’s Solace, V.C.O.E. Book 4 then hop over to play with the other Snippet Saturday authors via the links at the bottom of the page.

Unedited Excerpt from Seeker’s Solace
Vampire Council of Ethics Book 4
by TJ Michaels
Copyright 2013 – All Rights Reserved

When the first photos appeared on the screen, Slade found his curiosity about Shale’s role in this investigation replaced by sheer revulsion. It was bad enough that someone hunted their comrades, but the things that had been done to the bodies by God-knew-who turned his typically blast-resistant persona inside out.

When it was over, an unnatural silence filled the room that was oppressive even as the air crackled with unspent violent energy. The Elders of all ten clans stood as a united front. The Elder of Clan Viggee, voice tight with emotion they all tried not to feel, said, “Those who are to remain, do so. Everyone else, out.”

As the Beta Seekers and Iudex judges were dismissed, growls and murmurs mixed amid the orderly exit were expected. Every vampire in the room bared their fangs in silent aggression after that rough briefing. Nothing less than fury was expected given the horrors they’d just seen. And that was really saying something considering the vampire nation and its clans were a people that used to be the most brutal and bloody on the planet.

Slade looked over to Alex who simply stood there shaking his head. His best friends midnight eyes blazed as his jaw ticked furiously. He swallowed hard. Then swallowed again.
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This weeks theme is a bit challenging because every author wants nothing more than to make a reader SEE what we’re trying say. Giving good descriptions without throwing up words on a reader can be tough. How do you show rather than tell? How do you get the point across by engaging the senses through words? Tall order. Enjoy this snippet from Silk Road, Seals of Destiny Book 1 where our Fallen angel runs into something worse than himself…Fallen demons.

“Are you here for me?” the daemon asked quietly. Fingers shook as he grasped the cleaning rag tightly, but he held Larien’s gaze in spite of his obvious fear.

“Not my job anymore, as I’m sure you can tell.” Cloaked or not, to other supernaturals, Larien’s aura gave him away just as theirs told him all he needed to know about who or what they were. Unlike demons, daemons weren’t bad guys. They were neutral and had every right to live on this plane without being harassed.

“Well, others have been tromping around down here, roughing up the locals. They’re after someone. Staying out of their way as best we can. Figured if they were here hunting illegally, you might be too.”

“Nope. I only want a number nine with extra hot sauce,” Larien said, careful to keep his expression calm. He had a good idea who was “tromping” around, but it wouldn’t do for this lesser to know that, even though he’d tucked an extra serving into Larien’s bag.

A nervous smile accompanied the little one’s relieved sigh as he rang up the meal and shooed Larien out the door with a friendly wave. It was closing time. No surprise, even if it was only late afternoon. Hell, it was a stretch for anyone to visit the Tenderloin in the daytime, let alone at night. And with winter closing in, it would be full dark soon.

Chasing the last of his crawfish beignet down with strong chicory coffee, Larien tossed his trash. Quickly, he turned into a dim alley off Eddy Street that let him out in the middle of a block crowded with cans to be picked up the next day.

And that’s when he felt it—an unmistakable wrongness, like a sour ripple in the air, in the very fabric of space-time itself. Not all supernatural creatures were on seek-and-destroy missions, but what he picked up now caused a twisted shrinking feeling in the pit of the stomach. Not a sense of dread but simply a discerning of an unnatural and definitely unwanted presence.

He tracked the aura to a church.

Larien snorted. Why did this encounter have to be near some church? It wasn’t the old moldy type typically seen in movies but that wasn’t the point. It was just so cliché. No building could sway the outcome of any situation. Rolling his eyes, Larien backed away from the church steps, discreetly backed into the doorway of a side entrance and watched the street.

Moments later a man with flame-red hair passed by. Though there was plenty of mid-day foot traffic, the man stood out. The man’s energy pulsed and crackled as he moved swiftly by, but everything else about him screamed “human”.

Larien stayed where he was and watched him duck into a typical dirt-and-cream colored apartment building across the street. Not far behind were two beings who definitely didn’t belong. It was obvious the male had seen them though Larien doubted he’d understood what he’d seen.

Their ridiculous height, the silvery-gray tint of their skin and razor-sharp, glossy-black talons on the tips of deep burgundy wings told a story that was fit for folk tales. Fallen demons.

Snippet Saturday Authors
Lissa Matthews
Rhian Cahill
Eliza Gayle
Leah Braemel
Myla Jackson
Caris Roane
Jody Wallace
McKenna Jeffries
Taige Crenshaw
HelenKay Dimon
Shiloh Walker
Delilah Devlin
Lauren Dane

Snippet Saturday is a brilliant collaboration by New York Times and USA Today bestselling author, Lauren Dane, and a fabulous group of authors that she’s invited to join her in posting book goodies every Saturday. I’m thrilled to be part of this mad fun!

Today’s snippet is a sneak peek of Seeker’s Solace, Vampire Council of Ethics Book 4. You  met our heroes, Slade Tof-Li and Shale Hatsept-Krulm in books one through three, but you’ve never seen them quite like this. In this snippet, one of our guys has been injured to the point of near death…and his woman doesn’t appreciate it one little bit.

Ladies and gentleman, meet Jovon Dawson-Li, former Marine Captain and fixed-wing pilot. She’s tasked with flying an elite Seeker team on their hunt for bad guys. It was supposed to be a simple ‘field trip’. She had no idea she’d meet her bondmates along the way…

WARNING: This snippet contains lots of bad words.

“How, of all places, did they know we’d end up here? How, goddamit?”

The anger behind Jovon’s words was like the roll of thunder heralding the arrival of deadly lightening. If Shale hadn’t been looking at Jovon he would have never believed that a female could make such a sound.

“Jovon, just calm down.” Shale hoped the words sounded encouraging rather than bossy. He knew he’d failed when she bared her fangs at him. “Woman, I said calm the fuck down. I’m worried for Slade, too, but we won’t do him any good if we’re all out of sorts.”

“They hurt him,” she snarled. “They hurt Slade.” Each word was bitten off at the end, blunt edged and raw. She stepped into his space, looked up at him and blinked back tears. A torrent of fear and anger rushed forward like the tide, and was as full of love for him as she was with worry for Slade.

Shale wrapped her up in his embrace and pictured his care and confidence that Slade would survive as a wave that flowed into and then engulfed her. He stroked her mentally along the frayed edge of worry and then physically soothed with  a caress as he tried to ensure without words that the people who did this would pay.

As Ambassador on this mission Shale had limited authority in regard to meeting out justice. But as an Iudex Judge he could hand down sentences on the spot for any rogue they’d been assigned to hunt. And with those who dared harm his mate and upset his woman, not only would he hand down the sentence, he would carry it out. Personally. Slowly. And with great relish.

The thought made him smile.

“God you look dangerous as hell just now,” Jovon whispered with just the barest hint of a grin. “And I totally love it.” And then her face lit up and Shale felt hope bloom in her heart and flash along their bond.

“The hacker!” Jovon yelped and then shot out of his arms and over to where Bors was sitting. “Bors, the hacker that Gigi told us about. Obviously they’ve been finding a way to track us for Gods knows how long. And what better way to make a statement to the Seeker corps than to take out the very team leader sent to bring them down? Fuck!”

Jovon turned and put her fist through the wall.

“Holy shit,” echoed throughout the room.

“There is no way in hell I will allow anyone to harm my mate and get away with it. And he is not going to die. If anyone kills that asshole, it will be me.”

Alex stepped in and took control. “Gigi was the one who told us that we hadn’t actually caught the leaders of this twattle. Two guys, one named Destin and his sidekick, Taps.”

“Taps? What the hell kind of name is that?” Rallis groused.

“It’s the name of a dead man,” Alex responded and minced no words.

Snippet Saturday authors
Lissa Matthews
Rhian Cahill
Shelli Stevens
Eliza Gayle
Leah Braemel
Myla Jackson
Caris Roane
Jody Wallace
McKenna Jeffries
Taige Crenshaw
HelenKay Dimon
Shiloh Walker
Delilah Devlin
Lauren Dane

Enjoy a snippet from my winter novella, Forever December, a Rocky Mountain tale of second-chance love that blooms in the spirit of the holidays. Afterward, be sure to visit the other Snippet Saturday authors via the links at the bottom of the post! Merry Christmas!

Melaniece Matthews muttered to herself, carefully navigating the icy winding road leading up to the high country.

“Man, how weird was that? Michael Bannon, a vampire?” The same strange dream plagued her at least twice a week for the past six months. They’d started immediately after she’d returned from a short trip home to California. It had been so good to see her friends and family after being away for eight years. And beyond lovely to see Michael again—the man she’d always loved. And – sigh—the man who’d seen her as just a great friend. Instead of marrying her, he’d hooked up with someone else, a woman named Janna. The end result? Six years of hell on earth for him. And now he haunted her in her sleep.

While Melaniece could admit she’d thoroughly enjoyed hanging out with him after so many years, she sure as hell wasn’t going to own up to the fact that he’d been on her mind ever since. Her dream crept around the edges of her mind. “What if he is a vampire?” she smirked to herself, a sarcastically evil grin plastered across her lips. “That would explain why he ripped my heart out by marrying Janna. There’d certainly been plenty of blood to go around.”

Peering through the cold, clear windshield, Melaniece grimaced as her thoughts turned to her favorite holiday. Instead of the usual elation about Christmas, she was assailed with a mix of emotions she couldn’t quite nail down. There was the thrill of spending time with her children after a whole year of separation, chased by a longing for intimate companionship so acute she found herself on the verge of tears. Then, right there at the back of her mind was an elusive sense of naughty anticipation. But for what? A good lay? Not likely. She had no prospects and no interest in hunting for any.

Michael’s handsome face popped into her head complete with fangs and a roguish grin, just like in her dream. Damn, she could practically feel the gorgeous, redheaded hunk making love with her as his incisors rasped over her skin. Yep, right there on the big sheepskin rug in front of the fireplace. Perfect spot.

“Hah, right,” she laughed with a snort and waved the image away. But her breathing quickened in spite of her refusal to acknowledge the fine-assed man with fangs dancing around in her head. Give it a minute and her pulse would return to normal, right? In spite of the freezing cold, the car was suddenly hot as hell. After a quick glance down at the console, she rolled her eyes up to the roof of the car. The damned heat wasn’t even turned on!

“Good grief, I’m hopeless,” she quietly grumbled. And it was all her dream man’s fault. Key word—dream. First off, she’d long given up hope in that quarter. Second, there was no such thing as vampires. So Michael was single again. Big deal. They’d had a great time reuniting in California six months ago. Who cared? None of it meant he wanted her now any more than he had eight years before.

With the car packed full of wrapped packages and luggage, Melaniece focused on the upcoming holiday. A glimpse at the pile of boxes in the backseat brought a small smile as she reminded herself this was a season to give generously to those you loved…and those who loved you back. And boy was she prepared to do just that.

Her children had spent the past year in an exchange program teaching English in Japan. It was amazingly expensive to live on the exotic little island. With most of their meager salaries going toward rent, groceries and train fare, the two had gone without some conveniences. When they returned to Minato-ku, a suburb of Tokyo, they’d sure as hell take lots of top-of-the-line goodies with them. Nothing but the best for her kids.

Christmas Day was fast approaching. She looked into the rearview mirror and spoke sharply to the woman reflected in the narrow glass.

“Okay you,” she said to herself. “No more goofy dreams, no more wasting time mooning over someone you can’t have and no more vampire nonsense. It’s Christmas and you’re gonna accept whatever Santa decides to give you. Got it?”

Got it. She popped a classic holiday CD into the player and hummed along with Eartha Kitt’s original bluesy version of “Santa Baby”. A few songs later, with genuine laughter, Melaniece let Nat King Cole chase away her blues as she headed up the highway to her vacation home to meet her family. Up there among the snow-capped peaks, the long-toothed boogeyman was not allowed, no matter how yummy he looked in her sleep, damn it.

Snippet Saturday Authors
Lissa Matthews
Rhian Cahill
Leah Braemel
Myla Jackson
Caris Roane
Jody Wallace
McKenna Jeffries
Taige Crenshaw
HelenKay Dimon
Shiloh Walker
Delilah Devlin
Eliza Gayle
Lauren Dane
Felicity Heaton
Shelli Stevens

Snippet Saturday is a brilliant collaboration by NYT and USA Today bestselling author, Lauren Dane, and a fabulous group of authors that she’s invited to join her in posting book goodies every Saturday. I’m thrilled to be part of this mad fun!

This week’s Snippet is HOLIDAYS! My favorite time of year is Fall and Winter when we celebrate the holiday season with our families. And because of this, I chose to post bits from a story where our heroine, Melaniece, is spending the holidays with her kids…and an unexpected guest.

Enjoy this snippet from Forever December, then be sure to visit all the Snippet Saturday authors via the links at the bottom of the post.

With dinner done and dishes cleared, Denise and Melvin decorated the seven-and-a-half-foot real pine Christmas tree they’d picked up in town earlier. An overstuffed Melaniece slid onto the floor in front of the fireplace and watched them at play. Her fingers sank into the thick pile of the sheepskin rug as she lay on her back and moaned with a lopsided smile plastered on her face. Dinner had been fabulous. Denise had made Shrimp Creole with Dirty Rice and Melvin had whipped up a peach cobbler made with homemade butter crust. Oh god, she was so full, all she could do was lie there, soak in the warmth of the fire and hope she didn’t explode. But hell, if she did blow up she’d die fat and happy. Heh!

When the doorbell sounded, she didn’t move from her warm spot on the floor. Besides, she had a good idea who it was and secretly wished the cockeyed nosy neighbor would just leave her customary Christmas cookies on the porch and leave.

“Get that, will you Denny?” Melaniece drawled sleepily, eyes half-closed. The soft footfalls of her daughter’s bare feet, the quiet click of the deadbolt and easy swish of the front door opening reached her ears. She waited to hear Denise’s “thank you for the gift, Mrs. Orley”. A few moments passed but the neighbor wasn’t calling out her customary holiday greeting, nor was Denise giving her usual Merry Christmas to whoever was at the door.

She definitely knew something was going on when the little hairs on the back of her neck joined her stomach in an out-of-the-blue spastic butterfly dance. Melaniece cracked open one eye and looked toward the door.

Two large suitcases sat in the middle of her now snow-covered foyer floor and Denise, who was doing a fabulous job of completely ignoring her, thus avoiding her stare of doom, helped a bundled, but familiar-looking, form out of a thick parka.

Melaniece glanced over at her son and froze. If the boy wanted her to believe nothing was out of the ordinary, his ear-splitting grin pretty much gave him away. But whatever it was, he wasn’t telling.

She watched layers of clothing fall away from the person. A jacket, sweater, snow pants and boots had been hiding a wide, solid-looking back, thick muscular thighs and an ass that couldn’t possibly belong to a mere mortal. Successfully swallowing the lump growing in her throat, Melaniece sat up, both mouth and eyes wide. Oh lord, had the kids ordered her a stripper? Woo, what a hunk!

Said hunk turned to face her and snatched a knit cap off his disheveled head to reveal tastefully cut auburn hair, startling green eyes and sinfully full lips.

“Holy. Shit,” Melaniece whispered.

Michael Bannon walked into her living room, eyeing her like the cat who’d swallowed the canary…or in this case, the partridge in the pear tree.

Snippet Saturday Authors
Rhian Cahill
Leah Braemel
Mari Carr
Shiloh Walker
McKenna Jeffries
Taige Crenshaw
HelenKay Dimon
Lauren Dane
Jody Wallace

Snippet Saturday is a brilliant collaboration by NYT and USA Today bestselling author, Lauren Dane , and a fabulous group of authors that she’s invited to join her in posting book goodies every Saturday. I’m thrilled to be part of this mad fun!

My first thought was that I needed to post an excerpt that had something to do with the weather. But I’m going to put a different spin on the concept of rain. In this scene from Carinian’s Seeker, Vampire Council of Ethics Book 1, Carin has just walked into a decked out ballroom only to be accosted by some of the finest prime male vampires EVAH! Yes, ladies, it’s raining men! Hallelujah!

Enjoy the snippet then visit the other Snippet Saturday authors via the links at the bottom of the post.

Carinian’s Seeker
Vampire Council of Ethics Book One

Carin was amused at her current conversation. These boys were fine as hell with some serious pick-up lines. All of them looked related to the vamp who’d pissed Bix off when the Council had come to see her. Every one of their heads was stark white, some straight, some curly, some loc’d. The thick burgundy drapes were pulled back to allow the moonlight to glow through the crystal floor-to-ceiling windows along one whole wall of the ballroom.

The lunar beams cast a bluish sheen on their gorgeous heads, surrounding them with the illusion of faerie dust. Too self-assured by half, their athletic, muscular bodies and devilish good looks ran the gamut from ruggedly handsome to male model chic. All were dressed to the nines in classic black. None of them bothered to sheathe their fangs. Of course she wasn’t interested, but any woman worth her salt would flirt at least a little bit under such yummy circumstances.

“You are a beautiful woman with a body made for hot, sweaty sex. If you’re good, perhaps I’ll take you to mate,” said one Armani-clad Hatsept.

“Or perhaps you will partner me. My cock is much more decadent than my cousin here. Besides, he already has three mates.” This from a vamp with such a thick head of hair she was almost jealous. Damn, a woman would kill for hair like that.

“Yes, but my tongue is more talented,” said yet another gorgeous white-loc’d vamp, “so may I have this dance?”

Before Carin could open her mouth to turn them down tactfully, her arm was wrapped around a tense, bulging forearm. She didn’t have to turn around to know who it was. She’d recognize that soul-stirring growl anywhere.

“This woman is taken, Hatsept.”

“Says who?” challenged all three b-e-a-utiful vamps.

“Says me. Keep fucking with my woman and I’ll stomp a mud hole in your pasty-faced ass.”

“Bix, don’t you dare start a fight,” Carin demanded with an exasperated, there’s-too-much-testosterone-in-the-room sigh. But Bix didn’t seem to be listening. When his and the bad boys’ fangs extended to movie-like proportions, she pinched him hard on the inside of his biceps and scowled for all she was worth.

“Damn it, Bix, I mean it. You start a fight and I’m outta here. Now let’s dance.” In the end, she had to grab a good chunk of his ass to get his attention. He turned on her with a snarl. Did she care? Not bloody likely.

“You snarling at me? Don’t make me kick your ass up in here, Jon Bixler.” She was royally bluffing and inwardly relieved when a thoroughly amused smile spread across his face.

“Damn, boys, my woman has more balls than all three of you.” He laughed, took her by the waist and led her onto the dance floor.

Snippet Saturday Authors
Rhian Cahill
Leah Braemel
Mari Carr
Shiloh Walker
McKenna Jeffries
Taige Crenshaw
HelenKay Dimon
Lauren Dane

Snippet Saturday is a brilliant collaboration by NYT and USA Today bestselling author, Lauren Dane , and a fabulous group of authors that she’s invited to join her in posting book goodies every Saturday. I’m thrilled to be part of this mad fun!

This week’s theme is: BEST FRIENDS. I must admit that friends is something that I have very few of. It’s the story of my life, really. I’ve never been the popular girl or the chick who gets invited to birthday parties, Christmas dinners and stuff like that. But while I was growing up I did have one friend who was alot like Kenoe is to Tameth in Serati’s Flame. Her name was Valda and that woman had my back coming and going! In this case, Kenoe Hatsept will do anything to help his best friend, Tameth Serati, win her mate. Enjoy this Snippet that truly shows how great friends really have each other’s back. Afterward, visit the other Snippet Saturday authors via the links at the bottom of this post.

Her vision full of Alaan’s broad retreating back, Tameth almost forgot about the searing pain from the hard knot on her shoulder. She loved nothing more than working out with her blades but she’d overdone it during last night’s session and now suffered the consequences. And all in an effort to clear her mind of the growing need for the very man who’d just ruined her damned apartment door.

A formidable Seeker serving the V.C.O.E., Alaan Serati was one of the most gorgeous vampires of her clan, and son of the Matriarch herself. Tall, deliciously muscled, and expertly skilled with a variety of weapons, surely he must be good with his hands. And those eyes, such an unusual shade of blue, like the finest cut tanzanite gemstones. His perfect body was topped off with a mass of blond curls so light they were almost platinum. And just listening to him talk was enough to make her cream. The deep bass of his voice never failed to make her think of slow ballads and dirty dancing in the dark.

Kenoe’s quiet chuckle brought her out of her musings.

“Well, that was interesting, don’t you think?”

“I’ve never seen Alaan turn that particular shade of red before. Ow,” Tameth yelped as Kenoe dug into the same stubborn knot he’d licked in front of Alaan. Strong fingers pressed into her lean trapezius muscles and sent a screaming ache to the base of her skull. After a few seconds of pressure, a dull throb spread through her shoulder blade and settled in her chest. Then Kenoe’s thumbs worked deeper, forcing the tendons to pop over the bone with a snap. A sharp pain was followed by an ease of tension so profound, her stress leached out of every pore and the nerves settled down until they stopped twinging altogether. Maybe he’d adjust the bones in her neck and save a trip to the clan chiropractor.

“Go see Dr. Lyons, woman. And yes, Alaan looked ready to kill. As grumpy as he is all the time, when was the last time you’ve seen him bare his fangs at anyone, even a Hatsept?”

“In all the years I’ve known him I’ve never see him do that when he wasn’t hunting. What do you think…?”

“Wasn’t it obvious? The man was jealous.”

“Are you kidding? He can be such an asshole sometimes, I can’t tell when he’s upset for some legitimate reason or if he’s just being his typical good-natured self.” She snorted.

“Well if the way he started growling when I licked your neck is any indication, I’d say the vampire has it bad for you, Tam.”

“I’m not so sure. Everyone knows he swore never to mate again after that disaster with Sher. He hasn’t been the same since the day they found her all those years ago.”

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Ever look at a friend who was running their mouth, yet all you could hear was Charlie Brown’s teacher saying “Wah wa wa wa waaaaah”? Well, welcome to Snippet Saturday, a brilliant collaboration of Lauren Dane and a fabulous group of authors that she’s invited to join her in posting book goodies every Saturday, of which I am thrilled to be a part of. This week’s Snippet Saturday theme is—Talk, talk, talk (dialog).

I think this is one of my favorite dialog scenes from my newest release, ‘Silk Road’. Enjoy, and then grab a Snippet from all the Snippet Saturday authors via the link at the bottom of the post. Tally ho!

The following morning Larien awoke to a sleep-warmed, delicious smelling woman tucked against his body. He nuzzled Jayla’s neck as he whispered against her skin. “God, I could kiss you all night.”

He felt her smile against his skin where she nibbled him right back. “You did kiss me all night. Time to get up already?” She yawned, but looked bright and ready for the day.

They should both be tired as dogs who’d been hunting for two days without a break. But Larien noticed that Jayla charged him up somehow. He mentally added the whole “energy thing” to his list of questions for Gabriel when he delivered his next status report.

“Speaking of getting up in the morning,” he said as he rolled her beneath him yet again, “I forgot to tell you that Talan said you’re all healed now and it’s okay for you to travel. I went ahead and updated our train reservations. We leave day after tomorrow.”

“What? When did this happen?”

“He told me last night.”

“Where is Talan?”

“Sleeping on the couch.”

“Wait. Did you say day after tomorrow?” She was out of bed so fast he tumbled off to the side, caught completely off guard. She stood, fists jammed into her hips. The skimpy spaghetti-strapped camisole left nothing to the imagination. And he could imagine quite a bit now that she’d had those pretty breasts pressed against his body. They were a little more than a handful, soft with puffy nipples that became stiff cocoa buds and…

“Larien! Stop ogling my boobs already. I can’t be ready in two days. I haven’t done laundry in forever, more accurately, since the unhealthy incident at the hands of a no good winter Fallen demon. And given you haven’t let me lift a finger since I was injured I don’t even want to know what my house looks like with you and Talan taking care of everything. Oh my God, I have a news piece due to my editor. Shit!”

“Are you insinuating that I’m messy?”

“Out of all that, all you got was that I think you’re messy? Hey, I’m the one that’s been out of commission for weeks.” A sharp index finger pinned him in the chest. Damn. That almost hurt. “You don’t get to make this about you. Then again, it is about you and you not bothering to ask me if I can be ready to go in barely forty eight hours.”

“Ask? For what? Anything you need, I can get or fashion for you.”

“Ask for what? For what?”

Was she turning colors?

He rose and gently stroked his hand down her spine to calm her. That earned him her back and an elbow in the ribs as she walked away, grabbed a robe off the little bench at the end of her bed and practically ripped a sleeve off as she jammed her arm through it.

“Can you clean my house with a sweep of your hand, too, then?”

Larien was at a loss. Sure he’d had plenty of experience with women but nothing like the spitfire glaring daggers at him just now.

“Jayla, are you angry?”

“Answer my question, damn it,” she snapped.

“No, I cannot clean your house with a wave of my hand. I am a warring angel, not Harry Potter.”

“Didn’t think so. And for the record, making decisions for me when I’m perfectly capable of making them myself falls firmly into the assholery department, damn it. And Talan told me that you two have been sharing dinner duty. I don’t know about you, but I can guarantee Talan hasn’t washed a dish since he’s been here! Goddamn men! Think you know every damn thing in the whole damn world and—”

He should have pretended to miss out on the rest as she stomped out of the room and down the hall. Soon her words were accompanied by various banging and slamming of pots, pans, and what sounded like the stove and dishwasher.

So much for spending the morning kissing in bed.

“Talan, get in here and help me,” she yelled from the kitchen, and then grumbled, “Before I break something…like a plate over your bonehead. Talan! Wake up.” Followed by a splash, a yowl and a sputter in what sounded like old Gaelic. But it didn’t keep Larien from laughing as he fashioned some clothes and moved toward the racket with a shake of his head.

Snippet Saturday Authors
Rhian Cahill
Shelli Stevens
Anne Rainey
Jody Wallace
Mari Carr
McKenna Jeffries
Myla Jackson
Taige Crenshaw
Delilah Devlin
HelenKay Dimon
Lauren Dane
Shiloh Walker
Leah Braemel