A night in. My Soul Laid Bare teaser

The snow falls in hard sheets of white outside the window and makes me wish this fireplace wasn't blocked off. I can't wait to get a small apartment around here one day. Lexi is gone. A note on the mini fridge says she went to the movies with Asher. Elijah emerges from thin air and I wonder if I'll ever get used to that. I lean my forehead against the cool glass and Elijah glides up behind me and nuzzles my neck with his barely there stubble. 
"Sam's thinking about ending things with me."
"What do you want him to do ideally?"
"It's hard to just let him go, but maybe it's for the best. I love you."
"I love you too. There is no rush to get out of his life for good. I think he needs you to help him through this time even though I know it’s hard on you."
 He presses his full lips into the base of my neck and peppers the length of my neck with soft kisses. “And you need me to get you into a better mood,” he says in a low tone. I turn and face him wanting nothing more than to enjoy this moment alone with him. 
Elijah's mouth hovers over mine for an eternity, teasing me with every hot breath. His lips curve up to reveal a devilish smile hiding underneath. I try and kiss him but he moves just out of my reach, his dimples ignite deep as wells in his cheeks as he does. 
Oh it's on now. I grab the belt loops of his jeans and pull him in so that our hips are touching. His smile dissipates, replaced by a fiery gleam of desire of the most rudimentary kind sparkling in his eyes. I brush my nails up his back in slow swirls. I stand on my toes and let my own hot breath out next to his ear as if I was just going to whisper a secret. His body ticks even closer in response. 
A second later, he's picks me up so that my legs are wrapped around his waist and he sears his molten lips over mine seeking out carnal revenge. His kiss goes on for miles, pulling me in deeper until I can't make out which way is up or down. 
His warm spiced scent makes its way into my senses and incapacitates me. I love that trick of his. Elijah could make days disappear when he does that. I wouldn't care if we ever came up for air or food, it's like indulging in chocolate while drinking fine wine, and swimming with dolphins and hugging your favorite teddy all while cocooned in the arms of the sexiest man on the planet. Hell universe for that matter. Elijah's brand of drug would be illegal in all fifty states combined. 
I pull his sweater off and run my hands down his steaming chest. His skin is so buttery soft.  My fingers trace along the faintest of scars. Elijah's chest bears an expansive scar that resembles a sprawling Live Oak tree stark of leaves for winter. The faint white lines shimmer under the dew of his skin resembling a tattoo in white ink. I ease down from his waist and kiss the epicenter of the once grave wound. He hisses out a breath. 
"Does it hurt?"
"Far from it," he breathes out. "You take all my pain away."
“Funny, I could say the same about you.” I smile up just as Elijah nibbles on my bottom lip with his teeth. That night Elijah helps me forget all my pain and worries just by being himself. I end up asleep on his chest while the late night news drones out over the television, just like old times. 

My Soul Laid Bare Teaser

Sorry for the lack of blog post lately, we moved and it was all consuming.  So thank you for your patience. I'm glad to be semi setteled in among the cardboard boxes. Here is an extra special tid bit. My Soul Laid Bare spans Brennen's college years and early adult life. In this scene Brennen is a newly appointed Governor and has Elena over for dinner. 

"You're going to make me drink alone?"

"Yeah well, if you'd been waking up like I have you would think twice about it."

"Oh, what's been going on?" 

Just as she asks her question, the chef brings out dinner, a plate of grilled salmon, asparagus spears and spicy quinoa. It all looks mouthwatering. Once he's taken care of us, I lean in to her. 

"I doubt you want to hear about my passion filled dreams, but each night I drink a few glasses of wine, I wake up not remembering even going to sleep. It's probably because I'm not used to drinking, but I don't like feeling as if I'm going crazy."

"Wait, go back to the passion filled dreams. Who's the naughty night terror star?"

I take a bite of my salmon and savor the char from the grill combined with the bold flavors he used. Elena waits with her glass paused at her lip, gently smirking as if she already knows the answer. 

"Elijah of course."

She smiles before taking a long sip of white wine. "You two can't even stay away in your subconscious, how much longer are you going to keep this up?"

"I miss him." I say sinking down in my chair feeling a new wave of despair just because I mentioned his name a moment ago. 

"He's your soul mate, frankly I don't see how you're still functioning without his touch daily."

"I'm sure he touches me daily, I just can't feel it."

"He's touching you right now."

 The sultry look in her eye makes me wonder exactly where he's touching me. It sets every nerve on fire just thinking about it. I imagine his warm hands running down the length of my arms. "You are blushing like a nun at the cucumber farm."

"Stop it, now I need that glass of wine thank you very much." She laughs at my misfortune and pours me a glass. 

My Soul to Save is publishing NOW! It should be up by tonight, in case you can't wait that long, here is a little Elijah for ya to hold you over. 

“I enjoyed your song in the car. Maybe you should go down the chocolate chip aisle and we could bake something together this weekend.” He says it provocatively low in my ear and Elena smacks him on the arm. “What?” he says and I catch him flashing his gorgeous smile at Elena. A twinge of jealousy plays on my lips.

“You’re here to save Sam, nothing else. I’m sure I don’t need to explain the gravity of the situation to you. And if Sam’s life is in danger, you can bet your pretty little head that your precious girlfriend’s is too. So quit playing around and be alert.”

I sigh out, and to Sam, it’s for no reason. He rubs my shoulder, probably unsure of how to help. I long for the days when I didn’t know they existed or at least couldn’t hear them.

“Way to go Elena, now you’ve freaked her out.” Jesson scolds.

“Hey Sam would you mind grabbing some eggnog? I forgot to pick it up when we passed the milk.”

“You bet.”

As soon as he’s out of sight and the aisle is empty, I turn around. Do you have any idea what it does to my human mind to have four Keepers following me around a grocery store bickering in my ear? Going a little nuts here people!” I push a gush of air through my nose. “And you.” I stab Elijah’s chest with my finger. “You…” Damn it, he’s done it again I can’t even finish my sentence. What was I going to say? His soft full lips have captured all of my attention. “Stop doing that!”

He tries not to smile, but only winds up making himself look even sexier. I give up. I throw a bag of chocolate chips in the cart because, why they heck not? Even though he’s behind me, I can feel him smiling and I shake my head at his audacity.   

Trouble in Paradise

My Soul to Save is getting polished and is almost ready to go. It should be out by September 15th. I've had a blast writing it. The final book, My Soul Laid Bare, will follow a few months later. 

I hope you enjoy this excerpt from My Soul to Save. 

“Come here.” He pops the top to the champagne bottle and zips the flap to the tent. I’m glad to finally be out of the prying eyes of all of the Keepers. He removes two flutes from a basket and pours us each a glass. Outside the fireworks continue their cadence but the sounds seem far off and Sam’s heart speeds up in his chest replacing the raucous noise altogether. He set’s my glass aside and I lie back as he covers me with his body.

He removes his belt as his gaze washes gently over me. He lifts my hands high above my head and wraps the leather around them securing them. A smile plays on his lips and I wonder what he’s up to. He almost looks like he’s asking permission to do so, but then I see it. The subtle change in his eye flashes in a split second. A look that I've never been able to forget. The panic that ensues in my brain widens my eyes instantaneously.

He covers my mouth with his hand. He knows that I know. I scream out, but his hand is so secure, no sound escapes. He yells out, “Yes!” as he stuffs a gag in my mouth muffling any hope of the Keepers hearing me. Oh God, he’s possessed again. 

This snippet of My Soul to Save has Sam and Brennen spending their last week vacationing together before college. 

He emerges from the tiny bathroom in a cloud of steam, shirtless and looking like some Irish Springs commercial or Axe body spray ad. And I totally start to rethink my whole Paul Bunyan look. His pants are hung way low on his hips and I don’t think I’ve taken a breath since he came out. He turns off the light over the sink and only a small nightlight in the corner gives any visibility. He pulls back the sheets and slips under the covers with me.

He’s not wearing any cologne, only the warm clean scent from his body wash wafts up from between the sheets. His hand glides over my waist and slips under the soft fabric that was meant to keep him out.

“Goodnight,” he whispers. His hand still lingers on me like a white hot branding iron setting my skin on fire. The angels have surrounded the cottage outside allowing us a modicum of privacy.

“Goodnight.” Sam finds my lips in the dark and gives me a soft kiss and retreats back to his pillow. But a second later his lips find mine again, hungry and heated. He slowly moves his hands into mine and raises his body over me.

“I know you're trying to be as unattractive as possible in this outfit, but I’m sorry it’s just not working. You’re beautiful inside and out.”

“Well it is pretty hot maybe you could help me out of it.”

Sam's POV

This week I'm in Sam's head. He's meeting Brennen for the first time and since he doesn't get much of a say in Brennen's story, and he's such a nice guy, I thought I'd let you see for yourself what Sam's really like. 

Sam’s POV

Mrs. Cohen, English Lit. this must be it. As soon as I round the corner I see her. Nothing but green eyes and ribbons of long blond hair cascading around her, well past her waist. My heart bottoms out inside. A sappy smile spreads across my face and I must look like a total freaking looser right now. Way to make a first impression dumb-ass.

The seat next to her is empty so I take it. Maybe I can do this the right way.

“Hello, I’m Ari. Are you new here?” The girl in front of her asks me, interrupting my thoughts. This chick looks she’s ready for the street corner. Blood red lips match her tight as hell skirt. God, I hope my sisters don’t end up looking like this when they hit their teens. I don’t even want to acknowledge her question but Daddy raised me to always mind my manners and I feel obliged to be polite to her on my first day here.

“Sam, and yes I am.” Now I sit back and relax wondering what my first words to her should be.

“Texas?” my dream girl asks making me about choke on my own tongue. She talked to me first, maybe there’s hope. God, she’s everything I could have ever imagine wanting in a girl. Her long tan legs shift under her and draw my eye there. Don’t stare at her!

“Fort Worth – is it that obvious?” I ask knowing full well it is. Here I stick out like a hillbilly on Wall Street. She nods and giggles allowing the most adorable sound to come out of her mouth, and just like that I’m hooked, and I don’t even know her name.

“My apologies– it seems you have me at a disadvantage.” I like her boots with her flowery little sundress, maybe she rides. I could tell her about our new stable.

“Oh, sorry Brennen Hale.” Her cheeks fill with color as she says it. Her raspberry lips draw my eye as she says her name. Pawpaw’s notions of romancing the ladies plays in my head. “Compliment them often and truthfully.”

“That’s a pretty name.” Ugh, I’m an idiot and I sound like one too.

“Thank you.” She says as her eyes go back to the white board and she picks up her pen to take notes. Damn, I can’t even keep her attention. No, that can’t be it. Maybe she has a boyfriend. A girl like Brennen must have a boyfriend.

But the gothic looking one looks like she’s about to pounce on me. She eyes me like I could be her next meal and I spend the next few minutes answering her questions politely when all I want to do is get to know more about Brennen. No one has ever had this effect on me before much less in minutes.  

In this Saturday's sample, Jesson is still trying to convince Brennen not to write Elijah off just yet. 

"I can't like a human in any sort of romantic premise. We're not made that way."

"What about Elijah?"

"Perhaps his soul bonded with yours because you're not wholly human."

"What do you mean his soul bonded?" The tea kettle screams and I jump, snatching it from the burner to silence it.

"You mean you can't feel it?"

"Feel what? I'm new to your world, remember." 

***                                 ***

"Earlier our conversation got cut off. I just want to tell you that Elijah told me that when you weren't near him, he felt like part of him was missing. You see, there is this myth that souls are made in pairs. Sometimes the two find their way back to each other. This is rare because though they are made in pairs, they don't go into the world that way. Some are born hundreds of years apart, some on the other side of the world. This is where angel's coined the term soul mate. Human's throw the word around so much these days that it's lost its meaning. But I think Elijah is your soul's mate."

I glare at Jesson who still bears a sappy grin on his face. "Myth, isn't that what you called it." He sighs with a heavy chest and watches as I head up the stairs.

 

Happy Saturday! Okay here is a snippet from My Soul to Save. I won't tell you who Brennen is locking lips with. You have to guess. Enjoy!
“You’re my weakness. Now if I have to give you a good bye kiss, let this one be the memorial.  He pins me up against the tree and eases into my body. Heat radiating off of him like a furnace on a meltdown. He kisses the base of my neck, sighs a hot breath into my ear and sucks my earlobe into his mouth pressing into me with his slacks.

His lips cover mine and I drink him in. Wave over wave, I’m drowning with him in this moment, never wanting to breathe again if I could keep this ecstasy from ending. His hands are everywhere I need them to be. He moans into me releasing the tightrope inside, unraveling it by the mile. No one will ever touch my soul the way he does

Another Teaser For My Soul to Save.

"Look, Elijah never doubted that your love wasn't real for a minute Brennen. But if he does come to find you..."

"I know, stay away from him. He could be dangerous." As if the universe had impeccable timing, Sam's face appears on my phone. I let the call go to voice mail as I run to the bathroom to throw up. I'm so glad we have en-suite bathrooms.

"Hey, you alright in there?" I hear Lexi call out. "Guess that's why you missed half your classes today." Oh that's just great. They kidnap me, haul me off to another planet to have mind altering memory implants and they don't even bother to get me back in time for school.

I emerge from the bathroom, and plop down on the sofa throwing the pillow over my face, noticing that both Elena and Inara are gone.

"Is Jesson the father?"

"What? Are you insane?" I snap back.

"I made you some tea. Caffeine isn't as bad as they thought for the fetus you know."

"Lexi stop, I'm not pregnant."

"Of course not, you'd have to actually have sex for that to happen." She giggles out, perching her lean torso over her tan legs. I crack a smile. I swear my mother placed the perfect roommate in my dorm just for this very occasion.

My Soul To Save Teaser

I would like to thank everyone who is a fan of this series, your support keeps me going! If you haven't checked out the series yet here it is. My Soul to Keep and My Soul to Take

Sam and Brennen

“What happened are you okay?” His hands search my body for missing limbs because I must have been being hacked to pieces from the scream I let out. He didn't see it. He can’t see anything that goes on in this crazy version of the world. I wish I couldn't see this shit either.

“Sorry, happens all the time with this kid.” Will shrugs his shoulders and goes back to lounging on the sofa. Inara and Elena didn't even bother to get up. My breaths come heavy and fast and I think my heart may have jumped out the window with the demonic bird head.

“I guess I had a nightmare. I told you I hate it when you fly.”

“Come here.” He opens his arms and I settle into him as he kisses the top of my head. “I’m very safe when I fly. Did you know there’s a greater chance of being in a fatal car wreck than a plane crash?”

“So you’ll take the bus from now on?”

He laughs and nuzzles me. “Wow, your heart’s beating fast.” His warm palm flattens over my chest as if he were willing its blood pumping effort to slow down to a survivable rhythm. “I think I know what will calm you down.” He gives me a lazy smile. He peels his body off of me and kneels down on the floor next to me like he’s about to propose or something. Seeing him like this only speeds my heart up to a cadence of a snare drum. I blink away unwelcome tears.

His velvet smooth voice starts in on a song. Sam’s got a voice that could make the top forty. His rendition of Rihanna's Stay turns me into liquid.  I want to stay, here in this bed with him all day. Sans the guards from Amorous of course.