Bound By The Night (14 page)

But the others had noticed her now, and they were closing in.

Three males.  Big and hulking because that was the way of the beast.

“
Vampire…”
 
The snarl floated in the air, and the males reached for her.

“
No!”
 His roar broke a second too slowly.

Two of the males crashed into nearby tables.  They’d made the mistake of actually touching her. You didn’t touch a vampiress who didn’t want to be touched. Fools should know that rule.

Purebloods were especially strong.

Excitement had the beast inside yanking on his leash.

Every person in the bar froze for a moment, then instantly turned their attention on her.  The vamp had the third wolf on the floor in front of her.  He hadn’t shifted, not yet, but his claws were already lengthening. She had one small hand at his throat while the other held tight to his hair, yanking his head back to better expose his neck.

Vampires always went for the throat. So predictable.  Their hunger made them weak every time.

“Kill the bitch…” Ah, that mutter came from one of the guys she’d tossed a good ten feet. He was already rising with his claws out and blood dripping from his busted cheek.

Jace lifted his hand, staying the men even as they rose.  “Not…yet.”

He knew no one would disobey. They couldn’t. He was alpha, and if they tried, he’d be the one kicking ass.

Even the shitty band stopped playing as he crossed the room.  The few human females in the bar glanced around curiously, and he saw a couple of the shifters push them toward the back.  The women came to play at Howling Moon. Or rather, the wolves played with them.  Those women knew the score about the supernatural world, and they 
knew
 
to keep quiet about the paranormal society.

The vampiress didn’t release her grip on her prey.  Jace took his time stalking toward her.  Like most vamps, she had pale, ivory skin.  Her features were…damn, pretty perfect.  Wide eyes, high cheeks, small nose.  Her chin was pointed a little, giving her a slightly stubborn edge, but then, bloodsuckers were not exactly known to be easy going.

Neither were wolves.

She wore all black.  Tight black shirt, a 
very
 
short black skirt, and those boots that oozed sex.

Sex and violence. Yeah, that was pretty much how vamps and wolves rolled.

As he closed in on her, Jace picked up her scent, separating the light perfume of her skin from the booze, sweat, and the cigarettes in the air.  The vampire smelled sweet, tempting.

Her kind always did. The better to lure their prey in for that deadly bite. But she was—

More.

He inclined his head toward her.  “Let him go.”

“Of course.” Her voice rolled lightly, soft, sensual, but had no accent.  She dropped her hold on the wolf instantly.

Then Mike made the mistake of lunging back up and slicing at her with his claws.

Rage exploded inside of Jace, and he leapt forward even as his own claws broke from his fingertips.

Don’t hurt—

She stepped back, ducked, then shoved her fist right at the wolf’s heart.  Her punch threw Mike back against Jace.

Jace grabbed the wolf and twisted him around.  He lifted the other guy off the floor and glared at him. “I don’t remember giving you permission to attack, Mike.”

He heard the vamp’s breaths panting lightly and knew she wasn’t as controlled as she appeared. No scent of fear, not yet.

“B-bloodsucker…comin’ in here…” Mike snarled. “She can’t just…walk in…”

“I was invited here,” she said smoothly.

Still trapped in Jace’s grip, Mike twisted and glared over his shoulder. “Who the hell…would be dumb enough to invite a vampire here—”

“Your alpha.”  Her answer came with a shrug as her gaze lifted back to Jace. Then she inclined her head in the smallest of subservient gestures.  
Submission.
 “I was told of your offer, and I’m here to accept.”

Mike’s head swung back toward him. “Jace?” His voice was stronger now. Wolves always healed fast. “What bullshit is she talking about?”

Jace slammed his forehead into Mike’s nose. Bones crunched and blood spurted even as the smaller wolf howled.  Then Jace threw the guy against the nearest wall, one that was about fifteen feet away.  When Mike crashed, he didn’t get up.

Silence. So thick it covered the whole bar. Jace stared at the vamp, trying to keep all emotion from his face.  Then, slowly, he closed the remaining space between him and the woman who was going to change everything for him.

He caught her hand and turned her palm over.  Hell, yes, the mark was there, cradled inside her left hand.  Just like he’d known it would be. A blood-red rose.

He stood close enough to see the circle of gold in her eyes. The faint gold that marked her just as her hand did. She was something far more than an ordinary bloodsucker.

She was a vampire princess.  His key to power, immortality, and she was the perfect weapon that he needed to kick the ass of the demons who’d come to town looking to wipe out his people.

Her lips parted as she stared up at him.  He glimpsed her deceptively delicate fangs.

And he caught the scent of fear as it swept through her.

She was right to be afraid.  Now that she was there, within his grasp, and he’d never let her go.

Never.

“I’m Jace.” He let her see his own fangs. “And you’re mine.”  A claim made before all the wolves in the room.  From now on, any wolf who touched her would face him—and death.

She swallowed and tilted her head back to better meet his stare. “Hello, husband.”

The wolf within growled…
Mine.

BOUND BY BLOOD—Available now for .99

And Cynthia Eden’s next full-length paranormal romance novel, ANGEL BETRAYED, will take readers into a world of dangerous, sexy fallen angels, demons, and vampires. When you betray an angel, there really is all hell to pay…

ANGEL BETRAYED

Sammael–call him Sam–was an angel once. An Angel of Death. But the dispassionate, watch-from-above thing just wasn’t working for him when it meant watching evil torture innocent souls day in and day out. It might have cost him his wings, but these days he gets to apply the direct method on the bad guys. Problem is, what’s making his life difficult is a bad girl…

Seline O’Shaw needs protection, and with the hounds of hell on her tail, she’s not going to quibble too hard about where she gets it. Sam’s virtue is questionable, but he’s smoking hot, massively powerful, and owes her a favor. So what if she’s getting a little case of angel lust? There are some damn deadly sins after her hide…

Excerpt from ANGEL BETRYAED (Available 06/26/12, in print and e-book, from Kensington Brava):

“So you need protection.” His stare narrowed on her. “What, exactly, does that mean?” He paused. “Do you need a guard? Someone to watch over you? Or…” His left hand rose. His fingers curved under her cheek and his thumb brushed over her lips. Her breath caught, and her heart raced in her chest. “Do you want me to kill someone for you, Seline?”

Killing would be easy for him.  Sometimes, she worried it might become too easy for her. “I-I don’t know what do to.  I’ve been hiding, and I thought I was safe, but they found me.”

“They?”  His right hand still cradled her thigh and seemed to scorch her flesh.

“His friends. They know what I did, and they aren’t the kind of men you can just walk away from.”  She let fear seep into her voice. The better to sound weak. Such a lie. “They’re dangerous, Sam, and they’ve got a lot of power.” 

His gaze searched hers.  Then his mouth dipped close to hers.  Seline stopped breathing.  He was going to kiss her and her hormones would go wild.
Control.
She had to stay in—

He didn’t kiss her. He smiled. And dammit, she’d actually been pressing up on her toes to get closer to him.

Heat stained her cheeks.
I don’t blush.
But she was—or rather, she’d started blushing since she met Sam.  He made her too uncomfortable.

“What makes you think I’m the kind of man who offers protection?”

She didn’t think he’d give her protection. She wasn’t a fool. He wasn’t the protecting kind.

He was the killing kind. 

She wet her lips and felt the tension mount in his body. “I know what you are.” Half-truth. She knew what he
wasn’t.
She was still working on the rest.  Out of a thousand possibilities, she’d narrowed down the choices to a top five list—and nothing on that list was good.  

“And what’s that?”

Now this was the dangerous part. If she’d calculated wrong, he could attack her.  Good thing she wasn’t very easy to kill. “You’re not human.” This she knew with absolute certainty. Demons didn’t play guard bitch to humans.  The food chain didn’t work that way. 

No change of expression crossed his face.  But his head came closer to hers and his lips—
why would that cruel edge be sexy?
—pressed against her mouth.  She expected the kiss to be hard and rough. What else? But when his mouth took hers, it was just…a taste.

His tongue licked her lips and stroked inside her mouth.  Slow. Easy. As if he were sampling her.

Her tongue slipped to meet his. To taste.  To want. 

Sam.

When he pulled back, she had to fight to keep her hands off him.  Or rather, she had to fight not to yank the guy back and take a lot more from him. 
Dangerous.
 

His gaze studied her a moment, and she barely dared to breathe. “I’m not human,” he finally agreed, his voice a deep rumble. “But neither are you, sweetheart.
Neither are you
.”

ANGEL BETRAYED—Available 6/26/12 from Kensington Brava

Cynthia Eden is a national best-selling author of paranormal romance and romantic suspense novels. Her books have received starred reviews from 
Publishers Weekly
, and her novel, DEADLY FEAR, was named a RITA® finalist for best romantic suspense.

Cynthia is a southern girl who loves horror movies, chocolate, and happy endings. More information about Cynthia and her books may be found at:
www.cynthiaeden.com
or on her Facebook page at:
www.facebook.com/cynthiaedenfanpage
.  Cynthia is also on Twitter at
www.twitter.com/cynthiaeden
.

E-book only titles

ENTANGLED (anthology)

BOUND BY BLOOD (.99 novella, Bound—First Novella)

BOUND IN DARKNESS (.99 novella, Bound—Second Novella)

BOUND IN SIN (.99 novella, Bound—Third  Novella)

BOUND BY THE NIGHT (.99 novella, Bound—Fourth Novella)

List of paranormal romance titles

ANGEL OF DARKNESS (Fallen, Book 1)

ANGEL BETRAYED (Fallen, Book 2)

NEVER CRY WOLF

ETERNAL HUNTER (Night Watch, Book 1)

I’LL BE SLAYING YOU (Night Watch, Book 2)

ETERNAL FLAME (Night Watch, Book 3)

HOTTER AFTER MIDNIGHT (Midnight, Book 1)

MIDNIGHT SINS (Midnight, Book 2)

MIDNIGHT’S MASTER (Midnight, Book 3)

IMMORTAL DANGER

WHEN HE WAS BAD (anthology)

EVERLASTING BAD BOYS (anthology)

BELONG TO THE NIGHT (anthology)

List of romantic suspense titles

DEADLY FEAR

DEADLY HEAT

DEADLY LIES