Epiphany (29 page)

The air in the trailer grew hotter, heavy and thick with anticipation. I knew without
having to look that Gerik’s eyes had turned gray.

Gerik made me tremble with want; he could make me forget everything around me except
for him. Even without the knowledge that Gypsies still roamed the earth and that magic
truly did exist in our world, I would have felt the power in this man.

He was a force of nature and muddled my brain with energy the likes of which I’d never
felt before. He zapped my body of will and strength just by being near me. Gerik was
the stuff gods and goddesses were made of. Only…a Viking god. Well, actually a
Gypsy
god, but tomāto, tomäto.

His hands slid up my sheet-covered calves, the material of the sheets thin enough
for me to still feel the rough and calloused skin on his fingers, caused by years
of physical labor. The kind of labor you didn’t see in the world I had been accustomed
to.

I couldn’t stop the shiver that tore through me in appreciation of his masculinity.

Gerik was strength incarnate; it showed in how he carried himself, how he spoke, and
now in how he was deliberately, oh so slowly and very neatly, sending me down a path
he knew I wasn’t ready to travel.

I pushed at his chest. “Stop,” I whispered hoarsely.

Gods, he was just too much, too intense for someone as inexperienced as me.

His voice was a deep rumble in his chest when he asked, “Is that what you really want?”

I was breathing heavily, our lips nearly touching, his hands now gripping my sheet-covered
knees. It was a sliver of sanity he had allowed me to keep; one I was thankful for.
If Gerik touched me, skin on skin, I would be los—”

“Gerik!” I gasped as he gripped my naked thighs. Roughly pulling me underneath him,
he was suddenly situated over top of me.

Heat flooded me as his hand slid under my T-shirt to wrap around my waist. Everywhere
he wasn’t touching began to quiver with need.

Gerik and I had this crazy chemical reaction to each other, something I’m sure scientists
would have loved to have gotten their hands on and studied until there was nothing
left of us but blood and guts, if that.

We were like the line in that ridiculous song, “Just one look, that’s all it took.”
Except in my case it was, “Just one touch, and Trinity turned to mush.”

“Tell me to stop, Trinity. Tell me to stop right now…and I will.”

He ran his lips across my cheek, then down my neck where he sucked softly, and my
body involuntarily clenched. Gods, he was such a liar.

My skin tingled, my limbs trembled, and my body’s sensitivity heightened to unbearable
levels as the fever of his touch raced through me. I couldn’t tell him to stop because
I couldn’t speak. I was so desperate for him, so focused on the completion of our
joining and how magnificent it would be.

Gerik wasn’t playing fair at all; once he touched me, he knew I was lost to a world
of sensation, where only feelings ruled. Awareness of the outside world was sucked
away to a teeny, tiny part in the back of my brain that I could barely reach.

Stop! Stop! I thought over and over again. This wasn’t right; this wasn’t the way
I had imagined losing my virginity. Not in a haze of magic and desperation.

As if he’d heard my silent plea, he released me. I scooted back until my butt hit
the canvas.

“Trinity…” His voice was so ragged, so full of hunger, full of everything a girl would
want to hear from a man. “I didn’t mean…”

“Save it,” I snapped, trying to shake the haze of lust that, to my embarrassment,
so easily consumed me in his presence. He stared at me for a moment, then in a quick
singular movement reminding me of an acrobat, jumped off my bed.

“You touched me,” I accused, trying to right my clothing. “Skin on skin. We made a
deal, Gerik. We would only do that if we prepared each other. Which,” I gave him a
deliberate look, “you definitely did not.”

He didn’t even have the decency to look apologetic. He stood there in all his Viking
glory, looking as proud and as indifferent as ever. If it weren’t for his refusal
to meet my eyes, I wouldn’t have known he was feeling anything at all.

“It wasn’t a conscious thing, yeah? I got…caught up. Don’t freak out.” He ran his
hand through his wet hair and headed for the door.

“Gerik?” I called. “Do you think that maybe someone could fix us?” I braced myself
for his anger. It always surfaced when I brought this up.

He took a deep breath before answering. “There’s nothing wrong with us.”

“But…it’s magic. It has to be.”

“Trinity,” he said, turning to face me. “I don’t know how many times I have to tell
you that no one cast a spell on us. There are no witches casting love spells like
in your Greek stories. And before you even suggest it again, there are no fairies
either. The magic the Romani possess is ancient and was gifted to our people by nature.
It isn’t something that is thrown around for silly little things like love or lust
spells, but that’s all I can tell you about it, my little
Gaje
princess. You know the rules.”

Yes, I knew them. Being a Gaje, a non-Gypsy, I wasn’t privy to the Roma secrets, the
origins of their magic or their true history, unless I was allowed to marry into the
clan, something that could only happen if I cut my ties with the Gaje world completely
and a council of elders deemed me worthy. Then a ceremony that consisted of purging
my Gaje blood would be performed, all before the marriage could even occur.

According to their laws, it was forbidden for me to even live here. But an apocalypse
changed everything.

I crossed my arms over my chest. “Stupid rules.”

He shrugged. “They have protected my people for centuries.”

“Fine, whatever. You go on protecting your Viking sex hoodoo and keep me in the dark.”

“I’m not purposely keeping you in the…” He paused and his eyebrows rose. “Did you
say Viking sex hoodoo?”

I narrowed my eyes and snarled. “Don’t make fun of me!”

“So, what you’re saying is, no one is actually attracted to me, hmm?” He grinned.
“They only want me for my longship and my battle-ax skills, yeah?”

I couldn’t look at him when he started flirting with me; it was nearly as bad as his
touching me. I cleared my throat, embarrassed. “You are such a guy.”

“You want me too, Trinity,” he said softly. “And don’t pretend it’s magic.”

I couldn’t share the sentiment. “Shoo.” I waved him away. “I need to get dressed.”

CLICK HERE TO DOWNLOAD A FREE COPY OF THE SOUL MATE ON AMAZON

AVAILABLE NOW ON AMAZON, BARNES & NOBLE, SMASHWORDS and KOBO

LILY’S MISTAKE by PAMELA ANN

Here’s a small excerpt!!

Prologue

Eighteen Years Ago

Lily

“Are you ready yet?” I call out from the bush I’m hiding behind. I don’t want Drake
to get a peek at me while I’m getting ready.

“All set!”

I’m a few yards away from the white gazebo. Fixing my wildflower crown, I stand and
slowly walk toward Drake’s line of sight. My hands tighten around the assortment of
flowers bundled in my hands, but my shakiness vanishes when my eyes meet Drake’s.
He’s gazing at me sheepishly as he waits for my approach.

I fight the urge to just run up to him; I know I shouldn’t, though. Weddings are supposed
to be savored. Fairytales are forever and I have all the time in the world to get
there.

I reach the few steps of the gazebo and almost falter going up them when Drake whispers,
“You look beautiful.”

I give him a toothy smile in return.

We are finally standing side by side when he asks, “How do we do this? Do we just
say forever and ever, then that’s it?”

“Gosh, I don’t know. How did they do it at your cousin’s wedding yesterday?”

Drake bites his lips as he thinks it through. “I don’t remember much, but I can try,
I guess.”

“Good.”

He clears his throat and speaks, “I, Drake Tatum, take Lily Alexander forever and
a day. I promise to give her flowers and kisses forever and ever until I die.” I giggle
when Drake mentions kisses. “It’s your turn now, Lil. Just follow what I said.”

I nod and clear my throat. Smiling, I repeat his words. “I, Lily Alexander, take Drake
forever. I promise to give him kisses and share my Reese’s peanut butter cups once
a week forever and ever until I die.”

“That was not what I said, Lil! Now you just ruined it!”

I giggle again. “Drake! Just stop it. Aren’t you supposed to kiss me now?” He suddenly
looks nervous.

“I guess.”

When I see his face closing in on mine, I close my eyes and wait for his kiss. I catch
my breath as his lips touch mine. It’s short and sweet, but it seals my fate; I will
forever be Drake’s girl.

When I open my eyes and blink a few times, I see Drake grinning at me. “There! Now
we’re married!”

“Kids! Wedding’s over! It’s snack time,” his mother, Patricia, interrupts us.

When we pass by her, she laughs at our silliness. Once she piles our plates with sandwiches
and cookies, she looks amusedly back at us. “So, how does it feel to be married?”

“I love it!” I exclaim.

1

“Hello?”

“How did your job interview go, honey?” my mother’s soft voice asks on the other end
of the phone. “It looks promising. They said they’ll call me in two weeks.” I maneuver
my car out of the parking lot.

I’ve been job hunting for the last three months with no prospects at all. I got fired
from my last secretarial job when Mrs. Donald caught Mr. Donald trying to seduce me.
Allan Donald is a true gentleman, That is, he was before his usual cocktail concoction
of gin and brandy for breakfast. Then he became a little
comfortable
. It wasn’t the first time I had slapped his hand away, but this time, Carla Donald
was there to witness it and fired me on the spot.

“I called because Patricia’s back in town and wants you to join us for lunch at The
Four Seasons.”

Patricia Tatum is my godmother as well as my mother’s best friend since they were
in diapers. She married Hugh Tatum, a very well-known import/export business man who
is also a major financial backer for Hollywood blockbuster films.

“What time? It’s almost noon.” I glance back at the clock on the dashboard.

“Well, yes, dear, we need you to meet us right now.” My mom sounds a tad urgent.

“Sure. See you in a bit.” It’s almost lunchtime and my stomach growls.

A simple lunch at The Four Seasons would just be super!

What could possibly go wrong?

=====

My appetite, apparently, as my godmother announces the reason behind this sudden lunch
date.

I blink a few times, taken aback from what has just spouted off her rouge-tinted lips.
“Excuse me? Did you just say Drake’s thinking of marriage?” I look at Patricia like
she’s just offended me.

Well, I suppose anything that involves Drake I would find offensive. Good or bad.

“Yes, and to a monstrous, gold-digging, horrible woman!” Patricia dabs the sides of
her eyes. The woman was a complete mess when I joined them five minutes prior and
she has only slightly calmed in the time since.

Her words sink in slowly and start gnawing inside me. Drake Tatum’s planning on marriage?
No shit?

I don’t know if I should be happy or cry a freaking dam of tears to that news. Drake
Tatum used to be the center of my universe. He was my first love and the first man
I ever made love to, as well as the very same man who walked away like I was diseased
the very day after he took my virginity.

Drake’s two years older than me, which means he’s now engaged at the age of twenty-eight.
Isn’t that a bit early for a well-known “man whore” to marry?

Oh yeah, Drake’s long line of women is quite known around Hollywood. He dates up and
coming actresses, models, musicians and so forth—his notoriety is legendary. He’s
working alongside his father. After spending a lot of his time studying in Columbia,
then staying around New York after he graduated, he comes to Los Angeles periodically
from what I’ve gathered from my mother and Patricia. Not to mention, what I know from
Google. I can’t help searching for the man every once in a while.

“Would that work for you, dear?” my mom, Hope, asks. Both women look at me like I
have the answer for salvation.

“Huh? Sorry my mind went off somewhere.” Yeah, somewhere that shouldn’t have Drake
in it. He’s the epitome of a player: an insensitive jerk and a two-timing prick to
boot! The absolute worst of the worst.

“I was asking if you would be Drake’s personal assistant for a while. His recent one
just quit because his fiancée, Shannon, drove the poor girl crazy.”

HUH?

“Me? I don’t want to work with Drake. He and I hate each other for crying out loud!”
Everybody knows it. I haven’t even laid eyes on him since I was eighteen, and I want
to keep it that way.

“Please, Lily, my son’s future is on the line here. All I need for you to do is report
to me about Shannon and make her a little jealous.” Patricia stops me before I can
object. “I’ve met her and she’s nothing but fake. I know you and Drake don’t get along;
however, please, can’t you do this? Hugh and I are desperate here.”

“Even Hugh hates her?” How is that possible? Hugh loves everyone, as long as they’re
not against him in the business arena; he’s all hugs and kisses.

Patricia nods. “Will you do this for us, honey? You’re like a daughter to me, Lil.
I would appreciate it if you could lend us a hand.”

Man, she used the “you’re like my daughter” line. How can I say no to that? If I ever
had a second mom, it would be Patricia. I did grow up with them treating me like I
was their own. Hugh and my father became close over the years as well. My father’s
death when I was seventeen only made our bond with the Tatums even stronger.

I finally concede. “Okay, I’ll do it for you and Hugh.”

Patricia gets up and hugs me. “Thank you, Lil! I knew I could count on you!” She kisses
my forehead and squeezes my hand before going back to her chair.