Welcome author Charlie Richards -- she's bringing a bit of her new release, The Strike of Hot Iron, with a special Saturday Spotlight!
Just a little
Love Bite: When a dingo shifter finds a reluctant mate, he needs plenty of help
from his friends.
Pascal agreed to move with his two brothers to a vampire coven which runs a dude
and cattle ranch. With both of his brothers wrapped up in their mates, he has
plenty of opportunity to explore. He accepts his sexuality as he learns his
likes, dislikes, and cravings, which include submitting to a dominant lover.
With abuse part of his past, his brothers don’t understand why Pascal
occasionally sports bruises from sex he claims is consensual.
When the new
blacksmith arrives at the ranch, Pascal finally understands what his brothers
had talked about when describing the mate-pull. Abner Johnson is all he can
think about. Unfortunately, while the huge redhead is okay with a little fun,
he doesn’t want a relationship…with anyone. He’s also upfront about his
feelings on biting—don’t even try it.
Can Pascal figure get
help wooing his mate from his family and friends, even when they don’t
understand his desires?
Excerpt:
Shit! What am I doing here? Why did I go home with a
stranger without telling my brothers? Mate or not, I should have talked with
him first. I shouldn’t have allowed my cock to rule my head. I’ve never done
this before.
Feeling gentle hands
cradle his face, Pascal jolted in his seat.
“Easy, Pascal.”
Abner’s deep rumbling
voice caught Pascal’s attention, and he tipped his head back, giving in to his
mate’s guiding hand, and met his gaze.
His lips curved into
a warm smile, Abner continued, “There you are, Pascal. You went somewhere I
couldn’t follow, and it wasn’t a good place. Not like the blissful place I’d
rather send you. Do you want to talk about it?”
“No. No I don’t.”
Pascal shuttered his
gaze and focused on Abner’s chin. He knew he’d answered a little fast, with a
little snip in his tone, but defensiveness was a knee-jerk reaction. Pascal
didn’t want to talk about his past…especially with his mate.
What if Abner thought
he was damaged goods or something?
While Pascal knew the
abuse, the physical, mental, and sexual trauma wasn’t his fault, that didn’t
mean he wanted to discuss…to relive it…even for his mate.
Abner slid his right
hand to the nape of Pascal’s neck. With his other, he threaded his fingers into
his hair and gripped it in a light hold. Sweeping his dark-eyed focus over
Pascal’s face a few seconds, Abner seemed to assess him.
Pascal held still,
unable to meet his gaze. He couldn’t stop or even hide his tremble as he felt
Abner massage his nape lightly. Finally, he saw his mate nod once.
“Very well.” Abner
released him, his nails skimming over Pascal’s flesh as he did so. “Then we
talk about what we want.”
Abner settled on the
opposite side of the long sofa, his back to the corner. His left knee was bent
on the cushion since he was at an angle, and his right sock-clad foot was flat
on the floor. He placed his right hand on his thigh and his left arm along the
back. His dark-eyed gazed seemed to settle on Pascal with laser-guided
intensity.
“Pascal, I know you
are a shifter. A dingo shifter. I don’t have a problem with paranormals in
general, but I didn’t move to this coven to be a donor or to be bitten in any
way,” Abner began bluntly. “I have a lot of shit going on in my life, and I
don’t need the headache of trying to figure out a relationship of any kind.”
The thumb of his left hand tapped against the back of the sofa, betraying that
he wasn’t quite at ease as he obviously wanted to appear. “With that said, I
can see that you are a submissive. It’s as plain to me as the nose on my face.
I am a dominant, and would be happy to occasionally play with you. We can set
up times to meet and scratch our mutual itch, my need to control and yours to
give up the same. Is that something you are willing to agree to?”
With each word Abner
spoke, Pascal’s disappointment grew. His mate wasn’t open to a relationship? He
also didn’t want to be bitten?
How the hell am I going to bring up being mates now?
