So many manuscripts, so many stories to write. I’m presently working on editing another paranormal romance, and then I have three more books (one is romantic suspense, and two are contemporary romances: one with an asshole billionaire and the other I’m co-writing with my friend Betty Bolte) to finish this year. We’ll see if I can get it all done. Eeek!
Be sure to pre-order Savage Champion before April 23, 2024. Apple Books, Amazon Kindle, Barnes & Noble, and Kobo Books, Only 99 cents.
***Excerpt (unedited): Tori helps Ronan experience “Death Sleep” as a vampire for the first time.***
“What’s happening? My legs and arms feel so heavy.” Ronan’s puzzled tone was expected. I’d felt the same way when the first death-sleep came over me.
He stumbled toward the bed, an angry look came over his face.
“What have you done to me?”
“Shh. Do you not feel it? The sun is just moments away from peeking between the trees. When you’re first reincarnated, a fledgling has difficulty staying awake beyond sunrise.”
I helped him into bed, and he stretched on his back across the mattress.
His unwarranted anger was so typical of a male vampire. Aggressive and territorial, the young vampire was unpredictable, but I hopefully waylaid the worst by providing an outlet for his aggression.
“Isn’t it bothering you?”
“The longer you’re a vampire, the longer you can withstand the lure of the death sleep. Rarely, can a new vampire stay awake through dawn and never to high noon.”
I watched him fight the sleep like a child, though nothing about the way he looked was childish. The black cotton shirt, unbuttoned to mid-chest, and black jeans along with his dark hair and olive skin, the combination gave him a dangerous air. Heated desire taunted me. Temptation to touch him while he slept almost overtook me. He would resent that. It would be too much like taking advantage of him during a weakness.
His eyelids were at half mast. The beautiful depth glistening in the bedroom’s lights as he tried to keep me in his sight. He slowly closed them and snapped them back open, then they closed again.
I lifted his large, rough hand to my lips and pressed a kiss to the back.
“Relax. I’ll watch over you until it’s time for me to join you. Guards surround the place and the house is secure. Wolfric wouldn’t have reached the ripe old age of a millennium if he was careless.”
Immediately, his hand fell limp and his body sank further into the mattress. His chest no longer rose and fell with his breathing, and I knew his heartbeat would be near to nonexistent. I brushed the back of my fingers against his cheek, his skin was cold to the touch. Like death.
Wolfric was too wary to have vampires sleep in his bed when death sleep overtook him, if he did. I really had no idea. Only once, had I been near another vampire during death sleep. It had been when I traveled to Atlanta on Wolfric’s orders.
There, the large vampire colony had consisted of artists and musicians. Though during that period, I’d spent most of my time recuperating from my wounds and controlling my urge to kill every deviant in a twenty-mile area, I’d allowed a tall blond male vampire to slip under my guard.
The slightly older vampire had never met an instrument he couldn’t play and my body had been no exception. He’d been the only vampire I ever made love to or slept with before Ronan. After the Atlanta experience, I spent my sexual desires on my servants. Less of a distraction and I didn’t have to pretend softer feelings to achieve satisfaction.
Looking down at the man beside me, a softening around my heart eased the ache I endured for so long. I loved him, but how long would it take before he decided I was wrong to change him.
Tired and no longer feeling the brew, I pressed my body to his and kissed him on the cheek. His shoulder was perfect for my head to rest on.
I will be at the Capital City Author Event with many, many others. Please come by and say hi! Per Michelle Rls Sewell, founder and organizer, visit downtown Montgomery, AL, rich in history and southern hospitality, to meet some of your favorite authors of various genres. The Capital City Author Event will host over 80 authors/vendors, including many locally from Alabama, on May 17-18, 2024, Friday and Saturday.
LINK FOR MORE INFO: https://CCAE2024.eventbrite.com
Hope you stayed warm and read a lot like I did.
Hugs.
Carla
Carla Swafford, Author 