A Sorceress of His Own by Dianne Duvall

A SORCERESS OF HIS OWN
The Gifted Ones Book 1
Available June 2, 2015
Special Pre-Order and Release Week price—$2.99
(50% of reg. retail price—$5.99)

Since the day Lord Dillon earned his spurs, rumors of his savagery on the battlefield have preceded him into every room, stilling tongues and sparking fear. Weary of battle, he wishes only to find a woman he can wed who will approach him not with fear, but with the tenderness that has been absent from his life for so long. Yet only the wisewoman seems invariably at ease in his presence. Perhaps because she garners the same fear in others that he does himself.

For seven years, Alyssa has been by Lord Dillon's side, counseling him from the shadows, healing him with her hands, and staving off the worst of his loneliness while his fearsome reputation keeps others at bay. Blessed—or cursed—with gifts that label her a sorceress, she is forced to conceal her youth and the love she harbors for him beneath umbral robes that lead Dillon and his people to believe she is the same aged wisewoman who served his father.

All is revealed, however, and passions flare when an enemy threatens Dillon's life and Alyssa sacrifices everything to save him. When Dillon discovers that the wisewoman is far from elderly, he is instantly entranced. And, as he and Alyssa work together to defeat an enemy bent on destroying them both, Dillon will risk anything—even the wrath of his king—to be with her.

"Book after book, Duvall brings her readers complex, fascinating tales of romance, danger and loyalty."
— RT Book Reviews

Buy Links

Amazon — http://amzn.to/1EdWRQD

iTunes — http://apple.co/1CbwziU

Kobo — http://bit.ly/1FXrvxu

Nook — http://bit.ly/1ALj3ho

Audiobook — Coming June 5th

Author Bio:

Dianne Duvall is the New York Times and USA Today Bestselling Author of the Immortal Guardians paranormal romance series and The Gifted Ones series. Her books have twice been nominated for the RT Reviewers' Choice Award for Best Vampire Romance and are routinely deemed Top Picks by RT Book Reviews, The Romance Reviews, and/or Night Owl Reviews. Reviewers have called Dianne's books "utterly addictive" (RT Book Reviews), "fast-paced and humorous" (Publishers Weekly), "extraordinary" (Long and Short Reviews), and "wonderfully imaginative" (The Romance Reviews). 

Dianne loves all things creative. When she isn't writing, Dianne is active in the independent film industry and has even appeared on-screen, crawling out of a moonlit grave and wielding a machete like some of the vampires she so loves to create in her books. 

For the latest news on upcoming releases, contests, and more, please visit www.DianneDuvall.com. You can also find Dianne online . . .

Blog -- http://dianneduvall.blogspot.com
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Tsū -- https://www.tsu.co/DianneDuvall
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The Vampire's Penance (Romance In Central City Book 5)  Jordan K. Rose Author

Blurb:

Exposure to sunlight, silver binds and colloidal silver can make any vampire’s existence worst than miserable. Not to mention photographic evidence of Rafe Valentino’s weakest moment is now being shared with every member of The Vampire Guard. In barely a few hours Rafe went from being one of the most terrifying creatures to walk the earth to requiring round the clock nursing care. Now, forced to rely on the company nurse he can’t avoid the feelings he’s denied. But simply because they exist, doesn’t make them right, and if she knew the truth about his past, she’d throw out her nursing pledge and put a stake through his cold heart.

Maddie Van Kool never wanted anything bad to happen to any member of The Vampire Guard, not at all. She’s a nurse. She wants them all healthy. But if one does become injured it’s her job to care for him. Even if he’s the man she’s been pining over for ten years, the same one who’s avoided her as if she were made of silver and sunlight.

Is two hundred fifty years of solitude punishment enough for his sins? Can Rafe forgive himself enough to love Maddie?




Excerpt:

This certainly was not the first time Maddie Van Kool had seen a naked man. On the contrary. As a nurse at Golden Pastures Nursing Home, she’d seen plenty of naked men. Of course, they’d all been damn close to 100 years old and wrinkly and dangly, but they were men, and she’d had the obligatory peek at their naked bodies while bathing them. You had to look if you were completing a skin assessment.
In nursing school there’d been other male patients who’d been on her assignments as she learned the proper care of catheters and surgical preparation and other such procedures that would leave a patient exposed.
However, there had not been one, not one that came even remotely close to competing with Raffaele Valentino. Not one. Ever.
The mold had certainly been broken when he was made. Six-two, dark hair, gray eyes. Broad shoulders and chest and nice everything else. He was, generally speaking, a sight of true perfection. Though, tonight was clearly not one of those nights.
She donned her rubber gloves, ensuring they came up and over the sleeves of her gown, which hung long enough to touch the tops of her rubber boots. Then she checked the gauge on the shower nozzle.
“I think it’s ready,” she said from behind her face shield. “I’ll be as gentle as I can.”
“Yeah, you do that,” Rafe growled then let out an annoyed sounding sigh. “Let’s get this done.”
Seated on the shower chair in the infirmary’s fifteen-foot shower he looked enormous. His muscular frame dwarfed the little plastic seat. Beneath the angry red and festering sores his shoulder muscles rippled. He’d insisted on using the shower chair instead of lying on the specially built table that would allow her to rinse him and turn him without disrupting him too much. He held on to the chair for dear life.
Maddie was certain if she bumped him, she’d knock him right out of the seat.
Stubborn. That was the second word that came to mind whenever she thought of Rafe. The first word was, of course, drop-dead-gorgeous, which, although technically three words always sounded like one when she thought of Rafe.
For as long as she’d known him, he’d been stubborn. Maddie wondered what he’d been like as a human. She’d never dared to ask, too afraid he’d tell her to mind her own business.
He wasn’t a man of many words, especially not with her.
She brought the shower hose up to the back of his head and let the delicate lukewarm water spray his hair.
Rafe hissed and jerked away. “Damn it woman! What’s the sprayer set on? Needle pricks?”
Turning the nozzle away, she apologized. “I’m sorry. It’s only set to mist. It doesn’t get any lighter than this.”
The arm rests creaked under his hands, yet, he sat up straight. “Turn it to an even flow. A full flush of water is better than thousands of tiny stings.” He faced forward, head angled down at his feet. “Didn’t they teach you that in nursing school?”
“No. We never covered the care of vampires.”
“You must have been absent that day.”
“I never missed a day.” She switched the nozzle to a full flow of water and checked the temperature once more. “And as I recall the class on post-mortem care did not even hint of vampires. We were trained to expect the dead to remain dead.”
His head bobbed. “Hhmmf.”




Amazon: http://amzn.to/1QzDh7b

Kobo: http://bit.ly/1Fes61Z

Google: http://bit.ly/1HbyJCx



Author Bio:

Jordan loves vampires. But if you know anything about Jordan, you already knew that detail. What you didn't know was it wasn't long ago that she began writing about them.

A few years back Jordan received a copy of a popular vampire story from her husband as part of an anniversary gift. Eight weeks and eighteen vampire books later the idea for her first book, Perpetual Light came to her followed very quickly by Eva Prim.

Jordan is a member of the national Romance Writers of America organization and several chapters.

When she's not writing about one vampire or another Jordan enjoys spending time with her husband, Ken and their lovable Labrador, Dino on the beautiful beaches of New England.

Sign up for my newsletter at http://www.jordankrose.com/

Follow her tweets. https://twitter.com/#!/jordankrose

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Connect on Google + - https://plus.google.com/u/0/109182255192009311324/posts

Join Eva's Snack of the Week Club for updates on coming events and sneak peeks at Book Two of The Eva Prim Series. http://evaprim.com/snackofWeek.html


Prim & Proper April 2014

Book 2 of The Alliance coming late 2014

Starting with the Unexpected by Andi Van Review

Blurb:
Zachary Blaise is having a weird week, even by his standards. Though he's gay, the radio personality has somehow been dumped via text by a girl named Marian that he's never even met. On top of that, he's developed a massive crush on Marcus, the new waiter at his favorite diner, which his best friend thinks is hilarious.

Marcus’s week hasn't been his best either. He's been betrayed by those closest to him, and although he isn't the guilty party, Marcus is the one getting harassed.

Impossibly, things are about to get even weirder. Marian has secrets, and those secrets are going to make some serious ripples in Zach's life. When Marian and Marcus turn out to be the same person, Zach stumbles down a rabbit hole of abusive ex-boyfriends, psychotic relatives, and revelations from his own past. If he can survive the chaos, the journey might prove worth the effort.




Excerpt:
“So, did you really get beaten up by a ‘Save the Dolphins’ girl outside of Trader Joe’s?” Marcus asked him, that adorable grin on his face deepening, showing off a set of dimples. He had dimples. I’d officially died and gone to heaven.
Jordan groaned, and I raised my hand. “That was my fault, actually. And he didn’t get beat up so much as she took a swing at him with the clipboard that was holding her petition.”
Marcus looked like he was holding back a laugh, and it made his eyes sparkle with mischief. I was this close to begging him for mercy. The man shouldn’t be allowed to get any more attractive. “Okay, I have to ask. How did that happen?”
“I wanted an avocado,” I mumbled, feeling myself start to blush. Granted, the story was funny as hell, but it was also kind of embarrassing.
“You what?” He paused, shook his head, and looked at his order sheet. “Wait. Let me go put your order in. I get to clock out after I do, and I don’t think Gloria would mind if I joined you before I head home.”
“Fine with us,” Jordan said, grinning at me, and I could have kissed him. All right, not really, but I’d probably have been willing to bake him a cake or something.
True to his word, Marcus returned minus his apron and sat down next to me. I could feel my face heat up again, and it was probably extremely obvious considering my natural paleness. Ghosts would probably look tan next to me.
“Now then,” he said. “Story time. Tell me what actually happened.”
“The last avocado out of the four-pack I bought went bad before I could eat it, and I really wanted avocado on my sandwich,” I admitted after I cleared my throat. “So we went to Trader Joe’s to get another pack. As we were walking out, some girl got in my face—”
“Pretty close to literally,” Jordan interrupted. “She almost knocked him over.”
I nodded. “Right. So she almost knocks me over and demands to know if I’m ready to save the dolphins. And I kind of—completely without thinking about it, mind you—said ‘no thanks, already have one saved for lunch’ as I walked away.”
Marcus’s mouth fell open in surprise, and he stayed like that for a second before bursting into a fit of giggles. Oh dear God, he giggled.
“I mean, all I wanted was an avocado, not an environmental forum.”
Marcus dropped his head onto his arms on the table, laughing harder.
“And it wouldn’t have been so bad, except that’s when Jordan started applauding. That’s why she went after him with her clipboard.”
“She actually had to be removed from the premises,” Jordan added gleefully. “It was beautiful. So the moral of the story is ‘never get between Zach andhis avocado.’”
“I actually ended up coming out of the store with four avocados and some orange juice,” I allowed. “And I thought the moral of the story was ‘never go against a Sicilian when death is on the line.’”
“Wrong story,” Jordan told me.


Buy Links:Starting With the Unexpected on Goodreads
Dreamspinner Press
Amazon US
Amazon UK
Amazon CA
All Romance eBooks
Barnes & Noble

*** I received an ARC of this book in return for an honest review ***

WHAT I LIKED:

I haven't been taking review requests, but I've been on an M/M kick lately and figured, what the hell? Let's see if I can find a new author. Right away, things were a bit different from other books I've read. For one, I normally don't read books that only give you one character's perspective, but we've all got to try something new sometimes, right? So glad I did.
It start off with something pretty much everyone has experienced: a bad break up. Except it's not the narrator who had the break up, it's a random person who's venting over text to Zach, our hero #1 (It's a mistake though, the mysterious texter thinks Zach is a cheating boyfriend. Who hasn't had that happen where you're mistakenly the recipient of some random texts? Taking pity on the mysterious person, Zach sets "her" straight and they strike up an unlikely friendship. Why did I put that in quotes? Because it's not a woman. When Zach talks about the incident on his small radio show, he learns the texter is actually a man. The same man he meets and decides is the man of his dreams.
I loved the beginning. It was funny and original and really set the tone for the rest of the book. Both Marcus and Zach are secure in their sexuality, a refreshing departure from many M/M books out there. There's even some mystery and suspense as a series of "accidents" start to befall our heroes. I especially loved Zach and his roommate. You can totally see the platonic bromance there and I love that it ends up extending to Marcus, someone desperately in need of friends.


WHAT I DIDN'T LIKE:

Honestly, there really wasn't anything I didn't like, except for my own greediness in wishing we'd gotten to see things from Marcus' perspective as well.


OVERALL VERDICT: 5/5 Blue Duckies!

The characters are wonderful, the premise refreshing, and the pace great. I especially love that the men don't screw like rabbits like so many other M/M authors tend to write. There's some great substance to this book and I'll definitely be checking out more by Andi Van!

Andi Van lives near San Diego with a small fluffy thing named Koi, a baseball bat that’s forever being used for things other than baseball, and a fondness for rum and caffeine (though not necessarily together).

Andi is fluent in three languages (English, sarcasm, and profanity), and takes pride in a highly developed—if somewhat bizarre—sense of humor.

Website: http://andivan.com/
Facebook: www.facebook.com/defiantandi
Twitter: www.twitter.com/defiantandi
Tumblr: http://defiantandi.tumblr.com/

Musings on success

About to go shopping for some new sundresses but something has gotten me thinking lately. Pardon the length, this just annoys me.

People need to support each other. I'm lucky in that most of my lovelies are incredibly supportive, but I've also known some who aren't. There are some authors who get bizarrely competitive and backstabby with other authors and it seriously baffles me.

I'm blessed to be with a publisher who has managed to unite a massive group of amazing authors who are genuinely supportive of each other. We celebrate even the tiniest victories and milestones, like ranking for the first time in a category. It doesn't matter if that person is ranked #100,000 in all of the Kindle store. They ranked in the top 100 for their category and that's a big achievement. We have some phenomenally successful authors and some just starting out and you know what? If you didn't know their books, you wouldn't be able to tell which was which because EVERYONE is respectful and helpful.

I've always wanted to help others with writing. I used to be able to do more with spreading the word by interviewing and reviewing (I'm going to try reviewing more soon though), but it grew overwhelming so I stepped back from that. Even so, I met many amazing authors and some of them have gone on to be wildly successful. I'm truly happy for those authors. They worked hard for it and they deserve their success.

I see it with both fans and authors, but I don't get it when I see authors go after other authors. The last time I checked, NO author is prolific enough to provide their readers with enough material to sustain them. There's room for everyone. Just because I read MC books from one author doesn't mean I'll refuse to read books from another author. This is not a business where you can have "exclusive" readers. Just because someone hits the NY Times and USA Today lists doesn't mean my sales are going to suffer. Last time I checked, if you love an author, you love an author. You'll get their books right alongside other authors you love, regardless of their success.

Trying to undermine other authors, being jealous of more successful authors, will do nothing but tarnish your reputation, hurt others, and make yourself miserable. Be happy for others, be respectful of others, and if someone outsells you, try to learn from them.

Ok, I'll jump off of my soapbox. Love you all and thanks to anyone who actually read this whole thing :)

Whitby After Dark Spotlight

Mini Excerpt :

''A young man held a young woman in his arms, her head leaned to one side, her eyes empty and still. He was shadowed, but I saw that the figure was kissing the girl's neck. No that wasn't it. As I moved closer I saw what it was. She was un-moving, a statue, while he sucked on her bleeding neck. I was cold with fear,  yet I moved closer.. mesmerized.''

Chapter Excerpt:

Prologue

Whitby, England's Capital of Goths. Hopefully one place I won't, for once be classified as weird. Weird me, never? Okay, who on earth was I kidding? I thought I saw ghosts for goodness sake. I constantly have dreams and daydreams of specific events happening, that then happen just as I've pictured it. I creep myself out sometimes.

As I lay in bed asleep, the visions happened again. It was the same one I had three nights previous.

I see dim lit shore on the coastline. I hear a man's laughter. I see the girl again. The poor thing is terrified; her blue eyes wide, the fear filling ever fibre of her. A dark figure reaches for her, brushes her face with his hand.

''Please..., don't... Not again.'' She pleaded.

The girl trembled as he leaned in towards her. He laughed again. She then froze. It wasn't just her being still. Nothing about her moved. The girl was petrified and couldn't move at all. She had become a living statue, Couldn't move, Couldn't plead, Couldn't scream. The fear was so stale I could taste it, I felt sick with it. There was nothing I could do. This dream had happened before,I've already seen it happen. I couldn't stop it. I was helpless. The vision smacked into me again. I saw the man move his face nearer and nearer. I was now in her body. I felt what she felt, her helplessness, and her memories of how he'd touch her every night, her pleading him 'NO'. He wouldn't stop he'd never stop. I felt him touch her/my body and unable to do anything about it. I was out the scene again. The poor girl was only about 12 yrs old, a child, innocent, till he took everything from her. Her mind was like tidal wave of pain. It washed over me and the dark figure.

''They will never believe you'' he whispered.

Her mind cried out. It was unbearable. It filled my every pore. It happened again, she dropped to the floor. She was dead.

Author Review:

''I enjoyed reading this book. It was different than any other vampire book that I've ever read. The vampires and the other supernatural creatures were very likeable. They acted like ordinary teenagers with favorite books and TV shows. They just had unique powers and abilities to kill other creatures. It was interesting to learn about the different vampires and creatures and how they learned to live together.

The book also contained psychological elements. The main character, Lenore, had dreams and powers that were related to a traumatic experience she was enduring. She also wasn't sure if she wanted these powers or not.
The characters in this book had depth and feelings that made you care for them. I can't wait to read the rest of her books in the series.'' 

- Susanne Leist, Author of 'The Dead Game'

Mina Carter's Smexy Short Series

Book Description

Publication Date: March 15, 2015

Who needs a man? Not Isla. Because it's not like they look hawt or smell good enough to eat... Okay, maybe they do but she's an independent woman. No way is she tempted in any way, shape or form. She can take care of herself, thank you very much. In more ways than one. 

Until a sexy alpha from another pack arrives. Nick is drop dead gorgeous, with a softly-spoken manner that hides a ruthless streak a mile wide. 

Once he decides he wants something, he gets it. 

And he wants Isla... 

Smut-Shorties: A great on-the-go short to satisfy your craving for smut! *Please be aware that this is an Erotica SHORT*

---

Book Description

Publication Date: February 12, 2015

The Mistress rules all, but who rules the Mistress? 

Mistress of the City, Reena Leroy, picked her partner for the Midwinter Choosing only to have him disappear from her bed before she woke. Now she's at his pack house to find out why... But things aren't what she expects. Archer's not a wolf, or wasn't until a few days ago. Now he's chained in his family's basement as he undergoes conversion. But not everyone survives the madness, and as a natural alpha, Archer's a prime candidate for going feral. 

There's just one thing that might bring him back from the brink... Will Reena put her life on the line to save a wolf from madness? 

Archer knows something's wrong with him, but since he can't remember his own name, he's got no idea what it is. All he knows is the fury that inhabits his skin. A fury that is only eased by the little female whose voice and scent soothes the beast inside him. 

Now if he can just convince her to come closer, maybe he can make her his, and tame the fury in his blood. 

**Please be aware that this is an Erotica short** 

**Smut-shorts: City Wolves are a loosely linked serial. This story should be read after 'Mistress of the City', but you do not need to have read the other stories (Master of the City, etc)** 

 

BLURB::

INK & IRON: OBSESSION

He could have it all… but all he wants is her.

Ink & Iron, Book 1

During his soaring career as the lead singer of indie-rock band Ink & Iron, Cole Kennrick has been through it all: sex, drugs, and rock and roll. Overindulging until he lost what mattered most.

Now he’s pulled his life together and left his addictions behind, except for one: his ex-wife, Janie. If only he can convince her their love was—still is—the real thing.

In the seven years since their divorce, Janie has kept tabs on the only man she’s ever truly loved. The one she had to leave in order to save herself. Still, dark and often kinky desires they explored together linger in her dreams and fantasies.

Janie has seen up close and way-too-personal that rock stars are bad, bad medicine. But when Cole shows up at her yoga studio, clean and sober, his leather-and-motorcycles scent teasing her senses, it’s way too tempting to slip right back into the one place she swore she’d never risk again—his arms.

NY Times & USA Today Bestselling Author

~Dangerously Bound~Desire's Edge ~ Pleasure's Edge-Holt Medallion Winner!~Temptation's Edge-Passionate Plume Winner~~Available now from Berkley Heat

~The Dark Garden~Forbidden Fruit~Available now from Bantam  

~Riding Desire~Dangerously Inked~Rogue~Breaking Skye~Sanctuary~Getting Scrooged~Available now on Amazon, B&N, Smashwords, ARe

~Eversong~The Turning Kiss~Bloodsong~Summer Solstice~Wasteland: The Breeder~Spring Equinox~Winter Solstice~The Seeking Kiss~Tempt Me Twice~ Available now from Samhain

~Fallen Angel~The Lovers~Night Moves~Soul Strangers~Naughty Bits~Available now from Harlequin Spice/HQN

www.EdenBradley.com    www.EveBerlin.com

BUY LINKS:

 Eden Bradley

Samhain

  Amazon

  BN

ARe

 www.EdenBradley.com
Group blog: http://www.smutketeers.com/
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                                                                 Excerpt

Janie inhaled deeply, exhaled slowly and lowered her body, bending at the waist until she could place her hands flat on her yoga mat.

“Everyone remember to breathe as you press hands and heels down into the floor, stretching the hamstrings…good. Gently rise up until you’re back in mountain pose, then reach high overhead with both hands, stretching…and bring both hands into prayer position in the center of your chest, head bent. Pause to inhale, exhale.” She straightened up and glanced around the room to see how her students were doing. “Now bring both arms up overhead again and…”

Oh Jesus God.

What the hell was he doing in her class?

Cole Kennrick. Indie rock star. Hottest man she’d ever seen. And her ex-husband.

She caught herself wanting to lean toward him to catch a hint of his scent: leather and motor oil from his motorcycle—he’d always had a motorcycle—and that little bit of something spicy and earthy that was him.

His skin. His hair. His mouth…

She blinked. Her class. What had she been saying?

Breathe.

“…inhale, lowering your arms until you touch the earth. Let it ground you.”

Please let it ground me.

Had he seen her blanch?

“Let your breath out slowly as you step back with your right foot, coming into Warrior pose. Lift your arms and breathe.”

If only she didn’t look at him again she’d be all right.

“Inhale, and straighten the left leg once more, exhaling as you bend. Good. Now let’s bend the right knee down to the earth, straighten up and place your hands on your hips…”

Hell.

She was looking right at him—she couldn’t help it. And he was staring back at her; those mesmerizing ice-blue eyes gleaming even from the back of the room. Those eyes…and his tall, lean body, every muscle perfectly carved, his shoulders almost too broad for his frame. His right arm was completely tattooed now—a full sleeve in bold colors. His chest too, from what she could see—all black and gray work. God, she loved tattoos on a man.

On Cole.

She blinked, tried to breathe.

She would finish the damn class despite his presence. Despite the sheer male beauty of him lurking at the back of the room in nothing but black basketball shorts and a simple white ribbed tank top that managed to look sexier on him than on any other man alive.

She focused on the painted Japanese shoji screens behind him and continued with the instructions she knew by rote, thank God. Still, the hour-long class seemed to last at least a month before she reached the final pose.

“Bring your hands together in front of your heart, palms together. Bow your head and give thanks. Namaste[AD1] .”

“Namaste[AD2] ,” the class repeated.

“See you all next week.”

She stood and began to roll up her mat, her gaze firmly on the polished bamboo floors she’d had installed in her studio, Om, when she did the remodel last year. They were softer on the feet.

His feet, right in front of her.

She inhaled, her eyes closed for several long seconds before daring to raise her head. Yep. He still smelled the same. And her body still responded with a slow, trembling heat that began in her middle and spread…everywhere.

She met his gaze and goddammit his eyes were still that glossy silvery blue that looked as if they’d been cast in glass, framed by dark, long lashes.

It made her hot all over and mad as hell that he could still do this to her just by showing up. Just by breathing.

Breathe.

“What the fuck are you doing here?” she demanded quietly from between gritted teeth.

“Janie, we need to talk.”

“Do we?”

“We didn’t have a chance when I saw you a week ago—”

“We were at Sonny[AD3] ’s funeral, Cole[AU4] !”

He ran a hand over his crop of dark hair. “Come on. I know that. That’s why I left it alone once you made it clear you didn’t even want to say hello.”

“So you just decide to show up at one of my classes?”

His fingertips swept over the dark stubble of his goatee. “I didn’t know where else to find you,” he said quietly.

“I thought that was the point.” Anger was a fire blazing inside her. She’d had no idea she still had so much of it in her. Toward him. In general. Apparently training all these years as a yoga instructor hadn’t afforded her the inner calm she’d been striving for.

All these years. Seven years since she’d left him—and she hadn’t seen him face-to-face since the divorce. Not until the funeral. She’d been so raw and angry and hurt that day she couldn’t bear to face him. She’d literally turned her back on him and walked away when he’d looked as if he might approach her.

It still hurt.

She looked up as the next session’s instructor came in.

“Oh, sorry, Janie. I was going to set up for my Kundalini class. Am I interrupting?”

“Go ahead, Brenda. We were…on our way out.”

“Janie—” he started.

Her look silenced him and she grabbed his wrist and began to pull him from the room, trying not to notice the soft hairs on his forearm, the muscle flexing there beneath the gorgeous ink. “Come on. We’ll talk in my office.”

She moved as quickly as she could down the hallway, pushing open her office door and letting him pass through before shoving the door shut behind her. Leaning back against it, she took a breath, trying to control her shaking legs.

“Okay. Talk, Cole.”

Copyright Eden Bradley 2015

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 [AD1]italics; foreign term

 [AD2]same

 [AD3]we get hints of who Sonny is, but never really why Janie is so upset at his loss;  or a clear idea of their relationship

 [AU4]Christa-I thought this was adequately addressed-do you think this needs further explanation? Not sure this is your comment…?