FORBIDDEN: THE CLAIM - Book 3 in Samantha Sommersby's Forbidden Series
Twenty-five years ago Dell Renfield's father started a revolution, and Dell plans to finish it. Sorcerer, vampire, secret weapon, he's spent a lifetime training for his fate. The one distraction he isn't equipped for? Special Agent Alexandria Sanchez. A woman he desires above all others - and a woman he dare not get close to.
Alex's love life is already cursed. She doesn't need the added complication of a sexy new partner. Especially one who's touch is literally magic. Posing as his lover for the sake of their investigation is pure hell - and pure heaven. Now if she can just get him to quit casting spells long enough to prove she's capable. And keep her hands to herself in the process.
As they infiltrate a dangerous culture, temptation becomes too much to resist. And their torrid affair triggers an epic battle for power that could forever alter the future for them...and their kind.
This book has been previously published and has been revised and expanded from its original release.
Product Warnings - This book contains spectacular magical ass-kickings, copious amounts of blistering sex, one super-sexy, gun-toting heroine, and a very delicious, very powerful sorcerer...who sometimes sports fangs.
BUY THE BOOK *** BUY THE eBOOK *** READ THE EXCERPT *** WATCH THE TRAILER
Excerpt from Forbidden: The Revolution
Copyright © 2009 Samantha Sommersby
All rights reserved — a Samhain Publishing, Ltd. publication
If I were to be totally honest I’d tell you that the moment I laid eyes on her, I knew I was in trouble. What’s worse, I knew there was absolutely nothing I could do to save myself.
There she was, standing on top of what was to become my desk, hanging a sign on the wall above it that said “Welcome Dell”. She was wearing brown patent-leather high-heeled shoes and was reaching up on tiptoe. The calves of her shapely legs were flexed, well toned, and they acted like a homing beacon—sending a signal that went straight to my cock.
I’d never before confused work with anything personal. So why was I here now? Two words. My father.
Like most men in their mid-twenties, I’m determined to make it on my own. I want to lead my life the way I want, choose my own career path, make my own decisions. But I’m not like most men. I’m a vampire. Does my boss know? Hell, no. But I can guarantee you someone at the branch knows, someone high up, or else dear old Dad wouldn’t have been able to pull these strings. And now I’m stuck. There’s no way I can turn down this assignment without causing undue attention to myself.
She stepped back to admire her handiwork, the heels of her shoes resting precariously at the edge of the desk. She stood there for a minute, her hands on her hips and her full lips pursed into a delicious pout that told me she wasn’t quite satisfied.
A long strand of her brown hair had escaped what had once been a neat chignon. As she lifted her arm to tuck it back into place my phone rang.
She turned quickly in my direction, too quickly, throwing her arms out in an attempt to regain her own balance. But she was too late and falling too fast. Like the chivalrous guy I am, I was there to catch her. For one long, endless moment we silently stared into one another’s eyes. Hers were a brilliant green, amazingly inviting and surrounded by thick, dark lashes. It was like falling into springtime.
She blinked, slowly.
I glanced up at the sign.
“You the welcome wagon?” I asked her.
She reached down and fingered the badge clipped to my collar, lifting up the edge and turning it toward her so she could read it.
“Agent Renfield,” she said. “You’ve got some fast reflexes there. I’m Alex, your new partner. I think it’s safe to put me down now.”
“Right.”
The instant Alexandria Sanchez’s feet touched the floor, my cell phone went off again. I didn’t have to check to see who it was, the ring tone told me. Dad was nothing if not persistent.
“Excuse me,” I told Alex before slipping out of the office.
“How the hell did you pull this off?” I growled into the phone.
“Pull what off?” my father replied innocently. He knew damned well what I was referring to.
“Come on, Dad. Don’t bullshit me. I told you I didn’t want to get involved,” I reminded him.
“Out of our entire network of operatives, you make the most sense. All it took was getting you a transfer from Chicago to L.A. It would have been far more complicated if we had to get someone into the Agency to begin with and start from scratch. You’re a natural for this assignment, Dell. We’re pretty sure it’s her. We’ll do a DNA check, get the confirmation, then—”
“I’m not one of your operatives,” I hissed.
As if being a vampire wasn’t enough to have to overcome, I also had the legacy of being the son of Byron Renfield. Not that anyone outside of his inner circle would know. According to clan folklore Byron was the youngest of the Dominie, an elite group of vampires empowered by Cain, our prophet. The Dominie were supposedly destined to lead us all into redemption. They were holy men, they didn’t mate, and they certainly didn’t have kids. None of the good “practicing” vampires did, though those were becoming fewer and fewer with each passing year. It was a trend my father, as the leader of a quietly subversive revolution, had been working toward my entire life.
Dad was succeeding, too. Gradually, little by little, he was changing the social and economic structure within the vampire world. My father was a brilliant strategist and the smartest man I knew. I had no doubt that within my lifetime his goal to mainstream our race, to integrate us into the human world, would be realized. It wasn’t his goal I disagreed with, it was his methods. They were simply taking too long. I wanted to be a part of the real world now. That’s why I left home. Not because I didn’t believe in what he was doing. I did believe in it. It made sense, his carefully crafted plan. But it required patience and that wasn’t one of my virtues. I wanted to taste it now…real freedom.
I imagined him pacing back and forth, wearing down the carpet in his neat and tidy office.
“No, you’re not,” he acknowledged. “You’re not one of my operatives. But you understand how important this is, Dell. This is personal.”
I rubbed my eyes, still gritty from lack of sleep and jetlag. I sighed heavily into my phone, hoping to somehow convey, across the miles, the depth of my frustration. It’s a fine art, supporting my father’s ideals and yet staying out of the fray. He has a way about him, a way that inspires people, a way that makes them want to do the right thing, the noble thing, the selfless thing, even me.
“She’s prettier in person.”
“Keep it professional,” he warned me.
“Says the man who just reminded me this was personal for him.”
“Point taken.”
Score one for me.
“Have you made contact with her?” he asked.
“Yeah. And we already have our first assignment. I just picked up the file. It’s an undercover operation, her first. We could be gone a while.”
“Can you delay?” my father asked. “You know if it’s her we’ll want you to bring her in. If you can overnight the sample to the lab in Manchester, we could have the results in a couple days.”
I smiled. “Dad, first I have to get a sample. Look, I know you’re going to find this hard to believe, but we have a job to do. And it’s a job I take seriously. I’ll get you your sample, but it’s not my number one priority right now. Sophie’s been missing for over twenty-five years. How many times does this make that you thought you’d found her?”
“Seven,” he replied without hesitation. “But—”
“I know; Jennifer has a feeling about her.”
“Don’t be dismissive of Jennifer’s feelings. She’s the most reliable intuitive I’ve ever come across. When you met this Alexandria, did you sense anything?”
“Like what?” I asked, glancing, furtively down at my crotch.
“Sometimes the Chosen possess a stronger pull. They can be more…deeply arousing.”
“Dad, I’m twenty-five. I find anything with tits deeply arousing.”
“Good to know,” I heard Alex say.
I closed my eyes and silently prayed I’d started hallucinating.
Alex coughed.
Damn!
I swallowed down the lump in my throat and braced myself for humiliation before turning around. She was leaning casually against the doorjamb, her long legs crossed at the ankles, her arms folded over her stomach, stretching the silk fabric of her cream-colored blouse and further accentuating the fullness of her breasts.
I didn’t bother to say goodbye to Dad. I just hung up.
LIKED THE EXCERPT??? CLICK HERE TO BUY THE BOOK
No comments:
Post a Comment