Volume
1
This
anthology includes stories by
Imogene
Nix, Ashlynn Monroe,
Jaye
Shields, and Beth D. Carter
Genre: Science
Fiction/Futuristic Romance
Publisher: Beachwalk
Press, Inc.
Date of Publication:
October 20, 2014
ISBN: 9781940744490
ASIN:
Number of pages: 197
Word Count: 70,000
Cover Artist: Fantasia
Frog Designs
TANGLED
WEBS by Imogene Nix
In the course of a
single day Gia Montgomery loses her job and discovers that her boyfriend—now
ex-boyfriend—is a two-timing sleaze. After downing a bottle of wine, she
catches sight of Cedun in her backyard. He’s the Ba’Tua heir who has been
living on Earth for several years. Gia struggles to ignore the strong
attraction between them, because she’s sure he’s seeing someone else. Someone
very close to her, in fact.
When the situation with
her ex turns nasty, Cedun finally has a chance to set things straight between
himself and Gia, but nothing is as simple as it seems. Cedun must protect Gia
and sort out an impossible love-life tangle before it’s too late.
Content Warning: this
title contains sexy aliens and feisty heroines, together with enough action—of
every kind—to keep readers on the edge of their seats
THE
SPACESHIP CAPTAIN’S Wife by Ashlynn Monroe
Some treasures are the
hardest to see.
On a dying planet,
treasure waits for an honorable man to claim it. Captain Ric Julius believes
the cargo of gems is what he’s come for, but there is one jewel he never
expected. Her name is Kateri, and she changes everything.
Saving the woman’s life,
and making a fortune in the process, requires only one thing of Ric—his
freedom. In order to obtain the gems he has to agree to take Kateri to
safety…and to make her his wife. Every man has a price, but is Ric willing to pay
in full on a debt he owes to a dead man on a decomposing world?
Content
Warning: contains sensual sex scenes
HIS
HUMAN by Jaye Shields
Can a human clone
trained to kill also learn to love?
Elara Roberts is the
captain of a space shuttle sent to retrieve a group of cloned soldiers from the
planet US-2. As soon as she lands, the shuttle is overtaken and all of her men
killed.
Svarog aka Rogue, is the
leader of a rebel group of clones who desire freedom. He’s been trained his
entire life for one thing—to kill. But when he lays eyes on Elara, the only
woman he’s ever seen, his first instinct is to love. Taking her for himself,
his new mission becomes exploring the body of the creature, and punishing any
other clone male who dares come close.
Elara witnessed how
easily Rogue killed her men and fears she is next. But instead, the beast seems
curious and more lustful than anything else. Her best survival strategy is to
play along. But when she gets a chance to escape she realizes she may not be
ready to leave Rogue behind.
Content Warning: this
story includes a deadly, devastatingly sexy clone who isn’t above foul language
and dirty sex
GRAVITATION
by Beth D. Carter
Can Bree and Niah’s love
overcome their species being at war with one another?
Bree has spent her whole
life hiding from the aliens who destroyed what was once Earth. When she
stumbles across a wounded alien, common sense tells her to kill him before he
can kill her, but her compassionate side refuses to obey. Instead, she helps
him.
The two forge a
temporary truce when they’re forced to band together for protection. But as the
days slip by, the alien Niah won’t leave her, and as friendship gives way to
something more, she can’t help but wonder when, or if, them being on opposite
sides will break the fragile bonds of love forming between them.
Content
Warning: contains sexual content, strong language, and some violence
Get it now for just .99
Available at Beachwalk Press Amazon
BN
TANGLED
WEBS EXCERPT:
Turning away
from her position, Gia caught sight of movement from the corner of her eye.
This time she looked out the window and in her garden was a Ba’Tua male.
“Holy hell,
what’s he doing here?”
Gia headed
for the door just as Cedun was removing his Montgomery Industries t-shirt by
the side of the pool. Her mind was sluggish and her coordination impaired, and
she slammed into the edge of the door as she scurried through it.
“Shit!” The
curse escaped her mouth as she kept moving, her hand rubbing the injured
section of her side. “Cedun, what the hell are you doing in my backyard?” In
her haste, she didn’t see the hose on the deck and tripped.
She did
notice the bright violet of his eyes—wide and startled—and the bronzed rippling
muscles as she cartwheeled, flailing for something to grab onto, then she was
falling backward. It’s all so slow! A thunk sound married with the explosion of
pain in her head.
The water
closed around her and invaded her mouth and lungs. Her chest burned as the
water weighed her down. Just as it all seemed too much, strong, vise-like arms
slid around her middle, hauling her up to the surface.
“Do not
struggle, Gia. Let me help you.” He did, hauling her out of the pool and laying
her flat on the concrete.
Then he
rolled her over as she hacked and coughed. Water gushed from her mouth and
nose, and she moaned once the indignity was over.
“Now, De’
Gia, tell me why you ran out of the house and threw yourself into the pool. De’
Valerie told me that you had been removed from your post. It cannot be that
which is distressing?”
“Job,” she
corrected, quietly hoping to stop his liquid voice. Her head and chest ached
viciously, and all she wanted was bed. “I want to go to bed.”
Cedun stilled.
“Is that not precipitous?” A smiled crept over his face, and it turned her
insides to molten lava.
Clarity
speared her. Their grasp of the English language was literal. She said she
wanted to go to bed and was speaking to him, ergo, he thought sex. Horror
filled her.
Cedun was
probably the most relaxed and least repressed of all the Ba’Tua she’d met. Gia
also suspected he’d been involved with Valerie for some time. After all,
Valerie was still young at forty-two.
Gia groped
for his t-shirt, meaning to push him away. The realization of being so close to
Cedun’s muscular and unclothed chest flooded her as her hands made contact with
hard and well-formed naked flesh. He’d removed that covering before her fall
into the pool. Heat flared beneath her fingers as her heart rate sped up.
“Cedun, I didn’t mean…”
He chuckled.
“I laugh with you, De’ Gia.”
She struggled
to free herself. “Go laugh with someone else.”
THE
SPACESHIP CAPTAIN’S WIFE EXCERPT:
Why am I
doing this to myself? Damn, if I didn’t need the money… But he did.
As the girl
came to kneel beside her father, Ric realized he’d rather face a laser
pistol-wielding hijacker than this woman. The traditional charado robe that
consisted of many layers of light, sheer fabric did nothing to hide the outline
of her body. His mouth went dry and sweat stung his eyes.
The older
woman offered him a light meal of native Darooian nuts and fruit. Ric shook his
head. He didn’t want to risk polluting himself with radiated food. But this
transaction was too important for him to offend them.
“Forgive me,
I am far too full of…of joy to eat,” Ric said.
Marit’s woman
gazed at him for a moment. Her shrewd eyes narrowed with doubt, but she nodded
and pulled the offered tray away.
The kneeling
girl was so still he couldn’t even tell if she was breathing. His host was
watching the silent female with an unfathomable sorrow. Then he turned to study
Ric without speaking for a drawn out length of anxiety-filled time. Ric
fidgeted nervously.
Oh damn, I
hope I haven’t blown this. I’ll lose the ship without this deal. Ric tried to
hide his worry from the other man by keeping his face expressionless.
“We only eat
food that arrives in bio locked containers. Our offering is safe. Kateri has
not left this house since she was a girl of ten. She has spent half her life
hiding from death, it’s long past time she was allowed to live,” said Marit in
the gentle tone. There was no anger or censor on his face, just sadness.
The quiet
girl flinched. The movement was subtle, but Ric was used to watching for the
slightest tells during negotiations. The girl’s posture stiffened.
So she was
twenty. He relaxed a bit. She was a decade younger than he was, but at least
she wasn’t some underage child.
Embarrassed,
Ric looked away. “Forgive me,” he said, unsure if he was apologizing for the
planet’s destruction or his behavior.
“You have
nothing to apologize for. Caution is an admirable trait. Integrity is another
thing I respect. She will make a good wife…”
Marit paused
as a string of quickly spoken Dar, their language, interrupted him. Her
outraged voice drifted up from under the veils and proved she had a bit of
spirit.
The older
man’s fatherly tone ebbed between anger and softness. Ric only caught a few
words, but he was almost positive the girl hadn’t known she was part of the
conditions for this export.
When she was
silent, Ric could see her shaking. The strangest urge to comfort her came over
him, but he shoved it away. Perhaps it was the camaraderie of being tricked,
but the protectiveness her reaction stirred in him didn’t go away.
She muttered
something, and he fought to suppress his grin. He had the most inappropriate
urge to peek under her veil and see her expression. Was she seething with rage,
or was she pouting? He wanted to know. The veil tormented his naturally
overactive Metrician curiosity.
“Kateri is a
good girl, dutiful. She is…uncomfortable leaving her family behind,” said the
anxious man democratically.
Ric cleared
his throat awkwardly. He could respect the answer. If he truly cared about
anyone, he wouldn’t want to leave them to die either. A planet hadn’t died
since the days of old Earth. Pain squeezed his heart in a metaphoric vise.
Guilt. His people treated their world like it was garbage, and yet Metricia
would live on long after Daroo was space dust.
“Don’t look
so dour, Captain Aydric Julius. We will die with our gods, but our daughter
will live on for us and remember our names. Saving her life is worth risking my
soul,” Marit said quietly. “She is the most precious gem in your cargo.”
Ric nodded.
No one had ever loved him as this man loved his daughter. It was astounding and
humbling to be entrusted with her life. He’d never wanted such a responsibility
thrust on him, but now that it was, he couldn’t turn them down.
Is she
willing to marry a stranger? What am I getting myself into?
Ric could
tell the girl was looking at him. He wanted to talk to her and make sure she
was willing. He didn’t believe in much, but his honor mattered to him.
HIS
HUMAN EXCERPT:
“Why do you
want to go to Earth so bad?” Elara asked.
Rogue didn’t
answer readily, instead, he appraised her, his gaze lingering on her
sweat-soaked blouse. “You haven’t been here long, woman, but surely long enough
to see this planet rivals the hell that the humans make us read about. It’s dry
here, hot enough to melt the skin right off your body during certain seasons.
Those tunnels you saw dotting the landscape, those were burrowed by one of
US-2’s many creatures. Leave my side, and they’ll snatch you up and swallow you
whole. It’d probably be an easier death than you deserve.”
“Excuse me?”
Elara glared at him. “Did you keep me alive to insult me to death?”
“Why would
you sign up to take men as slaves, take them to a war they can’t even
understand?”
“I’m not the
bad guy here!” Her voice echoed through the cave, the sound suddenly making her
feel more brave.
“Neither am
I. Unless I’m crossed.” He stood, still nude, his well-muscled body towering
over her. “Now that you’re my captive, perhaps you can appreciate what we are
fighting for. Freedom.” With that, the clone walked away from her. She glanced
away, trying to avoid looking at the well-carved butt cheeks as the massive
soldier walked away. He had a perfect body. The kind of body that was built to kill.
Elara’s mind
spun. Not only had two clones tried to rape her, but her epic plan to seduce
Rogue didn’t work. He’d never before had a woman, and she still couldn’t please
him. Yet he’d protected her from those men.
As far as
Rogue was concerned, she wasn’t sure what happened. He’d seemed so close to
coming. He’d moaned, but then he’d been disgusted by her, shoving her away. She
should have been happy that his cum didn’t fill her mouth, but it also meant
her death.
But if he was
going to kill her, why didn’t he just leave her to those men?
Finally
alone, the terror of the day washed over her. She’d watched her peers murdered,
she’d gone down on her captor, and she’d nearly been raped by two killers.
Tears leaked down her cheeks, quickly dried by the intense heat on US-2.
Just as soon
as he’d left, Rogue returned. His strong hand pulled her out of the fetal
position to face him. When he saw her tears, he sneered in disgust. “I’m
leaving to retrieve rations. Don’t try to escape.”
Hope bloomed
within her. Of course she’d try to escape. Was this clone daft? She just never
thought she’d be left alone to try.
Elara thought
back to the initial attack on the space shuttle. The interior had sustained
damage, but clearly the clones had been careful, obviously planning to try to
take it to Earth themselves.
Rogue pulled
on his military cargo shorts, not bothering with a shirt. He pulled a sachet of
lotion out of his pocket and slathered it over his hard chest and chiseled
stomach. It was a body meant to punish.
She barely
heard Rogue’s final warning before he departed. Something about danger. Duh.
Elara may have been surrounded by a planet of rebel clones, but she was a
military captain, specially chosen for this very mission. Her femme fatale Plan
A had failed, but now she had no other choice but to try to ass kick her way
off this planet. She was sure as dead anyway, might as well die trying.
GRAVITATION
EXCERPT:
Niah’s leg
must be healing nicely if he was able to move around to her side of the cold
fire pit. She should be feeling fear because now he could easily overpower her.
Kill her. Only he did neither. He just laid there with his hand on her hip and
his eyes staring deeply into her own.
This was
wrong. So horribly wrong.
And yet…it
didn’t feel wrong.
And that
scared her more than anything.
“Shh,” he
whispered, and his hand ran soothing circles across her hip bone.
Bree closed
her eyes because she couldn’t stand looking at him anymore, couldn’t face the
attraction she was developing. And somehow she must have fallen asleep because
the next time she opened her eyes it was daylight.
She sat up
quickly, looking around. Niah was gone. His leg splints were in a nice pile,
the only testament that he’d been there. She ignored the stab of pain that
pierced through her and told herself it was better this way. He had gone back
to his people, to where he came from. It was time she went to where she
belonged.
As she
gathered her things and slipped her backpack over her shoulders, she thought
about when she asked him to save one life as a thank you. Well, it seemed like
he’d done just that.
He’d spared
hers.
About
the Authors
IMOGENE
NIX
Imogene is a mother of
two, compulsive reader, and bookstore owner. She lives in regional Queensland,
Australia with her husband, two daughters, dog, cats, guinea pigs, and chooks.
She has a particular fondness for vampires, star ship captains, and things that
go bump in the night (especially vampire types).
Imogene has tried many
varied roles in her working life including kindergarten assistant, teacher,
principal, and kindergarten and child care director, but rates owning a
bookstore and writing her own novels as the absolute highlight.
In her mother and wife
alter ego, she has traveled widely and lived in some very unique places
including Far Western Queensland, Cape York, and even Tasmania. She loves to
travel and rates China and Hong Kong among her favorite destinations.
ASHLYNN
MONROE
Ashlynn Monroe is a busy
working mom. She loves her kids and family. Her greatest joy is creating
stories to entertain others, and she hopes they bring a little more romance
into the world. She’s been writing since her teens, for her own enjoyment, but
decided in her thirties to share her imagination with readers. Ashlynn enjoys
biking, camping, reading, video games, and filling her home and life with love.
If she’s not working or chasing her children, you can find her daydreaming up
her next tale of romance.
JAYE
SHIELDS
Jaye Shields is a flight
attendant by day and romance author by night. Her addictions include reading,
travel, and other activities not even a romance writer will confess to. She’s
in a committed love affair with her readers, so don’t be shy!
BETH
D. CARTER
Beth likes writing about
the very ordinary girl thrust into extraordinary circumstances, so her heroines
will probably never be lawyers, doctors, or corporate highrollers. She tries to
write characters who aren’t cookie-cutter and pushes herself to write
complicated situations that she has no idea how to resolve, forcing herself to
think outside the box. She loves writing characters who are real, complex, and
full of flaws, heroes and heroines who find redemption through love.
Beth has been pretty
fortunate in life to experience some amazing things. She’s lived in France and
traveled throughout Europe, Australia, and New Zealand. She’s a mom to an
amazing little boy, and she’s surrounded by friends and family. She hates
washing dishes but loves cooking, hates washing clothes but loves wearing them.
Her favorite color is red, but she looks best in black (it’s slimming). She
hates people who don’t pick up their dog’s crap in public places, people who
don’t use turn signals, and people who are rude and condescending. She
especially hates discrimination in all and every form. And although she loves
holding a book in her hand, she absolutely adores her ereader, whom she’s named
Ruby.
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