I’ve spent this past week editing. If you’ve seen my Facebook and Twitter posts, you get the general idea how that is going. Thankfully, I’ve been through the process enough times that this round of polishing edits hasn’t sent me over the edge…yet. This, all the writing gods willing, will be the final round for Book 1 of Greylyn the Guardian Angel series. FYI – Book 2 (Reborn) is going through its own round of edits and Book 3 (Remembrance & Revelation) is in first draft mode of its final chapters.
Anyway, I thought after all those edits, I’d give my lovely readers another taste of the series. I’ve randomly selected two excerpts from Book 1 for your reading pleasure.
*****
Fighting off a deep sense of frustration, Greylyn sought out Maureen. Perhaps the innkeeper would divulge more about the wedding party. If evil was afoot, that would be her first guess where it would likely raise its ugly head.
A few yards away from the Carriage House was the koi pond. A frog splashed across the lily pads on its surface. Just to the side was the gazebo where Maureen had been pruning the rose bushes. A jolt went through Greylyn’s body as she was overcome by a vision…
Droplets of rain fell. A cloudy haze blurred the gazebo where a small group huddled underneath. Soft piano music played, but was cut off suddenly. The sound of a door banged like a thunder clap. Glancing over at the manor, an image of a figure in white looked out a second-story window. Her mouth opened wide in a silent scream.
With that, the vision receded like the flood waters of the Nile, leaving only a piercing pain behind her eyes.
Rubbing the bridge of her nose, she cursed her luck. “Guess it was too damn much to ask to have a day or two without an assignment?”
*****
The tips of her fingers twitched as she fought the urge to reach up and trace the outline of his pectoral muscles. The moment was broken only when he dabbed at the blood dripping down her forehead with the shirt. She’d completely forgotten she hit her head on the side of the pond. A blow to the head of that magnitude would’ve caused a human to lose consciousness, resulting in, at best, a bad concussion.
That’s why I’m acting so strangely. Must be a concussion.
But Greylyn knew better. She didn’t get concussions, and the gash in her forehead would heal by morning. There would be no evidence of the incident when she saw Maureen for breakfast.
As it was, she was certain the dizzy sensation she experienced was more from Kael’s proximity than from the head injury. Not exactly a reassuring revelation.
She didn’t understand. A shadow creature had just attempted to kill her. It was perfectly reasonable to assume Kael had employed the shadow. But now, here he was tending to her injuries.
To make the situation worse, her body started shaking as if from severe cold. The temperature wasn’t the problem. Of that, she was positive. His face was bare inches from her own as he inspected the cut on her forehead. She could feel his breath on her cheek. It felt as warm and soft as a caress.
Satisfied the wound was healing, Kael began to briskly rub both her arms. “You could be cold in the Sahara Desert, I swear.” The contact only caused her to tremble more violently. Not able to withstand the intensity any longer, she wrenched herself away.
He let go of her arms. The warmth evaporated instantly. Looking up, Greylyn saw his expression change. The grin he wore while teasing her transformed into something else she couldn’t quite place. Hurt? No, that couldn’t be it. Whatever it was, it spooked her out of her reverie and back to reality.
He was the bad guy. They were enemies. There was a strange comfort in the truth. Clinging to that thought as if it were a life preserver in a raging storm at sea, she tried to indignantly march back to her suite in the Carriage House without so much as a “thank you.”