I'm so excited to share this excerpt from Dianne Duvall's Death of Darkness. The Immortal Guardian series is one of my favorite urban fantasy/ paranormal romances on the market. If you have yet to check these out, I highly recommend doing so.
Hope you all enjoy! Happy reading!
Review
Death of Darkness - Release Date: August 20, 2019 - Immortal Guardians Book #9
Seth has led the Immortal Guardians for thousands of years. With them fighting by his side, he has protected humans from psychotic vampires, defeated corrupt mercenary armies, defended military bases under attack, and more. But the latest enemy to rise against the Immortal Guardians has proven to be a formidable one, wielding almost as much power as Seth. His goal is simple. He wants to watch the world burn. And he will use every means at his disposal to accomplish it. Seth and his Immortal Guardians have succeeded thus far in staving off Armageddon despite heartbreaking losses. But they have never before faced such danger. Seth has only one wish: to protect his Immortal Guardians family and ensure the continuation of humanity by defeating his foe. But then Leah walks into his life and sparks a new desire.
Leah Somerson has suffered losses of her own. It has taken her a long time to rebuild her life and find some semblance of peace. Then one night a tall, dark, powerful immortal with what appears to be the weight of the world on his shoulders stumbles into her shop, and everything changes. Peace and contentment are no longer enough. Now she wants more. She wants to find happiness. She wants to erase the darkness in Seth’s eyes and replace it with love and laughter. She knows he’s different in ways that make most fear him. Even some of his immortal brethren keep a careful distance. But Leah will not. Nor will she shy away when danger strikes.
Excerpt
Leah munched another chip as she watched a couple on-screen race madly away from men with guns who were intent on killing them. She and Seth sat shoulder to shoulder on the sofa, both slumped down until they were practically lying on their backs. Seth had pulled the matching ottoman up against the sofa, so it really did feel as if they were lying in bed together, watching a movie.
She slid him a covert glance.
He had donned black cargo pants and a black T-shirt after his shower but had left his big feet bare. He had also left his hair loose. It now spilled over the back of the sofa in a glossy curtain, the thick wavy tresses still drying.
He chuckled at something the male protagonist said.
Leah smiled. She loved seeing him laugh. She didn’t think he did so as often as he should.
Every once in a while, she noticed his gaze would slide to her legs. Her feet were propped on the ottoman close to his. The robe she had borrowed had parted just above her knees and fallen back, leaving most of her legs bare. And that pale flesh repeatedly drew Seth’s attention.
She held the bag of chips out to him.
Smiling, unaware that the faint golden light of desire illuminated his eyes, he poked his hand in and drew out a couple of chips.
She smiled back, then returned her attention to the screen.
The protagonists had at last made it to safety. They checked each other over for wounds, something both had miraculously escaped incurring in true Hollywood fashion. Then they fell into each other’s arms, finally giving in to the lust that had sparked between them ever since their first contentious meeting.
Leah sighed as she watched them peel each other’s clothes off with eager hands. It made her want to do the same with Seth. Her body even began to respond as her imagination kicked in. “I miss sex.” The words were out of her mouth before she could question the wisdom of speaking them.
“I do, too,” Seth confessed.
She glanced over at him and found his eyes glued to the screen.
More so since I met you.
Her eyes widened when his voice sounded in her head. “Really?”
“Yes.” The actors on-screen fell naked onto the bed and began to simulate sex, their moans and groans and cries of passion filling the room. “It’s natural to miss it,” he said matter-of-factly. “Nothing to feel guilty about.”
“No. I mean, you really miss it more since you met me?”
He froze. A look of dismay crossed his features as he cut her a glance. “I said that out loud?”
“No. I heard it in my head.”
Sh**.
She grinned. “I heard that, too.”
F**k.
She laughed. “Stop cursing.”
He grimaced. “Forgive me. It’s just… I seem to be inadvertently letting my guard down more and more around you.”
“I like it when you let your guard down around me.” Her words appeared to do little to alleviate his concern though. “Is that so unusual? Don’t you let your guard down around your brethren?”
He shook his head. “I have always spoken freely with David. Ami too, sometimes. But I’ve never broadcast my thoughts to either of them without meaning to. I haven’t done that since—” He broke off, seeming disinclined to continue.
“Since your wife?” she asked gently.
He nodded.
That was telling.
He watched her uncertainly.
Did he worry she would freak out over his mentioning the wife he’d lost?
He hadn’t freaked out when she had mentioned the husband she’d lost.
“Whatever thoughts you send my way I won’t betray,” she promised.
Thank you.
She grinned when his baritone voice once more filled in her head. “That is so cool. You aren’t reading my thoughts, are you?”
“No.”
“Good.”
His lips curled up in a slow smile. “Why? What would I find if I did? What are you thinking?”
She swallowed. Did she dare tell him? “This may sound weird, but hearing your voice in my head totally turns me on.” Beneath the robe, her nipples had hardened. Other parts of her tingled. Her pulse raced. “And I’m sort of fixating on the fact that you’ve been missing sex more since you met me. Because I’ve been missing sex a lot more since I met you.”
The golden light in his eyes grew brighter as a low rumbling sound filled her head. Seeming almost to vibrate through her, it set her body aflame.
“Oh sh**,” she whispered. “That’s so hot.”
“What is?” he murmured.
“You just made this sort of low, growly sound in my head.” And it had affected her as much as stroking all of her erogenous zones at once would have.
“I didn’t mean to.”
“That just makes it even hotter.”
The Immortal Guardians Series:
Awaken the Darkness (Immortal Guardians Book #8)
Dianne Duvall is the New York Times and USA Today Bestselling Author of the Immortal Guardians series and The Gifted Ones series. Reviewers have called Dianne's books "fast-paced and humorous" (Publishers Weekly), "utterly addictive" (RT Book Reviews), "extraordinary" (Long and Short Reviews), and"wonderfully imaginative" (The Romance Reviews). Her books have twice been nominated for RT Reviewers' Choice Awards and are routinely deemed Top Picks by RT Book Reviews, The Romance Reviews,and/or Night Owl Reviews.
About the Author:
Dianne Duvall is the New York Times and USA Today Bestselling Author of the Immortal Guardians series and The Gifted Ones series. Reviewers have called Dianne's books "fast-paced and humorous" (Publishers Weekly), "utterly addictive" (RT Book Reviews), "extraordinary" (Long and Short Reviews), and"wonderfully imaginative" (The Romance Reviews). Her books have twice been nominated for RT Reviewers' Choice Awards and are routinely deemed Top Picks by RT Book Reviews, The Romance Reviews,and/or Night Owl 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 creates in her books.
For the latest news on upcoming releases, contests, and more, please visit DianneDuvall.com. You can also find Dianne online . . .
Tour-Wide Giveaway:
1 — $50 Amazon Gift Card
1 — $25 Amazon Gift Card
1 — Immortal Guardian & The Gifted Ones Prize Packs that includes; a Death of Darkness tote bag, signed paperback copies of Blade of Darkness and Awaken the Darkness, 13 bookmarks, 13 collector cards, and 5 postcards.
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1 — Immortal Guardian & The Gifted Ones Prize Packs that includes; a Death of Darkness tote bag, signed paperback copies of Blade of Darkness and Awaken the Darkness, 13 bookmarks, 13 collector cards, and 5 postcards.
a Rafflecopter giveaway
Thank you for sharing, Valerie! I hope that your readers enjoyed this peek into Seth and Leah's book. DEATH OF DARKNESS is available now! :) <3 - Crystal @ Author's Taproom
ReplyDeleteBest yet!
ReplyDeleteAwesome book
ReplyDeleteGreat post, Valerie. I love that scene, made me chuckle ;-) x
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