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My short story “Beneath the Changing Moon” will be published by Total E-bound as a part of their Voracious Vamps series this October. “Beneath the Changing Moon” is scheduled to be published 26 October 2009, which is very exciting. I love horror and Halloween and the way the entire month of October is now one long celebration. I love Halloween episodes of my favorite shows and horror movie marathons and the chill in the air and, especially, October’s full moon (4 October, per the Old Farmer’s Almanac).
I’m thrilled to be a part of the media celebration as an author this year.
“Beneath the Changing Moon” is a story about the love, desire, and bloodlust between vampires Amalia and Darren. In a world where vampires have almost died out, procreation is the responsibility of every fertile vampire. For Amalia Vallen, infertility is a curse not because she’s failing her society but because Darren Lin, the man she’s loved since they were children, is fertile. Amalia fears their society – and, worse, Darren’s family – will reject their bonding because she can bear no vampire children. To Darren, it doesn’t matter; all he wants is Amalia’s love. As Amalia struggles to overcome the biases she’s internalized, Darren seduces her romantically and sexually, and she knows eventually she will give in to what he truly wants – and what is absolutely forbidden: the most important vampire ritual, the exchange of their blood.
Here is the cover for “Beneath the Changing Moon”:
All the stories included in the Voracious Vamps line have the same cover. I like that they’re being published separately and that they have matching covers. It’s an interesting way to use technology to make a collection of stories without physically binding them together.
Of course I love the full moon and the way the city looms, old stone worn and moody, and the angle on the shot of the man. He’s not Darren, but I love the bit of menace to the pose and the darkness to the overall cover.
My short story “Like a Thousand Miles of Fire” in Torquere Press’s Bite Me anthology is now available for sale here. Bite Me is a collection of stories about threesomes, two men and one woman in each story.
“Like a Thousand Miles of Fire” is about a half-demon, Crystal Andraya, and her two vampire lovers, William and Miguel. They defy the rules of their world to be together, and as war looms between vampires and demons, the only place they can find strength and peace is in each other’s arms.
Excerpt:
I was horny and bored, and the resort stank of mildew and rot.
Construction workers had been upstairs during the day tearing out the walls, replacing the old insulation, fixing broken pipes — work that needed to be done while we renovated, but which left the whole place a stinking mess. It was taking forever. We’d moved in two years ago, after the first floor had been renovated. The rest of the work was being done in fits and spurts because the vampires couldn’t handle their territory being invaded for long. I didn’t mind. The workers were human, and couldn’t hurt me. That was just one of the differences between vampires and demons.
William didn’t seem to mind the mess, but he was working on a new piece of art and that always distracted him from everything else in the world. He had been bent over his sketchpad for almost an hour.
Watching him sculpt was entertaining and frequently quite erotic. Watching him sketch did nothing for me. I ran my hands up my body, skimming from thighs to stomach to breasts, trying to get his attention. He didn’t look over at me. I was being ignored, and I didn’t like it one bit. I sighed and jumped over the back of the couch.
Miguel was reading near the big windows across the room from William. The drapes were open wide, revealing a long stretch of beach and the darkness of the ocean at night. I wished, for a moment, that I could see him in the sunlight. He looked up at my sudden movement and shut his book.
“I’m bored.” I flung myself down in front of him and rested my elbows on his thighs. “Want to entertain me?”
His smile spread across his face, slow and lovely. He had a strong nose, defined cheekbones, and dark skin, though it had an odd, light undertone to it, testament to the years he’d been a vampire hidden away from the daylight. I was several shades darker, but I got to spend time in the sun.
He set his book aside and reached for me. He rested one hand on my shoulder and cupped my jaw with the other, then slid his hand around to the back of my head. He dug his fingers into my braids until he could press them against my scalp.
I moaned when he hit a good spot and rolled my head back into his touch.
“Kiss me,” I ordered, and he complied. The first time we had kissed, he had been hesitant, tentative, but I’d been with the two of them full-time for the better part of three years, and all his actions were firmer now, and he more dominant.
I kissed him until I couldn’t breathe, something he didn’t have to worry about, and then tilted my head until I could bite the side of his throat.
“Want to spar?” I mumbled into his skin.
“Don’t break me.” His voice was light, amused.
He clenched his hand in my hair and jerked back my head. I expected the attack to come from the other side, and he caught me off guard. I threw myself into his movement and carried it farther, falling backward despite the pain in my scalp.
He held on, and I hauled him out of the chair and onto the floor. I scissored my legs around his waist, and then slammed my hips to the side, pinning him to the ground. He released my hair, but grabbed for my wrists. I was faster and got them out of the way in time.
I loosened my legs and slithered away from him until I had room to kick up into a handstand, evading his grasp. He came up to his knees and lunged at me; we slammed to the floor together. My cheek hit hard and started to bleed.
Miguel stretched along me, his chest against my back, his groin to my ass. He put his mouth against my ear and closed his teeth on the cartilage.
Today I received the cover for the Bite Me anthology which includes my story “Like a Thousand Miles of Fire”(1). Sexy cover for a sexy story!
Here’s the blurb I wrote for the story: Since the dawn of time, demon and vampire societies have existed under a shaky truce. As the threat of war looms, half-demon Crystal Andraya finds strength and the heat of passion in the arms of her vampire lovers William and Miguel. The world they’ve built together may be falling apart around them, but they know what they want and nothing is more important than the love they share.
I’ll share the publisher’s blurb as soon as it’s available.
Here’s the anthology cover. I’m a fan, particularly of the arms. I love defined arms.
Cover for Bite Me anthology
(1) Possibly actually titled “Like a Thousand Miles of Fire”. I should confirm which is correct.