Welcome to the Close Encounters of the Wicked Kind Scavenger Hunt
I don't know if you enjoy snarky heroines but I definitely do. One of my first 'girls' happened to be Willie, a spunky, foul-mouthed halfie. She was born a cougar shifter but through a twist of Fate she was partially turned by a vampire. Her life was devoid of anything good until one night... She finds her mate and learns to deal with one of his oldest friends.
Half in Love
Willie Krenshaw wanted nothing more than a few minutes watching the waters of Lake Erie after a long workday. What she ended up with was a drugged male vampire and an itch to be a Good Samaritan. When her inner kitty starts sniffing around at the male she's helping, she knows Fate's evil sense of humor is in full swing. Being a shifter-vampire hybrid is hard enough, but having a male vampire as her fated mate is just too much. Nickola, the vampire she assists, finds her breathtaking and does all he can to push Fate's agenda. Stephen is the male vampire Nickola is investigating for the Council. He takes aim at the couple, intent on pulling Nick to his side or killing him. Between Stephen's scheming and the Council's interest in Willie, can they survive the chaos long enough to test the depths of their passions?

“Nick, we have a problem,” she shouted through the front door before turning and awaiting the vamps on her front steps. She scanned the surrounding area for danger, keeping her senses open. Her body reacted to Nick’s nearness before she even heard him. Her cougar purred loudly and pressed against Willie’s mind. It wanted to rub against him for support and reassurance. Damn mating needs.
The males stepped out on her porch and both
lifted their noses to the air. She would have found the vampy instincts funny
if there wasn’t a deader in the truck parked in her driveway. She wasn’t sure
she was more scared or angry.
“Oh, Nickola, you have a dead human in
your vehicle. Did you know it was there?” Alex smirked at Nick and bared his
fangs when the other male made a move toward him. “I would suggest you keep
your anger in check. You can’t best me, and you need my help with the Council
tomorrow.”
Nick took a deep breath and moved toward
his truck. Willie winced in sympathy, she knew there would be no easy way to
get the smell of decaying human out of a vehicle. She watched him approach his
truck and tried to hide the grin as he grumbling under his breath about
cleaning bills and asshole vampires. She tried to ignore the other bloodsucker
who was slowly sidling up to her. As soon as Alex opened his mouth she knew she
couldn’t ignore him. Shit.
“I will gladly take care of the body for
you, dearest Willimena, as a gift and a token of my goodwill toward you.”
Alex’s cool breath whispered over her cheek sending shivers down her spine. His
body invaded her space, and her kitty growled deep in her mind. There was only
one male that should be that close to her, and he wasn’t the one. She stepped
away from the blond vamp and scowled up into his perfect face.
“I’m not sure taking a gift from you is
such a good idea, Alex. I think Nick and I can take care of the problem.” She
waved a dismissive hand toward the Hummer. “Why don’t you run along and we will
see you tomorrow at the Council.”
“Oh, you poor delusional girl. Don’t you
know that I can’t go anywhere until you’re brought before the Council? I’ve
been tasked with bringing you in, and it would be my head bouncing across the
floor if I lose you.” He leaned down and breathed in her scent, closing his
eyes as he hummed. “You are so delectable. I could take you into my flock and
keep you safe. I promise that they can’t kill you if you are under my
protection.”
“What is it with you? Let me spell it out
for you so you understand me completely. I. Don’t. Want. Your. Help.”
“You will, little anomaly. When the
Council sentences you to death, you can beg me then for my help.” He turned to
watch Nick walk around the vehicle. He nudged her with his shoulder like they
were good friends and whispered his next thought. “For his benefit, you’ll end
up begging me.”
A hiss slipped through her lips. “I will
never beg for anything, especially from a vamp.”
He turned to her with a smirk and a laugh
before heading down to Nick. She felt like the little kid that everyone patted
on the head and put up with because she was cute. She hated being considered
cute. Cute was a bunny or a sleeping baby. She was not cute, cuddly, or
anything else soft. She was a hard, misunderstood bitch. It had taken her years
to get the personality traits right to keep others away from her. In two days
she went from being a feared creature of the night to some softly indulged
child. The need to stomp her foot and scream at the irritating male was almost
too much, but she swallowed the scream and pressed her heels into the steps.
She huffed to herself and flounced down the steps. Might as well find out what
they would be doing for the evening now that a stinking body was invading her
plans.
“It’s a present from Stephen, how nice.”
Nick stood momentarily in front of the Hummer door and then yanked it open. The
corpse tried to fall out of the vehicle but was caught and held by the
seatbelt. Fluttering in the breeze was a small piece of white paper pinned to
the guy’s chest. Nick reached in and pulled the note off the body.
“So, don’t keep us in suspense. What does
the note say?” Willie wandered down the driveway and peered into the vehicle.
The dead guy was handsome, wearing a T-shirt and jeans. At least he wasn’t
bleeding all over the inside of the truck. There were two sets of puncture marks
on his neck, both dribbling small streams of blood into his shirt. The guy
hadn’t been dead too long before he was placed inside the Hummer.
“It says that I’m paying for my
involvement with the Council and that if I want to save myself and those I find
dear to me, I’ll drop my investigation and leave him alone. The note is
actually quite long winded, but that is the gist of it anyway.”
“How lovely, Nickola. Does Stephen think you have dear ones? Hmmm… Would
one of those be our dear Willimena? How delicious. I can’t wait until tomorrow
night.” Alex had sauntered to the vehicle and was leaning casually against the
bumper. The tone of his voice grated on her nerves. How could one male be so
fucking condescending?
Want to read more?
Here is the hop info and the rules for the Grand Prize:
The Grand Prize is pretty awesome! Plus everyone on the list is giving away something on their individual stops! The hop runs July 1-30, with there being a different stop, with a different question everyday. Here is the list of authors that you can visit everyday of the hop.
To enter for the Grand Prize you must find the answer to my question and enter it in the rafflecopter space marked with "Lea Barrymire's answer" it's the only way that is acceptable to be entered for the GRAND PRIZE. We want everyone to have fun and play along.
Love the excerpt and I am looking forward to reading more about Willie. Thanks for sharing the awesome giveaways. evamillien at gmail dot com
ReplyDeleteI haven't read a half vamp, half shifter story. I really liked the excerpt. Thanks.
ReplyDeleteMel
bournmelissa at hotmail dot com
Loved the excerpt and am hopping to find out more :)
ReplyDeleteLove the excerpt!
ReplyDeletesuz2(at)cox(dot)net