*Release date will be announced soon. Stay tuned.*
There was something in his seductive eyes that said he wasn’t satisfied with her long drawn out, sappy reply. “I have a feeling you asked me about our relationship for a deeper reason.”
“Deeper…” A chesty chuckle rumbled from him. “Why haven’t you told Wes about us?”
Her next breath got caught in her throat. She stared into his bright eyes, unsure on what to say.
“Is it because he’s your lover too?”
Uneasiness swarmed her, chasing her bliss away. She pulled back from him and maneuvered to the edge of the bed.
Surprisingly, he let her move.
She drew the sheet around her body and gazed out the window. The beautiful city of Atlanta and its sparkling nightlights gazed back at her. “You knew?”
“I’ve known from the day we met.”
She’d lied to him. She told him that she and Wes were just really good friends, but apparently, her false words were only convincing to her own ears. “How?”
“The way you two gaze at each other when you think no one is watching…I only pretended to be oblivious to it because I didn’t want to disrespect what you two had, but the day we kissed, all of that changed. I would’ve said something earlier. Although, I didn’t think I was in a position to do so.” That would explain why he needed to know where they stood relationship-wise.
He fell silent, and so did she.
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Hips swaying, she sashayed across the stage with her electric guitar, Venom, in tow. Her swarthy skin shimmered like dark diamonds under the spotlights. Strawberry blonde dreadlocks cascaded over her shoulders and down her back. She swept a gaze over the eager crowd. The lights caught the spark in her haunting eyes, adding to her seductive allure.
A jeweled choker adorned her long neck. Fashioned from leather and lace, a crimson corset hugged her torso, and a short plaid skirt flared out over her bodacious hips. Completing her stage ensemble, skin-tight leather clung to her legs, and a pair of red, wedge-heeled sneakers sparkled on her feet.
This woman was a rock goddess haloed in lights. Wielding her mighty guitar, she ruled the stage and everyone beyond it.
Our mistress, Queen Sting.
Stirring with great anticipation, the crowd waited. Not one person shifted their attention from the stage.
A wicked smirk graced her face. Positioned at the microphone, she whirled Venom in front of her and teased the strings with her long, scarlet painted nails. Her glossy lips parted and her tongue slid out, revealing a sparkling guitar pick. She plucked it off her tongue and cooed in a husky timbre, “‘S’up, sexy bitches.”
A voluminous roar bounced off the club’s walls as the sea of people went into frenzy.
“Allow me to introduce my band of badasses!” With one hand wrapped around Venom’s neck, she ripped the pick across the taut strings. The electric guitar released a rebellious cry. It soared through the large speakers like a thunderous strike. “On bass is my Californian playboy… Chase.”
The bright eyed, floppy-haired kid to her left strummed the golden beauty hanging from his neck, drawing screams from the women in the audience.
“On keys, the sexiest man you’re ever gonna lay eyes on… Becca.”
With his lengthy hair draped over the sides of his face, the guy to her right flashed an enticing smile as he fingered the keys on his instrument. The crazed screams only grew louder.
“And on drums, my brotha from another motha… Slice! Hit it, baby!”
Surrounded by a shiny percussion set, the muscular man in the fedora whipped his stick from one drum to the other, delivering a brutal beating. A wild cadence resonated through the building.
“I’m MonaLisa and we are Scorpion Tail!” The band thundered into a hard-edged rhythm with their mistress leading the way. “Say your prayers, ‘cause we’re about to rock you ‘til death!” Her raspy voice surged into song, “It courses through your veins, my sweet, poisonous kiss… Take me again like that, fill me with your painful bliss… Let me thank you for your pretty lies and smiling deceit… I’ll remember you, only for the days of pain and nights of grief…”
Even though the lyrics she delivered were ominous in their nature, her voice was hypnotic. Spellbinding.
Struck in complete awe, Toshiro watched her strum her magnificent guitar, with her dreads swaying wildly about under the flashing lights.
Her gaze locked on him, a sultry smile followed. “Tell me you wanna die, baby, just for a taste… Give me your soul as you fall in my embrace…”
Can she see me through the blinding lights and sea of jerking bodies? The idea she could separate him from the mob was a fool’s fantasy, but the possibility sent an unrelenting shudder down his body. Even though the building was packed from wall to wall with people caught under her spell, he felt like he was the only one in the club.
She’s singing and playing just for me.
His bones vibrated with the heart-thumping pulse, his blood ran hot. The taste of her lips lingered in his memory. The thought of her poisonous kiss tightened his groin. He couldn’t rip his eyes away, no matter how hard he tried. From that moment on, he couldn’t deny it. He was enthralled, bound to her in body and spirit, and he would never be able to live without her.
MonaLisa…
After attaching my bipod, I slipped on my black leather gloves then took my post.
One-thirty p.m. Like clockwork, Deverati’s snowy Bugatti whipped around the corner and parallel parked across the street from Café Josephine.
“Alright Half-a-mil, let’s do this.” I watched the car through my scope, anxious for the moment my mark revealed himself.
The butterfly door on the driver side swung open, he stepped out and the world shifted into slow motion.
“Daaayum,” I breathed out.
The Italian leather shoes, tailored black slacks and tan trench coat fit him to perfection. A gust of wind breezed by and flared his coat’s tail, adding to the magnificence of his striking presence. A pair of dark Aviators hid his eyes. Sheer arrogance poured off of him in waves as he strutted across the street.
When he disappeared into Josephine’s Cafe, the world returned to its normal pace and I caught my breath.
Fuck the pictures! This man was gorgeous. Even his swagger was a thing of beauty.
Before returning to my sniper scope, I blinked twice. “Focus, Monroe,” I whispered as I mentally reminded myself of the mission.
Eliminate the target.
His superciliousness alone justified him as being more than worthy of a visit from my bullet. But, as I watched him walk across the street with his standard large latte in hand, something about him intrigued me, and it wasn’t just his looks.
Superstar, Ripp Collins had the crowd spellbound, enthralled by his beauty and raspy, haunting voice as he belted out a verse. “When you look at me, tease my desire with a mere gaze, it shreds the edges of my soul…”
The indie rock band Devil’s Avenue was under the spotlight tonight, and they had the club packed to capacity.
The pulse of the bass drum and the cry of the electric guitar whipped through the building like a harsh, metallic rock n’ roll storm. The music’s roar mingled with the fans’ zealous screams. Multicolored lights flashed over the performers, adding to the dark and mysterious ambiance they created.
But Ripp… He glistened under the fluorescent beams, like a divine being. Flicking his fingers across the guitar strings, he rocked his hips to the beat, threw his head back, and let out one of his gritty primal cries.
The crowd went wild.
An unwanted smile dared to cross my face. I sat rooted to the barstool at the back of the club, refusing to let his bad boy allure draw me under his spell, like everyone else. But damn, I couldn’t take my eyes off of him, which meant, I was already enchanted. Now that I think about it, I’ve been spellbound for quite some time now.
Staying low to the ground, Alexis crept into the hangar. She slipped into the nearest shadow and crouched against the wall.
The retractable ceiling was left open. Strange. There were no missions on record for the day. At least that’s what was reported on the log. So, why was the ceiling open? Several drones zipped by. They circled the field, lingering around the aircraft building.
Damn, this is gonna be harder than I expected.
She never backed down from a challenge before. So why start now? She flash-stepped across the massive space, going from one hovercraft to another, using them as cover. Hopefully, she moved fast enough to evade the drones’ radar. All she had to do was make it to the rear door. That would bring her closer to the canal, and closer the secrets within.
Almost there. I can do this. She took a deep breath and made a dash for the door.
Suddenly, the sharp shrill of a sword being drawn reached her senses. Alexis scanned her surroundings. The hangar seemed vacant, but that apparently wasn’t the case. She slowed her pace, but she kept moving. A threatening breeze rushed into her from the right. With it, a blade whistled through the air.
Reaching for her own sword, she ducked and swept her right leg out. Her foot caught the ankle of her unseen opponent.
A shadowy apparition emerged and flipped back away from her.
Alexis drew a trio of shuriken and launched them at the shadow. A series of silver streaks deflected the tiny blades.
Sword in hand, Alexis squared off. “If you wanted a battle, all you had to do was ask… Helena.”
Her adversary shed her ghostly form and stepped forth, wielding twin katanas. “You knew I would attack you?”
“The way you swoon over Tristan…” Alexis pushed her leather jacket from over her shoulders and let it fall to the ground. “Yeah, I knew it was only a matter of time before you made a go for me.”
Her preternatural eyes narrowed as her lips kicked up in a snarling sneer. “You don’t deserve him and I’m going to prove it.” Crossing her blades, she crouched in a battle stance. “I hope you’re ready, Moonlight. ‘Cause I’m not going to hold back.”
Smiling, Alexis held her weapon in a double grip. “Bitch, I stay ready.”
*Click the image to be directed to the Amazon buy page
Mankind had once again thrust itself into a war built on hate, bigotry, and power. History repeated itself tenfold. Only this time, it was worse. Racism and prejudice escalated to an all-time high. More than half of the world’s population were what society labeled as Exoticals, which was just another way of saying bi-racial. Despite that, humans still found reasons to hate each other. If that wasn’t bad enough, they damn near destroyed the ozone layer, so much that there were certain sectors—dead zones—where the air was unbreathable. Creators of their own demise.
*Click the image to read Sanjay’s Confession*
