Blurb
Safe
in the ivory tower…
Gabriel
Miller swears he’ll keep me safe. Enemies lurk outside, waiting to
strike. An army held back by these walls.
Except
some animal instinct warns me the danger is much closer. It’s
already here. Is Gabriel my protector or my enemy? Is this house a
castle or a cage?
There’s
nowhere for me to go, no one left for me to trust.
No
escape from a past determined to capture its prize.
Excerpt
A
sleek black limo idles in the center of the parking lot, the gleaming
black stark against the backdrop of cracked concrete and
cigarette-littered gravel. It’s not for me, I tell myself. It can’t
be.
It’s
probably one of Chastity’s customers.
At
eight o’clock in the morning. In the cheapest motel in Tanglewood.
The
driver steps out and nods to me in that deferent, discreet way that
drivers have. My stomach sinks. He opens the back door and stands
beside it, a silent invitation. A tacit command from the man inside.
My
feet move me across the pavement, breath trapped. It’s that moment
when you’ve slammed your finger in a door, before the pain has
registered, when your mind is all too aware of what comes next.
The
shadowed interior hides his face, but I know who it is before he
speaks.
“Good
morning,” comes the low voice of the man who made me come on his
desk. The door shuts behind me, enclosing me in the warm darkness.
“What
are you doing here?”
A
shuffle of papers. The scratch of a pen. As the darkness solidifies,
I see him reclined in the back of the limo, focused on a stack of
papers in front of him. Working, like I’m a distraction. “I’m
your ride.”
He
doesn’t even look up.
“Excuse
me?”
“To
Landon Moore’s office. That is where you’re going, I assume.”
My
eyes narrow. “How do you know that?”
Finally
he looks up, his golden gaze searing me. “Because you’ll do
anything to get your house back. It’s the only place you feel safe,
isn’t it? The only place you felt loved?”
My
stomach clenches. “How did you know where to find me?”
“I
don’t think you need me to answer that.”
Because
he knows everything that happens in the city. He could have had me
followed after I left his office yesterday, but odds are he knew
where I was before. “Thanks, but no thanks. I’d rather walk on
nails than ride with you.”
I
pull the latch to discover that the door is locked. From the inside.
My
gaze flies to him. “You’re kidnapping me?”
“Unfortunately,”
he says with fake sympathy. “You’ll have to explain to the cops
how I abducted you and transported you in comfort to your previously
planned destination.”
The
car glides forward, as if connected to his very will.
Asshole.
I
glare at him, settling into the warm leather. Are these seats heated?
Of course they are. I have to admit this is way more comfortable than
the city bus, but everything has a cost. And when it comes to Gabriel
Miller, the cost is always too high. “Why are you doing this?”
“Does
it matter?” he asks, his voice faintly mocking. “As a gentleman
your comfort is my highest priority. It’s enough to be of service
to you.”
“You’re
not a gentleman.”
“Probably
right. In that case I’m coming with you to see sweet old Uncle
Landon give you the horrible news, to see your face fall as he
assures you there’s nothing you can do.”
My
throat constricts. “Can’t you find someone else to torture?”
“No
one nearly as pretty. Besides, my presence has some advantages.”
“My
very own supply of fire and brimstone?”
“People
are more inclined to tell the truth when I’m in the room. My
reputation for dealing with liars and cheats is somewhat brutal.”
He leans forward, his eyes reflecting sunlight. “All of it true,
I’m afraid.”
I’m
living proof of that, the fallout from my father’s decision to
steal. “Be careful or I might think you’re actually being nice to
me.”
A
short laugh. “Not a chance. It will be my pleasure to see Landon
Moore break. And even sweeter to watch you break, too. A show I can’t
pass up.”
Skye
Warren is the New York Times bestselling author of contemporary
romance such as the Chicago Underground series. Her books have been
featured in Jezebel, Buzzfeed, USA Today Happily Ever After, Glamour,
and Elle Magazine. She makes her home in Texas with her loving
family, two sweet dogs, and one evil cat.
Website: http://skyewarren.com/
Twitter:
https://twitter.com/skye_warren
Facebook:
https://www.facebook.com/skyewarren
Pinterest:
http://www.pinterest.com/skyewarren/
Skye
will be awarding a $15 Amazon or B/N GC to a randomly drawn winner
via rafflecopter during the tour.
2 comments:
Thanks for hosting!
Nice excerpt.
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