Anticipation fizzed through her veins – #Polyamory #Steampunk #MFRWHooks

Last week I featured one of my oldest books. This week, I have an excerpt from my newest, The Master’s Mark – Book 3 of my steam punk trilogy The Toymakers Guild.

Strictly speaking this series is not romance, but it does include committed relationships between a number of characters. In particular, the heroine Gillian ends up in a three-way love affair with two of her fellow engineers, Rafe and Jeremiah. My hook today captures some of Gillian’s feelings for the two men.

Blurb

How do you train a steampunk sexbot?

Gillian’s promotion to journeyman proves she’s ready to lead the Guild in producing astonishing new erotic artifacts. Creative, brilliant, and debauched, she’ll stretch her capabilities to the limit as she juggles a talent shortage and a pair of jealous rivals. Then there’s the challenge of their latest commission—a life-sized programmable sex doll intended to replace a client’s deceased paramour.

The Hook

She didn’t see any of the other Toymakers as she made her way down the grand stairway to the atrium, then headed for the kitchen. The silken robe, belted at the waist, swished around her ankles, while the soft fabric teased her nipples into eager peaks. Not wanting to walk Randerley’s gravel paths in bare feet, she’d donned a pair of leather slippers. It felt exceedingly strange to be headed outdoors, nearly naked.

Both Rafe and Jeremiah awaited her by the kitchen door, wearing their own robes. The emerald brocade accentuated both Rafe’s paleness and Jeremiah’s darkness. Excitement shone in their faces, mixed in Jeremiah’s case with some trepidation.

They were both so beautiful, each in his own way. Rafe was a greyhound, graceful and lean, exuding a fierce energy even when still. Jeremiah was a jungle cat, sleek and full of power, at lazy ease but ready to spring.

“Good evening, Jill.” They spoke in unison. The emotion she heard in their simple greeting made butterflies dance in her chest.

She reached for them both. “Let’s go.”

Hand in hand, they followed a winding path through the kitchen garden, out into the parkland that surrounded the manor. The crunch of gravel under their shoes was the only sound. Laced with the scent of wildflowers, the mild night air stirred their ceremonial garments. Its warm fingers teased Gillian’s bare quim. A gibbous moon, a few days past full, hung in the southeast. A multitude of stars studded the clear black sky above them.

Anticipation fizzed through her veins. Silent, still holding hands, they stepped into the forest. Shadowy boughs overhead blotted out both moon and stars. The temperature dropped slightly, though not enough to be uncomfortable, and the scents changed: earth, mould and wood smoke.

The trees crowded closer although the trail widened. Rafe and Jeremiah each slipped an arm around her waist, clasping her between them as they trod the path together. She heard running water and the murmur of voices. Then the woodland opened into a grassy clearing open to the sky.

In the centre, a small bonfire blazed, casting its flickering light upon the inhabitants of the glade. They clustered in groups, speaking softly. On the right, Jia and Archie sat cross-legged on the lush grass, their hands linked, while Lucy loitered nearby. Ian stood on the opposite side of the fire with Tug and Emily. On the left, beside a rustic wooden table, Roderick and Amelia flanked the Master.

Behind the founding threesome, a massive boulder formed the western wall of the clearing. A basin had been carved into the rock and a stream flowed down from a mossy aperture near the top to fill the pool. Half-obscured by the watery veil, Gillian saw the Cupid and Psyche sculpture Rafe had mentioned, a pair of naked, entwined bodies frozen in an eternal embrace.

Buy Links

Kinky Literature – https://www.kinkyliterature.com/book/976-the-masters-mark-the-toymakers-guild-book-3/

Amazon US – https://www.amazon.com/dp/B0BRHGN35L

Amazon UK – https://www.amazon.co.uk/dp/B0BRHGN35L

Smashwords – https://www.smashwords.com/books/view/1306694

Barnes and Noble – https://www.barnesandnoble.com/s/2940165993299

Kobo – https://www.kobo.com/us/en/ebook/the-master-s-mark-the-toymaker-s-guild-book-3

Apple Books – https://books.apple.com/us/book/x/id6445290161

Add on Goodreads – https://www.goodreads.com/book/show/75611538-the-master-s-mark

Be sure to visit the other authors participating in today’s Book Hooks!

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