Darkling Lust by Marteeka Karland

Read an excerpt

Darkling Lust

by Marteeka Karland cover art by Marteeka Karland

ISBN: 978-1-60521-412-2

Genre(s): Urban Fantasy

Theme(s): Elves, Dragons & Magical Creatures

Length: Novella

http://www.changelingpress.com/product.php?&upt=book&ubid=1362

Blurb:

A Darkling is a creature charged with protecting humanity from things that go bump in the night. His reward is one human woman to call his own.
Mary first learns about Darklings and all they do when she reads a book that clearly states, "Don't read this!" When she does, and the reality of what she's unleashed upon herself hits her, she snaps it shut. But it's too late. Her Darkling comes for her, and she has to learn to accept him before the very creatures he has protected humans from during his long time as a Darkling destroy her.
Excerpt:
Darkling Lust
Marteeka Karland
All rights reserved.
Copyright ©2010 Marteeka Karland

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Mary awoke with a shiver, cold beyond imagining. She needed to open her eyes but they were heavy, and her body was sluggish to respond to her commands. With great effort, she managed to shake her head and concentrate on the cold surrounding her. When she finally got her eyes opened, she wished she could close them again and forget the sight she saw.
Her head lolled backward so the view was disorienting. When she turned her head to the side, she saw she was, indeed, flying through the sky. Perhaps she was dreaming. The cold, cold breeze blew at her back and bit into her flesh. Clouds and moonlight were all that surrounded her. She snapped her head up and it was then she saw the real peril.
Fallen!
A creature of the night. One of the Darkling from the ancient realm held her securely to him as he raced through the sky. Had she not so naively researched them only two days before, she'd never have believed what was happening. The book had warned that once she'd embraced the knowledge it held, there would be nothing to protect her from the Darkling. She'd foolishly brushed aside the warning as dramatic and only there to further entice the reader, but once she'd opened and began to read, she knew.
She's slammed the book shut and fled home before dark. When nothing happened that night, she'd laughed at her overactive imagination.
She wasn't laughing now.
With a start she realized that not only was she being taken prisoner by a monster, but she was also naked. Cold mist from the cloud cover bit into her flesh like a million pinpricks, and she cried out in both pain and fear.
Only a few moments longer, my love. We'll be home soon.
The words were whispered directly into her mind and as gentle as a caress, yet she shivered. This sounded exactly like what the book had warned about. She'd been claimed by a Darkling. The likelihood that she'd ever be able to return to her old life was remote. She could almost feel everything she'd ever known slipping away. What awaited her was uncertain, but if the writings had been correct, the Darkling would never allow her to leave.
True to his word, it wasn't long before he landed them gently in the courtyard of a gothic villa. He held her fast, though, not letting her pull away from him. His skin was a leathery dark green, and his features were harsh and angular. No one could say he was handsome, but he treated her gently enough. Muscles bulged beneath unearthly skin, and Mary marveled at the power of his body. His nails dug into her flesh, but not painfully so. He seemed to examine her just as she did him.
"You'll learn to love me in time, Mary. You'll also learn to speak to me when I'm not with you."
"Why me? What if I want to go home?"
"You can never go home. I've claimed you. I'll never let you go."
http://www.changelingpress.com/product.php?&upt=book&ubid=1362