Cliffhanger Blogfest

Here we are at one of the blogfests I'm going to participate in whilst in the midst of revisions (which, actually, are officially finished. Now I'm working on some agent research...any suggestions for agents I should query for a paranormal romance?!)

Thanks to Brenda Drake for hosting the Cliffhanger Blogfest! Participants are supposed to "leave us hanging, craving more, and cursing your name for making us want to turn a page that isn't there."

My entry is the end of section two of Chapter 12 of my paranormal romance, Faerie Fate, (yes, this is the one I've been madly revising to get ready for agent querying).

A little setup:  Holly has only recently discovered that she's half faerie and has managed the task of transforming from human to faerie form. She's overwhelmed by this new world, and when Shadow publicly claims her as his soul mate she bristles at the idea of being someone's property and about losing her right to choose. This scene takes place the same night, after Shadow has claimed her, and is from Shadow's POV.

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Since the moment he’d accepted in his heart that she was his mate, after dancing with her at Lunasa, and especially after today when he’d announced his claim publicly, he’d discovered he had a growing physical attraction to her. He’d tried to fight it, especially since in his mind he wasn’t sure she’d ever acknowledge him as her mate, much less truly love him, but it was a fight he knew he was bound to lose. For now he just wished he could stop thinking about what she wore as she slept. He hadn’t offered her anything of his, so he wondered if she was still wearing her clothes - or not.

He threw his blanket off and slapped his feet to the floor, leaned his elbows on his knees and shoved his hands through his hair. Thinking about her naked on his couch was not going to help him sleep. It only made him want to go watch her sleep naked on his couch. Which, now that the idea was in his head he couldn’t resist doing. He padded on quiet feet to the living room and peeked over the back of the couch. She wore a t-shirt, but he saw her pants folded in a neat pile on the floor. The blanket tangled around her, one leg exposed high on her thigh, her foot dangling over the edge of the cushion.

He moved around the couch to sit on the edge of the coffee table and watched her sleep. Her breathing was even and peaceful, and her eyes moved back and forth beneath her lids, the long black lashes brushing her cheeks. He liked that she didn’t wear makeup, and he liked the novelty that her skin was completely clear of any body art. It was pristine, and it made him want to explore every inch of it. In his imagination it was as smooth as it was pure.

He felt his own skin heat as he watched her, the need to touch her burning hotter until the urge was overwhelming. She stirred in her sleep, shivering. Her lips parted and he thought she murmured his name. Amazed by what he thought he’d heard, he was drawn to her mouth. Just one kiss won’t hurt, he thought, and leaned to brush his lips lightly over hers. He shivered and groaned, torn, then kissed her again, barely tracing her lips with his tongue. He'd expected her to taste spicy like her personality, but she tasted sweet instead, and it made him dizzy.

His heart pounded and his mouth was dry, and he knew he should walk away. Kissing her, especially while she slept, would only complicate things. He’d feel guilty for taking advantage of her and he’d never be able to look her in the eye. And, no doubt, she’d be angry at him. But he couldn’t stop himself. He kissed the corners of her mouth, then took her lips with his in a full kiss. And this time, she kissed him back.


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Hope you liked it! (does it leave you hanging?) Now, go check out the rest of the entries!