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The Omega Archives: Escalation
-- EXCERPT: We sprinted after the last guy who was running through the desert area. My heart pounded as I sprinted after the guy. All I could think about was tackling this guy to the ground and beating the shit out of him. The field seemed like an endless desert of sand and dried-out plants. The last guy made a hard turn into what looked like a cave entrance. The entrance hand a big concrete shaft leading inside with black water pouring out of it. We stopped and shined our flashlights into the cave, but saw nothing. Barns and I went inside. It was dark and smelled like a port-a-potty that hadn’t been cleaned in years; we heard rats squeaking and the echoes of water dripping in the distance. Being in there made my stomach feel like it was going to blow up and I felt like I would never eat again. We walked on until we arrived at a very large room. I went in, and the gate slammed shut behind me. The slamming echoed throughout the room and it froze my heart. I turned and ran towards the gate. “Hey let me out!” I said. I tried pulling on the bars and kicking the gate down, but it was too strong. “Come on, let me out!” I tried contacting Max on my radio. “Max, do you copy?” I asked. “Alex… can you hear…” Max said. My radio went static. “Long live the Union,” Barnes said as he backed off and sunk into the darkness of the cave. My heart dropped into my stomach as he backed off. “Long live the Union, indeed!” Another man said in a British accent. Some lights flashed behind me. I slowly turned around. it was Axel. “Alex Connors, we meet at last,” he said in a soft voice as he took a few steps towards me. “I have been looking forward to this for so long.” A wave of anxiety hit me like a truck. He was a lot bigger in person, but not too big just big enough to pose a threat. I couldn’t take my attention off of how much bigger he was in person. All around was rock and water. I could hear water flowing nearby only to pour out into a drain. I immediately pulled out my rifle and aimed it at him, ready to shoot as that feeling in my stomach came back. “Please put down the weapons. You can’t kill all of us,” Axel said. I looked up, and saw the next level up; a large group of Axels’ men were armed with machine guns and assault rifles. My entire body was covered with laser sight dots like a Christmas tree. My heart froze up as I pictured myself getting blown away. “They all have armor-piercing bullets, and clear shots,” Axel said. I put down my rifle, pistol, and knife. The clank of my rifle and pistol hitting the ground echoed in the room. I stood there feeling naked as I took some breaths, trying to calm myself down. “So you’re Axel? What do you want?” “Ah, straight to business huh?” he said, smiling. “You know I have orders to bring you in, right?” I said. Axel walked closer to me, seeming to grow bigger with each step. “Oh, I am aware of your mission, indeed,” he said “You think I don’t know you, Alex? I’ve been watching you for some time now,” he said while still speaking in his soft voice. I started to sweat. I wiped my head while I tried to process my thoughts. I continued to try and get my mind off my feelings as I focused on Axel. “Yeah. Well, to me, you are just another terrorist on some kind of mission. An anarchist,” I said as Axel laughed. “Ah, so young and still so much to learn. I have been doing this far longer then you have,” he said. “Age does have its advantages,” I said. “As well as its disadvantages,” Axel replied. “Why did you attack the Pentagon?” I asked as I walked closer to him. Axel started to walk to me. “Easy. I needed to draw attention.” “By killing innocent people?” “Ha! Just another stereotypical word: Innocent. Please, Alex, those people were just expendable assets, just like everyone else.” “We will see about that,” I said as I walked towards him. At that moment, all I thought about was beating Axel to a pulp. I ran up to him and struck at him with all the strength I had. His steel-like body just absorbed the strikes, taking little to no damage whatsoever. I threw another right hook. He blocked it and threw an uppercut elbow to my face, knocking me back, then a spin kick to my chest, kicking me into a pile of bricks. I felt like someone had hit my solar plexus with a sledgehammer as I tried to breathe. All I could think about was the pain as I lay there like I was a plant being eaten by rodents. I rubbed my jaw, trying to ease the pain, and my body was covered in sweat and dust. The Mercenaries just stood by and watched. “Your confidence has gotten the best of you. You have been fighting so much of these mere humans that you believe yourself to be unstoppable. You proclaim that you are a super-soldier. But really you are just a boy,” he said. As I laid there, feeling like my body was crushed by a wrecking ball, I kept thinking about my training. I could still hear the trainer shouting at me to control my emotions. I closed my eyes and breathed, trying to get my mind off of my feelings. “I’ve beaten people like you before,” I said as I got up slowly, trying to fight through the pain. I did a spin kick to his face with Axel leaning back, slightly dodging it. I then did a spin side kick to him, with him blocking it, followed by a spin jump kick to his chest, which seemingly did nothing to him. I threw more hooks to his face with every bit of strength I had. When I went to throw the third, he grabbed my fist and started squeezing it like an empty Coke can; several snapping sounds emerged from my hand. I could feel the bones in my fist being slowly crushed like wood, and it was all I could focus on. I screamed in pain as I slowly dropped to my knees. I tried to break his grip, but it was as strong as steel. My right hand was practically destroyed. “All this strength and no coordination. You are truly an amateur,” he said as he pushed me to the ground. He then did a powerful bottom fist strike to my back, which felt like being hit by a pipe wrench. I took another breath, trying not to explode with anger so I don’t throw up, then got up and went to do another spinning jump kick. While I was in mid-air, Axel punched me directly in the solar plexus, knocking me down. All the air was knocked out of me again, and I could barely breathe. He then picked me up and threw me into a wall. A bang followed as I hit the floor. My body felt like all the bones were broken into bits, and I could not get up. My mind was glued to the pain as it settled. As I lay there, Axel walked up and crouched next to me. “I understand what you are going through. You’ve spent half of your life training, and now you are split. Every day you contend with adapting to human life. These humans have corrupted your mind, but I can help you. I can save you from them. Please let me help you,” he said. His voice was pretty calm and soothing for a terrorist. I slowly picked myself up, feeling like my body was going to break into pieces at any second. My arms felt like they were weighed down by trucks, and my chest weighed a ton. I gripped my broken wrist as I tried to find my balance. “I don’t need your help!” I said, standing ready. “Very well then,” he said as he did a spinning heel kick to my face, knocking me out. From there it was just blackness and nothing. 
GIVEAWAY! --
Sir, Yes Sir
-- #Book Blitz #The Backup Princess by Kate O'Keeffe #Contemporary Romance @Xpresso Book Tours8/4/2024
The Backup Princess
-- EXCERPT: “Hello?” I fumble with my phone to locate the torch app, which suddenly seems to have disappeared. “Who’s in here?” I demand, half expecting to find a murderer or some kind of psychopath, wielding a knife, ready to attack. “Who are you?” an indignant voice responds. Finally, I locate the torch app and flick it on, scanning the closet. I suck in a breath as it illuminates a woman, her features lined with fear as she squints at me, her hands held in tight fists in front of her chest. I relax. She doesn’t look like a murderer or a psychopath, or even a ghost. Well, a little like a ghost. The woman is rather pale. But there’s something recognizable about her. The look in her eyes is like a deer in headlights. A beautiful deer. A familiar deer. I take a step closer to her. “Get back!” she screeches. “I’m warning you; I know tai chi.” I press my lips together to stop a smile. “You know how to do slow, controlled movements at sunrise?” If I tried to keep the amusement from my voice it wasn’t much of an effort. “I meant… karate. I know karate and I’m not afraid to use it!” She unfurls her fists and brandishes her flat hands at me. A laugh bubbles up, and I do my best to style it out as a cough. “I come in peace, I assure you.” “How do I know that?” She does a chopping motion with one of her hands, presumably to demonstrate her karate prowess. “Why don’t you put those weapons of yours down?” I reach for her hands to hold them in mine reassuringly. This woman is freaked out and I need to do something. As my hands fold over hers she snaps them away, raises one in a fist, and before I have the chance to ask what she intends to do with that fist, she jabs it straight at my face. “Argh!” I call out, my eyes watering as my nose throbs in pain that pulses painfully across my cheekbones. I stagger back, clasping my nose “What did you do that for?” But no sooner have the words left my mouth when she yanks the cupboard door open and bursts from the room, her skirt billowing behind her as she rushes away from me down the hall. “What the—?!” I trail after her, muttering in disbelief. Who punches someone in the face in a hallway cupboard when all they were trying to do was show they weren’t a threat? Through watering eyes, I blink at her as she tears away from me down the hallway—only to fall flat on her face, her skirt billowing up behind her to expose her plain white cotton underpants, and her tiara pinging off her head and bouncing across the carpet. Who is this woman and what the heck is she playing at? My instinct kicks in, and before I have the chance to second guess myself, I hurry down the hallway to her aid. “Are you all right?” I ask. Her eyes are wild as she yells, “Stay away!” She clamors back to her feet, clutching her head. “Are you hurt?” I ask, and she shakes her head, her eyes searching the floor. She must be looking for her tiara. “It’s over there.” I point at the tiara on the ground, still in one piece. She grabs it and turns back to me. “I—please don’t tell anyone.” “Okay.” She doesn’t say another word, instead she turns on her heel and dashes away, rounding a corner and disappearing from sight. I stand, rooted to the spot, my brain scrambling to make sense of what just happened. I sought a brief moment of refuge in a cupboard only to be attacked by a beautiful woman in a tiara with an American accent. My nose throbs painfully as realization dawns on me. She’s Madeline, the American here to claim the throne. The woman a nation has pinned their hopes on. The woman who wields a strong right hook. 
GIVEAWAY! -- #Book Blitz #Crown of Wings and Thorns by May Ting #Fantasy #New Adult #Romance @Xpresso Book Tours8/4/2024
Crown of Wings and Thorns
There is also an APP GAME on Dorian-release April 4th!
-- EXCERPT: I’d heard tales that vampires had an uncanny ability to beguile their prey. Their attractive faces and bewitching scent, partnered with their commanding voices entranced victims, making them do whatever was asked of them. He must be using the same supernatural powers to captivate me. Despite his effort, I prevailed and pushed the horrendous thought to the far recesses of my mind. “Never in peace.” He growled, his hot breath fanned the shell of my ear. “You are my enemy.” “Fine. You want to die here, right now?” I gritted the words through my teeth as I slowly released my feathers, my chest rising and falling just as fast as his. He made the mistake of pulling back just enough for his eyes to lock with mine. I pushed off with the strength of my feathers, taking him with me. His back thumped the opposite wall and I trapped him with my body and wings. Victus’s eyes grew wide, stunned. With an ear-piercing snarl, his feet tangled with mine to launch us into a wild spin, and then he pushed me against the wall with such force that all of the air was knocked from my lungs with an oomph. “I loathe your kind,” he hissed, baring his teeth. “And I despise everything about you.” I clenched my jaw. “My hatred for you is greater.” The tendrils under his eyes throbbed. We were thrown into a battle of push and shove, taking turns on who would be on top of our chaotic tumbling until we eventually stopped at the opposite end of the room, panting. With my back to the wall, he took a fistful of my hair and yanked my head to the side, exposing my neck. His hot breath and his sharp fangs grazed down my skin. I shuddered and every vein in my body seared. I wasn’t sure if it was from fear or from the heated tussle and our bodies colliding. “If you believe I’m your enemy, then bite me.” I took a chance by saying the latter. Since he found me revolting, he would likely release me. He gripped my hair tighter and snarled 
GIVEAWAY! -- #Book Blitz #Lady of Cosa Nostra: Victoria's Secrets by Contel Bradford @Xpresso Book Tours8/4/2024
Lady Cosa Nostra: Victoria’s Secrets
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GIVEAWAY! -- #Book Blitz #Two Truths and a Marriage by Nicole Snow #Contemporary Romance @Xpresso Book Tours3/4/2024
Two Truths and a Marriage
-- EXCERPT: I’m instantly peppered with goosebumps at what he’s proposing. Another date. Another important family member to impress. Another lie. More people we have to deceive to keep this big ball of fake engagement crazy going. Even if we’re getting better at this, something’s got to give. “There’s something else I had to bring in person,” he says slowly, watching me warily. “For your trouble.” What’s he talking about? His hand drifts out of his pocket, clasping a small grey box with gold lettering. Oh no. Oh no, no, no. When he opens it, revealing what I’m dreading, I don’t remember how to breathe. A freaking ring. And not just any ring. No, this is a ring from Dexter Rory, a man who never learned how to do anything without going all out. Of course, it’s gorgeous enough to make me stupid. All diamond-studded white gold with a sparkling blue stone in the middle. The whole vibe is both delicate and totally over the top. I’m already in love with the wretched thing. And I hate that I love it. “There’s no sense in being subtle anymore. Counting my brothers, a ton of people know we’re engaged,” he explains. “No one will believe I’ve proposed without a ring on your finger.” “Oh my God.” I’m hyperventilating. “You just… you went and… you bought me an engagement ring?” I say faintly, knowing full well there’s no doubt. An engagement ring. Those three little words feel completely alien. His face blanks, but he’s smiling with his eyes, midnight-blue apologies sparkling like stars. “I’m sorry if it’s not your style, Junie. There’s still time to swap it out.” “Are you insane?” I could have searched the world twice over and not found an engagement ring half this magnificent. This man, who doesn’t even know me, is some sort of personal jewelry genius. “It’s really pretty,” I whisper. “It’s yours to keep when this is over. Don’t even ask how much it costs,” he says. “Sell it, keep it, give it to your cat, whatever. I’m sure this isn’t the type of engagement you wanted—and technically, it’s not. I’m just grateful you’re willing to go along with it.” Why does he sound like he’s trying to make himself believe it? My brain sputters. All I can see right now is that ring in its little grey box, the blue velvet inside cushioning the precious diamonds and stillborn promises. I don’t doubt for a second they’re real, and they’re spectacular. Oh, and its resale value will probably break my jaw when it hits the ground. He’s paying me a massive premium in jewelry on top of the six figures hitting my account. The bigger the lie, the more I earn. That should thrill me, coming into a small fortune I never imagined, but it doesn’t. Not while I’m staring at something that shouldn’t exist. A ring from a man who’s hilariously out of my league. The one thing I never thought I’d get with a monster catch. A fake fiancé. A man who doesn’t want to marry me. Of course, he shouldn’t. He doesn’t even know me. Still. Still, I can’t help feeling it bone-deep, knowing that the only ring I’ll ever get is just a whacky business transaction. Not because I’m lovable. Not because it means anything. Not because I’m someone he’d ever date, much less marry. 
GIVEAWAY! -- #Book Blitz #Cursed Wolfby Sophie Ash (Howling Death MC) #Paranormal Romance @Xpresso Book Tours2/4/2024
Cursed Wolf
-- EXCERPT: “I love that brain of yours, but don’t think so much right now Emmaline.” His next kiss was softer, sweeter. The warm rumble of his voice pulled me right out of my head. “Be here with me, beautiful. Just feel.” Don’t think. Feel. The voice in my head echoed what he said. In an effort to do just that, I barely lifted my head to kiss him again. My eyelids fell closed and I poured all of my focus into feeling Tryn. The softness of his lips contrasted with the roughness of his beard. The heat of him and the breadth of his body. My hands landed on his back and went searching. When I found the hem of his T-shirt, I dipped under it. Oh, I did not expect his skin to be so soft. The muscles underneath were hard, but also moved with a fluid grace that I never wanted to stop feeling. I already knew he gave great hugs, but to feel him wrap around me skin-to-skin would be on another level. As if reading my mind, Tryn made off with his shirt when our kisses broke apart for air. When he lowered to me again, his fingers drifted under my shirt slowly, giving me every opportunity to stop him. I didn’t. I kissed him harder, molding my body to his. A strong hand lifted me a few inches from the bed, just enough to get my shirt and bra off. “Fucking perfect,” Tryn murmured along my collarbone before kissing lower. My gaze found the ceiling. Any other time, I’d be in my head again, wondering if I looked weird topless, if my chest was smaller than what he preferred. But what I was quickly figuring out? Tryn knew how to make a girl feel.
GIVEAWAY! -- |
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