by Laurie Olerich
Dark Urban Fantasy Romance
Published on September 2014
This is the first standalone book in the Primani series. It’s a dark romantic suspense that layers a decades-old murder with chilling demon possession on top of two broken people who must somehow heal wounds too deep to see the light of day.
Stalked by evil... Psychic Rori Austin’s life is over. She just doesn’t know it yet. Suffering from recurring nightmares and terrifying fugues, she’s hanging on by a thread. When she blacks out and wakes up in 1969, she knows she’s out of control. Broke and alone in the city that never sleeps, she’s desperate to find someone who can hold back the darkness in her mind. When gorgeous Declan shows up out of nowhere, she’s thrilled until he starts asking questions she has no intention of answering.
Haunted by guilt... Declan Manning is a ruthless killer and a renowned healer. Demons fear him. Humans love him. Life is good. The last thing he needs is a human woman. After saving Rori’s life, he walks away but can’t forget the fear in her exotic eyes. It haunts him, dredging up memories better left buried deep. Intrigued by her secrets, he uncovers the horrifying truth: She’s marked for Hell, and her time is almost up.
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Broken Souls
Excerpt:
Moving
carefully so he wouldn’t startle her, he pulled the shirt over his head.
Turning to the side, he dropped his eyes over his shoulder. At his nod, she
reached for him. Slowly, softly, she explored him with feathery strokes that tickled
yet sent his blood racing.
“Go
ahead, darlin’. Look. Touch. Find your answers.”
Rori
was treading on shaky ground, she knew that. He was beautiful. Perfect. His
face was like a painting, a sculpture. The hard planes could seem cruel, but
right now were softened by his emotions. Love? Patience? She didn’t know, but
she knew one thing for sure. He wasn’t trying to hide now. He’d taken his shirt
off, and she’d lost the use of her vocal chords. He was beautifully made;
muscular without being massively huge, golden skin that begged for kisses… he
turned so she could see him, and she froze. What would she do if he had wings
sprouting from his shoulders?
“No
wings?”
Grinning
like a naughty little boy, he shook his head. “Sorry. No wings.” He captured
her roaming hand and kissed it. “I have other mad skills though if you’d like
me to demonstrate. For instance, I can make you hot.”
He
placed her hands on his shoulders and busted out laughing when she snatched
them back with a horrified gasp. What the hell? He was glowing! The harder he
laughed, the more obvious the light became. She was trying to put some distance
between them, but he wouldn’t let her. Instead, he reclaimed her hands and
forced them flat against his chest.
He
scolded, “Uh-uh. You wanted answers. Man up and get them. The light is my saol. It’s our life force, technically.
You might consider it the source of my powers. You have one too; but yours
isn’t strong like mine is. Yours is human.” The teasing smile vanished. “Mine
isn’t. Anymore.”
He
wasn’t human? This was getting better and better! She seriously needed to put
some space between them. She couldn’t think straight.
He
pressed her hand harder against his chest. “Do you feel that? That’s my heart
beating just like yours does. Don’t be afraid of me, Rori. I’m here to protect
you. It’s what I do. I tried to tell you that before, but you didn’t want to
trust me then. Do you trust me now?”
That
was a good question. Did she?
She
studied the trees in the distance while she considered her answer. After all of
the crazy things that had happened in the past few months, she had to admit
he’d been there for her without asking for payment. Strangely enough, she
didn’t think he was insane anymore. “I do.”
“I’m
sensing a ‘but’.”
He
was really, really hard to resist. She brushed his bangs back from his eyes.
His mouth curled into a lopsided, sexy as all hell grin. The impact slammed all
the way to her toes.
“You
could melt butter with that smile. How do we mere mortals resist you?”
Flushing
an adorable shade of pink, he choked on his snappy comeback before clamping his
lips together in a line. Was he embarrassed? How cute was that? Grumbling under
his breath, he reached for his shirt, and she shocked them both by stopping
him.
“Wait!
I want to look at you.” Did I say that out loud? Crap.
He
shot her an incredulous look before dropping the shirt and pushing gracefully
to his feet. He moved so fast she scooted backwards with a girly cry of alarm.
The grin he wore this time was all heat, no humor. Slow, sexy… forget butter,
her entire body might combust. Before she could squeak out a protest, he
unsnapped his jeans and dropped them in a pile. Kicking out of them in a
movement that was so smoothly done he must’ve practiced it, he hauled her
upright with her mouth hanging open.
Not
an ounce of material in sight.
“Uh…
uh, Dec… I’m not sure--” She kept her eyes pasted on his chest. His muscles
were nicely shaped, hard, tanned... flat nipples begged for a kiss.
Oh,
yeah, he certainly looked human!
He
stood in full naked glory, daring her to look lower. He gave her that sexy grin
again. She backed up. He stalked forward until her back came up against the
granite boulder. His bare chest brushed her breasts. Something hot and velvety
brushed her belly. With her heartbeat pounding in her ears, she swallowed hard
and placed her hands on his forearms. The hard muscle blazed at her touch. He
had fine golden hair dusting across skin that she couldn’t resist caressing.
Soft…
“Admit
it. You wanted to know if I had all the correct equipment.” He was teasing her.
She could tell by the humor in his voice, but he was so right. At that moment,
she wanted to look down more than anything in the world.
He
turned around and said over his shoulder, “I’ve been told I have a nice ass.
What do you think?”
“Dec!
You’re horrible! I am not looking at
your ass!” But she couldn’t resist bursting into giggles at the lift of his
eyebrows.
“Are
you sure? I can stand here all day.”
“I’m
sure you can.” A wistful sigh slipped out when she snagged a peek at his butt.
Yum!
He
was beside her so fast he was a blur. Lifting her chin, he winked before
dropping a sweet kiss on her open mouth. “Don’t be so obvious. There’s time for
us to get naked and hump like bunnies later. Right now, you need to recover
your strength so you can keep up.”
With
that he stepped into his jeans while she focused on his hands. Capable. Smooth.
Hard. Those hands had nursed her, held her. How would they feel making love to
her?
SPECIAL OFFER:
The first book in the series, Primani, is currently FREE!
ABOUT THE AUTHOR:
Laurie Olerich is the author of the urban fantasy
romance series Primani. She loves to create guilty pleasures full of exciting
locations, roller coaster action, strong, quirky heroines, and steaming hot
heroes who’ll raise the temperature in any room you’re in! Paranormal romance?
Check! Urban fantasy? Check! Romantic suspense? Check! Her Primani series
combines the best of the three. When not plotting, writing, or fantasizing
about her next hero, she’s planning parties, traveling the world, and spending
lazy nights with her son, her Dal pals, and friends. Laurie spent most of her
life in the Northeastern United States and in Germany. She now lives in San
Antonio, Texas, with her son and Dalmatian duo, Domino and Rambo. Before throwing caution to the wind and
diving into a writing career, Laurie dedicated 20 years to a career spent
around men with guns and cool toys...this explains her obsession with both!
INTERNATIONAL GIVEAWAY
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E-copies of Call the Lightning, Stone Angels and Darkness Calling by Laurie Olerich
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