Never Let You Go ~ Christmas Eve Tease!
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You know it must be Christmas Eve when I'm dishing out a tease as big as the one below!
I can't recall if I told you Never Let You Go is scheduled to release January 30, 2014!!
Now take a peek at Nickoli and Skye...
*This is a draft and may be edited before publication*
Frustrated, I scooted to the edge of the bed
and stood. His arm shot out as dizziness plagued me but I waved him off as I
veered towards the window. A thought crossed my mind and I leaned against the
cool stone wall peering out at the late afternoon sky.
“I
can’t trust you.” The words came out as soft as a sigh.
The creak of the bed warned me Nickoli had
stood. I scanned the landscape beyond my window as I tried to gather my wits.
The sounds of the people as they worked and moved about the bailey rose to the
second floor of the castle and into my room. They drowned out Nickoli’s footsteps as he moved
towards me. It wasn’t until he was close enough for me to feel his heat, his
tension, at my back that I knew he was there.
“Why?”
He asked.
My shoulders stiffened at his question. I
straightened and twirled around on my slippered foot to confront him. I
expected him to be angry with me but what I found was hurt. He was sad, too sad
in my opinion, and suspicion automatically reared its ugly head within me.
“Why
do I not trust you?” I scoffed. “What is your angle Nickoli. What are you
after?”
He stepped back, putting distance between
us, as he blew out a breath of frustration. “My angle?”
“Yes,
your angle. Your plan. You must have a plan in mind where I’m concerned? You
don’t expect me to believe you were really looking for me just to bring me home?”
“There
is no angle, Skye. I brought you here because you wanted answers. You got
your answers and you do not like them so, what? You have decided not to trust
me because of it?”
“I’ve
never trusted you. And there are so many answers missing right now.”
“What
do I have to do to earn your trust?”
“I
don’t know.” I shrugged with a sigh.
The hurt look returned to his green eyes.
His lips pursed tightly as he walked out of my room without another word. A
tear slid down my cheek as I watched his back. It was an angry tear, tension
always made me cry. A loud clamor came from Nickoli’s room, but I didn’t
move. The clatter of metal echoed through our quiet hall. His heavy boots
sounded outside my door and I watched the entrance curiously, as I waited for
his return.
Nickoli’s arms were laden with weapons as he came
into view. He stepped in, uninvited, and opened his arms, allowing each deadly
piece to descend to the ground with an ear splitting clang. I jumped back as
the items ricocheted across the floor, a club rolled to a stop by my feet.
Nickoli bent over and picked up a sword. He
approached me, a menacing look on his face, and a flash of terror tore through
me. The temptation to scream was strong however, I knew it wouldn’t do me any good. If his
intension was to kill me the deed would be long done before my cries for help
would be answered. If they were answered
at all. I kept my focus on the sharp tip of the sword as he advanced on me.
“If
you choose not to trust me you will have to protect yourself.”
He raised the sword, the hilt gripped in
his fist, then hurled it into the floor at my feet. The tip embedded into the
wood with a thud. I yelped, and
jumped back. With an angry glare, he turned to storm out of the room leaving
the pile of weapons scattered about the floor.
“I
don’t know how to fight with a sword,” I called out, my voice void of the angry
bluster it’d carried earlier.
He didn’t stop, but instead replied over his
shoulder as his long strides carried him out the door. “Then Princess you best learn how.”
The slam of his door signaled the end of
our conversation.
My family celebrates Christmas so we want to wish you a very Merry one...
Whatever it is you celebrate this season I hope and pray you have a wonderful time with family and friends!