Hi, everyone! Today I have author April Zyon here as a guest. She's here to tell us about her new release.
Welcome, April! :)
THE GUNSLINGER’S GIFT
Guardians of the Light
4
Blurb:
The
moment Sophia Duffy met him she knew he was the one for her. She’s seen him in
her dreams for years, knew beyond a shadow of a doubt that they were fated for
one another. So when he shuns her Sophia doesn’t know what to do, expect to
leave.
As
a gun slinger James Butler “Wild Bill” Hickok has always lived by how fast he
can draw his weapon. Statistics, odds, and where the sun sits in the sky he
understands. But the pull of one woman on his heart, and soul he fears more
than any bullet flying his way.
They
only have one shot at forever. The Darkness is encroaching, pushing at them all
to make the wrong choice. James is running out of time to make the right call
when it comes to Sophia, or risk losing her forever and missing out on the
perfect love.
Purchase Links:
What’s the background
to the story?
Thank you for reading my series, Guardians of the
Light. This book is the fourth book of the series and revolves around Wild Bill
Hickok. I loved telling his story, especially after The Argonauts Fate where he
was introduced. His humor was contagious and Sophia, his VV (Vestal Virgin) is
as sweet and down to Earth as one can get.
PG EXCERPT:
Two
weeks after returning to The Mountain, James saw her again. Sophia Ann Duffy.
Pausing
in the corridor, he watched her walking and talking with her sister. They were
such opposites. Vivian was a bold woman, not just with her red hair and
take-charge attitude, but she had a presence about her that said she wouldn’t
take crap from anyone. She’d bonded with one of the oldest, yet still
functioning, Guardians, Jason.
When
they had found Vivian, she’d been on a story that had quickly led them to
hunting down Vivian’s sister on the job. The monsters had targeted Sophia
because she was one of the thirteen rarest women alive, a Vestal Virgin,
destined to bond with a Guardian.
There
was something about the dark haired beauty that called to him. Unfortunately,
if he focused on her too long, he ended up with a headache. One the medics were
stumped by, since there was absolutely no medical evidence to support it.
The
doctors might be clueless, but the other Guardians knew something. At least
that was his guess, given the looks he’d been getting from Gaius, Hector,
Jason, and Mercury. Even Alexander, who pretty much hated James’ guts, was
giving him that same knowing stare. They knew something, and they weren’t
telling him, which was seriously pissing him off.
Sighing,
he watched as Sophia disappeared around the corner of a corridor intersection,
and his headache let up. “What the fuck is going on?” he muttered to himself.
Giving
his head a shake, he continued on his way to the base’s main hub. He couldn’t
keep thinking about Sophia, no matter how often his mind went to her. She
didn’t seem to want to see him, so it really didn’t matter if he wanted to talk
to her. She avoided him all too well in a place he knew better than she ever
could.
“James,
about time,” Mercury said.
Acknowledging
their leader, James then nodded to Helen, their tech guru, and took a chair
near her. “So, what’s the news?”
“Eric
updated me early this morning. He’s found our guy again and is tracking him
now. He needs backup out there,” Mercury answered.
“So,
you’re shipping me back out to Miami?”
“No,
Alexander’s already departed to assist him. Gaius is having fits again,
understandable of course, but still, we need to keep an eye on him. He wants to
go out there, but we all know how that would end up.”
Yeah,
Gaius on a rampage to get the man responsible for Emily, his soul mate, being
hurt wouldn’t go well. Godzilla had nothing on Gaius when he got his back up
about something and went looking to kill someone.
“So,
I’m here why?” James asked. He didn’t get why he’d been summoned, especially
since he’d been off training. Mercury didn’t interrupt training for any reason.
“You
and I need to talk.” Mercury moved to the door and shot James an expectant
look.
Groaning
softly, James rolled his eyes and followed the man. They went through the halls
to Mercury’s office, where James took the chair he was pointed to. “What do we
need to talk about?”
“About
you getting your head out of your ass and seeing what’s right in front of you.”
“Huh?”
“It’s
been two weeks since you got back, and while I agreed at the time with the
others to keep my nose out of it, enough is enough.”
“Again,
I’m going to have to go with ‘huh’?”
“You
and Sophia. Deal with it, sooner rather than later,” Mercury said.
“There’s
nothing to deal with, Merc. She’s a great girl and all, but she wants nothing
to do with me. Which, given how my head practically explodes with pain any time
I’m near her, it’s probably a good thing she’s avoiding me like she is.”
Mercury
shot James a look and scraped a hand through his hair. “I can’t believe you
have no clue,” he muttered. “Do you remember what I told you about the
medallion when I brought you back?”
“Yeah,
don’t let anyone shatter it, as it’s as effective as having my head removed.
Which, in my case, is pretty much the same thing.” James was obviously missing
a key point, though, because Mercury was giving him a look that called him an
idiot nine ways of Sunday.
“There
was more to it than that. It wasn’t that long ago, and even with the brain
damage you suffered, you should remember it.”
Frowning,
James thought back. The medallion would give him life as long as it wasn’t
shattered, or he didn’t lose his head. It would help to guide him to stay in
the light, but couldn’t override his own needs and wants. If he gave into the
darkness that surrounded them then he’d become one of the Evil Ones.
Then,
it hit him. It would direct him to the one woman in all the world that was
his—his heart, his light, his soul mate. “Shit,” he breathed out. Sophia Duffy
was his soul mate.
And
he’d pretty much done everything in his power to drive her away because of the
headaches. The headaches! He let out
a groan and pressed a hand to his eyes. No other Guardian had a medallion in
their head. It made sense all of a sudden. He was getting the headaches because
the medallion was trying to draw him to her.
“There
we go,” Mercury said. “I knew all you’d need was a nudge.”
“Fucking
hell, Merc. Why didn’t someone point it out sooner? She hates my guts right
now. I did everything I could to push her away, and I succeeded. She won’t get
within more than thirty feet of me anymore.”
“Well,
then, you have a hell of a lot of work to do. I’d watch out for Vivian, though.
She’s a very protective older sister, and Jason’s been teaching her hand-to-hand
combat tactics. While you might beat her on the draw, I figure she’ll take you
down out of sheer determination and whatever women have that makes them
stronger than we men could ever hope to be.”
Mercury
got to his feet and came around the desk. “Now, get out of my office and figure
out how to win your woman back. Soon, too, or she might just be handed off to
another Guardian by whatever power lays within the medallion.”
“Can
that happen?” James asked, in sudden horror.
“Hell
if I know, but it’s a power beyond anything I understand. It might just decide
you’re not worthy of her and give her to someone that will actually treasure
her for the gift she is. And that may very well mean you’re out of luck,
permanently.”
“Shit,”
James whispered. Popping up to his feet, he got out of there quickly. No way in hell am I losing my only hope at
staying in the light to another Guardian. The mere thought of Sophia being
touched by another man made his stomach turn. She was his.
Stopping,
he looked around. Now, he had one major problem and a minor obstacle, getting
Sophia to speak to him again so he could apologize and avoiding being gutted by
her sister. He’d seen the looks that Vivian had been shooting his way, and now,
he understood them.
Excerpt R
“Touch
yourself, honey. Play with your clit. Learn your own body, and its responses.”
He cupped her breast in his free hand, pinching and rolling her nipple.
Sophia
did just that. She slid her hand down her body, over his that was working in
and out of her, and rubbed her thumb over her clit.
“That’s
it, Soph.” He pulled his fingers from her body, laced them through hers, and
pressed a digit from each of their hands back inside her. “Feel how hot, how
wet, you are, Sophia. You’re so slick, so ready to accept anything and
everything we do together.”
“Yes.”
She was, too. “Jesus. Please, James.” She was desperate for more. “I want you
inside of me. Love me,” she begged.
“I
do love you, with everything I have in me.” He drew their fingers from her body
again and grabbed her hips. Lifting her up, he poised her over himself. “Guide
me into your pussy, Sophia. Take hold of my cock and help me slip into your
sweet, little body.”
Reaching
between them, Sophia closed her hand over his thick shaft. “Holy hell,” she
moaned. “You’re so hard.” She adjusted herself, her thumb still stroking over
her own clit, and sobbed while bracing her other hand on his arm. “You feel so
good.”
He
let her slide down his cock slowly, one of his hands moving up to cup her
breast and pull her back to his chest. “You’re in the position to move, to
control what we do, Sophia. Move your legs so you can use them to lift and
lower yourself on me.”
She
moved experimentally up then down on him and sobbed back a sigh of pure,
intense pleasure. “Holy hell,” she moaned again.
“Nice
and slow, Soph. Take your time, honey. We have all the time in the world. It’s
just you and I, here in this moment, enjoying one another.” He gave her breast
a gentle squeeze, flicking her nipple as he caught her free hand. Sliding it
down her body, he pressed it to where they were joined.
“That
feels so good.” She rocked back and forth on him, shivering in reaction to his
touches. “There, that feels good.” She was moving slowly now, taking his advice
and simply loving every single part of their union.
“It
should always feel good between us, Soph. No matter what we do, no matter how
we do it, it should always be fucking amazing when we come together.” James
pressed a kiss to her neck, her shoulder, and scraped his teeth lightly over
her skin.
“Couldn’t
agree more.” She was rocking faster now, her actions just a bit rougher.
“James.” She felt that feeling in the pit of her stomach, of the butterflies
threatening to burst free and take flight. “What is this?” Her pussy tightened
against his cock. “Please.”
“It’s
your orgasm, Sophia. Ride it all out. Let it break free. Just let it consume
you. I’ll be right here to catch you when you fall. I’ll always be here to
catch you, honey.” He was rocking his hips, driving his cock through her folds
faster, taking her higher and higher. “Let go and scream for me, honey.”
Sophia
moved harder and faster on him. She didn’t stop. She needed this every single
bit as much from him as he needed it from her. “There,” she sobbed, and with
her head falling back, she screamed his name let her release break free.
His
arm held her tight to his body as he rubbed her clit, drawing her climax out.
Over and over, he slammed into her body until he finally stilled deep inside of
her. His teeth latched onto her shoulder as he growled out her name and heat
flooded her sheath in long splashes.
Sophia
screamed out his name a second time. She liked the way that heated moisture
felt when he tightened like that. “Gods,” she whimpered. “Was that your
orgasm?” she asked, as she collapsed against him. “Heavens, that was so very,
very good. I think we need to do that a lot.”
“Was
what, what?” James sounded confused. And more than a little dazed. “Damn,
woman, I think you might have killed me.” He laughed softly, hugging her close
to him as he pressed kisses along her throat and jaw.
“The
heat that I feel inside of me. Was that your orgasm?” she asked again with a
smile and rubbed her cheek to his shoulder. “I like it. If you’ve been killed,
then I’m dead too.”
Author
bio:
Having been a lover of the written word all her life April
has always wanted to expand her horizons and write something that could be
shared with the world. Only one thing held April back, the fact that the
letters and numbers mixed and jumbled more often than not. Diagnosed with
Dyslexia when she was eight years old April had to work her butt off just to be
able to keep up with the other kids in reading and writing, so her love for
fictional writing was tossed to the wayside for the moment.
Time marched on, as it always does, and she forgot her
childhood dream of becoming an author and instead focused on what she had to -
creating a career for herself.
As the endless waves of time passed the shores became less
rocky and more sandy, a place where she could find an even foot. That and
Microsoft invented Word. Hallelujah.
This is where April began her journey into the written
world, the world that her imagination had been ceaselessly creating for her
entire adult life.
Now she has been given a chance to let her literary wings
unfold and fly, thanks to her amazing publishers.
Now its time to let the dream take flight and watch it
soar!
*** I also write for Evernight Publishing, and
coming soon, Loose Id. I have an alter-ego as well, Honor
James, and under that name I write for Siren Publishing exclusively.
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