#SPeekSunday - 7/12/15 - Deadly Enchantment - A fate worse than death #Shifters #Paranormal

An unhappy shape shifter can be a dangerous companion....

For Sneak Peek Sunday authors share six paragraphs from a published work or a WIP (work in progress).

My excerpt for this week is from my 2nd book, Deadly Enchantment.  A shapeshifting wizard romance set in Victorian England published by New Concepts Publishing, 

In this snippet, which occurs in the middle of the second chapter, Dominic Westcroft has returned from London to discover his sister has invited several young women to his home, so he can select a new bride.  What neither he nor his sister suspects, however, is that one of the women is actually his deceased bride's sister.  Tormented by guilt over his wife's tragic and brutal death, Dominic has no intention of ever marrying again.  However, when his show of temper accidentally reveals one of their guests possesses magical abilities she's trying to keep hidden, he invites the ladies join him for dinner, so he can rout her out.

Though Serena is routed out during dinner, she manages to keep her true identity secret. After her close call with their host, however, she returns upstairs to speak with her cousin.

             “Perhaps,” Allison conceded after a long moment of hesitation.  “Even so, I don’t think I want to stay here any longer.”

            “I won’t ask you to stay if you really don’t want to, Allie, but think of what your mother will say if you return without the five hundred extra pounds she expects.”

            Allison shook her head.  Like Serena, she knew full well what her mercenary parent would say, and it wouldn’t be complimentary.  “I’m tired,” Allison admitted.  “Perhaps I should go to sleep and see how I feel tomorrow.”

            “A wise decision,” Serena concurred as she gave her cousin a kiss, then turned and headed to her own room.  Allison would remember the night as a fuzzy dream, and she alone would know the truth of what happened.  Serena didn’t sense any evil in Westcroft, but he wasn’t exactly house-trained either.  There was a chance that the white leopard that mauled her sister in her dreams could be just that--a figment of a terrified little girl’s nightmare.  He wasn’t at all what she expected him to be.  In truth, she didn’t know how she felt about the man now that she’d met him again.  And that unsettled her even more.

* * * *

            After his meeting with Serena, Dominic strode directly to his library and sent for his sister.  Regina had much to answer for, and he intended to see that she did, though what he’d told her about his thirtieth birthday had not been entirely correct.  When he was sixteen years old, Zaltasar had warned him that to complete his powers he would need to mate with a woman pure of spirit and body prior to his thirtieth birthday.  If he failed to do that, he would slip into a steady decline that would result in him not only losing his powers, but cause him to lose his mind as well.  In short, he would slowly go insane until he would eventually need to be locked up for his own welfare and that of others.

            The same would have held true for Terrence, but Terrence had fulfilled this particular obligation many years ago.  Marriage was not a requirement, just the deflowering of an innocent virgin was.  Dominic had had the opportunity, but he had never felt the inclination until he met Felicity.  He had only been seventeen years old then, and though the thought of making love to Felicity before he’d married her had appealed to his randy libido, he felt it would be disrespectful to her.

Though Dominic Westcroft suspects Serena has secrets she's not willing to share, he is determined to uncover the truth behind his young guest's deception, even if it means keeping the other women around as a ruse.

M/F, Shape shifting  wizards in Victorian England.

Read the first three chapters at: Deadly Enchantment

Available at NCP, Amazon, Barnes & Noble or ARe

Thanks for visiting.  I hope you enjoyed this brief excerpt and want more. Please click the link below to continue your hop Sneak Peek Sunday.  Wishing you a wonderful journey.