Frisky Friday - 1/15/16 - Deadly Enchantment - Delving into the soul #Paranormal #Shifters

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

It's Frisky Friday, and for A Writer's Naughty Thoughts, Fridays are also anything can happen days.

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 at the beginning of the third chapter, Dominic Westcroft has reason to suspect Serena Blanford, one of the guests his sister has invited for him to consider as a potential bride, possesses magical abilities she's trying to keep hidden.  Believing she may actually be a plant placed in his home by his treacherous brother, he decides to give her a purity validation test.

Serena has no idea what this "test" actually entails, but given the reaction of the other women who went through it, she knew it wasn't anything she wanted to experience.  Up until this point, she has successfully managed to keep both her and her cousin safe from having to undergo the ordeal, but now Westcroft is adamant they both submit.  When Serena declines, he advises his servant she will be leaving first thing in the morning. Knowing if she's sent away that she'll never be able to solve the mystery surrounding her sister's death, Serena agrees to have her purity "validated".  However, as they approach the room where the testing is taking place, Serena hears her cousin crying. She rushes in to comfort Allison only to learn a man had forced her cousin to drink a potion, which was in effect a truth serum for the spirit intended to expose those who intend harm through deceit. When Serena discovers the gentleman who attended Allison was not only Westcroft's brother-in-law, but a physician as well, she isn't the least bit reassured.

            Dominic kept his gaze fixed on Serena while Regina spoke encouragingly to the cousin and led her from the room.  He had no idea what he would have done if Serena had asked him to send for Frederick.  Though he had made the offer, a part of him firmly rejected the notion of another man touching her so intimately.  The strength of his reaction thoroughly puzzled him.  Frederick was a doctor, and a good one at that, but that knowledge did nothing to ease the knot that had formed in Dominic’s stomach.

            Needing to distance himself from Serena for a moment, he stepped over to a basin and washed his hands.  “Why don’t you recline back on the divan and try to relax,” he suggested without facing her.

            Serena wanted to ask him if he’d be able to relax had their positions been reversed, but her lips and tongue were too dry to form the words.  Instead, she sat on the sofa-like chair Allison had occupied just moments before, and asked, “Which trial do you perform first?  The drink or the physical examination?”

            He turned back to look at her.  “Does that matter?” he inquired evenly.

            “I suppose not,” she answered in a small voice, certain she would fail one if not the other.

            Grabbing a towel from a nearby rack, he regarded her carefully.  “Though Dr. Sinclair is one of the best physicians in England, he has no magical talents.”

            Serena stared down at her tightly clasped hands.  “What difference would that make to your validation process?”

            “Not much, I suppose,” he replied, rubbing his hands dry.  “Except that I do not need an herb to see into a person’s soul.”

            “Oh,” she answered, not sure if that revelation reassured or unsettled her even more.

            “I do not intend to hurt you, Serena,” he vowed quietly as he put the towel back on the rack.  When she didn’t reply, he firmed his tone and commanded, “Look at me.”

            She hesitated, then slowly lifted her chin until she evenly met his unblinking stare.  His blue eyes examined her so intently that his spirit seemed to traverse the space that separated them and delve into her mind through her eyes.  She wanted to draw back and hide, but she was pinned in place by nothing more than the strength of his gaze.  She felt trapped and comforted at the same time.  Jittery and calm.  Scared and reassured.  Then he closed his eyes, releasing her from his thrall.

Dominic Westcroft is determined to uncover his young guest's secrets even if it means "testing" Serena himself. He views her cousin merely as a means to his end.

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 wish you and yours a very Frisky Friday.