Have you ever been…TORMENTED?
A woman is thrust into and left unaccompanied in a world far different from that to which she's accustomed. A hero is dealt two tasks -- cure a malady that current medical science cannot and gain the trust of a woman who's been repeatedly wronged by the man in whom she once placed the utmost faith
TORMENTED...the truth will be revealed
Hot…Hedonistic…Historical
Available now at Ellora's Cave
Click here for ordering information and another excerpt
A froth of ruffles spilled down the doctor’s shirtfront. No doubt, from his change in demeanor, he found traipsing about the world in search of treasure a folly.
And who was she to disagree with such wisdom?
She’d come here to rid her body of its poison, not to discuss expeditions.
Eve swallowed past the grip in her throat and turned to Doctor Galletiére. “What is it you need to know?”
The doctor’s morose expression melted. Charles reached for her with his left hand, the palm facing upward and his arm bouncing as he weighed the thick air surrounding them. “When did you first notice the wound?”
A hundredweight held her tongue but a swallow loosened it. “Two days ago. A light red spot appeared on my lower leg. Since then the color has deepened and the area become quite tender.”
Charles’ hand lowered, gently brushing her hip. Despite the layers of material separating her flesh from his fingers an undeniable heat flared between them in that instant.
Heat, more intense than when she’d tipped her toe into the bathwater poured straight from their Boston servant Madeline’s kettle. She shifted position. The full skirt was all that separated her from his touch.
A skilled touch.
The touch of a man.
A man who provoked her body and mind more than any other she’d ever met.
Unseen fingers plucked below her belly while yet others pawed her will and poked her soul.
Unsettling to be in his presence. Certainly.
“Such a Christian woman, your daughter.” Ice crystals collected around Doctor Galletiére’s words.
Hard to tell how but he seemed to know more about her than most. And he spoke the truth. She had served as a Christian influence and teacher for those poor bedeviled souls on the continent. Endured many sleepless nights. Touched herself in places most would consider forbidden. Wondered what other women of her age had experienced with men. Men like robust Charles Galletiére.
Charles nudged her foot with his.
A flame leaped from her belly and licked at her throat. A diviner of thoughts, no doubt. There were some in the jungles who claimed the same gift.
Their ceremonies were more about sending up smoke to the heavens and incessant prodding into personal matters of those who sought them than the usurpation of actual thoughts.
She’d never tasted a man’s kiss—unless she counted the embarrassing buss from her first cousin Frederick one summer long ago.
Charles laid his hand on her knee, his fingertips warming the silk of her most becoming traveling dress. “I really should examine her leg. But it would not do to display her so boldly. You gentlemen are welcome to stay a short while and enjoy a cup of tea or other repast. However I must tend to Eve before the hours progress. I’ll have her things brought inside.”
Wishing you all many happy reading moments,
Shawna Moore
TORMENTED – Ellora’s Cave
ROUGHRIDER – Ellora’s Cave Exotika
HELLE IN HEELS – Ellora’ s Cave Exotika
2 comments:
Sounds interesting!
Good excerpt, Shawna. :)
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