Friday, April 25, 2014

Kick Off The Weekend With A Werewolf Romance!

This week is just chock full of exciting releases! Today I'm sharing with you werewolf goodness - Survive to Dawn, Book 3 of the London Undead. Don't be deterred by the fact it is #3 in a series. It can absolutely be read as a stand-alone.
The zombie epidemic in London has been contained, but that’s all the werewolf pack that protects the city has been able to manage. Danny, as pack medic, is concerned the epidemic isn’t showing any signs of slowing down. And that the pack’s Alpha is too focused on eliminating the deadly threat to consider working toward a cure. When a team of American scientists arrive, talking of a vaccine, Danny is quietly hopeful.

Deanna thought she was prepared for anything. But an argument with the London pack leaves her research team exposed and alone, on their own against countless hordes of the walking dead. Within hours, her colleagues are slaughtered…and it’s only because of Danny that she manages to get out alive.

Deanna unhinges Danny in every way, tempting him beyond reason. She also pushes him to face the one thing he’d been avoiding: his Alpha is wrong. Simply surviving isn’t the answer…it can’t be.
***
Excerpt:

Chapter One

Danny decided to give the humans two more minutes to argue their cause with Seth before he stepped in to save them from themselves. His alpha had a firm leash on his temper, but it was notoriously short. This particular group of scientists was clearly trying the limits of his patience.

“The cage is integral to our purposes, you see.” The old human kept his eyes down, his posture relaxed, and used no sudden hand gestures to punctuate his argument. No movements to trigger a defensive and potentially violent response. “We need tissue samples.”

“Plenty have been taken, but if you’re in need of more, our teams can hold the zombies.” Seth ground out his assurance.

True. Seth himself had held one or two of the mindless dead while Danny had taken the samples. As shapeshifters, they were immune to the zombie virus that could turn the human scientists into the very blighters they were trying to study.

“But if your people hold the zombies, they’ll kill them right away.” A young woman stepped forward, right up to the quarantine line, too fast in her urgency. Danny’s attention, as well as his alpha’s, fastened instantly on her. The British soldiers on the outside would’ve been too slow to stop her from crossing into London even though they were standing just a meter or two from her. She dropped her chocolate brown eyes a second late, but at least she’d remembered. Looking a werewolf in the eye was a challenge, aggressive behavior, especially when entering their territory. Werewolves, like all predatory shifters, tended to deal with such acts immediately and definitively. Primal instincts were an integral part of who they were. Anyone attempting to cross the quarantine line was supposed to receive a werewolf primer now, as the London pack had absolute authority within the city. Based on this team’s behavior and the relaxed attitude of the military guards, it might be time to look into reinforcing those. Luckily for the girl, Danny and his alpha had more control than most and could allow her the leeway.

Seth let loose a low growl. The color drained from her tanned face, but she held her ground even as a couple of the other scientists retreated a few steps. Several of the soldiers tightened their grips on their weapons.

Jumpy around the big bad wolves, eh?

They might be on constant guard on the quarantine line, but they didn’t have direct dealings with Seth often. Danny fought to keep a properly stern expression. Based on his alpha’s relaxed posture and the lack of anger in his scent, Seth was amused. But then, the both of them appreciated a woman with a spine. And this one was a right beauty to boot.

Medium height, a touch on the slender side, with the natural bronzing of someone who spent a lot of time outdoors someplace sunny. Her dark hair was pulled back in a serviceable ponytail but a few escaped strands framed her heart-shaped face. Very pretty. Though currently, her lips were pressed together in a thin line of stubborn determination.

“We need samples from the same specimen over time. Your people can’t eliminate the ones we catch right away. There’d be nothing left to test after the accelerated decomposition leaves us with just...potting soil.”

“Actually, what’s left after a zombie is well and truly dead is a bit drier than the stuff they use for plants.”

Danny scratched his chin, enjoying the woman’s surprise when he spoke up. Very focused, this lass. She forgot to lower her gaze. Since it didn’t prick his temper, he gave her a wink. “But then, nobody I know has been mad enough to try setting up a garden from the stuff. Might be worth a go, see if it’s actually good for something.”

She blinked. At the sight of her baffled expression, Danny could hold back no longer. He grinned at her.

Her gaze darted back and forth between him and Seth, but lingered on him. “Th-the hypothesis we’re testing revolves around the effect of our experiment over time, like I said. Samples from different individuals would skew the results, introduce unnecessary bias to the findings.” Deep rose stained her cheeks.

Good, the interest was mutual. “As much as I personally do enjoy the very lovely sound of science passing your lips, lass, it doesn’t change a hard and fast rule. If you’d have sent your study protocol on ahead to Brian, he’d have told you the same.”

Danny would’ve been interested to read it, regardless. Their experiment sounded structured more to test a potential treatment. The usual kill-the-zombies-instantaneously solutions the science-types had been trying to develop generally meant a one-time, lethal dose.

“The protocol and the related investigational drug product are proprietary.” She pressed her lips back together, just for an instant. “It wasn’t available for dissemination to anyone without top-level security clearance. Plus we require a signed nondisclosure agreement.”

The way she shaped words, took a breath as she was about to let loose a long sentence in one go... he liked it, wanted to coax her into a more in-depth conversation. The bigger the vocabulary, the better, as far as he was concerned.

Oy. Talk science to me. It’s a bit of a thing for me.

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