Ladyfish (32 page)
“I love you.”
“I love you too, baby.”
Oz wrapped her arms around Finn and sighed contentedly as they settled against each other.
“You know that you’re my one, don’t you, Oz?”
Oz remembered the conversation. “One face next to yours on the pillow. One name on your lips.” She nodded and kissed Finn gently, the tender passion entwining their souls. “For the rest of my life, baby.”
Five weeks later
The house buzzed with activity. Loud complaints and groans came from the den as Oz and her cousins watched football. The smell coming from the kitchen where Ellie, Mrs. Richmond, and Oz’s Aunt Alex were cooking made Finn’s mouth water as she headed down the hall. The ringing bell stopped her and she opened the door to a well-dressed man.
“Ms. Finsbury-Sterling?”
“And you are?”
He held out his hand. “I’m Andrew Whittaker. I work for Interpol. I need your help.”
Finn stared at his hand before looking him in the eye. “And what do you need my help with?”
He dropped his hand, shrugging slightly as he did so. “I’m in charge of a task force trying to apprehend Masood Mehalik.” He waited, an expectant look on his face.
“Am I supposed to know who that is?”
“He’s the man your father was selling biological weapons to.”
Finn started to turn away. “I’m not inter—”
He caught her arm to stop her from walking away and closing the door. “I really need your help. Two scientists in the last three months have been murdered. Scientists who specialize in genetic engineering, and I have reason to believe it’s because Mehalik is trying to re-create Balor.”
“I’m even less interested.”
“I have reason to believe that it’s only a matter of time before he tries to convince you to help him.”
“I would never—”
“Take your hand off her.” Oz’s voice was low and menacing as she clapped a hand on his shoulder. He released Finn’s arm.
“Sorry, I didn’t mean anything by it. Please, I just need a few minutes of your time.” He pushed his fingers through his short, sandy-colored hair. “Mehalik isn’t the kind of man to say no to, Ms. Finsbury-Sterling. He can be very persuasive.”
“And I can be very stubborn.”
He pulled a photograph out of his pocket and handed it to her. “This is what happened to the last stubborn person Mehalik met.” He handed her another picture. “And this is what happened to his family.”
Finn looked at the picture and swallowed back the bile that rose in her throat. Oz snatched the pictures out of her hand and tossed them back at him.
“What kind of bastard are you?”
“I want to stop this from happening to you!”
“How?”
“I want you to take over your father’s company.”
“Why?”
“Mehalik knows that you developed the technique that made Balor possible. He’s confident you can do this. He wants to believe it, so I want you to let him. We know he’s been looking for you. It’s just a matter of time before he finds you. If you take over the company, he’ll know how to reach you. And we need him to do so.”
“Again, why?”
“We can’t find him and he is determined to unleash this on the world. You know what that will do.”
Finn felt her knees buckle and only Oz’s hands kept her on her feet as she fought back the urge to throw up. “It’s supposed to be over.”
A Stockport (near Manchester, UK) native, Andrea took her life in her hands a few years ago and crossed the great North/South divide and now lives in Norfolk with her partner, their two border collies, and two and a half cats (one isn’t sure if she wants to be theirs anymore, as the lady down the street feeds her Whiskas rather than whatever is on offer at the supermarket, like they do!). Andrea spends her time running their campsite and hostel to pay the bills and scribbling down stories during the winter months.
Andrea is an avid reader and a keen musician, playing the saxophone and the guitar (just to annoy her other half—apparently!). She is also a recreational diver and takes an opportunity to head to warmer climes and discover the mysteries of life beneath the waves!
Ladyfish
by Andrea Bramhall. Finn’s escape to the Florida Keys leads her straight into the arms of scuba diving instructor Oz as she fights for her freedom, their blossoming love…and her life! (978-1-60282-747-9)
Spanish Heart
by Rachel Spangler. While on a mission to find herself in Spain, Ren Molson runs the risk of losing her heart to her tour guide, Lina Montero. (978-1-60282-748-6)
Love Match
by Ali Vali. When Parker “Kong” King, the number one tennis player in the world, meets commercial pilot Captain Sydney Parish, sparks fly but not from attraction. They have the summer to see if they have a love match. (978-1-60282-749-3)
One Touch
by L.T. Marie. A romance writer and a travel agent come together at their high school reunion, only to find out that the memory of that one touch never fades. (978-1-60282-750-9)
Night Shadows: Queer Horror
edited by Greg Herren and J.M. Redmann.
Night Shadows
features delightfully wicked stories by some of the biggest names in queer publishing. (978-1-60282-751-6)
Secret Societies
by William Holden. An outcast hustler, his unlikely “mother,” his faithless lovers, and his religious persecutors—all in 1726. (978-1-60282-752-3)
The Raid
by Lee Lynch. Before Stonewall, having a drink with friends or your girl could mean jail. Would these women and men still have family, a job, a place to live after…The Raid. (978-1-60282-753-0)
The You Know Who Girls
by Annameekee Hesik. As they begin freshman year, Abbey Brooks and her best friend, Kate, pinky swear they’ll keep away from the lesbians in Gila High, but Abbey already suspects she’s one of those you-know-who girls herself and slowly learns who her true friends really are. (978-1-60282-754-7)
Wyatt: Doc Holliday’s Account of an Intimate Friendship
by Dale Chase. Erotica writer Dale Chase takes the remarkable friendship between Wyatt Earp, upright lawman, and Doc Holliday, southern gentlemen turned gambler and killer, to an entirely new level: hot! (978-1-60282-755-4)
Month of Sundays
by Yolanda Wallace. Love doesn’t always happen overnight; sometimes it takes a month of Sundays. (978-1-60282-739-4)
Jacob’s War
by C.P. Rowlands. ATF Special Agent Allison Jacob’s task force is in the middle of an all-out war, from the streets to the boardrooms of America. Small business owner Katie Blackburn is the latest victim who accidentally breaks it wide open but may break AJ’s heart at the same time. (978-1-60282-740-0)
The Pyramid Waltz
by Barbara Ann Wright. Princess Katya Nar Umbriel wants a perfect romance, but her Fiendish nature and duties to the crown mean she can never tell the truth—until she meets Starbride, a woman who gets to the heart of every secret, even if it will be the death of her. (978-1-60282-741-7)
The Secret of Othello
by Sam Cameron. Florida teen detectives Steven and Denny risk their lives to search for a sunken NASA satellite—but under the waves, no one can hear you scream… (978-1-60282-742-4)
Dreaming of Her
by Maggie Morton. Isa has begun to dream of the most amazing woman—a woman named Lilith with a gorgeous face, an amazing body, and the ability to turn Isa on like no other. But Lilith is just a dream…isn’t she? (978-1-60282-847-6)
Andy Squared
by Jennifer Lavoie. Andrew never thought anyone could come between him and his twin sister, Andrea…until Ryder rode into town. (978-1-60282-743-1)
Finding Bluefield
by Elan Barnehama. Set in the backdrop of Virginia and New York and spanning the years 1960–1982, Finding Bluefield chronicles the lives of Nicky Stewart, Barbara Philips, and their son, Paul, as they struggle to define themselves as a family. (978-1-60282-744-8)
The Jetsetters
by David-Matthew Barnes. As rock band The Jetsetters skyrocket from obscurity to super stardom, Justin Holt, a lonely barista, and Diego Delgado, the band’s guitarist, fight with everything they have to stay together, despite the chaos and fame. (978-1-60282-745-5)
Strange Bedfellows
by Rob Byrnes. Partners in life and crime, Grant Lambert and Chase LaMarca, are hired to make a politician’s compromising photo disappear, but what should be an easy job quickly spins out of control. (978-1-60282-746-2)
Speed Demons
by Gun Brooke. When NASCAR star Evangeline Marshall returns to the race track after a close brush with death, will famous photographer Blythe Pierce document her triumph and reciprocate her love—or will they succumb to their respective demons and fail? (978-1-60282-678-6)
Summoning Shadows: A Rosso Lussuria Vampire Novel
by Winter Pennington. The Rosso Lussuria vampires face enemies both old and new, and to prevail they must call on even more strange alliances, unite as a clan, and draw on every weapon within their reach—but with a clan of vampires, that’s easier said than done. (978-1-60282-679-3)
Sometime Yesterday
by Yvonne Heidt. When Natalie Chambers learns her Victorian house is haunted by a pair of lovers and a Dark Man, can she and her lover Van Easton solve the mystery that will set the ghosts free and banish the evil presence in the house? Or will they have to run to survive as well? (978-1-60282-680-9)
Into the Flames
by Mel Bossa. In order to save one of his patients, psychiatrist Jamie Scarborough will have to confront his own monsters—including those he unknowingly helped create. (978-1-60282-681-6)
Coming Attractions: Author’s Edition
by Bobbi Marolt. For Helen Townsend, chasing turns to caring, and caring turns to loving, but will love take five steps back and turn to leaving? (978-1-60282-732-5)
OMGqueer
, edited by Radclyffe and Katherine E. Lynch. Through stories imagined and told by youth across America, this anthology provides a snapshot of queerness at the dawn of the new millennium. (978-1-60282-682-3)
Oath of Honor
by Radclyffe. A First Responders novel. First do no harm…First Physician of the United States Wes Masters discovers that being the president’s doctor demands more than brains and personal sacrifice—especially when politics is the order of the day. (978-1-60282-671-7)
A Question of Ghosts
by Cate Culpepper. Becca Healy hopes Dr. Joanne Call can help her learn if her mother really committed suicide—but she’s not sure she can handle her mother’s ghost, a decades-old mystery, and lusting after the difficult Dr. Call without some serious chocolate consumption. (978-1-60282-672-4)
The Night Off
by Meghan O’Brien. When Emily Parker pays for a taboo role-playing fantasy encounter from the Xtreme Encounters escort agency, she expects to surrender control—but never imagines losing her heart to dangerous butch Nat Swayne. (978-1-60282-673-1)
Sara
by Greg Herren. A mysterious and beautiful new student at Southern Heights High School stirs things up when students start dying. (978-1-60282-674-8)
Fontana
by Joshua Martino. Fame, obsession, and vengeance collide in a novel that asks: What if America’s greatest hero was gay? (978-1-60282-675-5)
Lemon Reef
by Robin Silverman. What would you risk for the memory of your first love? When Jenna Ross learns her high school love Del Soto died on Lemon Reef, she refuses to accept the medical examiner’s report of a death from natural causes and risks everything to find the truth. (978-1-60282-676-2)
The Dirty Diner: Gay Erotica on the Menu
, edited by Jerry L. Wheeler. Gay erotica set in restaurants, featuring food, sex, and men—could you really ask for anything more? (978-1-60282-677-9)
Sweat: Gay Jock Erotica
by Todd Gregory. Sizzling tales of smoking hot sex with the athletic studs everyone fantasizes about. (978-1-60282-669-4)