Legend 4 - Free Falling (28 page)

She watched as he left her and made for the village road only a short distance off. He turned to wave at her, and she felt a moment’s gratification, which she immediately chastised herself for feeling. In all probability, she would not see him again. His kiss had been a kiss goodbye, and his kiss was something she would remember forever, for she was fairly certain she would never receive another kiss quite like it from anyone else.

Here’s a sneak peek at Claudy’s upcoming paranormal romance,

Hungry Moon—Quicksilver (unedited)

Look for it at your favorite online bookseller

in late November, 2012

~ Prelude ~

There are more things in heaven and earth, Horatio,

Than are dreamt of in your philosophy.

—William Shakespeare,
Hamlet

In the Highlands, Scotland, where many honored their clans and chose to follow the old ways

1575

QUINN MACVANE HAD a great deal of weight on his shoulders, but those shoulders were huge and certainly capable of carrying the burden. The weight, however, was unlike any other he had ever lifted, and he was tired of constantly having to deal with it.

He was more than six months away from turning thirty and tired of the nagging as his birthday drew closer. He had to get out and away from it!

Mayhap he just needed a tussle with the pretty tavern wench, Sarah? Och, but he liked her full breasts. The notion of her naked body under him made him smile, and he felt his dick spring up, ready for action.

A crackle of twigs made him look around and hold his lantern up.

He had heard the rumors but had shrugged them off. He wasn’t concerned—why should he be?

He was a sorcerer with supreme powers, and had naught to fear.

Thus, he proceeded into the woods to take the shortcut to the town tavern. He grinned and hummed to himself, much like a boy at the thought of a few drinks with his friends and then a bit of fun with Sarah. She was a lovely, full-bodied woman …

He heard something.

His hearing was extraordinary, and it told him that something moved stealthy through the woods at his back.

Once again, he held up his lantern and looked around—not afraid, but wary, very wary, for he knew something evil was at his back.

He touched the silver-tipped sword in his belt. If something rabid was out there … it was time to put an end to it! And, bloody damn, he was just the man to do it. He would enact his shield and protect himself from getting bitten. He knew the dangers of a bite from a rabid beast.

Nothing in the woods moved towards him, and he started forward again.

His mother’s face flashed in his mind.

If only she would stop her nagging at him …

She was a dear heart, but he wasn’t ready to get married. She wanted grandchildren, something to fill the void and still the grief of his father’s passing. She wanted him to carry on the line.

He liked being single … and besides he wasn’t in love with anyone.

He had told her to leave him be.

He was not only the eldest but the only son, which she enjoyed reminding him. She wanted to keep Valdane in a direct line. If he didn’t have a son, the castle and the estate would go to his father’s brother. What she didn’t realize was
he didn’t care
. He loved his good uncle—why shouldn’t the estate go to him? These thoughts were once again interrupted, and Quinn MacValdane knew the creature was not only at his back, it had gained ground.

The first thing
that assailed him was the odor. Musky, and because his sense of smell was as good as his hearing, the scent of fresh, sweet blood assailed him. It was dripping saliva mixed with blood.

The second
thing that assailed him was the sound of the beast, the low, unthinking wild growl. It was primal and throttled hungrily with mindless rage.

The third
thing was the sure knowledge that this was something sinister, something otherworldly—more so much more than a rabid beast, more than a ‘werewolf’ that stalked him. It was more than near, it was too near to escape.

He would not be able to outrun it.

He felt its power vibrate in the air. He felt something else … sure now that this was not just a werewolf—he had seen the male members of his family face and kill a werewolf.
This was more.

Quinn MacVane did the only thing he could do.

He enacted a spell that enswathed him with a shield.
It should have been enough
. It should have set a circle the werewolf couldn’t cross—but he had been right. This was no ordinary were—this creature wielded Dark Magic.

Drooling saliva and blood from its recent kill, it stood on two legs, eyes wild with madness. It appeared as a huge werewolf, and it clawed the earth with feral ferociousness in the rays of the moon’s bright light.

Quinn’s mouth dropped, for he had never seen a werewolf of this size, and
this one had seen and targeted him!

Huge, nearly seven feet in height. This one was larger than the werewolves his clan had destroyed when he was still a boy. This one pulsated with more than power of muscle and size.

Quinn studied the were whose body was covered in what appeared to be more hair than fur. Its fangs were sharp as it snapped at the air, and violence governed its purpose.
It needed to tear and kill and usurp.

He could hear its thoughts …
devour … take … take
Quinn’s magic.

It knew his name
. How could the werewolf know his name?

He could detect nothing of the human in it. And yet, somehow, it seemed familiar, must be familiar if it knew his name?

This thing looked to be unmistakably insane, and yet Quinn fancied he saw purpose in its gold-lit eyes.

Would his white magic work against the beast?

It slashed right through the magical barrier Quinn had enacted.

He needed something darker to protect himself. He needed a ward, but there was no time. He had but one chance for survival.

The silver-edged short sword he was never without
.

He prepared himself for the were’s lunge and caught the beast directly in the center of its beating heart…

But even as the were roared with excruciating pain, even as it started to fall, even as death began to take it, the were’s jaws locked down on Quinn’s shoulder and bit, bit hard—and Quinn’s fate was sealed.

He was able to punch and beat the creature off and watched as it fell to the ground, rolled over onto its back, and began the transformation back into man.

He saw at once it was Whelan MacPoole, clan leader of the neighboring estate.
Husband to his mother’s sister
. They had never been friends throughout their family’s history. He should have known. He should have suspected. The signs had been there all along.

Quinn bent and took out his silver-tipped sword from the man’s heart and stood to look up at the stars as he closed his eyes.

He had been bitten.

About Claudy Conn

Claudy Conn, a native New Yorker, now lives with her husband, Bob; their wolf, Cherokee; and Cherokee’s son, Rocky Man, who weighs in presently at 190 pounds.

She loves horses and riding and raised her ten-year-old gelding Southern Pride from the moment he was born. She also loves gardening, swimming, skiing, hiking, and travel—and of course, reading, writing, but no, she says, no arithmetic!

To get her monthly news, her reviews for all her new paranormal romances, and excerpts, come on and visit her at her website:
http://www.claudyconn.com

To see pictures of Cherokee—and her shepherd-wolf son!—have a look at her Facebook page:

http://www.facebook.com/#!/pages/Claudy-Conn-Paranormal-Romance-Author/135826686471445

Read more about Claudy Conn’s books

Legend Series

Prince Prelude—Legend

In this stand-alone tale and the backstory for the Legend series, we find ourselves in 1814. Gais and the prince come head to head over a woman. We will see Lamia DuLaine when she first sees Julian Talbot, and we will meet the first Maxie Reigate. Come along and see their world unfold…

Spellbound—Legend

Maxie is a reluctant heroine who travels to Scotland to find and save herself. Julian is a Druid priest in a modern age, and he is full of guilt—Can Maxie turn to him? Or will she turn to Prince Breslyn, a Royal Fae hunk offering her everything?

Aaibhe—Shee Queen (Novelette)

This is a love story but it is fringed with envy, jealousy, and bitterness—oh and more. It is laced with the havoc those devastating emotions can bring. It is about the seeds of hate born of love, and what havoc that hate can wantonly roar over even immortals. This is a story of Aaibhe, Queen of the Seelie Fae, because she deserves that it be told.

Shee Willow—Legend

Half-human, half-Fae Willow Lang has never felt she truly fit in either world, but she’s doing her best to ignore her Fae nature. But when she finds herself in the middle of a conflict between the Seelie Fae and the evil Dark Fae, she must embrace her Fae powers in order to protect the Human world.

Prince in the Mist (Novella)

Fact one: By tradition and treaty, Fae do not interfere with the human world—it is against the rules. Fact two: For a Royal Fae prince who suffers from the ennui of immortality, watching and interacting with humans—especially lovely, spirited human females—can be entertaining. Fact three: When entertainment changes to affection, and affection becomes love, rules will be broken.

Trapped—Legend

Magical powers, a castle, and a charming prince sound like the ingredients for a fairy-tale life, but for BJ Mulroy, reality turns out to be a whole lot more complicated. The war between the Seelie and the Unseelie is heating up, BJ has been drawn into the fray … and there’s the matter of the seventeenth-century hunk in the painting.

Free Falling—Legend

They call her Z, and she is a handful ready to explode. She has entered the war against Gais and the Dark Fae and means to take him on all by herself. She is driven. Aaibhe, Queen of the Seelie Fae, has other plans, and she sends in Prince Danté to execute and preserve her wishes. When Z and the prince meet, hackles go up on both sides.

Catch & Hold—Legend

Half-human/half-Daoine Fae Radzia MacDaun—Z to her friends—finds herself in the Dark Realm, where she’ll have to fight Gaiscioch on his own turf. Danté, Prince of the Tuatha Dé and Z’s lover, is not about to let her face this danger alone, however, and the two of them are thrust on a ride that takes them to the edge of life as we know it …

Time Series

Through Time-Pursuit

Revenge is the driver. Will love be the equalizer in
Through Time-Pursuit
? Chance LeBlanc and Princess Royce are about to find out in this contemporary fantasy romance, picking up where
Catch & Hold—Legend
left off.

Shadow Series

ShadowLove—Stalkers

Shawna Rawley has no choice but to run when Pentim Rawley, one of the most evil vampires who has ever lived, discovers she is his daughter. Chad MacFare has an offer for Shawna he thinks she can’t afford to refuse: he’ll protect her from Pentim and his minions. But Shawna doesn’t trust the sexy immortal. She knows he has his own agenda—he wants to kill her father, and he wants to set her up as bait …

ShadowHeart—Slayer

Damon Drummond and Nikki Walker are on opposite sides. He is a potent vampire—she is a skilled and powerful vampire slayer. Problem right there … but when they look at each other, sparks of all kinds fly. Too much stands between them: He will live forever, she will not, and yet …

ShadowLife—Hybrid

WB and his clan have moved in, and section by section Dublin is going dark. When the team needs help, they turn to a shapeshifter, Roxie MacBran.

Risqué Regencies

Myriah Fire

Myriah Whitney wants thunder and lightning, not a proper courtship and a sensible marriage. Then circumstances lead to an encounter with the mysterious Lord Kit Wimborne—in his bed, with both of them naked, no less!—and the meeting is an explosion of wills that finally sets Myriah on fire  …

Oh, Cherry Ripe

Cheryl Elton has been in London for three seasons and refuses to be courted. When her mother takes matters into her own hands, Cherry runs!

Rogues, Rakes & Jewels

What happens when an eligible marquis pretends to be a rake and a gambler, and the woman he is supposed to be courting disguises herself as a masked French card dealer? Find out in this spicy, risqué Regency romance.

Taffeta & Hotspur

Hotspur wants Taffeta—how far will he go to make her his? Taffeta has a secret—will it land her in trouble?

Wildfire Kiss

Lady Babs is a rule-breaker, but has she met her match in Lord Wildfire?

Runaway Heart

Chelsea takes London by storm, but the only man she wants thinks she is no more than a child.