That was one function I hadn't been aware of. Leave it to a Dragon to give me a contact charm that doubled as a tracking device.
Oh, yeah. Did I forget to mention that Verin is the King of an undersea Dragon Court? It's just another reason we'd be a bad fit. I love the ocean—my mother is a Siren, I was practically born to love it—but I don't want to live in it. I can't; I have too many responsibilities on land, not the least of which were my commitments to my men; a Griffin, a Gargoyle, a Blooder (aka vampire), two Shining One kings, and a God (also a Shining One king). In other words, I was already connected to extremely powerful Beneathers, none of whom wanted to live underwater.
“Okay,” I had whispered to Verin.
He'd grunted and hung up. It was kind of his thing.
Now, I stood in the shallows, toes curling anxiously in the sand as I waited for a Sea Dragon to rise from the water like fucking Aphrodite.
He didn't disappoint.
Along with the tide, something a deeper blue than the waters of the Pacific crested. It lifted its massive head above the waves, trailing vivid orange whiskers in its wake. Reptilian lips pulled back to reveal teeth as long as my forearms and turquoise eyes with slit pupils flashed with magic. The beast dove, crimson fins cutting the water as its tail undulated up. One movement was all it took to bring him to shore. I watched the Blue Dragon shoot toward me like a missile, his body condensing and blurring through the lens of the water. By the time Verin reached me, he was in his human form.
And in only his human skin.
Verin rose from the sea; a glorious, god-like creature too beautiful and achingly exotic to call a man. His sleek muscles, narrow waist, and broad shoulders registered with me dimly. The indigo hair dripping down his sculpted chest also called for attention but even the thickening piece of flesh hardening between his corded thighs couldn't pull my gaze away from his.
Verin's turquoise eyes glowed and warmed to an even darker shade. Indigo. I had learned what that color indicated; a strong emotional response. Despite the powerful feelings riding him, Verin didn't speak, just made a satisfied sound as his arms closed around me. Our lips met and everything else ceased to exist. We lowered ourselves onto the sand. The waves lapped at our legs as Verin's body covered mine. I opened to him in every way, my arms drawing him closer.
“Get thefuck off my wife,” a voice growled furiously.
Grammar Giggles
And just for a little giggle, here are some grammar mistakes found during the editing of this book.
Correct Line: Slate eased up and grabbed my hip to pull me against him.
Giggle: Slate eased up and grabbed my hip to me me against him. (I read this out loud and couldn't stop laughing. It sounds like something kinky.)
Correct Line: “Your skin glows like a pearl in the night,” he murmured before lowering his head to suck my nipple into his mouth.
Giggle: “Your skin glows like a pearl in the night,” he murmured before lowering his head to suck my nipple into my mouth. (Now, that would be a trick, wouldn't it?)
Correct Line: A chance to see more of the surface world.
Giggle: A chance to sea more of the surface world. (This is funny because it's also punny.)
Correct Line: Verin's body was perfection.
Giggle: Verin's body body was perfection. (Hmm... I wonder what I was focused on.)
Editing is a rough job; our minds often fill in the correct word while we read and mistakes are difficult for even professional editors to spot. Please have mercy on all of us writers and editors and view errors with compassion and humor instead of derision. All we want to do is give you a wonderful reading experience, but we're only human.
Pronunciation Guide/ Character List
I'm trying to limit these to characters who appear in more than one book.
Aaro Devon: Gargoyle, Slate's older brother
Adam MacLaine: Human client
Aoide: E-da, Elaria's aunt and siren
Arnet: Are-net, Knight of Flourite
Ava: A-vah, Queen of Sapphire
Banning: Ban-ing, Gheara of the Kansas Gura
Barret: Bare-it, Commander of Chrysocolla Army
Binx Devon: Gargoyle, Slate's younger brother
Bran: Bran, King of Garnet
Branna: Bra-nah, Duchess of Jade
Carrick: Care-ick, Knight of Onyx
Cerberus: Ser-bur-us, Demi-god dog-shifter
Cyrus: King of Copper
Danyon: A leader of the Coral Court
Darcraxis: Dar-cracks-es Ex-God of Darkness, Water, and Earth.
Declan: Deck-lan, King of Alexandrite
Diana: Blooder of the Sofia Gura
Edmond: King of Jet
Eileen: I-lean, Queen of Copper
Elaria: Eh-lar-ee-ah, spellsinger
Finbar: Fin-bar, Duke of Sapphire
Gage Saeiqa: Gauge Sah-E-kah, griffin
Galen: Gay-lin, King of Sapphire
Garret: Gare-it, King of Topaz
Gerard: Jare-rod, Knight of Onyx
Giovanni Borgia: Blooder gheara
Hugh: Hew, Knight of Onyx
Isandra: I-san-dra, Queen of Diamond
Jack Armstrong: Loup
Jameson: Jay-meh-son, Knight of Fluorite
Janae: a mermaid
Jarlath: Jar-leth, King of Diamond
Jonah Malone: Human gangster
Kalliope: Kah-lie-oh-pee, Elaria's mother and a siren
Kean: Key-in, Knight of Howlite
Lorcan: Lore-can, King of Copper
Maeve: May-ve, Queen of Peridot
Moirin: Moy-rin, Queen of Tiger's Eye
Mrs Chadwick: Adam MacLaine's housekeeper
Niall, Nigh-all, King of Citrine
Odran: O-drawn, King of Howlite
Oonagh: Oooh-nah, Queen of Snowflake Obsidian
Parthalon: Par-tha-lawn, King of Jade
Quinlan: Kwin-lahn, Alchemist
Riona: Ree-oh-nah, Queen of Malachite
Sara: Sare-rah, pink tourmaline fey.
Shani: female sphinx
Shauna: Shah-na, Queen of Amethyst
Shevaun: Sheh-von, Queen of Chrysocolla
Slate Devon: Zone Lord of the Oregon Zone, gargoyle
Sorin Iliescu: Blooder King
Teagan: Tee-gan, Queen of Jet
Tell: Asrai of Sgáthan
Tír na nÓg: Tier-nah-n'awhg, Realm of the Fairies, the Land of Youth
Torin: Tore-in, King of Onyx
About the Author
Amy Sumida is the Internationally Acclaimed author of the Award-Winning Godhunter Series, the fantasy paranormal Twilight Court Series, the Beyond the Godhunter Series, the music-oriented paranormal Spellsinger Series, the superhero Spectra Series, and several short stories. Her books have been translated into several languages, have won numerous awards, and are bestsellers. She believes in empowering women through her writing as well as providing everyone with a great escape from reality. Her stories are full of strong women and hot gods, shapeshifters, vampires, dragons, fairies, gargoyles... pretty much
