Dark of the Moon
Jim Hewitt has earned his living as a vampire hunter his whole adult life, until one fateful night when the hunter becomes the hunted. Now a fledgling vampire trying to accept his new life, he changes his name to Travis Black and moves to Susandale, a small town with a secret.
In an effort to avoid marrying the man her wealthy parents have chosen for her, Sara Winters makes a deal with her father—if she can’t provide for herself for one year, she will agree to marry Dilworth Young III. To that end, she moves to Susandale and opens a bath boutique.
Travis and Sara would likely have never met if Travis hadn’t chosen her as his prey. Was it mere coincidence that brought the two of them to the same sleepy little town? Or a happy twist of Fate?
BOOKS BY AMANDA ASHLEY
“Born of the Night” in Stroke of Midnight
“Midnight Pleasures” in Darkfest
“Music of the Night” in Mammoth Book of Vampire Romance
A Darker Dream
A Fire in the Blood
A Whisper of Eternity
After Sundown
As Twilight Falls
Beauty’s Beast
Beneath a Midnight Moon
Bound by Blood
Bound by Night
Dark of the Moon
Dead Perfect
Dead Sexy
Deeper Than the Night
Desire After Dark
Desire the Night
Donovan’s Woman
Embrace the Night
Everlasting Desire
Everlasting Embrace
Everlasting Kiss
His Dark Embrace
Immortal Sins
Jessie’s Girl
Maiden’s Song
Masquerade
Midnight and Moonlight
Midnight Embrace
Night’s Kiss
Night’s Master
Night’s Mistress
Night’s Pleasure
Night’s Promise
Night’s Surrender
Night’s Touch
Quinn’s Lady
Quinn’s Revenge
Sandy’s Angel
Seasons of the Night
Shades of Gray
Sunlight Moonlight
The Captive
The Music of the Night
Twilight Desires
Twilight Dreams
Dark of the Moon
Amanda Ashley
Dark of the Moon
Copyright © 2020 Amanda Ashley
All rights reserved.
This edition published 2020
Cover design by Cynthia Lucas
ISBN: 978-1-68068-222-9
The characters and events portrayed in this book are fictitious. Any similarity to real persons, living or dead, is coincidental and not intended by the author.
No part of this book may be reproduced or stored in a retrieval system, or transmitted in any form or by any means, electronic, mechanical, photocopying, recording or otherwise, without express written permission of the publisher.
This book is published on behalf of the author by the Ethan Ellenberg Literary Agency.
You can reach the author at:
Email: [email protected]
Website: www.amandaashley.net OR www.madelinebaker.net
Dedication
To my readers ~ thank you for your friendship through the years. I appreciate your letters, comments and support.
Table of Contents
Prologue
Chapter 1
Chapter 2
Chapter 3
Chapter 4
Chapter 5
Chapter 6
Chapter 7
Chapter 8
Chapter 9
Chapter 10
Chapter 11
Chapter 12
Chapter 13
Chapter 14
Chapter 15
Chapter 16
Chapter 17
Chapter 18
Chapter 19
Chapter 20
Chapter 21
Chapter 22
Chapter 23
Chapter 24
Chapter 25
Chapter 26
Chapter 27
Chapter 28
Chapter 29
Chapter 30
Chapter 31
Chapter 32
Chapter 33
Chapter 34
Chapter 35
Excerpt from Night’s Illusion
Excerpt from Dead Perfect, 2013
About the Author
About the Publisher
Prologue
The dream came every day and it was always the same. And even as it unfolded, never changing, the man who had once been known as Jim Hewitt wished it was just that, nothing but a dream …
He had followed the vampire known as Ronan and the woman, Shannah, home, intent on destroying the one and rescuing the other. And he had come so close. Armed with a bottle of holy water and a sharp wooden stake, he had attacked Ronan as they arrived at his lair. The holy water had done its job, burning the vampire’s face, giving Hewitt the window of opportunity he needed to drive the stake into the vampire’s back. The scent of fresh hot blood wafted through the night.
He hollered at Shannah to run away while she could.
But Shannah didn’t run away. With a scream of rage, she grabbed him by the arm.
Startled, he glanced at her. “What are you doing?”
“Stopping you!” She yanked his hand away from the stake, her fingers curling around his wrist in an iron-like grip.
“Are you crazy?” Hewitt exclaimed. “He’s a vampire!”
“Yes!” she hissed, baring her fangs. “And so am I.”
Startled, he could only stare at her, and then he lashed out as fear and fury swept through him.
She laughed as he struggled in vain to free himself from her hold. And then she trapped his gaze with hers. “Stop fighting me,” she commanded.
Unable to resist the preternatural power in her voice, his arms fell limply to his sides. Helpless to move, he watched her drop to her knees beside Ronan and yank the stake from his back. A torrent of dark red blood flowed from the nasty wound.
And then the vampire sat up and uttered the most chilling words Jim Hewitt had ever heard.
“Bring him to me.”
The nightmare grew worse from that point on. Shannah released him from her spell and dragged him effortlessly toward the wounded vampire. Fear spiraled through Hewitt as he gazed into Ronan’s blood-red eyes.
“I warned you,” the vampire said. “You should have listened.”
Hewitt struggled in vain as Ronan sank his fangs into his throat. For a time, he seemed to be drifting between this world and the next. And then, as from far away, he heard the vampire’s voice.
“Listen to me. You have only a few minutes to make up your mind. Do you want to live or die?”
Hewitt stared up into the monster’s face. How could he be expected to make such a decision? He was a hunter. How could he choose between death or spending the rest of his existence as a vampire?
“Your time is running out,” Ronan said curtly. “Make your choice!”
“Live.” Hewitt forced the word from the depths of his soul. “I want … to live.”
With a feral cry, the vampire bit into his own wrist. “Then drink,” he said, and his voice was like sandpaper over steel.
Hewitt grimaced as dark red blood—vampire blood—dripped from the wound in Ronan’s wrist into his mouth. He choked down the first taste, hating what he was doing, hating the creature who had brought him to this.
And then, to his amazement, he latched onto Ronan’s arm with both hands, drinking eagerly, afraid the vampire would
