Ruby Red Rebels
To a casual passerby, it’s just a small country bar in the middle of nowhere. To a vampire in the know, it’s the most popular hangout in the entire state of Texas. To Serena Darville, though, Ruby Red is the last hope for an answer to all her deadly troubles.
Walking into the bar to retrieve the bracelet she needs to save her father’s skin – and her own – is the most dangerous thing she’s ever done. She doesn’t need or want a vampire’s help. Not even if that vampire is peacemaker Max Markow, there at Ruby Red with his own grudge to settle.
When an unexpected bar fight gets them locked away in a cellar to die, Serena and Max are forced to work together in order to escape. In such cramped quarters, passions flare. All they have is each other, but only time will tell if that’s enough to survive.
GENRE: Het, paranormal, erotic romance
4 angels from Ashley, Fallen Angel Reviews:...Max is both and he is a sexy and charming hero. He proves that vampires don’t need to be dark and brooding. Every scene with him makes me smile and wish I had him all for myself. Serena is a plus to the story as well. She is a strong character who doesn’t wait around to be rescued. She dives right in to help out, and once she gets over her distrust of vampires, she takes what she wants with Max. These are two characters I would love to learn more about...
4 nymphs from Mystical Nymph, Literary Nymph Reviews:...I loved the twist of having a vampire peacekeeper as our story’s hero, and the level of personal integrity that he had. This guy is sizzling hot and when he and Serena get together, the sparks fly...I also thought that the idea of having loan sharks that were actually vampires to be rather unique and interesting, especially when Serena and Max used them against Ruby in their quest for the bracelet. That part was pure genius...I thoroughly enjoyed this fast-paced and well-plotted story and the witty bantering dialogue between Serena and Max was so much fun that I often found myself chuckling as I raced from page to page...
EXCERPT
...The sound of the girl’s angry voice made Max want to turn around and shake her. Getting more involved than she already was, was the surest way to get herself killed.
Ruby tilted her head to the side in order to see around Max’s shoulder. Hunger sparked in her eyes, and her nipples visibly tightened. “Now if this tasty treat is meant to be a peace offering, Max, I might be inclined to just forget about this little fracas.”
He felt the girl’s intake of breath in preparation to speak and shot a hand back to grab her slim wrist. Her pained cry cut off any further retort she might have shared, giving him the chance to say, “This one’ll get stuck in your teeth. I’ll just get her out of here, and the rest of you can go on about your business.”
When he turned to lead her out of the bar, however, he ran smack into Will’s broad chest.
“Oh, for crying out loud…” With a roll of his eyes, Max turned back to Ruby. “Look. You and me got problems. I get that. This girl…” He hooked his free thumb back at her, ignoring her annoyed, “Hey!” “…is just getting in the way of you and me settling our differences, once and for all. Let me get her out of here, and I’ll just mosey on back inside so we can have ourselves a nice chat, okay?” Not looking away from her, he nodded toward Will. “I’ll even let Lurch here escort me in and out. We got a deal?”
Ruby’s eyes narrowed, and the tip of her tongue appeared as she ran it over the edge of her teeth. “I’m thinking…not.”
The girl squeaked as she was torn out of Max’s grasp, and for as fast as he was on the draw, there was something to be said about having a room full of vampires out to get you. They might have all been slower than him, but when a football team worth of pissed off vamps launched themselves at your every available limb, it was next to impossible to come out on top.
Max came out on the bottom. Pinned to the sticky floor by three hulks and Ruby’s boot on his groin. And his hat knocked clear across the room.
“Don’t do this,” he warned. “You think I’d really come out here without somebody knowing where I am?”
Her gaze grew contemplative. Thank the devil, Ruby was not a stupid vampire.
“Take him down to the cellar,” she ordered. “We’ll lock him up until I figure out whether or not it’s safe to get rid of him.”
It felt like his shoulders were pulled out of their sockets when they hauled him to his feet. Before they’d taken a step, though, Will grunted. Max glanced back to see him pulling the girl more tightly against his broad body and her heels banging against his shins.
“Toss the girl in there, too.” Heads whipped around to stare at Ruby, and a round of protests rumbled from the crowd. She silenced them with one glare that reverted to a smirk when she turned back to Max. “When the hunger gets too bad and our dear Detective Markow has to kill her in order to survive, we’ll have the perfect excuse to get rid of him. All that wonderful technology that’s been fucking with us can prove they’re his fang marks in her dead body, and we’ll be off the hook.”
“You can’t do that!”
Ruby smiled at the girl. “Really? I think I just did.”
|
