Title: Assassin’s Kiss
Series: Watcher’s Kiss #2
Author: Sharon Kay
Genre: Adult, PNR Romance
Published: January 12, 2016
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Locking emotions away is how Scorpio survived years as a conscripted killer. Now, as a Lash Watcher, he uses the same lethal skills to help his fellow warrior demons maintain peace in the realms. When a mission goes awry, he finds himself a thousand miles from home with no weapons or comms. Injured and alone, he is taken in by a group of witches who know him well.
And want him dead. Tessa’s affinity with metal makes her one of the most powerful witches in her coven. Her deepest wish is to stop the oppression of her people—a direct result of her former leader’s murder. She agrees to marry the chief of a rival coven, knowing it won’t be a love match. But she abandoned the idea of a soul-deep bond long ago. Especially one with the rough, former mercenary warrior who shows up and claims she belongs to him. Even from behind bars, the longer Scorpio stays, the more he unsettles Tessa and she questions all she thought she knew. Choosing him will put everyone she cares for at risk. He’s nothing like she expected, and the last thing she could dare to want.
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BOOK REVIEW
As a deadly assassin, demon Scorpio worked for Dalamos, killing off anyone he wanted killed without mercy or asking questions. He had to lock away his emotions because he only had one thing in mind: keeping his twin siblings well and alive and away fro Dalamos’s threat. Dalamos held his family captive and used the to blackmail Scorpio to do his bidding.
Unfortunately for Scorpio he kills a newly bonded couple and an old witch curses him that he would find his mate and want her with all his being but she would hate him.
Fast forward to one hundred years later. Scorpio is now a Lash Watcher and his job is to maintain peace across the realms. He is out on a mission when he is captured by a coven of witches whose leader he killed. Now the witches want to punish him for all the bad things that have befallen them since their leader died.
This is where Scorpio meets the woman, Tessa a witch with an affinity to metal, who is to be his mate. He feels the instant connection and wants her at all cost.
But she hates him on sight for all the bad things that happened to her coven since he killed their leader. The coven was now under the influence of Vespera who uses dark magic to control them and extort things from them. Tessa is set to marry the man in a bid to protect her coven.
So with the odds stacked up against him, will Scorpio be able to escape captivity alive and convince Tessa that she is his mate? And even if Tessa agrees, how can she be with him without putting her coven at risk?
This is a story I really enjoyed mostly because of the wonderful world building. When I read a fantasy novel, I expect the author to paint the setting in such a way that makes it easy for me to picture every detail like I was watching a movie and she did a great job here. I also loved that although there was an instant connection (for Scorpio mostly) there was enough internal and external conflict to keep the couple apart. I really couldn’t figure out how their issues were going to be resolved easily, which kept me at the edge of my seat.
This is definitely one every fan of fantasy romance should read. Happy to recommend.
Assassin’s Kiss Excerpt © Sharon Kay 2015
They reached the forest floor, and Scorpio crouched to allow Tessa’s feet to reach the ground. “Made it,” he said.
Solid ground met her feet and logically she knew she could let go. But it was all too much. Shudders raced along her arms as she loosened her lock on his neck and her legs went ragdoll-limp. “Catch me?” She slid backward.
He spun blessedly fast and scooped her into a cradle hold against his torso. “I got you,” he whispered.
She sighed and curled into him, still too shaky to process anything. He walked away from the trunk and she wondered idly if he planned to carry her all the way home, but he stopped at a different tree and lowered them both to the soft grass. Tension leached out of her muscles as he wrapped an arm around her shoulders, shielding her and soothing her with a tenderness she could never have anticipated.
“I got you,” he repeated, stroking her hair. “It’s over. I don’t detect any more wolves.”
She raised her head to look around, but all she saw were trees. She realized he had positioned them to not see any wolf bodies. “Thank goodness.” Laying her head on his chest, she listened to the strong steady thump of his heart and breathed in the clean scent of him, now tinged with the smoke of his demonfire. Thank the gods he’d been here today. What if it had just been her and Zeebi?
They’d both be dead. She shuddered.
His hand was warm on her arm, and his other was draped across her legs, holding the back of one knee. She studied them, noting several tiny scars, evidence of a life lived harshly, and also seeing the strength that could snap a neck. The push-pull tugged at her heart.
Those hands had ended hundreds of lives.
Those hands had just saved hers. Again.
How was this possible? He held her as though she were a priceless jewel.
Tessa tilted her head to look up at him. She had never noticed how long his eyelashes were. Stubble dusted his square jaw, and she wondered again at the mix of color in his hair.
He met her gaze, those incredible golden eyes simmering with a hotly sensual light. She knew about Lash demons, that their eyes gleamed when in battle, or when experiencing strong emotions. Including lust.
Something pulsed in the air between them, and slowly she reached a finger up to trace the line of his jaw. Rough, warm, stubble-dotted skin met the pad of her finger. He sucked in a breath and released it just as slowly, his lungs shuddering beneath her torso. “I…” she whispered. “I don’t know what to think around you.”
He caught her fingers and held them in his. “Yes, you do.” His tone was soft and coaxing. “You said it before. You know I will never hurt you. And I will never leave you alone and unprotected.” He brought her hand to his lips and kissed her knuckles, one by one.
Her heart stopped again at the softness of his kisses. If she had been confused before, she was officially over the cliff now. No idea which way was up. Heat from his mouth warmed her, shooting up her arm like fire. Nothing about this man said soulless murderer.
She tugged her hand away, unable to take any more of the sensation, the devastating preciousness he lavished on her. Her mind was already starting to imagine those warm lips on hers, and that brought her up short. She couldn’t go there. The thought terrified her as much as it seemed like the absolute best idea in the world right now. But she curled her hand into his T-shirt anyway, wanting to stay pressed close to him.
Why? His kisses pushed her off kilter, but she had no desire to leave the safety of his hold. Physical contact with him registered with the same importance as breathing. Her limbs wouldn’t obey even if she’d wanted to. Something had shifted deep inside, something she couldn’t hope to explain. It should scare her. It should…but instead her mind was filled with wonder, curiosity, and temptation.
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Sharon Kay writes award-winning fiction and can never get enough reading time. She loves winter and black coffee, and is endlessly inspired to write kick-ass heroines and the men strong enough to capture their hearts.
Sharon lives in the Chicago area with her husband and son, and one weekend the idea for her Lash Watchers and tough leading ladies formed in her head, refusing to stay quiet until she put pen to paper. Her characters tend to keep her up at night, as they banter, fall in love, and slay endless varieties of power-hungry demons. Sign up for Sharon’s newsletter to keep up with her demons, see early cover reveals and be entered in periodic giveaways.
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