Book Spotlight~ The Darkness of Love by Catherine Green/Win an E-book!

The Darkness of Love by Catherine Green
Romance/Paranormal, Romance/Vampire, Romance/Victorian. Romance/Historical

Publisher - Chances Press

Available at Amazon / Barnes & Noble

Lord Gregory Stockton is a powerful and respected businessman embracing the modern era of the Victorian industrial revolution. He owns a grand and beautiful manor complete with a repertoire of servants and a charming attractive young wife. The only thing he lacks and desires is an heir to the family estate. 

Lord Gregory knows he can never produce a child, for he is a vampire, and his wife and servants know nothing of his secrets. However, there may be other ways to provide an heir for his estate. Lord Gregory notices the subtle growing romantic attraction between his wife and the handsome young stable hand Marcus Scott resulting in the humans becoming unwitting pawns in a vampire’s game of lust, love and control.

Teaser Excerpt:

The air in her bedroom was cool and sent a chill up and down her slender body.  She had grown familiar with the almost icy atmosphere in her husband’s home during the two years they had been married.  Indeed the very mood inside these rooms seemed to reflect his often-volatile personality.  He had never consciously hurt her, not in any real sense, but there was always that potential, lying beneath his calm exterior, as though he were a serpent waiting to strike.  She could not complain about him, for Lord Gregory Stockton was a most attentive husband, and Sarah was extremely lucky to have secured his affections.  He was a very affable gentleman in many ways, but he confused her. 

Sarah found herself pacing the room like a caged animal, desperate to be released into the wild.  Her pretty blue taffeta day dress was tight, stiff, and restricting; yet it fit her petite body in all the right places, accentuating her small bosom and curving gracefully over her hips to drape softly on the floor.  The dress was specially made by the finest designers, along with the rest of her wardrobe.  Her husband had been determined that his young wife would be the perfect showpiece for his estate and his reputation.  She wore her soft golden curls pinned up in a diamante hair clip, and would shortly add her matching blue hat ready for her morning horse ride around the grounds. 

Thinking about her daily exercise brought her mind back to young Marcus Scott, the stable lad.  Well, he wasn’t really a lad at all; he was a young man of around twenty-five years, older than Sarah herself.  She was only twenty-three, and becoming painfully aware of her lack of child bearing during her marriage.  This fact was further accentuated every time she visited her mother on the neighbouring estate, and Sarah was increasingly irritated and upset at the admonitions that it was her own fault.  Lord Stockton certainly did not seem affected by his lack of heirs.  Indeed he never broached the subject, and Sarah knew that it was nothing to do with his being embarrassed or awkward about it.  Far from it.  He was a most attentive lover, and that was another area where she could not fault her husband.

But it wasn’t her husband that she was thinking about on this fine spring morning, with the sun shining through her windows and offering to warm her cool body.  She found herself drifting over to look out at the garden, and her view of the green shrubs and trees, the flowers that were now starting to bloom in the warmer weather, and the distant lake upon which the sun sparkled and which would be the focus for her horse ride with her beloved pet Penelope.  Again her thoughts returned to Marcus, as she pictured him gently stroking Penelope’s flanks with long, firm strokes of the grooming brush.  He was truly at one with the Stockton horses, and each animal seemed to respond to him with love and gentility. 

Sarah’s heart lurched in her chest as she spied Marcus walking across the gardens towards the lake.  His dark blonde hair was slightly long and tucked behind his ears, where it fell in soft waves to his neck, always inviting her to run her fingers through it.  He was already tanned from working outdoors, despite the fact that it was only April, and his simple white shirt, brown corduroy trousers, and leather waistcoat, together with the serviceable black boots he wore, seemed only to accentuate the curves and muscles of his very masculine physique.  Her mind wandered as she imagined what kind of a lover he could be, so wild and passionate, yet so gentle at the same time…

“Daydreaming again, my dear?”  Said the silky, sensual voice of her husband.

Sarah jumped, a hand flying to her throat at the deep sound of Gregory’s voice.  She turned, flushed with embarrassment at being caught in such a reverie, and she smiled politely. 

“Oh you frightened me, Gregory!” she chided, fanning her face with a hand, “I didn’t hear you enter the room.”

She glanced out of the window and then looked at her husband.

“Yes,” she said, “the garden is looking splendid this morning, and I was just about to collect Penelope for my morning ride.  How are you?” 

Lord Stockton was a formidable yet completely attractive figure standing before her.  He wore a classic but very fashionable black suit and white shirt, with a crimson waistcoat and tie that offered a splash of colour to his pale skin.  His dark eyes roved over her body, and she shivered at his very direct gaze.  He could always elicit such a response in her, and she anticipated his next move with a mixture of anxiety and excitement.

In two strides Gregory stood in front of her, but slightly concealed in the shadows beside the window. He always avoided sunlight, declaring that it was not suitable for a gentleman of his stature to allow his skin to darken like the working-class men.  His black hair was neatly combed and he was freshly shaven, and Sarah marvelled as always at his exquisite cheekbones and finely chiselled jaw.  He smelled cleanly of soap and shaving cream, and something else that was just him.  All of it sent her stomach into knots of excitement and anxiety. She almost reached up to touch his face but stopped herself, always awkward because of her mother’s very strict training in etiquette.  A lady should never openly fondle a man unless invited, no matter whether he was her husband or not. 

Of course, Gregory could freely touch his wife whenever he chose, and now he took the opportunity.  He very gently touched her cheek with the back of his fingers, and she shivered at the icy temperature of his skin. He smiled and spoke in a gentle voice. 

“My dear, I am sorry,” he said quietly, “I forget how sensitive you are to cool temperatures.  Allow me to warm you.” 

He slid his hands down her sides, smoothing over the rich taffeta, and she stood very still, enjoying his caress despite her embarrassment at his bold behaviour.  Resting his hands on her hips, Gregory lowered his handsome youthful face and tenderly kissed her rosebud lips.  His body reacted as it always did to her tenderness.  She was delicate, so beautiful, and always so compliant for him.  His teeth itched as his fangs fought to free themselves, and it took all his self-control not to bite her white skin, and drink deeply of her sweet blood.

Sarah melted into his embrace willingly, always enchanted at his affections, and when he moved away she was gasping slightly with the exertion.  Gregory laughed and regarded her with a naked look of pure adoration. 

“My darling girl, you are so precious,” he said,  “I adore the way you react to my touch.  But I detain you from your horse ride.  I will attend to some business in my study and will see you at lunchtime in the Drawing Room.” 

He gently kissed her forehead and then turned and strode out of the bedroom, so confident and powerful.   Sarah waited for her breathing to calm, and then turned to the large dressing-table mirror so that she could tidy her hair and smooth her clothes, fixing her small fashionable hat in place, and adding a pair of soft white kid gloves.  Then she walked slowly and carefully out of the bedroom and down the sweeping staircase, her heart racing at the prospect of seeing the young, strong stable lad very soon, and her mind in a whirl of confusion that she could find two men so equally attractive.

About the Author

Author of adult paranormal romance series The Redcliffe Novels, Catherine Green was raised on books from a young age, and has happy memories of Saturday mornings spent in her small local library, devouring the contents of the shelves. Aside from the Redcliffe novels, Catherine has short stories published in YA anthologies Devils, Demons and Werewolves, and The Mirador Fantasmagoria, and she writes articles for websites including Write and Share UK. Catherine is also a freelance copywriter and copy editor.

Catherine has always been fascinated by the supernatural world, and it feels natural for her to write about vampires, werewolves, witches and other mystical creatures in her stories. She is a shaman in training and a mother of two (plus dog), with an interest in crafts and social history. Catherine practises Law of Attraction and truly believes that everyone can achieve their dreams if they can step beyond the fear of social conformity.

You can find Catherine on Facebook at https://www.facebook.com/CatherineGreenAuthor 
Her blog is http://www.catherinegreenauthor.blogspot.co.uk/
And her Twitter page is: https://twitter.com/SpookyMrsGreen

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