Wednesday, November 19, 2014

Urban Fantasy Romance ~ Princess of The Light



Title: Princess of the Light
Author: N. N. Light
Genre: Urban Fantasy Romance
Release Date: September 2, 2014



Gabriel, the Archangel and Messenger of God - yeah that Gabriel, visited Mary Miller. He told her, as the key she is destined to spread the Light and vanquish the Darkness. Her first assignment is to restore the soul of the Walking Man. Sounds simple enough until she’s thrown in the face of evil, and then Joe Deacons enters her heart. This battle just got a lot more complicated. She must complete her mission without losing all she loves.

Book Cover Graphic Artist Credit:
Illustration : streamy digital
Model : VictoriaAndrea
Photo : shutterstock/depositphoto



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BLACK FRIDAY DEAL: Princess of the Light is on sale just in time for the holidays!!! Download the e-book for only $2.99 or buy the paperback for only $11.99!!! Limited time only and it makes a great gift!

Excerpt:

My phone beeped with the time. The bookstore was now open—no chance for change now.

Two women walked towards the entrance. I'll give them a few minutes and then I'll go in, I thought. I started to lean my chair back to catch a quick nap. Afraid I'd never get myself to wake up if I did that, I reconsidered and sat back up. Yawning, I read through my email for a few minutes instead, and then got out of the car headed for the entrance.

The Information Counter sign was to the left just through the doors. No one was at the desk at the moment, but there was a woman wearing a red suit over by the periodicals. She looked a little over average height, but I noticed she was wearing heels. She had thick, long, dark red hair that encircled her face and flowed past her shoulders.

She was stunning.

I hoped she worked here not only so I had a reason to talk to her, but also so that I could get my books without having to do too much unnecessary leg work. That nap was still calling my name.

As I approached, I noticed that she barely wore any make-up at all. Her fair skin looked like it had been touched by the sun recently, too. She glanced up from the newspapers she was replacing from yesterday. She had incredibly animated brown eyes that had an unusual light that seemed to emanate from within. Her nose was small, her lips were full, and her skin looked so soft...

"Can I help you with something, sir?" The woman's voice quivered slightly and she leaned a little, as if she suddenly needed the wall for support.

Whoa, I couldn't help but think. I frankly felt like a moth to the flame. All I wanted to do was have a reason to get closer to her. The fact that her eyes seemed to shine with an actual light didn't help matters. I had never felt such an automatic attraction before, and I wanted to lean closer and see what was going on with her eyes.

She was either looking at me like I was the only man in the world—and quite possibly the sexiest one—or else my open gawking had freaked her out. Either way, I couldn't have told her which it was, because my mouth felt like a cotton ball container.

"Yes," I managed to rasp to her. "Where is your Architecture section?"

"Are you looking for anything in particular?" Yes. You, I wanted to say. "I could look to see if it is in stock." Oh. Are there more of you somewhere?

The sound of her voice was starting to make my heart pound.

She had an earthly beauty about her. There was nothing extraordinary in her features, yet something about her just seemed to glow.

I felt my breath quicken. Joe, what's the matter with you? Get a grip. You've seen girls before.

I shook my head to clear my thoughts without worrying what I looked like and said, "Please forgive my manners, but what is your name?"

"Mary." That just became my favorite name.

"I'm very pleased to meet you," I said as I extended my hand to her. "I'm Joseph. Please call me Joe."

She hesitated for a moment before she shook my hand. Electricity bolted up my arm that I wasn't prepared for. I wondered if she could hear my heart beating. Pretty sure these emotions weren't winning me any bro-code points.

Her face was flushed and her eyes brightened with interest. Let go of her hand, Joe, I tried to coach myself. If I didn't let go of soon, I might never be able to.

So I quickly let go of her hand but immediately regretted it. The whole room suddenly seemed cold and empty.

She probably thinks you're some kind of wacko. Stop staring. You're a logical guy... Be reasonable here. Besides, she's probably married. I ran my fingers through my hair and tried to remember what we were just talking about. I looked up to see her glance towards the entrance. If she asked me to leave, I wouldn't blame her.

I tried to act composed, while I glanced down at her left hand. I didn't see a ring, so I cleared my throat and tried to act like a reasonable man again.

"Well, it was a pleasure to meet you, Mary." Even to me, my voice sounded unnaturally thick and hoarse. I cleared my throat and looked back at her.

"Yes, it's great to meet you, Joe. Let me show you where the section is." She turned and simply pointed to the far left corner of the store.

Just when I thought she was through with me completely, she motioned for me to follow her.

As she led me to the back of the store, I tried to switch off my desire and concentrate on the task at hand. Focus, Joe! Decorum! The inner jokes weren't helping. They just wanted to make me giggle like a schoolboy, and I doubted that would help matters much.

I squeezed my eyes shut for a moment while I tried to remember the books I came for.

She was driving me crazy! I shook my head like a wet dog for what seemed like the twentieth time and asked God for some help.

Suddenly she sidestepped and tripped. I reached out and caught her. As soon as my fingertips touched her, my whole being seem to be on fire. You've gone completely insane, Joe. Maybe, I really had been working too hard lately.

Mary blushed and stammered, "I'm so, so s-s-sorry about that. There was, um, a stroller blocking the aisle."

"Yes, I saw that."

I knew I had to let go of her. When I did, she whirled around, stammering more of an apology. It took every ounce of my willpower not to bend down and kiss her. I should have taken that nap.

To keep from kissing her, I made a joke. "And here I thought you just wanted me to catch you in my arms to break the ice." I hesitated and then added, "It worked." Her light-hearted laugh made me wish I knew more jokes.

She cleared her throat, and turned back to where they were heading.

Once in front of the architecture books, Mary said, "If you need any further assistance, please don't hesitate to ask." Then she stepped back and smiled politely.

"Thank you for your help," I said, and wished I could think of something else to say to stall her.

As she walked away, I thought, I could watch you all day. I didn't realize I was grinning until my cheeks suddenly felt sore.

After I stopped staring at her back, I opened the Notepad app on my Blackberry. I scrolled back down to the list of books for the umpteenth time. Ah, there it is. I looked back at the bookshelf and spotted three of the five books I needed.

Then, I pulled up one of the reading chairs from the aisle and sat down instead of heading back to the office with them.

Just as I started to take notes, a waft of perfume invaded my nose. I looked up, hoping it was Mary.

It was not.

This woman had blonde hair and a stunning figure. She was very thin and seemed at least a few inches taller than Mary. I struggled to hide my disappointment.

"Looking for someone else?" she asked.

"Not really. You just surprised me." I said.

"Ah," she said noncommittally. "Well, I'm Penny. Is there anything I can do for you?" Penny practically purred and winked playfully.

Mary had seemed the exact opposite of this woman—who may have been just my type fifteen minutes ago. I had been enamored by how Mary had seemed genuinely modest and humble. This woman didn't exactly strike me as a Proverbs 31 woman, as my father would say.

"Actually, I'm doing pretty good right now. One of your co-workers already helped me find the Architecture books." I looked around, but there was no sign of Mary to motion to.

"Oh. Are you an Architect?"

"No, I work for an urban planning firm downtown." I paused for a minute, not sure what to say. However, since Penny simply stood there looking at me, I had to say something. "Oh, where are my manners? My name is Joe."

I extended my right hand, and she shook it. Nothing. No rush of fire or even warmth—just skin on skin.

"How exciting," she exclaimed. "What do you do?"

"I'm an Urban Planner. It's kind of like an Architect, but dealing with more of the land aspects. Everything from zoning residential and commercial lands to making sure that the roads aren't overly-congested with new building projects."

"Wow! That sounds fascinating. What are you working on right now?" Penny dropped the pen in her hand and bent down to pick it up, obviously giving me a clear view down her shirt on purpose. If she does it to catch your eye, she'll do it to catch everyone else's eye later. Apparently it was my mother's turn to enter my head this time.

"We're working with several developers and the City of Golden Lake to develop a Pedestrian-Only District downtown." I continued as if I hadn't noticed what she had done. "Paris has already done the same thing, and they have been immensely successful. I'm working closely with the Parisian planners, and I'm hoping that it will be just as successful here."

My right leg bounced up and down as I glanced around, hoping Mary was close enough to hear. Maybe she'd be impressed.

"When will it be complete?"

"It's still in the developmental phase. It goes before the city council this week."

Suddenly the hairs on the back of my neck stood up. I instinctively looked past Penny and saw Mary coming towards us. Even from here, I was drawn to the light in her eyes. Her flowing red hair was the perfect setting for the cold jealousy that was all over her face.

Wait. Jealousy? I smiled.

"Hey Penny, what are you doing back here? I was looking for you." Mary's eyebrows arched higher and there was an unmistakable edge to her tone.

"I was just chatting here with my new friend Joe. He's designing the new Pedestrian-Only District in Downtown. Isn't that neat?"

Mary's face fell and mine frowned along with hers. I wanted to make her smile again.

"Ah..." She said.

"Mary and I go way back." I interjected to Penny and winked at Mary.

When Mary laughed, my eyes locked on hers, and I wanted to make her laugh every day for the rest of my life. Apparently my father hadn't lied when he said he felt that way when he met my mother. Only, I didn't just want to make her laugh—I wanted to kiss her, hold her, and protect her—and all at once.

I debated telling her or leaving and having myself checked into the nearest mental hospital. The craziest part was that, if I didn't know any better, I'd say her eyes were saying she felt the same way, too.

Mary bit her lower lip.

I must have stared too long because, for a moment, Mary seemed to be surrounded by a purplish light. I blinked and the light disappeared.

Penny cleared her throat and I tore my eyes away from Mary and tried to compose myself.

We all stood there, looking around awkwardly. When I couldn't stand it anymore, I broke the silence.

"Listen, I'm about done here, and my stomach is telling me I think it's time for brunch. Would you like to join me?" I glanced at Mary. Please go with me, I silently begged. She and her friend looked at each other for a moment. Only women could possibly manage to have a whole conversation with only a single look like that.

Eventually something must have been decided, though, because Penny shrugged and Mary smiled.

"That would be great, Joe!" She exclaimed with a blush.

I wanted to shout, Score one for me! Thankfully, though, I managed to keep it together and simply smile back instead.

"Let me just get my purse and I'll meet you up front." Mary said breathlessly, and then turned to go without waiting for my reply, but I nodded like a schoolboy, all the same. Then, I gathered up my belongings and made my way to the front of the store after her.

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Author Bio:
N. N. Light was born in Minnesota, lived in Southern California only to move to chilly Ontario, Canada to marry her beloved husband MR N. She is blissfully happy and loves all things chocolate, books, music, movies, art, sports and baking. Most of the time you can find her on Twitter or getting new ideas on how to spread the Light on Pinterest.

Part of the proceeds of Princess of the Light will go directly to food banks in order to feed the hungry and help those in need. With only 7,500 books sold, N. N. Light will be able to set up a monthly endowment for the local food bank.

I’d love to connect with you either via email or via these various social media sites:

2 comments:

  1. Thank you from the bottom of my heart for having me on your website today. :) You are so sweet! :) MRS N

    ReplyDelete

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