Teaser 1:
The seriousness in his face fades into mischievousness. “I was just wondering how hard you went looking for it—how deep your obsession is with Edgar Allan Poe.”“Ha, ha,” I say sarcastically, giving him a playful shove.
He traps my hand against his chest and the mood takes an impulsive shift. “Am I allowed to kiss you in here?”
“No one’s home,” I say. “You can do whatever you want.”
“Can I?” He steers me to him. Our lips and bodies collide and liquefy with lust.
We fall onto my bed with our bodies entangled. My heart races with rapture and my skin flames with a burning need. He rolls us over, so he’s on top of me, and his tongue ring inspects every single inch of inside my mouth. My legs snake around his waist and he lets out a low growl as he sucks at my bottom lip. He traces kisses down my neck and my breath hitches. I slant my head back as his lips trail lower and lower. But my mind panics with self-doubting thoughts, not about Asher, but about myself, and I pull back.
He doesn’t look mad or angry. In fact, he looks grateful. “Why don’t we lie down?” He gently kisses my cheek and I shiver. “And I’ll stay with you until you fall asleep.”
Teaser 2:
As I sprint around a sharp corner, my feet trip over something weighty and solid. My body slams to the floor. I quickly flip over to my back and glance at what made me fall. A person, face down. I crawl ...over and turn them onto their back.
*** dead eyes stare at me. Their pale decomposing skin is ice-cold and the x on their head is an older wound. They’ve been dead for a while.
His voice drifts compellingly down the hall. “It’s hard to tell, isn’t it? What’s real and what’s not. Tell me Ember, does it ever feel like you’re losing your mind?”
I leap to my feet, hop over ***, and run. Sweat drips down my skin as I accelerate. The schools side entrance door finally comes into view and I can almost taste my freedom. I reach for the handle, but a hay bale lands on me with the weight of a bag of bricks. My head smacks the tile and the crack of my bones is stomach churning.
He squats down in front of me. “Every heard the term ‘Don’t Fear the Reaper.’ Well it’s a little misleading.” He swathes the hood of a cloak over his head. “Because everyone fears death, Ember. Even Death itself.” Then he pulls out a knife and cuts an x across my forehead.
*** dead eyes stare at me. Their pale decomposing skin is ice-cold and the x on their head is an older wound. They’ve been dead for a while.
His voice drifts compellingly down the hall. “It’s hard to tell, isn’t it? What’s real and what’s not. Tell me Ember, does it ever feel like you’re losing your mind?”
I leap to my feet, hop over ***, and run. Sweat drips down my skin as I accelerate. The schools side entrance door finally comes into view and I can almost taste my freedom. I reach for the handle, but a hay bale lands on me with the weight of a bag of bricks. My head smacks the tile and the crack of my bones is stomach churning.
He squats down in front of me. “Every heard the term ‘Don’t Fear the Reaper.’ Well it’s a little misleading.” He swathes the hood of a cloak over his head. “Because everyone fears death, Ember. Even Death itself.” Then he pulls out a knife and cuts an x across my forehead.