Title: Trust in Love by Linda Kage
Love Mark Series Book Two
Publisher: Linda Kage
Genre: Adult, Fantasy, Romance
Length: 444 pages
Summary:
The kingdom of Far Shore still resents Donnelly, its neighboring land, for forming an alliance with those filthy High Clifters and then defeating them in war. Twice! They really must pay for such an insult. And what better way to prick their pride than to steal their lovely, revered princess, mutilate her a little, and then ransom her back to them for a hefty sum.
So, the king blackmails stable hand, Farrow, into accepting the mission of kidnapping Princess Nicolette and bringing her back to Far Shore to meet her gruesome fate.
With his sister’s life on the line, Farrow reluctantly accepts the quest and travels through desert and forest, only to find Nicolette eagerly awaiting his arrival with her bags already packed and good to go, spouting off insane nonsense about being his destiny and one true love.
What follows is a crazy, eclectic adventure that brings two lost souls together and helps them learn who they’re supposed to be and what they’re supposed to do in this ever-changing journey called life.
A Love Mark Fantasy Romance! Can be read with ONE TRUE LOVE.
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Excerpt
I couldn’t accept what she was saying.
She read the expression on my face—or maybe she really could feel my swirling emotions—because she sighed. “Okay, fine.” She turned toward her horse to dig into one of her satchels. “You’ve at least heard of true love’s kiss, have you not?”
I nodded, even as I said. “Of course, but that’s just a myth.”
“Is it?” Her voice was soft and amused as she rotated back to me, holding up a small blade.
“Wha—” I sprang forward to stop her, for surely she meant to stab me and try to escape.
But she surprised the shit out of me when she said, “Heal me,” just before she sliced open the back of her own forearm.
“What the hell?” I exploded, snatching the dagger from her hand. “Are you insane?”
“Oh God,” she choked, slapping her hand over the cut and sucking in a breath. “That stings. That really burns. I didn’t realize it’d hurt so badly.”
“Of course, it bloody hurts,” I yelled, tucking the knife into my belt and grabbing her arm to see for myself just how deeply she’d gone. “You just filleted your arm open. What did you think it was going to feel like?”
“I didn’t. I was too busy knowing you could heal—what’re you doing?”
“Let me see it.” I tugged her closer, even as I dug my free hand into my own satchel of supplies. “I have some healer’s rags we can use to bind it and stop the bleeding.”
“We don’t need to bind it,” she argued, hissing when I gently lifted her hand from the wound, exposing it to open air. “You just need to kiss me and make it go away already.”
“A kiss isn’t going to heal something his deep, princess.” Jesus, she’d made a tidy little mess of herself. If we didn’t get this cleaned soon, it could become infected.
“Of course, you can fix it. I’ve seen true love’s kiss bring people back from the dead.”
I rolled my eyes. “In some farce of a theatrical performance, no doubt.”
“In real life!” A growl rose from her throat as I pressed my own fingers against the cut to stop the flow of blood. “Lord have mercy, are you always so stubborn and bullheaded?”
“I’m telling you,” I started logically. “A kiss is not—”
She was done arguing with me, though. Reaching out, she grabbed the leather strap I had situated diagonally across my chest, the one that held my war staff in its sheath on my back. Clutching it hard, she used the strap to jerk me forward.
Unprepared for the move, I went stumbling into her until my mouth brutally slammed against hers. Rasping out a sound of surprise, I grabbed her shoulder to steady us both, fully prepared to pull directly away. But she opened her mouth, and her tongue sought entrance.
And just like that, I fell victim to her allure. I let her in and plundered right back, tasting honey and heaven.
Before I realized what I was doing, I gripped a handful of her luscious long hair in my hand and backed her toward the wall. Except the wall was actually Carmel, and once Nicolette backed into the horse, it whinnied in protest and shifted away, which unsettled our balance and caused us to break the kiss in order to catch each other.
Meanwhile, the cut still under the protection of my thumb moved as if stretching or—something. I’m not sure what it did, but it startled the hell out of me.
“What the…?” I lifted my hand and blinked, only to find the cut gone. “But that’s not—”
It just wasn’t possible.
I wiped the blood from her flesh, thinking to reveal the wound somewhere, except it was truly and honestly gone. Not even a scar remained. I looked up at Nicolette, trying to make sense of what was happening here, because none of this was logical.
All she could do was smile at me and whisper, “True love’s kiss.”
Author Bio
Linda writes romance fiction from YA to adult, contemporary to fantasy. Most Kage stories lean more toward the lighter, sillier side with a couple meaningful moments thrown in. Focuses more on entertainment value and emotional impact.
Published since 2010. Went through a 2-year writing correspondence class in children’s literature from The Institute of Children’s Literature. Then graduated with a Bachelors in Arts, English with an emphasis in creative fiction writing from Pittsburg State University.
Now she lives with hubby, two daughters, cat Holly, and nine cuckoo clocks in southeast Kansas, USA. Farm girl. Parents were dairy farmers. Was youngest of eight. Big family. Day job as a cataloging library assistant.
Harry Potter House Gryffindor, Patronus White Stallion, character match Hagrid. Supernatural Team Dean. Game of Thrones Team Jon Snow and Tyrion Lannister. The Walking Dead Team Daryl. Outlander Team Jamie Fraser. Teen Wolf Team Stiles. Avenger Team Thor…or Hulk (can’t decide). Justice League Team Flash. Arrow Team Stephen Amell. Stranger Things obsessed. Heard Laurel, not Yanny.
Started out reading with the Baby-Sitters Club. Then moved to Sandra Brown, Linda Howard, Julie Garwood, and LaVyrle Spencer in high school. Now all over the place with her romance reading tastes.
Author Links: Website * Email * Facebook * Facebook Reader Group * Twitter * Goodreads * Instagram
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Congrats on the new release! It sounds intriguing. Great excerpt. I’d love to read more about Nicolette and Farrow.