Today is a double birthday. It's mine and it's Tarris'. Tarris is the hero of the novel Soul Stone, that releases today from Ellora's Cave. Soul Stone is the final book of the Jewels of Ursus trilogy that began with Mating Stone and Lovers' Stone.Blurb:
Soul Stone
by Elyssa Edwards
by Elyssa Edwards
He is physical perfection. He is sex personified. He is an incubus. All his life Tarris has followed the rules that would keep him from transforming into the dark soulless predator who fed on the sexual energies of women, draining them to madness or to death. But now that he can no longer feed in a safe and controlled way, he faces a choice: hunt or starve. Callista is quiet and reserved. Her restrained exterior hides an astonishing passion and vivid imagination that has captured him. Who knew that a creature that had no soul could love a woman so deeply? Tarris must now find a way to control the change he feels coming and defeat the hunter who pursues him, obsessed with possessing Callista and destroying the incubus.
Excerpt:
Rule 1. Never feed alone.
Rule 2. Never touch unless you are invited to by the female.
Rule 3. Never penetrate a woman in the place reserved for her mate.
Rule 4. Never allow the act to bring you to orgasm.
Rule 5. Never, never must you hunt.
The rules had been created to keep him contained. To keep Tarris fed and happy while stopping him from crossing the line that could make him want more than he could be allowed to have.
Sitting in his chair he watched the flames flicker. He slipped his hand into the pocket of his jeans and pulled out the small oblong stone. It looked like an opal but over one third of its surface was black and dull. He rubbed at it seeking the strange sense of comfort it had always brought him. Tonight it didn’t work. Despite the fire, a chill passed through him. The rules. How he hated the rules. How he needed the rules. He’d only broken one and only once. He’d allowed sweet Sarah to pleasure him in a dream the three had shared before their mating. It had been a mistake. Now he knew what he was missing. And he wanted more.
Worse, he could no longer feed off his lovers. Both Weres were mated. No one had realized at the time that it would stop their ability to share their pleasure with him. But it had. He could enter their dreams but in their dreams the men would push him away. He’d learned this the moment Mark mated with Sarah. The animal within him refused to allow him near his mate. In the waking world Mark had been devastated. In the land of dreams he could not stop himself from turning on Tarris like an enemy. Tarris had not approached Luke. The younger twin had always been the more sexually assertive, the more likely to react to his instincts. He was certain Luke’s reaction would be even stronger than Mark’s.
Tarris closed his eyes. He tried to remember a time when he was satisfied with the lot he’d been given, satisfied with the role of puppeteer, satisfied to orchestrate the pleasures of others and to drink in their joy and satisfaction. It seemed so long ago.
He’d not actively decided to break the rules. He’d let them terminate him before he’d turn into one of the dark ones. He may not have a soul but one thing living in the Ursine house had given him had been honor. He knew the clean and lighter side of living. He’d not become a monster.
He let his mind drift. He told himself he wasn’t doing it. He was only reaching out. He’d been able to take the edge off the past couple of weeks this way. A voyeur watching a young couple, feeling the energies radiate between two soon to be lovers in a club. A siphon, draining off some of the raw sexual arousal of those he watched from the world of shadows. It wouldn’t sustain him he knew. The only true food was passion in dreams. But maybe by doing this he could hold off the madness, hold off the day when his own Weres would be forced to destroy him. Or hold out until he found another way.
He felt the touch of the sleeper and backed away. He wasn’t a predator. He wasn’t supposed to enter alone. But the power of the mind reached out to him as if it had sensed him. It called to him, inviting him in. The hunger raged inside him as he fought it. The moment he turned to the dreamer, the moment he let himself be pulled to the cavalcade of images that passed through the sleeping mind he was lost.
He stood in the doorway of the modest bedroom. The sleeper on the bed was a woman. Her red hair was twisted around her face, strands of it sticking to the damp forehead. The shirt of the men’s flannel pajamas that she wore stretched tight across her breasts. Not exactly the seductress. Not precisely the femme fatale. She looked more like a schoolmarm or a librarian. One leg had kicked itself free of the blankets and he noticed she even wore socks to bed. It was early October. No, Red here didn’t look like the kind of woman who embraced her sexuality.
Tarris stepped into the room and moved closer to the bed. The woman was moaning slightly and twisting her head. Her fists clenched tight. She fascinated him. She seemed so restricted—closed off so tightly against her own body but the power of the imagination, the dreams that flowed through her had called to him across the distance that had separated them. He could feel the incredible strength of her mind.
The rules repeated in his head.
He hadn’t hunted her, he told himself. She had called him to her.
He would not let her please him.
He would not penetrate her.
He would not touch unless she reached for him first.
He would not— Tarris stood watching her, torn as his hunger battled with his conditioning. The emotions, the colors of her mind were so powerful he shook with need. Her soul was laying itself bare for him just as if he’d been a fully mature incubus. He saw all of who she was, all her secrets, dreams and desires. And he loved each and every one.
So yes. Yes, he would. He would feed alone.
He stretched out beside her on the bed and brushed the hair from her face. Her body went slack. He pulled her to him and rested her head on his shoulder. Stroking her face he pressed his cheek to her and closed his eyes.
Rule 2. Never touch unless you are invited to by the female.
Rule 3. Never penetrate a woman in the place reserved for her mate.
Rule 4. Never allow the act to bring you to orgasm.
Rule 5. Never, never must you hunt.
The rules had been created to keep him contained. To keep Tarris fed and happy while stopping him from crossing the line that could make him want more than he could be allowed to have.
Sitting in his chair he watched the flames flicker. He slipped his hand into the pocket of his jeans and pulled out the small oblong stone. It looked like an opal but over one third of its surface was black and dull. He rubbed at it seeking the strange sense of comfort it had always brought him. Tonight it didn’t work. Despite the fire, a chill passed through him. The rules. How he hated the rules. How he needed the rules. He’d only broken one and only once. He’d allowed sweet Sarah to pleasure him in a dream the three had shared before their mating. It had been a mistake. Now he knew what he was missing. And he wanted more.
Worse, he could no longer feed off his lovers. Both Weres were mated. No one had realized at the time that it would stop their ability to share their pleasure with him. But it had. He could enter their dreams but in their dreams the men would push him away. He’d learned this the moment Mark mated with Sarah. The animal within him refused to allow him near his mate. In the waking world Mark had been devastated. In the land of dreams he could not stop himself from turning on Tarris like an enemy. Tarris had not approached Luke. The younger twin had always been the more sexually assertive, the more likely to react to his instincts. He was certain Luke’s reaction would be even stronger than Mark’s.
Tarris closed his eyes. He tried to remember a time when he was satisfied with the lot he’d been given, satisfied with the role of puppeteer, satisfied to orchestrate the pleasures of others and to drink in their joy and satisfaction. It seemed so long ago.
He’d not actively decided to break the rules. He’d let them terminate him before he’d turn into one of the dark ones. He may not have a soul but one thing living in the Ursine house had given him had been honor. He knew the clean and lighter side of living. He’d not become a monster.
He let his mind drift. He told himself he wasn’t doing it. He was only reaching out. He’d been able to take the edge off the past couple of weeks this way. A voyeur watching a young couple, feeling the energies radiate between two soon to be lovers in a club. A siphon, draining off some of the raw sexual arousal of those he watched from the world of shadows. It wouldn’t sustain him he knew. The only true food was passion in dreams. But maybe by doing this he could hold off the madness, hold off the day when his own Weres would be forced to destroy him. Or hold out until he found another way.
He felt the touch of the sleeper and backed away. He wasn’t a predator. He wasn’t supposed to enter alone. But the power of the mind reached out to him as if it had sensed him. It called to him, inviting him in. The hunger raged inside him as he fought it. The moment he turned to the dreamer, the moment he let himself be pulled to the cavalcade of images that passed through the sleeping mind he was lost.
He stood in the doorway of the modest bedroom. The sleeper on the bed was a woman. Her red hair was twisted around her face, strands of it sticking to the damp forehead. The shirt of the men’s flannel pajamas that she wore stretched tight across her breasts. Not exactly the seductress. Not precisely the femme fatale. She looked more like a schoolmarm or a librarian. One leg had kicked itself free of the blankets and he noticed she even wore socks to bed. It was early October. No, Red here didn’t look like the kind of woman who embraced her sexuality.
Tarris stepped into the room and moved closer to the bed. The woman was moaning slightly and twisting her head. Her fists clenched tight. She fascinated him. She seemed so restricted—closed off so tightly against her own body but the power of the imagination, the dreams that flowed through her had called to him across the distance that had separated them. He could feel the incredible strength of her mind.
The rules repeated in his head.
He hadn’t hunted her, he told himself. She had called him to her.
He would not let her please him.
He would not penetrate her.
He would not touch unless she reached for him first.
He would not— Tarris stood watching her, torn as his hunger battled with his conditioning. The emotions, the colors of her mind were so powerful he shook with need. Her soul was laying itself bare for him just as if he’d been a fully mature incubus. He saw all of who she was, all her secrets, dreams and desires. And he loved each and every one.
So yes. Yes, he would. He would feed alone.
He stretched out beside her on the bed and brushed the hair from her face. Her body went slack. He pulled her to him and rested her head on his shoulder. Stroking her face he pressed his cheek to her and closed his eyes.
Contest!
In celebration of the release of Soul Stone, which features an opal in a pivotal role. Because of that I'm giving away a rainbow opal heart shaped pendant and matching earrings. This is a delicate piece set in silver. The earrings are the same as the pendant, pictured here.How to win: Soul Stone is the final book in the lives of the Ursine brothers. So to win this final prize, you will need to tell me something about them. Copy the list below into an email and complete it. Send it to jae@jacquelineroth.com I'll pick a winner from the correct answers on Wednesday, November 26th.
True Love: Who is the true mate and love of each of the men below?
Mark Ursine's heroine is ________
Luke Ursine's heroine is ________
Tarris Ursine's heroine is ________
You can find hints to the answers... okay, you can find the answers by checking out the blurbs and excerpts for the three books in this series at Elyssa's website.
Oh, and Kelly, you won the draw for the copy of Lovers' Stone so drop me a line and tell me what format you'd like your copy in.
Have a great day folks.
