I’ve really enjoyed Ayden Morgen’s writing for years, and I’m thrilled to bring you excerpts from her latest release, Kill For You. And if you purchase on March 17th, 100% of the proceeds go to charity.
Kill for You
A Warrior for Her #2
Genre: Contemporary Crime Fiction /Multicultural & Interracial Romance
Indie Release
Release Date: March 17, 2020
Pages: 304
(This book deals with human trafficking and slavery and gun and gang violence. There are graphic scenes of violence).
SUMMARY
The last thing Detective Octavio Hernandez expects to find at the scene of a mass gang-related shooting is a brown-eyed angel standing bravely in the midst of the chaos. One look at Faith Donovan and the homicide detective knows there’s more to her than meets the eye. She’s keeping secrets that just might help bring down Los Zetas, one of the biggest drug cartels in Los Angeles.
He just has to convince her that trusting him is worth the risk.
Forced upon a mother who didn’t want her and enslaved by a gang that refuses to let her go without a fight, Faith’s life has never been her own. She thought she’d made peace with her fate…until Octavio sweeps in and carries her out of her blood-soaked cage.
Faith trusts no one, but the hardened detective makes it difficult to remember why. The way he cares for her makes her ache for what she never thought she’d find: love and a family of her own. But trusting him when she knows he has an ulterior motive is one of the most difficult things she’ll ever do.
He swore to give her the freedom she craves, but when the secrets she holds paint a target on her back, keeping that promise will prove no easy feat.
To secure her freedom and win her heart, this detective will move mountains. And take down anyone standing in his way.
Kill for You is the second book in a series of interconnected full-length novels featuring law enforcement officers willing to do whatever it takes to protect the women who need them most. Each book can be read as a standalone, has no cheating, and a guaranteed HEA.
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On March 17th, 100% of author proceeds from Kill for You will be donated to Operation Underground Railroad to aid in the rescue of child victims of human trafficking. Post release day, 10% of proceeds will continue to go to Operation Underground Railroad. To date, Operation Underground Railroad has rescued over 3,200 children from slavery and has helped prosecute over 1,800 human traffickers. Learn more about O.U.R. and pledge your support here.
Get FIGHT FOR YOU (Book #1) for 99c 3/15 to 3/31 on Amazon.
About Fight for You (A Warrior for Her #1)
Some things are worth fighting for.
Some people are worth dying for.
For me, January James is both.
Too bad she hates me.
Ten years ago, I destroyed her life and lost everything that mattered to me. I’ve been in hell since, desperately trying to forget her even though I’ve never been able to do it. She still haunts me.
Now a dangerous enemy from my past has it out for her. He isn’t going to stop until he gets what he wants. I know I should stay away before I hurt her all over again, but I can’t do it.
It’s time to stop running and start fighting for her.
My name is Michael Kincaid, and this is my swan song. When it’s over, I’ll either be the monster at the end of this book…or I’ll be the man January deserves.
Fight for You is an angsty and emotional brother’s best friend, second chance romance. It the first book in a series of interconnected full-length standalone novels featuring alpha male cops willing to do whatever it takes to protect the women who need them most. Each book has no cheating, and a guaranteed HEA.
Reviewers are saying
“FANTASTIC! This was a really good book!! It captures you from the start and never lets you down.” ★★★★★ Amazon Reviewer
“I cried, I laughed, and I loved with the characters! Romance and tragedy, Oh. My. Gosh!” Mary – ★★★★★ Goodreads Review
“The way this book made me feel is indescribable. I felt like I was watching this whole book play out on a movie. I could not put it down.” Grace – ★★★★★ Bookbub Review
“This book is hot, emotional, interesting, sweet, and intense and I wholeheartedly recommend it.” ★★★★★ Amazon Reviewer
Kill for You EXCERPT #1
Crime scene tape stretches from Tiny’s bar to the dry cleaners next door, and then across the street to the little Mexican restaurant that’s been there for longer than I’ve been alive. The tape continues on past that building, but I lose sight of it when a cop steps up in front of me, blocking my view.
At least I think he’s a cop.
Unlike most of the others, he’s not dressed in a uniform. I’ve been surrounded by men most of my life, but aside from Tiny, he’s one of the biggest I’ve ever seen. His booted feet are planted on the ground, shoulder-width apart. His jeans aren’t tight, but they do nothing to hide his thick calves and powerful thighs. His dark blue LAPD t-shirt stretches across his hard stomach and broad chest, hugging his muscular frame in ways that has heat sparking low in my belly. With his arms crossed, he looks as immovable as a mountain.
He clears his throat and I jerk my gaze upward…over the badge hanging from a chain around his neck and up to a chiseled jaw and full lips. His skin is caramel, the hint of a five o’clock shadow on his cheeks and jaw. The higher my gaze drifts, the hotter he is. His face is all sharp angles and planes. His eyes are so dark brown they’re almost black. Intelligence blazes in them…and something else too. Something I’m not even sure I know how to define. It’s some mix of confidence and uncompromising authority that screams cop.
Jesus, he’s hot.
He’s maybe thirty-five. He’s got a beanie pulled low over his forehead, but it does nothing to hide the way his dark brows climb upward as he looks me over. His hard expression softens incrementally, and I realize he’s speaking to me and I haven’t heard a word.
“I’m sorry,” I mumble, shaking my head as if that’s going to clear it of the screams and gunfire still echoing in the recesses of my mind. “Can you repeat that?”
He eyes me for a moment. I’m not sure what he sees on my face, but his expression softens even more. “I’m Octavio Hernandez. I’m a homicide detective for the Los Angeles Police Department. What’s your name, pequeña?” he asks. His voice is a deep rumble, like water rushing over rocks. It’s…pleasant. It washes over me in comforting waves, soothing away some of my raw nerves and anxiety. He crouches in front of me, forcing the paramedic to move over a little to give him room.
“F-faith. Faith Donovan.”
“Faith,” he repeats. I like the way he says it like he’s savoring the taste of my name on those full lips. “Faith, did you have friends inside?”
“I…” I almost tell him that I don’t have friends at all, but catch myself at the last moment and shake my head instead. “I’m a bartender. I was at work.”
“Okay, that’s good.” He gives me an encouraging nod. “Can you tell me what happened?”
I glance over his shoulder at the two dead bodies in the street, and then over to the group of Zetas cloistered together on the far side of the crime scene. They’re all blood-stained and tight-lipped, refusing to speak to the officers standing in front of them. Not that I thought they would or anything.
In this world, problems are handled in the streets, with knives and guns, not in a courtroom. The Zetas will hunt down whoever el Demonio sent and will kill them. That’s how gang warfare works. It’s a never-ending cycle of retribution, retaliation, and revenge that’s only gotten worse the last few months. I’m guessing what happened here tonight is only going to fan the flames and send the city spiraling closer to all-out war.
An eye for an eye. It really does leave the whole world blind.
Iván Santino’s dark gaze meets mine. He’s one of three Zeta lieutenants in Los Angeles, second only to Oscar Fuentes. Iván is vicious and cruel, and has spent the last five years making my life as painful as possible. I think, if Oscar would let him, he would have dragged me kicking and screaming to his bed a long time ago, and then left my battered and broken body for someone else to dispose of. But Oscar thinks I’m still of some use to him, and no one crosses Oscar, not if they want to live, anyway.
The way Iván looks at me sends another wave of nausea crawling up my throat. He’s running out of patience…which means I’m running out of time. If I don’t find a way out of this city soon, he’s going to come for me and not even the threat Oscar poses will be enough to stop him. What the Zetas have taken from me thus far won’t even compare to what Iván will do to me when he finally gets his hands on me…I know that much down to my soul.
Even from across the road, I can read the warning in his eyes. I’m supposed to keep my mouth shut and give this cop the same runaround the Zetas are undoubtedly giving the rest of them. Normally, that’s exactly what I’d do. My survival depends on me keeping my mouth shut and my head down. But I’m covered in the blood of a girl who probably didn’t make it to the hospital alive. I’ve seen more dead bodies tonight than I ever wanted to see. And I’m done with this whole mess. If Oscar kills me for talking…well, whatever death he gives me will be a sight better than what Iván wants to do to me.
“Faith, look at me,” Detective Hernandez says, reaching up and placing a hand on the side of my face. Sparks hum to life where his skin meets mine. His touch is gentle despite the roughness of his fingers. He moves my head gently until my gaze focuses on him again and then he releases me. Those dark eyes suck me in, compelling me to open my mouth and talk to him. “I know you’re scared, but I will protect you. Just talk to me. What happened tonight?”
“I…” I don’t even know where to start or how much I should say. “Some of the Zetas came in with their friends to celebrate Thiago’s birthday. They were drinking and laughing. Someone started shooting. I looked outside, and there were five men with guns.”
“Okay, good. That’s real good. Did you recognize any of them?”
My gaze darts away from Detective Hernandez to the Zetas. Iván’s glaring at me, hatred in his eyes. My heart pounds erratically, fear pumping through my veins. I break his gaze and glance back to Detective Hernandez to find him watching me intently. I lick my lips and then shake my head.
“I can protect you, Faith,” Detective Hernandez says again, his voice soft.
I think he means that, but I don’t think he can keep that promise. He doesn’t know who I am or what my mother and stepfather did to the Zetas. He doesn’t know I’m a prisoner here and have been since I was sixteen. He can’t help me because no one can. He’ll forget about me the second this case closes, if not before.
“She needs to go to the hospital,” the paramedic announces after wrapping my hands in bandages. “There are a couple pieces of glass embedded pretty deeply into her left palm. She might need stitches.”
“Fuck,” Detective Hernandez swears. “Faith, talk to me and I swear to you that I’ll find whoever did this to your friends.”
“They aren’t my friends,” I mumble.
One dark brow climbs, letting me know I’ve said a little too much. I silently coach myself to get it together. I’m out of sorts and off my game. I can’t let this man get to me. He’ll be gone soon, and I’ll be right back where I started.
He stays silent for a moment, just watching me. “Talk to me, Faith. Please.”
I shouldn’t, but the foreign tinge to his plea does me in. It’s been so long since anyone has needed my help with anything, so long since anyone has said please to me…and I don’t think this man is used to having to ask for anything, but he’s asking me.
I want to help him, even though I shouldn’t. I want to believe he can help me, even when I know he can’t.
EXCERPT #2
“You should eat something, Faith.”
“I’m not hungry.” It’s not a lie. The thought of food sends bile creeping up my throat. Octavio doesn’t need to know that part though. “I had a big lunch.”
He growls wordlessly, thrusting out an arm to stop me from slipping past him. “Stop trying to run from me, little bunny. It’s pissing me off.”
“I’m not running from you.”
His eyes flash fire at me. “You’re lying to me.”
“I’m not…” The warning look he sends in my direction unravels my protest before I can even fully formulate it. “You’re tired, Octavio. I’m just trying to get out of the way so you can go to bed. You’ve only had two hours of sleep since you got up yesterday morning.”
“I’d sleep a hell of a lot better if you were in my bed with me, conejita.”
“That’s…not a good idea.”
“Why not?”
“Because it’s not.”
Another growl rumbles in his chest. Something almost predatory flares in his chocolate eyes. He takes a step toward me, his expression fierce. I back up, but he keeps moving forward, stalking me like a wild animal until my back is pressed against the wall beside the recliner. My heart pounds like a drum against my ribcage and my stomach flutters.
“Back up,” I whisper, my voice shaking.
“I’m not going to hurt you.”
I never thought he would, but he’s too close. If he touches me, I’ll crumble. And being rejected by this man once was enough. I don’t think I’ll survive a repeat of that.
“I’d tear my heart out of my chest before I hurt you.”
“You already hurt me,” I whisper.
“How?” He leans over me, placing his forearm on the wall above my head. His scent surrounds me, making me dizzy. I lock my knees, clenching my hands into fists to keep myself from wrapping them in his shirt. “Tell me, little bunny. What did I do to hurt you?”
“You didn’t want me.” I grit my teeth and square my jaw, fighting the urge to cry over that fact. I think I’d sell my soul to belong to this man, but he doesn’t feel the same way about me. That shouldn’t matter as much as it does. It shouldn’t hurt so damn badly. My own mother didn’t want me, but I think knowing Octavio doesn’t want me hurts even worse than that.
“Ah, angel,” he whispers, his voice pained…as if I hurt him. “Don’t you know I’d kill any man who tried to touch you?” He brings his right arm up, tipping my face up toward his with gentle fingers. The intense expression on his face sears into me, stealing my breath. “Tu me vuelves loca. Te adoro. Te necesito. Quiero que seas mio.”
“I…what?” My head spins and I know there’s no way I’m awake because there’s no way he just told me that he adores me. That he needs me. That he wants me to be his.
“You drive me crazy. I adore you. I need you. I want you to be mine,” he whispers, leaning forward to place his lips against my cheek as he confirms that I didn’t mishear anything he said.
“I…” My mouth won’t work. My tongue feels thick and heavy, like it’s cloven to the roof of my mouth. My knees tremble like they might give out beneath me.
“Believe me,” he whispers, his voice a rumbling growl of sound that liquefies my insides. “When you kissed me, I never wanted you to stop. It was the best damn kiss of my life. But I was trying to be good, Faith. I was trying to be honorable. To be the kind of man who deserves you.”
“I…I don’t understand.”
“I didn’t want you to think I was anything like Sanders, willing to use my position as your caretaker to get you into my bed.” He leans back until his chocolate gaze collides with mine. Nothing but sincerity burns in the dark depths of his eyes. “I’ve tried so damn hard to be good. But I’m just a man. And if I don’t make you mine soon, I’m going to lose my fucking mind in want of you.”
“Octavio.” My mind spins again, trying to make sense of what he’s saying, trying to fit it into place with what I know about him. That he thinks he’s anything like Agent Sanders breaks my heart. How can he not know that I’ve never once compared him to that horrible man? That I would never compare them? “You’re nothing like him. You are a good, honorable man.” I swallow hard, tears welling in my eyes. “The best man I’ve ever known.”
“If you knew the things I think about doing to you, little angel, you might not be so quick to defend me,” he murmurs. “You might be horrified.”
I stare up at him. “Do you think about taking me against my will?”
“Never,” he swears.
“Do you think about hurting me?”
“I would tear my own heart out first.”
My lips curve upward. I reach out, placing a hand against his scruffy cheek. “Then you’re nothing like he is, Octavio. I may not have…experience…but I’m not naïve. I know what men think about, what they want. I…” My cheeks heat, though I’m not sure why when he just told me he feels the same way I do. “I think about doing those things too. With you.”
“Te extraño. Quédate conmigo esta noche, conejita. Te quiero en mi cama. Por favor.” He kisses my cheek again, his scruffy jaw gently abrading my sensitive skin. “I miss you. Stay with me tonight, little bunny. I want you in my bed.” His lips sweep toward my ear as he translates. He always translates for me even though I don’t need him to do it. I think he likes saying it in both languages, likes giving me his words every way I can understand them. “Please.”
I whisper the only answering I’m capable of giving him. “Yes.”
About the Author:
Ayden K. Morgen is the Amazon Bestselling author of the Ragnarök Prophesies series. She lives in the heart of Arkansas with her childhood sweetheart/husband of fifteen years, and their furry minions. When not writing, she spends her time hiking, reading, volunteering, causing mischief, and building a Spork army.
She graduated summa cum laude with her Bachelor of Science degree in Criminal Justice and Forensic Psychology in 2009 before going on to complete her graduate degree in CJ and Law.
She puts her education to use as a 911 Dispatch Supervisor, where she’s responsible for leading a team of dispatchers as they watch over police, EMS, and firefighters for her county. Her books feature law enforcement officers, the women who love them, and the difficult cases that drive them.
She also writes New Adult Fantasy as A.K. Morgen.
Author Links:
Website: http://akmorgen.com
Amazon: http://amazon.com/author/aydenmorgen
BookBub: https://www.bookbub.com/authors/ayden-k-morgen
Facebook: http://facebook.com/akmorgen1
Twitter: http://twitter.com/akmorgen
Instagram: http://instagram.com/aydenmorgen
AllAuthor: https://allauthor.com/author/akmorgen/
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