Six paragraphs from BULLETPROOF, a sensuous dark paranormal romance.
1. Diane studied the man as he told her how he enjoyed going to
see old movies in a traditional movie theater. His dark gray pants and white
short-sleeve dress shirt told her he wasn’t a blue-collar worker. He had no
tats as far as she could see. Plus his lack of facial hair and rough-hewn good
looks were also telling. It wouldn’t be too difficult to believe he was a
model, although he didn’t have the attitude most men had when they knew they
had movie star looks. Overall, despite his denial, it was hard to believe he
hadn’t been caught up in a matrimonial web by now, unless his job prevents
him from having a relationship, she surmised. Or he’s been married
before.
2. Diane took an abrupt left turn and made a beeline for the front entrance. By this time, the bodyguard in front realized they’d been bushwhacked and also drew his pistol. He fired once, and Diane felt the bullet drill into her chest, directly above her left breast. She winced as she threw out her hand, knocking the gun from the guy’s hand. The bodyguard in the rear tried to aim for her again, but by this time the lobby had erupted into chaos with people running and screaming as they tried to avoid being struck by gunfire. Diane blended into the crowd exiting the hotel and took off down the sidewalk.
3. “I’m so sorry, Stokker,” she softly moaned. “Forgive me. Please forgive me. I never meant for you to have to deal with the fallout. But why were you there in the first place?” He’d been with her target, which meant he had to be with law enforcement. “But you told me you weren’t a cop or with the FBI, and I believed you. Did you lie to me?” She shook her head. “No. You didn’t lie to me or I would have sensed it. I would have known you’d lied. So why were you there with him? What did you hold back from me?” The irony made her snort. “There I was being so careful not to let you know what I am, and yet I condemn you for doing the same thing.”
4. A new revelation came to her, bringing with it the sting of tears. “Or is it because you care for me?” she whispered. “That’s why you left, isn’t it? You were starting to care for me, which is why you couldn’t bring yourself to arrest me, or take me in, or whatever you’d have to do.” Her breath hitched. “Isn’t it funny? I never really thought I could be happy sharing my life with someone else. I’ve been on my own for so long, the idea of having another person with me felt…alien. I never realized I’d meet someone like you and then find out how lonely I was because you weren’t with me anymore. Isn’t that crazy? That’s how much you’ve affected me. I was perfectly fine before I met you. And now that you’re gone, I’m a total wreck.” She angrily beat a fist on the arm of the chair. “Why, Stokker? Why have you done this to me?”
5. A man dressed in a suit and tie passed by, an ArmaLite held close to his body. There were armed guards everywhere she looked, and it didn’t take her long to realize the chances of her getting away unscathed were low and getting lower. She mentally shrugged off the inherent danger. It wouldn’t be the last time she’d be shot. In fact, it was getting to be a regular expectation.
6. Stokker followed the man through a door and down a brightly-lit hallway. He found himself wanting to drag his feet. He didn’t want to see Diane in the condition Perl had described. He wanted his memory of her to be when she was still alive. The look of rapture on her face when she took that first bite of shrimp. Her embarrassment when she laughed because she accidentally spilled ice cream in her lap. The sheen on her flushed and sweaty skin when she cried out her release as she writhed beneath him. The way her eyes flashed when she hotly snapped at him because he dared to beg her not to go after Burchmeyer. Those were the memories he wanted to keep of her. Not…
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