Blood Veil

Book 2: Mission

by Megan Erickson

Genres: Fantasy Romance; Vampires; Romantic Suspense

Synopsis

In the midst of supernatural chaos, worlds and hearts collide.

Celia: Having never known my parents, I’ve always felt like an orphan. All I want is a normal life. But after I’m attacked in my bedroom by one vampire—and rescued by another—it’s about time to give up on “normal” once and for all. Idris, the second in command of the Gregorie vampire clan, has come to my aid, but his motives for saving me are unclear. And what surprises me most is my attraction to his heated gaze. . . .

Idris: Terror. Curiosity. Arousal. These are the natural impulses of a human female, not the spawn of the ruthless Valarian king. Is it possible that Celia is unaware of her bloodline—and the power coursing through her veins? As the daughter of my archenemy, she was supposed to be my ransom. But how quickly the heat of desire changes everything. Now the family Celia has always craved is trying to kill her, and it’s up to me to save her again—when all I really want to do is make her mine.

Megan Erickson’s thrilling Mission novels can be read together or separately:
BLOOD GUARD | BLOOD VEIL

Advance praise for Blood Veil

“Megan Erickson takes you into a rich, sexy, supernatural world and sinks her fangs in. Idris wasn’t prepared for Celia. That doesn’t mean he’s not prepared to claim her.”—Award-winning author Cecy Robson
 
“Full of action, heat, and heart, Blood Veil is sure to sink its teeth into you.”—Stacey Kennedy, USA Today bestselling author of Bought by the Boss

“I’ve been looking for my next favorite paranormal read and Blood Veil delivers! A mixture of suspense and sexy vampires and a strong leading lady, Megan Erickson nailed everything I love about vampires and romance.”—Stacey Lynn, author of Fake Wife

“Readers who are searching for something to tide them over until the next Black Dagger book comes out should look no further than this series. Recommended for fans of vampire romance.”—Library Journal

“[Blood Veil is] a great addition to the series, and I hope to see more soon! Megan Erickson is a wonderful storyteller and creates characters that stick with you for a long time after the story is finished.”—Lady with a Quill

This ebook includes an excerpt from another Loveswept title.

Release date: April 3, 2018

Publisher: Loveswept

Print pages: 224

Sample

Prologue

Idris

I stalked through Bite, the deep bass vibrating the walls and pounding into my head. The club was packed—the dance floor filled with writhing vampires thirsty for blood, and humans eager to give it up. I made my way deeper into the club, where carefully selected humans—ones who promised to keep quiet about the existence of vampires—came to give up their blood in exchange for cash. It was a transaction that worked for humans and the Gregorie vampire clan. We didn’t take what we needed by force, and they let us be—living beneath their city in old subway tunnels.

Not all vampire clans respected human autonomy. Some wanted to rule over humans, reducing them to mere blood slaves. In fact, that was the very reason why I was being summoned to a private room at Bite to have a sit-down with my brother—the newly crowned king of the Gregorie vampires.

The high from sinking my fangs into a human a mere ten minutes ago, the rush of fresh blood through my veins, was wearing off. I wasn’t happy about Athan deigning to sweep in from our family’s hidden compound outside Mission to make sure I was staying on task. Yeah, I wasn’t happy about it at all.

Moans filled my ears as I surged through the crowd. I’d made it to the greeting room, which was filled with couches full of humans and vampires in various states of undress. A woman riding a vampire turned to look at me as I passed, her mouth open in ecstasy, eyes glassy.

I hadn’t had time for any of that. I’d fed, then received word my brother was here. My human hadn’t been happy. She wanted some of her own vampire dick. Too bad; she’d find it elsewhere. Hell, she was probably here now. I hadn’t planned to screw her anyway. Unlike what my brother thought, I was here to feed and feed only because I had to. I was fully focused on my mission.

I walked down a hallway, then turned a corner and headed down another, going deeper into Bite where only employees of the club and members of the royal family—me—and our guards were allowed. Finally, I came to the correct door and shoved it open.

Athan sat at the table, large and imposing, his dark eyes taking me in as I sank into the chair across from him.
He didn’t speak, so I did. “Why are you here?”

Athan’s jaw clenched at my question, and just like that, the room filled with his energy. It’d been that way since he’d drunk from the Sanguivita. Athan was larger than life now, a true king who was strong as ten vampires combined, had goddamn wings, and could let the sun fall on his face without being burned.

My hand—the one with the maimed finger—twitched in my lap.

“I’m here to make sure you don’t do something stupid, brother,” Athan said.

“You weren’t so worried when you sent me on this mission.”

“I’m reconsidering.”

I narrowed my eyes at him, wondering where the heck this was coming from. Then I knew. “Zeb.”

“I’m having him keep an eye on you—”

“Screw that,” I said, slashing my hand through the air. “Really? Spying on me?”

“I thought your anger would cool,” Athan explained, but there was no remorse in his tone. “I thought you’d focus on the mission and—”

“I’m focused. The only reason I’m not watching her right now is because I needed to feed, and then you herded me into a room to give me a talking-to.”

“That’s my point,” Athan snapped. “There’s a difference between focusing on the mission with the end game in sight, and being so damned lost in it that you can’t see what’s best for the clan.”

I stared at him, speechless, and when I spoke, I barely recognized my toneless voice. “Are you saying I’m not doing what’s best for the family?”

Athan flinched on the last word, and for the first time since he cornered me at Bite, I saw a bit of my brother and not the stone-faced king. “I didn’t say—”

I held up my left hand, where my middle finger was missing down to the first knuckle. It was barely noticeable, and to anyone who didn’t know, a minor injury. But to me, it was a pain I’d never forget, a constant reminder of what my father had been willing to do, and just how worthless he thought I was. I shook my hand at Athan, and his gaze narrowed in on my finger. “Don’t tell me I won’t do what’s best for my clan. I stood on our damned roof prepared to let our father burn me one inch at a time to save your precious Tendra. Don’t tell me I’m not willing to do what’s best for us.” I hissed the last word, beyond pissed. Beyond.

Athan knew it, too. My anger had always burned bright in a way that singed everything around me. Athan was the controlled one. The steady one. The king.