Blurb
A drug lord on the run. A cartel princess in hiding. All it takes is a spark to set their world ablaze.
Bristol Rieger, better known as Thorn, left his criminal life behind for a fresh start in Mexico. Flying under the radar of the government and the cartels alike, his best-laid plans go awry when a woman from his narco days discovers his whereabouts. Carmen Lozano, however, is no longer the innocent girl he remembers.
Carmen escaped the chains of her tiara and her abusive marriage to join a group of resistance fighters. The last thing she expected was the now-retired capo setting out to seduce her with his wicked touch. Embracing the blood on his hands is easy, but his secrets wear on her patience.
When their enemies close in, Bristol will have to summon his inner monster to protect her. But can that monster be tamed again?
– Book one is an Interracial (Hispanic woman/white man) dark romantic suspense novel in the Lozano Cartel series. All the books can be read as a standalone, but are part of an interconnected series.
– Scenes featuring torture/violence, kidnapping, attempted assault, child abuse (discussed), and suicide (discussed) may be uncomfortable for some readers.
– No cheating and HEA guaranteed!
– Written in 3rd POV.
Excerpt
(Background Info on Scene: Bristol is leaving his hotel room when he sees a maid who resembles a woman he used to know, whom he believes to be dead. But is she a plant sent to track him down? He’s determined to find out…)
He strode down the hall, his leather huaraches thudding on the white-and-blue mosaic tile. A flickering embossed ceiling light cast shadows across the smooth orange walls despite the explosion of sunlight pouring through the lobby windows. Taking a deep breath, he entered the laundry room and closed the door behind him with a soft snick. The racket from the heavy-duty washers and dryers along the back wall pierced his ears, the machines shaking like they had palsy. The stench of bleach stung his nostrils.
Carmen likely didn’t hear him come in. She faced away from him and dumped a basket of white towels onto a metal workstation. Then she stored the basket with several others on the bottom shelf of a shelving unit that spanned the length of the right side wall.
Folded towels, bed linens, colorful blankets and quilts, toiletries, and cleaning supplies stocked the upper shelves.
Most women couldn’t pull off her ugly gray blouse and ill-fitted black slacks with any sense of style, but somehow, she made it work. She should throw out her dour low-heeled black shoes for a pair of stilettos. The high heels would do wonders for her long legs. Her golden-brown ponytail swayed as she moved, begging him to pull it.
As he studied her now from behind, she could be anyone. Just another woman working a dead-end job to survive. Had his mind played tricks on him? Did he see Carmen in the woman’s face because he wanted to believe she was alive and well somewhere in the world?
Heat slicked sweat on his nape, despite the air chugging from the floor vents and the industrial-sized floor fan oscillating in the corner. Opposite the workstation and storage space, a kitchenette resembling the one in his hotel room lined the wall. However, the old whirring refrigerator needed replacing, and the cabinets required a fresh coat of paint.
He tsked. Back in the States, his employees never had to work in such a hot, dingy environment or relax in a shitty break room. Nor did the housekeeping staff at Sky Resorts Hotel, his family’s legitimate hotel chain that his relatives now managed. But that ship had long sailed.
Bristol bypassed a cart stocked with toiletries and two empty wheeled canvas hampers in the middle of the workroom. Itching to grab her close and demand to know her interest in him, he would rather not scare her. He coughed to gain her attention.
She sloppily folded a face towel, then grabbed a washcloth, her hands visibly shaking.
“May I have some towels?” Bristol asked in Spanish.
The maid ducked her gaze, grabbed a few recently folded items, pulled two bath towels from the shelf, and closed the distance between them. Without glancing up, she thrust everything into his outstretched arms, the scent of bleach and lavender clinging to the fabric. She pivoted and returned to her workstation.
He sighed hard, rolling his eyes. “Are you Carmen Lozano Sanchez?” His voice sharpened as her full given name ripped off his tongue. He couldn’t stomach tacking on her husband’s surname.
Her hands stilled, and a towel slid from her grasp. She shook her head and grabbed the fabric. “No hablo Inglés.”
“Given the way you stopped dead, you speak English and understood my question just fine.” He set the soft, fragrant towels aside and stomped toward her. “You’re Carmen, I know—”
She flipped around with a small dagger in her hand and glared at him. The overhead light glinted on the blade. Shoulders hunched, she braced her feet in a wide stance.
He stepped back, hands up to placate her.
Anger and fear blazed in her hazel eyes, the specks of emerald turning molten in her brown irises. He wasn’t mistaken. This fiery woman was Carmen Lozano, cartel princess.
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About the Author
Amber Daulton is the author of the romantic-suspense series Arresting Onyx and several standalone novellas. Her books are published through Daulton Publishing, The Wild Rose Press, and Books to Go Now, and are available in ebook, print on demand, audio, and foreign language formats.
She lives in North Carolina with her husband and demanding cats.
Find her here: https://linktr.ee/AmberDaulton
Great excerpt, Amber!
She is no princess. That’s a warrior. 🙂
Fabulous excerpt, Amber! She’s his match in every way. I love the dagger.
She has been found out. Love the excerpt!