Title: Esher
Author: Felicity Heaton
Author: Felicity Heaton
Series: Guardians of Hades, book 3
Genre: Paranormal Romance
Release date: March 24th 2018
Prince of the Underworld and Lord of Water, Esher was
banished from his home by his father, Hades, two centuries
ago and given a new duty and purpose—to keep our world
and his from colliding in a calamity foreseen by the Moirai.
Together with his six brothers, he fights to defend the gates
to the Underworld from daemons bent on breaching them
and gaining entrance to that forbidden land, striving to
protect his home from their dark influence. Tormented by his
past, Esher burns with hatred towards mortals and bears a
grudge against Hades for forcing him into their world,
condemning him to a life of battling to keep a fragile hold on
his darker side—a side that wants to kill every human in the
name of revenge.
Until he finds himself stepping in to save a female—a
beautiful mortal filled with light and laughter who draws him
to her as fiercely as the pull of the moon, stirring conflict in
his heart and rousing dangerous needs long forgotten.
Aiko knows from the moment she sets eyes on the black-
haired warrior that he is no ordinary man, just as she’s no
ordinary woman. Blessed with a gift, she can see through his
stormy façade to the powerful god beneath, and the pain
and darkness that beats inside him—pain she grows
determined to heal as she falls deeper under his spell and
into his world.
When the daemon bent on turning Esher against his
brothers makes her move, will Esher find the strength to
overcome his past and fulfil his duty, or will the lure of
revenge allow the darkness in his heart to seize control,
transforming him into a god intent on destroying the world?
Holy
freaking gods what a book! This is a truly amazing story
it is so well-written.
It has such a beautiful slow to it hit me
seamlessly from one part to the next
and it's just so damn
hard to put down this is the third book in the series and
I can't wait for the fourth.
This
is Esher and Aiko. He lives in Tokyo and if you read the
first two books you
know that he has a problem with humans.
For something that happened in his past
it was absolutely
horrific. He's barely even told his brothers what happened.
But when he needs to feisty the young girl on the train and
saves her. He can't
seem to get her out of his mind. She's
the perfect match for him she loves the
water as much as he
does. She even loves the rain until she finds out why it
rained. I have to admit I'd love to scene in The Tea House
and how it all
affected the rain. When something truly
horrible happens to her he will take on
his father to get her
back his beautiful little butterfly. Let's just hope he
passes the
test his father has set before him. Maybe mom might help.
But to
find out you're going to have to read the book.
And believe me you're going to
love it.
Now before I ruin this for
you I will leave off here. I hope you
enjoy this book as much as I did. If you
do like this book,
please consider leaving a review. The Authors really like it
when you do; they value your opinions too.
Aiko
led him through the narrow streets, their steps loud on the wet road. It had
stopped raining at some point, and she was thankful because she had left her
umbrella on the train. She glanced at the man and found him looking at the
clouds, his gaze distant and his head tipped back.
His
black hair grazed his temple, and she drank her fill of him, still finding it
hard to believe she was walking with him to her home. Her grandmother would be
proud of her. That feeling beat in her heart. She had taught Aiko to give aid
to those who needed it, especially if they were from another place.
This
man certainly was.
His
blue eyes took on a troubled edge, and he slid them towards her, angling his
head slightly in her direction so he could see her. She smiled and looked away,
not wanting to upset him. When his gaze left her again, she snuck another
glance at him.
He
was handsome, with fine black eyebrows and long inky lashes that framed his
deep blue eyes, and a straight nose and softly curved lips that were a shade or
two darker than his skin in the low light. Sculpted cheekbones were accented by
long sideburns that reached the lobes of his ears, and the sharp angle of his
jaw. There was a coldness to his face though, the lack of lines around his eyes
and mouth telling her that he rarely smiled or laughed. Why?
When
he frowned at her again, she looked away and kept her eyes off him this time,
not wanting to upset him.
His
gaze moved away from her, but then came back to rest on her, and she kept hers
fixed ahead of her, pretending not to notice the way he studied her.
Because
instinct warned he would react harshly if she made it clear she was aware of
him staring.
As
they turned a corner onto her street and passed a small park, she swore he
wanted to move closer to her, but he tensed and distanced himself instead, and
his eyes left her. She looked at him, keeping her head forwards so he wouldn’t
notice. His eyes scanned over the low buildings that lined the street, most of
the windows dark.
Aiko
wanted to know his thoughts as he became absorbed in looking at everything but
her, but held her tongue instead, not wanting to appear rude.
She
hadn’t met many foreigners, and had certainly never met anyone like him.
When
she crossed the road, he followed, and when she stopped in front of one of the
square modern buildings, he halted with her. As she pulled her backpack off, he
stepped backwards and looked up the height of the two-storey building.
“Smaller
than I thought.”
She
slid the key into the lock on the glass door and twisted it. “It’s only a
clinic. We have a few beds, but mostly father treats local people and
prescribes medicine.”
She
pushed the door open and walked into the dark room, years of living in the
cramped building allowing her to move through the pitch-black space without
hitting anything. When she reached the door to the office, she reached inside
and flicked on the light. She turned to tell the man to come in.
He
stood right behind her, his eyes stormy again as he looked around, his shoulders
tensed as he scanned the darkness, as if he was expecting trouble.
“Father
normally leaves this light on, but I prefer to turn it off when my parents are
away.” She set her backpack down on the chair by the desk, and pointed to the
gurney. “Have a seat.”
The
man eyed it with suspicion, but moved past her and arranged himself on the
padded bench. Aiko didn’t fail to notice the way his lips twisted as he sat, or
the way his left arm tightened on his ribs.
“Is
it just your hand that’s hurt?” She edged closer to him.
His
eyes darkened a full shade, but around his pupils they seemed to grow brighter,
turning cerulean. Not the lights.
She
changed course, heading towards the white cupboards instead of him, giving him
a moment to forget her question. He was hurt, but he didn’t want her seeing it.
Because
he didn’t trust her.
Maybe
it had been a mistake to insist on helping him.
Aiko
paused with her fingers on the metal handle of the top drawer. It didn’t feel
like a mistake though. Helping him felt like the right thing to do. She had
said she would take care of his hand, and that was what she would do. She owed
him that much. She wouldn’t press him to let her see his other injury, or ask
him how it happened, because now she felt sure it hadn’t happened on the train.
He
had been injured before saving her.
Yet
he had still stepped in to help her.
“My
parents are away visiting family.” She opened the drawer as she rambled,
filling the tense silence and giving him a clear sign that she wasn’t going to
press him for answers. “I was going to go, but university is too busy right
now.”
She
found the bandages and opened a fresh roll, and grabbed the scissors and tape
too. She placed them on the black seat beside him and found the cotton wool and
saline solution, and a tray to place all the dirty items in when she was done
with them.
When
she pulled a pair of disposable gloves from the box and tugged them on, he
frowned at her.
“You
seem used to this.” He nodded towards the items next to him when she looked at
him.
Aiko
shrugged and removed her short black jacket, draping it over the back of the
chair, and rolled up the sleeves of her dress. “I grew up in a clinic, and I’m
studying medicine at university. Can you take your coat off for me?”
He
released his ribs and tugged the right sleeve of his coat up his forearm,
making it clear he wasn’t going to be removing the garment. Because he didn’t
want her to see the wound he was trying to hide.
She
pushed the need to see it and tend to it to the back of her mind and focused on
the one he would let her see and treat.
When
she took a step towards him, he tensed and she flicked her eyes up to meet his.
His were brighter, a sunny summer sky that deep inside she knew was a bad sign
and not a good one. She kept still, watching the war rage in his eyes as his
irises grew darker around the edges. She had never seen eyes like his, but then
she had never met a man like him.
When
his eyes settled, and he released the breath he had been holding, she risked
moving. He didn’t tense again as she approached him, keeping her eyes off him
to give him time to calm himself.
His
voice was gravelly when he spoke. “Is university the reason you were out so
late?”
He
was trying to fill the silence now, to take his mind off what she was doing,
and she went along with it, wanting him to be as comfortable as possible. She
soaked some of the cotton wool in the saline solution on one side of the tray,
and then slowly turned towards him.
As
she reached for the makeshift bandage he had wrapped around the wound, she
answered him so he would have something to focus on other than what her hands
were doing. “I had work tonight, and afterwards I met my friends in Shibuya. I
meant to be home earlier than this, but it’s so easy to lose track of time.”
She
drew the white handkerchief away from his arm and her eyebrows briefly knit as
she looked down and spotted a tattoo peeking out of the blood on his wrist,
just above a thin black bracelet that sat flush against his skin.
He
noticed where she was looking and tensed, and she swore he was waiting for her
to mention it as she turned and placed the soiled cloth on the tray.
It
had surprised her, but she wasn’t one to hold with the traditional view of
tattoos. She doubted he was yakuza.
Aiko
focused on her work, carefully wiping the blood on his arm and hand away with
the saline solution until she could see the wound—a three-inch-long gash that
ran at a diagonal across his forearm a few inches above his wrist.
And
his tattoo.
A
beautiful dark blue trident on the inside of his wrist.
“You
shouldn’t be out so late at night,” he muttered as she dabbed the gash with the
solution, making sure it was completely cleaned.
Clearly,
he shouldn’t be out so late at night either. It meant bad things for both of
them, but at least she hadn’t ended up with what looked like a knife wound. He
must have been in a fight. Under the bright light of the inspection lamp, she
had spotted more cuts on his neck, and a few on his face. Plus there was the
one he didn’t want her to know about.
How
deep was that wound?
She
risked a glance at his right side as she turned to toss the used cotton wool on
the tray and reached for the bandages. His black coat was wet from the rain,
making it impossible for her to judge how much blood he had lost. She frowned
as she spotted a single tear in it, barely an inch long.
A
stab wound.
He
needed treatment, and she wanted to give it to him, but she kept her tongue in
check and didn’t mention it.
The
wound on his arm must have been from the same fight, and it was already sealed
and healing. The one he was hiding might be healing just as rapidly. Which only
made the feeling she had grow stronger. He hadn’t come with her for treatment.
He had come with her to ensure she reached her home safely.
“This
looks good.” She carefully wrapped the bandages around his arm. “It should heal
nicely. Hold this.”
He
placed his fingers on the end of the bandage where hers had been. She picked up
the scissors and cut the ribbon of cream material, and then grabbed the tape
and snipped off two long pieces.
She
placed one just below his fingers, brushing them.
He
snatched his hand away as if she had burned him.
Aiko
pretended not to notice that too, or his sharp intake of breath and the way his
eyes drilled into her, and that feeling rose again, warning her to move away
from him. She refused and placed the second piece of tape, and smoothed them
both down carefully.
Her
fingers slowed as she looked at his arm.
Silvery
scars spiralled around his forearm, from halfway down to his wrist.
She
reached out to touch one.
He
shoved the sleeve of his coat down, stealing them from view, and she jumped,
her entire body tensing as she quickly drew her hand to her chest.
Words
warred on her lips and in her heart, an apology battling a desire to question
him, to know what sort of life he led to have such deep scars, to end up
wounded and act as if it was nothing.
“Thanks,”
he muttered, the word hollow and devoid of the emotion that normally
accompanied it.
“Would
you like some tea?”
He
was off the gurney before she could even finish that question, his long black
coat swirling around his legs as he strode from the office.
“I
should go.” He was in the doorway of the clinic by the time she left the
office, his figure nothing more than a silhouette in the light coming in from
the street. He looked back at her. “But thank you.”
He
was gone.
Aiko
stared at the doorway for a heartbeat and then hurried forwards, but there was
no sign of him in the street. It was as if he had simply disappeared.
It
wouldn’t surprise her if he had.
His
words rang in her head, his deep voice a soothing sound as she replayed them,
focusing on the last three.
A
thank you that had been genuine.
He
had reluctantly thanked her for tending to his wound, but then she had offered
him tea and he had thanked her from the heart?
Or
was that thank you for something else?
She
closed her eyes and relived that moment, and the way he had looked at her.
The
way his blue eyes had glowed in the slim light.
It
struck her that he hadn’t been thanking her for the offer of tea.
He
had been thanking her for not breaking his trust.
For
not hurting him.
Aiko
tipped her head back and watched the patchy clouds racing across the inky sky,
revealing hints of stars between them.
Strange
man.
If
she could call him a man.
Books in the Guardians of Hades
paranormal romance series:
Book 4: Marek – Coming in 2018
Enter the grand tour-wide giveaway to win a
$75, $50 or $25
Amazon Gift Card at the Esher book page. This giveaway is
international and open to everyone, and ends at midnight on
April 8th. Enter
now:
·٠•● Ƹ̵̡Ӝ̵̨̄Ʒ ●•٠· Felicity Heaton·٠•● Ƹ̵̡Ӝ̵̨̄Ʒ ●•٠·
Felicity Heaton is a New York Times and USA Today
international best-selling author writing passionate
paranormal romance books. In her books, she creates
detailed worlds, twisting plots, mind-blowing action, intense
emotion and heart-stopping romances with leading men that
vary from dark deadly vampires to sexy shape-shifters and
wicked werewolves, to sinful angels and hot demons! If
you're a fan of paranormal romance authors Lara Adrian,
J R Ward, Sherrilyn Kenyon, Gena Showalter and Christine
Feehan then you will enjoy her books too.
If you love your angels a little dark and wicked, her
best-selling Her Angel romance series is for you. If you like
strong, powerful, and dark vampires then try the Vampires
Realm romance series or any of her stand alone vampire
romance books. If you’re looking for vampire romances that
are sinful, passionate and erotic then try her Vampire Erotic
Theatre romance series. Or if you like hot-blooded alpha
heroes who will let nothing stand in the way of them claiming
their destined woman then try her Eternal Mates series.
It’s packed with sexy heroes in a world populated by elves,
vampires, fae, demons, shifters, and more. If sexy Greek
gods with incredible powers battling to save our world and
their home in the Underworld are more your thing, then be
sure to step into the world of Guardians of Hades.
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