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The Tied Man: Unbound
SNEAK PEEK FROM UNBOUND
Finn
Lilith
returned home an hour later. “Hi there.” She grinned and strode past me, loaded
down with carrier bags.
“Um, hi?” I volunteered. “Where have you been?”
“Putting my control freakery to good use,” she called
as she headed towards the kitchen. She didn’t sound all that pissed off at me,
and I plucked up the courage to follow her so I could apologise. “If I can’t
defeat it, I may as well channel it.”
“But seriously, you goin’ to let me in on this
nefarious plan of yours any time soon?”
“Yup.” Lilith emerged from behind the kitchen island.
“Once I’ve sorted a picnic, you and I, my darling, stroppy Celtic fucker, are
going on a date.”
“Oh,” I said, utterly thrown. After my ridiculous
outburst the very least I deserved was to be sent to my room without any
supper. “Can I ask where?”
“Nope.” Lilith packed various items from the
fridge into a large insulated bag. “It’s a mystery tour.”
Once everything was packed to Lilith’s
satisfaction, we left the apartment. Instead of finding her immaculate Triumph
Vitesse, Nat’s Jeep was parked at the kerb with its soft top folded down.
“We’re borrowing it,” Lilith said, by way of explanation. “The poor thing
doesn’t know what ‘off-road’ is – it needs a good run. As do we, so hop in.”
*****
We headed out of Santa Marita and followed the coast
road for maybe ten miles, until Lilith pulled off the main drag and drove us up
to a wrought iron gate partially hidden by an overgrown hedge. She leaned out
of her door to enter a code into a keypad, and the gate slid open. “We’re now
entering Señor Quinteras’ estate; thirty thousand acres of land, and three
miles of private coastline. I did his portrait a couple of years ago, and part
of the deal was that I get to come and play here whenever I like. He’s out of
the country at the moment, so we’ve got the whole place to ourselves. And right
now I’d recommend that you check that your seatbelt’s fastened.” I’d just
glanced down to make sure it was when she slammed the little car into first
gear and took off straight across the dunes.
I may have actually screamed.
On the road, Lilith was an assured and
skilful driver. Off-road, she was an absolute maniac. I counted at least a
dozen times when all four wheels left the surface of the planet, and I would
have considered asking if we could reverse so I could collect my stomach if I
hadn’t been concentrating so hard on breathing. As far as I could see there was
no roadway or path to follow but Lilith appeared to know exactly where she was
going.
We finally came to a halt on a sand dune
that overlooked a secluded bay.
“Jesus. You weren’t a twocker in a
previous life, were you?” I gasped.
“A what?”
“Twocker. You know what one is?”
Lilith shook her head.
“Fuck me, don’t tell me I’ve found
something you don’t know? Car thief. ‘Take without owner’s consent.’
They have a tendency to drive like nutters without any regard for life, too.”
“Well at least I know there’s a career
available for me if I the demand for erotic portraiture dries up.” Lilith
applied the handbrake and jumped down from the car as coolly as if we’d just
driven to the supermarket. I managed to get out without my legs folding beneath
me.
“So now I’ve survived the journey, do I
get to know what we’re doing here?” I asked.
“You’re going to learn to swim,” Lilith
declared as she pulled her holdall from the back seat.
I made one last attempt to cling on to my
rapidly-evaporating foul mood. “I might already know how to swim. Did
you consider that?”
“Except you don’t,” Lilith stated.
“Because if you knew how to swim, you’d have tried to get across Lake
Albermarle within a month of arriving, or drowned in the attempt.”
Check.
“Anyway, I haven’t got anything to wear
and there’s no fuckin’way I’m going in the sea in the nip.” I watched as Lilith
got a carrier out of the holdall. “Ah, bugger it, let me guess. This is where
you give me a pair of swimming shorts that are, no doubt, both a perfect fit
and a colour that’s a perfect match for my skin tone. Am I right?”
Lilith laughed and threw me one of the
carrier bags. “Navy blue. I’ll even shut my eyes whilst you put them on.”
And mate.
I tried to scowl at her, but the impish
grin she gave me in return made it harder and harder to sustain. “Bossy posh
wee mare,” I muttered, and opened the package.
“Grumpy Irish bastard,” Lilith retorted,
and stuck her tongue out at me before turning her back. “Now go on, show your
arse to the seagulls and get changed.”
By the time I’d stripped out of my jeans
and t-shirt and pulled my shorts on, Lilith had changed into a miniscule black
bikini that looked predictably amazing on her bronzed and taut runner’s frame.
“At least I can make I right tit of myself
in privacy, I suppose,” I said as we walked towards the water, which was marginally
less humiliating than pleading Please don’t make me do this. I can’t deal
with finding yet another thing I can’t do.
“Actually, one of the reasons I
decided to bring you swimming is that I think you’ll be good at it.”
“Yeah, sure you did.”
Lilith stepped in front of me. “You have
the build, for a start. Wide shoulders, slim waist. Disgustingly decent arm
strength for someone who doesn’t exercise.” As she spoke she ran her hands over
my body, and her flawless brown skin was stark against my own which, after a
life spent in shadows both literal and metaphorical, could best be described as
pale blue. Under the bright midday sun, the silver network of scarring on my
hands and arms was virtually fluorescent, a horrific map of self-destruction.
“And… oh God, I know it has nothing to do with keeping you afloat, but you’re
so bloody beautiful. Come here a moment.”
Her eyes were full of a warmth that I really didn’t deserve as she
stood on tiptoe to kiss me, delicately at first, with that subtlest of pauses to
allow me to give or deny consent. With an unpleasant little stab of guilt I
realised that Lilith did that every single time we kissed, or made love, or
even held hands; she had never once forced intimacy on me, never assumed I
would accept her touch, and had managed it so adroitly that I hardly noticed it
was happening. Until now. Everything my counsellor had advised to ensure the
development of my ‘personal sexuality’, Lilith had been doing instinctively
from the very first moment we’d met.
Lilith waited for me. I leaned in and
returned the kiss, long and hard.
My permission duly given, her nimble
tongue parted my lips and gently brushed against my teeth as she entwined her
fingers in my hair, and I gave a soft moan of pleasure and pulled her lithe
body against mine until my hard-on began to test the limits of my new attire. I
was just wondering if there was sufficient space to get horizontal on the back
seat of the Jeep when Lilith pulled away with a little sigh of regret.
“Hey, don’t stop on my account,” I said,
and Lilith gave me a wicked little smile.
“No more distractions, bad man. We can
finish this later, as long as you haven’t drowned.”
“Yeah, you’re fuckin’ hilarious, lady.
Does the kiss of life count as a snog if the recipient’s dead?”
“Trust me, Finn,” she whispered and
hugged me close for a few moments more, until I was as brave as I was ever
going to be.
“Come on then, let’s get it over with,” I
said, and with Lilith at my side I waded out into the sea for the first time in
my life.
★TinkNCognito Review-The Tied Man (first book in the series)★
☆*´¨)
¸.•´¸.•*´¨) ¸.•*¨)
(¸.•´ (¸.•` I wish there were more stars to award than 5. The Tied Man is a very dark, very disturbing book. I cried more than once, and I cursed quite often too. It is brutal sometimes, but the tender moments are so well done that they often broke my heart.
This book truly is dark and twisted, but it is also well-worth the read. It isn't for the faint of heart or those with abuse triggers. There is a light at the end of the tunnel if you can just get that far!
¸.•´¸.•*´¨) ¸.•*¨)
(¸.•´ (¸.•` I wish there were more stars to award than 5. The Tied Man is a very dark, very disturbing book. I cried more than once, and I cursed quite often too. It is brutal sometimes, but the tender moments are so well done that they often broke my heart.
This book truly is dark and twisted, but it is also well-worth the read. It isn't for the faint of heart or those with abuse triggers. There is a light at the end of the tunnel if you can just get that far!
★FACEBOOK AUTHOR PAGE★
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(¸.•´ (¸.•` ☆Go to Tumblr for excerpts from Book 1, The Tied Man, as well as more sneak peeks from Book 2, The Tied Man: Unbound…
¸.•´¸.•*´¨) ¸.•*¨)
(¸.•´ (¸.•` ☆Go to Tumblr for excerpts from Book 1, The Tied Man, as well as more sneak peeks from Book 2, The Tied Man: Unbound…
★★★★
Fan-Chosen Excerpt from
the First Book: http://tabithamcgowan1.tumblr.com/post/116557286854/fan-chosen-excerpt-from-the-tied-man-book-1
The Complete 1st chapter
of The Tied Man: Unbound (Book 2 & Coming Soon) http://tabithamcgowan1.tumblr.com/post/115732226449/first-chapter-from-the-tied-man-unbound
2nd "Sneak
Peek" of The Tied Man: Unbound (Book 2 & Coming Soon) http://tabithamcgowan1.tumblr.com/post/116281945204/excerpt-2-from-the-tied-man-unbound
Interview with Totally
Booked from 5/31/13 regarding The Tied Man (Books 1 & 2) http://tabithamcgowan1.tumblr.com/post/115731543819/totallybooked-tabitha-mcgowan-interview
★★★★
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SO happy to spotlight an author I really love!
ReplyDeleteWow! Okay... You've got my interest piqued! If the second book is this interesting, I'll definitely at least look at what's out there for the first. I'm looking for something I don't want to put down that is gritty and romantic at the same time. Maybe this is it? Is the second book available for pre-order (just in case)?
ReplyDeleteNo info on pre-order yet but very soon! I can't wait. I literally devoured the first one! I am dying to see where she takes these great characters...
ReplyDelete