In a world where magic has only just returned,
a serial killer is on the loose. Wielding a form of magic that drains the
fertility and life from his victims, he stalks Australia’s southernmost capital,
Hobart. Officer Catriona ‘Kitty’ Cordello and her ex-pat American partner,
Charles Herbert, use their growing skill at detecting and identifying magic to
try and track him down. When Special Investigator Seranefret arrives from Egypt
at the behest of a seer, they meet the one man who might be able to identify
their target—and steal Kitty’s heart. But Sera is on a mission from the gods,
and he has been told he cannot fail. Will his dedication to the task make him
blind to Kitty’s need? And what part is Charles intended to play? Having failed
with Kitty once, how does he feel about the idea of Sera standing by her side?
Pussy Cat, Pussy Cat is an erotic romance set in a time
when magic has returned to a mundane world, of travelling across the Fields of
Time, and of an enemy ruthless enough to betray his brother and attempt to
dominate an unsuspecting world. It contains elements of ménage, light bondage
and explicit sex scenes set against a backdrop of the modern world and Egyptian
myth.
Pussy Cat, Pussy Cat is currently available at
Smashwords, Kobo, Kindle, iTunes and Nook. It is available as an e-book and
print-on-demand paperback.
First Chapter: Kitty Cordello
“Please,
Kitty,” the voice behind the camera begged. “At least pretend you don’t mind
the smell.”
If
she’d had whiskers and fangs, Catarina Cordello would have hissed at the
photographer, but she didn’t. The best she could do was a dark-eyed glare.
“Ooh,
stunning!” The woman smirked. “That’s the hottest look yet.”
“And
I’ve got just the outfit to go with it,” added a vibrant tenor, full of
delight.
Great!
Chris had just walked into the room, and it didn’t sound like he’d run out of
designs yet. What had she done to deserve this? Oh wait, that’s right—she
hadn’t done anything; she’d volunteered!
Of
course, that had been before Shauna and Chris had revealed that the ‘special
favor’ they ‘desperately’ needed was for her to model sixty zillion sets of
lacy—her mind searched frantically for a word—bits! It was the best she could
do. Some of Chris’s outfits didn’t have enough material to cover a newborn
baby, let alone a grown woman of her proportions. And she’d been right to be suspicious
when they’d mentioned her ‘lovely lines’.
Just
because she was a respectable five-eleven, and kept herself fit, didn’t mean
she was without curves. And finding body armor that fitted some of those curves
had become a source of amusement around the squad room. With any luck the
advent of magic would mean she could find someone to create a supernatural
force shield, one that wouldn’t put unseemly pressure on her more squishable
attributes. Tall and fit did not mean skinny!
With
an exasperated sigh, Kitty turned here glare on the red and white lilium Shauna
thought she hated.
In
truth, she didn’t mind the smell. Faintly spicy, and not strong enough to cause
offense, the flower’s strange scent was more tantalizing than irritating. Kitty
wrinkled her nose in curious delight, and wondered how Charlie would have
responded. The odd perfume, she decided, would have brought out the kitten in
him.
So,
Shauna needed lingerie shots for her portfolio, did she? And Chris wanted to
build up a catalogue for his on-line store… Well, she’d give them both
something they’d be proud of—the blackmailing, golden-hearted mischief-makers.
Remembering
the times they’d helped her out, with moving house, awkward boyfriends, and
embarrassing faux pas, Kitty stalked the gold-maple dresser on which the lilium
stood. She lounged against the gleaming timber, letting the delicate bodice of
her latest outfit fall to form a dark film against it. She played peek-a-boo
with the flower, and pretended to search the drawers, glancing coyly back at
the camera.
Finally,
when she grew tired of the furnishings, she lifted the flower from its crystal
vase and began to stroke it over her face, her arms, and her
thigh.
“Mmm,
lucky flower,” Chris returned. “Do you think you can do that again, wearing the
red number?”
Kitty
bit back the urge to scream. ‘The red number’ was pure lace. Chris had crafted
the entire thing by hand, laying down each red thread, and weaving strands of
silver and gold through it. Real gold! Just looking at it made her nervous.
Something
of her alarm must have shown.
“Oh,
sweetie! It’s just a simple rag,” he cajoled, slipping the black bodice from
her shoulders and holding out his masterpiece. “You’re not going to hurt it.”
Famous
last words, Kitty thought, staring at it in alarm.
It
was the most delicately glorious thing she’d ever seen—a sort of corset with
strategically-placed cutaways and almost invisible fastenings. Pearls shone at
odd points in the design. She wondered how he’d made it strong enough to give
support, but delicate enough to remind her of intricate cobwebs. And why was he
letting her anywhere near it? He’d known her long enough to know how clumsy she
was.
Shauna
came to her rescue. “And he’s not going to look while we get you into it,
either.” her friend declared staunchly.
“Don’t
be silly!” Chris admonished. “How can I show you how it goes on if I have to
close my eyes? Besides, it’s not anything I haven’t seen before.”
“Thanks,
Chris.” Kitty failed to keep the sarcasm from her voice. It wasn’t like she
needed to be reminded.
Chris
had seen it all; he’d shared a room
with her for most of their college years, but he’d never shared her bed—or any
other lover’s place with her. Chris had his own array of boyfriends; he wasn’t
interested in her. It had made for some unusual double dates.
“Chris!”
Shauna was aghast.
“It’s
all right, Shauna,” Kitty said. “He’s right. If you or I try this on our own,
something’s bound to tear.”
“Would
not,” Chris retorted smugly, before hastily adding, “but let’s not risk it.”
With
a sigh, Kitty surrendered the last of the black outfit and her dignity, and let
them dress her. If her policing colleagues could see her now, she’d never live
it down. As far as they knew, she was a plain-Jane,
sensible-and-supportive-cottons girl, and Kitty was glad to leave it that way.
Besides, if her superiors ever thought she was moonlighting as a model, well,
she’d be bound to a desk forever, magic sensitivity or no.
“Turn.”
Kitty
obeyed, trying not to think of what would happen, if even one of her work mates
were to stumble over Chris’s exclusive site and recognize her in any of the
outfits she’d modeled tonight. No, the thought did not bear entertaining. She
was banking that the terms ‘boutique’ and ‘exclusive one-off outfits’ would
deter most of them from even looking. With any luck, the prices would do the
rest. Chris was aiming high.
“Breathe
in.”
She
breathed in, and felt thousands of silk and metal strands trim the edges on her
curves.
“Breathe
out.”
Kitty
did so, and the corset tightened. Okay, so now her best friends were trying to
kill her. Cautiously, she tried breathing in once more. Good, they’d left her
just enough space to pant.
“Chris!”
she gasped.
“Save
it, sweetie,” he instructed. “You’ll need it. Stand still and lean on Shauna.
Now, lift your foot.”
Kitty
groaned and tried to think of something else. Of course, the last time she’d
worn stockings, a garter belt and heels this high, had been on her first, and
only, date with Charlie. Just the thought of him made her sigh.
One
of the few men taller than she was, and not at all intimidated by her height,
Charlie had a body she’d wanted to explore from the moment she’d set eyes on
it. His beautiful blue-black skin had covered a physique that was sleek and
graceful, but carrying enough muscle to avoid looking weedy, and his eyes…
ebony pools that shifted from the darkest of chocolates to the almost perfect
gleam of oil with just a hint of amber or green sliding through. Kitty felt she
could drown in eyes like that—and almost had. He was the most perfect man she’d
ever met. Chris still scolded her for breaking things off with him.
“Who
cares if you work together?” her friend had cried. “He’s gorgeous! And he’s
nice, and I think he could fall for you in a big way. Don’t give him up!”
But
she had given Charlie up, although not without remorse, and tears, and lots of
chocolate. She had put her profession first and her personal life a dead-set,
heart-breaking last. It wasn’t forever, she’d told herself, and Charlie when
he’d argued, and Chris when he’d weighed in with his two-cents’ worth. Just
until the agency had found enough people to cope with having magic in the
world. Just until they’d found more people like Charlie and herself to fill the
gaps.
Unfortunately,
people like Charlie and herself were few and far between… and then there’d been
the whole ‘shift’ incident. That had been the best method, she could think of,
for cooling a relationship, which had been hotting up way too fast. And it had
been entirely unplanned.
One
kiss… Okay, a couple of kisses and maybe hands going where platonic
relationships wouldn’t have put them. And then
the magic of their mouths and hearts had tapped a whole different type of
magic, and they’d changed.
Literally.
Changed.
It
had happened so fast that their animal instincts had taken over, before they
knew what was happening. Yeah, Charlie tearing out a couple of tail feathers
and then taking a swipe at her with both paws… that had put a real dampener on the whole lust-love-relationship
thing.
Jaguars
can climb trees—she hadn’t known, but boy she’d been glad that peregrines could
fly. And black leopards were really hard to see at night. ‘Bad kitty!’ had a
whole new meaning when referring to Charlie. She’d screamed it to the sky, and
he’d fallen out of the tree laughing.
Her
butt had hurt for days afterwards. He’d walked with a slight limp for a week.
Not one of their colleagues had bought the whole ‘fell-over-while-hiking’
thing, either, but they’d shut up quickly enough, when she and Charlie had
announced their break-up.
They
were both much safer, if they kept each other at arm’s length. Who knew when it
would happen again?
“Okay…
and pose!” Chris’s jubilant command jerked her back to reality, and the flash
from Shauna’s camera reminded Catarina ‘Kitty’ Cordello that all friendships
required the occasional sacrifice.
END FIRST CHAPTER
If you would like to read more, Pussy Cat, Pussy Cat is currently available at Smashwords, Kobo, Kindle, iTunes and Nook. It is available as an e-book and print-on-demand paperback.
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