Exclusive Excerpt from Atlantis Betrayed by Alyssa Day

Author Alyssa Day was kind enough to share an exclusive excerpt from her upcoming novel, Atlantis Betrayed, with us. The book, the sixth in her Warriors of Poseidon series, comes out this Tuesday, Sept. 7.

In this section the hot Atlantean warrior Christophe and an infamous cat burglar called the Scarlet Ninja meet in the Tower of London, the home of England’s crown jewels, and discover they’re after the same treasure.

Christophe smiled, and Fiona wondered dizzily if the devil himself had a smile as seductive. “I think I’ll stick with you,” he said. “I’d like to see under that mask. That lovely skin and those blue eyes are making me wonder what the rest of you looks like, not that those scarlet silks are hiding much. A man would give much to get his hands on those curves.”

The blunt words packed a sensual punch, maybe due to the sheer honesty of the admiration on his face and in his tone. She had to clench her thighs together against the heat.

“No time for this,” she said, inexplicably both glad she wore the mask and regretting it. “Step closer and I’ll shoot you.”

He bowed, a study in grace and elegance, and she had the oddest feeling that the courtly gesture came naturally to him, as if he’d done it many times before.

Her watch ticked over again. Nine minutes.

Still keeping one wary eye on him, she turned toward the shatterproof glass case on the far wall, crossing the electronic walkway to view the sword in its solitary state.

“Vanquish stands apart, doesn’t it?” he murmured next to her ear. He was too close; he was suddenly right next to her. She couldn’t contain the startled gasp. Nobody but vampires could move that fast. He clearly wasn’t that, though; her senses could recognize a vampire at twenty paces. But what? She backed away, aiming the tranq gun carefully, although he didn’t seem the least bit afraid of it. He also didn’t seem to be trying to scare her.

Not that he could. She was tough and brave, right?

Mostly?

“Isolated from the rest of the room, and even from the remainder of the sword collection,” he continued, as if unaware of her reaction. “Proud and unbending, like its owner.”

She dismissed his flight of fancy. “A conqueror. A predator.”

He turned to face her, the heat from his body radiating through the inches separating them until she felt herself beginning to lean forward into him. She stumbled back a step and raised the gun, aiming it at his heart.

He didn’t pay the slightest attention to it. Those blue eyes lasered into her as he tilted his head. “And you don’t care for predators? You, who yourself live your life in search of prey? Dressed like a ninja?”

“My prey doesn’t breathe.”

“Doesn’t it? The treasures of a society are not the living, breathing representations of its history?”

Not an idiot, then. In spite of those cheekbones and sculpted lips. The pretty boy had a mind.

Click. Eight minutes.

“Bit fancy for a predator, isn’t it? I’d imagine predators use more useful blades.”

His attention snapped back to her, that piercing focus almost palpable. “Funny. I was thinking something similar earlier tonight.”

“Why were you thinking about Vanquish?”

“I plan to steal it.”

A jolt of sheer adrenaline raced through her, chasing chills down her spine, and she whirled around to face him straight on. “No. You can’t. It’s mine.”

For more on Atlantis Betrayed or any of Alyssa Day’s other works (including next June’s Vampires in Atlantis, which we’re looking forward to), visit her website. She’s a fan of all sorts of extras, so expect to find more excerpts and even a link to her new music video based on a song about her books.

You can pre-order Atlantis Betrayed from The Book Depository or Amazon