Hi, everyone! I want to thank Scattered Thoughts and Rogue Words for having me on the blog. A Chance for Us: New Vampire Justice is book 2 in the series. Dare to Love Forever is the first. Read about New Vampire Justice and an excerpt and then enter the giveaway.
I hope you enjoy this peek at A Chance for Us. Check in at www.jakecwallace.com for more information.
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New Vampire Justice is the law enforcement agency tasked with policing vampires in a world where humans know vampires exist. Vampires aren’t the superhuman, preternatural creatures portrayed by popular media, legends and stories. Vampires are a result of evolution, essentially human but with a need for certain blood proteins in order to survive. Human blood is not necessary due to the advent of synthetic blood. Biting is illegal, except in highly-policed specialized clubs. Vampires are no threat to the Nons (non-vampires).
Despite living and working among the Nons, vampires are third class citizens. They are targets of violence, discrimination, and are viewed by some as less than human. Vampires want equal rights, the same rights as Nons. But not all vampires want equality. Some vampires feel theirs is the dominate race and they should possess the power of the Nons. Their attempts to gain this power increases the tensions between the races. Amid this chaos, the officers of NVJ must keep the peace between vampires and humans, a fight becoming more impossible by the day.
Book 1 starts the series with Carson and Lincoln’s story. Book 1 should be read first to understand the events happening in Book 2 with Justin and Max’s story.
Happy Reading!
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A Chance for Us: New Vampire Justice Book 2
Dreamspinner Press
All Romance eBooks
Amazon
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Blurb
Love between a young man with a broken mind and the jaded New Vampire Justice officer who cares for him might be the last hope to stop a human-vampire war….
Justin Masters is stuck in a nightmare. Waking after seven years in a catatonic state, he falls desperately in love with the straight NVJ officer who saved him. Between that and dreams of being tortured and taking pleasure in the pain, which bleed into his waking hours, Justin’s sure he’s starting to crack.
The growing unrest in the vampire world should be Max Kincaid’s focus, but Justin’s struggle, along with Max’s confusing feelings for his ward, have him reeling. When Justin’s attacked, his resulting needs might be more than Max can fulfill, but he’ll be damned if anyone else will touch Justin.
As the NVJ investigates humans missing from a high-end bite club, they uncover a deeper plot that traces back to Justin. If those who want him have their way, there will be bloodshed. Justin and Max are in a fight to save Justin not only from those who would use him, but from his own mind.
Excerpts
Justin
Justin gasped in a breath. Fuck, he’d done it again. Max would be pissed when he got there. And he’d come because he was the only one who could help. Then he’d see that Justin had gotten lost in his head again, lost in the nightmares of his past. Max would want to know why he hadn’t used the techniques from his therapist Walt. Justin grunted. They never worked. But it didn’t matter. He was too far gone to get back on his own. At that point, only physical pain or being wrapped up, practically restrained until he couldn’t move, would center him and bring back to reality.
Great, there was Doc talking with Carson. Doc’s solutions always came in the form of a needle. Drug him. Justin banged his forehead against his knees. Maybe he could bang hard enough to knock himself out, or maybe have a stroke and become a vegetable like Tommy Dennison upstairs. Then Max wouldn’t be burdened with a dependent head case. Max was always pushing Justin to be more independent, rely on himself more. Max, who’d rescued Justin, taken him in, held him whenever he thought he’d shake apart, helped as Justin relearned to take care of himself, his cooking, his laundry, and, hell, even to go outside without falling to pieces. Max’s bid to stop Justin from relying on him was like a knife to his chest.
Justin had fallen in love with Max. Max who was caring, attentive, unflappable. Justin had fallen in love with his crooked grin, his wavy blond hair with the sides that always escaped his ponytail, the way his glasses were always askew, his quiet and contemplative demeanor. Justin believed Max didn’t see a potential lover in him, but a needy little brother. Despite being only two years younger than Max, Justin was still that sixteen-year-old, but now in a man’s body. He couldn’t make it through a day without somehow clinging to Max. What kind of life was that for a straight man who wasn’t even related to Justin?
His chest tightened and pushed his rate of breathing higher. Something horrible was going to happen, and it wouldn’t be his own death as he hoped. He couldn’t breathe, couldn’t think, and was going to lose it big-time. Again.
Max
Max pulled off his glasses and rubbed his eyes. If a minute went by that he didn’t worry about Justin, it would be a fucking miracle. In the past five months, Justin had made incredible strides in emerging from a body on autopilot. God, it seemed like a lifetime ago Max’s team had been ambushed by Jameson Merrick while on a retrieval mission for Justin. Shoved alone, or what he thought was alone, into a small cinderblock room, Max had found Justin. While he’d aged from pictures Max had seen, Max knew it was him. But he hadn’t been prepared for the state Justin was in.
Justin’s greenish-hazel eyes, dull and lifeless, had stared out into nothing. No emotion. No sign his mind was even in the room. If not for breathing, he could have been mistaken for a statue. A very handsome statue with his creamy skin, freckles dotting his nose and cheeks, which matched his sandy-red hair, and slim body.
Even though Justin wouldn’t respond, Max had spoken about anything and everything, anything to drown out the quiet. At night when the temperature dropped, Max held Justin close to his side, sharing warmth to stop Justin from shivering. Even when night ended, Max still held him, as Justin rested his head on Max’s shoulder. Eventually he had looked up at Max. That’s when he’d caught the cognizance in Justin’s eyes. Hearing Max say his name had brought a frown to Justin’s face that quickly faded. Justin had snuggled in closer and placed his hand on Max’s chest.
Max recalled how that gentle touch had caused his heart to skip a beat. Even then that memory stirred something inside.
Bonus excerpt: Dare to Love Forever: New Vampire Justice Book 1
Dreamspinner Press
All Romance eBooks
Amazon
Barnes and Noble
Blurb
Carson Locke is dangerous, even by vampire standards. A rare Tabula Rasa vampire, he can wipe the mind of those he bites—human or vampire. Because of this, he’s lived his entire life in isolation. When his family is murdered, Carson runs from those who want him dead. Injured, starving, and about to be executed, he meets Commander Lincoln Samuels, an officer in the New Vampire Justice police force.
Lincoln, a Sanatore vampire, possesses the gift of healing. The moment he encounters Carson, broken and terrified, trying to steal blood to survive, he is compelled to help the other man—despite the risk to himself. Their bond creates something the world has never seen, but others have plans for Carson, and his destiny was written long before he was born. He’ll either become a tool to control the vampire world, or, with Lincoln by his side, find the courage to fight and become its savior.
Excerpt
…Lincoln nudged the kid’s knee with the toe of his boot. The suspect flinched but didn’t look up. Lincoln crouched and lowered his voice. “Hey, kid. What’s your name?”
Every muscle in the too-thin body shook. There was no answer. From the scream he’d let loose, Lincoln surmised he could talk. He touched the kid’s shoulder. Still he didn’t move, but his shaking ramped up a couple of notches.
“I’m not going to hurt you. You’re safe now.” Lincoln turned to his officers behind him. Of course Dennison was the only one with his gun still drawn. “Holster your weapon, Dennison.”
Dennison hesitated, not bothering to hide his disdain. Lincoln raised his brow. Dennison huffed, then did as he was ordered. Lincoln turned back to the kid. “The guns are put away.”
The kid raised his chin and cocked his head, peering past the dark hair covering his eyes. Large brown eyes, filled with despair, sucker punched Lincoln in the gut. He surveyed the vampire’s sharp cheekbones and jawline, sunken eyes and hollowed cheeks, and… the reddest lips that contrasted with his pale skin. Blood rushed to Lincoln’s groin, and his cock pressed against his jeans. Shit, it was forever since he’d gotten hard on sight. A warm mouth on his dick was generally required before anything stirred below—the hazards of a fuckton of one-night stands and a dead heart.
Damn.
“When was the last time you ate?”
The young vampire stared at Lincoln, and then, as if he’d decided to trust him, answered. “T-ten days ago.”
After ten days the kid should have been attacking every vein in sight, even if he’d never drank straight from a human. He had a shitload of self-control, especially with blood pooling on the floor next to him.
Lincoln looked to Max, who didn’t need for Lincoln to tell him how dire the situation was. He released the kid. He swayed but stayed upright. Max pulled off his jacket and rolled up his sleeve. It was dangerous to allow a starving vampire near a vein, but someone had to feed the kid right then. Lincoln couldn’t be the donor, even if he wanted. He’d have to make sure the guy didn’t drain Max. Of everyone on his team, Max was the most levelheaded. No doubt he was the one who called in the level-one situation. Lincoln trusted Max with his life, and vice versa.
Lincoln tentatively set his hand on the vampire’s shoulder. Power, immense and nearly uncontained, emanated from the kid, unlike anything Lincoln had ever felt. His cock hardened further. Those brown eyes. Fuck.
Lincoln cleared his throat. “I’m sure I don’t have to explain the effects of blood deprivation on a vampire. You’re already past the point where synthesized blood will help.”
The kid’s brown eyes widened, and he shook his head violently. “N-no. I can’t!”
That fear came from only drinking blood from a cup his entire life. Didn’t mean he couldn’t drink from the vein. The thought terrified most vampires who’d never sank their fangs into flesh. Lincoln recalled his first bite at a certified bite club his uncle brought him to. He was sixteen. Humans desiring the bite were able to meet vampires who wanted to drink their blood. Lincoln had been scared shitless. The wrong placement of fangs or sudden jerk of the donor could severely injure the Non and possibly kill them.
For Lincoln, drinking from a human woke some primordial, anamalistic need. The human blood was like an aphrodisiac. Without even taking his cock out of his pants, he’d orgasmed, same as the Non guy he chose. That first bite unearthed a need Lincoln was unable to ignore, bringing him back to the clubs every couple of months.
“I know you’ve probably never done this before, but it’s not that hard. Feel for the pulse with your tongue. That’s where you want to place your fangs. Bite down firmly, but don’t go too fast. Stop once the blood starts to pool on the skin. Pull out and suck.”
Restless movements from his team told Lincoln they’d probably never seen a vampire bite someone as well.
“You’re going to feed him? What the fuck? He broke the law!”
Leave it to Dennison to object. Lincoln clenched his jaw and ignored the rant. Max raised his wrist to the kid’s mouth, but his reaction surpassed fear alone. He yanked against the hands holding him. Terror-filled eyes were glued to Max’s wrist. A war of need and fear raged in the depths of the kid’s eyes.
“I can’t! Get away from me!” The kid gasped and fought for breath as if some horrible monster stalked toward him. “You… d-don’t… under… s-stand!” His adrenaline-fueled state increased his strength as he tried to escape the wrist before him. He was going to hurt himself.
His useless fight annoyed Lincoln. “Calm down, kid! No one’s going to hurt you.”
“Put him out of his misery,” Dennison muttered.
The vampire’s struggle ceased as his entire body stiffened. His eyes flashed white as they rolled up into his head. He slumped forward and was out cold.
“Dammit, lower him to the floor.”
Max and Taylor laid the kid on his stomach. That’s when Lincoln saw the symbol tattooed at the base of his spine.
“Fuck me!”
Things had gone from bad to worse in a split second.
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About Jake C Wallace
Formerly, I wrote under JC Wallace, but recently decided to use my full name. I have been writing all of my life but didn’t start publishing until 2014. In my day job, I am a behavior analyst. At night and on the weekends, I write about all things men. I believe there is nothing hotter than two men finding and loving one another, whether for a night or forever. An avid reader of M/M romance, I love a good twist of a plot, HEA, HFN, or tragic ending.
I am owned by my beautiful partner, three kids and two grandchildren. I live in Northern Vermont.
Oooh, what a twisty and devious book this was! It’s not mentioned in the blurb, and only hinted at in the beginning of the story, but there was a subtle paranormal aspect to it which was not what I expected it to be.
Glenn Holloway’s predictable life ended the day he confessed his homosexuality to his family. As if that wasn’t enough, he then poured salt in the wound by walking away from the ranch he’d grown up on, to open the restaurant he’d always dreamed of. Without support from his father and brother, and too proud to accept assistance from anyone else, he had to start from scratch. Over time things worked out: Glenn successfully built a strong business, created a new home, and forged a life he could be proud of.
Temptation, peril, and dirty poker.
