Taken By Desire (Book 1)

In "The Lost Kingdom of Atlantis," the legendary city of Atlantis isn't just a myth—it was intentionally submerged beneath the sea, and its people are now ready to reclaim it.

Greydon has two crucial missions: find his lost brothers and rescue his people. His role as the surviving prince of this ancient civilization adds to the weight of his responsibilities. While pursuing his enemy, he becomes entangled with a human woman in a dangerous situation, compelling him to save her life.

Aimee, who has always seen her bookstore as a detour in life, never imagined that leaving work late one night would lead her into a world of danger. In an unexpected turn of events, she finds herself in need of rescue, and her savior is none other than Greydon, a prince from a forgotten civilization.

As a demon prince and a mortal woman come together, a forbidden desire blossoms between them. To admit their true feelings, they must uncover the secrets of an ancient civilization and make a shocking discovery. In this captivating story, their love defies boundaries, and they must face their destinies together.

One year later:

Greydon followed the trail of the Concosa demon he’d been hunting since his parent’s death. The creature continued to test every shred of his patience. The only thing that kept him going was the sweet taste of revenge, and he couldn’t wait for its bitter flavor to coat the back of his throat. He’d already chased Threydor to the ends of the earth and back over the past year, but this time he would finally succeed and kill the bastard. The poison-laced bullets he carried would ensure his success.

He had to take him down now. Time was running out, and he needed to end his enemy’s life before his five-hundredth birth date in two weeks. The time when he would be required to keep his date with the goddess Uuna and her ass of a husband Zolar, for his seven days of hell. Or as his people had so fondly nicknamed it…the Pits.

He called upon his power and summoned a portal that led to the human world above. He hated going up there, but then again, there were a lot of things in life he hated. One of them was the bastard he chased, the one who had killed his parents and destroyed his family’s kingdom. The same one who had taken his brothers and friends prisoner. He prayed to the goddess everyday that they were still alive, and he could save them and reclaim his home.

When the vortex appeared he stepped inside. Within seconds, he transported to a dark alley; the nip in the air bit his skin. It would figure he’d have to go topside when the humans were in the midst of their fall season. 

Scanning the area, he caught the stench of his intended victim and slipped between the buildings toward a flickering light. The demon’s scent grew stronger. Greydon’s grip on his pistol tightened, and he hoped for a clear shot. Hand to hand combat with Threydor was not something he relished. The demon had several hundred years on him and therefore was more powerful.

“Help! Someone please…”A female scream turned into a muffled cry.

“Shit.” He should have tried harder to kill his enemy before letting him escape topside. Too late now, either he reacted or let the woman perish. Even he wasn’t that much of an ass. He slipped around the corner and spotted the demon struggling with its intended prey. No way could he get a clear shot without possibly injuring or even killing the girl, so he took the only option available.

“Let her go and you can have a piece of me.” He stepped into the dim light that bounced off the pavement from the street lamp above, knowing Threydor would be unable to resist his offer.

The demon snarled, showing his pointed teeth, and shoved the girl aside. Just a little closer and he could shoot.

A stench filled his sinus cavity and it came from behind him. Son of a bitch. He should have known Threydor would never travel alone. How could he have been so careless? With rapid reflexes, he spun around on the balls of his feet. Reaching for the blade strapped to his thigh with his left hand, he aimed the gun in his right and prayed to the goddess Uuna that he came through unscathed.

The demon leapt from the shadows and swiped a clawed hand at his chest, but Greydon managed to jump back in the nick of time. He fired his weapon. The bullet missed its target.

“Damnit.”

“Look out behind you!” the woman yelled. Why the hell was she still here and not running for her life? He didn’t need another distraction.

He spun again so he could position a demon on either side of him. They continued to circle, making it difficult to track them both. He contemplated shifting, but didn’t want to risk anyone seeing him. As far as the female knew, he was human as well and preferred to keep it that way, so he would have to wing it in his mortal form. He aimed his pistol and fired. 

“You are a poor shot,” Threydor hissed, and the other demon laughed. They only fueled Greydon’s anger, and he responded by pulling a star from his waist and throwing it. 

Threydor screeched in pain as he pulled one of the four points from between his eyes and tossed the star to the ground. “I’ll kill you.”

“You’ve been trying and failing for a year. I’m sick of chasing your stinking ass.” Greydon fired again, this time the bullet found a home in the flesh of the demon’s shoulder. He howled as the bullet burst open, allowing the poison inside to pump through his veins. Without a direct hit to the heart, it would take a few minutes for Threydor to die. In the meantime, he could still cause Greydon harm, so he kept one eye trained on him while looking for the other demon. Fortunately, Threydor’s lackey wasn’t very bright. The next shot fired hit its mark straight into the heart and the beast went down.

“Watch out!” The girl yelled again. When he turned to look for Threydor, the demon managed to take one last swipe before he hit the ground.

Greydon looked down in disbelief at the blood gushing from his side and cursed the growing red stain on his tee. Threydor’s claw had broken free from his hand and embedded itself into Greydon’s flesh. He gritted his teeth against the pain as the claw began to drill its way deeper into his gut. Figures the fucker would have to try and take me with him. At least he had the satisfaction that his biggest enemy was now dead. He just needed to survive so he could begin to focus on finding his brothers.

“Oh my god, you’re bleeding. We need to get you an ambulance.” The girl rushed to his side and pulled a phone from her pocket. There was no way in hell he could let her make that call.

Sweat already formed on his brow as the poison from the claw began to spread. If he didn’t act quickly and remove it, he would die. As it was, he would be sicker than hell. He hated to do it but had no alternative.

“I need your help,” he whispered and grabbed the female, pulling her to his chest as he used the last of his strength to summon the portal. He would have to rely on a stranger, a human, to save his life.

* * *

Aimee screamed as a dark tunnel surrounded her. It had been bad enough that thing…that ugly, smelly thing had grabbed her and stared at her with its hollow eyes. Vacant holes that led to black emptiness. A misshapen body that couldn’t decide if it were a bird or something else. Then tall, dark and handsome showed up and saved the day.

The shroud of black that clung to her began to lift and she found herself in…tall dark and handsome dropped to his knees and nearly took her down with him.

“Help me.” His pain-filled voice was low.

She searched for someone to assist her and realized they were no longer in the alley. Spotting a bed on the other side of the room, she laced her arms around his chest and tried to pull him to his feet. His dead weight gave resistance. “Come on big guy, you’re gonna have to help me out here.”

He grunted, rose to his feet and wavered but managed to stay erect this time. “Get me to the bed.”

She rolled her eyes. “That was the plan.” She glanced at his bloody shirt but couldn’t tell how badly he was injured. His weight pressed against her side. She couldn’t help noticing the hardness of his body, or how his arm that slung across her shoulders squeezed her tight. Once she got him to the bed, he flopped back with a groan and said something she couldn’t hear.

“What?” She leaned closer.

“You have to help me or I will die.”

Well, that put a whole new spin on things and caused her blood pressure to spike. “You need a doctor, which I am not.” She looked around again, and it was then her surroundings began to sink in. This was no normal bedroom. The walls and floor had a yellowish glow to them. The cool air carried earthy undertones and several feet away was a pool of water.

“Umm, I’m no expert, but I’d swear we were underground.”

“How astute of you. Now listen. People are counting on me to live.” He tugged at his shirt. “Help me get this off. You must remove the claw.”

She took a step back. “What? Nuh uh, no can do. I think I said I wasn’t a doctor, hell not even a nurse. Did I mention I’m not a doctor?”

He tried to sit up and struggled to pull his shirt free, his pain evident in the lines etched on his face. Damn it. She’d always been a sucker for wounded animals. Granted he was a far cry from an animal, but still…

“Please, there is no one else. My brothers are counting on me to save them.” His green eyes pleaded. “My people are counting on me.”

She had a million questions, but those would have to wait. He didn’t look well at all. “Fine, but you’ll have to help me.” She moved back to the bed and sat on the edge of the mattress.

He gripped her arm. “Listen carefully. I can survive the poison if you follow my directions. The claw has to come out.” He gritted his teeth, and his gaze moved to a cabinet. “Medical supplies are in there.”

“Right.” She jumped up; adrenaline pumped through her and put her on autopilot. She flung open the doors and riffled through the items on the shelves: surgical gloves, scissors and gauze. She scooped them up and headed back. “I didn’t see anything to grab hold of it.” She donned the gloves and began cutting up the front of his shirt. 

“You have to use your fingers,” he whispered.

Her jaw dropped.

“Focus!”

“Sorry.” She peeled away the bloody cloth. Her female side, that hadn’t had sex in a year, couldn’t help noticing the six-pack…no make that an eight-pack. She’d been with some fit men, but compared to this guy, even they would be considered fluffy. She caught sight of the bloody gash just below his ribs and swallowed. “I can’t do this.” The thought of sinking her fingers in there made her gut roll.

“You must. I don’t have much longer.” His tanned skin began to pale. 

“Shit.” She sucked in a breath and pried open the wound. Bile rose up her throat. Jesus Christ, Aimee, pull it together. If this guy dies, it will be on your head. Yeah, well he should have gone to a hospital. She slipped her first two fingers into the wound and gagged as warm blood flowed over her latex-covered hand.

“Look in my eyes. Focus on me and you can do this.” Sweat poured down the side of his face. He experienced pain that she could never imagine, yet he tried to help her get beyond her squeamish stomach.

I will not throw up. I will not throw up. With a sharp breath, she dug deeper, wrinkled her nose and told herself the soft squishy things her fingers encountered were not the man’s guts. She pressed further until her hand was in up to the third knuckle. 

She hit something hard. Dear god, please let this be it. 

“I think I found it.”

He nodded as the rise and fall of his chest increased. “Pull. It will resist but pull hard. Don’t fear hurting me, I will heal.”

She bit her lip, wrapped her fingers around the object and pulled. It didn’t budge. Matter of fact, it felt like it tried to burrow deeper.

“Harder. Hurry!”

“Oh hell.” She placed her other palm on his stomach to brace herself and tugged with all her strength. Finally, she was greeted with a slurping sound that caused her to gag. 

Success! 

She held the claw between her fingers and looked back at her patient. His color had gone from pale to gray. “You okay?”

He nodded. “Get rid of it so it doesn’t come back.”

Come back? She didn’t even want to know. Looking around, she wasn’t sure what to do with it.

“Toss it in the water then hurry back.”

She ran to the pool on the other side of the room and tossed in the offending claw, glad to be rid of it. Then she pulled off her gloves and let them slip into the water below. “Yuck.” When she looked down at the pool, it bubbled and spat like a cauldron of acid. She backed up in horror.

“What the hell is that?”

“Come here.” His voice was weaker than before.

She hurried back to his side. “I’m done, right? I can go home now and forget this freakish nightmare?” God, please let him say yes and point me toward the exit.

“Not yet. Listen careful. I promise when I’m fully recovered…” His face contorted in pain. “I’ll take you home. Understand that I am your only ticket out of here. If I die…” He shivered violently.

“But you’re not going to die. Right?”

“The fever will get worse. You cannot allow me to slip into a coma. Keep me cool using the water. If you have to submerse me in it then do so.”

She looked over her shoulder toward the pool. “That does not look safe.”

“It’s safe for us. You can even drink it, I promise. It only reacts to the demons’ blood.” His eyes rolled back. “I can’t hang on any longer. Please swear that you’ll help me.” 

“I swear, but when you’re well, I want answers.”

“I promise you’ll…” His voice faded as his head slumped to the side. Fear put a chokehold on her until she noticed he was still breathing.

She jumped to her feet. “Great. I’m stuck in god knows where with––hell, I’m not sure what you are. I don’t even know your name.”

“Greydon, and I’m a demon,” he whispered.