Breath Mints And Battle Scars

---> if you are interested in my work, please check out my novel The Starving Vulture. Available on Amazon, $3.99 for the Ebook and $14.95 for the Paperback https://www.amazon.com/Starving-Vulture-Miguel-Monta%C3%B1a/dp/1951150899<--------- Aster Likaya is a Battle Mage of the Zeraph Republic. Raised in a military family, she was destined for a life on the front. As a Battle Mage she has mastered the art of Controlling. A simple but effective kind of magic that is necessary when one bonds and commands the essential robotic warmachines of her world. The Gearbanes. And now, she is a Captain. But much to her surprise, she is not handed a company but a unit of stoic and silent soldiers that call themselves DragonWolves. Her second in command, is Lieutenant Able Froster, young but grim faced soldier who has seen combat since he was barely a boy. For their first mission, they are given a simple task. Retrieve an agent of the Republic who is lost in the vast swampland known as the Suha Marshes. Little do they know, that they are not the only factions searching for the man. For in the Suha Marshes, hunt the cannibalistic Birchmen and the Kolysian pirates. All eager for the prize the agent carries. This is the world of Likaya and Froster. Dominated by machines powered by magic, weapons ignited by runes and wars fought over ancient relics forged by a forgotten past. Welcome to Likaya's Wolves.

Anita," her angelic voice calls to me. Thunder rumbles in the distance. Her soft, delicate hands caressing my face, sparkling green eyes grounding me from the dark past I wish I could forget. "You're safe, it's okay." I bring my hand up, running my finger over the mound of scar tissue. The constant reminder of that night. The raised bump covers the bullet fragment embedded in my sternum. She takes my hands as more thunder rumbles and tears roll down my cheeks. "Breathe Anita," she says in a soothing whisper. My lungs were burning with the need for air and it was then that I realized I'd been holding it. I take in a gasping breath and recall the first time my eyes met her green eyes. My sister had been lifted off me and my eyes opening had startled her. The first time she touched me gave me strength to hold on. I held her hand tight, trying to tell her what happened, but couldn't get enough breath to form words. Sitting in the present going through the same as I had five years ago. "They were all found, Anita. They can't hurt you anymore. It's just a storm. All the doors and windows are locked, the alarm is set. It's just you and me." "Will you keep the light on tonight, please?"

"You still smell the same… You must like this cologne that much." Alex whispered behind her ear, his warm breath sending an involuntary shiver down her spine. "You don’t remember me," he murmurs, his fingers tilting her chin until their eyes locked. "But I never forgot you." Ariel’s breath hitches. His touch is hauntingly familiar. Then he leans in again, his voice a dark whisper. "I assumed only I could make you feel this way." Ariel Richmond’s life was shattered the night she was betrayed. Drugged by her fiancé and sister, she woke up to a reality she had never chosen—humiliated, abandoned, and unknowingly carrying the child of a stranger. Fleeing to Spain, she built a new life, determined to leave the past behind. Alexander Lucas never forgot her. The ruthless billionaire, known for his cold detachment, spent years searching for the woman who vanished after their one fateful night. Fate brings them back together in the cruelest way possible—Ariel, desperate to save her son, enters a contract marriage with Johny Lucas… only to discover that his stepbrother is Alexander. Now, trapped between the man who unknowingly changed her life and the husband she never wanted, Ariel must navigate a tangled web of secrets, power, and a past that refuses to stay buried.

In a world of magic and power, Freya, a young Tribrid, must embrace her destiny or risk everything. As her powers surge, she seeks refuge at the Academy for Werewolves, only to face a deadly rivalry with the first Tribrid, with their powers locked in a fierce battle, Freya must confront the darkness within and make a choice: unleash her true potential or succumb to the shadows. Will she emerge victorious, or will the cost of her victory be her very soul?

With her father passed on, Avery has to battle her responsibilities as an Alpha to her pack: The Silvermist. She never expected to meet her mate at the wrong time in her life. The difficult part is that he is a king who definitely will do anything to let Avery stay by his side. But he also has a secret of his own. What happens when Ava find outs, will she be able to stay or leave him for good.

His blood is still on my hands when he presses me to the wall. He's not kissing me yet, just his breath at my throat and his fingers tugging the waistband of my scrubs like he owns what’s under them. "I kill for you, doctor," he growls, voice thick with threat and worship. "The least you can do is stop pretending you don’t like it." I should run, instead, I tilt my chin—and dare him to try. Dr. Elena Vance never meant to save a mafia king. One moment, she’s leaving a trauma shift. The next, she’s elbow-deep in blood, patching up a man with a gun under his belt and death in his eyes. That man is Dante Volkov. Russia’s most wanted heir. New York’s rising Pakhan. And now? Elena’s captor. His offer is simple: Marry him or disappear forever. She bargains for three months.Three months to resist the Bratva’s crown prince. Three months to prove she’s no one’s possession. But Dante doesn’t play fair. He wages war with his hands, his mouth, his voice—claiming Elena in every room, every breath, every ruined rule. And as old enemies rise and family blood spills, one thing becomes terrifyingly clear: Elena isn’t just married to the mob. She’s becoming one of them.

Excerpt “Did he touch you?” Nicholas leaned in, his face inches away from mine. His closeness was suffocating,stealing the breath in my lungs. “Nic, stop!” My breath hitched and I shrank back. “I’ll take that as a yes, which hand?” He questioned again, clenching his jaws so hard that I could see the muscles rippling. “It was a mistake..” I whispered. “That doesn’t look like a mistake, Mira..” he moved closer to me. “It was, please let it go” I pleaded with my last bit of energy. “If you don’t tell me, I’ll bring both hands for you to choose,”. ********. Mira Cavallo thought she could leave her dangerous past behind and stay safe with her five-year-old son, Rocco but unknown to her, safety is an illusion in the mafia world. Her peaceful life is shattered when armed men break into her home, rips her son from her arms and forces her back into the clutches of her former boss, Lucius Moretti also known as the bloodhound. To save her child, Mira must return to the mafia world, seduce a very dangerous Mafia leader, Nicholas Sterling and uncover his secrets that would pull him down or kill him. As Mira inches closer to the truth, Mira discovers some hidden truth about Lucuis and Nicholas and she also realizes that she isn’t just fighting for her son but for her freedom in a dangerous game of power and desire.

Brandon’s lips brushed against mine, his voice a low murmur. “Didn’t think you’d be on your knees for me so soon, sunflower.” I shoved him back, breath unsteady. “This isn’t a game.” But it was. With his father cutting him off and his half-brother poised to take everything, Cameron had no choice. Marrying Brandon the man he despised most—was the only way to secure his inheritance. Brandon was insufferable. Arrogant. And worst of all… he was enjoying every second of this. Cameron was straight. He hated him. Or was he?

I looked into her eyes, which held nothing but happiness. I smirked at how she was enjoying her little victory, oblivious to what was waiting for her. “This happiness won’t last long, princess,” I murmured, moving closer to her. From the corner of my eye, I could see others admiring us, looking at what they believed to be a loving couple. But what they did not know was — we were anything but a loving couple. “I know it will not. However, my desire will last until I take my last breath, sire.”

"Chels, you're turned on too, aren't you?" During a visit to the haunted house with my best friend, Chelsea Higgins, and her boyfriend, Ivan Benton, Ivan has mistaken me for Chelsea and has embraced me from behind. I can feel his warm palm slowly sliding up the hem of my skirt in the pitch-black darkness. At the same time, his hot breath keeps splaying over my nape and my earlobe. The most embarrassing thing is, I'm starting to get turned on by Ivan's actions for real.