Valves & Vixens Volume 3 , livre ebook

Andrews UK - Nicole Gestalt

Découvre YouScribe en t'inscrivant gratuitement

Je m'inscris

Obtenez un accès à la bibliothèque pour le consulter en ligne
En savoir plus

118 pages

English

Vous pourrez modifier la taille du texte de cet ouvrage

Obtenez un accès à la bibliothèque pour le consulter en ligne
En savoir plus

A propos
Informations
Extrait

Description

I invite you to take a trip into where steamships, clockwork and steampunk are king. Within these pages are stories that will take you beyond the reality as we know it. So join us and step into the world of Valves & Vixens...A Race and a Rescue - Katherine EvansReihani is a fearless airship pilot that believes there is no obstacle or challenge she can't overcome. So when her cousins kidnap her lover and then challenge her to an airship race to get him back, she agrees. And while she has complete faith in her abilities as a pilot, her cousins have never been known to play fair. With Tieko's freedom on the line, she knows she'll have to keep one step ahead of them or lose her lover forever.Washing Away - SS Hampton, Sr.December 31, 1900, New Year's Eve. A murder of a prominent British politician, an Opportunistic computer technology entrepreneur in a seedy hotel in Washington, D.C. Is the murder nothing more than a sleazy robbery, maybe industrial espionage, or perhaps revenge? Lady Elysia Delacroix Stuart, a brothel owner in Washington, and her sister Lady Cassandra Delacroix Gordon, a member of the brothel, are on their way to Chestertown, West Delaware-the American Indian state, created after the Revolutionary War-for a New Year's Eve celebration. The American Indian state leads the world in early computer technology and Lady Elysia's family played a role in developing the technology. She also had a secret and less than pleasing history with the politician, and finds herself suspect in his murder.Green Spectacles and Rosy Cheeks - Jean RobertaSignor Vitrina, master clairvoyant, is a foreigner in Victorian England. He promised to take care of his old friend's daughter, Dorothea, who is learning to see the past and the future in a square of white silk; but her reputation is so compromised by her position that she doesn't expect to find love. When a determined customer braves the rain to ask for help, the two clairvoyants discover his passion for photography - and for Dorothea. She yearns to give him the discipline he needs. Will she become his strict Muse, and will he reward her with his devotion? Love is the hardest outcome to foresee.Daedalus and the Automaton - P.R. ChasePR Chase's short story, Daedalus and the Automaton, imagines a pleasure 'bot's experiences on board a high-society, high-flying hedonistic airship. As a guest--not as a service machine--"it" begins to develop an identity as a "she" through the power of choice and the urgency of desire.Adrift in a Sea of Stars - Vivian GwynnEmmeline knows just about everything there is to know about space travel. She knows how to stoke a boiler and trim a solar sail, how to take off from a Tsiolkovsky tower, and how to cope with long days and nights with no company but the stars. But when she's assigned Victor Yorke, the handsome young heir to the Lunar Trading Company, as her copilot, she might just learn something new.Flight and Fancy - Parker RoyeThomas Whitlock needs a stall at the Ascension Day market if he's going to make enough money to leave Newcastle for the south. When his latest negotiations with costermongers fail to produce anything but animosity, Thomas permits himself an evening to forget his troubles-only to find a different sort of trouble when he meets Smythe. A creature of the traveling night market, compelling and enigmatic, Smythe draws Thomas to him despite his misgivings. Will Thomas be able to resist Smythe and salvage his reputation? Or, like his clockwork contraptions, will Thomas's desire take on a life of its own?Falls the Shadow - Kim KnoxAether smothers the city of London. To navigate a safe passage, a sacrifice must be made. A pilot must offer pieces of their soul through the casting of runes. Cara Howe, a rune-pilot, knows her end is near. She'll meet a pilot's fate: the aether will soon devour her whole. But airship captain, Elijah Sand, has other plans. He's willing to stand between her and death...even though it may cost him his own life.Ship With Me - J.HepburnThe sea gave Rory a new life, a new family, and enough pride to call himself a man, and all it took in return was time with Lean - his first friend, his first lover, and his only love. He can see her regularly, and that is enough for both of them until an unexpected change of plans forces them to choose between Rory abandoning the best life he has ever had, and Lean overcoming her deepest fear.

Sujets

Erotic literature

Romance

Informations

Publié par	Andrews UK
Date de parution	09 mai 2016
Nombre de lectures	0
EAN13	9781785384660
Langue	English

Informations légales : prix de location à la page 0,0200€. Cette information est donnée uniquement à titre indicatif conformément à la législation en vigueur.

Extrait

Title Page
VALVES & VIXENS
Volume Three
Edited by
Nicole Gestalt
featuring stories from
Katherine Evans SS Hampton, Sr.
Jean Roberta P.R. Chase
Vivian Gwynn Parker Foye
Kim Knox
and
J. Hepburn

Publisher Information
Valves and Vixens Volume 3
Published in 2016 by
House of Erotica
www.houseoferoticabooks.com
an imprint of
Andrews UK Limited
www.andrewsuk.com
Copyright © 2016 House of Erotica under exclusive licence from the individual authors
The right of the authors have been asserted in accordance with the Copyright, Designs and Patents Act 1998
This book is sold subject to the condition that it shall not, by way of trade or otherwise, be lent, resold, hired out or otherwise circulated without the publisher’s prior written consent in any form of binding or cover other than that in which it is published, and without a similar condition being imposed on the subsequent purchaser.
The characters and situations in this book are entirely imaginary and bear no relation to any real person or actual happening.

Introduction
When I started this journey into the world of steamships, clockwork and all things steampunk I hadn’t even dared to dream that we would make it to three books. Yet here we are. Inside this book you will find stories that shoot to the moon and others that give us glimpses of another world.
I am always amazed by the variety of stories that I get when I put out a call for submissions. Unfortunately I can’t accept them all because there are never enough pages, so I hope you all enjoy the few I have been able to accept and place within this volume.
As I have said before one of the great things about anthologies is allowing readers to discover new authors or old favourites. Within these covers you will find authors for which this is their first ever piece of literature in print alongside authors who have been published before, but they all share one thing in common - a voice and a desire to tell us a story.
Go and enjoy these tales, let the words transport you to another time, other worlds and into the high seas where anything can and will happen.
Nicole Gestalt
March 2016

A Race and a Rescue
Katherine Evans
Turbulence rocked the small personal airship, but Reihani gritted her teeth and kept a tight grip on the wheel. The braids of her red hair whipped about in the wind as she fought to keep the ship on course. The mist of the mountains fogged her goggles and she swiped at them with the sleeve of her shirt before pulling on the lever on her right to let more hot air into the balloon. She rose above the fast-flowing winds and her flight evened out. The clouds up higher were thinner and she could see the snow-tipped peaks looming ever larger as she neared them.
Winter was only a few weeks away, but the temperature was frigid in the mountains and she was sure Tieko was freezing. He hated the cold. Reihani clenched the wheel, anger making her blood heat. The damn Chinaji family. Well, her damn Chinaji cousins anyway. How dare they kidnap Tieko. He was bonded to her. Only she could turn him into a magickal sword.
It wasn't the only thing that drove her however In his forced absence she was finally able to admit that she'd fallen for the quiet and serious Metal Elemental and his odd ways. He'd been gone only two days and she missed him terribly. Every second longer he was in her cousin's hands, her worry grew.
Another up-draft stole her attention as her ship bucked, the wood boards groaning in protest, and she fought to bring it back on an even path. She tipped the steering wheel gently and it eased to the left. As it levelled out, she fastened the wheel in place with the metal autopilot latch. Glancing over the port side, she spotted the Chinajis' Mountain Lodge set in a valley that was barely sprinkled with snow. The large two-storey lodge dominated the area, almost like a forest of dark logs unto itself. Frosted trees surrounded the structure, but there was a wide meadow only a few miles away that would make for good landing. Her airship was only half the size of a large ship, so after she landed they wouldn't even be able to see the balloon from the lodge.
Not that it mattered, she was most likely walking into a trap. But she had no choice. She'd start with diplomacy. If that didn't work... well, hopefully her aunt wouldn't get too upset if one of her children ended up injured. She went back over to the wheel and removed the latch in order to guide the ship down. Pulling the opposite direction on the lever, steam escaped from the balloon and her stomach did a little twist as she descended.
The two Chinaji siblings had done nothing to hide their actions. Many people had seen them talking to Tieko at the restaurant he blade-danced at right before he'd disappeared. The butler at the Chinaji residence had all too willingly informed her that Purotu and Nunui Chinaji were holidaying at the Chinaji Mountain Lodge... and did she need any directions how to get there?
The flat bottom of the airship touched down, creating a gentle breeze that knocked snow off the nearest branches. The air was cold, but she was a Fire Elemental. Jackets were only for fashion, and she was comfortable in her short-sleeve shirt. Crossing to the side, she threw the anchor rope over. She unhooked the wooden stairs built into the side and climbed down. A few quick hits from the hammer she carried on her tool-belt, and the spike broke the thin layer of ice sticking into the ground. She finished anchoring her ship and then went back on board to trade the tool-belt for a holster.
Hefting the weapon, she made sure it was loaded and then checked there were extra bullets in the pouch on her belt. It was an experimental weapon, made by her friend, Professor Oslin himself. With her fire magick, it would take only moments to heat the water and have it ready to fire. And she'd need to be ready too, because if this was a trap, as she suspected it was, those two Chinajis were waiting for her. They had to already know that if she died, then Tieko could bond with them. If they were expecting it all their own way, however, they had another thing coming she wasn't handing over her magickal sword to anyone. Tieko was all hers.
***
It was mostly quiet on the trek through the meadow to the lodge. The bird song seemed far away and although she heard rustling in the under-brush she didn't see any animals. The snow melted wherever she stepped as she was having trouble keeping her fire magick under control. Each step closer to the lodge only made her temper rise. If only Tieko had listened to her and kept away from them. But no, he had to get a job. Had to always be polite no matter what. Had they drugged him and carried him off? Or had he gone without a fight? She'd get the answers out of him as soon as he was safe with her.
Reihani took a deep breath. Best to keep a rein on her temper. Her cousins were better fire magick users than her, considering that their Fire Elemental blood was stronger. But all she needed was to get close enough to Tieko to touch the bonding tattoo on his neck and transform him into a sword, then they could both walk out of there.
The trees came to an abrupt end. A walkway cleared of snow led up to the large double doors of the lodge. There was not a bush in sight to hide behind, so she steeled herself and continued up the walk. The lodge was imposing; a massive front door bearing the Chinaji crest of a rearing horse, large windows partially covered by dark curtains, and columns of thick trunks holding up the balcony on the second floor. It had probably been built by Forest Elementals because that level of detail was something only Elemental magick could pull off.
Her pulse picked up as she climbed the steps to the front door, raising her hand to grasp the knocker. With a loud click, the door opened and in its frame stood Nunui Chinaji himself, blazing red hair and maroon eyes complete with a cocky grin and dressed in Vedot's highest fashion of ribbons and layered clothes.
“My dear cousin, how are you, Reihani Manikor?” He made a point to stress her last name, though he didn't sneer it like he had the first time they'd met. He looked at her weapon and flashed her a mocking smile, then held out a hand to indicate she could enter.
She glared at him. “Where's Tieko?”
“Your Hiori sword is waiting for you in the parlour.” The smile turned condescending. “And we even got him all ready for you.” He turned his back on her, and her fingers itched to shoot him with her pistol. “Come, dear cousin, Purotu is waiting to greet you.”
The entrance hall was spacious, filled with expensive paintings and pottery that the Chinajis probably never even glanced at when they visited. Reluctantly, she followed Nunui down the hall, hoping a plan would come to her as soon as she saw Tieko. The hallway branched and he kept right, not bothering to glance back. He stopped at a door, then looked at her again with that same mocking smile before twisting the knob and opening it.
“After you, dear cousin.”
“Stop the 'dear cousin's. I know you don't...” Her voice died away as she stepped into the brightly lit parlour room. Sitting on a small sofa was Tieko. He looked well enough, though he still wore his performance make up. The grey in his eyes looked silver with the dark kohl that outlined his eyes, and there was still glitter in his metallic blue hair. The main difference being that his hands were tied behind his back, a gag was tied over his mouth, and Purotu Chinaji was sitting on his lap while she threaded her long tan fingers through his hair.
Tieko's eyes widened when he saw Reihani and his face silvered in a blush. He tried to say something that was muff