Moira Rogers = Bree + Donna » Temple of Luna

Happy Birthday Donna! Ebooks all around!

Bree — Wed, 12 Oct 2011 13:40:38 +0000

It’s Donna’s birthday, today! Woooohooo! We’ll be celebrating by taking it easy today, and in our usual tradition, by giving away some books. Because that’s what birthdays are all about. (Isn’t it?)

Look! Lots of Ebooks!

AND DON’T FORGET…THESE ARE FREE FOR ALL:

It’s easy to enter! Leave a comment, say happy birthday to Donna, and tell us which ebook you’d like to win. And if you want a freebie while you’re here, grab one. Or five. Or nine!

EDIT: WINNERS HAVE BEEN POSTED IN THE NEXT POST! Comments are now closed.

Savage Lessons On Sale Now! (& Contest Winners)

Bree — Thu, 31 Dec 2009 15:24:23 +0000

Wow, welcome to the last day of 2009…or the first day of 2010, depending on where & when you’re reading this!

2009 was quite the year for the ladies Moira Rogers. This marked our first full year as authors, and really it seems like we’ve been published for more than 17 months now, but that’s all it has been! Which means we have been busy little bees.

Stats for 2009:

Novels Published: 1
Category Length Novels Published: 3
Novellas Published: 3
Stories Published: 6
Freebies Published: 3
Books that went into print: 2

…and this was the year we were taking it easy. (Since about 6 of those happened around or before March, we were taking it easy in the latter half of the year, I swear!)

I will do a more exciting year roundup later on, but for now I’d just like to say that the sixth of those six stories just went on sale now at Changeling Press! But before I talk about it, how about the winners of our release week contest for the first two books in the series!

Winning Copies of Savage Possession
RKCharron, Ilona & Aleisha

Winning Copies of Savage Need
quiltingreader & Mar

As always, thanks to everyone who entered, and retweeted, and reposted, and passed the links on! I love you all! Winners, I’ll be sending e-mails to the addresses you left at the blog with details on how to collect your free books!

Now for something new…

Born into poverty and obscurity, Lexa worked harder than most to earn a place as a novice at the Savage Temple, where women trained in the art of pleasure heal the souls of battle-weary warriors. While others might be content to enjoy the luxury and prestige due a priestess of Luna, Lexa aspires to something greater–the honor of wearing the silver robes and the security that comes with being one of their world’s most powerful women. But first she must prove herself worthy by testing her strength against the Temple’s most infamous trainer, a near-feral wolf whose job it is to educate women in the art of controlling a warrior through submission.

Dejan doesn’t deal with novices. Time spent as a prisoner of the humans left his soul fractured and his beast far too close to the surface, making him dangerous but useful. When he accepts Lexa as his pupil he has no way of knowing the novice has the power to bring him to his knees. Their passion doesn’t fade when she’s promoted to the Temple’s elite circle, but the rules allow no involvement between a trainer and priestess. Caught between ambition and need, it’s only a matter of time before their forbidden affair threatens the lives they’ve fought to build.

Listen, guys, I’m not gonna front. These are naughty, guilty pleasure books and I love writing them. I’m not saying I don’t also love complicated, sweeping plots and political intrigue, but sometimes there is nothing more fun than a little campy, wicked romp, and that is why I so enjoy the luxury of writing our short series for Changeling Press. Last Call, Down & Dirty, Temple of Luna… sometimes it’s just fun to be bad.

So if you’re interesting in being bad, check out our new release here: http://www.changelingpress.com/product.php?&upt=book&ubid=1306

Now, how about an excerpt?

Excerpt from Savage Lessons – Temple of Luna #3
Available Now from Changeling Press

* * *

Lexa kept her stance relaxed and tried not to let her excitement and nerves show as she faced the Temple’s high priestess. “I’m ready, Celine. Now. Today.”

“So you say.” Celine’s fingers tapped an absent rhythm against the arm of her chair. “So your teachers say. You’ve worked hard.”

She’d busted her ass. Most of the other acolytes came from privileged families, and had been guided since birth toward the service of Luna. Were it not for the patronage of the queen mother, Lexa wouldn’t have made it through the door of the Temple. “I’ve tried my best because I wish, more than anything, to serve.”

“As did I, when I was your age. But I also knew where I wanted to be in ten years, and twenty. Do you?”

Most priestesses were gone by thirty, advantageously married off to soldiers returning from the war. Lexa didn’t plan on being one of them, but she also wasn’t ready to bare her soul to Celine. “I haven’t decided, but I am giving the matter no small amount of consideration.”

Celine nodded. “You’re strong, and so is your magic. Strong enough to give you a chance at silver robes someday.”

The words soothed the desperate longing inside her. “Kweku said he has nothing more to teach me. I checked the files, and there’s only one high-level trainer unoccupied at the moment.” The one she’d wanted all along. The best.

“Dejan.” The high priestess’s expression was unreadable. “If you’ve been checking files, my dear, you know that Dejan rarely works with novices. In fact, I believe that’s common knowledge throughout the Temple.”

“I could convince him to make an exception.”

“You’re assuming he’s the one you’d have to convince.”

Of course he was. Celine’s expression was skeptical, but… “We wouldn’t be having this conversation if you weren’t considering it, and you wouldn’t be considering it if it wasn’t the best step for me.”

Silence stretched out between them, broken only by the soft click of Celine’s nails against the arm of her chair as she resumed her slow tapping. After several tense seconds, she smiled. “Looking at you is like looking into the past. In the ten years since I became high priestess, Lexa, not one other girl with your fire has passed through these halls.”

“I would say you flatter me, Celine, but that didn’t sound like a compliment.” Curious, she smiled and tilted her. “I remind you of yourself?”

“Very much so.” Celine gestured to her opulent surroundings. “There are worse lives to live. I serve my Goddess and my King. I receive the respect and deference of men and women born to privilege I couldn’t have imagined as a child. Is this what you aspire to?”

It was tempting, seductive, and beyond comprehension. “Even the life of an acolyte has been more luxurious than anything I’d experienced before coming to the Temple, Celine. But I’d be lying if I said I didn’t want respect and security.”

“I didn’t rise this far by being born into wealth or gently reared. But think hard about where you want to be before you take this step. Respect is already yours as a novice of the Temple. And security can be found as easily in the arms of a man who loves you. Dejan teaches only the best of the best, the women who aren’t interested in a comfortable life as a warrior’s mate.”

Lexa had seen the sort of fleeting security one found in a man’s arms. She’d watched her mother flit from warrior to warrior, with no thought of tomorrow, much less forever. “I want him for my teacher. I wouldn’t let you down.”

The high priestess nodded, but Lexa couldn’t tell if the look in the older woman’s dark eyes was regret or satisfaction. “Then you’ll have him tonight. And in the morning we’ll discuss your future at the Temple.”

Promising words, indeed. Lexa smiled and bowed. “Thank you, Celine. Shall I contact Dejan, or will you make the arrangements?”

Celine laughed. “For tonight, be like any other novice and let me do my job. I’ll send a message when everything’s finalized and let you know when to meet him.”

She bowed again and turned for the door, her heart pounding. It was the coup she’d hardly hoped to manage. If Dejan trained her, approved of her, she’d be that much closer to silver robes. To having everything.

She had to be perfect. Everything about this night had to be perfect.

* * *

Dejan had known for three months that Lexa would be his student.

Discretion was a requirement in the Temple of Luna, but the trainers talked. They had to talk, if only to ensure the safety of the young women who served Luna by taking emotionally wounded warriors into their beds. No novice graduated to full priestess before the trainers were confident in her ability to handle a warrior’s needs.

But even the trainers had specialties. Some were gentle, experienced in initiating a novice in the mysteries of sex. Some preferred to confine their attentions to the experienced novices, testing their readiness.

Dejan did neither. The women who came to him were almost exclusively priestesses in their own right — strong, dangerous women who aspired to the silver robes, as well as the prestige and impressive stipend that came with them.

Almost exclusively. He’d been watching Lexa for a month now, ever since the morning Kweku had limped into the trainers’ dining room and sworn he’d almost been bested by a virgin. Kweku was still young for a werewolf, thirty-eight and newly returned from the front lines, but over the course of the last month, Lexa had very nearly eaten him alive.

Anticipation had licked at Dejan then, but nothing compared to this afternoon, when Celine had finally summoned him. Test her, was all the high priestess had said, but Dejan had known her long enough to read between those terse words. Lexa was her choice for her successor.

And it was his job to train her.

Dejan surveyed the large bed and tried not to imagine what it would look like when she was stretched out on it, her dark hair spilling across the sheets and her deceptively sweet face staring up at him. Lexa had the wide-eyed charm of an innocent, but he wasn’t fool enough to underestimate her like Kweku had.

A panel by the door chimed softly, and he forced himself to relax back in his chair, both legs sprawled out in front of him. Appealing as she was, Dejan was no eager puppy. He was the most respected trainer at the Savage Temple.

The door slid open, and Lexa walked in. Her robes clung to her legs as she moved, and she stopped before him with a small bow. “Thank you for having me.”

She was sturdy. Sinful. Wicked curves and sleek flesh, tempting in a way the fragile, petite woman weren’t. His cock hardened, but he did nothing more than smile and gesture to the plush cushions at his feet. “Sit.”

Her answering smile was soft and sweet. When she sank down to the cushions, she arranged herself in what seemed at first to be a modest position. But from his vantage point, he could see down the front of her filmy robe, and her face was mere inches from the inside of his knee. If she tilted her head the slightest bit, she’d be resting her cheek on his leg, the very picture of ready, eager submission.

No wonder Kweku couldn’t handle her.

Dejan dropped his hand to his knee and tugged at one strand of her long, unbound hair. “You’ve studied a great deal, haven’t you?”

“Of course. How else could I hope to serve Luna and her warriors to the best of my ability?”

“Some novices take their time.”

“Mmm.” She flashed him a knowing grin. “I took the time I needed.”

He curled that strand of hair around his finger and returned her smile with just a hint of a bite. “Such a confident little kitten. Maybe the novices don’t gossip about me like they used to.”

“I don’t listen to gossip.” Lexa shifted to kneel. “What would the novices know of you anyway? Not a single one has darkened your door in ages.”

“Until you.” Having her on her knees between his legs made it too easy to forget why he was here. “Women come to me to learn how to deal with the wild warriors. The feral warriors. To learn when to submit quietly and when to give as good as they get.”

She nodded. “How would you like to start?”

He leaned forward and released her hair so he could trace his thumb along her jaw. “Tell me what you’ve learned about your own pleasures. What makes you ache with need?” A dangerous question, since he’d have to imagine another man touching her, but his possessive nature made him good at his job.

“Kissing.” She licked her lips. “I’m fond of exploring. And I like… extremes.” Her eyes darkened, and she inhaled sharply. “So slow it takes all night, or — or fast and hot. Intense. Those are the things that make me come.”

“Mmm.” The perfect words, delivered in a breathy little whisper with a huskiness meant to make a man hard. It was easy to picture her in front of the mirror, practicing how to find just the right mix of invitation and hesitation.

She’s too good at sex to be great at sex. Kweku’s words made perfect sense now. They also made him sad. He slid his hand around the back of her neck and fisted his fingers in her hair, urging her head back until she was staring up at him. “You’re trying too hard. Sex is not a chore or a job within the Temple. If you don’t celebrate it, you don’t belong here.”

The seductive invitation faded, replaced by a hint of defiance. Determination. “I belong here.”

Defiance was good. “Do you? You won’t impress me by seducing me, kitten.”

Lexa licked her lips again, the gesture nervous this time. “Is this training or a test?”

“You know as well as I do that all training is a test.” He lifted his free hand and rubbed his thumb along her full lower lip. “Other trainers are testing you to see if you can handle men. I’m testing you to see if you love doing it.”

Her teeth closed on his thumb, and he felt a quick, teasing flick of her tongue before she released him. “There’s only one way to find out, isn’t there?”

Buy it Now!

Excerpt: Temple of Luna #2 (Still NSFW)

Bree — Wed, 30 Dec 2009 16:23:52 +0000

With the third Temple of Luna story coming out tomorrow, we’re having a little fun revisiting the first two this week! Unlike some of our other current series, our Savage Temple stories are meant to be short, naughty and fun. They’re one place we mostly manage to keep our desire for twisty supernatural politics under wraps. So enjoy an excerpt from Savage Need today and don’t forget, you can win a copy here!

(This series is still a bit on the naughty side, though this first excerpt is less explicit than some. Still, if you’re at work, browse ahead with caution!)

Excerpt from Savage Need, Temple of Luna #1

He doesn’t remember his name.

He remembers blood, and the men who spilled it. Dozens, hundreds, a river of life flowing into death. He remembers the screams, hardened men with mangled limbs and the sure knowledge of their own mortality in their voices. He remembers guns and bombs and the ways humans kill their kind, cold metal tearing through flesh and machines crushing their bones.

He remembers pain. He remembers death. But he doesn’t remember his name.

He doesn’t remember her name, either. Words are jumbles of sounds that hurt his throat anyway, but her name… Her name would taste like peace. Would feel as good on his tongue as the pleasure that heats his body every time he catches her scent. Soft. Female. Familiar.

Mine.

Even if Balthasar hadn’t been standing guard by the wall, Zahra would have known better than to go near the man in the corner. His eyes were more animal than anything else, and she shivered, remembering the intelligence that had once shone from their ice-blue depths. “Hello, Jarek.”

He didn’t speak, but his gaze stayed fixed on her face as a flash of something flickered across his features.

“It’s been a long time.” She moved slowly to sit in the chair in the center of the room. “That research elective, yes? With Dr. Bautista?”

His lips parted. When he spoke, the words were hoarse. Gravelly. “I’m a medic.”

“Yes, Jarek.” She leaned forward a little. “We went to school together. Do you remember me? My name is Zahra.”

He lunged so fast the stool he’d been seated on crashed against the far wall at the same time his hands curled around the back of her chair. Strong arms formed a cage, trapping her within a circle of masculine power and heat. She choked back the shriek that welled in her throat and steeled herself for an attack.

But none came. He inhaled deeply, drawing in her scent. In a mere moment, Balthasar dragged him away. Then Jarek grew violent, twisting to attack with an angry snarl and a blow strong enough to send the guard reeling. He turned and backed toward her, putting his body squarely between her and the guard. “Mine. ”

Hot, possessive magic filled the space between them. He may not have remembered her, but something about her was familiar enough to draw him close, and she could use that to reach him.

Zahra signaled to Balthasar to stand down, and eased up beside Jarek. Magic flared again, chafing her nerve endings and heating her skin. “Do you need me?” she asked quietly.

She was the King’s niece. It was the guard’s duty to keep her safe, and he knew it. “Out of the question. He’s feral, Zahra. If he needs relief, he needs a senior priestess.”

Jarek growled and edged to the side, placing his body in front of hers again. “Stay away.”

“He doesn’t need a senior priestess.” She raised one hand to his face. “You need a healer, don’t you, Jarek?”

He turned his head and caught the tip of one finger between his teeth, a gesture of dominance and claiming. On the other side of the room, Balthasar hissed out a curse and reached for the com unit clipped to his belt. “I’m calling the high priestess. Your uncle will snap my neck if I let you do this.”

“Call her,” Zahra urged. “Will you wait, Jarek, if I promise to return soon?”

“I don’t want another woman.” Jarek turned to face her, one hand coming up to trap her fingers against his cheek. There was no hint of recognition in those frozen eyes, nothing of the brilliant, civilized healer she’d known. He was as wild as any warrior and twice as hungry.

And all his attention, all his magic, was focused on her. He’d take her, sate that wild hunger in the depths of her body. Zahra could barely breathe, and her cunt tingled in reaction. “No other woman,” she swore, ignoring the guard’s incoherent protest. “You have my vow as a priestess of Luna.”

“Priestess.” He seemed to be testing the word. He shook his head. “What’s your name?”

“Zahra.” Doubt almost made her falter. She couldn’t lie to herself and think that he knew her deep down, under the trauma that had left his psyche in jagged shards. He didn’t know her. “My name is Zahra.”

His hand came up and his fingers touched her lips, traced their shape as if trying to memorize it. “You’ll come back.”

“Yes. Balthasar will take you to my room. Please go with him and wait for me there. Can you do that for me?”

Balthasar protested again. “Zahra, I can’t–”

Fury seized her. “I am a royal daughter, and you will do as I say!” She fixed him with a glare and took a deep breath. “I know my duties and my place. Do you know yours?”

Balthasar’s face closed off as brittle resentment filled the room. But he nodded. “Yes, priestess.”

The tension in Jarek’s body eased a tiny bit. His fingers ghosted over her cheek, over her hair and the line of her throat. “Zahra.” From his lips, her name sounded like a benediction, a prayer.

“Yes.” She backed away slowly, keeping her gaze on his. “I won’t be long.”

Zahra.

It echoes inside him, a whisper like silk over skin too used to rough pain. Maybe he remembers it, maybe it’s a dream. But it suits her beauty, the softness of her skin and her scent.

In the quiet of her room he rolls it over his tongue and lets his mouth give it form. His voice is scratchy and raw, too ugly for a word that makes his heart pound and his cock ache. But it doesn’t stop him from saying it again and again, as if it’s a spell that can ward off the madness licking at the shattered edges of his mind.

He wants to lick her. Shape her body with his mouth and hands until she cries his name, and if she does it enough times maybe he’ll remember what it is. Maybe he’ll remember the way her pale green eyes look when she comes, the way her full lips look parted on a gasp, the way her dusky skin flushes with pleasure.

Zahra. He’s surrounded by her scent and it isn’t enough, isn’t nearly enough because the beast is hungry for her ecstasy and nothing else will satisfy the craving.

Zahra.

Excerpt: Temple of Luna #1 (NSFW)

Bree — Tue, 29 Dec 2009 17:01:57 +0000

With the third Temple of Luna story coming out on Thursday, there’s just enough time to post a couple of excerpts from the first two stories! Unlike some of our other current series, our Savage Temple stories are meant to be short, naughty and fun. They’re one place we mostly manage to keep our desire for twisty supernatural politics under wraps. So enjoy an excerpt from Savage Possession today and don’t forget, you can win a copy here!

(Oh, did I mention the fact that it’s naughty? So not safe for work, guys. Or children. And I even cut out the really dirty stuff.)

Excerpt from Savage Possession, Temple of Luna #1

Avani smiled, slow and shy but with a bit of the teasing edge he remembered. “Rais. If you’d like, I could find a room for you to wait in. I’m afraid you’re going to find yourself stalked by most of my fellow novices if you don’t get out of sight. They’ve been gossiping all morning.”

The edge in her smile coupled with her magic made him even harder, and he tried not to look grumpy. “Let me guess. They all aspire to be my mate.”

Her full lips pursed, as if she was trying to hold back a smile. “Of course. Who wouldn’t want to sit at your feet and bask in your glory?”

Rais didn’t bother to hide his own grin. “Only you, Avani.” He offered her his arm and ignored the rush of heat that overtook him. Having her wasn’t an option. Even if she’d finished with her training, she was off-limits. “Walk with me. How is your uncle?”

“He’s well. Enjoying some time with his grandchildren now. My cousins have been quite prolific.” Magic brushed over him as she settled her hand around his arm, a softly submissive power that was gentle and eager all at the same time.

Every dominant instinct in him suddenly took far more notice of her. “And what of you? Waiting for a soldier of your own to return from war?”

She lifted her free arm with a put-upon sigh. “You didn’t notice? I’m a novice. Still.”

He studied the gold bands on her sleeves with a raised eyebrow. “You must be nearly twenty-one by now, Avani. What’s holding you back?”

Her cheeks flushed as she studied the floor. “I’m twenty-three. But twenty-two is the average age. Some women just need time to grow into their power.”

Or they didn’t belong in the Temple, wearing Luna’s robes. “You’ve not had your first warrior, then.” He shouldn’t have been so pleased by the realization.

“I’ve had my training,” she retorted, a hint of challenge in that soft voice. “I know how to gentle a warrior.”

“Not one like me.” Rais was shocked to hear the challenge returned in his own words.

She stopped in front of a door and turned, tilting her head back until her gaze met his. “Even a prince is just a man in the dark. Or do royalty have exotic tastes?”

He backed her against the door in a surge of sudden, instinctive movement. “A lesson unlearned, novice. Warriors aren’t men, especially not in the dark.”

As if the scent of her body wasn’t intoxicating enough, he caught the first hints of arousal as she sucked in a sharp breath. “You–you know what I meant.”

“Do I?” He moved even closer, his hips pressing against hers. “What do they tell you about pleasing a warrior?”

Her body melted into soft curves and submission, but her eyes sparked with the stubbornness that ran in her family. “They don’t tell us anything, Rais. Do you think they sit us down to study books and vids and then send us as a virgin sacrifice to whatever warrior is to be our first?”

Honestly, he’d never given much thought to the training. “Then what do they
do, Avani?”

She moved, rocking her hips against his as her hand came up to rest against his chest. “They sit us down to study books and vids.” Slim fingers stroked down his chest and he felt the power inside her swell, hungry for his dominance. “And when we’re done studying, we go to bed with a trainer, who shows us what pleasure is and how to give it.”

The rage that welled in him was stupid–and unacceptable. “Who’s touched you?” The words escaped in a growl.

Avani stared up at him with too-wide brown eyes filled with a dangerous longing. “You’re touching me.”

“No, besides–” Rais bit off the words with a groan. “You’re impossible.” The only thing to do was kiss her, so he did, claiming her with a hard, hot fusing of mouths.

She wasn’t untouched, that was clear. She kissed him back, open-mouthed and hungry, but it soon became painfully obvious why she still wore the robes of a novice. Everything about her was open and too trusting, especially the magic that curled around him, urging him to take, to have in any way he wanted.

In any way he wanted.

The warriors would eat her alive.

Enter to win a copy here!

Contest: Get Your Temple of Luna stories here!

Bree — Mon, 28 Dec 2009 17:18:28 +0000

The third Temple of Luna story is coming out at the end of the week, and that means goodies to give away! Couldn’t be more simple…reply to this post and tell us if you’d rather win a copy of Savage Possession or Savage Need and on Thursday five of you will get your wish! (From here on out I’m doing most of my book gifting through All Romance Ebook’s book gifting function, so if you don’t have an ARe account you will need to sign up for one to receive the book. It’s fast & free!)

Would you rather win…

Savage Possession- Temple of Luna #1

As a novice in the Temple of Luna, Avani is training for the day she’ll become a revered priestess of the Savage Temple with the skills and magic needed to soothe the feral warriors fighting a brutal war against the world’s remaining human colonies. Though forbidden contact with the warriors who have come to the temple for relief, Avani can’t keep her distance from Rais, her uncle’s protege and one of the most dangerous fighters the wolves have ever known.

As the royal heir, Rais is destined to take a mate and ascend the throne, but first he must complete his service as a warrior. The Temple’s priestesses offer him relief in the meantime, though there’s one he’s vowed never to touch. He remembers Avani as the innocent girl she was when they met, but the intervening years have made her a woman. A woman the wolf burns to claim…

…or…

Savage Need – Temple of Luna #2

Zahra has devoted her life to serving Luna. The savage needs of the werewolf warriors can take their toll, and she serves as a healer, treating not only her fellow priestesses but anyone in need. Still, she’s never seen anyone so wounded as Jarek, an old friend who’s been through hell–and doesn’t seem to remember her.

Jarek was always considered the most civilized wolf in his unit, a rare healer trained in werewolf magic as well as the medicine of their human enemies. When an injury shatters his self-control the beast inside him takes over, leaving nothing civilized or reasonable. Just the wolf, who remembers the scent of the mate he always needed and is determined to claim her at any cost.

On Sale Now: Temple of Luna #2

Bree — Thu, 03 Sep 2009 15:16:41 +0000

Savage Need

(Temple of Luna #2)

AVAILABLE NOW FROM CHANGELING PRESS

Length: Story | Rating: Erotic
Genre: Paranormal Romance | Publisher: Changeling Press
Themes: Shapeshifters, Shapeshifter Dominance Games, Ropes & Handcuffs

Excerpt from Savage Need