New Flame

By Margaret L. Carter

After Judy’s bookstore suffers a violent burglary right before Christmas, she ponders whether she should give up the struggling business. The surprise gift of an antique oil lamp, inherited from an eccentric great-aunt, brings a welcome distraction. When Judy lights the lamp, it turns out to be magic, conjuring up a lover who’s hot in both senses of the word. He claims he exists only to cherish her and give her pleasure. But how can she safely share a life centered on books with a creature made of flame?

• Language: Unknown
• Publisher: The Wild Rose Press
• Release date: Dec 12, 2022
• ISBN: 9781509246823

Margaret L. Carter

Reading DRACULA at the age of twelve ignited Margaret L. Carter’s interest in a wide range of speculative fiction and inspired her to become a writer. Vampires, however, have always remained close to her heart. Her work on vampirism in literature includes four books and numerous articles. She holds a PhD in English from the University of California (Irvine), and her dissertation contained a chapter on DRACULA. In fiction, she has written horror, fantasy, and paranormal romance, as well as sword-and-sorcery fantasy in collaboration with her husband, a retired naval officer. Recent publications include AGAINST THE DARK DEVOURER (Lovecraftian dark paranormal romance) and spring-themed light contemporary fantasy BUNNY HUNT. Her short stories have appeared in various anthologies, including the “Darkover” and “Sword and Sorceress” series. She and her husband live in Maryland and have four children, several grandchildren and great-grandchildren, a St. Bernard, and two cats. Please visit Carter’s Crypt: http://www.margaretlcarter.com

Book preview

The lamp blossomed into a clear glow, flooding the room with the sweetish scent.

At the same moment, a bright streak flared at the edge of her vision.

She spun around in the swivel chair, ready to climb the wall. Or run out screaming.

In the corner of the room loomed a pillar of fire. A six-foot column of orange-red flame, fading to indigo and violet at the edges. It undulated slowly like a candle in a light breeze.

Oh, Lord, she had set the place on fire! Her books! She leaped to her feet.

The apparition radiated none of the fierce heat expected from a blaze that size. And how could a spark have jumped from the desk to the center of the room without igniting anything in between?

While she stared, the flame’s outline shifted, growing curves and appendages. It took a few seconds for her to recognize the emerging shape as the figure of a man. The fire had all but died away. She saw an apparently solid body, although it still emitted a faint glow.

The naked man, lean and graceful, stood about a foot taller than Judy. He had tawny-bronze skin and an angular, striking face. Coppery hair growing to his shoulders floated as if stirred by a phantom wind. With his every move, his muscles appeared to flow like molten gold.

New Flame

by

Margaret L. Carter

This is a work of fiction. Names, characters, places, and incidents are either the product of the author’s imagination or are used fictitiously, and any resemblance to actual persons living or dead, business establishments, events, or locales, is entirely coincidental.

New Flame

COPYRIGHT © 2022 by Margaret L. Carter

All rights reserved. No part of this book may be used or reproduced in any manner whatsoever without written permission of the author or The Wild Rose Press, Inc. except in the case of brief quotations embodied in critical articles or reviews.

Contact Information: [e-mail]

Cover Art by The Wild Rose Press, Inc.

The Wild Rose Press, Inc.

PO Box 708

Adams Basin, NY 14410-0708

Visit us at www.thewildrosepress.com

Publishing History

First Edition, 2022

Digital ISBN 978-1-5092-4682-3

Published in the United States of America

Chapter One

Judy leaned back in her chair and scanned her office in the work space of the bookstore. The desk lamp alone didn’t do the job. Far too many shadows hovered just outside the lighted area to fit into her comfort zone.

I’ve got to put a real light in here, she said to the empty room, happy for even the sound of her own voice.

She stole a glance at the dark window with its artificial holly wreath. Locked.

Of course it was locked. She’d double-checked the locks on the front door and all the windows as soon as she had closed the bookstore. That was an hour ago. She’d checked twice more since.

The robbery had taught her to do that. Three weeks later, and she still jerked at the slightest sound. Some way to get into the Christmas spirit!

Sweaty from unpacking used paperbacks, she pushed clingy tendrils of damp hair away from her forehead. December or not, this was San Diego, and her little shop didn’t have air conditioning. Time to knock off work for the night and retreat to her apartment on the second floor. Her sister was supposed to come over in the morning and help her with the latest batch of estate-sale boxes anyway.

She stretched