Tour: Shifting Pride by Laura Diamond (Excerpt & Giveaway)

Today we have a special excerpt from Laura Diamond's new YA, Shifting Pride!

YA Paranormal Romance Shifting Pride by Etopia Press

Sixteen-year-old Nickie Leone has proof that her missing (presumed dead) father is still alive. Receiving his watch in the mail is the first in a line of clues brining her closer to discovering his whereabouts.
But clues aren’t the only new thing in Nickie’s life. There’s the Memorial Banquet her mother insists she help prepare for … there’s the new kid/hottie, Xavian, and … well, the growth of whiskers and a tail!
Filled with secrets and a new love of tuna fish, Nickie must partner up with Xavian (don’t you know he’s a shapeshifter too?) to rescue her dad before she loses him forever. Oh, and she need to figure out how to be a cat, too.

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EXCERPT:

Shifting Pride, By Laura Diamond

I made it to the curb just as the bus drove away. “Andrew!” Waving my arms, I yelled, “Hey!” The driver either didn’t care or didn’t bother. Great, now I had to walk to school. Fan-tas-tic.

Walking with my head down to fend off the stiff breeze, I rounded a corner and smacked into someone leaning against a tall, chain-link fence.

“Oh my God! I’m so sorry!” My arms shot out and my fingers latched onto the guy’s leather jacket for leverage. Hard muscles tightened under my weight. Lucky for us, whoever it was had good balance and didn’t topple beneath me. He took the force of me crashing against him and held me upright at the same time.

“No problem. I don’t mind being tackled by a pretty girl.”

I lifted my gaze, helpless in the stranger’s arms. Blond hair, cerulean eyes, cocky smile. Holy crap. It was Xavian.

“Hi there. Long time no see.” He smiled. His earthy scent hovered in the air around him. It made me forget where I was, but only for a second.

“What are you doing here? And I did not tackle you.” I squared my arms against his chest and tried to push away.

“Where do you think you’re going?” His hold tightened around me, and I should have felt a surge of panic, but I didn’t. “Yeah, tackled. You’re like a linebacker.” His smile widened. Oh, he enjoyed this way too much.

My mouth dropped. “So, first you call me pretty, then you say I’m a linebacker?” His cuteness didn’t absolve him of being a complete idiot. I gave him another shove. Oh, man. His chest felt solid under his coat. My mind projected an image of him shirtless in the midst of a grueling workout and a foreign heat rose from my belly.

“You’re not listening. You are pretty.” Xavian’s grip held firm.

I was a weakling compared to him. Damn it.

“Oh.” Wait. He really thought I was pretty?

His smile faded as he stared into my eyes. His jaw squared, and his Adam’s apple bobbed.

My breath caught in my throat. He’d gone so serious. “What?”

The edge of his mouth slid up into a half-smile. His stare intensified. Our faces were inches apart, and he didn’t move. At all. My eyes dropped to his full lips. I held my breath as his mouth moved closer to mine.

His head tipped to the side, and his lips parted. A lock of hair slipped in front of his right eye. I tipped my face to meet him. His smile widened. “We’re going to be late.”

Something snapped in my brain. He’d faked me out! The simmering heat in my stomach ignited and flared to the top of my skull. What a jerk. I curled my fingers into fists and cocked my head to the side and away, far away. “So, are you going to let me go or not?”

Xavian frowned. “Are you sure that’s what you want?”

I stuck my chin out. “Why wouldn’t I want that?” Damn how breathy my voice sounded. He probably thought he could make any girl swoon with a simple smile. Well, he couldn’t win me over that easily…despite the fact that he almost had.

He squinted. “I don’t know. This feels right. And you seemed to be so comfortable in my arms.”

It was hard to tell if he was flirting or joking. “Why do you say things like that?”

“Like what?” He smiled again.

“Please let me go.” I backed this up with an exaggerated sigh.

“All right. Since you said please.” He relaxed his grip, drawing his fingers along my waist before tucking his hands in his coat pockets.

Instant fire blazed along the trail he’d traced. I bet he knew exactly what he was doing. He was definitely a jerk. A goofy, cocky, incredibly hot jerk.

I extended my right leg and took a healthy step away from him. Holding his gaze, I refused to surrender, despite the fact that my cheeks were ebbing heat. “So, you didn’t answer my question. Why are you standing here?” I tucked a random strand of hair behind my ear and imagined my shoes melding with the concrete. Visualization was barely enough to keep me from flinging myself at him. Pretty sad considering how he’d embarrassed me.

He’d also called me pretty and said being in his arms felt right.

“Waiting for you.” His eyes flashed with the confession.

My heart accelerated. “How did you know I’d be here?”

“Lucky guess.” He advanced, closing the gap between us.

“That’s kind of creepy.” I slid to the side in case I needed to lean on the fence.

He chuckled and continued his advance. “It’s always nice to be told you creep people out.” He tucked his fingers into the fence links, an arm bracketing each side of my face, and rocked on his heels. Each rock in brought him closer to my mouth.

Oh no, not again, buddy. I stuck my index finger in his face. “You’re following me.”

“How could I be following you if you’re the one who ran into me?”

I curled my finger. “Oh, yeah, you’re right.” I peered down the street toward the school, hating that I’d just admitted to him that he was right about something.

“Come on. I’ll walk you to school.” He sounded bored all of a sudden.

I snorted, knocking his arm out of the way so I could brush past him. “Don’t bother.” Hot, cold, serious, joking, who could keep up with him? I didn’t want to bother, not with everything else going on. My shoes obliterated the leaves littering the sidewalk, crunching with protest. I shook my head. Who was I kidding? I wanted to bother—I wanted to bother a lot. But I was so caught up in finding Dad that I didn’t have the time, or the wherewithal, to figure out the mystery called Xavian.

“Walk as far ahead as you like. Then I’ll really be following you.” He chuckled.

YA Paranormal Romance Novelette - New Pride by Etopia Press

A shapeshifter without a pride, Richard Leone strikes a tenuous friendship with power hungry, Derek, from an unstable, rogue group.
On a hunt in the forest, they encounter a gorgeous brunette, Molly, partying with friends around a campfire.
Derek tells the rogue pride and they bristle at humans trespassing on their territory. Richard risks life and tail to protect his secret and the humans – especially Molly – while simultaneously trying to win her heart.
When Molly is kidnapped, he faces taking on the rogue pride alone, but quickly finds he has to put his trust in Derek, not only to rescue his new love, but to ensure the rogue pride doesn’t wreak havoc on his new town.

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About Laura Diamond

Laura Diamond is an author of all things Young Adult (YA): paranormal, dystopian, and horror. As a board certified psychiatrist, Diamond knows how people react and pulls out the emotions, not only from the characters but also the reader. She approaches each book differently usually beginning with a single character – envisioning what they look like, how they perceive their world, what challenges they have to navigate, and who’s with them along the way, whether it be a friend or foe.

Diamond likes writing Young Adult (YA) because it’s during a time in life that is rife with challenges and intense emotions. The paranormal interest comes in because Laura has always had an affinity for magical creatures and dark worlds.

When she's not writing, she is working at the hospital, blogging at Author Laura Diamond --Lucid Dreamer, where she helps writers “shrink-wrap” their characters , and renovating her 225+ year old fixer-upper mansion. She is also full-time staff member tending for her four cats and a Pembroke Corgi named Katie.

~*GIVEAWAY*~

Thank you for visiting with author Laura Diamond on her Blog Tour for “Shifting Pride.” As a thank you gift, please go to Laura’s website to register for a free copy of “New Pride,” the prequel novella to Shifting Pride.

This is the Laura Diamond Fan Page link:  http://authorlauradiamond.com/?page_id=37

Once you register, a random entry will be chosen and a copy of the prequel will be sent to the lucky winner!