Fantasy, Legend, and the Guardian (MMM)
Midnight Matings

Professional Reviews

4 NYMPHS: "Fantasy, Legend and the Guardian is the seventh and latest release in the ongoing Midnight Matings series, this one by Gabrielle Evans. It's a well written and plotted story with great characters, lots of simmering passion, fun, humor, and plenty of danger, action and fear. I liked Fletcher, Caspian and Shade from the first page and really loved that as a house cat, gargoyle and Pegasus shifter, they're so different from what's usual in a paranormal romance. Ms. Evan's gave her readers a real treat picking these guys and doing such a good job getting them together, despite all the roadblocks in their way. Aside from numerous masked assassins, there isn't much in the way of secondary characters with the exception of Fletcher's friend Tess, who shows up mostly by phone throughout the story. It's because of her and Shade's past that we learn more of UPAC and a new group, The Alliance. Ms. Evan's did a great job blending all these story puzzle pieces together, giving us a fun and entertaining read. I look forward to the next release." -- Dragon Minx, Literary Nymphs Reviews

"From around the globe paranormals gather for a conference held every four years. It has been 25 years since the Great War and though the various groups are now peaceful they barely intermingle. To that end the Elders at the conference use magic to insure that those gathered must find a mate from another group or else go feral. A vision told Fletcher Martin to attend this particular conference. As a common house cat shifter Fletcher figures his chances are better at the large gathering to find someone who won’t look down on him for what he is. When the magic is unleashed he is immediately drawn to Shade Santiago, a gargoyle. As they exchange conversation Fletcher takes pity on a stranger literally being mauled by three others. Before the night ends Fletcher, Shade and a wary Caspian Reyes, a rare Pegasus shifter will mate. Agreeing to start their relationship at Shade’s home it quickly becomes apparent that their gargoyle lover has a great deal of secrets he’s trying to hide. Dangerous secrets, in fact since Caspian and Fletcher are attacked when they go grocery shopping. Now that Fletcher and Caspian have mated with Shade they’ve got no intention of letting him go. It looks like it could be a Mexican standoff until the bullets start flying. This is definitely not the best way for the three to bond. Smooth and steamy Fantasy, Legend, and the Guardian is hot, hot, delicious fun. Their initial mating is exciting whereas the moment they try to mesh their day to day lives everything goes to hell for the trio. Mysteries and surprises rule in Fantasy, Legend, and the Guardian which also raises the drama level. At one point so much is going on that the plotline gets somewhat snarled though things get ironed out very quickly. The main characters are emotional, interesting, and definitely keep Fantasy, Legend, and the Guardian alive. This series is one to look out for." -- Lisa, Joyfully Reviewed

Excerpt

Story Excerpt

Fletcher studied his new ally with a detailed eye. Over six foot tall, broad shoulders, lean waist, tight ass packed inside even tighter denim—mmm, and what a nice ass it was, too. Closely cropped dark brown hair, eyes the color of melted milk chocolate, and a smooth, creamy complexion that had Fletcher wanting to lick his tongue over every bare inch of the man’s skin.

Lifting his nose, Fletcher sniffed the air subtly. The guy smelled of something wild and untamed, but so did most of the people in the room. The scent was neither rodent nor canine, though, and Fletcher exhaled on a happy little sigh.

“Fletcher Martin,” he said with a bright smile as he offered his hand.

“Shadenious Santiago,” the man replied, taking Fletcher’s hand and giving it a firm squeeze.

“Wow, that’s quite a mouthful.”

“Call me Shade.”

“I can do that.” Fletcher pouted his lips and batted his lashes, slithering up to the man and pressing against him. “Tell me, Shade, do you like kitties?”

Shade’s eyebrows drew together in confusion, but his arms wound around Fletcher. “I’ve been with women before, but I prefer men.”

Fletcher chuckled softly as he skimmed his nose along the underside of Shade’s chin. “That’s not the kind of pussy I meant.”

“Oh,” Shade replied a bit breathlessly as he craned his neck to give Fletcher more room to play. “I like cats fine. Why? Do you have one?”

“Something like that,” Fletcher mumbled before scraping his teeth over Shade’s jaw. A loud roar called Fletcher’s attention, and he jerked around just in time to see a very large, very muscled man slam into the wall beside them.

Two men and a woman were on him in a flash, tearing at his clothes, pulling his hair, trying to touch any part of him they could reach while he struggled to fight them off. “Get off of me!” he shouted.

Shade’s arms tightened around Fletcher protectively as he pulled him away from the fight. Fletcher purred in approval. He’d made a good choice with Shade. Still, it went against every one of his beliefs to just turn his back and walk away when someone was in trouble. “We should help him.”

“He can take care of himself,” Shade replied quietly, still inching them farther down the wall.

One of the men, a vampire from the looks of him, made a lunge for the man’s neck, his fangs fully extended as he snapped his jaws. The guy might be big, but even he was no match for a three-on-one attack. While his attention was drawn to the vampire who was currently trying to make a meal out of his carotid artery, the other man delivered a stunning blow to his temple, and the big man’s eyes rolled back in his head as he slumped against the wall.

Fletcher had seen enough. “I’m going to help him. You can stay here if you want.” Untangling himself from Shade’s arms, Fletcher closed his eyes and shifted.

Stepping out of his clothes, he looked at them, then up to Shade, and meowed. He hoped the man would understand to hold on to his clothing so he wouldn’t have to walk around naked when he was finished.

Then he spun around, his black tail curled over his back, took a running leap, and launched himself on the woman’s back. Hissing and yowling, he swatted at her face with his claws extended. She screamed, her hands flailing around her head as she tried to grab him.

 Fletcher didn’t give her the chance. Digging his claws into her shoulder for a steady grip, he hunched low and sprang across the open space, landing on the fallen man’s chest. He stared up at the attackers, hissing and arching his back as the hair bristled along his spine.

The woman took off, but the men scoffed at him. “Here, kitty kitty,” the one that had delivered the debilitating blow sneered at him. His massive hand reached down toward Fletcher, but he never made it that far.

Shade growled, his eyes flashing with anger, and lifted the man off his feet, slinging him several yards away. “Are you okay?”

Fletcher meowed softly and turned to look up at vampire. He didn’t look like he was going to back down. Fletcher really hated to do it without the guy’s permission, but he didn’t see any other choice. Crawling up the man’s chest, he licked at his face for a moment then rubbed against every part of him he could reach, marking him with his scent. Once satisfied that his scent would linger, claiming the big man as his own, Fletcher peered up at the vampire again.

The man laughed and shook his head. “He’s still mine.”

Before anyone could move or blink, Shade dropped to his knees, jerked the dazed man’s head back, and sank long, vicious-looking teeth into the side of his neck. He lingered for just a moment, moaning softly as he sucked on the wound, then he extracted his teeth and licked at the bite mark. “Now, he’s mine,” Shade growled, pinning the vampire with his gaze.

The bloodsucker wasn’t smiling now. His eyes rounded, his mouth dropped open, and he nodded his head rapidly. “Right. Sorry. I’m just going to…I’ll…oh, shit.” Then he whirled around and sprinted away as if the Devil himself were after him.

Adult Excerpt

Holding the bottle tightly in his fist, Shade rushed back to the bedroom and almost fell to his knees. Caspian was sprawled on his back in the middle of the bed, his legs splayed wide and his head thrown back on the pillows as Fletcher swallowed around the impressive length of his cock.

“Fuck me,” Shade breathed as he prowled closer to the bed. Fletcher’s ass tilted upward, wiggling in delight as he dragged his lips along the hard dick in his mouth. He reached back with both hands, grabbing the muscled cheeks of his ass and spreading them wide to reveal his puckered entrance.

Shade closed his eyes, gripping the base of his cock in a stranglehold to keep from blowing his load then and there. Popping open the bottle in his hand, he poured a generous amount into his palm and slicked his pulsing shaft from root to tip, hissing as lightning bolts of pleasure spiked his need to a fever pitch.

He dribbled a little more of the cool oil over his fingertips and tossed the bottle aside. Shade never took his eyes off of Fletcher’s fluttering entrance as he eased onto the bed behind him and caressed the little starburst gently.

Fletcher moaned, wiggling his ass and pushing back against Shade’s finger. Caspian groaned as well, levering up on his elbows and staring into Shade’s eyes while he humped his hips into Fletcher’s mouth.

With an effort, Shade looked away from the erotic sight and focused on stretching his lover’s clenching hole. Pushing in with one finger, he gasped when the muscles clamped around his digit and sucked him in. “So eager,” he whispered, pumping his finger in and out of Fletcher’s ass until he had loosed it enough to insert a second.

Fletcher moaned again, rocking his hips and fucking himself on Shade’s fingers as he licked and sucked at Caspian’s long prick.

“So responsive,” Caspian said softly, his hand caressing Fletcher’s cheeks with the back of his knuckles. He looked at their mate as though he’d never seen anything like him before.

Fletcher lifted his head, popping off Caspian’s cock with a shuddering gasp. “Please,” he whimpered, the sound music to Shade’s ears.

“Beg me, Fletcher. Beg for what you want.” Shade pushed in a third finger, twisting his wrist as he sawed in and out of his lover’s heated passage.

“More! Harder! Faster! Oh, damn, just fuck me!”

Easing his fingers out, Shade quickly replaced them with the head of his dick, moving his hips gently as he fed his cock to Fletcher’s hungry ass. “Oh, sweet hell, you’re tight.” Groaning, he closed his eyes against the onslaught of intense pleasure. His gums itched and his teeth began to elongate as his beast called for him to claim the man as his mate.

So lost in the sensations coursing through his body, Shade didn’t immediately realize that Caspian had moved off the bed until a warm weight settled over his back. Strong hands roamed his body, caressing over his hip and smoothing up his chest. Caspian’s fingers pinched at Shade’s nipples, tugging at them gently until they pebbled and throbbed, causing his dick to jerk inside Fletcher’s ass.

Fletcher whimpered, pushing back against Shade and grinding against his groin. Caspian’s fingers skimmed along Shade’s crease in light, hesitant movements. “Is this okay?” he whispered as he nuzzled against the back of Shade’s neck.

“Fuck yes.” Shade leaned forward, covering Fletcher’s back and spreading his knees wider. “Hurry. I’m not going to last long,” he warned.

He heard the snick of the bottle cap, then two slick fingers rimmed his needy entrance. “How do you want it?”

“Hard and fast,” Shade growled. “Make me feel it.”

Taking him at his word, Caspian shoved two fingers deep into his clenching channel, wiggling them around before he began to pump his hand quickly.

Shade’s hips snapped forward, driving his cock deeper into Fletcher’s ass, then jerking back to impale himself on the long digits working in and out of his own heated tunnel. A third finger slipped in beside the first two, and by the time Caspian had inserted a fourth, Shade didn’t think he’d ever be able to breathe right again.

He held perfectly still, his dick aching, and his ass clenching in greedy anticipation as Caspian extracted his fingers and lined up the spongy crown of his veiny cock. Shade groaned, dropping his forehead between Fletcher’s shoulder blades when Caspian plunged inside his hole in one long, swift movement.

“Move,” Fletcher pleaded, his inner walls convulsing around Shade’s prick in waves. “Please, someone fucking move!”

It took a couple of stops and starts, but eventually they found a rhythm, Shade moving between his two lovers, gliding in and out of Fletcher’s tight heat and slamming back onto Caspian’s rigid length.

The fire burned inside him, spreading out to his limbs and shooting up his spine until his head spun with sensation overload. His teeth had fully transformed and his mouth watered as he flicked his long tongue over the nape of Fletcher’s neck.

Oh, gods, his mate tasted, felt, and smelled so good. “Mine,” Shade growled, grazing his teeth over Fletcher’s shoulder, careful to not damage the smooth skin.

“Yes,” Fletcher hissed. “Claim me, Shade. Make me yours.”

As though his beast has simply been waiting for permission, Shade sank his teeth into the yielding flesh where Fletcher’s neck met his shoulder. He made a low grumbling noise in appreciation when the sweet ambrosia of his lover’s blood washed over his tongue, filling his mouth and sliding down his throat.