Is Tai A Traditional Alpha Hero?
In the world of romance, alpha heroes traditionally dominate the pages. Take Tai in Thirteen Nights. He’s alpha alright, from the lethal menace in his eyes, to his dominance in the bedroom, to his all-around take charge attitude. He also tends to write his own rulebook and is handy to have in a fight.
And yet, he’s not fully alpha.
He’s short for a warrior of the Greek pantheon given his half human heritage. He is presented as different from the Gargarean warriors, who are the quintessential alpha males. Annie describes them as “all testosterone and appetite.” To win an Amazon, he has to do more than defeat her in battle and take command. He lets his gentler self come out play from the first moment they meet at the speed dating event that matches up breed partners. Take a look:
“Your expertise is…” She lifted an eyebrow. “Cyber security.” She placed her hand on the table as she did for all the others. Instead of using his palm to test the bite of her nails, he ran his finger across her knuckles and down her thumb, a lingering caress that promised gentleness, not just a good, hard ride. When he offered her his arm, she did the same up his wrist to his elbow, watching lust flicker in his eyes as her fingers glided across his skin. “You’re not like your brethren, in many ways it seems.”
“No, but I think that’s the pot calling the kettle black and it pleases you.”
A gentle caress is the easy part. Tai has to challenge Annie intellectually, psychologically, emotionally. To do so, he’s got to be pretty comfortable managing his emotional side. Watch him navigate this minefield.
“You’ve spent your life in hiding, haven’t you?” As soon as he said it, he knew this to be true.
Her body shifted, turning away so that her back faced him. After placing his drink on the table, he slid his arms around her, pulled her stiff body between his legs, his hold firm, possessive but tender. He alternated butterfly kisses, aggressive bites and healing licks down her neck to respect the strength of the warrior and romance the gentle woman she suppressed.
“Tell me what you hide so deeply, Annie. Don’t you feel that I’m your ally?”
Her sigh floated along the breeze on the open terrace and her body shifted positions. If she hadn’t been Amazon, he would have said she was fidgeting. Warriors were trained to an economy of motion. He remained quiet, using the silence to allow her to open up but continued tender caresses along her arms, soft kisses on her throat. Only stillness had the power to draw out secrets held for a lifetime.
What do you think? Is he a traditional alpha? Is that what makes him sexy? Or is it something else?
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Annie’s always been different. An empathic Amazon, she hides her emotional anomaly beneath her legendary fighting skills. To avoid passing on her genetic disorder, she’s always avoided the Thirteen Nights Ritual—the annual breeding rite among the warrior races of the Greek Pantheon. Only months away from 30, she is now duty-bound to participate. When she meets Tai, a half-human warrior who revs her up beyond legal limits and nurtures the gentleness she’s had to keep secret, thirteen nights of pleasure don’t seem nearly enough.
As a half human, Tai has survived by being faster, more lethal, and a whole lot smarter than his brethren. While the male warriors accept him for his achievements, the Amazons have never given him a second look. Until he meets Annie, whose smile is warm and real and whose body shudders with desire—for him. Determined to have her, he hacks into the Thirteen Nights database and rearranges the pairings to make Annie his breeding partner. Together, their strength and tenderness combust into pure love.
But Tai’s actions are forbidden under Amazon law, subject to a death. To stay together and alive, they must take on the Greek Pantheon and win.
Available from:
Amazon UK
Amazon US
Ellora’s Cave
Kobobooks.com
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About the Author:
Sabrina Garie is on a journey to create the most kick-ass heroine romance fiction has ever known and the hero who can take her. A believer that big, audacious goals spice up life, she relies on coffee, red wine and laughter to make those goals (and her characters) come alive.
When not at the computer, she wrangles vegetables and extra helpings of homework into her fashion-loving progeny, kowtows to a fat cat and reads, a lot.
Since it is more fun to travel in packs, come along for the ride.
Catch the train at www.sabrinagarie.com
Facebook: facebook.com/sabrinagarieauthor
Twitter: @sabrinagarie
Goodreads: https://www.goodreads.com/Sabrina_Garie
Other Blogs: www.darkertemptations.wordpress.com
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Thank you for hosting me. I’m glad to be here. Best of luck with this great idea for a blog.