If this is Sunday, it must be Weekend Writing Warriors time!  I’m continuing to share from my new release, the m/m fantasy Curse of Salar.  In last week’s snippet, Prince Dezra is having second thoughts about his impulsive decision to invite seasoned warrior Captain Rayn Nevar to join him in a not-so-friendly contest of Shibar.

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Nevar stood nearly half a head taller than Dezra and was a good deal broader at the shoulder, though he was slim at the waist. He looked more like an acrobat than a soldier, or like one of the lion tamers who sprang onto the backs of stallions while spinning fire sticks. The perfect build for hand-to-hand combat, for which the shibar was designed.

Dezra mentally rifled through his readings on technique, on how to best an obvious physical superior. And Nevar was physically superior; there was no doubt about that. He wore clothing similar to Dezra’s, only his tunic was sleeveless, revealing smooth muscles like woven copper coils. If he wasn’t careful, Dezra would have a hard time keeping his mind on strategy.

They faced each other from one shibar length away. Nevar looked directly at Dezra with those smoky blue-gray eyes of his, another breach of protocol, but then the whole endeavor was improper. Dezra didn’t care, and Nevar certainly didn’t appear to either… as a matter of fact, he looked like he relished the chance to drop Dezra quickly and ruthlessly to the ground.

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In the desert kingdom of Jahar, the rule of mages has been overthrown and the line of sorcerer kings wiped out. Prince Dezra and his sister are the last living members of the royal family and are held prisoners in their ancestral palace.

Prince Dezra lives a life of lies and deceit. In order to stay alive, he must pretend to be a drug-addicted wastrel, trusting no one, isolated from even his sister who has chosen to cooperate with the government that executed their parents.

Into his lonely existence comes a man who should be his sworn enemy; Captain Rayn Nevar. Dezra is irresistibly drawn to the rough soldier and his longing for a simple sexual encounter quickly morphs into a dangerous obsession.

Captain Rayn Nevar knows he should stay far away from Prince Dezra, but his desire for the beautiful young man overrides all common sense. Despite the fact that Dezra’s ancestors destroyed Rayn’s family, the captain finds himself in a position of protecting the prince from the many schemers who believe the last of the mages should be annihilated.

When treachery leads to Dezra’s escape, he is at last free to bond with the serpent god Ka’alar and develop his long repressed powers. Only the arrival of a mysterious monk with powers greater than Dezra’s stops the prince from using black sorcery to destroy all who stand in his way, including Rayn.

As Jahar edges toward another war between masters and mages, Rayn must question his devotion to his increasingly deadly lover while Dezra must decide if ultimate power is worth the ultimate sacrifice.

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This post is part of an ongoing blog hop hosted by Weekend Writing Warriors. Every Sunday, participating authors post eight to ten sentences from a published work or perhaps their current work in progress. Then we hop to our fellow warriors’ blogs and check out all the fabulous fiction that’s happening! I heartily invite you to participate as a reader, writer, or both. It’s a great way to discover your next favorite book. Click here or use the address: http://www.wewriwa.com