"Real Vampires Have More to Love"

Gerry Bartlett is the author of the best selling Real Vampires series. The sixth book in the series, Real Vampires Have More to Love, is out this month. Glory St. Clair was bloating the day she was turned vampire in 1604 London and has never been able to lose those extra pounds. These days she runs a vintage clothing shop on Austin’s trendy Sixth Street. She has a gang of interesting friends, including Scottish hunk, Jeremy Blade, her sire, and Rafael Valdez, a shape-shifter who spent five years as her bodyguard.

When Bartlett applied  the Page 69 Test to Real Vampires Have More to Love, she found Glory arguing with Jeremy Blade who is also her on-again, off-again lover.

Glory’s finally comfortable shape-shifting after years avoiding it. Unfortunately, her shape-shifting almost got her killed when she got over-confident and playful near someone who wanted her dead. Blade is rarely playful and wants her to let him pay for a bodyguard again. Being independent, Glory won’t have it, even though she realizes she’s in danger now. Instead, she tries to distract Jerry who is furious with her for risking her life.

Here’s part of the scene which is written in first person, Glory’s point of view:

Jerry pulled the Vampire Viagra from my hand. “You want to play? Forget the future and live for the night? Why not? Come home with me. I don’t have roommates to hear you scream with pleasure. If your life is going to be cut short, I guess we should make the most of the time we have left.”

“Jerry, I--” Tears clogged my throat, and I followed him dumbly to the door. Did I want to make love with him? Of course I did. Maybe I didn’t like what he said, but he was way better at facing reality than I was. A warrior. And I had a history of running away when things got hot instead of standing and fighting. I hated to do it, but maybe leaving was still my best move. So a night of his lovemaking? Bring it on.

He silently held the door open, and I walked ahead of him down the stairs. My damned sticky boots squeaked with every step. I’d worn tight jeans and a red sweater. I wished I could stop in my apartment to at least change shoes. Or it might help my cause to switch out my bra. What I had on could have carried rocks for David to use against Goliath. The image made my mouth quirk in a smile.

“What’s funny?” He slipped his arm around me at the bottom of the stairs.

“Me, us. Always ending up in bed together. It beats talking when we’ll only fight anyway.”

This scene hints at Glory’s changing attitude toward Blade and why she later decides to let another man become important to her. It also gives the reader a glimpse of the humor and sensuality Gerry uses throughout the book. The series will continue in August with Real Vampires Don’t Wear Size Six.

Read an excerpt from Real Vampires Have More to Love and visit Gerry Bartlet's website and blog.

Check out the complete list of books in the Page 69 Test Series.

--Marshal Zeringue