Her mother had always warned her about that type of elf. Dark and handsome with a cocky smile, his teeth gleamed in the moonlight like a thousand stars in the autumn sky. The wind tousled his ebony hair as he looked to her, unspoken feelings welling in the depths of his darkest eyes. "Never go into the Shadow," her mother had chided, but the girl, as with many things, hadn't listened. Now she was wedged in an alley-way, her bodice in shreds, body pressed against this man who by all accounts could not be trusted. His skin burned against her and she shuddered beneath his touch.
"Don't worry," he whispered against her delicately pointed ear, "I will protect you." His sweet breath caressed her pale cheek and she thought that if she didn't make it out of this alive, at least she would know what true bliss was. He pulled her close to his chest and stroked her hair as shouts of the assassins were heard not far off. His heart beat quickly against her and despite the situation, hope fluttered and she wondered, could it beat for me?
It seemed like an eternity waiting in this forgotten corner of the world. "Are they gone?" she murmured, almost wishing they weren't so that she could rest a moment longer in his strong arms.
"Yes," he tilted her chin upwards, his lips not far from her own, "But I am still here."
She stared, lost in the pools of his eyes, unable to think, unable to move. She should flee here, flee him, escape while she still could. She tried to push away but he would not let her. He whispered her name as his lips brushed against hers and she knew nothing would ever be the same. "We mustn't," she plead, just once, and then drank heavily from the desire he offered forth.
Written by an author who goes by the obvious pseudonym "Azalea," Lovers of the Moon God is a piece of erotic fantasy fiction set in an mythical elven city. The main characters are Cirdan, an elven thief/spy, and the (briefly) naïve Luthienne. The series currently spans 14 books, with a new one written about once a year.