Sweet Destiny (The Jessica Sweet Trilogy Book 3)

by Aliya DalRae

  The cat began to purr again, rubbing his head against Leonard’s palm, seeking comfort and reassurance.

  “It will be okay, my friend,” the Overlord said. “You have my word.”

  With a deliberate blink of those emerald green eyes, the cat leaned in for a head butt, then leaped to the floor and settled himself once again on the rug.

  “But Malcolm, do have a care,” Leonard called after him. “The Goddess only blesses us with nine lives. Try not to burn through this one so quickly.”

  Note from the Author:

  Anyone who has listened to me in an interview, or who has read one knows that the character of Jessica Sweet was born in my heart and soul. She is the spirit, living on page, of the daughter I carried for five months, but who was taken from my husband and me before we were given the chance to know her. Our Jessica never got to grow up, to fall in love, to be happy or disappointed. She never took a breath.

  I wrote Sweet Vengeance as a form of therapy to help me through the tough times after Jessica’s death. The book is visceral and flawed, and by no means my best work, but it is the most real.

  After SV was so well received, Sweet Discovery seemed to fly onto paper, the story taking on a life of its own. It was fun and quirky, and though all of my books hold an element of darkness, I really enjoyed bringing out Harrier’s personality in that one. It was also nice to give Jessica someone she would always be able to count on.

  Sweet Destiny, however, was hard to write. After digging through the first two books, the third one really took me home. It took me back to the days, ten years ago, when losing Jessica was raw and fresh. It brought the memories back to me as if they were yesterday.

  Destiny touches on a lot of tough issues, and anyone who has lost a pregnancy, regardless of whether it was four weeks or nine months, knows how devastating those feelings are. Taking Jessica Sweet there was like living it all over again, and yet, it was where I needed to go. My loss was nothing like Jessica’s. For me, everything was fine right up until it wasn’t. There was no dramatic, bloody scene, although I did have that sense of foreboding that Jessica Sweet experienced. It was during an ultrasound when we learned that our baby had no heartbeat. Like I said, it was okay, then it wasn’t.

  I have to say I was lucky. I know there are hundreds, thousands of women out there who go through similar experiences, and there are marriages that don’t make it through that kind of loss. My husband, Kirk, was my saving grace. While these books have been therapeutic, Kirk was my life’s blood. Without him, not only would there be no books, there would be no me. I do not wish this kind of pain on anyone, ever, but if it does happen, I only hope you have someone as phenomenal for you in your life as my husband was for me. I literally would not be here if it hadn’t been for his support, his love, and his willingness to put his own pain aside to help me through mine. He was my rock, then, now and always.

  I also want to take a minute to thank all of you who have read my books. Your love and support has been healing to me as well. Knowing that there are people out there who love Jessica Sweet as much as we loved our sweet Jessica touches me deep in my heart.

  While Jessica’s story is (mostly) at an end, the Legion series will go on. I promise to find love for all of those broody Vampires who have helped give the Jessica Sweet novels that little extra something. Until then, I wish you all happy lives and happy reading.

  about the author

  Born and raised in a farming community in rural Southwest Ohio, Aliya DalRae grew up a middle child, with an older and younger brother. Surrounded by corn and cows, it was not unusual for Aliya to immerse herself in books, her way of escaping the humdrum small town life to visit fantastic lands full of mystery, myth and legend. And of course, romance.

  Aliya’s first love was musical theater, and as a teenager she dreamed of one day performing on Broadway. Those dreams were put on hold when life intervened (as life often does), and she moved on with other pursuits.

  After graduation, and a brief time living in England, Aliya returned to her home town, where she worked mainly in administrative positions, but her love for books never waned.

  In 1992, Aliya met her immortal beloved, and they have been inseparable ever since. When not weaving romantic tales, she can be found working side by side with her husband in their furniture restoration business, where she weaves caned chairs instead.

  Aliya is a paranormal/urban fantasy writer and is the author of the Jessica Sweet Trilogy. Her debut novel, “Sweet Vengeance,” was published in February 2016, and was honored as a Golden Quill Awards Reader’s Choice Finalist in 2017. Her second novel, “Sweet Discovery,” is a Top Three Winner in the 2017 Virtual Fantasy Con Awards, as well as a 2017 SIBA Awards Nominee. Her short story, “Bittersweet,” also received a 2017 SIBA nomination. Recently, Aliya released the Fallen Cross Pack Series, a four-part series of short stories

  Visit Aliya at:

  http://aliyadalraeauthor.wixsite.com/aliyadalrae

  https://www.goodreads.com/author/show/15019566.Aliya_DalRae

  www.facebook.com/AliyaDalRae

  https://www.bookbub.com/authors/aliya-dalrae

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  ADR’s PNR ADDICTS!

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  Also by

  Aliya DalRae

  THE JESSICA SWEET TRILOGY

  Jessica Sweet is a small-town girl with big time troubles. Her birth parents abandoned her, her adoptive parents are recently dead, and her visions are about to take on a life of their own. Enter Raven, the Vampire Race’s version of the boogeyman, and star of Jessica’s oldest and most frequent vision. And he’s drop dead gorgeous. This three-part series details Jessica and Raven’s rollercoaster relationship as they battle evil Sorcerers, feral Vampires, and their own doubts and flaws.

  SWEET VENGEANCE

  SWEET DISCOVERY

  THE FALLEN CROSS PACK SERIES

  Patrick O’Connell was a family man with a wife he loved and a child they adored. A fateful trip to the corner store robs him of everything he holds dear, including his humanity. This four-part series chronicles Patrick’s change from regular Joe to Werewolf Alpha, following the fated couple’s struggles to regain the life and love so cruelly torn from them.

  BITTER BEGINNINGS

  BITTER CHALLENGE

  BITTER LOSS

  BITTER END

  SHORT STORIES

  BEFORE JESSICA THERE WAS ANNA…

  Malcolm Gatta was a normal Feline Shifter with a normal Shifter life. However, the arrival of a new Clowder member has set him on a journey of love and loss that will lead him down a path of darkness…a path from which he would rather not return.

  Bittersweet is a prequel to the Jessica Sweet Trilogy, covering the four years prior to Malcolm’s arrival at Jessica’s home. Take a peek into the life of everyone’s favorite Shifter. You’ll never look at King Kat the same.

  BITTERSWEET

  ANTHOLOGIES

  In this collection of fabulous fairy tales, Aliya DalRae brings Once Upon a Time into Fallen Cross with these contributions:

  Sweet Distraction

  Kythryn’s heart is broken. The man she loves just married her sister, and in response she’s decided a night of heavy drinking is in order. When a tall, dark and mysterious man, a Cat Shifter like herself, no less, walks into the bar wearing high boots and a duster and makes a strange request, she cannot help her curiosity. (Because, you
know, cat.) Following him out of the bar may have been a mistake, but it’s one that will change her life forever.

  Bitter Beauty

  Butch Montgomery is second in command to the Fallen Cross Wolf Pack’s newly appointed Alpha. Though life in the Pack is a bit tumultuous at the moment, things are definitely looking up. When a strange wolf wanders onto the Pack’s hunting land, Butch finds himself torn between an odd desire to bring her into the fold and protecting the solitude he’s only recently reclaimed.

  ONCE UPON A FABULOUS TIME