He’ll show up again in the series, but what about in the meantime? What does a powerful, four-hundred-year-old vampire with a serious grudge against his old mass murdering master to do when he suddenly finds himself with too much time on his hands? Hang around Faerie, where there’s nothing to eat (Fey blood=nasty) just because our intrepid heroine parked him there?Uh, no. Not so much. Because Tomas is obsessed, and has been for pretty much his whole existence, with one thing: taking out Alejandro, the aforementioned murdering bastard. In “The Day of the Dead,” he slips back into our world to confront his nemesis, only to find unexpected help in the form of a band of magical mercenaries. Think the A-Team with spells and potions instead of (well, actually in addition to) guns and knives and things that go boom. It makes for a lot of mayhem down Mexico way.NOTE: “The Day of the Dead” is a short story connected to the New York Times bestselling Cassandra Palmer series of urban fantasy novels. It was first published in The Mammoth Book of Vampire Romance (2008) and is now being offered as a free ebook. It features Tomas, a character from Touch the Dark (2006), the first Cassandra Palmer novel.

    He’s also a vampire who prowls the dark corners of San Francisco looking for entertainment and his next meal. Lately, he’s been spending lots of time watching a tattoo parlor in the Mission District, where someone tall, artistic, and handsome has caught his eye.Santiago Alvarez, the forty-three-year-old owner of Iron & Ink has a huge secret. He lives a quiet life, finding joy in his career and his friends, but it’s caused him to shut himself off from dating and getting close to anyone romantically. When he bumps into Jeff on the sidewalk near his shop, he’s intrigued but hesitant to let anyone get close.An unexpected event one night will change everything for both men, and neither of their futures will ever be the same.

    They say he's a warrior. They call him a demon. They whisper that he can grant wishes.Saiven can't resist. He sneaks into the secluded dungeon to see, but the man chained to the wall is not what he expects. Smiling. Teasing. He introduces himself as Faolan, and Saiven is caught.This...man. He makes Saiven feel things he should not feel. Draws forth confessions that were meant to stay secret. Faolan freely grants him warmth and laughter. But now...Now it's time to find out if Saiven is strong enough to earn a wish.

    These are the two men Clay tried to pick up when he first arrived in the small town of Deadwater, Texas. He figures it’s is the perfect opportunity to have a quick fling before he’s back on the road. But Bo sees the dominate cowboy in Clay, and he won’t just hand over Trace to him. Not until Clay let’s Bo break him in.Bo and Clay fight constantly, both pig-headed, both trying to the big man in control. Trace is caught in the middle offering Clay kisses to heal is wounded pride and hoping he and Bo can reach some compromise. Until then he’ll seduce them both in his own way. Bo is determined to break down Clay’s resistance no matter what he has to do.

    Many years ago, the race of creatures once known as 'vampires' agreed to surrender their freedom, rather than face eventual annihilation. They exist now as Pets to the lords and ladies of high society, forced to serve forever the human whose blood they first drink. Detesting the practice, Aubrey has always avoided taking a Pet for himself. But upon his return home from school, he is gifted with a Pet by his father. His Pet, however, is like none he's ever known, and only the start of an old and complicated tangle of secrets.

    So it's no wonder that Jesse Morgan and Cole O'Brien chose to live there upon graduating from college. Ready go begin the next phase of their lives in an exciting new city, Jesse and Cole quickly find themselves at the center of a new group of friends. Joyelle and Derek Mancini have been happily married for years, but Derek is harboring a secret that could tear them apart. Derek's brother Emmett is about to discover that his boyfriend Keith Colgan has a past that will haunt them both. Long time couple Logan Pryce and Max Taylor must face a crisis that neither of them expected. And, before they realize it, Jesse and Cole find themselves at the center of it all in the adult playground known as BOYSTOWN.

    What he doesn't know is that there are two J. Cahills. After miserable years looking for love in other places, Jesse and Jay Cahill have accepted that for them, illicit passion is the only one. They've built a life, a home together. A chance encounter on a rainy night brings something Jesse never expected- an attraction for another man. Still, he's committed to the love he has for his twin, Jay, and he pushes Drake Fallon away. Drake is intrigued by the vulnerable man he met in the downpour. Though Jesse claims to be involved, Drake is certain the relationship can't be fulfilling or Jesse wouldn't have returned his kiss with such passion. Jay Cahill is devastated when his lover whispers another man's name in his dreams. When Drake calls, how can Jay resist meeting the man who's crept into his twin's dreams?

    He’s a monster, after all. How would he ever find a man who can deal with his other self—the wolf?When a reckless young hiker named Leo gets his leg caught in an old bear trap, Kirk rescues him, tracking him down by scent alone. While Kirk takes care of his injuries, Leo’s bright, sunny presence slowly wears down all Kirk’s defences.But as the full moon rises, Kirk struggles between the urge to protect Leo and the demands of the wolf, who wants only one thing: to claim his mate…

    When the terrorist known as Medusa threatens to kill millions with a stolen nuclear bomb, Nick Jameson makes a fateful decision. He reveals himself on global television as a Daywalker - a vampire with a soul. To save Los Angeles, Nick exposes not only his own gifts but three separate cultures based on millennia-old magic.By NightThe three metahuman races exist in careful balance, working to maintain a fragile peace. Nick and his fellow Daywalkers successfully master their natural bloodlust. The Sentinels, armed with both magic and steel, repress their warlike instincts. And even some Nightwalkers, normally their natural enemies, have deserted the Court of Shadows to join the triple alliance. Nick Jameson is deeply involved with two such Nightwalkers - handsome Lorcan and powerful Rory. Both men love Nick. But neither can protect the new Ambassador to Humanity from the events he has set in motion.By the SwordJeremy Harkness was lured into Medusa's service under false pretenses. A loner with no one and nothing to cling to, he was willing to die for his cause. But the night Medusa tried to obliterate Los Angeles, Jeremy met Nick Jameson, triggering the onset of his own psychic gifts. For Jeremy is the third race of metahuman, a Sentinel, born to kill the Nightwalkers with no quarter asked or offered. And neither Medusa nor the Court of Shadows will settle for peace when they can make war.Betrayal and treachery lurk around every corner on the road to coexistence, and at every turn, Nick must question who to trust among his metahuman allies, friends, and lovers—before their civilization is plunged into the depths of darkness and bloodshed. With millennia-old magic, emerging romance, and ever-shifting allegiances, this inventive series unveils a scintillating, homoerotic world of Nightwalkers, Daywalkers, Sentinels, and Humans, who battle for world dominance in the not-too-distant future.

    Chris Tucker is a cultured and sophisticated gentleman. Matt Gallagher is a pierced and tattooed wild child. Not exactly the pair you'd expect to become a couple. But the sparks fly between them from the moment they meet, and the fire never goes out. Through the first rush of attraction to falling in love, through jealousy and sexual experimentation and a life-threatening injury, the bond they share grows and deepens. Come along with Matt and Chris on their journey, and share their joys and heartaches, from their first hello to happily ever after and everything in between. Warning: This title contains the following: explicit homoerotic sex, graphic language, and M/M/M ménage a trois.

    The goddess has a new job for this generation of legacy descendants… but first, she has a few tasks for them. The Legacy Warrior books were an mpreg shifter series that followed the adult adventures of the children born in the The Blood Legacy Chronicles. Their journey began in book one where the first couple find themselves being drafted by the goddess Artio to help her uncover an ancient artifact. Over the course of the series, four couples were given four tasks to complete the goddess's quest. A beguiling mix of fun, fantasy, friendship and family—this series took reader’s breath away. This is not a new book in the series! This is a compilation of the five epilogues that have been included in the bundled version of the series. These bonus stories show scenes of daily happenings within the pack now that they’re living their happily ever afters. The epilogues contain a mix of sexy mate moments behind closed doors with an omega in a toppy mood, antics of cubs, gargoyles in the wild, and an intriguing glimpse of future pairings. If you read and loved this series, you’ll want to read these brand-new shorts of never before been seen material. These shorts are all intended for 18+ readers only. This is a short compilation of about 12.5k, but is only intended for adult readers as it contains adults adulting in naughty, knotty ways and there might be enough potty mouth language to make a sailor blush. Note: This is from the fourth series of books that have all been set in the same universe. Each series can be read on its own, but if you want to read the world in its entirety, the suggested series reading order is: The Northern Lodge Pack, The Northern Pines Den, The Blood Legacy Chronicles, and finally, Legacy Warrior.

    It is a description he knows very well indeed, a description that puts the robber far closer to home than he dares let anyone realize...

     Quinn Laramie moved to Mill Valley to care for his sick Aunt Betsy. After her recovery, he invested hours once spent in hospitals hiking and exploring the surrounding hills rather than returning to an empty apartment in the city. Patrick, a photographer and self-proclaimed paranormal expert, saved Quinn from tumbling into a flooded creek where a bridge had washed away years ago, taking a pair of doomed lovers with it. Quinn and Patrick meet for other creepy jaunts thereafter: a derelict one-room schoolhouse, an abandoned cemetery, the burned-out shell of a home… Quinn hasn’t seen any ghosts yet, but Patrick’s shy kisses haunt him after each paranormal adventure ends. Quinn wants more, and with their next spooky tour set to begin, Patrick is finally ready to give in. But what surprises wait them in the eerie manse atop Warner Hill? A 11,219 word novelette.

    Few who venture in ever return, and those that do rarely come back all the way. The leopards in this forest have a protector who walks the worlds between leopard and man, but who calls the leopard kin and the human only enemy. When a frightened boy escapes from the latest hunting party to feel the protector's wrath, he tracks the boy down, determined to leave no survivors. But when he comes fact-to-face with the exotic, defenseless boy, he cannot bring himself to end that life. Instead, what he has reviled for years becomes his constant companion. That is, until the humans dare to set foot in his forest once more.Original Prompt: Dear Author,Hmmm, I can almost taste him on the wind now. He's so close. I've been tracking him for days, his scent is driving me wild for the last few miles. He's good, damn good – but I'm better. Photo Description: A leopard walking alongside a body of water with a jungle/forest surrounding it.This story was written as a part of the M/M Romance Group's "Love is Always Write" event. Group members were asked to write a story prompt inspired by a photo of their choice. Authors of the group selected a photo and prompt that spoke to them and wrote a short story.Also read the story here or find it in Love Is Always Write: Volume 5.

    When you’re a vampire, it’s safer to be alone than to never grow old with the one you love. All my rules go right out the window when Yasha comes strolling back into my life with a bump hiding under his jacket. ~ TonyWhen I brought the beautiful man back home with me, I never dreamed it would end with this. Tony won’t have to sacrifice love, because I’m a vampire too and according to the bun in my oven, he’s my one true mate. I’m not going anywhere, as long as he doesn’t push me away. ~YashaBite Sized Fate is a 10k short in the Collection of Strays universe. Inside you’ll find vampires, quirky clan mates, found family, and of course, Lady Fate interfering to bring everyone a happily ever after.