Now, eight years later, she must risk her life to save her grandfather from a lynching, by playing for the wyvern that has terrorized her village throughout the summer. When she comes face-to-face with the beast at the haunted cliffs of Maldoza, she is both terrified and fascinated. Something about the creature reminds her of her long-lost lover, something more than just a shared name.Alaric has never forgotten nor stopped loving the human woman he left in a dusty village almost a decade earlier. So when he meets her again on the cliffs, wearing old dragon armor and playing her fiddle as if her heart would break, he is overjoyed.But Elsbeth never knew the man to whom she had given herself was only an illusion for the wyvern. Alaric must convince her that the heart of the beast is no less devoted than the heart of the man, and that leaving her a second time will not last another decade.Note: Some scenes contain graphic descriptions of physical intimacy.

    What she never expected was a deadly threat to her eight-year-old twins. That her little girl could go missing in the night.The enemy thought he was dealing with a hysterical mother.Mother, yes. Hysterical, no.Elena was Alpha for a reason. And nothing would stop her from getting her child back.

    When she fails to return, her consort Moon, along with Stone and a party of warriors and hunters, must track them down. Finding them turns out to be the easy part; freeing them from an ancient trap hidden in the depths of the Reaches is much more difficult.The Tale of Indigo and Cloud explores the history of the Indigo Cloud Court, long before Moon came to Court. In the distant past, Indigo stole Cloud from Emerald Twilight. But in doing so, the reigning Queen Cerise and Indigo are now poised for a conflict that could ruin everything.Stories of Moon and the shape changers of Raksura have delighted readers for years. This world is a dangerous place full of strange mysteries, where the future can never be taken for granted, and must always be fought for with wits and ingenuity, and often tooth and claw. With two brand-new novellas, Martha Wells shows that the world of Raksura has many more stories to tell...Contains: The Falling World #3.6The Tale of Indigo and Cloud #0.1The Forest Boy #0.2Adaptation #0.4Appendices

    She knows how to get dressed in the mornings and finding her tutors are no trouble, but she keeps slipping up. She is not an elf with purged memories, she is a human troll in an elf body and when she opens her mouth, it shows.She gains a little knowledge of the elf society, learns that her troll background is easily visible to those who know what to look for, and that elves don’t fight dirty. That is about to change.A quick call to assist the elder ends up with her interacting with two other magical species and once again her impulses get the best of her, with an interested witness.

     Snow is in the forecast. In a time and place not too far away, Mia Snow is an alien huntress for the New Chicago Police Department. Heading up her expert team of Alien Investigation and Removal agents, Mia's unmatched at battling the elusive enemy among us, and she's the perfect girl for the job. She's seen her brother die at the hands of aliens. She's earned each of her scars. And she'll die before she cries. Now, a series of killings have Mia and her partner Dallas tracking alien suspects—but a sudden blast of violence leaves Dallas fighting for his life. They are ice and fire. The chance to save Dallas appears in the form of a tall, erotic stranger. An alien. A murder suspect. Kyrin en Arr, of the deadly Arcadian species, holds the power to heal the injured agent but not without a price. For Mia Snow, that price is surrendering to Kyrin's forbidden seduction...and embracing their electric attraction. She's walking a knife's edge, risking her badge and even her life. The closer she gets to Kyrin, the more Mia learns about her own heart, her human needs—and the shocking secret that will shatter everything she's ever believed.

    While she finds this both weird and insulting, Emma has no actual intention of breaking these rules - until her guardians go missing. Now all bets are off. Only a single line separates her side of the street from the elites', and she's crossing it. Captured and held by Lexen and his brothers, she learns the rules are in place for a very good reason. There's a secret world hidden in this small town which goes far beyond the one she knows and understands. A world not for humans.

    Bear Shifter Cormac is determined to take single mom Nell as his mate, despite her objections—until her sons are endangered and she desperately needs help.National bestselling author Jean Johnson returns to her Vulland Chronicles with The Hunter’s Cabin. On the run after being falsely accused of treason, ex-prince Kiereseth and his companion Vielle take refuge in a snowbound cabin—and in each other’s arms.In No Surprise More Magical, Hanna Martine expands on the fascinating world she introduced in Liquid Lies. After dissolving their arranged marriage, Ofarian guard David pairs up with the heartbroken Kelsey to try to thwart an enemy to their race and win her heart on his own terms.

    Instead, she gets a shapeshifting alien who apparently has never seen a leaky faucet before. But his loving and noble spirit make him just the man to fix her wounded heart. He hasn’t promised her forever, but a girl can hope, can’t she? Maybe she’ll make another wish…When his ship tumbles out of the sky and lands on Earth, Chameleon never expects to fall for a human woman. Unfortunately, he can’t stay. He made a mistake that led to the devastation of an entire planet, and now the survivors are depending on him to get them to safety. He must repair his ship and leave before the Xeno Consortium finds him and Earth becomes endangered, too. But oh, he wishes he could stay with Kevanne forever… Can a twist of fate make their wishes come true?

     Since the day Rey’s defiance earned her a blinding blow to the head, fear has hovered as close as the guide dog that clings to her side. But the terror that grips her now is almost beyond description. Like her sister before her, Rey has been sold to satisfy the lusts of one of the alien Beasts that now rule the Earth. If the towering, leather-clad Alpha discovers his prize can’t see, he could kill her with a flick of his claw. Or worse, send her home—where the only mercy she’ll get is a bullet. From the moment the Alpha Beast spotted Rey smiling tenderly at her flowers, his desire to own her, body and soul, roared louder than his bike’s throaty engine. But the only smiles his new pair aims his way are forced—and oddly off target. She is liquid heat in his arms, yet ignores the notes and gifts he leaves for her. If he can’t win her over, he can’t trust her with his own truth. And the combined weight of their secrets could destroy everything. ***This dystopian fairy tale features one brave heroine paired with one sweet, unapologetic, possessive, protective, and kinky Alpha male Beast. If you're looking for "mating trope" with fleshed out characters in a steamy romance novella and HEA click it.

    Any other day, she'd climb him like a tree... If he hadn't captured her, and her entire base that is.Sergeant Cat Moore has a little problem. Well, actually a big problem... a big alien war-group sized problem. When her base is attacked and boarded by a Lathar war group, she finds herself in the sights of their leader, Tarrick K'Vass.The strong, not so silent and ruthless type, Tarrick's duty as a war commander means little time for himself. With no women of their own, a base full of human women is a bounty he can't ignore. Nor can he ignore the little human whose voice called out to him across the galaxy, a woman he'll stop at nothing to make his own. Even if it means a little blackmail...**Please be aware that this is a romance SHORT in the Warriors of the Lathar series and contains situations that may be objectionable to some readers*

    But Ankari Markovich needs a few archaeological samples for her latest business venture, a venture that might prove lucrative enough to move her family off the impoverished planet where she grew up. Unfortunately, she has no sooner collected her samples than she’s captured by a band of brawny mercenaries. The captain might be handsome, but he’s intent on turning her over to some finance lord who has, for reasons unknown, put a bounty on her head, a ridiculously large one at that. If she can’t figure out a way to escape before she’s delivered to the lord’s home world, she could be forced into a life of indentured servitude—or worse.Captain Viktor Mandrake doesn’t usually take on piddling bounty hunting gigs, but when his intelligence officer informs him of a criminal on a nearby planet, he decides it wouldn’t hurt to take a shuttle down to collect the woman. But Ankari Markovich is trouble from the start, nearly eluding his elite forces, then fighting and tricking his people left and right. He finds himself admiring her spirit, but according to her warrant, she’s a criminal. The safest thing is to keep her in the brig and ignore her until she can be handed off to the man who wants her.But the situation grows more complicated when other bounty hunters show up, wanting to claim Ankari for themselves. Thanks to this woman, Viktor’s ship is in danger, his crew members are going missing, and he’s fighting enemies he never asked for in a jungle in the middle of a hurricane. He’s either going to strangle Ankari… or fall in love. Either scenario could get him killed.Mercenary Instinct is a full-length, stand-alone novel of 90,000 words. It is part of the “Mandrake Company” series of science fiction romance stories and is recommended for readers who enjoy space-based adventure (such as Firefly) and steamy love stories (in the style of Linnea Sinclair).

    Explore the ruins of a dead civilization. Take everything worth selling. Buy myself status and an easy life. How hard could it be? Turns out, Kartak is very much alive… and the inhabitants are the stuff of nightmares. When I crash land on Kartak, I lose all my supplies and my only friend. With an inhospitable environment, violent natives, and an apocalyptic cult hunting me… death stalks me at every turn. My only chance to survive is by taking shelter with a brutal alpha lion shifter. Deadly but irresistible, he declares me his fated mate… and leaves me walking on the knife’s edge between pleasure and fear. In the struggle to save my own life, I will have to choose: the danger of a fierce, frightening mate… or certain death without his protection. Renegade Leo is a standalone romance novel set in the Shifter Kings of Kartak universe. No cliffhangers and a sexy happy ending guaranteed!

    Sexy, wild, out-of-this-world talents that can leave any woman feeling weak at the knees (among other body parts), they're the ones to call when you want pleasure that lasts…and lasts...SHELLY LAURENSTONCAN'T GET ENOUGHEven for a dragon, Ailean the Wicked has a bad reputation. For 150 years he's been renowned for his fighting prowess, but now he's got a new conquest in mind-a gorgeous dragoness known as Shalin the Innocent. Ailean suspects she's anything but. And while he's saving her from her enemies, he plans to prove that, even in human form, a bad-boy dragon can show a girl a good time that's truly off the scale...CYNTHIA EDENSPELLBOUNDNo witch in her right mind would summon an immortal soul-hunter to her aid, but Serena Tyme needs Luis D'Amil's help to destroy the warlock who's stalking her coven. And she's willing to pay any price he names…especially when the tall, dark, sexy-as-hell assassin shows her he can work some sensual magic of his own...NOELLE MACKTURN ME ONFinally, Beth Danforth has found a man who can flip her switch. That's because supersexy Justin Watts, CEO of SpectraSign, is literally made of light, with a dazzling, custom-built body. The only thing he needs to maintain his energy level is to turn up the heat with a real woman, and with Beth, the results are guaranteed to be electrifying.

    Prison planet. Snarling, lethal predators. Two big, hulking, bronzed aliens who turn into dragons. The best part? The dragons insist I’m their mate.The Zorahn wanted women for some kind of super-secret science experiment, and I volunteered. Dumb move, right? But they promised we’d be safe, and they offered a lot of money. Money I needed desperately.Of course, everything went wrong. Our spaceship has crashed on a prison planet, one where the Zorahn exile their most dangerous criminals. My friends are injured. I’m all alone on a jungle planet where everything is designed to kill me. Then I run into the Draekons. When they see me, they change into dragons and burn the predators threatening me to a crisp. They feed me and care for me, and they keep me safe. But there’s a catch. The Draekons insist that I’m their mate. And the only way they can shift into dragons again to save my friends? Both of them need to mate with me. At the same time.This isn't the space vacation I thought it would be.Draekon Mate is the first book in the new Dragons in Exile series. It’s a full-length, standalone science fiction dragon-shifter MFM menage romance story featuring a snarky human female, and two arrogant aliens that keep her warm, with or without dragon fire. (No M/M) Happily-ever-after guaranteed!

    It’s their first in Kodiak Point, and she’s not about to let some vain jerk ruin it for her little girl.If playing dirty is what it takes…then bring on the Christmas games. As Crystal and Kyle butt heads—and lips—they discover more than goodwill this holiday season. They’re gifted with a second chance at love.