They are also loving and loyal companions to the few they choose to serve. Every member of the royal House of Durii has a personal guard and a firecat to serve as a reminder of the greatness of their rule. After all, only the truly extraordinary would walk alongside a firecat. Only the truly extraordinary could. Not River, obviously. River took the job of cleaning up after the noble beasts when he came to Dua years ago. He’s not any kind of soldier or guard, and he’s too mouthy to belong around royalty. All he wants to do is avoid some of the more resentful guard trainees, care for the very spoiled cats, and try not to get his heart broken by one maddeningly gentle apprentice wizard. Apprentice Gavin is powerful, brilliant, and probably noble. He’s destined for greatness—and more than likely a guard and a firecat to protect him. He’s not meant for one insignificant little beastminder like River. But firecats are not the only creatures who are fierce, loyal, and beautiful to behold. River is about to learn that the firecats and the guards who walk with them have more in common than he thought. And he will have to accept that he might be extraordinary as Gavin thinks he is.

    The elders are tired of their younger people playing the field, causing trouble, and fighting with each other. Everyone who attends the UPAC Conference now has twenty-four hours to claim a mate of a different species. If they don't, they will never have a mate. The spell is cast. There is no escaping the Midnight Matings.Software developer Gavin Ashby is perfectly happy with his life. He finds other people annoying after being around them for only a short period of time, and having a mate sounds like pure torture to him.Video game tester Ant Marino is satisfied with his quiet, solitary life. After being accosted and almost forcibly mated, he meets the aloof but handsome Gavin.Neither Ant nor Gavin are prepared for the feelings that arise. Will the two men continue to dance around each other or will they pounce on love and never let it go?

    He is an average warrior, unremarkable throughout. But this fact does not trouble him because he has found his Twin Flame, the one person destined to be his, who will love him unconditionally, life after life. Then his Flame betrays him, leaving him shattered and dying. Brokenhearted, Tristan dissolves the sacred bond and leaves. His best friend, Ushna, accompanies him, vowing to guard and protect him, and Tristan slowly comes to realize that love does not require a sacred bond. But if he hopes to keep the love he chooses, they will first have to survive ancient secrets, lies, mythical creatures, and the return of absent gods…

    With dragons. Merman Jack is a terrible virgin sacrifice. Mostly because he isn’t virginal. At all. Hopefully the Sea King won’t notice. For Jack, the human world has too many wonderful temptations, and too many alphas to resist. He only has two months left before he has to give himself to the Sea King, and he doesn’t want to spend them in the cold, dark catacombs where the Mermen of Rixton live. It may be forbidden for Jack to go to shore, but when did that ever stop him? Peter is a terrible dragon shifter. He can’t figure out what he’s supposed to collect for his hoard. Without his hoard, he can’t do any of the important dragon-shifter things, like take his dragon form or find his fated mate. After years of losing his lovers to their fated mates, Peter’s feeling his age, and he’s tired of being alone. When Peter sees a beautiful merman on the beach, he thinks he’s finally found his fated mate. Jack falls hard for Peter too, but he knows they can’t be together forever. If Jack doesn’t show up on the day of his sacrifice, the Sea King will kill his father and take his brother instead. Will the love between a terrible virgin sacrifice and a terrible dragon shifter be enough to change their fate? Omega from the Ocean is a 77,000-word gritty, age-gap romance with knotting, light D/s, and Mpreg of the dragon-egg variety. While the ending may be an HEA for Jack and Peter, it’s an HFN for the rest of the Mermen of Rixton. Omega from the Ocean is intended for an 18+ audience.

    Elliot is drawn to him, and his magic seems to calm down around the handsome and mysterious Rue. Elliot sinks gratefully into the unexpected grace of Rue's kindness and friendship. He doesn’t understand why his magic is broken or why it feels whole again around Rue. But right now he’s just trying to survive, grateful for the reprieve Rue’s friendship provides.But then a a potential tragedy on the beach culminates in Rue revealing his true nature: he’s a selkie, both man and seal, with a magic that somehow complements and heals Elliot’s when they’re together. And that might not be possible for much longer.

    After all how was I supposed to know he was a mage shifter and I was to become his warrior to own.Photo Description: A bird, the size of an eagle with feathers the color of fire is about to land on the leather glove of a warrior. Flames drip from his tail and the bearded, brown-haired man stares straight ahead. His eyes show his amusement, or is it more? Dressed in the armor of his profession, the man is a professional soldier, or royal guard.This story was written as a part of the M/M Romance Group's "Love’s Landscapes" 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. This story may contain sexually explicit content and is intended for adult readers. It may contain content that is disagreeable or distressing to some readers. The M/M Romance Group strongly recommends that each reader review the General Information section before each story for story tags as well as for content warnings.

    Explicit language warning but little erotic content. (11,000 words ~ 43 pages) First published in The Mammoth Book of Paranormal Romance 2 (2010).WARNINGContains confused lovelorn werewolves and very pretty ex-Goth mermen who are exclusively interested in each other. May also contain fish, Irish mafia, and a shocking lack of tea.

    His frustration at the situation is palpable, but when he's taken home by good-looking Hamilton, his plan is to win over his new owner and make his escape? However, after a few weeks with Hamilton, does he want to make a complete escape, or just stop being caged? If you like foul-mouthed tiny shifters whose surly attitudes are many times bigger than their physical presence, then this may be the book for you.

    Unfortunately, I’m a pretty terrible phoenix. I can’t seem to control my fire. I lose my feathers (I could give you my father’s lecture on that word for word, I’ve heard it so many times). And worst of all, my tears don’t heal. I’ve pretty much been a hermit since my clan kicked me out ten years ago.The other day this man came to my cave claiming he needed a phoenix to help him with his quest. I was so startled I lit half my clothes on fire and scared him away. I can see him climbing the trail towards my cave again. What in the world does he want?Pic 2 is the third undersecretary to the royal historian (or some similar underling position within the royal court) and discovered something he shouldn’t have. He can’t tell anyone or he will be killed so he has to fix it all on his own…except maybe for the help of one hermit phoenix.Photo Descriptions: Photo 1: A shirtless, slender man with hard-taut muscles gazes thoughtfully ahead. Around him, singed and burned feathers waft to the ground. His short red hair either burns with orange-dancing flames or perhaps catches the raw yellow sunlight, giving him a fire-roasted appearance. His raw sensuality simmers, as if the air around him is charged with electricity and yet refuses to ignite into passion.Photo 2: A tranquil, lavender-shirted man holds a book in his right hand and a lantern in his left. He’s young, mid-twenties, a thin man. His tight black pants and elegant dress shirt convey a sense of timeless style. Pages seem to leave the book and fly away, as if magically lifted by the wind. Despite the floating pages and the bruised blues and greens in the dangerous sky before him, the man with raven hair and a dark purple streak remains calm, absorbed. Around him, delicate flowers blossom with long, curled petals, as delicate and strong as this man himself.This story was written as a part of the M/M Romance Group's "Love’s Landscapes" 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. This story may contain sexually explicit content and is intended for adult readers. It may contain content that is disagreeable or distressing to some readers. The M/M Romance Group strongly recommends that each reader review the General Information section before each story for story tags as well as for content warnings.

    He's powerful, popular, and he has a plan. But his plan for fame and glory is disrupted when the Oracle sticks him with Landyn Glendower for Senior Trial. This is an act unprecedented in their school's history. Landyn is a water mage, and everyone knows mages with opposing elements can’t work magic together.Connor is left with a choice: work alone and fail or swallow his pride and work with Landyn to find a way to combine their magic in a display the Archmages will never forget—if they don't get kicked out of school in the process.

    Determined to try again, Tarn takes human form and sets out to explore this new world, battling his grief and bewilderment as he realises all he once loved has faded into legend: his armies, his brothers and sisters, even the lover who grew old without him centuries ago. Posing as a caravan guard, he sets out across the Alagard Desert in search of the spirit who made him smile.But it isn’t just a single dragon who has woken again. As Tarn and his new friends press deeper into the desert, their path grows perilous, and it soon becomes obvious that something dark and terrible has returned to the world.The Shadow Tarn once defeated has woken before him and now he is the only one left to defend his new friends, his desert, and all that lies below the protective shadow of his wing.

    He’s got this.Christmas wishes do come true with a little magic, after all.Tags:Tropey tropes a lot, fated mates, dragon shifters, mages on a quest, because North’s finding a dragon, that’s happening, European road trip at Christmas, found family, true acceptance, twinks and makeup, shopping montage, steamy makeout session, because dragon fire, get it?, someone needs to fire the author, winter snuggles, poor Gunter had to put up with them, licking, not mpreg

    Grimbold Drake, influential patriarch of the Drake family, revels in his solitary life of order—a life which is thrown into chaos when his son pays him an unexpected visit, bringing with him a broken but gorgeous young man more than a millennium Grimbold’s junior. A man Grimbold instantly finds himself yearning to fix, to protect, and to claim. Meek, subservient, and eager to please, Wally Brand doesn’t doubt the tales he’s been told of the cruel and deceitful Amethyst clan, so when he’s forcibly taken from his home and entrusted to Grimbold Drake—the most powerful Amethyst dragon of all—he knows he won’t be long for this world. Only there’s a gleam in Grimbold’s eyes when he looks Wally’s way and a tenderness to his touch that Wally can’t understand. All he knows is one thing: whether Grimbold means him harm or not, if he can be good to his dragon captor, maybe, just maybe, he’ll get out of this mess alive. Swallow is a 30,000 word steamy omegaverse mpreg-ish romance set following the events of the Forbidden Desires series. It contains a broken young man who badly needs love, a curmudgeonly dragon with a heart of gold, new nicknames, familiar faces, and the sweetest dog known to dragonkind. For maximum enjoyment, Swallow is best read as a companion piece to the Forbidden Desires series.

    Especially a wolf shifter, whose presence alone was an insult to my princely principles. As Prince of the Ocelot Shifters, I prided myself on my infallible feline instincts, uncompromisable dignity, and flawless fashion sense. If having a canine follow me around at all times wasn’t bad enough, I now faced the most important moment of my entire life. The time had come to prove I was worthy of my crown. If only I could find a way to get rid of the pesky bodyguard. Grimmwolf When the King of All Shifters asked me to guard Prince Owin, I admit I had no idea what to expect. Cat shifters tend to be a little intense, not to mention kinda cranky. Owin was no exception, though he seemed crankier than most. Being his bodyguard was proving to be one of the greatest challenges of my life—but not nearly as great as convincing him there was something special between us. When Owin is faced with a perilous quest to prove his worth, I was determined to keep him safe, even if the same couldn’t be said of my heart.

    Everything changes when he meets Rhys Daveth, a visiting businessman with mysterious connections who pursues him with a passion that Daniel has never experienced before. The chemistry between them is undeniable, but things take a turn for the worse when Daniel is arrested for a crime he didn't commit, one that he suspects his new lover had a hand in. Once the truth comes out, Daniel will have to choose between the future he had planned and something deeper, more exciting and far more dangerous than he could have imagined.