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.

    As soon as she lays eyes on RJ Fitzgerald, however, a beautiful and intriguing handyman for a lonely country diner, she realizes that nowhere can be a very interesting place. 'The Road to Glory' is a story of two women, their bumpy road from lust to love, and the multitude of surprising turns along the way.

    She’ll go back, after some rest and relaxation. When her best friend suggests a diversion, she’s quickly smitten with the allure of cards and the intriguing stranger who never seems to lose a hand. Surely she can play with dangerous temptation, just this once. Courtney Langford’s favorite date is with Lady Luck. Ever since she missed a connection and avoided a deadly plane crash, she always comes up aces. Cards, women...seduction is just another way to win. Why should the lovely Ellen be any different? But Ellen turns out to be a wild card in a game Courtney has been trying so hard not to play.Tracey Richardson puts all the cards on the table as two women decide if they’re going to bet on love.

    Meagher and Susan Smith, all together under the same cover with the aim to satisfy your every literary taste. This incredible combination offers something for everyone — a smorgasbord of fiction unlike anything you’ll find anywhere else.A Native American raised on the Reservation ventures outside the comfort and familiarity of her own world to help a lost soul embrace the gifts that set her apart.A reluctantly wealthy woman uses all of her resources anonymously to help those who cannot help themselves.Three individuals, three aspects of the self, combine to create balance and harmony at last for a popular trio of characters.Two nomadic women from very different walks of life discover common ground — and a lot more — during a blackout in New York City.A traditional, old school butch must confront her community and her own belief system when she falls for a much younger transman.Five authors — five novellas. Outsiders — one remarkable book.

    How could it be, when everything she knew to be true turned out to be a lie? But when a nighttime flight that leads to a rescue mission brings a beautiful, curvy woman her way, Rowan will have to reconsider everything.Eva hates her clan of wolf shifters. After years of doing grunt work and playing the dutiful daughter, an attempted kidnapping by an evil group of wolves finally pushes her to her breaking point. But just when things look bleak, she's rescued by a powerful dragon, who she soon discovers is her childhood friend. Rowan is just as beautiful as Eva remembers, but the wolf shifter isn't prepared for her reaction to Rowan's tall, lithe frame.Soon, things begin to spiral out of control. Now Eva's not facing just one enemy, but several of Falhurst's shifter clans. As the stakes get higher, she finds herself leaning more on Rowan and her friends. But nothing is fair in war, and Rowan and her team will soon pay the price for helping an innocent...

    In a world where monsters and humans live in relative peace.... Snow Bennett just wanted to get away from her overprotective parents. So, she transferred to the high school in the next town. Monster High, isn't an ordinary high school. It's a monster high school, the perfect place for Snow who is human with a little extra. She can control ice. Snow has always wanted to spice up her boring life.......then she met Cait Fallon, the spice to her everything nice. Cait Fallon is a woman with secrets. Secrets, that have ruled her life preventing her from really living. When Snow transfers to her class, Cait is reminded of a promise she made long ago to protect the girl. Can Snow break down the walls Cait has spent centuries building? Or will they both fall victim to an age-old prophecy?

    After accepting the opportunity to drink the elixir of the sun, Kendal becomes immortal and the Genesis Clan’s slayer. History has taught her the dangers of getting too close to anyone who hasn’t harnessed the power of time.After many years, she returns to New Orleans to finish a job she’s trained for all her life. It’s time for her to face her brother Henri, and it will have dire consequences to mankind if she fails.Piper Marmande believes Kendal has come to take over the company her family has built over generations. As Kendal prepares for the most important battle of her long life, Piper does her best to uncover every one of Kendal’s secrets, making herself a distraction Kendal can’t afford as she hunts Henri and Ora, the vampire who seduced him to a life of darkness.

    She ends up with two assignments - one, to interview up-and-coming lesbian romance writer Tegan Lowry, and the other? To win a bet to write her own lesbian romance, thus securing for herself a job as an editor. There's a bit of an issue with the second of those. India writes science fiction, not romance. There's none of that confusing touchy-feely stuff in her science fiction novels. Hell, she doesn't even read romance, and as for the lesbian aspect, she's not sure how to define her sexuality, but if she's a lesbian, then she's so far in the closet, she doesn't even know where the door is. Maybe Tegan could give her some pointers on writing all those sex scenes she's probably going to have to stick in there? Tegan is thrilled to be interviewed, even by the awkward and socially-inept India. Not that Tegan views herself as anyone's fantasy - she's on crutches, and who would be interested in a cripple? Her deeply romantic fantasies are all lived out on the page. But when India suddenly asks if Tegan will join her in her writing cabin to get some serious work done, she jumps at the chance to leave her horrible basement apartment behind to concentrate on her writing in comfort and peace, with the fascinating, if rather emotionally-unavailable, India Bell. In the gorgeous cabin on the outskirts of the small tourist town of Rain Falls, Colorado, the two women find themselves struggling with temptation and absurdity. It's a situation they never thought they'd find outside of a romance novel.

    She did not believe in vampires, until she turns into one. Should she follow her vampire cousin's lead and walk away from everything she knows, or join Shadow Falls, a camp for special teens?This short story from C.C. Hunter gives readers a look into Della's history.

    They growl for your touch. And in these sizzling stories by New York Times bestselling author Shelly Laurenston and Cynthia Eden, these sexy wolf shapeshifters are lust at first bite. . .Like A Wolf With A Bone by Shelly LaurenstonQuiet little Darla Lewis couldn't be happier when the most-feared member of the South's rowdiest pack kidnaps her. A girl gets real tired of being overprotected by her own shifter family, and there's nothing like an oh-so-big bad wolf to start a pack feud, unleash her instincts--and have her surrender however and whenever she wants. . .Wed Or Dead by Cynthia EdenGage Ryder knew his human bride had a wild side. But spending their honeymoon night on the run from hunters out to finish him and his pack is sure not the kind of fun he was looking forward to. No problem--Gage will do whatever it takes to lay bare Kayla's secrets and find the truth. If he can keep from being captured by his own seductive game. . .

    She jumps at the chance to guide a group of foster children through a community haunted house—never suspecting that her partner Kim will provide her with a trick and treat of her own.This short story, “A Treat for Halloween Tricksters,” takes place after the events in the novel "L.A. Metro."Join Jess McKenna and Kim Donovan as they celebrate their first Halloween as a couple.

    He doesn’t expect to find out Rafael is his familiar.When Enoch runs afoul of the murderous Bone Gang, he and Rafael strike a deal to take down the gang together. As lawman and outlaw work together, Enoch soon realizes the next thing the gentleman bandit steals will be his heart.Words: 16,260

    Sonia is a succubus with one goal: stay off Hell’s radar. But when succubi start to die, including her sometimes lover, Jeannie, she’s drawn into battle between good and evil and a past that isn’t ready to let her go.Fae is a blood witch turned vampire, running a tattoo parlor and trading her craft for blood. She notices that something isn’t right on the streets of her city. The denizens of Hell are restless. With the aid of her nest mate, Perry, and his partner, Charley, she races against time before the next victim falls. The killer has a target in his sights, and Sonia might not live to see the dawn.**Includes First Christmas: A Sigil Fire Holiday Story**

    The presence of these supranormals (“supras”)—werewolves, vampires, demons—is a closely guarded government secret, as is the existence of a cadre of specially engineered Hunters charged with exterminating them.Code-named Malice, Hunter Mary Alice Nolan was genetically modified and rigorously trained to use her great strength, heightened senses, and killer instincts to track and eliminate supras who prey on the innocent. A loner by choice, her only real link to the human world is her close connection to her mother and sister—until the unthinkable happens…Ruri Samson has been a werewolf for more than a century and is comfortably situated as the Beta of her peaceful pack. Until she is betrayed by the woman she loves and an evil outsider massacres her Alpha and his most loyal followers. Barely escaping with her life, Ruri is forced to tread the perilous path of a lone wolf while vowing vengeance against the usurper and his minions.Although these two powerful women should rightfully despise each other, fate will soon compel them to join forces on a dangerous quest to avenge their loved ones—and will ignite a forbidden passion that neither of them ever imagined.

    A masterful blend of fantasy and reality, this whimsical story, set in the glorious countryside of upstate New York, will delight your imagination and warm your heart.