Just when she thinks things couldn't possibly get worse, she wakes up months later in an isolation chamber to a sexy, hovering dragon-shifter telling her they're meant to be together After years of failed marriage attempts at the Breeding Festivals, the gods finally revealed dragon-shifter Lord Mirek's bride Eager to have her, he defied tradition and laid claim.
But it is a mistake to go against the gods and his new wife was the one to pay the price of his impatience. Now almost a year later, his bride is finally waking from her deep sleep. With one look from her, he feels the eagerness to claim her overtaking him once more. Fearful she'll slip through his grasp, he's hesitant to anger the gods by taking her to his bed too soon.
But, how can he resist the one thing that would make his life complete, especially when she looks at him with eyes of a seductress? This is one test he can't fail, and yet with one of her sweet kisses he knows he may already have lost. Riona Grey lives life on her own terms, traveling wherever the next spaceship is flying and doing what she must to get by.
When her luck turns sour, she finds herself on a bridal ship heading to a marriage ceremony. A planet of primitive shifters seeking mates wasn't exactly what she had in mind as a final destination.
Just when she thinks things couldn't possibly get worse, she wakes up months later in an isolation chamber with a sexy, hovering dragon shifter telling her they're meant to be together The impatient groom After years of failed marriage attempts at the festivals, fate finally revealed Lord Mirek's bride Eager to have her, the dragon-shifter nobleman defies tradition and lays claim. But it's a mistake to go against fate's plans and his new wife is the one to pay the price of his impatience.
Be on the lookout for a basket full of kittens on your doorstep. Candace Havens, my work doppelganger. I love your positive attitude and spirit. Candice Gilmer, you introduced me to real life ghost hunters and helped make a dream come true. And to Cheryl Knight, my editor at Paranormal Underground Magazine, for letting me write about those experiences. Heidi Moore and Lesley Parkin, my editor and fin al line editor on this book, and to the rest of my editors: Your help is invaluable.
Riona Grey knew better than to press her luck. I could beat your guys blindfolded, after a night spent hallucinating on Torganian Rum and drunk off my ass. In fact, I can take this whole tournament. And, of course, Riona took his bet and tripled it because, well, she was a sucker for high stakes and mischief. Besides, every time Range crossed her path, he pissed her off.
She saw his smug face and she wanted to hit him. Instead, she continued on to insult his manhood, his ship and, perhaps most wounding of all, his reputation as a space pirate.
Range could lick her boots. It was going to be sweet perfection to see his face as he handed over that many space credits. No more running around taking odd jobs and doing whatever she could to survive. This was it. Her chance. The tournament was a lock. This was her game. Today was going to be a good day. Really, it just depended on where you landed. Riona loved her life. She loved everything about it. Well, almost everything, but she had seen enough to know better than to complain.
Things could always be worse. She could still be starving, fighting for a small corner of a ship so that she could sleep undisturbed. Desperation and necessity had taught her how to survive, and she was good at it. There were no handouts in the universe for people like her. The loud music, smoky atmosphere and drunken patrons were comforting in their familiarity. She liked how simplistic everyone was on this level of existence.
The humanoid and non-humanoid aliens were predictable. They could be expected to uphold certain codes of honor…to a point. They would act in their own self-interest first, the interest of their crew second, and in the interest of breaking the law third. There was freedom to their tarni shed honor.
But best of all, none of them had any grand plans beyond amassing more money and having more adventures. They had flown to the ends of the known universes and had seen marvels beyond speech, and yet living creatures in general still managed to debase that beauty.
For most of them, life was short and fairly pointless. Disasters happened. Ships exploded. Fortunes were lost. Planets were blown into nothingness. And sometimes, smarmy pirates lost bets to a girl. Riona smiled at her la st opponent, feeling her heartbeat quicken. One play left. One perfect play and she walked away the tournament winner. She was aware of the stares of those in the complex on her, knew her face was being broadcast in an oversized holographic projection floating above her head so everyone could see.
Long, metal tables stretched out before her, most of them occupied with spectators. The smell of liquor exuded from the nearby bar that dominated the center of the building. Smoke filtered along the floor, being drawn to ventilation grates. Riona reached to the table next to her and made a show of taking an unconcerned drink. In truth, she could barely swallow because her heart was beating so hard. Metal discs floated before her in a large game grid.
Tiny s naps of electricity shot between them. She tapped her fingernails against an inert disc as she contemplated her next move. Her mind raced and calculated, making sense of the seemingly random pattern of electrical shocks. He talked in his native language of Yidie, but she understood the scaly lizard man just fine thanks to her implanted universal translator.
Riona laughed a loud, delighted sound as she held up her disc.
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