Fire & Frost (31 page)

Rainbow asked the question that the other women probably wanted to. “Who are you?”

Who would she be to this girl? A mother, a sister? She didn’t yet know.

“I’m Elizabeth,” she said.

“That’s one of my names, too,” she said, but the girl’s interest in Elizabeth vanished when her gaze dropped to the hound at her side. Her eyes widened. “I like your puppy.”

So did Elizabeth. “I think she would like to have you as a friend. She loves to be petted.”

Obviously taking that as an invitation, the girl squirmed in Caius’s grip. He let her down, and introduced Elizabeth to his mother and sister.

Within moments of the word “wife” being spoken, she was surrounded with welcomes and tearful embraces. Elizabeth was barely aware of the airship overhead leaving—heading toward the docks for the night. She’d already paid the fare for passage back to the Americas. By the same time tomorrow, she would be returning to take over the sanctuary. With Caius, her hunter. She couldn’t have asked for more. Yet already, she
had
more—two women, eager to be family and friends.

So much—and so overwhelming. His mother must have sensed it, because not much time passed before she was scooping Rainbow up. “All right, love. It’s back to bed for you.” She started back toward the house, stopping to kiss Caius’s cheek. “We’ll hear everything of where you’ve been and what you’ve done in the morning.”

After a hug from his sister, they were left alone. Elizabeth looked up at Caius—who was watching her, his gaze intensely blue and shadows deepening the sharp angles of his face.

“And who are you?” she asked.

His answer came immediately. “The man who loves you.”

No. He was so much more than that. Caius Trachter, her husband, her hunter, her friend.

“The man who tied me to a bed,” she said, starting toward the house.

His voice lowered. “And will again, the next time I catch you.”

That wouldn’t do at all. She stopped, dismayed. “But I swore to myself that I would never run from you again. How will you catch me without a chase?”

His slow, predatory grin held a heated promise. “If you run, we could find out.”

Her heart tripped over with anticipation.
Who was he?
The man she loved.
Who was she?
The woman who loved him—and who desperately wanted to know what Caius would do after he caught her.

Laughing, Elizabeth whirled and ran.

But not very fast.

A Note from the Authors

Thank you so much for reading
Fire & Frost!
We hope you enjoyed our novellas—but whether you did or not, honest reviews are always appreciated! Not only do they spread the word to other readers, reviews let us know if you’d like to see more stories like this from us. Whether you post a review to your favorite online bookstore, Goodreads, or a personal blog—or just tell a friend about our anthology—please feel free to email us individually at [email protected], [email protected], or through
Jessica’s contact page
; or send a message to all of us at once using [email protected], so that we can thank you personally.

If you are looking for more stories like these now, you’re in luck! Each of our novellas was written to stand alone, but they are all part of a series.

• The Iron Seas
  by
  Meljean Brook
  is a steampunk romance series which combines nanotech and pirates with a gritty, gaslit Victorian atmosphere to create swashbuckling steampunk romance…with an emphasis on the steam. You can find
  a guide to the Iron Seas world
  on her website. Meljean is also the author of the Guardians paranormal romance series. To receive notices about her new releases
  you can sign up to her newsletter
  , or visit her website for more information, book descriptions, and excerpts.
  

www.meljeanbrook.com

• Carolyn Crane
  ’s
  Code of Shadows
  is a paranormal romantic suspense spy series with a dash of science-fiction and fantasy. She is also the author of the popular urban fantasy series, The Disillusionists, and a new romantic suspense series, The Associates. You can keep up to date with news and releases
  through her newsletter
  , or contact Carolyn through her website.
  

www.authorcarolyncrane.com

• Sexy shifters and lonely supernaturals find love in the
  Midnight Liaisons
  series by
  Jessica Sims
  , who also writes paranormal romance as Jill Myles and hot contemporary romance as Jessica Clare. To be notified of Jessica’s new releases,
  sign up for her newsletter
  , or visit her website.
  

www.jessica-sims.com

We've included a list of our available and upcoming titles at the end of this anthology. But if you’re ready for more now, turn the page for a look at our previous anthology,
Wild & Steamy
, and excerpts from our other works.

Happy reading!
Meljean, Jessica, and Carolyn

Also Available…

Wild & Steamy

Three more novellas of the supernatural and steampunk kind…

THE BLUSHING BOUNDER
by Meljean Brook

A Tale of the Iron Seas
— While the search for a killer puts Constable Newberry’s life in danger, he faces a danger of another kind: to his heart, by the woman forced to marry him. What will it take for this prudish bounder to convince his wife to stay? (13K words)

VIXEN
by Jessica Sims (writing as Jill Myles)

A Midnight Liaisons Novella
— Miko’s denied her were-fox nature for far too long and turned her back on her vixen heritage. But when she meets two very sexy cat-shifters, she has to decide if she truly wants to give up on her frisky side, or embrace it. Because the were-fox in her doesn’t want to choose between both men…it wants them both. (15K words)

KITTEN-TIGER & THE MONK
by Carolyn Crane

A Disillusionists Novella
— Sophia Sidway, Midcity’s most dangerous memory revisionist, seeks out the mysterious Monk in the wasteland beneath the Tangle turnpike, hoping for redemption…but it turns out that the Monk is not all that pious, and the turnpike is no turnpike at all. (20K words)

Wild & Steamy is available now.
Turn the page for an excerpt from Jessica Sim’s sexy shifter novella,
Vixen
, then continue on for a taste of Carolyn Crane’s Code of Shadows novel,
Mr. Real
, followed by a look at
Frozen
, an upcoming paranormal romance novella from Meljean Brook…

Vixen: An Excerpt from
Wild & Steamy

MIKO HATED IT WHEN PEOPLE showed up on her doorstep.

It was the one reason she’d moved to the country, after all. Well, one of many. Modern life involved a great many people crammed into very small spaces, and that was difficult to deal with when you were a were-fox with the constant need to shift to fox form. But even more than that, just being around men made her hormones sing. Were-foxes weren’t called vixens for nothing. Out in the wild, a fox vixen was prone to, well, polygamous relationships, and that carried over to their human counterparts. Spend a few hours of time around a man? She’d start to feel the need to select a mate. But if men weren’t around? No problem. No needs. No worries. No mates. Just peace and quiet, where she could relax and paint to her heart’s content.

Add in the fact that the country was serene and involved very, very few door-to-door salesmen, living outside of the city in an old farmhouse was perfect for her needs.

So it was irritating to see two men on her big wrap-around porch.

Even more irritating, they’d rung the doorbell three times now and didn’t appear to be going anywhere. She’d have to answer at some point because every time it rang, it broke her concentration. Sighing, Miko dumped her pencil into the Mason jar that held her artist supplies and left her studio, moving across the old farmhouse to the front door.

As she pushed through her kitchen, a particular object caught her ire – a delicate green bonsai tree on the counter, a leafy green oasis in the clutter. Another one of her mother’s gifts. She hadn’t realized her mother had left one the last time she came over. Seeing the bonsai just made her even more irritated, and she grabbed it and swept it into the garbage before continuing on to the front door.

That was her mother – never taking no for an answer. No matter how many times Miko told her to butt out, she’d completely ignore her daughter’s wishes. Maybe it was a were-fox trait to be stubborn and independent beyond all reason. Her mother didn’t even like the term ‘were-fox’. She preferred ‘kitsune’.

Miko preferred were-fox. Which pretty much told everything about her relationship with Yui Woodward.

Miko jerked the door open, about to snarl something unpleasant through the screen. She didn’t need her roof redone, wasn’t interested in selling the mineral rights to her land, and certainly didn’t need to buy candy bars or Girl Scout Cookies or have her lawn mowed. As soon as she glimpsed the men on her porch, though, she stopped.

If these men were roofers, damn, maybe she
should
get her roof redone. Because…wow. Every hormone in her body went instantly on alert. Both men were gorgeous, in that odd, mismatched pair sort of way. One was enormous, with big, broad shoulders, huge muscled arms, and a close-cropped skullcap of dark hair. It should have made him frightening except for the fact that the look in his soft brown eyes was warm and mild, as was the smile curving his mouth.

His companion was slightly more compact, his frame that of a swimmer rather than a bodybuilder, and his blond hair fell in loose, tousled waves across his forehead. Where his companion had warm eyes, this one’s sharp blue eyes sparkled with a dangerous, fun gleam. Miko could tell at a glance that they were polar opposites. The mild one and the wild child.

And judging from the mischievous look in the blonde’s eyes as she sized them up, they knew it too.

Immediately, her fox nature began to react. When a desirable male was in the area, her natural instinct was to preen and pose to make herself more attractive. To slide her hands slowly over her body when she knew they were looking. To give a man hot, possessive looks to let him know she was interested. Two handsome men? Well. It was an immediate turn-on, and she licked her lips, her voice pitching low. “Can I help you two with something?”

“I sure hope so,” said the blond, grinning at her. He hadn’t missed her quick appraisal – and approval – of their appearances.

The dark haired one cleared his throat, the hint of a blush tingeing his cheeks. He pulled out his wallet and approached the screen door. “My name is Jeremiah Russell, and this is Sam Thorpe.”

Miko kept the smile on her face. “And?”

“Yui Westwood sent us.”

God. Not another one of her mother’s matchmaking schemes. Miko raised a skeptical eyebrow and crossed her arms. “And I shouldn’t tell you both to fuck off…why, exactly?”

Sam licked his thumb and raised it to the breeze, waiting a moment for it to change. As soon as it did, she knew.

They were shifters. Just like her. Here on her doorstep. Two cat shifters, if her nose was correct. Her eyes narrowed. Well. That either made things really interesting, or really annoying. Either way, she couldn’t turn them away from her door. Miko opened the screen door, gesturing for them to come inside. “I should have guessed.”

“Your mother said you should call if you have concerns,” the darker-haired one began in a mild voice.

“Or if you’re just wowed by our charm,” the blond added with a grin and clapped his friend on the back. “Though this behemoth might make you a little anxious.”

Again, the darker one showed signs of embarrassment, but it was a good-natured embarrassment. As if the two ribbed each other all the time and the blond just happened to get the upper hand. Sam and Jeremiah, she reminded herself, trying to memorize their names. Sam the cocky blond and Jeremiah the sweet, overgrown brunette.

She wondered if they teamed up for everything. A throb of heat flashed deep inside her body, making her pulse flutter.

Frowning at her instant response, Miko shut the door and moved toward the kitchen. Annoying visitors or not, she had to offer hospitality to fellow shifters. “Can I get you guys something to drink? I need to make a quick phone call to my mother.”

“Of course,” said the tall one easily.

She poured two glasses of iced tea into tumblers and reached for the phone, cradling it to her ear and turning her back to her guests. The phone’s short cord kept her in the room, which she found irritating; the two feline shifters would be able to hear everything her mother said, even through the phone line. Shifters of all kinds had amazing hearing.