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Pregnant by the Dragon Shifter

A Paranormal Romance

By Jasmine Wylder

**Copyright © 2016 Jasmine Wylder**

**Smashwords Edition**
Table of Contents

Chapter One

Chapter Two

Chapter Three

Chapter Four

Chapter Five

Chapter Six

Chapter Seven

Chapter Eight

Chapter Nine

About Jasmine Wylder

Jasmine's Other Books
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Chapter One

The sun was shining full on his face but the wind was cold coming off the water. David tried to ignore the chill shivering through his body. He was hoping that he might soon get an assignment in a warm climate, but so far, he had just not been that lucky.

"You'll catch your death out here without a coat."

David turned to find a stout ferryman staring at him. The man looked as if he'd had whiskey for every meal for the past three days. The smell was enough to kill a small farm animal.

"How much to take me over to Fraser Island?" David squinted at the other man.

"Fraser Island isn't open to the public. It's a private island, very private." The ferryman blew out a plume of smoke. His jacket was bright orange and his face wind-burned. He spoke with an odd accent, and David couldn't place it.

"I have business there."

The ferryman looked David over. "I'll be glad to take you; no charge. Never been there myself, always wanted to go."

The ferry felt strangely large and empty with David as its only passenger. The movement of the boat only increased the chill in David's body as the cold air rose up from the freezing water below.

"What's your business with the Fraser's? I've only seen the older one a few times. They mostly keep to themselves." The man's orange jacket made a funny rustling noise when he moved his arms, which he did a lot as if adding meaning to each thing he said.

"I keep to myself as well." David's eyes flicked to the other man. The ruddy face only looked put off for a moment.

"Cousin of mine says the daughter is something else. Big girl and sour as a tart cherry, but a fine piece of work." The man showed with his hands the invisible large ass of a woman then laughed the hacking laugh of a lifetime smoker.

David rolled his eyes. He should have just stayed in town for another night.

He'd arrived in the waterfront town a day early and couldn't bear the thought of spending another twenty-four hours among tourists. He was on edge among people who seemed so unaware of themselves. The whole town teemed with them in the summer and early autumn. He had to constantly quell the urge to shout at them to get out of his way, to stop walking four abreast down the street, or to notice when someone was forced to stop abruptly behind you because you were too busy looking at your damn cell phone.

"You can see it now," The man pointed a sausage like finger and David saw the island. "Four miles across, two miles wide."

"And that?"

"Didn't you know?" The man's throaty laugh burbled again. "That's the Fraser castle. Moved here stone by stone from Scotland by the man himself."

David watched as the stone façade of the castle became clearer.

As he watched, his attention was caught by a figure darting over the horizon. David moved so he had a better view. The hair on his arms prickled and the reason for his visit pushed itself to the forefront of his mind.

The figure moved fast, it stopped, and then went back in the direction it came from. David studied the figure for a long moment, then leaned back against a railing.

Before he knew it the little trip with the odd ferryman was over. David sighed with relief.

"Anything else I can do for you?" The ferryman was looking around from the dock. David took out some cash and handed it to the man.

As he stepped onto the dock and glanced around at his new surroundings he noticed a large dark-haired man advancing towards him. David took his bag and walked down the dock to meet the approaching figure.

"You're here early," The man had thick brows, a full jaw, and tufts of thick hair sprouting from his head.

"David Kilgore," David put down his bag and extended his hand to the man.

"I know who you are, just as you know who I am," Coll Fraser looked David over without touching the proffered hand. One eye seemed to move a bit slower than the other, David noticed.

"You're not as big as I thought you would be. How tall are you?"

"Six feet even sir; is that a problem?"

"I just thought you'd be larger," Coll turned and began up the hill that led back to the castle. David picked up his bag and followed.

The lands were wild, beautiful. There were gardens but they'd grown into their own unkempt sort of mini islands. Plants of all colors grew in abundance around the castle walls.

"This was my family home, over four hundred years in the Fraser blood lines, I couldn't leave her behind." Coll looked up at the stone walls as if they were the strong arms of a woman.

"Why did you leave Scotland?" David couldn't imagine a reason good enough for a man willing to transplant a castle.

"A question for another time." Though he may have left Scotland, Coll certainly didn't sound like he had. His thick brogue was difficult for David to understand. Coll walked along a garden path and extended a hand out to the East.

"Would it have anything to do with why you hired me?" David asked.

Coll stopped, turned, and looked at David for a moment. At first, David thought the old man might try to deck him. He could see in his eyes that the man was cranking the gears as if mulling over what he should and should not say.

"What makes you think that?" Coll asked.

"Oh, just a hunch. I'm pretty good at reading people; that's why I'm good at what I do. If you expect me to do my best then I need to know everything about what I might be facing on this job. If you know of something specific that you are trying to protect your daughter from then I suggest you stop wasting time and spill it."

David watched the anger spreading across the old man's face. He didn't care; David was not above irritating people if it needed to be done.

"The Mac Alastair Clan."

"Who are they?"

"They are the family that has been at war with my own family for over a century. Mac Alastair was a prominent businessman in the town of Elgor, Scotland. He owned a lot of real estates and he had branched out into the beginning auto industry at the time as well."

"Ok," David said. "Please continue."

"Well, his wife got really sick one day. My grandfather was the town's physician. He was very well respected and one of the leading medical practitioners in the country at the beginning of the last century. But Mac Alastair's wife Lilly, died shortly after her stay in my father's clinic. It was unexplainable, she had an infection that somehow got into her blood. Antibiotics were still being perfected at this time and they were not as reliable as today. Mac Alastair blamed my father. He and his clan started a war, which began when they gunned down my uncle and his family. Then my family retaliated by setting fire to the grocery store that Mac's brother owned. His wife and daughter were killed, but Artie Alastair survived."

"Sounds pretty brutal on both sides. How did the cops react?"

"Well, in those days money really talked, as it does now, only it spoke much louder and faster. So, the cops stayed out of it, paid off by both sides. The two families decided to settle down and bury the hatchet by the time my father and Mac's son were adults."

"Ok, so what is the problem now?"

"Jacob Alastair, Mac's grandson. He decided that he wanted to start the feud up again after he was denied a bank loan. I still own the main bank used in Scotland today."

"Why did your bank deny the loan?" David asked.

"Because Jacob is as irresponsible as they come. He is a gangster. His father was at least a legitimate businessman, but Jacob is a thug. He has his hands into drugs mostly. He really wanted to open up the business to launder more of his filthy drug money; I knew that. But he has taken offense to this because if he can't launder the money then the cops will not be able to just look the other way as easily. He has threatened me and threatened me, but I'm as stubborn as a mule. I've ignored him. Now he wants blood."

"So, if it's getting that serious, why not just give him the loan?"

"It's too late. He is going to kill my daughter as a message to anyone else who stands in his way. That is why I've hired you. That is why you are here."

"I understand," David said.

"My daughter Iona," Coll turned to David. "She's the reason you're here."

David looked in the direction of Coll's hand. A heavy head of thick curly dark hair met his gaze. She was large, her body strong, and big. David immediately understood the ferryman's hand gesture. She was poised with a bow in her hand facing away from David. Her arrow was pointed straight at a human-like figure. A target. It was the figure David had seen moving from the ferry.

Iona paused with the bow and arrow taut for a long moment before she released. Her aim was perfect. She turned before she'd even seen the arrow hit its mark.

"Iona is a world-class archer," Coll smiled and David could hear the affection in his voice.

Her face was pale set off by high cheekbones, perfectly round lips, and the same dark brows her father had. She was beautiful in the same wild way as the island itself.

"Who is this?" Iona's eyes looked over David and he felt suddenly on the defensive. She held herself to her full height. Her raven eyes looking into him.

"This is David Kilgore; he's to be your bodyguard for Toronto."

"I told you that I don't need a bodyguard." Iona pulled an arrow from her holster, set it, then let it fly. The arrow hit the target, making a perfect match to the other.

"I'm not having this discussion again," Coll's voice dropped.

"Nice to meet you," David said as Iona turned away from him again.

Coll led David into the thick fortress walls of the castle.

"My dearest jewel," Coll said with an affectionate look on his face and David wondered if some of Iona's bad temper weren't caused by Coll's determined devotion to his daughter.

Coll stopped abruptly by a large staircase. "You will be in the second room on the right. Jinx will take you up. Dinner is at six-thirty sharp."

Coll walked away into the house leaving David in the dim light of the foyer. Jinx, it turned out was short for Jackson. A man of about fifty-five who tended to the needs of Coll and Iona while his wife, Lettie did the cooking and cleaning. They had their own boat and went back and forth from the mainland daily.

David was happy to find a modern room awaiting him. He'd immediately begun to imagine another dully-lit room surrounded by hundred-year-old furniture, but the room was clean and simple. A television was in the cabinet, a tidy bathroom with a large shower.

He'd begun sweating through his clothes during his voyage over, and now he took a quick shower to rid himself of the day.

When he'd finished David walked out of his room and made a brief survey of the other upstairs rooms. Some were modern like his own and a few as he had imagined before, old tapestries, four-poster beds, and brown polished wood. The castle was made to be a gathering place for fancy parties and a myriad of guests but it only took one look around to see that there were no such parties happening in its recent history.

He supposed the family rooms to be on the third floor. The downstairs was void of modern conveniences, not a television to be found. Only old armor, large paintings of stern-looking men and women, and feet growing from every piece of well-polished furniture met his gaze.

"Glad to see you dressed for dinner," Coll said with a discriminating glance at David's old faded tee-shirt and jeans.

"This is what I always wear."

"I'll have to order you something more suitable for Toronto."

David took the seat that Coll indicated and the two men sat waiting for Iona. The sound of Lettie humming to herself in the kitchen reached the quiet dining room and David looked at the clock.

It was ten past the allotted time when Iona walked in, though Coll seemed not to notice her time infringement. David assumed the same laxity would not be granted for himself.

Jinx brought the dishes out to the table as might have been done in 1800, his face alone lacking the severity of the other two dinner guests.

"Are you always so formal?" David was beginning to wish he had stayed on the mainland for another day after all; he could be eating a cheeseburger right now.

Coll ignored the question and Iona only raised her eyebrows.

"So, David, where did you bodyguard before this?" Iona's voice held a certain disdain for the word bodyguard and David could feel the heat of his body against the chair.

"Don't be impertinent," Coll said to his daughter without any real sincerity.

"Is it impertinent to ask about the man hired for me?" There was something about the way she said, _hired for me_ , that rubbed David the wrong way. His fist clenched, but he forced himself to release it.

"I worked for one of your father's friends, I believe."

"You believe? You don't know if you worked for him or not?" Iona put her glass down as Jinx set out a thick halibut chowder in front of her.

"I am certain who I worked for, but didn't mean to presume friendship on your father's behalf," David's voice held an edge he was having a hard time controlling.

"David comes highly recommended," Coll said with finality.

Iona began to eat her soup but her mind seemed to be elsewhere. David looked at the two spoons on his side and chose the largest one, hoping for the best.

"And how did you become a bodyguard?" Iona's dark eyes leaped with a challenge to David.

"I was sort of... born into it." David felt sweat roll down his back. He took his water glass and drained it trying to turn down the heat he could feel swelling in his body.

"What about you?" David said trying to divert any more questions away from him. "When did you start with archery?"

"I watched the Olympics when I was a six; I knew then that I wanted to be an Olympic archer."

"And, have you won many tournaments then?"

She turned her attention back to her food ignoring David's question.

"Iona hasn't participated in any tournaments yet. She hasn't left the island since I brought her here as a small child," Coll said from across the table.

David took a large spoonful of chowder as he contemplated this. The thick creamy soup was fresh. Perfect. If he couldn't scarf down a burger at his own convenience at least he would have something to make up for it.

"So, Toronto will be..."

"Will be my first," Iona cut him off. "I've had some of the best archers in the world as my teachers. We bring someone new out to the Island every year."

_Because they refuse to come back again_ , David thought to himself before asking aloud, "...And what about school?"

"I had tutors," Iona put down her spoon and sat back in her chair. "Toronto will be my first qualifying tournament; there will be two more in the next few years to qualify me for the Olympics."

David nodded, "Very impressive."

Iona looked at David carefully before turning to her father.

"I'm not feeling very hungry," she pushed her chair back from the table and stood. "I'll be in my room."

"Very well dear," Coll watched his daughter's retreating figure, then stared at the table for a long moment.

David was certain he was meant to feel something close to guilt at Iona's leaving, but he felt only a satisfied relief. With the sweat on his back dry, he finished every last bit of his soup before putting his own spoon down.
Chapter Two

Iona had spent a sleepless and hungry night. She knew that Lettie had made her favorite, steak pie, and the thought of David eating it all made her mad with jealousy.

A great fog had fallen overnight and Iona looked out her window into the morning. She'd woken early to the sound of seagulls, and now felt groggy and irritable. She really needed about four more hours of sleep. She'd never been a morning person, but with her training, she often found herself up at the crack of dawn and hard at work.

She went first to the kitchen but there was no sign of any leftover steak pie from the night before. Saturdays were a late breakfast day on Fraser Island and the thought of waiting for another three hours for food made Iona feel like clawing at the walls. She looked ruefully at an overripe banana before stepping out of the kitchen and into the morning air.

A walk. She needed fresh air and to clear her mind. A good distraction from her hunger pains was necessary for everyone's survival. She took the long path around the castle walls then disappeared into the brush.

Iona had spent her entire life on this Island; there wasn't one part of it that she didn't know. Sometimes she imagined what her life in Scotland must have been like, what her mother must have smelled like, but it was only her imagination.

On occasion she even let herself imagine what life would be like if she were just a normal American girl, going to school, having boyfriends, trips to the movie theater. But she only let these imaginings go so far. She knew that her father would never allow her a normal life, and it was only painful to dream about something she couldn't have.

She pushed her way along the rocky coast, wrapped inside the fog. A noise came from her right and Iona turned off her route. The ground was soggy and she was glad she'd worn galoshes.

The noise changed and Iona turned just in time to see David running out of the fog and directly into her. She tried to brace herself for the impact, but it was too late. His full weight plowed into her, sending her flying to the ground with a hard thud.

"Whoa," David tried to correct himself before impact but it was useless. The two hit the ground, Iona's backside taking the majority of the impact.

"Ouch," Iona groaned as a sharp pain sprang up her tailbone and spine.

"Are you ok?" David's hands were around her as if even now he could save her from falling.

"Get off me," Iona turned her body away from him and began to stand up. She could still feel David's hands on her arms and back trying to help. "I said, get off."

She pulled herself out of his reach and stumbled her way to a standing position.

"What in the hell were you doing?" She brushed herself even though she knew the mud that now marked her was going nowhere without washing.

"I'm sorry, I didn't see you with the fog, I really didn't think there would be anyone out this way."

"I thought you were supposed to be some sort of bodyguard; you didn't hear me walking?" There was some satisfaction to be had from the fact that he didn't hear her and she had, in fact, heard him.

David lifted an ear bud dangling from its cord, "I was running."

"From what?" Iona was ready to claw, she was hungry because of this man, and she was now muddy and probably bruised because of him too. She stepped around him and began walking back to the house before her bad temper exploded all over him.

"Let me walk you," David ran to catch up.

"I can walk just fine on my own." Iona picked up her gait. "Don't let me keep you from your run."

She could feel his presence next to her though she was trying to keep herself from looking.

"I didn't take you for an early riser," she spit the words in his direction but still refused a glance.

"Yeah well..." He was wearing running clothes she could tell from a glance at his feet. She'd hardly looked at him; she'd been so intent on getting away.

Iona turned a quick eye toward David and just as she did she slipped on a patch of wet leaves and nearly fell all over again.

David's reflexes were faster this time and he held onto her torso. Iona looked up at his face. He was sweating heavily, his hair soaked with sweat. His shirt clung to his body and she could see the outlines of muscles underneath.

"I'm fine," She pushed herself away from him.

"Your welcome," David smiled.

Iona adjusted herself and stared at the man in front of her. She wasn't sure why, but he made her nervous, put her on her guard. She'd met very few young men her own age and certainly none that looked like this one. There was something different about him that she could not put her finger on, but when she looked at him she felt a bit tingly.

"What sort of things does one need to be able to do as a bodyguard? Running through the fog I suppose?"

"Well," David lifted his eyebrows and took a breath. "Observation I guess," He looked at her to see if she was in earnest but she kept her face placid and he continued. "Being able to assess situations and threats. Knowing exits, that sort of thing."

"...And if someone was a threat, what would you do? What sort of skills do you actually possess to defend me?"

Iona crossed her arms and watched as a sly smile crossed his face. She cocked her head, annoyed and not at all charmed by the smile.

"Have you saved anyone's life then?"

David seemed to consider her question then raised his shirt. Iona opened her eyes wide not understanding his gesture.

"Two lives, and two messy scars..."

When she let herself look she saw a deep scar that ran along the side of his ribcage and another at the top of his chest.

"Someone did that to you?" Iona had a strange impulse to touch the scars, but moved her hands to her own sides.

"Yes, someone did." He pulled his shirt back down and turned back toward the castle. This time Iona had to catch up.

"The man you saved... was the man you talked about, the one that recommended you to my father?"

David didn't respond but looked Iona over from the corner of his eye. "I suppose with a bow and arrow in your hand you could be pretty dangerous yourself."

"I suppose I could be," Iona was only slightly gratified by the quasi-compliment. "Do you know how to shoot?"

"A gun?"

"A bow."

David laughed, "No. Not in the least. Would you like to show me?"

"I'd be curious to see what your aim is like," Iona smiled back. There weren't many things but this she was sure of.

The two walked back, Iona with mud all over her black trousers, and David with his tee-shirt suctioned to him with sweat. Iona's stomach growled loudly when they'd reached her archery park and she was happy to think of David getting partially frozen from the cold air hitting his sweaty clothes.

"So, you just set the arrow," She picked up her bow and placed the arrow. "Pull and aim," She pulled the bow back until she could feel it on the skin of her cheek. "Release," The arrow went straight to her target.

"That easy?" David took the bow from her and she handed him an arrow when he'd gotten adjusted. He mirrored her movements impressively well and she felt a pang of excitement as she always did when she got to shoot with someone else.

David released the arrow. It went wide, far too wide.

"You missed Hank," Iona began walking forward to find the lost arrow.

"Hank?"

Iona pointed at her target dummy, "Hank."

David nodded. They found his stray arrow at the base of a tree a good way off course.

"A little practice maybe," She handed it to him. "You can keep it as a souvenir if you like."

David exhaled, "To remind me of my humiliations?"

"Not such a bad thing to remember, is it?" She smiled, delighted at the way his shooting had gone.

"Let's do it again," He looked at the piece of weaponry in his hand.

"Ok," Iona looked at Hank then walked away from her dummy. "We'll use the regular targets this time. Maybe you can get on the board."

They walked back and this time there was no tutorial. Iona lifted her bow and arrow then quickly released, the bow finding its mark directly in the center.

David took the bow from her and his hand grazed hers. She almost jerked her hand back from the heat radiating off him. That was so strange...

"Your skin," She reached and felt his hand again. "You're boiling."

David raised his shoulder and placed his arrow.

"Are you feeling well?"

He pulled back, aimed slightly to the right this time, and then released. The arrow found a mark on the board.

"Very well, indeed." David smiled.

"Not bad," Iona looked at the arrow for a long moment. Her elation at his previous failure quickly sizzled out. "You should probably get some rest."

"I've had plenty of rest." David turned to Iona. He handed her bow back to her then turned into the castle.

Iona stood for a long time looking at the target. She thought briefly about setting herself up another time but put her tools down instead. She brushed her fingers absently against the skin of her hand.
Chapter Three

David was in better spirits after his morning trials. He hadn't dared shoot again in front of Iona lest his arrow took off for another tree.

He showered, changed, and went back downstairs with smells of a solid Saturday breakfast wafting up to him.

"Did you sleep well?" Coll asked David over his newspaper. Jinx must have brought it with him from the mainland; no way a newspaper was ever delivered out here.

"Quite, thank you." David was ready to pounce on the dining room but opted to take his cue from Coll.

"You'll want to eat up today; the Lawrence's don't come on Sundays so Iona usually scrambles up breakfast. Lettie is a much better cook," Coll stood as he folded his newspaper into neat crisp lines then placed it on the side table next to his chair.

"With a smell like that, I'm not sure I could help myself."

"What do you think of our little Island?" Coll stood in place and David had to rein himself in from thoughts of the dining room.

"It's beautiful."

"And my daughter?"

David shifted as his mind sifted through answers, "Quite a family resemblance."

"Good, I would like you to think of me when you see her," Coll smiled and began walking toward the smells.

"You mentioned that your leaving Scotland was a story for another time," David followed behind Coll, thrilled to see a buffet set out on a side table. It would be a much better way to gorge himself without asking Jinx for repeated helpings.

Coll picked up a plate, "I did. It's simple really. Our family shared some bad blood with another clan."

"So, you left?" David didn't picture Coll as the running sort.

"For Iona, yes." Coll placed two pieces of toast, eggs, and ham on his plate. "I had two brothers, they were both killed, then... her mother," Coll stopped his movement and David noticed a slight tremble from Coll's hand. "Her mother's murder was too much."

Coll turned and took his plate to the table. David used the absence of the other man to add a few extra heaps of ham, sausage, eggs, and toast to his plate. Someone who didn't know better would assume David a man half starved.

"Iona is all I have left. The most precious person in the world to me now. I would do anything for her."

David turned and found Coll looking at him with hard eyes.

"Like move to an Island off the coast of Maine and never let her leave?"

Coll's jaw flexed, "Including that."

David set his own plate down before filling his mug from the carafe of coffee.

"It's not so terrible, you know? The Island is beautiful and Iona has a very nice life." Coll leaned forward onto the table.

"I didn't say it was terrible."

"What's terrible?" Iona walked into the dining room, her hair trailing wildly behind her.

"The Maine weather," Coll smiled brilliantly at his daughter. She didn't seem to buy his transition but didn't call her father out on it either.

David's skin grew hot at the sight of her. He wondered what had made him show her his scars that morning. Was he showing off? It wasn't like him, he never did things to get a reaction from people, and he had never shown anyone those scars before.

He stabbed at his food and took a large bite of egg, ham, and toast.

"You must be famished Iona, off to bed with no dinner." The upset Coll had shown only moments ago was replaced with affection for his daughter.

Iona walked around the table with her plate and placed it down across from David.

"I hadn't even thought of it," Iona said sitting in front of her plate.

David looked up; her plate was overflowing with just as much breakfast as his own. He smiled at the sight of it, then took another forkful of food before Iona could notice.
Chapter Four

There was a rocky shaking of the plane and Iona grasped the armrest and closed her eyes. It would be too much to die on a plane on her first trip anywhere.

"It's normal," David's voice came from across the aisle. "Just a bit of turbulence. We should be landing soon."

Iona looked at David and tried her best to smile. Tried her best to believe him. Her father sat next to her snoring softly, completely undisturbed by flying through such a rocky voyage.

"Flight attendants-- prepare for landing," The pilot's voice came over calm and unperturbed. Iona watched the seatbelt light flick on, she double-checked her own.

She'd been in a state of constant knots and nerves since leaving the Island. It was amazing to her that David and her father both seemed so easy going through security at the airport. She had frantically taken off her shoes and pushed her carryon luggage through the screening station. Movies didn't usually show that particular part of flying and it had left her unprepared.

The plane glided into the Toronto airport.

"Oh," Iona gasped as the plane hit down with a dramatic thud. First class seats did not, after all, mean a smooth flight.

"What's that?" Coll woke up with a start, then looked out his window. "Oh, we've landed."

Iona laughed at her father and with relief at landing on an actual runway and not in a field after the engines had given way.

Walking through the airport Iona could barely keep her eyes in front of her long enough to walk a straight line. There were so many people to see, so many places, and different things to eat. The various smells of cleaning supplies, teriyaki bowls, and strong perfumes overwhelmed her senses.

"We'll follow the signs for baggage claim," David pointed to a sign above them. Iona moved closer to the two men who flanked her on either side. As much as she'd protested David's presence, she was glad for it now.

The baggage carousels seemed complete chaos to her. People everywhere looking for their life in a bag.

"Wait here, David and I will get the bags," Coll said to his daughter. Iona nodded and moved off away from the fray. She leaned back against a wall and watched her father and David move away from her and into the masses.

Every sort of person was in the airport. She'd seen them all on TV or in movies, but never in real life. A fashionable Japanese family with designer bags hanging at each woman's arm, an Indian man with a turban, two young men with floppy hair and ragged looking clothes. She hadn't heard one other person with her father's Scottish brogue and the flight attendant had asked Coll to repeat himself more than once. It was all a bit much to take in at one go.

Iona looked around until she found two eyes looking back at her. She immediately dropped her gaze and looked in the other direction. But when she looked back, the man was still staring at her. Iona tried to look occupied with the screens showing which carousel had luggage from which flight. Out of the corner of her eye, she noticed another man joining the first. Instead of the man being interested in his companion the two now looked at Iona together.

She felt her face turn red and hot, she'd never been stared at by a perfect stranger. She brushed a hand over her hair to make sure nothing was awry. The man was tall, at least as tall as her father, the first had reddish blonde hair and the other was almost bald but showed signs of once having had a very normal head of thin brown hair.

The first man motioned with his arms and Iona looked surreptitiously for the person the man was motioning to. Her gaze fell upon a third man. She watched as the third man, with the same reddish blonde hair, looked around.

The man's eyes fell on her. Iona picked up her carryon and moved away from the men into the crowds of people. Why had Coll and David left her? Wasn't David supposed to be her bodyguard? What was the actual point of a bodyguard after all if not to guard her body?

Iona walked the long way around one of the carousels in the direction Coll and David had gone. She pushed through people and looked back to see if the men were still watching her.

The men had moved. She turned a full circle looking for them but saw no one with reddish blonde hair. Iona turned back.

"What are you doing? I went to look for you and you'd gone." David was in front of her.

She was surprised to notice how upset she'd become by this small group of men.

"There were strange men looking at me," She realized how ridiculous the words sounded the moment they were out of her mouth. "I... I was going to look for you. Why did you leave me there?"

"Who?" David looked around just as Iona had done.

"I don't see them anymore." She felt silly, like a child who had been having a bad dream.

David looked at her then moved to the side and put a hand on her lower back.

"We have the bags; we'll meet your father outside." He nudged her gently forward and Iona pulled away from his hand.

Iona did not look for the men when she'd made it outside. Instead, she lifted her archery bag, specially made for her most prized possessions, and got in the waiting car.

The sun streamed through the windows of the large SUV as they made their way through traffic.

"Are you feeling ok?" Coll turned in his seat to look at Iona.

"I'll be fine as soon as we stop driving," Iona had felt waves of nausea on the plane. Now, in another moving vehicle, her stomach was surging once more.

"We'll be there soon. I thought we'd do dinner somewhere special, to celebrate."

"I haven't won anything yet," Iona smiled at her father's optimism.

" _Yet_ ," Coll smiled back.

"Actually," Iona swallowed down another wave of nausea. "I think I'd like to stay in tonight if you don't mind. To rest for tomorrow." Iona didn't want to admit that the constant influx of new experiences was leaving her zapped of energy.

"Of course, we'll order in." Coll patted Iona's knee then turned and began looking through his phone. Everyone had a phone, except Iona... and what would she do with one if she did?

Coll had rented a house for their stay. She knew for a fact that he normally stayed in the best hotels when he traveled, so this decision had been solely for her. Only a day before she would have complained that she wanted to experience a fancy hotel, wanted to go out to a restaurant and to see the city, but now she just wanted a quiet place where she could breathe again.

There was a large garden in the back that had clinched the decision for Coll, saying it would make Iona, "Feel more at home." Which she appreciated more than she wanted to say.

The quiet street was dotted with similar houses, each with an overflowing garden, and large trees. It was the sort of house she assumed she'd have grown up in if she had been a normal American girl.

"What are you doing?" Iona asked David as he looked in the drawers and cabinets of the kitchen.

"Just having a look around," He smiled tightly at her and she could tell that he was doing the observing, knowing of exits, and whatnot he'd been talking about two mornings ago. What he thought he might find was beyond her.

"I've found the perfect room for you," Coll said as he walked into the kitchen. He glanced briefly at David's opening and closing, then walked back out. Iona followed, then heard David's footsteps behind her.

All three went up the small staircase, they continued on past the second floor and up to the third.

"What do you think?" Coll extended his hand into a sunny attic room. It was filled with flowers. There was a vase of pink and red roses on her dressing table and another on the bedside table. Flowers also gilded the room in other ways. The wallpaper was covered in plumes of lilac, oil paintings of tuberose and chrysanthemum hung above the bed, and even a floral terrycloth robe was placed on the bathroom door.

"It's lovely," Iona walked in and looked around. Her bags had already been placed by the bed by her father.

She opened the side window to let in fresh air as David once again opened and closed drawers. "You'd think I was the president with my secret service detail," she said as she watched.

"All done," David said as he snapped a drawer closed. He tilted his head at Iona and exited the room and she could hear his heavy footfalls on the landing.

"Thank you, daddy."

"Let me know if you need anything," Coll leaned forward and kissed Iona gently on the forehead.

He closed the door behind him and Iona took a long breath of incoming air. She mimicked David a bit by looking in all the drawers and closets, but more from curiosity than some strange defense against ill will.

She filled the bath and put on the flowery robe. Her stomach was settling down and the vast overwhelm she'd been feeling all day was starting to trickle away.

After her bath, she lay in her robe on the soft down comforter and closed her eyes.
Chapter Five

Iona woke with a start. It was dark outside. She'd slept straight through the evening and no one had thought to get her up. Her neck ached from sleeping on a new, overly stuffed pillow and Iona felt irritable.

A chill wind blew in through her open window and she stood up in the dark of her room to close it. A clanking noise came from outside and Iona wondered if it had been such a noise that had woken her in the first place.

Moving to the side of the sill, Iona peered out into the night. The moon was large and bright, so the back and side of the house were easily seen.

Iona stood staring out at the flowerbeds. She was just about to close the window when she saw a shadowy movement. Iona pushed herself back against the wall. The shadow moved again and she saw the flicker of reddish blond hair in the moonlight.

With a thrust of her hand, she slammed the window closed and backed away. Iona turned and ran from her room into the darkness of the house. Her eyes had adjusted and she didn't dare turn on any lights lest the man, or men, outside were watching.

Iona ran down the steps. She didn't actually know where her father and David were sleeping.

She went past the first two open doors then knocked lightly on the next before letting herself in. She walked in quietly. The bed was unmade but no one was in it. Her father's things were laid out on the dresser, but his watch and wallet were missing.

Walking back out she went over to the next closed door and knocked.

"Iona?" David's face filled the gap in the open door. "What's the matter?" He opened the door the rest of the way to show his shirtless chest in the moonlight.

Iona walked in past David. His bed was still made and the window open.

"Don't you sleep under the covers?" Iona turned to him.

"I get too hot, plus I don't sleep well," He walked over to the window where Iona was looking around the sill out into the yard.

"I saw a man out there, someone is here, I think it was one of the men from the airport," she whispered. "Where's my father? He's not in his room."

"He went out for some business in the evening, not back yet I suppose," David looked at Iona's face then out into the yard. "Stay here, I'll go look around."

"David," she whispered loudly as he began to leave. "Be careful."

David smiled, "I'll be fine. Just stay here."

He left the room and Iona stood at the window, not sure what to do with herself. She listened for sounds of David but there were none. No sound of footsteps, no sound of opening doors. Just quiet nothingness.

Her stomach tightened as she waited. She began imagining David running into the group of men, what if they had a gun? What if they had found a way into the house? Who were these men and why were they at the airport, why would they come here?

Iona looked out into the moonlit yard and saw a movement. She pushed herself back against the wall, out of sight. David moved into the moonlight and waved up at the window. She let out a breath. He moved away again.

Iona looked around. His room was slightly less floral than hers, but still a bit too feminine for such a man.

The bedroom door opened again and David walked in.

"It's all clear. If they were here, then they've left."

"If?" Iona asked, wondering if she sounded like a crazy person making up stories.

"I meant if it was the men you saw at the airport, you said you weren't sure." David walked over to where she stood. He lifted a hand and moved a stray bit of wild hair from her face. His fingers were hot. Iona looked into his eyes and saw a flash of gold in them.

"Your eyes," Iona lifted her hand and moved her thumb under his right eye. His eyes burned back into their normal liquid brown color. "Your eyes, I thought I saw..."

David looked at her questioningly and Iona's words faded on her lips.

"Why do I need a bodyguard? Why was there someone outside?"

"I don't really know," David took a long breath. "But you're safe here."

"With you?" Her voice was still low, not fully believing they couldn't be overheard.

David nodded, "With me."

Iona looked at David then, and for the first time, she allowed the wall that she had constructed to ward off her true feelings to come down. The overwhelming attraction she was feeling right then towards David was all consuming, and had been building and growing since they'd first met. She had denied it and tried to hide her feelings but in this moment of weakness and fear she knew that she could not deny it anymore. She wasn't sure why she had fought the attraction the whole time; perhaps it was because she hated to feel such a loss of control of herself and when she was in David's presence she felt that loss of control, that weakness she usually associated with being a woman in the presence of an alpha male who made her weak in the knees with just a glance of his beautiful eyes.

But right now, none of that mattered; she was frightened, she was unsure of her life in so many ways, and she craved David's sweet touch.

Without a second thought, Iona moved forward and took David's mouth with her own, falling against him as he grabbed her face in his hands. His mouth was hard, rough, and he wasted no time being gentle. The passion he was feeling for her took over his body and this served to drive her own passions and desires through the roof. Her hands reached for his chest and an overwhelming desire rushed over her body as she ran her fingers over the hard muscles that had been cut into the flesh as if by an artist chiseling the magnificent form out of marble.

David's hands were moving through her hair then, pulling and gliding across her head and then falling to the back of her head in one fell swoop ending with his broad fingertips scraping along the back of her neck and sending exquisite chills rolling down her spine. He continued the movement as if it were an erotic loop, each time moving at a slightly different pace just to drive her wild and keep her guessing. Iona felt the wanting of his body welling up inside of her harder and more lustful by the second. Her juices were flowing, wetting her core with the sensual lubricant, preparing her body to be hijacked by his magnificent member, which she could feel pressing against her, hard, thick, and eagerly awaiting the treasures she had in store.

David's hands moved down her back just then, pushing the robe off her shoulders until the rope untangled itself and the garment fell to the floor, exposing her body to him in the dimly lit room. His hands were gentle, moving slowly, and teasing... using the dribbles of sweat that were starting to pop up as oil he began to rub her back, kneading at each and every muscle with expert skill, pressing firmly and deeply into the tissues of her muscles beneath her smooth skin.

"Oohhh," a murmur of pleasure escaped her mouth as she leaned her head back, enjoying every second of the pleasure he was giving her. His mouth continued to kiss hers, drawing her tongue into his own mouth, sucking it, his own tongue sliding up one side and then down the other before meeting her in the middle, the tips intertwined in one beautiful and sensual tug of war back and forth from her mouth to his.

His hands were working their way down from the large muscles in her upper back, and gliding steadily downward to the middle and then the lower back, focusing then on her lower back right above her ass.

Nothing turned Iona on more than a sensual massage. She had always been so sensitive to the touch of a man; the act of him gliding his rugged fingers over her smooth flesh and pressing the soreness out of her active and athletic muscles sent her juices racing like crazy and her whole body would turn on like an oven.

His fingers were on the top of her ass then, moving swiftly to encompass each cheek in his hands and squeezing slowly, but firmly. The sensation was exquisite and she felt her whole body flashing back and forth between being numb and being on fire with tingling sweetness. The zig and zag of the sensation was interrupting her breathing causing her to gasp and hold... gasp and hold... Her head was beginning to feel dizzy, but she didn't dare stop.

David lifted her off the floor suddenly as if she were no more than a stray branch, his strength on full display as his mouth continued to press against hers, his hot breath sweet and almost nourishing to her lust. His muscles flexed as he carried her to his bed, each muscle tensing up and growing even larger and more cutting through more definition. The sight was a huge turn on; she had rarely seen a body so rugged and beautiful at the same time. Her body was craving him, on her, in her; she wanted him to release every inch of his hard tool inside of her soft, tight, wetness. She hadn't even realized the craving was so strong until that moment, but as soon as she did allow herself to acknowledge the feeling, she knew that she'd been craving it from the moment she'd seen him. As he lay her on the bed he quickly removed his bottoms and allowed his huge member to spring free, hard and thick. It was perfectly shaped, glistening in the moonlight creeping in through the cracks in the blinds on the window. She wrapped her legs around him as his fingers moved to the soft, fullness of her chest.

His hands grabbed her breasts firmer than she had expected, but she loved it. She loved to feel a man take control and inflict just the tiniest bit of pain and danger into the lovemaking. Her nipples were instantly hard and stood up erect and ultra-sensitive. Iona moaned loudly as she felt his member rubbing against the outside of her wet valley, just teasing her as to its intentions and purpose. She sucked in a quick breath and held it, her breasts rising and falling with her captured breath. Her fingers moved quickly for the tightness of his ass, grabbing and holding on, preparing herself, as she looked over his tight and revealed skin in the moonlight, every muscle shining bright and her mouth opened with anticipation.

Her hands moved to rub his body, gliding over every inch of his backside. It was so strong and muscular to the touch; his glutes were rigid and she could feel the outline of each defined muscle. She thought he was going to enter her then, but he pulled back, teasing, his mind full of other ideas.

David reached between her legs, his fingers slid along her until they touched slippery supple skin, teasing the outside of her outer lips. She sucked in sharply at the feel of him on her wet, aching, core.

"I want you inside of me," she whispered hoarse and breathless. David spread her legs wider and moved his head toward the opening of her legs. His mouth teased, his lips traveled along her inner thighs until she felt his tongue. She bit down on her lower lip to keep herself from crying out as his tongue slid along the outer edge of her most private place, suckling at the moisture as she flowed into his waiting mouth. His tongue began to press harder into her until it slipped inside the gates of her pleasure center.

She could not control the moan that escaped her then. The sound echoed in the room, reminding her to be mindful of her voice in case her father arrived at any minute, but she was unable to restrain her vocalizations as the pleasure coursed through her quivering body.

It was not long before David went to work on It... her magical source of agonizing pleasure. The second his tongue flicked over it, she found her body thrusting upwards as if trying to lift itself off the bed. His mouth clamped tightly around her aching flesh, creating a sweet vacuum seal as he continued to lick, probe, and suck at her various bits.

She could not stop herself from grabbing her own fleshy chest and rubbing herself, squeezing, and pinching the hard nipples between her fingers as she felt herself getting closer and closer to climax. It was inevitable and it was going to be glorious, but she didn't want it to be so soon. But she was not sure she could help herself, the way that David was going to work on her.

Her hips began to buck upwards in rhythm with his mouth work as if feeding herself to him. Suddenly he pursed his mouth right over the golden angle and focused intensely on her sweet spot of eruption and she felt her whole body shiver with intense sensations as she blew up inside his mouth, releasing the pent up pressure of her climax.

As the climax began to fade and she felt her body start to calm down a bit, David proved to her that he was just getting started.

David lifted himself and looked right into her eyes as he swiftly put himself inside of her. She gasped breathlessly as her body lunged towards him, driving his member further inside of her. His eyes flashed gold again and Iona lifted a hand to touch them. She gasped at the pain that turned to pleasure. Their bodies moved together both pressing closer, moving him deeper.

Iona tightened her legs around his back and pulled him in harder.

Her body clenched around him. His heat reached her easily and turned her own flesh hot and flushed. Her back arched and she tilted her head back, opening her mouth.

A soft moan lifted from her and David placed his finger in her mouth, her teeth held the proffered finger, keeping her from making any noise. He made no indication of pain but smiled as he watched her face contort with pleasure, her mouth sucking and biting at his finger rapidly.

The intensity of her feelings was beyond her control. David moved in ways she hadn't known she wanted. Her body was building the finishing act so that she could barely hold back the intense shudder and final release of control, giving herself fully to David.

She watched his face through the whole thing, twisting and contorting with his raging lust like he was some wild, beautiful creature, she'd never seen before. His body tensed and Iona watched the same jerky contractions of exquisite finality she had made as he released every drop of his load inside of her. Iona's body clenched and pulled him deeper inside of her.

David stayed inside of her for a long time looking into her face. There was nothing left to hold back. There was nothing she wanted to keep from him, everything had already been given willingly.

Iona breathed a slow, long breath, trying to steady herself. David dipped and kissed her gently on the lips then slid to her side. He pulled the extra blanket up and wrapped it around the front of her body, then wrapped himself around both.
Chapter Six

David barely slept. He'd been too absorbed watching the outline of Iona's face captured in a soft steady breath. He listened for Coll and listened to the men who'd been spotted earlier, but there was nothing to be heard.

When the sun rose he gently nudged Iona. Despite her nap she'd slept soundly, deeply. She turned slowly still full of sleep toward him, and then she smiled.

"You have a competition today," David said to her. Her face seemed to register the idea, maybe a bit annoyed by the reminder.

"I thought maybe I'd dreamed last night," Her face was beautiful when she smiled. "Your eyes even turned gold."

"Well, _that_ must have been a dream," He tried to smile.

"What's wrong?" Iona turned fully to him, sensing something of what he'd been feeling as the sun crept over the sill.

"Nothing," David rolled off the bed. "There's a lot to do today."

Iona sat up watching him, "Something's wrong. Are you having second thoughts about... last night?"

"No, last night was wonderful. It's just... I'm not sure it should happen again. Your father hired me to protect you and..."

"You're going to make this about my father?" Iona pulled the blanket tight to her chest as if just noticing her nakedness.

"Why don't we just take showers, have some breakfast, and we can talk about this after the competition."

"You mean when you're about to leave?" Iona made a disgusted look. She pulled her flowery robe over her shoulders and wrapped it around herself while still under cover of the blanket.

"I just feel like this could be the wrong time," David tried to sound reasonable, but he was starting to realize it may have sounded like he was being insensitive. "Today is about the competition."

Iona walked around the bed and past him, "Are you afraid of my father?" She turned again before leaving the room.

"No. I'm not afraid of him... but I do feel like he entrusted me with your safety and that maybe... I..." He couldn't find the right words to finish. Iona sneered and exhaled loudly before turning and slamming the door behind her.

"Well, that went well," he said quietly to no one in particular.

He took a quick shower then dressed in the clothes Coll had purchased for him so he would look suitable at the tournament. He buttoned the well-cut shirt and tucked the ends into perfectly made trousers. He looked at himself in the mirror, hardly recognizing the man that looked back. He ran a hand over his damp thick hair then walked out onto the landing.

David heard the shower running upstairs. He moved to Coll's room and gave a knock on the door. There was always the possibility that Coll had come home in the middle of the night and David had slept through it. Not likely, but a possibility.

There was no answer from inside. David edged open the door and looked inside. No Coll.

He walked down to the kitchen and ate two bananas while standing at the counter. There was oatmeal, granola, cheese, bread, and fresh fruit as well but David had a few things to do first. He pulled out his phone. No calls, no texts from Coll. He dialed Coll's number and waited through endless ringing until the call went through to voicemail.

David sighed. Coll had told him he was going out, but he hadn't mentioned where or what time he was coming back- if he was coming back at all. Perhaps he'd gone out with friends or business associates, gotten too drunk, and slept on someone's couch? That sounded more like a college-age boy than the dapper man David had met.

Staring at his phone he listened to the noises of Iona getting ready for her big day. David dialed out to Coll's Toronto driver. No, he had not driven Mr. Fraser into town and no he had not been called to pick him up, but he was coming to get the party in an hour to take them over to the tournament.

After a quick walk around the house and yard in the daylight, David wiped a hand across his face and set himself to the task of making breakfast.

Iona looked stricken when she heard that her father had not come home and that they would be leaving for the tournament without him.

"Something's wrong. He would never miss the tournament," Iona said in a near panic.

"Then he'll be there, he will probably meet us there; I'm sure of it," David tried his best to console, but Iona didn't want David's comforting words.

"You're unbelievable," Iona scoffed at David.

David reached for Iona's archery bag.

"Don't," She grabbed the bag from his hands. "I can get along quite well without you."

She moved into the SUV and closed the door firmly behind her signaling that David should sit in the front with the driver--which he did.

The tournament was to be held in an outdoor arena and people swarmed everywhere. There was security at all entrances and David kept a close distance to Iona. Normally haughty and confident, Iona looked pale and fragile now as she warmed up and did some stretches, trying to focus her mind on the match ahead. But David could see the nerves were really starting to get to her.

"Have you heard anything from my father yet?" Iona leaned close enough for David to hear but didn't look into his eyes as she paced back and forth.

"I will tell you the minute I hear from him," David looked at the pallor of her face. She looked pale and ashen, her eyes snapped to the crowd around her as if she expected one of them to throw a brick at her head at any moment.

"Are you doing ok, with so many people?"

Iona pointed toward a sign ignoring his question, "I need to sign-in."

They moved through the crowds and David wondered how many stray arrows had become a real danger to the spectators at such events. David's eyes browsed for reddish blonde men and anyone else who looked like any sort of threat. He moved around Iona, creating room for her to move forward easily, though she didn't seem to notice.

"How are you feeling?" David leaned down as they got into line.

"Who's asking, my bodyguard or the man that slept with me last night?" Iona's nostrils flared and she turned to look straight ahead of her.

He didn't like the way the day was going. She was cold and distant and how could he blame her? He'd handled everything very badly. He sighed aloud thinking about it and Iona made a withering look at the sound.

Once she'd signed in, she walked silently away from the tables.

"Where to?" David looked around for signs. He guessed that everything looked just as foreign to Iona since she hadn't been to any tournaments before either.

"The ladies," She pointed to the women's bathroom. "Let me borrow your phone, I want to try to call my father."

David handed her the phone, "I'll wait right here."

Iona nodded as she walked toward the line. He would be standing here for good bit of time, if the line was any indication. He watched a few more women step into line and David shifted his weight uneasily. It felt weird to be standing so close to the women's restroom.

He watched as people went by. Bursts of excitement surged from certain competitors or enthusiastic spectators. A few serious competitors walked by with grim resolute looks. David wondered again about Coll. It was strange. Iona was right that her father would never miss her in a competition. Maybe Coll's phone had run out of power, maybe he was stuck in traffic.

David looked at the line and watched as a few women came out. He recognized one of them as a girl that had gone in after Iona. Where was she? David walked closer to the door. He couldn't go in. He looked at one of the digital clocks posted along the wall. She had been in there for over twenty-five minutes. Sweat broke out over David's back; this was why he never wore button up shirts.

Another five minutes and David knew something wasn't right. He stopped a lady on her way out.

"Excuse me, my friend went in there a long time ago and she's not out yet. Would you mind going in and calling for her? Her name is Iona, lots of dark curly hair." The woman looked at David with scrutiny, "She's diabetic." David lied to give more purpose to his question.

"Of course," The woman smiled sympathetically then went back into the restrooms. The woman came out three minutes later. "Nope, your friend must be somewhere else." 
Chapter Seven

Iona had waited until David's gaze was turned to the crowds and for a large surge of people that she could easily hide away behind, before leaving the bathroom. She hadn't really planned on shirking him, but she didn't want to be standing next to him anymore either. Her skin prickled with irritation. She'd trusted him, she'd liked him, and then he'd so easily changed his mind in the light of day.

Iona walked along the halls of the arena looking for the athletes holding area. She'd left a message for her father, but it hadn't made her feel any better. Where could he be? It was absolutely unlike him to just disappear and especially today of all days. Practically all he had talked about for weeks was this competition. He wouldn't have just not shown up like that. There had to be something wrong. But what could it be? Did it have anything to do with the men she had seen? Did they do... something to him?

Iona took a deep breath and tried to gain control of her emotions and fight back the tears that threatened to derail her. Whether he showed up or not she had a competition she had to do. But she knew that she would not be able to focus properly when she was worried sick about her father.

Maybe she should just leave and forget the competition. She and her father had their issues, but she loved him, and he was damned sure more important than some archery competition.

But he was most likely ok, and he would be furious at her if she missed this great opportunity. And she would be even more furious at herself. She had to stay and do her job.

Iona had twenty minutes before her first sets and needed to have her equipment looked over.

The crowds went quiet as a group of men placed their marks. Iona watched them all with a critical eye. She could see the mistakes they were making before they realized it themselves. Everyone seemed to have their own unique way of shooting. A few with awkward or sloppy form still placed very good results, to her surprise. Whatever put the arrow in its mark, she guessed.

Iona skimmed the crowds for David, then for her father, but she didn't see either.

David's phone rang from an unknown number. It could be her father; it could also be David on a stranger's phone.

She didn't want to risk it, "Hello?" she whispered into the phone.

"Where are you?" David's voice was full of irritation. Iona hung up, then slipped the phone into her bag. He would just have to wonder where she was. She realized on a fundamental level that she was being childish.

An older woman with bobbed gray hair motioned for Iona and several other women she would be competing with. Iona stood. She was nervous, butterflies kicking around in her stomach.

Though they had been motioned to stand, they all waited another ten minutes for the men to retrieve their arrows.

Iona knew how this was to go, she'd studied it and practiced it, but she still felt like she might be doing something wrong. She waited for the indication that it was her turn and then stepped up.

There was another signal and she raised her bow and aimed her arrow. She took a deep breath. Then Iona let the arrow fly.

Straight to the center. There was a murmur from the crowd. Iona smiled lightly and felt the butterflies begin to drift away. She continued on through the set and the next, strong. She moved everything else from her mind. Her father, David, the trip, the men. Everything drifted away as she raised her bow and arrow again and again. She was really starting to get into the rhythm of it all as she continued to excel, and felt the crowd even starting to warm up to her.

But as she moved into position on her last round she saw a flash of red-blonde hair.

Her breath caught in her chest and she almost dropped the arrow in her now shaking hand. Her eyes started to freak out and have trouble focusing. The noise of the crowd around her was suddenly amplified into a maddening roar inside of her head.

Iona's attention was taken, her mind moved from the task at hand. All of the fears she had cast aside were now thrust back into her with a vengeance. She pulled the arrow back and tried to steady her breath and her arms. But as she released the arrow she felt her mistake and watched as the arrow landed slightly to the left. She was off her mark. A groan moved through her as she heard the murmurs of the crowd now taking the wind out of her sails. Iona exhaled a shaky breath. She might not win this one. That was a possibility she would now have to face, but she would still place well, toward the top. She turned her focus back to the crowd and looked again for the hair.

After a few minutes of scanning the crowd, her eyes caught the mop of blonde hair that still struck fear into her heart every time she saw it. The man was on the move, shuffling along a line of spectators. Iona walked to her right trying to keep her eye trained on the man.

Suddenly, David's face filled the space in her line of sight.

Iona sucked in a breath of mostly rage and surprise.

She was released from her group and quickly began to scan the crowd again for the blonde man. She looked again and again, saw many men with nearly bald heads and a few with reddish hair but none of them the same.

"What were you thinking?" David was in front of her now.

"I think I saw that man!'

"Wait; the one from the house?" David asked.

"Yes, the one with the reddish blonde hair. I'll never get that image out of my head." She looked beyond David but he put both hands on her shoulders and looked into her eyes.

"Why did you try to lose me?" David's grip was tight around her shoulders.

"Didn't you hear me? I think that man is here..."

Iona felt a pressure on the middle of her back suddenly as David's expression turned to surprise. She spun around quickly, prepared to fight if need be, her heart leaping into her throat cutting off her air for a brief second.

A small woman in slacks and a polo shirt was looking at her nervously. She was part of the staff. Immediately Iona thought there had been something wrong with her scoring, she was going to be disqualified.

"Ms. Fraser?" The woman's voice was soft and unsure.

"Yes?"

"I have a message for you. It's your father; he's been taken to Toronto General Hospital," The woman handed Iona a note of paper with a phone number on it.

Iona took the paper, staring at it, as if the paper might tell her something more if only she looked at it hard enough. The disbelief washed through her body leaving her feeling suddenly very cold, very afraid, and totally alone.

"Why, what's wrong?" Iona could feel herself on the edge of wildness.

"I don't know, you should call," The woman gave a sympathetic little smile, then walked back into the shuffle of people.

"Let's go," David guided her before she even realized that she was moving again. His hand reached into her bag and before she could protest or even register the action he pulled out his cell phone.

David called for the driver then led Iona out. Once they were in the car they called the hospital.

"I'm calling about a patient, Coll Fraser; we just received a message... Right, we'll be there in a few minutes." David hung up the phone. "He's in surgery right now. The doctor will tell us what's going on when we get there."

"Then why leave a message for us at all?" Iona's voice was high pitched and frantic for her father. "Did she say what kind of surgery? Anything?"

David shook his head. She wondered if he'd had a heart attack, but the doctors always gave him glowing reviews at his annual checkup; she couldn't even remember him ever getting a cold.

When they arrived at the hospital David did all the talking. Iona tried to focus her mind the way she had during the tournament, but she couldn't. Her brain felt fractured into tiny pieces all floating around her.

"Where are we going?" Iona asked David as he hit the elevator door.

He looked at her carefully, "Up to surgery, we'll get more information there."

Iona nodded, wondering if she'd already heard this information. David guided her around like he'd been there before, only turning the wrong way for a moment or two before correcting course.

It felt like forever before they found someone who could tell them anything. Iona's world was spinning around her and she felt smaller with each step she took.

"Your father is out of surgery now, but still coming out of anesthesia. You won't be able to see him yet but I'll tell the doctor you're here." The woman behind the desk was speaking in foggy tones and Iona nodded at her.

"Sit here," David placed Iona in a chair. There were other people in the waiting room as well, but none that looked as worried as she felt. After a few minutes of waiting that felt like an eternity, watching the clock every few seconds and trying to keep her eyes dry from the flood of tears threatening to break through, Iona quickly realized that David was gone. Her first instinct was to jump from her seat and look each direction several times trying to decipher which move to make. She felt like she wanted to just run and scream and find something, anything that might make this all better, but there was nothing.

David suddenly appeared beside her. Iona almost broke down right then; she just wanted to cry and collapse, but somehow, she was able to stay strong. Her father would have wanted that. She knew that she did not have his strength, but she had always admired it. If there was one time that she needed that level of courage it was now.

"It's ok, I just got you some water, sit." David's voice was calm and soothing. He gently guided her back to her seat and then he put the cup directly into her hand, wrapping her fingers around it. He waited for her to take a sip before sitting next to her.

They waited for a good 45-minutes before the woman behind reception called to them. The doctor now stood next to her and motioned for her and David to follow him out into the hall.

"Your father is doing well; the puncture was lucky, any further over and it would have killed him for sure." The doctor looked old, perhaps too old to still be wielding a scalpel, and he bobbed his head as he talked.

"What puncture? What happened to him?" Iona looked at David to see if he already knew but he looked just as lost as Iona.

"Stab wound; he was brought in early this morning, found by some Good Samaritan--and lucky he was too. No identification on him, he gained consciousness for a few minutes just before surgery and told the nurse he had to go see you compete." The doctor spoke slowly looking for signs of comprehension. "I'm sorry; I thought you'd already been told."

"No," David's voice was solid behind her.

"He was very badly beaten; a broken rib, his face is very swollen, and stabbed twice. The police will want to talk to him when he's awake of course, we don't really know anything about what happened yet... the first stab wound was only flesh, an easy stitch up that happened early this morning, but the other punctured his liver. The loss of blood was tremendous..."

"But he'll be ok?" David asked from behind her.

The doctor nodded, "It appears that way. Barring any unforeseen complications, we expect him to eventually make a full recovery."

"When can I see him?" Iona felt a drop on her hand and she realized that she was crying.

"When he wakes up. You'll need to be calm, gentle... but he'll be happy to see you." The doctor patted Iona's shoulder with a heavy hand.

"By the way" The doctor paused before heading back into the doors with no handles on them. "Did you win your competition?"

Iona breathed in, she'd forgotten all about the tournament; it felt like a year ago.

"Didn't win, but close to the top, I think." She tried and failed to smile.

"Your father will be happy to hear it." The older man wiped his hospital identification against a gray panel and the doors opened for him, then closed, leaving Iona and David alone.
Chapter Eight

Iona and David spent the next two weeks in and out of the hospital. Coll had not recovered as easily as the doctor had initially predicted. There had been an infection, another emergency surgery, and a blood transfusion. Coll was constantly rolling between pain medications that put him immediately to sleep.

When the police had come by, Coll told them through his swollen face that he'd been attacked by strangers. They'd asked for his money then beaten him up even after they got it. Coll could not remember any distinguishing traits about them besides a general guess at their height and race.

David looked at Iona as her father gave this information, but she didn't seem to find it odd, not that she was the best judge these days. Iona had been falling apart at the seams. Her father's condition had left her unraveled and in a fog of near unconsciousness. She was barely able to converse as she always lost track of what had been said and would often break off mid-sentence into silence, or to change the subject completely. She felt frenzied as if she might break down at any second. Everything was overwhelming and too much to handle. She found during these times that David had proven to be a Godsend. He was always there to lean on and even though his job was virtually over, he had agreed to stay and help her with anything she wanted.

Both David and Iona had been camping out in her father's hospital room. David had taken all their clothes to a local Laundromat twice. They watched the small TV, show after show, for hours on end. Coll would awaken, moaning and in pain, then the nurse would come and dose him up again. They'd had to change his pain medication twice already. First, when his body had adapted to its effects and he'd reached his maximum dosage, and the second when the medication made him vomit.

Iona blamed herself for her father's condition. David had caught her murmuring, "It's my fault he's here. We wouldn't have come here if it weren't for me."

"This is not your fault; you have to stop blaming yourself. You did not cause him to be stabbed. The world is a nasty, often violent place and horrible things happen to good people sometimes. You can't blame yourself or anything else; you can only blame the people who chose to do this."

David's words cut through her mind and she was amazed at the level of comfort that they brought her. She smiled back at him, wanted to say thank you, but her mouth was not working right then as she fought back the tears yet again. The tears were always bubbling under the surface, waiting to be set free, but Iona held tough and maintained her composure.

When Coll finally responded to her words she turned and looked at him with such wild eyes that he knew she hadn't known she'd been speaking aloud. Day by day she watched as her father got a little bit stronger and a little bit stronger still.

David went to the cafeteria at least once a day to stock up on food for both of them but Iona barely ate. She would sometimes pick around her father's uneaten food but hardly anything else.

"I ran out for a treat today," David lifted a Deb's Bakery bag. He'd purchased an assortment; croissants, cream horns, a scone, and a mini quiche in case she wasn't in the mood for something sweet. David pulled out each one and placed it on a leftover plate from the day before.

"Oh," Iona looked at the pastries. "Maybe he'll eat one," She said as if David had been trying to tempt her father and not herself.

"Yes," he sat back in the chair that also acted as his bed every night.

"David?" Iona sat up. "You've been here long enough. You should go home now." She said the words as if she'd been deliberating over them. As if it were the first time she'd said them.

"I already told you, no. I'm making sure you get home safely." David closed his eyes against the TV.

The morning nurse came in. Rosa Lee still looked like a teenager; she had her hair slicked back into a tight ponytail and cat eye glasses straight out of the fifties. She was the most optimistic nurse, always answering questions when she could, and dealing with Iona's fears by listening to her and responding when Iona thought her father needed something new.

"Today's the day; how are we feeling?" Rosa Lee was an incredible morning person.

"The doctor's still think it is ok for him to go so soon?" Iona didn't agree that her father was ready to go home but the doctor's wanted to get him out of the hospital. With his weakened immune system, they didn't want to risk another infection by keeping him.

"The doctor will be in before we sign the paperwork and then you can ask him yourself," Rosa Lee smiled. The doctor had come in every day at least once, but sometimes only for a few minutes. Always with the same words, the same bobbing head.

"How are we doing this morning?" Rosa Lee woke Coll though he was still loopy from his most recent dose of pain medication. "I'm going to take your vitals."

Coll closed and opened his heavy lids a few times, then nodded.

"How did you sleep?" Rosa Lee asked Coll.

"Terribly," Coll's voice was raspy and ill-humored. He looked to his daughter, who smiled just to hear him speak, then to David, then back to the nurse. "I'm leaving today?"

"Your daughter arranged the helicopter and as long as the Doc gives you the green light then you will be waking up in your own bed tomorrow." She strapped the blood pressure cuff to his upper arm and popped the thermometer into his mouth. The little machine next to Coll's bed started reading off numbers and Rosa Lee wrote them on his charts.

"I'll be back soon," Rosa Lee said before leaving. "Let me know if you need anything."

Iona moved to her father's bedside.

"I don't think we should move you yet, what if you need something here?" Iona placed her hand around her father's large one. David could see the love and pain in Iona's eyes. She looked even more beautiful in her worry. Her cheeks had become more prominent as the days of eating less and less went by. Her eyes glowed with love for her father.

David couldn't take his eyes off her.

"I want to be in my own bed, it will be good for me." Coll lifted his hand and patted Iona's forearm. "Everything is already arranged?" Coll looked to David.

"Yes sir, the helicopter will take you to the island; Jinx and Lettie know you are on the way and will settle you in with the help of a nurse once there. Your family doctor will see you and you will do follow up with the hospital in town."

"And you will see Iona safely back?" Coll looked at David with clarity.

"Absolutely," David nodded. There was no room for Iona and David in the helicopter, which was a big reason for Iona's misgivings about leaving the hospital, to begin with. At first, she flatly refused. But it was no good, no room meant no room. They'd only been able to commission a smaller model and the hospital would not airlift a patient to go home. They'd hired two nurses for the trip who would settle Coll in at home as well.

David and Iona would catch a flight later in the day and they'd be on the Island not long after Coll arrived there himself.

"The people," Coll continued--losing his way among words and stalling out tiredly.

"What people, daddy?"

"The ones who did this to me, they were men from the Mac Alastair clan." Coll looked at his daughter, but David knew that he meant for David to hear it too.

"But why did you tell the police you didn't know who they were?" She looked at her father's face and realized she was asking the wrong question. "Why would they do this to you? You haven't been in Scotland in two decades, what could they want with you now, so far from their home?"

Coll sighed, "Hundreds of years' worth of hate. There was a lot of bloodshed on both sides."

"My mother?" Iona had heard fragments of the story but when she'd spoken of it to David she'd made it sound as much as gang violence was in America.

"Yes, we... it goes back too far and now we are the last of our line." Coll's eyes were red-rimmed from so much drug-induced sleep.

"The men I saw," she turned to David. "The two with reddish blonde hair and the one with the bald head."

"Yes," Coll nodded, "They won't stop until we are destroyed. It is retribution at its best."

"But what of _our_ retribution, what of my mother, wasn't that enough?" Iona had begun to cry though David hardly thought she realized it. She'd tried to maintain a cool front every time she spoke to her father since he'd come to the hospital.

Coll shook his head, "It doesn't appear that way. You will promise me not to leave David's side until you are safely on the Island. There we are safe--I have made sure of that."

There was a silence in the air as Iona thought of the words her father was saying,

"Promise me," he said sharply this time.

"Yes," Iona nodded, "I promise."

"Good." Coll breathed a long easy breath and closed his eyes, then within minutes he was sleeping again.

The papers were signed and Coll was released from the hospital's care. He was taken to the heliport and the two hired nurses took him from there. David talked to the pilot, to the nurses, making sure everything was understood. They would not stop until they were on the Island.

David moved close to Iona as the helicopter lifted into the air and left the hospital. His body eclipsed hers. He loved the strength of her body, her breadth, the plump curves that made her such a robust figure of a woman. But, those things didn't seem to protect her now, and he felt the vulnerability of the woman in front of him.

"We should go," She wiped the last tears from her eyes braced herself against a sharp wind. Her mind seemed clear for the first time in weeks.

"Yes," David followed her as they made their way down the hospital elevator and out onto the streets.

"We have time before our flight; would you like to get something to eat?" His mission to have her fed hadn't dissipated.

"No, but I don't like the thought of waiting in the airport..." She looked into the street, thinking. "I'd like to pop into that store, maybe get some water." She pointed at a drugstore across the street and David nodded.

When they walked in the over circulated air hit David in the face.

"You get some snacks and drinks, I'll get something for the motion sickness." She pointed to the drug and medication section. David paused. "Don't worry," she said, "You can see me from here."

He nodded and watched as she walked into the aisle picking up Dramamine for the flight and car rides. She had promised her father that she wouldn't leave his side and he believed her promise. David picked out two bottles of water and tried to imagine what food might tempt Iona since nothing else really had.

When he looked back for Iona she was gone. He walked briskly in the direction he'd watched her go, worry flooding his bloodstream.

"Need something else?" Her voice came from behind him and she patted her purse. "I already paid, I've changed my mind about the snacks."

David looked at her carefully then replaced the food he'd picked up. He'd been eating plenty and wasn't remotely hungry. "Won't you need water to wash those down?" he asked.

"I'll get one at the airport," she smiled faintly.

The two went back out.

"Should I call the driver?"

"No," she looked up at the sky, letting the sun saturate her face. "Let's walk, if you think it's safe enough."

David couldn't detect any sarcasm in her words, and nodded, thinking the exercise and sunshine might do her good.

They walked until they came to a small park, out of the fray. There was a homeless man lying on a bench across the green but other than that they were the only ones. Iona sat on a bench and tilted her head back.

"Do you feel safe with me?" David asked after a moment of watching her. She looked absorbed by the feel of the sun, oblivious to the dangers her father had just told her about.

"Yes," she opened her eyes now and looked at him.

"Even with what happened before the tournament?" David had been meaning to talk about it but there never seemed to be a good moment.

"Especially with what happened," she looked at him thoughtfully.

"What do you mean?"

"I've had some time to really think about things. I realized something that I didn't understand then," Iona breathed in. She looked at her hands rubbing each other nervously, then back at David. "You were scared."

"Scared?" David was skeptical of such a word, too much like a woman's rationalization. "Scared of what?"

Iona looked at him for a long time, then said slowly and deliberately, "Scared because you love me."

David felt the breath being pushed from him. He waited to see if she'd laugh, if she was joking, but she didn't and she wasn't.

"Your eyes," Iona placed her thumb just under his eyes as she looked into them.

David felt himself go hot.

"I'm going to use the restroom," Iona pointed to a small stone building only a few feet from where they sat. "I'll let you think for a moment." She walked off into the small structure.

David sat staring at her for a long time. Scared because you love me, she'd said. Was it possible that she was right? David had never really considered himself the falling in love type; with his line of work and the way he preferred to keep to himself he just never thought that being with someone as a long-term relationship was really meant for him. He'd come close to falling in love before, but he realized that he really did not want that sort of relationship in his life at that time.

But what about now? Could he see himself opening up and being in love now? As he sat there thinking, he knew that he probably could. The idea angered him and he was not really sure why. He was vaguely aware that since he was young he had put a wall up between himself and the outside world. He'd experienced so much loss and so much rejection from those that he loved at such an early age that he had inadvertently just decided that it would be better to distance himself from those kinds of feelings.

And now there were some cracks in that wall developing. He'd felt them the instant he laid eyes on Iona. And as they became closer, he knew that the wall was disappearing and he was beginning to have strong feelings for her. He had suspected the same from her, but he wasn't completely sure until they made love. Reading women's minds was not one of his strong suits.

Was that why he had acted that way the following morning? Was he just pushing her away and using something else as an excuse to do so? Iona had felt it and seen it; that's why she'd been so angry with him that day. On a subliminal level, he knew all of this.

What was taking her so long? He suddenly realized she'd been gone a while and an overwhelming feeling of déjà vu was suddenly creeping over him.

David stood up. She'd been in there for too long. He went to the door of the small building and knocked. He heard no response. He didn't wait any longer and walked right in.

It was a small space and he quickly found himself only inches from Iona who was washing her hands. Relief shot through him like a bullet.

"Thought I'd run off again?" Iona turned the water off and shook stray droplets from her hands.

David didn't know what to say. Seeing her there grinning at him with that sexy smirk, her eyes full of naughty thoughts and the angle of her body to him displaying her sweet ass there for the taking, he could not help himself. He turned back to the door, but instead of opening it he moved the heavy large trashcan in front of it. He quickly bolted back to Iona and straight into her arms.

They were hungrier, faster, as if the last two weeks had been foreplay. Her mouth pulled him in, her teeth pulling at his lip, his mouth trying to swallow hers as he pressed hard against her.

David wasted no time and quickly pulled Iona's pants down, hoping he didn't rip them with his force. She slipped one foot out and wrapped it around his waist as she steadied her ass on the cold sink.

She was wet. Slippery. Tight. Her body called to his, asking, inviting, awakening the primitive urge within him as he attacked her like a rutting animal. She reached down and unzipped his pants, released his fly, pulling him out, hard and full, her hands moving over him before he slid inside of her. As she rubbed his thick, fleshy, prong he responded by growing even longer and harder in her hand. The way that she could manipulate and control his lust was intoxicating to him. He felt that he was almost at her mercy and he liked it. He tried to pull his member from her hand to use for a different purpose, but she held tightly, squeezing and smiling as he winced in slight pain. His rigid stiffness did not falter. If anything it grew even harder stretching the skin until he felt that he might actually explode right there.

He could smell her desire wafting up from her sweet crotch, now wet and glistening in the lights of the small bathroom.

He reached under her and thrust his fingers deeply into her wet, dripping, cauldron of desire. She screamed, holding nothing back. The sound echoed off the walls. Her grip grew stronger around his thickness, the pain starting to mingle with the pleasure as she moved up and down, scraping over the head with her smooth fingers.

He continued to move his fingers in and out of her, sliding, twisting, and rubbing all of the special spots that he had learned to focus on from experience. She responded accordingly, her grip beginning to falter as David pressed his mouth on hers more firmly. He sucked hard drawing her tongue into his mouth and then he bit down on it just enough to trap her wiggling mouth appendage, and then he sucked back hard on her as if trying to swallow her very soul. She moaned and he felt her juices running more freely over his fingers, coating them with her sweet sex glaze.

David suddenly jerked himself free of her grasp and before she knew what hit her he had thrust all eight inches of his flesh into her warm, tight, wet valley of ecstasy.

"OHHH!" Iona moaned as he entered into her deeply.

David held firmly inside of her, holding her hips to keep her still as he pushed hard against her back wall, then he slowly began to withdraw his sword from her flesh sheath, feeling her body writhe and shutter as he withdrew.

The second that he reached the entrance upon retreat, his head large and still barely covered inside of her opening, he quickly plunged back into her sweet abyss and settled into a rhythm, growing in intensity as she held on for dear life. David thrust her hard and sharp, letting her feel every single moment of the experience.

Their noises seemed magnified in the stone building but David didn't care. He needed this woman, needed to watch her face as she came, needed to see the greedy desire in her expression. He held his face inches from hers, occasionally kissing and sucking on her soft lips, licking her tongue with his own, gliding it over her lips and licking them, almost nurturing as he pounded her harder and harder with is man tool.

Iona's body was fleshy and soft in his hands. He loved her larger curves, her fat and fleshy breasts, her soft and round butt cheeks that gave birth to the tops of large, strong looking, sexy legs. She was what every woman should have aspired to. Her beauty knew no compare. He cupped her ass with both hands so he could lift her, move her, and steady her as he moved inside of her. It was soft and almost squishy in his hands as he squeezed her tightly and pulled her closer and closer to enter her more deeply.

Her mouth dropped open as she staggered to breathe, her hot breath moving across his face, his neck. He felt his body ready to finish, ready to reach the top and come rolling back down the hill. His desire was acuter than he'd ever felt it in his life. He was about to explode deeply inside of her. He wasn't sure if she was ready yet, but he did not care right then. The passion had consumed him to such a great degree that he felt he might never be able to take a satisfying, deep breath again if he did not allow himself to reach this pinnacle of human ecstasy and release his passion deeply inside of Iona right then.

Iona cried out just then, a groan of abandon, she tried to reel in but couldn't. The sound turned him on even more. David watched as her body tensed, her breath short and contracted. He watched as she came. He felt her body pulsing around him. The look on her face, the loss of control, left him without hope. It was so beautiful; he could control himself no longer. The fact that she was in the throes of her own climax gave him such a deep level of satisfaction and erased all doubt or reservation within him.

David let himself come with her and let his body release with hers, their shells of humanity quivering with every single attempted thrust which was slowing down as they collapsed completely spent between each other.

His movements softened as Iona draped herself over him.

He felt like the tin man, his body rusty and creaking after holding one position for so long. His blood slowly moved in his veins again and he pulled away from Iona.

David put both hands through his hair. He smelled of her, smelled of her juices. The smell...her smell, sweet and perfect, filled the space, he loved it.

"I'll just clean up," her feet were back on the ground and Iona was adjusting her clothes back into place. "I'll meet you out..." Iona's voice trailed off as she noticed David.

David was staring at a small stick balancing on top of the toilet paper roll. It was a pregnancy test. 
Chapter Nine

Iona had expected more of a reaction from David, yelling maybe, or in another world--the kind in movies--a cry of delight as he lifted Iona off her feet. But there was none of that. He'd seen the pregnancy test, then turned to Iona. His eyes, golden, were the only part of him that spoke.

David had walked out of the stone building without saying a word and Iona had no clue, no indication of his thoughts. She hardly knew her own. What was he thinking? Was he happy? Sad? Enraged? Or was he scared? She knew David would never admit to being scared of anything; he was just too macho for such a thing. Instead, he might just act really pissed off and irritated or find something else to occupy his time and keep his mind off things.

It was doubtful that he would talk much about it, at least not for a while. So, she decided to let him have his time and sulk about things. But the conversation was bound to come up eventually.

Iona took a breath and walked out into the sunny day. David had called the driver; it was time for them to go to the airport.

The flight had been better, Iona had forgotten all about her unopened Dramamine tablets, but she hadn't felt nauseous or sick on the plane. Her mind was too full to notice the rocky movement of the plane.

David kept his body close to Iona through the whole trip. Lifting her bags, taking care of everything, leaving Iona with nothing to do.

The local airport in Maine was much smaller than Toronto. They waited for their bags and only a few other people waited with them.

"Jinx says your father reached the island safely, he is settled in and sleeping," David read the message from his phone. They were taking a cab to the marina where they would pay someone to ferry them across. It was the first thing he'd said to her directly since they'd left Toronto.

"Good," Iona had an urge to burrow into David, to take refuge in his strength, his body, but she couldn't do anything until she knew how he felt about it all. It was possible that even now he was planning his escape. He could drop her off on the island then ferry back to his previous life, a life without her.

Iona's whole being quivered at the thought of never seeing David again. She knew that she loved him. Without a doubt, she knew that she could not picture the rest of her life, or the life of her baby's, without David being there. It was maddening to think that a few weeks ago she had not known the man even existed and now she was having his baby and thinking what she would do if she never got to lay eyes on this angel of a man again. She looked at him for a long time in the cab, memorizing his face, his neck. Whatever happened now she would have this memory of him locked within herself.

It was a cool, soggy Maine day when they walked down the marina to the ferries and local fishing boats. The weather was only slightly less chilly than it had been in Toronto. Iona was tired of the muggy, cold climate of the Northeast. She really wanted to move to Florida or maybe southern California. Sunshine and warm weather-- that was all she wanted. But she knew her father would never leave and she did not want to leave him. Especially, when he was about to become a grandfather.

"We can rent a boat there," Iona pointed a finger to a painted sign. She wanted to know if David would object, say there was no one to bring it back, but instead he went to the sign.

Did he know that Lettie and Jinx were both excellent with a vessel? That one could bring it back and the other take their own boat? She didn't think so. Perhaps he thought he would be able to bring it back himself.

David rented a small scrappy boat, "I assume you know how to use one of these things?"

"Jinx taught me a long time ago; they sometimes let me take theirs around and around the island, but never far." Iona watched as David put her luggage, then his own at the back. It was a small two seat motorboat, easy enough to use and would only take a moment of watching for David to drive it himself.

"Maybe we should get some food, something special before leaving?" Iona turned back to see what was nearby, what might tempt her father. She knew she was really delaying the trip, vying for more time with David. But she just couldn't bear to see him go.

"With Lettie, you don't need anything to tempt your father," David's voice came from behind her but Iona was frozen in place.

She could not believe what she was seeing in front of her. This could not be happening. She had to blink a few times to make sure she was not dreaming.

A hundred feet away stood a group of men. It was them. They'd followed them all the way from Toronto, all the way from Scotland. Her father had not been paranoid, or exaggerating. They were really there and they were going to finish this once and for all.

She knew that she should feel fear. That she should run the other direction and never look back but she found a rage explode inside of her. A volcano of uncontrollable anger was erupting through her veins. She thought about her father laid up in the hospital, inches from death, and these men had been the cause of it all. They had to pay.

Iona walked toward them and they stopped, obviously taken aback by her stampeding presence. She was not thinking clearly, but she was solely focused on one thing.

"You," she pointed a finger directly at them. "Isn't it enough that you killed my mother? Isn't it enough?" She was shaking with anger. They were in a public place, there were people around, what could they do to her here?

"Fuck your mother. She deserved worse than what she got," the tallest one spoke, his lips white. His brogue was thick, even thicker than her father's.

"I will kill you," Iona's voice was husky, almost inaudible.

"Hear that? The lass is going to kill us," the baldhead said with a shake of laughter.

"Only two people are going to die today lassie, and I'm not one of them." the tallest spoke again.

"Iona," her body was pulled back and David stepped in front of her. "Go back to the boat," he commanded her while looking at the men.

Iona could not make herself move, she stood shaking and trembling behind David's body. She did not want to let him take them on by himself, partly because she feared that he could not do it alone and partly because she wanted to inflict some pain and rage on them herself. She was so angry that she was shaking like a leaf, her eyes seeing nothing but red rage all around her. She had to release this hate.

"Now," he turned his face only partially, still refusing to break visual contact with the men. "You," he spoke to the men and Iona began backing away as David's muscles flexed, "You will not touch her or her father. I hate to tell you, but you are wasting your time. Go back where you came from. If you come near us again you will be very sorry. I will see to that."

More sneers came and a puff of laughter from the bald man. Iona imagined herself punching the man squarely in the nose.

"We're going," David turned his back to the men, a vulnerable position Iona thought, and walked to her. "Now," his voice had never been more serious.

Iona scrambled into the boat. Her body was shivering and shaking anger mixed with fear too. The men were obviously armed and they meant to destroy her and her father both, and whoever else got in their way. Could David really take them all on? She wanted to help, but could she? She was about as tough a girl as anyone would find anywhere, but she wasn't sure she could match up against a group of grown men. Maybe David was right and they should just leave. They had to hurry; could these men get to her father before her and David?

"You know the way to the island?" David asked and Iona nodded. She'd studied maps of where she lived all her life. She turned the key in the ignition and pulled out of the marina. She could not go fast here though she wanted to; they would be stopped if she put other people's lives in danger by being reckless. She idled out then opened up as they made it to clearer waters.

There was a sound behind them and Iona turned to see a larger boat approaching them. The men were following.

"Keep driving," David said.

"They are going to kill us." Iona felt the cold spray on her face, her hair flowing large and unruly around her in the wind.

"Drive," David kept his eyes on the other men. Iona made a wide arch with the boat, trying to keep the men from getting too close. Their boat was bigger, faster. Iona couldn't outpace them.

She tried again to lose them with another arching line that nearly caused her to lose her balance.

It was useless, the boat was upon them. She turned to look and saw one of the men pull a gun. Iona's stomach felt like it dropped through the bottom of the boat. She felt sick, nauseous. What could they possibly do against a gun? If the men got close enough to shoot them with any sort of accuracy then they would be dead out here. She pushed the boat harder, trying desperately to outrun the gaining boat behind them.

"Look!" Iona yelled to David and turned.

But David was changing. His body was lifting, moving, he was growing, his body becoming a series of large dense scales. A tail suddenly swung out. Iona was too terrified to scream. What was she witnessing? What the hell was in the boat with her? Where was David?

The creature standing before her was tall, thick, and menacing. Two large wings flapped outwards in huge swaths, spraying air over her body as they flapped, horns at the top of his head, the golden eyes Iona had loved in David were now glistening.

Suddenly a dragon took to the sky. Iona watched as the creature rose upwards, flying hard and fast, its whole body seeming to block out the remaining light in the evening sky.

What had she just witnessed? David was a... dragon? That was impossible... How had such a thing occurred? She was a rational person; she was not crazy. She did not imagine this. David, the man she had fallen so madly in love with, the man who had protected her and been there for her these past few weeks, wasn't human. He was some sort of a dragon...

And he was pissed.

Iona looked towards the men in the boat. Even from her boat, she could see their bodies stiffen, their jaws dropping open in unison as they all stared at the sky in horror at the creature that was descending from the clouds upon them. The dragon was almost landing on them before they remembered their guns. But as scared as they were, she could see recognition falling across their faces; they had seen a man shifting into a dragon before.

But how?

David was in the sky lifting up then plunging back down, straight toward them. She watched the leader point his gun and aim towards the dragon's head.

"No!" Iona cried out as the shot rang out. The shot must have hit but David didn't seem to notice. David's thick tail lurched out, striking their boat and pushing them off course, a few of the men almost falling overboard. Iona turned her attention back to the wheel and began speeding forward, looking back over and over again to try to keep an eye on the action behind her. The gang of men in the boat continued to move forward faster and faster as if they could outrun the dragon flying just overhead ignoring the bullets that bounced off his hard body. One of the attackers stood up on the end of the boat with a large knife raised, ready to plunge it into the dragon's face as it came closer. Panic for David welled inside of her. She glanced toward her destination, the island was in front of her, maybe five minutes away, she could make it.

Iona turned and watched the man with the knife crouch, waiting to jump, then grasping onto David's tail. David flicked it hard but the man held on. One of the other men shot again at David. How many shots until they killed him? Some of the shots were starting to get through his scaly, coat. David seemed to be weakening.

Iona's body tightened, what would she do once she reached the island? How would she protect him?

She knew what she had to do. Iona pulled back on the engine. She ran to her luggage and grabbed her bow, pulled an arrow and aimed. The boat was coming straight toward her. She aimed for the man driving the boat. Her mind wanted to panic; she wanted to second guess every single nuance of every movement, but somehow, she found the inner strength to quiet herself and focus. She waited until she was sure of her distance, then released.

It was the first time one of her arrows had hit a human being. Her mark was perfect. It took the driver a few seconds to realize he'd been hit. The man looked at the arrow sticking out of his chest in horror, grabbed at it in a futile gesture, before falling. He was dead.

The man with the gun shot again, and again. How many bullets did he have? Why was David not attacking the man quicker? Was he being hurt more by the bullets than he was letting on?

David inhaled then and released a stream of fire onto the man. The entire boat went up in flames and she could see the man incinerate in front of her eyes. Her heart was beating in her mouth and she placed another arrow. She couldn't aim at David, she couldn't--what if she missed?

The man with the knife swung on David's tail now as the flames soared beneath him and he was crawling up David's body, up his scales, toward his heart, his head. Iona aimed but stopped, she couldn't risk it. But what if she didn't?

David took the decision from her, he shot up into the sky, one straight beautiful dark line, then swooped down again, faster than she'd ever seen anything move. Just before he hit the water he swung violently to the side. The man went flying. Iona watched the man's body, lifting into the air. Iona aimed again. He would hit water soon. Just as Iona released the arrow, David let out another stream of fire.

The assailant and Iona's arrow were gone. She froze as she watched the place where only moments before he had existed, alive, whole. Her bow fell out of her hands and clattered onto the boards of the boat. Iona leaned back, ready to vomit, to collapse.

A few stray pieces of burning boat still sparkled on top of the water.

David made another sweep of the scene, then easily, deftly, he landed onto the Island. Iona sat there in amazement and watched his body transform, change, twisting and contorting back into a human form. The thought of the gun, of the man who shot at David, made her move. He could be hurt. He could be bleeding. She'd heard at least four shots.

She drove the boat forward, her hands and body trembling. She barely noticed when she'd pulled in, too fast, and clambered onto the small dock. She quickly ran to where she'd seen David touchdown. The light was going and he appeared more as a shadow than as a person. A glint of red tee shirt sparked on the green ground.

Iona ran to him, throwing her body down close to his own. He was lying still.

"David?" His skin was fiery hot, but she did not see blood, did not see bullet wounds. "David," she yelled his name and his eyelids flickered open.

He smiled.

"Iona," he breathed out.

"Are you ok? What do you need?" She placed his head in her lap.

"I'm just fine," David looked up at her with a peaceful smile. "We're all just fine." She looked down to see his hand over her belly.

"Yes," Iona smiled. "We're all just fine."

He rolled over and lifted his torso up and Iona watched, ready to help should he need it.

"It takes energy from me, that's all; I'll be fine with some food, sleep."

She reached forward and helped him to his feet. The two limped slowly forward toward the castle.

"I didn't know you could do that," Iona said grinning widely, looking over David's body, wondering what other things it might be capable of.

"It's why your father hired me," David laughed.

"You mean my father knew?"

"I believe he went looking specifically for a man of my abilities." David leaned on Iona and she felt herself grow stronger under him. "Now you know how right he was to hire me."

"My father is a very smart man--and a good judge of character." She looked up at his profile, perfect in the setting sun.

"I probably shouldn't let you out of my sight...maybe...ever." He turned his gaze and looked into her eyes. Iona smiled.

She nodded, "I think that would be wise."

The doors to the castle opened and Lettie came out, her apron covered in cooking remnants.

"What took you two so long? I've had dinner ready for over an hour." She smiled at them both and wiped her dirty hands on her dirty apron. "Will Mr. Kilgore be staying for dinner then?" She winked at Iona and Iona tried not to blush.

"Mr. Kilgore," David responded in the third person, "will be staying for a very long time indeed."

"I'll have to start buying more food, the way you two eat..." Lettie made a knowing sound and walked them through the doors.

"What's for dinner?" Iona smelled a heavenly aroma roll over her.

"I thought you might be spoiled with all sorts of cosmopolitan food out there," she pointed vaguely back into the world. "So, I've been learning some Japanese food. I made sushi," Lettie looked at Iona's face for a reaction. Iona nodded carefully; she'd never had sushi before. Lettie walked with a smile back to the kitchen as she said, "We're having dragon rolls."

Iona and David stopped walking. They both looked at the other. Then they burst into a peal of laughter.

They heard Lettie grumble from the doorway, "Don't know what's so funny about that."

*****

THE END
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About Jasmine Wylder

Jasmine Wylder is a Real Estate Agent by day and an emerging Paranormal Romance Author & Adventurer by night. Hailing from California, her passion for sultry stories, steamy scenes, and all-things romance began early on and it has stayed with her ever since.

When she isn't creating captivating storylines, Jasmine loves spending time in the great outdoors, practicing yoga, painting, and treating herself to fine cuisine. She is also an avid animal lover (dogs in particular) and is the proud owner of a Husky named Luna and a Yorkie named Anya.

Whether it's out-of-this-world love (literally), dragon shifters setting your heart ablaze, or unquenchable vampiric desire, Jasmine has you covered!

Currently, Jasmine is in the midst of crafting paranormal romances and tries to escape to the countryside every so often to get the full writer's experience.

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Jasmine's Other Books

Beta's Second Chance

Any hot shifter deserves a second chance, right?

Curvy Ava Montclair has her work, her mission, and her ambition to keep her going. The last thing she needs is a distraction. And not at all in the form of her ex-boyfriend, Pax Carrigan. Although she has to admit, he's still hot as hell.

Strong Pax Carrigan broke Ava's heart a decade ago and now he's back with one job--to keep her safe. But the longer Pax spends with the one and only girl he's ever loved, the more he knows there's more to her. For now, however, he has to focus on his job. Anything else would be unprofessional. Or wouldn't it be?

Ferals formed their own dangerous pack and targeted Ava. She got too much involved trying to get the squabbling packs to work together against the ferals. Will Pax keep the only girl he's ever truly loved safe? And will Ava ever forgive him, or is it too late for her?
The Billionaire Wolves' Virgin

Description

**Any hot shifter deserves a second chance, right?**

Curvy Ava Montclair has her work, her mission, and her ambition to keep her going. The last thing she needs is a distraction. And not at all in the form of her ex-boyfriend, Pax Carrigan. Although she has to admit, he's still hot as hell.

Strong Pax Carrigan broke Ava's heart a decade ago and now he's back with one job--to keep her safe. But the longer Pax spends with the one and only girl he's ever loved, the more he knows there's more to her. For now, however, he has to focus on his job. Anything else would be unprofessional. Or wouldn't it be?

Ferals formed their own dangerous pack and targeted Ava. She got too much involved trying to get the squabbling packs to work together against the ferals. Will Pax keep the only girl he's ever truly loved safe? And will Ava ever forgive him, or is it too late for her?
Her Dragon Professor

Description

**A dragon camouflaged as a professor? Risky...**

Curvy student Mia Thompson doesn't have time for anything outside of school, work, and family. Now that she has a chance to improve her station, she won't let anything get in her way of success; not even the sizzling hot young geology professor, Lee Tennet, who got her attention the moment their paths crossed. But Mia has no idea the secrets that lie in store.

Lee Tennet is a dragon shifter living in a world where he must keep his true identity hidden. If anybody found out his secret, his life and his people would be in danger. But right now, the only thing he can think about is that one student with curves in all the right places. Stop...he can't risk his camouflage! Or can he, just for once?

Things get even more complicated when Mia is marked as a target by dark witches who want to break the seal binding their magic and restore their ancient evils. The only way to do that is through human sacrifice. Her only hope is a dragon, but can Lee risk his life for one woman to claim their happy ending?
Alpha's Love

Description

**Opposites attract, right?**

Voluptuous Liesel Gaytan is a survivor. After being abducted by rogue bear shifters almost two years ago, Liesel lives for the moment and makes the most out of every second she has. Now playing by the rules of sexy alpha Grayson Anders in order to be safe doesn't give her the satisfaction she is looking for, even though there is an instant attraction when she sees Grayson. She has to keep things professional no matter how much she keeps imagining how he looks underneath that tight clothes.

Grayson Anders isn't looking for romance. As a former Army Ranger and Alpha of the Canyon pack, Grayson Anders' life, truck, and pack are orderly and follow strict rules. So, when he's got to keep his pack and wild child Liesel Gaytan safe from bloodthirsty mountain lion shifters hell bent on revenge, he's not sure she won't drive him crazy before he can get the situation under control.

But as they often do, opposites attract, and it isn't long before the two can't deny their deep-running attraction any longer. And no matter the price, he's ready to serve her every need. The only problem is--will it do more harm than good? Will it distract Gray to the point that he can't keep the enemy at bay?
The Alpha Bear's Magician

Description

**I don't need this hot alpha in my life right now, I am a mage and need to focus on my work. Or should I let myself go, just for once?**

Mandy Hicks is an earth mage who has been unlucky in love. Her controlling, possessive father stopped her from having normal relationships with boys as she grew up, and she doesn't think she'll ever find true love...until Daniel Andrews steps into her life.

Daniel Andrews has a reputation, and not a good one. After the death of his father, he became alpha of his bear clan and was determined to serve them to the best of his ability. Unfortunately, his less-than-perfect teenage years left a black stain that he is constantly trying to move past. Meeting Mandy, with her thick curves, turns his world up-side down. That emotional and physical attraction...a mage...his mate...no way.

Before either of them can do anything about it, an ancient vampire with the ability to enthrall people resurrects from her grave and threatens to destroy all they love. With the world at stake, romance has to go on the back burner... but passion refuses to be denied. Daniel and Mandy have to find a way to defeat her before all is lost. Will they?
A Secret Baby for the Vampire

Description

**I have to survive. Not only for me, but also to protect the little secret growing in my womb.**

Curvy Nira is a mortal realizing her dream of singing professionally, but her euphoria is short-lived when the unthinkable occurs. When mysterious Cozul walks into the jazz club, setting his sights upon her, she is intrigued but suspicious, her mind focussed more on retribution than their undeniable attraction to one another.

Cozul has lived the life as one of the elite, but sheltered, New Order. He has always yearned for something more. His thirst for the unknown has driven him to reckless heights and immoral lows. When he is sent to the Southern Hemisphere to find another viable donor among the mortal world, he expects to return to a newfound freedom, away from the vapid and the suspicious Elders who keep him from living in peace. But nothing prepares him for the voluptuous and sassy Nira who will spin his world off its axis.

Nira falls captive to Cozul in every way possible, but things are much different in the North. Soon the two are entangled in a battle between forces mortal and immortal; against odds they cannot beat...or can they? Nira must not only survive, but also protect her unborn vampire child.
Beta's Destiny

Description

**I don't need a babysitter. I can handle the danger on my own. Even though I have to admit, his dominant demeanor and rock-hard body did get my attention.**

Sassy, smart-mouthed shifter Emery Wilkins needs to lay low, when she points the finger at a dangerous criminal who put her father in jail. And now she has to play by the rules of Sage, her newly assigned personal bodyguard. But, will she?

Sage Blaine takes care of others and that is what he does best. Although Emery is giving him a hard time, he is feeling that inner force pulling him towards her. He has to focus on his job to keep Emery safe, and shouldn't be distracted by his inner desires.

Things heat up with the Kodiak bear shifters still seeking revenge, and a dangerous criminal looking for Emery. Will they make it safely through their journey and give into their feelings? Or, will their stubborn natures and outside forces keep this duo from finding their own happily-ever after? 
The Dragon's Secret Baby

Description

**I'm not pregnant, am I? How is this possible...I'm still a virgin.**

Curvy archaeologist Dominique can't believe her luck; she just uncovered an ancient Dragon egg! But she's not the only one with her eyes on the prize. All of the Dragon clans of the area want to stake their claim. Especially that hot ass, annoying Virdi who sticks to her side like glue. Unfortunately, if she wants to stay safe, she needs Virdi's help.

Emperor of the world--that´s what Virdi is determined for, and he doesn´t care what he has to do to see it happen. Luring women out into the forest is just one occupation on his mind. But now, Dominique with her luscious body and the egg...maybe he can have both, pleasure and power at the same time.

But the risk is growing; the Dragons are after the egg and Dominique, to fulfill a prophecy the world hasn´t seen for centuries no matter what the costs.

Virdi has to risk it all to keep Dominique and that little secret growing in her belly safe. Will they make it, or will it all break apart? 
The Vampire's Nanny

Description

**What is a good neighbor supposed to do when a sizzling hot daddy can't take his glowing eyes off of her...give him free rein to her inner desires?**

Curvy Cayden Banks isn´t looking for another occupation. But, when this hot mysterious single dad needs her to help take care of his daughter, she can´t help herself and accepts. It´s not every day that you get a handsome man moving next door to you, right?!

Charles has walked this earth for hundreds of years. He spends his days hiding from the sun, and his nights feeding on the blood of the unsuspecting. But, the only thing he is thinking of right now is what that neighbor´s luscious chocolate body would feel like on his cold white skin. How is he supposed to get rid of those dirty thoughts when she is now becoming his nanny?

Everything changes when his dark past catches up with him, and Cayden learns the truth about Charles and his orphaned daughter--who has the power to put an end to all bloodsuckers.

Can they use the child's gift to put a stop to the vampires? And will Charles be able to sacrifice his immortality for the love of a woman he only just met, but feels like he's known forever?
Alpha's Desire

Description

**He swore he'd never do it. She vowed to work alone. But circumstances have changed, and sacrifices must be made.**

Sienna Blaine is not your typical lone wolf. Cast out of her pack by 17 vindictive Alphas, she vowed to make her own rules and stay one step ahead of the game - no matter the price. Skilled at discerning fact from fiction, she's fully capable of keeping potential threats at bay. But for all her strengths, she has a weakness - one that compromises her ability to trust.

Alpha wolf Brody McAllister earned the nickname "Broody Brody" for a reason. His stone-faced, take-no-prisoners attitude separates him from the rest, but when one of his pack members goes missing, his less-than-animated personality is put to the ultimate test. Anger turns to desperation as he struggles to maintain control and unravel the mystery behind the young woman's disappearance.

Sparks fly as Sienna's carefree lifestyle threatens to crack Brody's perfectly polished control, but when the Kodiak den threatens her life, Brody's wolf is poised to rip throats and take names to keep her safe from harm.

Chances are Brody and Sienna could be fated mates, but is that a chance either is willing to take?
Claimed by Two Navy Shifters

Description

**When war reigns, love prevails.**

Curvy bartender, Roxanne Moreno, hasn't thought about a relationship since the death of her parents. Too busy taking care of her younger brother, Dustin, she simply hasn't had the time for a committed relationship. Not that relationships in the past have worked out all that well. Then, one day, just when life seems to be breaking down, two men entered her life, bringing out the animal inside of her.

While one is hot the other is cold. While one is sweet the other is sexy. In a perfect world, the two men would make the perfect pair, but the two of them mix just as well as oil and water. Yet, Roxie can't help but picture both... in her bedroom... as her mates.

But the two men will never share. After serving in the Navy Seals, they have had enough of each other but they are once again thrust into each other's company when they fall for the same girl. Leo, the alpha bear, feels that it is natural for her to be with him. Warren, the lone wolf, simply wants a mate that will help him reestablish his decimated pack.

Will Leo be able to seduce her, or will Warren win her heart with his good-mannered ways? How will Roxie choose one over the other when her heart - her instincts - clearly yearn for both? When both men are at odds with each other and their past comes back to haunt them, will their love for the sexy ebony woman persevere or will they crash and burn just as they did in war?
Her Two Dragon Princes

Description

**Human mates were the easiest to find - or so they thought.**

Sizzling hot stepbrothers Lloyd and Foster, dragon princes, didn't want to lose the throne to their sister, Silvia. Especially when all they needed to ensure the crown was a mate. Confident in their abilities, the two brothers set up a bet. The first one to find a mate would become Dragon King. No questions asked. But, all bets are off once they meet Emily, the strong and independent nightclub owner whose perfect smile and sexy curves cast a spell on the two dragons that even they cannot break.

Emily, as independent as she is, soon learns that she cannot survive alone. Still, even with her resources dwindling day by day, she continues to run the nightclub by herself, hoping things would turn up. She just never expected that two handsome individuals would offer her a loan and a partnership she couldn't deny. Soon, their money is replaced by a sex appeal that makes her mind swim. In a way, they seem almost too good to be true. Where did these men get their money and why did they want to help her, of all people?

As their partnership develops, Emily notices something peculiar. The men never stay past sunrise. And their eyes... Maybe Foster and Lloyd weren't the men she thought they were. But Emily is too far deep now. If she runs, she faces mysterious councils, whelps, and maybe worse of all - death. 
Bonded to the Alpha Wolf

Description

**Every witch needs an animal companion - but she never bargained for this!**

Savannah Goode has not had an easy existence. An African-American woman with a sensual, Earth Mother Goddess body, she knew from an early age that she was "different," hailing from a long line of solitary witches. Her two older half-sisters continue to torment her on a daily basis, but somehow she refrains from turning them into toads as she struggles to keep a promise to their late father and run the small Chicago restaurant that was his legacy.

Things get even more complicated on the night of a full moon, when a Werewolf gone Rogue accidentally stumbles into the sacred circle during one of Savannah's ceremonial rituals. On the run from Pack authorities and wanted for murder, Justin Waylan finds himself caught up in Savannah's spell - literally! - and is forced to hide out at her house until she can find a way to reverse the charm and set him free. And the sooner the better, as it doesn't take long before this handsome but annoying, smart-mouthed wolf starts to try his reluctant hostess' patience.

As that mischief-maker Fate would have it, Savannah and Justin soon become entangled in each other's problems, unexpectedly and inexplicably bringing them closer together. Can a kind-hearted Human witch help an errant Werewolf with a criminal past to prove his innocence before he's put to death by his vengeful Pack? And will the intense, blossoming attraction they have begun to feel for one another be a blessing, or a curse?

It will take a lot of magic, and a little assistance from the spirit world, to get them out of this dangerous mess...but will it be too late?
The Vampire's Secret Baby

Description

**The last thing she wanted was that ape of a man to show up in her life...**

Melody Terzi is on the run. From vampires and anti-vampire extremists alike. What's more? She just might have found herself pregnant in the midst of the chaos. As if her life couldn't get any more complicated, the father of her child happens to be one of the most stubborn, pig-headed, muscle-bound vampires on the planet. If she can stay one step of everybody, she just might be able to disappear off the grid and raise her baby in peace.

Aksel Sorenson has plenty of excitement in his life to keep him busy for the next two centuries. The terrorist organization New Dawn is hunting vampires down across the globe and killing them at will. His past has resurfaced and brought with it, a promise to marry a stranger that has huge consequences if not kept. But Aksel? All he can think about is finding the woman he spent one amazing night with all those weeks ago and setting her straight for thinking she can run from him.

But the world's on fire and being with Melody can bring everything he holds dear crumbling down. Can he set her free or is he bound by honor to make Melody his own?
The Billionaire Shifter's Secret Baby

Description

**Desperation leads her to him. Love makes her stay.**

Out of funds and out of luck, curvy Katrina is willing to do anything, even if that means accepting a job no one else wants. Working for a wealthy recluse should come with some advantages, but she never imagined desire would be one of them.

Hot billionaire scientist Zachary Drew knows danger, but nothing in life has prepared him for the dangers he now faces. Maintaining some semblance of order is necessary, but finding time for that is near impossible without a personal assistant. However, hiring the beautiful woman who answers his call will prove to complicate his life further. The lines between love, lust, desire and danger are crossed and no one will ever be the same again.

Werewolves are out for vengeance. Katrina is caught in the crosshairs. Zachary "The Beast" knows what he has to do, but will his newfound love compromise his mission?
The Wolf Prince's True Mate

Description

**Curvy Ilyssa isn´t looking for love, neither does sizzling hot werewolf prince Alaric, but sometimes destiny has its own plans.**

Surviving in a world between two enemy empires is never easy, but beautiful Ilyssa and her tribe of forest-dwelling highwaymen have managed to do just that. Now, though, their seemingly full-proof plan to target carriages that travel between the Werewolf kingdom of Lobishome and the Human realm of Emberi has failed to be enough. The band of thieves are forced to hold passengers for ransom in order to survive the harsh winter months, but their new plan proves to be even more dangerous than the last.

The price on Ilyssa's head has gone up. After unknowingly abducting Alaric, the heir to the Werewolf throne, she finds herself caught up in a clandestine plot designed to bring the rival kingdoms to their knees.

An ancient prophecy, a solo mission, and a promise that cannot be broken are only the beginning of what the beautiful bandit and the handsome heir will have to contend with. Their unlikely pairing blurs the lines between bringing peace among enemies, halting an impending war, and resisting their growing mutual attraction?

Can these unlikely cohorts reshape a world formed from centuries of hate and manage their undeniable attraction to each other?
The Vampire's Bride Awakening

Description

**What begins as a frightening interrogation by the dangerous brood ends with fire and blood. And, if curvaceous Ember doesn't stop it, she could lose everything she holds dear.**

Curvy girl Ember Terzi spent her life doing what's right. Building a business while keeping her younger sister safe from harm was no easy feat, but the life she created for them is suddenly thrown into turmoil when a violent group of strangers come barreling in on the hunt for someone she's never heard of and has no desire to meet.

Only one man can help her, but there's a problem. The sizzling hot man with Adonis-like features is as distracting as he is dangerous. With tales of soulmates, immortality, and vampire legacies, Ember is hesitant to enlist his help until one simple touch ignites a fire in her body and soul. She's left wondering how someone who can make her feel that way could be so bad.

Sexy alpha male Kai has spent his life waiting for his soulmate. When he meets Ember, he's immediately intoxicated with her, but he has a secret - a secret so dangerous, it threatens all that he's ever cared about.

A vengeful organization threatens to destroy everything, including his mate Ember. But he proves to be a formidable opponent. He'll stop at nothing to protect what's his, even if that means he'll have to burn his enemies to the ground.

Who will win in this deadly tug of war between vampires, a sexy alpha male, a vengeful organization, and the power of eternal soulmates?
