Page 23 of His Brazen Mate

Later, as the clan worked to clean up the mess, Drake allowed Megan to make her report. He watched her from a distance, his emotions in turmoil, before turning back to his people. She had done what she had to, but the pain of losing his aunt was still raw.

MEGAN

Believing that Drake would never forgive her for what had happened, Megan quietly retreated and left the distillery. Her heart ached with the thought of leaving him, but she couldn’t bear to see the hatred in his eyes.

She drove through the night to the rental cabin, arriving in the blue hours before dawn. She was surprised to find Drake sitting on the porch, a bottle of his father’s favorite bourbon in hand. He looked up as she approached, his expression a mixture of sadness and relief.

“Drake, I…” she began, but he held up a hand to stop her.

“Come sit with me,” he said softly.

She hesitated, then walked over and sat beside him. He poured two glasses of bourbon, handing one to her.

“To new beginnings,” he said, raising his glass. “And the bittersweet triumph of the truth.”

Megan clinked her glass against his, her heart swelling with hope. As they drank, the pain of the past began to fade, replaced by the promise of a future they would face together.

Ready for another novella? Click here to His Reluctant Mate.

Two strangers. One deadly secret. And a race against time.

Imprisoned by her boss and facing the possibility of a global disaster, Melinda King must use her wits to escape from a remote Arctic research station. Even as an Arctic fox in this harsh environment, she's in for the fight of her life.

Joe Crawley is a brooding wilderness guide haunted by past failures. When he reluctantly joins a search party for the missing scientist, he finds himself battling the brutal Arctic conditions in spite of being a saber tooth tiger shifter. But when he stumbles upon an unconscious Melinda, he knows she is his fated mate.

As Joe nurses Melinda back to health, he realizes her disappearance was no accident and her story of conspiracy is more dangerous than he could have imagined. Together, they race against time to expose the truth, but with enemies closing in, they struggle to know who they can trust.

In the Arctic where secrets run deeper than the ice, can Melinda and Joe survive the ultimate test and embrace their fated bond before it's too late?