by Fiona Roarke
The chuma started to come around with a moan. Dima let Elin slide to the ground, then he put one foot on the plague-bringer’s chest.
“Found your dealer. Chumoi are beings of pestilence. They bring sickness and disease wherever they go. Not surprisingly, they’re frequent dealers in the drug trade, though I’ve only ever seen them deal to humans before.”
“Did he tell you where he got the stuff?”
“Not yet.” He reached down and picked him up.
In moments, the chuma told them everything. How he was supposed to start carving out territory for the new drug, and that he was getting his supply shipped in from Volshev.
Rodion, the former Border Crossing officer, grimaced. “Sheriff, there are people in my old unit who could use this information.”
Merrow nodded, then turned to the dealer. “This is the beginning and the end of Cold Pill in Nocturne Falls. We’re going to make sure everyone knows what happened here. And we’re going to throw the book at you so hard, your boss’s will feel it in the Rus. You will not bring your plague here.”
The owner of Insomnia came down to join the Sheriff, and both men let go of the tight hold they kept on their human appearances. The nightmare creatures growled, “Never again. Not in any way. Clear?”
The chuma whimpered and nodded. “I’ll tell them, I swear. Never again.”
Dima let him go, and Rodion cuffed him, then hauled him to the patrol car.
After all the chaos, it seemed that things wrapped up fairly quickly after that.
The ambulance left with the overdose victim, who had finally started to come around. The sheriff and his deputies left to take the dealer to jail. And Insomnia’s owner went back inside with Chet to lock up.
The chilly night air carried no sound as Dima watched her, watching him. A spot of icy white touched her wild curls and he looked up. Snow. Nocturne Falls was close enough to the Blue Ridge Mountains that it wasn’t unusual to get a flurry every now and then. Of course, the entire state would come to a screeching halt, but for now, it was perfect.
Elin turned up her face to the pretty flakes and smiled, and he wondered at the turn his life had made since this morning.
Finally, she broke the silence. “What a day, huh?”
“Yeah.” He wanted to bite his tongue. Witty response, wolf.
“I kind of liked it.”
His eyes widened. He hadn’t expected that, but then, Elin hadn’t done anything he’d expected today. “I did, too. I really enjoyed reading your book.”
“Thanks. I really enjoyed kissing you.”
A laugh burst from him. “Have you always been this direct?”
“No. That’s the benefit of not being in my twenties anymore, I think. Most of my regrets are about the things I didn’t say. I like to think I’ve outgrown that.”
“I like it.” Dima grasped her waist and stepped nearer. “I liked that kiss, too. We should do it again.”
“Practice makes perfect?”
“Something like that. We should also practice actually going out on a date. I don’t think we have that part down yet.”
“But we’re good at spilling hot chocolate.” She raised her hands to his battered tuxedo jacket and smoothed down the collar.
“And we’re good at taking down plague-dealers. Your blowing ice trick was great.” His thumbs slid up and down her sides and he enjoyed the shape of her.
“I’m not sure I want to practice that anymore, though.”
“We can practice staying in while you write your next book and I make dinner.”
“I think we’re getting somewhere now.” She smiled and he dropped his forehead to touch hers.
“Is tomorrow too soon to start practicing?”
“Tomorrow is perfect. Walk me home?”
It was his pleasure. He was going to enjoy finding out all his winter elf’s secrets and quirks. And he’d never see snow again without thinking of a touch of magic’s frost.
The End
About the Authors
Fiona Roarke is a multi-published author who lives a quiet life with the exception of the characters and stories roaming around in her head. She writes about sexy alpha heroes, using them to launch her first series, Bad Boys in Big Trouble. Next up, a new sci-fi contemporary romance series. When she’s not curled on the sofa reading a great book or at the movie theater watching the latest action film, Fiona spends her time writing about the next bad boy (or bad boy alien) who needs his story told.
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USA Today Bestselling Author Jax Cassidy followed her dreams to Paris, then Hollywood to pursue a film career but managed to fall in love with penning sexy romances and happy endings. She is Co-Founder of Romance Divas, an award winning writer’s website and discussion forum. Jax is also known as one-half of the retired writing team of Cassidy Kent. She is represented by Roberta Brown of the Brown Literary Agency.
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Born and raised a Jersey girl with easy access to NYC, Kira Nyte was never short on ideas for stories. She started writing when she was 11, and her passion for creating worlds exploded from that point on. Romance writing came later, but when it did, she embraced it. Since then, all of her heroes and heroines find their happily ever after. She currently lives in Central Florida with her husband, their four children, and two parakeets. She work part-time as a PCU nurse when she’s not writing or traveling between sports and other activities. She love to hear from readers! Contact her at [email protected].
You can also find Kira at: www.kiranyte.com
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Wynter Daniels has authored more than three dozen romances, including contemporary, romantic suspense, and paranormal romance books for several publishers including Entangled Publishing and Carina Press. She lives in sunny Florida with her family and a very spoiled cat. After careers in marketing and the salon industry, Wynter’s wicked prose begged to be set free. You can find her on the web on Facebook, Twitter and her website.
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Candace Colt decided it was time to write her memoir midway through eighth-grade. The last line was, “And now the climax of my story”…
Any surprise this little girl grew up to write romance novels?
After careers in education and health care, Candace now writes contemporary and paranormal romance. In between, she practices Tai Chi and yoga. And if there’s a drum circle in town, she’s there!
Her heroines are savvy independent females who don’t need men cluttering up their lives, that is until the right one comes her way.
Candace lives in a small town on the Florida Gulf Coast where she lives her HEA every day!
Candace loves to connect to readers. Facebook * Twitter * Pinterest * Candace Colt’s Newsletter * Goodreads * Candace Colt’s Webpage
Alethea Kontis is a princess, author, fairy godmother, and geek. Author of over nineteen books and contributor to over twenty-five more, her award-winning writing has been published for multiple age groups across all genres. Host of “Princess Alethea’s Fairy Tale Rants” and Princess Alethea’s Traveling Sideshow every year at DragonCon, Alethea also narrates for ACX, IGMS, Escape Pod, Pseudopod, and Cast of Wonders. Alethea currently resides on the Space Coast of Florida with her teddy bear, Charlie. Find out more about Princess Alethea and the magic, wonderful world in which she lives at: patreon.com/princessalethea
Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/princessaletheakontis
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Website: http://aletheakontis.com/
Cate Dean has been writing since she could hold a pen in her hand and put more than two words together on paper. She grew up losing herself in the wilds of fantasy worlds, and has had some of her own adventures while tromping through the UK, and a few other parts of the world.
A lover of all things supernatural, she infuses that love into her stories, giving them a unique edge. When she’s not writing, she loves cooking, scaring herself silly in the local cemeteries, and reading pretty much anything she can get her hands on.
If you want to be the first to know when the next book is released, or be in on some fun, exclusive contests and giveaways, join her list here: http://catedeanwrites.com/join-my-list.
You can learn more about her and her books at her website: http://catedeanwrites.com
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Larissa Emerald has always had a powerful creative streak whether it’s altering sewing patterns, or the need to make some minor change in recipes, or frequently rearranging her home furnishings, she relishes those little walks on the wild side to offset her otherwise quite ordinary life. Her eclectic taste in books cover numerous genres, and she writes sexy paranormal romance and futuristic romantic thrillers. But no matter the genre or time period, she likes strong women in dire situations who find the one man who will adore her beyond reason and give up everything for true love.
Larissa is happy to connect with her readers. Stop by and say hello: Website, Facebook, Twitter, or send her an email: [email protected]
Sela Carsen was born into a traveling family, then married a military man to continue her wandering lifestyle. With her husband of 20+ years, their two teens, her mother, and the cat, she’s finally (temporarily) settled in the Midwest. Between bouts of packing and unpacking, she writes paranormal and sci-fi romances, with or without dead bodies. Your pick.
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