by Gina Kincade
Alice looked in Crescentia’s eyes and saw a strength that she never noticed before. Maybe she could use an ally.
“Alice. Halston wants you to come to the Netherworld Division. That’s where we are going.”
Pulling away, Alice shook her head. “Tell Halston that I have to do this. I have to face my past for once and for all.”
Collin stepped forward and she held up her hands, pushing him away with the power of her mind.
“Don’t try to stop me,” she said, tears burning her eyes. She turned with Crescentia and the three men, she flew into the sky. Saying goodbye was too hard, and she didn’t. Instead she whispered down to him.
“I love you.”
The tears streamed down her cheeks then as she flew away from her home, her life, and the man she loved.
The future was a dangerous place.
And as she watched her home grow farther in the distance, Collin appeared at her side.
Shocked, Alice coiled back. “Collin. What the hell are you doing up here?”
A determined look on his face, he flew beside her, his hair rustling with the wind.
“I’m a dragon, Alice,” he said. “I can fly whenever I please, in my human form or not. So, you’re not getting rid of me that easily. Don’t try it again. I’m here for you no matter what.”
Dragon shifter?
“But, where I am going is dangerous,” she said. She was overwhelmed with emotion as they flew together. She never imagined this moment, the man she loved flying by her side. Though they flew toward danger and peril, she was oddly at peace now that she knew his secret and he accepted hers.
“I heard what you said back there, Alice. I love you too much to let you go alone,” he said, reaching for her hand.
Alice pursed her lips and nodded, oddly happy that he was by her side. “Okay. Together, then.”
Love Down Under by Chanta Rand
CHAPTER ONE
Nicola bounced against the rear window of the Land Rover as the vehicle struck another bump. The bone-jarring motion nearly propelled her from her seat. She figured she had a fifty-fifty chance of surviving this ride in the Australian desert. As a Risk Assessment Manager for an airline company, calculating danger was second nature to her. Whether she wanted to or not, she was always wondering about her odds of dying. One thing was certain. If she didn’t die, she was ninety-nine percent sure she was going to strangle someone’s ass.
She’d start with her annoying traveling companions. Technically, they weren’t her companions. She’d only met them less than two hours ago. Since they were the only Americans on the tour, their well-meaning Aussie guide, Paul McSeever, had the brilliant idea to dump them into the same vehicle.
From what Nicola could gather, the middle-aged New Jersey mom had brought her twin daughters on an all-expenses-paid trip to celebrate their twenty-first birthdays. Nicola could forgive their garish makeup and gravity-defying hairdos, but during the long drive to the remote Australian outback, she’d been forced to endure their endless chatter and asinine comments. Why couldn’t they have gone to Vegas like everyone else?
The other two passengers were a pair of tall, lanky males who kept stealing furtive glances in Nicola’s direction. Even if she didn’t have the most pathetic love life south of the Mason Dixie line, she wouldn’t have considered hooking up with either one.
Paul’s Australian lilt rang out. “Sorry for the rough ride, mates. This is how we do off-road travel in the Land Down Under.”
“Don’t sweat it, McSeever!” the twin with electric blue eye shadow called out. “This is better than a rollercoaster at Coney Island.”
Sporting flip-flops and titian, shoulder-length locks, McSeever looked more like a beach bum than a tour guide. His disheveled appearance was in stark contrast to the tour company’s glitzy website. G’Day Tours promised a total immersion in the Australian experience, complete with skydiving, riding a mechanical dolphin, and koala petting. Nicola wasn’t an adventurer by nature. The most excitement she’d had all year was when the cable company screwed up and gave her Pay-Per-View free for a day. A few hours of watching Fifty Shades of Grey uncut was enough excitement for her.
All I wanted was to get to the Great Barrier Reef. How the hell did I get roped into this?
She patted her backpack, fingers splayed, checking to make sure her precious cargo was still intact. She was on a mission. A mission that she should have completed five years ago, but one she could never find the heart or the courage to do until now. If her boss, Randi, hadn’t forced her to go on this trip, she’d no doubt be sitting through an important work meeting right now.
She’d worked for Patriot Airways for eighteen years—exactly half of her life. She enjoyed her job, but she worked too hard. She knew it and everyone else knew it. She’d held six different job titles during her time with Patriot. She’d forged vital relationships across departments. She’d made unlikely friends. She needed her job. Not for financial reasons, but for her sanity. Her career sustained her. Nourished her. Gave her purpose. She needed work to distract her from her life, especially after the accident five years ago. Now, here she was, fulfilling her dead husband’s final wish.
Under any other circumstances, she probably would have enjoyed this continent. She’d heard Australia was home to extraordinary landscapes and scenic beaches. As soon as this tour was over, she planned to take time out to see some of the stunning sponge gardens and colorful marine life. At the present moment, however, she was stuck in the Simpson Desert, one of the driest places on earth.
Out of nowhere, a compound of buildings sprang up. She didn’t know what she expected out here in no-man’s land. Perhaps thatched roof huts or mud-brick structures. Certainly not the stark white buildings with sleek windows. Off to the side sat a fenced-in area with koala bears.
The four-wheel drive vehicle came to an abrupt stop, damn near pitching her forward into the seat in front of her. She should have known better than to get into a vehicle with no seatbelts. She thought her daily commute on I-35 in Dallas was dangerous. Apparently, she’d underestimated the power of bad drivers across the globe.
“Okay, mates,” Paul’s cheery voice announced. “We’ve arrived. For those of you who want to hold a koala, now is your chance! Let’s be quick about it.”
One of the twins squealed with delight. “I can’t wait to snuggle with one!”
From the look of rapture on her face, Nicola thought she was about to have an orgasm. She watched the young woman amble to her feet and pat her elaborately styled tower of brunette hair. Nicola made a mental note to stay as far from her as possible. She didn’t want to be in the direct path of any killer bees mistaking the woman’s coif for a hive.
“Aren’t ya comin’?” one of the tall dudes asked.
Nicola sighed. Fondling a fuzzy-ass oversized bear was not her idea of a good time. She didn’t believe in imprisoning animals simply for the entertainment of humans. She didn’t want to participate, but she couldn’t stay in the hot Land Rover either.
“Australia is home to ten dangerous species of snakes,” Paul said. “The most dangerous snake in the world, the inland taipan, lives here. Its venom is so deadly, it can kill a human in forty-five minutes. So, watch where you step, and be careful when you exit the vehicle. You never know what creepy crawlies are slithering nearby.”
The last thing she needed was to be injured on vacation—on a foreign continent. She knew the odds of being killed by a poisonous snake were one in fifty million. It seemed she was safe for now, but she still wondered if her health insurance covered snakebites.
She climbed from the Rover, planning to watch quietly from the sidelines. Paul immediately sidled up to her. He wouldn’t have been half bad looking if not for his modest paunch and his discolored front tooth. He’d probably had it knocked out in the past, and the fake one wasn’t a perfect match.
“Ms. Mills, you’ve been very quiet,” he said. “How ya going?”
She was quickly learni
ng that even though Australians spoke English, they had their own curious vocabulary. How ya going meant how are you doing? She didn’t bother telling him that she was normally quite a chatterbox, but never got a chance to get a word in edgewise with the Jersey trio. Instead, she offered him a wan smile. “I’m fine. I was thinking this would be more of an ocean tour.”
He nodded. “We’ll do that tomorrow. We had to make a last-minute change due to Edgar, our other guide. He chucked a sickie.”
“Chucked a sickie?”
“He’s not feeling well. Ate some of his wife’s wretched cooking, no doubt.” Paul snickered. “He’ll be back tomorrow.”
Edgar had called in sick. She bit back disappointment. “I guess I can wait until tomorrow. One more day won’t hurt.”
“Ripping great! Now, are you ready to pet a koala?”
“Oh, no,” she held up her hands in protest. “I don’t do wild animals.”
“Rubbish!” He clasped her hand and dragged her toward the fenced-in area where three koalas munching leaves perched in trees. “You’ve got to live a little.”
“That’s exactly what I’m trying to do—live.”
His patronizing laughter rang out. “Koalas are harmless. They’re probably more afraid of you than you are of them.”
“I really don’t—”
“C’mon, lady.” The twin with the tallest beehive rolled her eyes. “You waitin’ for a private invitation?”
Nicola wondered what were the odds that Cro-Magnon man fathered the twins? She was about to ask when Paul unlocked the cage, pulled the smallest koala from its perch, and thrust it into her arms. Nicola nervously cradled the furry mass. It stared up at her with huge, brown eyes. It wrinkled its nose, and she wrinkled hers in response. The thing smelled earthy, that was the only way to describe it.
“See?” Paul urged. “It’s not so bad, is it? Just like holding a baby.”
Her heartbeat quickened. This wasn’t like holding a baby at all. More like a creepy stuffed animal. The thing just felt weird. And she felt bad that it was here for her enjoyment instead of being free in its natural habitat. Moments later, it started fidgeting, moving around, sniffing her neck.
“Oh…okay,” Nicola stammered. “I think I’m good now. You can take it back.”
“My turn!” Beehive demanded. “Get a picture of me,” she ordered her twin. She reached for the koala. The movement must have frightened the creature. It dug its claws into Nicola’s clavicle.
“Ow!” Nicola screeched in pain. She tried to shift the creature in her arms, but it scrambled from her grasp and curled around her back. Her heel tripped over something on the pebbled ground, and she staggered backwards. One of her arms flailed wildly behind her. She didn’t want to drop the animal, nor did she want to fall onto her back and shatter the contents of her backpack.
There was no graceful way around it. She tumbled to the ground, landing on her wrist. Both she and the koala crashed to the dirt. Her head hit something hard; a searing pain tore through her skull.
She couldn’t tell if the scream that pierced the air came from her or from one of the twins.
What’s the probability of being mauled by a koala?
That was her last thought before she lost consciousness.
CHAPTER TWO
Leif gazed down at the most delectable skin he’d ever set eyes on. Creamy, flawless, and tinted with hues of brown, it reminded him of a caramel Frappuccino he’d once savored in New York City. His eyes roamed over his patient as she lay on an examination table in his clinic. She was petite, but in shape. Her palm-sized breasts and lean, flat stomach were the first things he noticed. Long legs sprang from short, clay colored cuffed shorts. Firm thighs and sculpted calves captured his attention, begging to be touched. He wondered if all the other parts of her anatomy were as smooth.
Bugger!
He jerked his hand back as though it had been burned. He took a step back, mentally berating himself for his unprofessional behavior. It was hard to rein in his curiosity. He wasn’t accustomed to patients this gorgeous landing in his remote clinic. He couldn’t stop his gaze from sliding across her lush body. He took in every detail of her athletic physique. Slender fingers. A dainty wrist he’d just bandaged. One bare shoulder, showing damage from being scraped against the ground. A heart-shaped face devoid of any makeup. She was the closest thing to perfection he’d ever seen.
She moaned, bringing him back to earth. His eyes flew to her full, parted lips, caressed with just the right amount of sheer lip balm. Every ridge and contour of her mouth was visible.
Her eyelids fluttered open. His heart careened in his chest as he was arrested by large, expressive doe eyes. He gazed into their mysterious, sable depths, momentarily mesmerized. A jolt of electricity sparked in the pit of his gut and spread to every one of his nerve endings.
He took another step back, putting distance between himself and her. Irritated by his reaction, his gruff voice came out harsher than he’d intended. “Good,” he growled. “You’re finally awake.”
She blinked in confusion. “Where am I? What happened?”
“You were injured.”
She tried to sit up, but paused midway, wincing in apparent pain. “Everything hurts.”
“That’s what happens when Yanks fool around with feral animals.”
“Yanks?”
“Americans. Foreigners.”
“You make it seem like I’m some reckless explorer here to conquer the land.”
He shrugged. “As you Yanks say, ‘If the shoe fits…’”
“No, the shoe does not fit. I am not—”
The bleating of a goat punctured the air. The woman’s dark eyes widened as she struggled to sit up again. She settled for relaxing on her elbows. “What kind of doctor are you?” she demanded.
“The kind who takes care of patients who don’t complain.”
Her gaze flitted across the room, landing on the animals there. He could only imagine how the place looked with its collection of lizards, two possums, and one goat. “You’re a vet?” she asked.
He wasn’t sure how to take the tone of disbelief that laced her words. Was she in shock or showing her disapproval? Whatever it was, it irritated him—even more than his attraction to her. “You have a problem with vets?” he grumbled.
“Not vets, per se. Just animals. I’m not good with animals, unless they’re stuffed. How did I end up here?”
“After your attack, McSeever brought you to the nearest medical facility in the area—my clinic.”
“That was very nice of him.”
“Not really.” Leif crossed his arms over his chest and leaned against the table opposite her. “He’s the worst tour guide in history, with little regard for his customers and questionable morals. He probably only brought you here to avoid a lawsuit, since he had no authorization to take you to that wildlife sanctuary.”
“He seemed like he knew what he was doing.”
Leif snorted. “He’s an unscrupulous wanker. Last summer, he got a little too friendly with one of his passengers. One thing led to another. She had his baby a few months ago. He’s the closest thing to shark chum I know. The smartest thing he did was bringing you here.”
She frowned as she gave the goat a final glance. “I’m not sure that was so smart.”
“Despite McSeever’s shady personality, he knows I’m the best.”
“At what? At patching up animals?”
He scowled. “You know nothing about me.”
“I’m sure you’ve led a fascinating life, but…” she paused. Her eyes frantically skipped around the room.
“Looking for something?”
“My backpack.”
He reached behind her and lifted a designer backpack by the straps. “Here it is. This sucker is heavy. What’s in here?”
“None of your business,” she snapped.
His gaze collided with hers as she clutched the bag to her chest.
“Sorry,” she offered, “bu
t…it’s a long story. I just need to get to the Great Barrier Reef.”
He smirked. “That’s a two-week walk from here.”
“I had no intention of walking, Mister…”
“…Connors. Actually, it’s Dr. Leif Connors.”
“I had no intention of walking, Dr. Connors.”
“Good. For a moment, I thought you’d lost all common sense when you bumped your head on that rock.” He glanced sideways at her. “Now that you’ve told me you want to go to The Reef, I’m still not sure how much common sense you had before your fall.”
She glared at him. “Are you like this with all of your patients or just me?”
“Are you always this combative, or is it just with me?”
“I’m not combative at all. In fact, I’m known for my calm levelheadedness. Now, if you will help me up, I’ll be on my way and leave you to your Wild Kingdom.”
“You won’t be going anywhere with that sprained ankle.”
Her eyes flew to her bandaged foot, then back to her wrist. “A few more bandages and I could be mistaken for a mummy.”
“You need to stay off of that foot for at least two to three days,” he told her.
“Three days? What am I supposed to do in all that time?”
“I’ll be filling you with so many scripts, you probably won’t want to get up anyway.”
“Scripts?”
“Prescriptions. In your case, pain meds.”
She scooted toward the edge of the table. “Well, at least help me get back to the Land Rover. I don’t want to hold up the rest of the tour, and I’m sure I’ll be much more comfortable relaxing in my hotel.”
“The tour?” He scoffed. “The tour has already gone on without you, sweet’art. I told you McSeever is an unconscionable bastard. He dropped you off and hightailed it out of here faster than a sidewinder stalking a desert rat. He’s got customers to tend to and wallets to bleed dry.”
Her mouth dropped open. Leif turned around resisting the urge to trace his finger along the lush line of her lips.
“McSeever’s gone?” she asked incredulously. “How am I supposed to get back to my hotel?”
