Epilogue
Six Months Later
Ryan stared down at his newborn son, barely noticing the laughter, teasing, and even soft music playing inside Gaby's hospital room.
He and his mate had barely had time to name their son Mateo Owen before her family had argued their way inside and set up camp.
Not that he minded, but as he touched his son's soft cheek again, he barely heard Gaby's mother say, "It's my turn to hold my grandson."
Ryan shook his head. "Not yet."
He could feel his mother-in-law staring, but for once, he didn't care.
For years he'd wanted a child and had eventually thought he'd never have one.
Then Gaby had walked into his life and given him not only her love, but now a perfect little boy with dark hair. He rather hoped he ended up with Gaby's brown eyes, too, although she had all but ordered her womb to produce a child with hazel eyes like him.
Bringing his son closer, he kissed his forehead.
Gaby touched his arm and he forced his gaze to his mate. Although there were smudges under her eyes from exhaustion, she smiled up at him. "I know you wanted a daughter, but I think you might be taken with Mateo despite him being a boy."
He sat on the edge of Gaby's bed, readjusted his son to fit in the crook of one arm, and placed his free hand on Gaby's cheek. "I'll love any child that's part you, Gabriela Santos-Ford."
She placed her hand over his. "I know. And maybe next time, we'll finally get a girl to help even the odds a little in my family. There are entirely too many males."
His heart warmed as he searched her eyes. "Even after just delivering this little fella, you want to do it all over again?"
She nodded. "Family is important to both of us. I'd rather like to have a big one, if you're up for it."
He kissed her gently. "I am." He brought Mateo down so they could stare at him together. "But let's spoil him a little first."
They barely had a few seconds to stare adoringly at their son before a familiar woman's voice cut through the room. "Ryan!"
Glancing up, he smiled at his sister, Tiffany. "You made it."
She rolled her eyes. "It would take an asteroid hitting the earth and causing a massive disaster to keep me away from my nephew."
She reached his side and he offered his son. "Well, you should feel special. No one has held him but me, Gaby, and medical staff so far."
Gaby sighed. "Mom is going to remind you of this for the rest of time."
He grinned at his mate. "She can be first the next time."
Tiffany took Mateo and cooed at him. She whispered, "I'm your Aunt Tiffy. We're going to have a lot of fun in the future. No matter what trouble you get into, just call me and we'll work it out."
As he watched his sister mumble baby words and nonsense at his son, he wrapped an arm around Gaby's shoulders. The two most important women in his life were here, as well as all of the family that had adopted them as his own.
True, he may have lost a brother in the last few years, but he'd gained enough family to fill a small restaurant. And despite their eccentricities, he loved them all.
However, as he stared down at his mate, he loved her most of all. "You are my heart, Gaby."
She leaned against him. "And you're part of my very soul."
As they merely sat there and watched everyone else take a turn with their son, Ryan knew his life was a good one. And no matter what it took, he'd do anything to keep and protect what was his.
Thank you for reading! I hope you loved Gaby and Ryan. The next story in the Tahoe Dragon Mates series will be The Dragon’s Bidder, which releases July 16, 2020. Wes Dalton has known for years Ashley Swift is his true mate. However, she works for the American Department of Dragon Affairs and is most definitely off-limits. But when she wins him in a charity auction for an evening out in Reno, it tests the limits of his self-control…
Preorder THE DRAGON'S BIDDER now on Amazon US and see what happens on July 16, 2020. (Not in the USA? Find it on Amazon UK / Amazon AU / Amazon CA / Amazon DE )
Want a longer romance story about an alien warrior prince set on a distant Earth colony? Then try the first book in my Kelderan Runic Warriors series, The Conquest. There’s a shortage of men on the colony and so the female leader has a plan to catch some alien warriors. It doesn’t quite go as planned and sparks fly in more ways than one…
Order THE CONQUEST on Amazon US now! (Not in the USA? Find it on Amazon UK / Amazon AU / Amazon CA / Amazon DE )
I appreciate your help in spreading the word, such as by telling a friend about this book. Reviews also help readers find books! Please leave a review on your favorite book site. You can also sign-up to my newsletter for information, releases, and more.
Turn the page for a little more information on both The Dragon’s Bidder and The Conquest…
The Dragon’s Bidder
Tahoe Dragon Mates #3
In exchange for favors to help his clan, PineRock’s dragon leader Wes Dalton agrees to participate in a charity auction. After all, one evening dining or dancing with one lucky bidder shouldn’t be too hard to endure. Then he notices the true mate he can never have in the audience—Ashley Swift. When she wins him for the night, the battle begins between what his dragon half wants and what his human half tries to deny.
Ashley Swift worked her way up the ranks of the American Department of Dragon Affairs and knows the ins and outs of dragon-shifters in her area. And while it’s against the rules and she knows it, Ashley is drawn to PineRock’s clan leader. They’ve danced around each other for years, but Ashley finally found a way to spend an evening with Wes—a charity auction. Nothing in the rules prevents her from bidding, and she wins. One night is all she needs to get him out of her system, or so she tries to tell herself.
As the pair dance around their undeniable attraction to one another, more than Ashley’s job or Wes’s position is at stake. They stumble upon something brewing in Reno and it’s up to them to stop it. Only then can they think of a way to skirt the rules and be together.
NOTE: This is a quick, steamy standalone story about fated mates and sexy dragon-shifters near Lake Tahoe in the USA. You don't have to read all my other dragons books to enjoy this one!
Preorder THE DRAGON'S BIDDER now on Amazon US and see what happens on July 16, 2020. (Not in the USA? Find it on Amazon UK / Amazon AU / Amazon CA / Amazon DE )
The Conquest
Kelderan Runic Warriors #1
Leader of a human colony planet, Taryn Demara has much more on her plate than maintaining peace or ensuring her people have enough to eat. Due to a virus that affects male embryos in the womb, there is a shortage of men. For decades, her people have enticed ships to their planet and tricked the men into staying. However, a ship hasn’t been spotted in eight years. So when the blip finally shows on the radar, Taryn is determined to conquer the newcomers at any cost to ensure her people’s survival.
Prince Kason tro de Vallen needs to find a suitable planet for his people to colonize. The Kelderans are running out of options despite the fact one is staring them in the face—Planet Jasvar. Because a group of Kelderan scientists disappeared there a decade ago never to return, his people dismiss the planet as cursed. But Kason doesn’t believe in curses and takes on the mission to explore the planet to prove it. As his ship approaches Jasvar, a distress signal chimes in and Kason takes a group down to the planet’s surface to explore. What he didn’t expect was for a band of females to try and capture him.
As Taryn and Kason measure up and try to outsmart each other, they soon realize they’ve found their match. The only question is whether they ignore the spark between them and focus on their respective people’s survival or can they find a path where they both succeed?
Order THE CONQUEST on Amazon US now! (Not in the USA? Find it on Amazon UK / Amazon AU / Amazon CA / Amazon DE )
Author’s Note
I hope you enjoyed Gaby and Ryan’s story! By now you’re probably chomping at the bit to read about
Wes and Ashley. Well, good news! Their story is next. The Dragon’s Bidder will be releasing July 16, 2020. (You have jury duty to blame for it not being out in June. Sigh.) I had originally planned only three stories in this series to see how people liked them, mostly because they’re a little over half the length of my other books. However, so far this novella series seems popular! So I might be writing a few more stories. I don’t know if it’ll be about other people on PineRock, or about some of the dragons living on the other three clans near Lake Tahoe. We’ll see what ideas come to mind for me! Regardless, thanks for following this new series of mine. Novellas are a nice break for me from writing longer, more complicated stories. :)
And now I have some people to thank for getting this out into the world:
To Becky Johnson and her team at Hot Tree Editing. I’ve become a better writer because of Becky, and her team helps find extra typos and inconsistencies.
To all my beta readers—Sabrina D., Donna H., Sandy H., and Iliana G., you do an amazing job at finding those lingering typos and minor inconsistencies.
And as always, a huge thank you to you, the reader, for either enjoying my dragons for the first time, or for following me from my longer books to this series. Writing is the best job in the world and it's your support that makes it so I can keep doing it.
Until next time, happy reading!
PS—To keep up-to-date with new releases and other goodies, please join my newsletter here.
Also by Jessie Donovan
Asylums for Magical Threats
Blaze of Secrets (AMT #1)
Frozen Desires (AMT #2)
Shadow of Temptation (AMT #3)
Flare of Promise (AMT #4)
Cascade Shifters
Convincing the Cougar (CS #0.5)
Reclaiming the Wolf (CS #1)
Cougar’s First Christmas (CS #2)
Resisting the Cougar (CS #3)
Kelderan Runic Warriors
The Conquest (KRW #1)
The Barren (KRW #2)
The Heir (KRW #3)
The Forbidden (KRW #4)
The Hidden (KRW #5)
The Survivor / Kajala Mayven (KRW #6 / 2020)
Lochguard Highland Dragons
The Dragon’s Dilemma (LHD #1)
The Dragon Guardian (LHD #2)
The Dragon’s Heart (LHD #3)
The Dragon Warrior (LHD #4)
The Dragon Family (LHD #5)
The Dragon's Discovery (LHD #6)
The Dragon's Pursuit (LHD #7)
The Dragon Collective / Cat & Lachlan (LHD #8 / TBD)
Love in Scotland
Crazy Scottish Love (LiS #1)
Chaotic Scottish Wedding (LiS #2)
Stonefire Dragons
Sacrificed to the Dragon (SD #1)
Seducing the Dragon (SD #2)
Revealing the Dragons (SD #3)
Healed by the Dragon (SD #4)
Reawakening the Dragon (SD #5)
Loved by the Dragon (SD #6)
Surrendering to the Dragon (SD #7)
Cured by the Dragon (SD #8)
Aiding the Dragon (SD #9)
Finding the Dragon (SD #10)
Craved by the Dragon (SD #11)
Persuading the Dragon / Zain and Ivy (SD #12 / May 14, 2020)
Stonefire Dragons Shorts
Meeting the Humans (SDS #1)
The Dragon Camp (SDS #2)
The Dragon Play (SDS #3)
Stonefire Dragons Universe
Winning Skyhunter (SDU #1)
Transforming Snowridge (SDU #2)
Tahoe Dragon Mates
The Dragon's Choice (TDM #1)
The Dragon's Need (TDM #2)
The Dragon's Bidder (TDM #3 / July 16, 2020)
WRITING AS LIZZIE ENGLAND
Her Fantasy
Holt: The CEO
Callan: The Highlander
Adam: The Duke
Gabe: The Rock Star
About the Author
Jessie Donovan has sold over half a million books, has given away hundreds of thousands more to readers for free, and has even hit the NY Times and USA Today bestseller lists. She is best known for her dragon-shifter series, but also writes about elemental magic users, alien warriors, and even has a crazy romantic comedy series set in Scotland. When not reading a book, attempting to tame her yard, or traipsing around some foreign country on a shoestring, she can often be found interacting with her readers on Facebook. She lives near Seattle, where, yes, it rains a lot but it also makes everything green.
Visit her website at: www.JessieDonovan.com
This book is a work of fiction. Names, characters, places, and incidents are either the product of the writer’s imagination or are used fictitiously, and any resemblance to actual persons, living or dead, business establishments, events, or locales is entirely coincidental.
The Dragon's Need
Copyright © 2020 Laura Hoak-Kagey
Mythical Lake Press, LLC
First Digital Edition
All rights reserved. This book or any portion thereof may not be reproduced or used in any manner without the express written permission of the author except for the use of brief quotations in a book review.
Cover Art by Laura Hoak-Kagey of Mythical Lake Design
ISBN: 978-1944776053
The Dragon's Need (Tahoe Dragon Mates Book 2) Page 11
