Shadow of Flame Read online

  Shadow Of Flame

  By Caitlyn McFarland

  It’s been two months since Kai Monahan’s life changed forever. Retrieved from a suddenly unsafe Colorado by Rhys and taken to Eryri, the dragons’ home in the South Pacific, she lives a secret existence. Rhys—for all his awe-inspiring power—is afraid to reveal to his people that he’s heartsworn to a human. One he’s quite possibly in love with.

  Kai hasn’t forgotten the terror or pain of the moment Rhys first took control of her mind and her magic, but neither has she forgotten the fire of his kiss. When she’s discovered, dragon politics—not to mention spies and ex-lovers—threaten her growing feelings. Rhys has more enemies than he can guess, and someone close to him is playing right into their hands.

  The war Rhys never wanted is coming. For either of them to survive, Kai must open her mind to him as never before. This time, there will be no turning back.

  Book two of the Dragonsworn trilogy

  98,000 wordss

  Dear Reader,

  I don’t know about you, but I need more hours in my day just so I can get more books read. No matter how much I read, I always feel like the next great book is right around the corner waiting for me, and that there just aren’t enough hours in the day to get to everything I want to read. I love my job, but sometimes I wish I’d win the lottery so I could just spend my days reading.

  This month’s Carina Press releases will have you wishing you could just spend days reading, because it’s an incredible lineup of books from Marie Force, Shannon Stacey, Lisa Marie Rice and so many other talented authors. You won’t want to take a pass on any of them!

  Sam and Nick are back in Marie Force’s romantic suspense Fatal Frenzy. With Inauguration Day fast approaching, Sam’s loyalties are divided between a heartbreaking case at work and her need to support Nick as he takes the oath of office as vice president. You won’t be able to turn the pages fast enough to find out what happens next! Don’t forget, the first seven books in the Fatal series are now available in print, starting with Fatal Affair!

  Shannon Stacey launches a brand-new trilogy this month, and it’s available in print, digital and audio. What do you get when you mix the sexiness of Boston firefighters with Shannon’s trademark humor and romance? In Heat Exchange, the first book in this hot new contemporary romance trilogy, meet Aidan Hunt, one of the men of Boston Fire, and the woman he just can’t stay away from, bro code or no, Lydia Kincaid. Look for Controlled Burn, Rick’s story, in December 2015.

  Love the Men of Midnight series by Lisa Marie Rice? Never picked one up before? Don’t miss this sexy, sexy installment of her cracktastic romantic suspense series. The boy Summer Redding loved and thought dead is back—now he’s a hardened warrior, a man out for revenge, and he’ll fight to the death to protect what is his, and that includes her. Midnight Fire can easily stand alone, but you’ll want to pick up the other books in this series as soon as you turn the last page.

  In another cracktastic read, Caitlin Dufresne swears she doesn’t regret any of the sacrifices she’s made in her ruthless quest to be the best lawyer at her elite Chicago firm, but a one-night stand with the sexy, stubborn IT guy makes her realize she may have been missing out on more than she knew... In Her Defense by Julianna Keyes is a sexy contemporary romance that will hit all the right buttons.

  Also in the sexy contemporary romance category this month is author Jill Sorenson with Shooting Dirty. Seasoned stripper Janelle Parker gets tied up in a dangerously sexy affair with Ace Clemmons, the tattooed criminal who shot her ex. Now she has to deal with both him and his motorcycle club.

  A.M. Arthur’s popular Restoration Series wraps up with another great male/male romance, Taking a Chance. The last thing Ell wants is a broken heart, but that doesn’t stop him lusting after the sexy carpenter working on his kitchen. Auggie can’t stay away from Ell, but intense attraction may not be enough to overcome a secret from their shared past.

  If you read Caitlyn McFarland’s debut dragonshifter romance, Soul of Smoke, you’ll be anxious to get your hands on Shadow of Flame, the second book in her Dragonsworn series. To end a war that has raged for a thousand years, Kai Monahan and Rhys ap Ayen, her shapeshifting dragon mate, must navigate a labyrinthine network of spies, prejudice and divided loyalties—but if they can’t stop denying how much they need each other first, they’ll lose everything to an enemy they never saw coming.

  Maybe mystery is what you’re craving this month? In Cover Story, another intriguing mystery by Brenda Buchanan, Maine newspaper reporter Joe Gale’s vigorous coverage of a murder trial involving a member of a high-profile political family leads to a relentless campaign of intimidation by a shadowy force determined to keep the truth buried.

  Also this month, Dee Carney starts a new paranormal romance series, Fire Creek Shifters. All shifters live with their beasts, but in Taming Her Wolf Chris “Brick” Preston’s is dangerously close to the surface. And it wants Kim Sharpe. Sex keeps the beast sated for now, but unless Kim can help him find a more permanent solution, Brick risks becoming a feral, doomed to be banished—or put down—by his pack.

  With all of these to choose from, you might want to call in sick to work one day. (I’ll write you an editor’s note. I’m sure your boss will accept that, right?)

  Until next month, here’s wishing you a wonderful month of books you love, remember and recommend.

  Happy reading!

  Angela James

  Editorial Director, Carina Press

  Dedication

  For Will.

  Our truth is better than any fiction.

  Contents

  Chapter One

  Chapter Two

  Chapter Three

  Chapter Four

  Chapter Five

  Chapter Six

  Chapter Seven

  Chapter Eight

  Chapter Nine

  Chapter Ten

  Chapter Eleven

  Chapter Twelve

  Chapter Thirteen

  Chapter Fourteen

  Chapter Fifteen

  Chapter Sixteen

  Chapter Seventeen

  Chapter Eighteen

  Chapter Nineteen

  Chapter Twenty

  Chapter Twenty-One

  Chapter Twenty-Two

  Chapter Twenty-Three

  Chapter Twenty-Four

  Chapter Twenty-Five

  Chapter Twenty-Six

  Chapter Twenty-Seven

  Chapter Twenty-Eight

  Chapter Twenty-Nine

  Chapter Thirty

  Chapter Thirty-One

  Chapter Thirty-Two

  Chapter Thirty-Three

  Chapter Thirty-Four

  Chapter Thirty-Five

  Chapter Thirty-Six

  Chapter Thirty-Seven

  Chapter Thirty-Eight

  Excerpt from Soul of Smoke by Caitlyn McFarland

  Author Note

  Acknowledgments

  Also by Caitlyn McFarland

  About the Author

  Chapter One

  Forty-One Days

  Kai folded her arms and balled her hands into fists. I will not set anyone on fire. I will not set anyone on fire...

  Voices buzzed in the air and people pressed in on all sides, vying to place their order at the long, low counter of Rifle’s newest hangout, Caff-Elation. Baristas scurried back and forth, filling cups and pulling gluten-free scones from the glass case displaying baked goods.


  She wished she’d gotten magic that would let her clear a space in the crowded coffee shop. Instead, she kept her hands crammed into her armpits. Not that she actually thought she’d set the place ablaze—not at the moment, anyway. Though she did her best to avoid touching anyone in the throng, she wasn’t annoyed, frustrated or angry, which meant the hurricane of fire magic inside her wasn’t likely to escape.

  It was a good thing her magic wasn’t triggered by horrible, consuming loneliness, or everyone in the place would be doomed.

  Kai gritted her teeth. She’d sworn she wouldn’t think about that. Wouldn’t think about him. Lonely was better than turning over her free will to a guy she couldn’t trust—who had sent her away because of politics—no matter how much the stupid magical bond they shared twisted up her insides so tight she was about to snap like worn-out rope.

  Giving the thoughts a final shove into a dark corner of her mind, Kai raised herself on tiptoe and craned her neck trying to find Juli and Ashem—her best friend and her best friend’s shape-shifting dragon mate. Ashem’s assignment as Kai’s bodyguard meant he didn’t let her out of his sight for longer than the occasional bathroom break, so he was around somewhere.

  Unfortunately, the row of musclebound dudebros behind her were uniformly tall, blocking Kai’s view of the tables scattered at the back of the little shop. At five-two, Kai was lucky if the top of her head came to most guy’s shoulders, even on tiptoe.

  One of the dudebros leered, and Kai pressed her lips together and settled onto flat feet. If she’d known the coffee shop would be like this on a Tuesday afternoon, she never would’ve suggested they come. She and Juli had taken Ashem for a hike at Rifle Falls State Park, and the late November temperatures had left them downright frosty. Well, Juli and Ashem. Not Kai. She didn’t really get cold since heartswearing to a flame-wielding dragon had granted her a personal internal firestorm.

  “Hey!” An unfamiliar male voice cut across the chaos. “Aren’t you that girl who disappeared?”

  The crowd at the counter went quiet. Kai tensed. Being recognized was new, and so far, nothing good had come of it. She turned to face the guy who’d spoken. “I don’t know. I feel pretty present.”

  The man smirked. Or Kai thought he did. It was hard to tell through his fairly spectacular beard, which was a shade darker than his slicked brown hair. He wore a tan sports coat over a sweater and a plaid shirt, and his pants ended a solid two inches above his ankles. He adjusted his thick-rimmed tortoiseshell glasses with one hand and offered her the other. “Jacobsen Starnes Smith. I’m with the Denver Post.”

  “Oh. Hi.” Kai forced her hands more tightly against her sides, her eyes darting around the coffee shop. There had been some national coverage of her disappearance and recovery six weeks ago—especially after Juli went missing and they turned up together. But it had died down within a couple of weeks, and Kai had no idea why someone would want to talk to her about it now. Ashem, where are you? There’s some guy—

  As if from nowhere, a tall, heavily muscled Persian man appeared at her side. The reporter actually stumbled back, bumping into a couple of people. Ashem scowled, his voice a dark, velvety growl. “Can we help you?”

  Kai was no longer crowded. Ashem’s magic—the power to manipulate minds—would actually give him the ability to send the masses scurrying. But he wasn’t using his magic. He was just that scary.

  Smith straightened—which still didn’t make him as tall as Ashem—and tilted his chin up to meet Ashem’s glare. “Who are you?”

  “Can we help you?” Ashem repeated. Slower this time, like Smith might be an idiot.

  Smith’s voice took on a tone both condescending and belligerent. “I just have a few questions for Ms. Monahan.”

  Ashem folded his arms across his chest and fixed the reporter with a golden-eyed glare. “Ms. Monahan doesn’t choose to speak with you.”

  Oh, hell. People were looking. They were supposed to be lying low here. Kai put a hand on Ashem’s arm and tilted her head toward a table near one bare brick wall, where she’d just spotted Juli. So much for hot chocolate. “If we’re going to talk, let’s get out of everyone’s way.”

  Before Ashem could protest, Kai slipped out of the crowd and marched toward the table. Juli, seated against the wall, lifted one perfectly arched brow and mouthed, “Men.”

  Of course, Juli would know exactly what happened thanks to her profound mental bond with Ashem. Though Kai couldn’t imagine it, they were perfectly comfortable living inside each other’s heads.

  They loved each other.

  The loneliness surged, and Kai wrapped her hand around a carabiner clipped to her belt loop and pressed her mind against the mental walls she’d constructed to keep her dragon out.

  Rhys.

  The heat in her hands intensified. Forty-one days—one day shy of six weeks—since she’d seen him. Dark red hair. Fire-blue eyes. Beautiful mouth pulled up in a half smile. Body warm beneath her in a tiny cave while a battle had raged outside.

  Her lungs constricted. In her memory she heard his voice, desperate, pleading. Kai...please.

  If Kai had known she would become heartsworn to him—which gave her magic, extended her life by thousands of years and technically meant she was no longer human—would she have chosen Rhys?

  Weeks away from him had given her perspective. Originally, she’d erected the walls between their minds to keep him from jumping in and taking control again. On the last day they’d spent together, he’d shoved her aside and used their bond to draw so much of her fire magic that it felt like he’d seared her bones and boiled her blood to rusty dust. But he’d done it to save his life, and she’d made peace with that. Despite how complicated things were between them, her relief that he’d lived was beyond words.

  That didn’t mean she trusted him.

  Besides, in what world would the king of dragons have ever chosen her?

  Kai banished the thoughts as she slid into a chair next to Juli. Ashem took the one directly across from her. That left Smith sitting kitty-corner from Kai, or as far away as Ashem could wrangle him without making his machinations obvious. Kai might not have noticed the move if she hadn’t spent two months in Ashem’s constant, paranoid company.

  Juli held out her hand and pitched her voice low enough that it wouldn’t carry above the buzz of conversation. “Juliet King.”

  The reporter shook it, but must have seen Ashem’s expression from one corner of his eye, because it was the briefest handshake Kai had ever witnessed. “Jacobsen Starnes Smith.”

  Juli nodded. “The Denver Post.”

  Smith raised his eyebrows. He had fair skin, a straight nose and a condescending expression. “So you know who I am.”

  Juli gave him a charming smile. “Only since quite recently.”

  “You’re the other girl who disappeared,” Smith said. This time, it wasn’t a question. “You were with the search parties looking for Ms. Monahan, here, and you went missing yourself.”

  Kai and Juli exchanged another glance, and Kai propped her chin in one hand. “What exactly is it you want, Jacobsen Starnes Smith?”

  The smirk Kai had seen earlier lifted one corner of Smith’s mouth. “I want the truth.”

  Kai had to bite the inside of her cheek to prevent a hearty, bitter laugh from escaping her mouth. Smith must have accurately gauged her reaction, however, because he put on a scowl almost as good as Ashem’s. “I am deadly serious, Ms. Monahan. Your disappearance and that of Ms. King cost thousands of man-hours and far more in taxpayer dollars. Tell me, did you really get lost in those mountains? Or was all of this an elaborate yet shoddy attempt at short-lived fame?”

  Kai’s insides burned like she’d swallowed acid and her hand wandered toward the carabiners on her belt loop. “I’m sorry? You think we...what? Staged it or something?”

  Shooti
ng a look at Ashem, she wondered what Jacobsen Starnes Smith would think about dragons.

  Smith leaned forward, and his expression was so eager it was off-putting. “I think there’s more to your story than you two will say.”

  Juli’s lip curled. “Why would we stage a disappearance?”

  Smith narrowed his eyes. “You weren’t hoping for a reality show? A book deal? A little more time in the national spotlight?”

  Dangerous heat prickled in Kai’s hands. “If we wanted that, we’d have agreed to the TV interviews we were offered when we found our way back.”

  “Found your way back? I thought he found you.” Smith jerked a thumb at Ashem, his suspicious gaze landing on Juli. “Convenient that you just happen to move in with the man who ‘rescued you’ in the mountains, Ms. King. Come on. What’s out there? What really happened?”

  “I got lost. Juli got lost. We found each other. Ashem found us. We found our way home. End of story.” Kai suspected the story she, Juli and Ashem had concocted had just enough holes—enough hints at something bigger—to bring Smith sniffing around. This guy had ambition written all over him.

  “Come on.” Smith rolled his eyes. “I’m not stupid enough to believe that. What happened to the injured girl you found? How did you happen to run into Ms. King when none of the people combing the area could find either of you?”

  Ashem shifted, but Kai caught his eye and gave him a slight shake of her head. “How did you find us?”

  Smith ran his fingers over his beard. “I have my sources.”

  Juli snorted and Kai gave a humorless laugh. “Right.” Kai squashed the sneaking suspicion that it had been her mother. They’d been getting along better since Kai had come home, but the woman was constantly nagging her take the attention she was being offered.

  Oh, family. She was pretty sure she’d hate them if she didn’t love them so much.

  “Just tell me what happened in the mountains. What’s up there? Drugs? A sex-trafficking ring?” Smith’s voice was harsh and a little too loud. People were looking.

  “What? No!” Kai heard her carabiner clicking before she realized she was thumbing the metal clip over and over again.