by Cecilia Lane
Burning for the Dragon
Book One: Fated Hearts Club
Cecilia Lane
Copyright © 2016 by Cecilia Lane
All rights reserved. No part of this publication may be reproduced, distributed, or transmitted in any form or by any means, including photocopying, recording, or other electronic or mechanical methods, without the prior written permission of the publisher, except in the case of brief quotations embodied in critical reviews and certain other noncommercial uses permitted by copyright law.
This is a work of fiction. Names, characters, businesses, places, events and incidents are either the products of the author’s imagination or used in a fictitious manner. Any resemblance to actual persons, living or dead, or actual events is purely coincidental.
Burning for the Dragon: Fated Hearts Club #1 by Cecilia Lane August 2016
Table of Contents
Chapter One
Chapter Two
Chapter Three
Chapter Four
Chapter Five
Chapter Six
Chapter Seven
Chapter Eight
Chapter Nine
Chapter Ten
After
About the Author
Burning for the Dragon: Fated Hearts Club #1
Has fate given them everything only to cheat them of their happy ending?
A reluctant ruler...
When his brother is killed by a dragon slayer, Luca de Rege becomes the unexpected heir to the Dragon Throne. Used to answering only to himself, he’s now responsible for finding a mate and ensuring that the rapidly-dwindling dragon shifter population doesn’t go extinct. He doesn’t have high hopes for his visit to the Fated Hearts Club… until he spots the curvy temptation sitting at the bar.
A woman alone...
After a shattering betrayal, Penelope Minett has given up on love. Though a friend talks her into attending an event at the Fated Hearts Club, she’s resigned to a life of solitude. The last thing she expects is for an impossibly sexy, irresistibly charming billionaire to sweep her off her feet.
A desperate attack...
Just as her defenses start to melt in response to his fiery desire, a threat from Luca’s past takes aim at the throne by targeting Penelope. He’ll stop at nothing to rescue her and claim his mate -- but will he be in time to stop a cruel, relentless enemy from destroying their future?
***
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Chapter One
Luca knew he wasn’t alone as soon as he turned the key in his door lock. The deep, piney scent of Carson filled his nose. The scent became stronger as he entered his penthouse apartment.
“All hail the king!” Carson rumbled from the living room.
“Not yet. Heir apparent.” Luca dropped his bag to the floor and let the heavy wood door close behind him.
Friends for years, he hadn’t asked Carson to check in on his penthouse while he was away, but the bear did it anyways. Luca’s nostrils flared as he caught the scent of freshly seared steak and the particularly hoppy beer the man preferred. He’d make some woman very happy one day, if he ever decided to settle down.
The thought of mates set Luca’s jaw. He needed to find a mate now. Yesterday, if his parents had their way. He resisted the urge to rub a hand over his face.
As the new heir to the Dragon Throne, Luca de Rege was responsible for furthering his family line. Oh, he’d need to ensure the safety of the remaining dragons of the world and settle any disputes between them, as well. But his parents, the current Dragon King and Consort, had made it utterly clear that his primary concern was finding his own dragon consort.
Luca pushed away the slowly burning anger in his chest. Once he passed the hall closet, the apartment opened up to him. The shiny, modern kitchen occupied a corner of the open space. Carson lounged on the large, heavy couch stationed in front of the wall-mounted television and stuffed another big bite of steak into his mouth. He reached forward and turned down the sports game he watched.
“How’d the funeral go? There’s another if you want it.” He pointed his knife at the steak he was devouring.
“Oh, about as well as it could. You should have come. Dragon funerals certainly rival those Viking rip-offs you bears hold.”
Luca went to the kitchen. As much as his stomach rumbled at the smell of the steak, he didn’t want to eat. He pulled open the fridge and grabbed one of Carson’s beers after he saw the empty whiskey bottle sitting next to the sink. Damn. He should have remembered to visit the liquor store on the way back.
“Hey now,” Carson rumbled and frowned as Luca settled in at the other end of the couch. “We hold to our traditions. Damn, Luca. You look-a like shit.” He grinned at the wordplay on Luca’s name.
“Ha ha. You should do stand up.” Luca didn’t have the energy to manage a convincing glare. He knew Carson was right. He didn’t need to look in the mirror to know there were dark bags under his eyes and he could desperately use a haircut and beard trim. He’d been in a rush to arrive for his brother’s funeral, then in a bigger hurry to leave as soon as possible.
“So, what happens now that you’re the head dragon?”
Luca’s inner dragon wanted to breathe a stream of fire and show the little bear what would happen to any who questioned him, but Luca held the beast in check. It was raw and injured after the passing of Leo, but Luca couldn’t blame Carson for being curious. Dragons were secretive by nature. No one wanted to share their lair and the treasures within, and the easiest way to keep safe was to keep quiet. Only in recent years had dragons revealed themselves to other shifters, let alone the humans of the world.
“I need a mate, for starters. My parents won’t abdicate before I have a consort at my side.”
“Well, that solves everything. Just don’t find one. You’re all basically immortal, aren’t you?”
“Not quite. Long-lived enough that it seems that way. I doubt they’ll accept anything but my full effort in this.” Luca took a swig of the beer. He enjoyed a thick stout if he couldn’t have a whiskey, but Carson’s drink would do in a pinch. He wanted to completely obliterate all thought for the night. Surprisingly, his dragon didn’t object.
“Besides, with Leo gone, it falls on me to lead. There are so few of us left, but they deserve to have a strong leader. You don’t want rogue dragons terrorizing the countryside.”
“True. We might need to bring back mounted knights and dragon slayers.”
Luca’s dragon roared back to life, and he only just kept control over the beast. He soothed it as best he could, stroking his mind’s energy down the broad, scaled nose he saw in his head. There was no way Carson would know how Leo died, he told the great animal.
Carson’s eyes flicked to Luca’s hands tipped with the beginnings of black claws and wisely decided to change the topic. He shot Luca a grin. “So the great, accountable to none, Luca de Rege is brought down by the greatest threat any man faces: his own parents.”
“I didn’t think it’d happen so soon. I knew they’d insist I start having a bigger role in the politicking, but I didn’t think they’d pull me aside at the damn funeral and insist upon it.” He hardly had a chance to mourn his brother before his responsibilities started showing themselves. If he wasn’t dodging his parents' insistence to fur
ther the dragon line, he was extricating himself from the arms of the courtiers who wanted to offer themselves to him.
Then there was Alexa… The tall, darkly beautiful woman had kept her distance, for which he was thankful. They’d been lovers for a time, until it became clear she was only interested in him for his family connection. One too many comments of how he’d be perfect to rule had killed any interest in her. Of all the women to throw themselves at him, he’d suspected she would be the first in line. Her distance made his dragon uneasy.
“Honestly, I wish we had it easy like you bears. We need our mated connection to have children.”
Carson’s eyes lit up and he shrugged. “Maybe it’s for the best, you know? You lot would take over the world. We can handle only so much fire-breathing.”
Luca let a low growl rumble in his chest. Twin lines of smoke exited his nose in preparation for a little more fire breathing.
“Oh, stop it. You know I’m joking. But hey, I have a solution for you. Why don’t you hit up the Fated Hearts Club?”
Luca rolled his eyes. “That meat market? No, thank you.”
He’d heard of the place before and immediately categorized it as something he would never be interested in visiting. Women signed up to be paraded around shifters rich enough to afford the membership price tag. The club operated all over the world to give their members an opportunity to find their mates in all sorts of locations.
“Think of it like speed dating.”
“That sounds even worse. I’ll find my mate on my own.”
Carson finished his beer with a final swig. “This is easier, my friend. The women already know you’re of the shifter kind, so there’s no chance of them running when you have to get a little furry. Or scaly, in your case.”
He padded to the breakfast bar and pulled a laptop from his computer bag. He returned to the couch after grabbing two new bottles. Luca took the offered bottle and waited while Carson opened the shell and typed something into his browser.
“Here, these are the beauties signed up for the next event.”
“You don’t really go to these, do you?”
Carson snorted. “Of course I do. They know we’re looking for our mates. What’s the harm of a little fun while we’re on the hunt?”
Luca shrugged and took a closer look at the women smiling from their profile pictures. Most were the tall and skinny models that always went after the rich bachelors he ran with, but there were a few that caught his eye. Curves. That’s what he wanted. He liked a little bit of something extra to hold onto at night.
The world knew about shifters in the general sense. But there would always be those who feared anything different from themselves, and dragons were no strangers to hatred. It was disappointing to finally trust someone enough to reveal his second nature, only to see her run with fear on her face and a scream on her lips.
The threat of his parents arranging his future partner still rang loudly in his ears. He was not about to tie himself to someone he’d never met, or worse, someone from the small court he grew up around. He may be forced to finally settle down, but he’d do it on his own terms.
He doubted he’d find his mate at the Fated Hearts Club, despite the cutesy logo promising to match him with someone. But he needed to start looking. He nodded to Carson. “Okay, sign me up.”
***
Penelope eyed the dresses hanging on the rack with trepidation. They were the best offerings Vera had in her closet, and she had to admit they were all beautiful. Floor length options were displayed on one end and the dresses got progressively shorter toward the opposite side. But none screamed Penelope Minett.
Penelope was perfectly happy in her status as a future crazy cat lady. After a series of breakups ending in increasingly devastating ways, she was done with men and love. She was happy to work her office job. Hopping into her pajamas as soon as the door closed behind her took away any stress and worry over what to wear for a dinner date. She just needed to start collecting unwanted kitties, and she’d be set.
“Don’t you give me that look,” Vera snapped.
Penelope instantly widened her eyes and plastered on her best innocent expression. “I didn’t give you any look!”
“You did! You gave the look that said you’d pick out a dress and not leave. Well, too bad. I’ll escort you through the club door if I must.” Vera put her hands on her hips and stared her down.
Penelope groaned and flung herself back on the bed like a sulky teenager. Vera had it in her mind that she could drag Penny out to a fancy new club just because there’d be some sexy shifters to ogle. Never mind that her last boyfriend had been caught between the legs of a woman that grew fangs as long as her hand when Penelope raised an objection.
Too bad it’d been at her dream job. She turned in her notice that same day and kissed her personal assistant job goodbye. She certainly wasn’t going to stick around and make dinner plans and hotel arrangements for her boss to bang her ex. Now she worked as a receptionist for a travel agency and barely made enough to afford her quickly acquired studio apartment.
Still, it was better than moving back in with her parents. She didn’t want to give up the city life for cow pies and sunrise to sunset farm work. She liked her work hours steady and not dictated by the weather. And her horrible stepmother… Penelope shuddered. The woman was hell in high heels and expected Penny to carry the weight of her and her stepsisters. No, she was far happier living it rough in the city than back home.
“You’ve moped for far too long over that asshole. It’s time to go out and have some fun, Penny.” Vera took a seat next to her and pat her leg.
“No. Just leave me here. I have some frozen lasagna calling my name.” She smiled weakly.
“First off, ew. Learn to cook it yourself. Better yet, baked ziti is easier. Second, I promise you’ll have a good time.”
Penelope rolled her eyes. “You can’t possibly know that.”
“What is there not to love about a bunch of guys eyeing you to see if you’re their destined soul mate? Oh, and did I mention the open bar?”
“Yes, you lush. But they’re all shifters, aren’t they?” She covered her stomach with her hands to stop the fluttering within.
Shifters were new and exotic. What started as whispered rumors turned into a full-blown press conference and demonstration on television. Nearly everyone in the world knew they existed, even if they didn’t know if the bagger at the grocery store had a hidden furry side. There were those that wished they would vanish and leave the world to regular humans, but Penelope was fascinated by their existence. If shifters existed in the world, what else could be waiting to crawl from under the bed?
For a lonely former farm girl, they were exactly the type of excitement she craved. She knew they were just like regular humans and had all the potential flaws, but Vera let slip that those who found their soul mates were immensely loyal. Not worrying about a cheater would be a breath of fresh air in the stinking pit of betrayal she’d found herself in time and again.
“Just because Little Miss Furface was all up in your man’s business, doesn’t mean you should write them all off. You know what’s out there. Like, fur real.”
Penelope threw a pillow at her.
“Okay, okay, no puns.” Vera laughed. “But you’ve had a close encounter of the furry kind and got zilch out of it. Why not go experience it a little?”
The idea of a sexy man with an irrefutable wild side appealed to her. It didn’t hurt to imagine her faceless beau taking control of her. She certainly wouldn’t mind someone who was a little more vocal about their wants and needs. Her body warmed at the thought of someone caring for what she wanted, instead of just preferring her to stay still until they were finished.
Maybe, just maybe, and she couldn’t stress the just enough, going to the Fated Hearts Club wouldn’t be a horrible night.
“Besides, I’ve found the best way to get over someone is to get under someone.”
Penny rolled her ey
es again. Vera had the unique ability to be completely obnoxious and enjoyable at the same time. “You’d make the worst man, you know that?”
“Oh, totally. I’d be plowing chicks and talking about my huge dong all day long. As it stands, I keep being told it isn’t polite to talk about such things.” Vera sighed as if she’d experienced the worst thing in the world and then that thing killed her beloved grandmother.
“I thought they were all looking for their one and only. I don’t know if I’m ready to jump right into that.”
Vera waved off her concerns. “They’re looking, but it’s just like dating. Just because you’re awaiting your entree doesn’t mean you can’t have an appetizer before it arrives.”
Penny let a bit of Vera’s confidence rub off on her. Her friend was right; it’d been far too long that she’d been alone. “So I need to go find someone for a hookup?”
“You’re fucking for the good of girlkind.” She hushed her voice and leaned in conspiratorially. “I hear shifters are packing down under.”
“As usual, Vera, your ladylike behavior is to be commended.”
Vera winked and turned back to the dresses. “Why be a lady when being honest is so much better? Now, what dress do you want?”
“I don’t know… Will they even fit me?”
“Will they even fit? Will they even fit? My God, Penny! You’re practically the same size as I am, just a little shorter. But that’s why God made hooker heels.”
Penelope chewed on her lip and eyed the dresses again. On top of her string of failed romances, she’d been hitting the ice cream cartons pretty hard. She’d been on the thicker side since she stopped bothering with the latest fad diets and was generally at ease with her appearance. But the Fated Hearts Club was high end, judging from the chiffon and silk Vera had picked out. In her experience, those men wanted stick thin models and she was nowhere close.