Showing results by narrator "Laura Peterson" in All Categories

This gripping anthology gathers classic American short fiction where deception is an art, truth is perilous, and crime often wears a human smile. From a real-life axe murder on a lonely New England island to calculated impostures, whispered rumors, political terror, and crimes born of obsession, these stories explore the dangerous motives that surface when masks begin to slip.

When the widow Tessa Mason drives to a werewolf territory in Virginia to attend her estranged twin brother’s wedding, she expects to meet the bride’s family. What she doesn’t expect is that her new brothers-in-law, Logan and Jacob, will claim her as their fated mate. She’s not interested, but they don’t care about that. They want her as their mate, and they’re going to have her, no matter the cost. After her brother’s betrayal leaves her defenseless, the twins use it to their advantage.

For a thousand years, the two most powerful families in the world of witchcraft have been at war. To end the violence once and for all, they arrange a union between their children, Tessa and Rafik. At a dinner party meant to finalize the marriage negotiations, the ancient feud comes to a bloody end. Barely escaping, Tessa is forced into hiding for 10 years. But on her 23rd birthday, she receives an invitation to study with the best potion maker in the world. Ready to start her new life, she goes to England, only to be confronted by the man who deceived her all those years ago.

On a mission to forget her boring life back home, romance author Evelina Morales lives it up while she's away on business. When she meets a man straight from the pages of one of her books, she lets herself get swept up in the magic like those lucky women she writes about. After one steamy night together, she sneaks out at first light.

After losing her husband, Mercy Wolfe runs away from her old life to start over in a small town. The local sheriff keeps Mercy close, his need to protect her bordering on obsession. But that spark between them fizzles as soon as she comes face to face with the man of her dreams.

When Sadie Walsh discovers her husband of 20 years has been unfaithful, she pours herself into her work and swears off love forever. But when her new boss arrives just in time to witness her life fall apart, she finds out there are a few good men left in her world.

Ben Logan woke up in a strange bed with a stab wound in his chest, but no memory of how he got there or what happened to him. Still, the strangest part of it all is that he can no longer shift or communicate with the wolf that lives inside him.

Tessa kept every promise she ever made to the wolf pack she controlled. Protected them from all enemies, seen and unseen. Their children had never known a day of sickness, hunger, or violence. In return, all she demanded was that the barbaric rite of forcible mating be abolished forever. So when Tessa's Lycan-born son violates the one rule that must not be broken, the punishment is swift and severe. But as always, it's the fiery Queen who ends up suffering the most for the sins of the people who claim to love her.

Soon after moving in next door to the Forest Ranger, Hazel Parker discovers that her neighbor is unbelievably handsome and mysterious. But as a woman of mystery herself, she’s not one to judge. Unfortunately, he’s not interested in her. Now, that is something she could blame him for until a not-so-chance encounter changes everything she thought she knew about him.