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  Praise for Michele Bardsley’s

  Broken Heart Novels

  Must Love Lycans

  “With complex characters, outrageously delicious sex scenes, a strong story arc, and fast-paced writing, Bardsley cements her position as a solid author of complex, funny, and satisfyingly relatable paranormal romance.”

  —Publishers Weekly

  “Must Love Lycans is a must read for anyone who loves sexy werewolves, spunky heroines, and hilarious situations.”

  —Fresh Fiction

  “A fabulous, joyful, and often laugh-out-loud trip to Broken Heart.”

  —Smexy Books Romance Reviews

  “Ms. Bardsley has penned a fun novel with an emotional heart.”

  —Love to Read for Fun

  “Laugh-out-loud funny and filled with action and plenty of sensual heat, Must Love Lycans is a worthy addition to the series and it will be residing on my keeper shelf with the rest of the Broken Heart crew.”

  —The Romance Dish

  Cross Your Heart

  “Bardsley’s gift for humor and passion is a reader’s delight. Her newest hero is a sexy and irreverent charmer. . . . If you’re in need of a mood elevator, this is just what the doctor ordered!”

  —Romantic Times

  “This story more than keeps the action flowing. Off-the-wall humor, mystery, and a touch of danger add extra zing to Bardsley’s latest paranormal, and fans will be delighted.”

  —Library Journal

  “Another grab-you-by-the-throat, laugh-out-loud addition to the Broken Heart series. . . . If you thought the inhabitants of Broken Heart were up against some crazy evil before, you haven’t seen anything yet.”

  —Fresh Fiction

  “Bardsley never ceases to amaze us with her suspense and quick-witted humor. Add in on top of that the attention to detail and the hot, sizzling romance and you will fall in love with this series.”

  —Night Owl Romance

  Come Hell or High Water

  “The action and humor are bountiful. Tremendous fun as always!”

  —Romantic Times (4½ stars)

  “If you are new to the series or a frequent visitor to the paranormal haven in Oklahoma, this is a fun read.”

  —The Romance Studio

  “I love paranormal novels and I believe that Michele Bardsley’s Broken Heart series are some of the best there are.”

  —Fresh Fiction

  “Bardsley has brought us another amazing story . . . [with] endless wit and humor. As always, I will add this to my ever-growing keeper shelf to read over and over again.”

  —Night Owl Romance

  Over My Dead Body

  “Combining humor with romance and a serial killer mystery, the return to the center of vampire activity . . . is a fun lighthearted tale.”

  —The Best Reviews

  “I fell into this story hook, line, and sinker. I just couldn’t put it down. . . . It has everything to bring a smile to your face: vampires, werewolves, pixies, dragons, and more.”

  —Publishers Weekly

  “Clever, action-packed, and sensual, Over My Dead Body is a helluva page turner that’s not to be missed!”

  — Romance Novel TV

  “A great paranormal romance that I would definitely recommend to readers who enjoy a fast-paced story that will leave them guessing until the end.”

  —Fresh Fiction

  Wait Till Your Vampire Gets Home

  “Has action aplenty and a free-spirited, wittily sarcastic heroine who will delight fans.”

  —Booklist

  “Bardsley has one of the most entertaining series on the market. The humor and wackiness keep hitting the sweet spot. Add Bardsley to your auto-buy list!”

  —Romantic Times (top pick, 4½ stars)

  “Michele Bardsley’s latest installment in the Broken Heart series is just as hard to put down as the ones before.”

  —Bitten by Books

  Because Your Vampire Said So

  “Lively, sexy, out-of-this-world—as well as in it—fun! Michele Bardsley’s vampire stories rock!”

  —New York Times bestselling author Carly Phillips

  “Five ribbons! I laughed nonstop from beginning to end. . . . If I could, I’d give this story a higher rating. Five ribbons just doesn’t seem to be enough for this wonderful story!”

  —Romance Junkies

  “Another Broken Heart denizen is here in this newest, hysterically funny first-person romp. The combination of sexy humor, sarcastic wit, and paranormal trauma is unmistakably Bardsley. Grab the popcorn and settle in for a seriously good time!”

  —Romantic Times

  Don’t Talk Back to Your Vampire

  “Cutting-edge humor and a raw, seductive hero make Don’t Talk Back to Your Vampire a yummylicious treat!”

  —Dakota Cassidy, author of Burning Down the Spouse

  “A fabulous combination of vampire lore, parental angst, romance, and mystery. I loved this book!”

  —Jackie Kessler, author of Hotter than Hell

  “All I can say is wow! I was totally immersed in this story to the point that I tuned everything and everybody out the whole entire evening. Now, that’s what I call a good book. Michele can’t write the next one fast enough for me!”

  —The Best Reviews

  “A winning follow-up to I’m the Vampire, That’s Why filled with humor, supernatural romance, and truly evil villains.”

  —Booklist

  I’m the Vampire, That’s Why

  “From the first sentence, Michele grabbed me and didn’t let me go! A vampire mom? PTA meetings? A sulky teenager? Throw in a gorgeous, ridiculously hot hero and you’ve got the paranormal romance of the year. Get this one now.”

  —MaryJanice Davidson

  “Hot, hilarious, one helluva ride . . . Michele Bardsley weaves a sexily delicious tale spun from the heart.”

  —L. A. Banks

  “Michele Bardsley has penned the funniest, quirkiest, coolest vampire tale you’ll ever read. It’s hot and funny and sad and wonderful, the kind of story you can’t put down and won’t forget. Definitely one for the keeper shelf.”

  —Kate Douglas

  ALSO BY MICHELE BARDSLEY

  The Broken Heart Series

  Must Love Lycans

  Cross Your Heart

  Come Hell or High Water

  Over My Dead Body

  Because Your Vampire Said So

  Wait till Your Vampire Gets Home

  Don’t Talk Back to Your Vampire

  I’m the Vampire, That’s Why

  The Wizards of Nevermore Series

  Now or Never

  Never Again

  Only Lycans Need Apply

  A Broken Heart Novel

  MICHELE BARDSLEY

  SIGNET ECLIPSE

  Published by the Penguin Group

  Penguin Group (USA) Inc., 375 Hudson Street,

  New York, New York 10014, USA

  USA / Canada / UK / Ireland / Australia / New Zealand / India / South Africa / China

  Penguin Books Ltd., Registered Offices: 80 Strand, London WC2R 0RL, England

  For more information about the Penguin Group visit penguin.com.

  First published by Signet Eclipse, an imprint of New American Library, a division of Penguin Group (USA) Inc.

  First Printing, April 2013

  Copyright © Michele Bardsley, 2013

  Excerpt from I’m the Vampire, That’s Why copyright © Michele Bardsley, 2006

  ll rights reserved. No part of this book may be reproduced, scanned, or distributed in any printed or electronic form without permission. Please do not participate in or encourage piracy of copyrighted materials in violation of the author’
s rights. Purchase only authorized editions.

  SIGNET ECLIPSE and logo are trademarks of Penguin Group (USA) Inc.

  ISBN 978-1-101-59957-0

  PUBLISHER’S NOTE

  This is a work of fiction. Names, characters, places, and incidents either are the product of the author’s imagination or are used fictitiously, and any resemblance to actual persons, living or dead, business establishments, events, or locales is entirely coincidental.

  The publisher does not have any control over and does not assume any responsibility for author or third-party Web sites or their content.

  To my Viking,

  I love you!

  To Kerry, Jesse, and Team NAL,

  thank you, thank you, thank you!

  And to Stephanie Kip Rostan,

  you really are Agent Awesome. I heart you so much!

  And also, this is for Nia Shay (http://cheznia.com), because she is the inspiration for Dove.

  ACKNOWLEDGMENTS

  All hail the Viking, who is the best hand-holding, pep-talking, hug-giving, praise-delivering man ever. Thank you for all that you do, babe. I love you.

  Stephanie Kip Rostan, Monika Verma, and everyone at Levine Greenberg Literary Agency are worth their weights in gold. And chocolate. And awesomeness.

  I owe a lifetime supply of warm, fuzzy hugs (and booze, lots of booze) to Kerry Donovan, Jesse Feldman, and all those stalwart, patient souls who work on Team NAL. Thank you, thank you, and . . . thank you!

  I also wanted to mention Wendy Bocock. Because Wendy Bocock (who is not named Jennifer, in case you were wondering . . . and I called her that forever because I really did think she and Mindy Fletcher and Amanda Fenley were all named Jennifer), Mindy and Amanda and Stephanie and the real Jennifer and Kelley Hartsell and Felicia Sparks are made of awesome, especially when imbibing booze at a Greek restaurant. We tend to scare the other patrons there every time with our conversations, which inevitably turn to erotica. Heh. Oh, and I just wanted to say again . . . WENDY BOCOCK.

  I heart my Minions! Thank you to everyone who is on my list and on my social networks. And thank you to all the readers who take the time to e-mail me. I read all my e-mails, every single one, and even though I cannot respond to them all, please know your stories, your comments, your criticisms, and your praise are all consumed with appreciation. I get to write because you continue to read my work . . . and I’m very grateful for the opportunity to keep telling stories!

  Contents

  COVER

  PRAISE FOR MICHELE BARDSLEY

  ALSO BY MICHELE BARDSLEY

  TITLE PAGE

  COPYRIGHT

  DEDICATION

  ACKNOWLEDGMENTS

  EPIGRAPH

  Ruadan the First

  Legends of the Lycans

  Prologue

  Chapter 1: Moira

  Chapter 2: Dove

  Chapter 3: Drake

  Chapter 4: Moira

  Chapter 5

  Chapter 6

  Chapter 7: Drake

  Chapter 8: oira

  Chapter 9: Dove

  Chapter 10: Drake

  Chapter 11: Moira

  Chapter 12

  Chapter 13

  Chapter 14

  Chapter 15: Dove

  Chapter 16

  Chapter 17

  Chapter 18

  Chapter 19

  Chapter 20: Dove

  Chapter 21: Moira

  Chapter 22

  Chapter 23

  Chapter 24

  Chapter 25

  Chapter 26

  Chapter 27

  Chapter 28

  Epilogue

  THE BROKEN HEART TURN-BLOODS

  GLOSSARY 1

  GLOSSARY 2

  Extract from I’m The Vampire, That’s Why

  Honestly, I think the world’s going to end bloody. But it doesn’t mean we shouldn’t fight. We do have choices. I choose to go down swingin’.

  —Dean Winchester, “Jus in Bello”

  Ruadan the First

  Once there was a great warrior-magician whose name was Ruadan. He was the son of magician-healer Brigid and warrior-prince Bres.

  Many believed Bres would bring peace to the troubled nations of Fomhoire and Tuatha de Danann. When he became of age, he married Brigid to cement his bond with the Tuatha de Danann. In time, he was made king of Eire.

  But Bres was a foolish ruler, ignorant of his people’s suffering and unjust in his judgments. The sons of Tuatha de Danann rose up against him and took his crown, banishing him. In defeat, Bres returned to his father’s kingdom.

  Bres was too prideful to turn away from the dishonor shown to him by the Tuatha de Danann, no matter how well deserved. He vowed to take back what had been taken from him and to once again rule Eire.

  Brigid wanted peace. Without her husband’s knowledge, she sought her mother’s counsel. The Morrigu foresaw the future and told her daughter the truth: The Tuatha de Danann would triumph over the Fomhoire, but not before Brigid lost her husband and their sons, Ruadan, Iuchar, and Uar.

  The Tuatha de Danann had a magical well that instantly healed their warriors so long as they had not suffered a mortal blow. Created by a goldsmith named Goibniu, the well was safeguarded by spells and men alike. “Kill the builder of the well,” said Bres to his sons, “and destroy its magic . . . and the Tuatha de Danann will fall.”

  So it came to pass that Ruadan’s wife, Aine, bore twin boys, Padriag and Lorcan. Satisfied that his family was safe, Ruadan and his brothers sailed to the Isle of Eire to fulfill his father’s plan.

  The brothers used stealth and cunning to break through the defenses of their enemy. While Iuchar and Uar battled those that guarded the well, Ruadan stabbed Goibniu with the fae swords. But Goibniu, though mortally wounded, thrust his spear into Ruadan’s chest and felled the warrior.

  Near death, Ruadan arrived in his homeland and was taken to his mother. She used all her magic and healing arts, but could not save her son. The very same night that Ruadan breathed his last, Brigid received word of the deaths of Iuchar and Uar. She fell to her knees and wailed with such sorrow that anyone who heard the sounds knew a mother’s heart had been torn from her.

  Morrigu heard the keening of her daughter, so she turned into a crow and flew to the land of the Fomhoire. Though the dark queen craved chaos over tranquillity and war over peace, she felt pity for her daughter and offered one chance for Brigid to regain her son.

  “Give Ruadan a cup of my blood, but be warned! When he awakes, he will not live as a man, but as a deamhan fola. He will never again walk in the light. He will not consume food or drink, but shall siphon the blood of the living. Neither will he have breath nor beat of heart. Never will he sire another child by his own seed.”

  “Is there no good to be wrought, then, Mother?”

  “Where there is dark, there is also light. Ruadan will never age. He will heal from even the most grievous of wounds. He will know the thoughts of those he loves. And he will be a warrior none can defeat. He is of the Fomhoire and of the Tuatha de Danann, and those skills and magic will always be his to wield.”

  So blinded by grief was Brigid, so badly did she want her son to live again, that she agreed to her mother’s terms. But still Morrigu was not satisfied.

  “Should Ruadan drain a man and replenish him with tainted blood, he shall Turn. Your son will create others and he will rule a master race long after all the ones you know and love turn to dust and ash. Even knowing this, will you still give him my blood to drink?”

  And again Brigid agreed without hesitation. Morrigu cut her wrist and bled into a silver goblet. Brigid lifted her son’s head, opened his mouth, and poured every drop of her mother’s blood into him.

  When Ruadan awoke, he was deamhan fola.

  Bres, devastated by the loss of his sons, went himself to the Isle of Eire to wreak vengeance on his enemy, but he, too, was killed. Finally, the Tuatha de Danann triumphed over the Fomhoire, and there came to pass an uneasy
peace between their peoples.

  But Aine was frightened of the creature her husband had become and she refuted him, calling him demon and eater of flesh. He wished only happiness for his family, and so he bartered with Aine. If she returned with his mother to the Isle of Eire and raised their sons as Tuatha de Danann, he would leave them alone.

  For twenty-five years, Ruadan wandered the world. He made six others of his kind. And then, because he longed to see his sons, Ruadan broke his promise. He visited his twin boys—and both were killed. He turned them into deamhan fola, and together, they left the Isle of Eire.

  Ruadan summoned his first six deamhan fola to a meeting, and they created the Council of Ancients. They labored to create laws for their people and bound all deamhan fola with magic and oath to uphold these laws. Those who broke faith with their Families faced banishment . . . or death.

  And so it was that Brigid’s son fulfilled her mother’s prophecy.

  He was the creator of the deamhan fola.

  He was ruler over all.

  He was Ruadan the First.

  Legends of the Lycans

  It is said that the Moon Goddess wanted children, so she took her wolf form and mated with an alpha named Tark.

  She gave birth to twins. The firstborn was a wolf of black. And the second, a wolf of gray. Her older son had the ability to turn from human to wolf. However, her second-born could assume his wolf nature only on the night of the full moon.

  The Moon Goddess’s sons grew up, and soon they wanted wives and families. The Goddess offered her firstborn a beautiful female wolf, which she gave the ability to shift into human form. To her second-born, the Goddess gave a beautiful female human. Since her son assumed his wolf form only during the full moon, she gave his mate the same ability.

  And so some lycanthropes are full-bloods, shifting whenever they need to, and others are like the Roma, shifting only on the full moon.

  This is the story told for generations from father to son, mother to daughter, of the lycanthrope heritage.

  It is, however, a lie.