Must Love Lycans Read online

  Table of Contents

  Title Page

  Copyright Page

  Dedication

  Acknowledgements

  Chapter 1

  Chapter 2

  Chapter 3

  Chapter 4

  Chapter 5

  Chapter 6

  Chapter 7

  Chapter 8

  Chapter 9

  Chapter 10

  Chapter 11

  Chapter 12

  Chapter 13

  Chapter 14

  Epilogue

  THE BROKEN HEART TURN-BLOODS

  GLOSSARY 1

  GLOSSARY 2

  Teaser chapter

  OTHER BOOKS BY MICHELE BARDSLEY

  Praise for Michele Bardsley’s Broken Heart Series

  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

  Come Hell or High Water

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

  —Romantic Times (4½ stars)

  “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

  “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

  “Michele Bardsley has done it again! This is one of my favorite paranormal series for sheer entertainment value.... 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 autobuy list!”

  —Romantic Times (top pick)

  “Witty. If you like your vampires with a dose of humor, I highly recommend Bardsley’s Broken Heart series.”

  —Romance Novel TV

  “An enjoyable mix of humor and romance . . . fast-paced, steamy, and all-around entertaining.”

  —Darque Reviews

  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

  “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 My Way to Hell

  “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

  “A fun, fun read!”

  —Rosemary Laurey

  “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

  “A marvelous introduction to the world of vampires and werewolves . . . funny and filled with explosive sexual tension.”

  —The Romance Readers Connection

  OTHER BOOKS BY MICHELE BARDSLEY

  Paranormal Romances

  Never Again

  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

  Erotica

  Cupid Inc.

  Fantasyland

  SIGNET ECLIPSE

  Published by New American Library, a division of

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

  New York, New York 10014, USA

  Penguin Group (Canada), 90 Eglinton Avenue East, Suite 700, Toronto, Ontario M4P 2Y3, Canada (a division of Pearson Penguin Canada Inc.) Penguin Books Ltd., 80 Strand, London WC2R 0RL, England

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  Penguin Books Ltd., Registered Offices:

  80 Strand, London WC2R 0RL, England

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

  First Printing, September 2011

  Copyright © Michele Bardsley, 2011 All rights reserved

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

  Without limiting the rights under copyright reserved above, no part of this publication may be reproduced, stored in or introduced into a retrieval system, or transmitted, in any form, or by any means (electronic, mechanical, photocopying, recording, or otherwise), without the prior written permission of both the copyright owner and the above publisher of this book.

  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.

  The scanning, uploading, and distribution of this book via the Internet or via any other means without the permission of the publisher is illegal and punishable by law. Please purchase only authorized electronic editions, and do not participate in or encourage electronic piracy of copyrighted materials. Your support of the author’s rights is appreciated.

  ISBN : 978-1-101-54392-4

  http://us.penguingroup.com

  To Keegan James,

  who changed the world, and our lives, and our hearts,

  and everything

  ACKNOWLEDGMENTS

  I owe a great deal of gratitude (and booze) to author and friend Mark Henry (www.markhenry.us), who briefly redonned his psychotherapist’s hat to answer my questions. All mistakes—and interpretations—are mine. (And yeah, I still think it’s hilarious to diagnose a real werewolf with clinical lycanthropy.)

  I also owe thanks to Jeff Strand (www.jeffstrand.com), creator of one of my all-time favorite characters, Andrew Mayhem. Jeff unknowingly donated his name to Kelsey’s pug puppy. Yes, I often victimize—er, honor—my friends in unique ways. Ahem.

  I’d like to express my appreciation to the usual suspects, who deserve gold medals for all their efforts on my behalf: Stephanie Kip Rostan—aka Agent Awesome—and her sidekick, Monika Verma, and everyone at Levine Greenberg; the goddess of editors, Laura Cifelli, and her assistant, Jesse Feldman (who secretly runs the world and who totally named this book), and the wonderful team at NAL; to my BFFs, whose support and love sustain me; and to the League of Reluctant Adults, who make me laugh every day (whether they mean to or not): www.leagueofreluctantadults.com.

  And finally, I would like to thank my Minions, and all my fans everywhere, for buying my books and thereby contributing to my chocolate fund. I adore you all.

  “Who are YOU?” said the Caterpillar.

  This was not an encouraging opening for a conversation. Alice replied, rather shyly, “I—I hardly know, sir, just at present—at least I know who I WAS when I got up this morning, but I think I must have been changed several times since then.”

  —Alice’s Adventures in Wonderland

  Alice laughed. “There’s no use trying,” she said: “One can’t believe impossible things.”

  “I daresay you haven’t had much practice,” said the Queen. “When I was your age, I always did it for half an hour a day. Why, sometimes I’ve believed as many as six impossible things before breakfast.”

  —Through the Looking Glass

  “But I don’t want to go among mad people,” Alice remarked.

  “Oh, you can’t help that,” said the Cat: “We’re all mad here. I’m mad. You’re mad.”

  “How do you know I’m mad?” said Alice.

  “You must be,” said the Cat, “or you wouldn’t have come here.”

  —Alice’s Adventures in Wonderland

  A NOTE FROM THE AUTHOR

  Three years have passed since Cross Your Heart, which makes it eight years since the Consortium rolled into Broken Heart. Every so often, I think the citizens of Oklahoma’s paranormal community deserve a break from chaos.

  But obviously that break is soooo over.

  Most of the children you met in I’m the Vampire, That’s Why are grown, and should no doubt start having adventures of their own. (Who knows, right? There are still a lot of stories to tell.) The last time you saw Adulfo, he was twelve. And now he’s twenty. Those werewolves grow up so fast!

  Speaking of werewolves, this story is Damian’s. Well, it’s Kelsey and Damian’s. I know a lot of you have been waiting for the crown prince of lycanthropes to get some love. Me, too. I’m very happy that I was finally able to write not only his story, but also to delve more deeply into the world of lycanthropes.

  You should probably know that I’m not a planner. Or a plotter. I don’t actually know what’s going to happen until it happens, and a lot of times I’m just as surprised as you are. For example: When I starting thinking about the kind of heroine that would appeal to Damian, a young psychotherapist empath was not anywhere on that list. Also, once in a while I write something in one book that really screws me up in another, so I have to find ways to explain why I’m undoing or redoing stuff. I should blame the characters in Broken Heart who keep a lot of secrets, even from me.

  I’ve also noticed that I tend to start my Broken Heart novels with the hero naked. No one’s complained, but I really didn’t do it on purpose. (I will from now on, however.)

  Oh, and you probably want to know that Schätzchen is a German endearment that means “little treasure.” You’ll find a couple of glossaries and some other helpful information at the back of the book, so if you wanna thumb through it now—well, okay. I won’t stop you.

  There’s a small mention about the pool at the home of Dr. Stan Michaels and his wife, Linda. If you want to know how they got that particular addition, then you’ll have to read the short story, “Tuesday, the 13th.” It’s included in the free e-book The Adventures of Zombie Larry, which can be downloaded at my Web site: www.michelebardsley.com.

  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 elder 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 a human. 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 the Roma, shifting only during 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.

  We must also consider the unexpected branch of the lycanthrope family tree: the loup de sang.

  In 1807 a small group of loup-garou emigrated from France to the town of Vincennes, the capital city in Indian Territory. Among the newest arrivals was the widow Chantelle Marchand, who was eight months pregnant. She made the long, treacherous journey to the United States to join the pack of her father, Jacques Marchand.

  Not long after Chantelle arrived, a territorial dispute erupted among the loup-garou and the deamhan fola—vampires. The pregnant widow was among the casualties of a short but brutal skirmish. Unfortunately, the vampire who killed her also tried to Turn her.

  As she lay dying, her father delivered triplets: The first was a son, Gabriel, and then a girl, Anise, and another son, Ren—all with the same strange condition. They were alive, but could gain nourishment only from blood. Gabriel was given to a lycan outcast. Anise and Ren were sent to live among the Vedere psychics.

  Marchand’s grandchildren were the first-ever blood-drinking lycanthropes, and it was Marchand who coined the term loup de sang. However, in his diary, he wrote only about the birth of Gabriel. He never mentioned Gabriel’s siblings.

  So for reasons unknown, Marchand lied, too . . .

  Then, years ago, when renowned prophet Astria Vedere was still very young, she made a prophecy:

  A vampire queen shall come forth from the place of broken hearts. The seven powers of the Ancients will be hers to command. She shall bind with the outcast, and with this union, she will save the dual-natured. With her consort, she will rule vampires and lycanthropes as one.

  Alas, this, too, is a lie.

  Well . . . sorta.


  None of these tales include a whisper about the only known royal lycans—the triplet princes of all werewolves who are neither full-bloods nor Roma nor loup de sang.

  The story of their origin is not a lie.

  It’s a secret.

  Chapter 1

  The man was naked.

  I pressed my palms against the reinforced steel door, already on my tippy toes, and peered through the small square window made of shatterproof glass. Beneath the window was a narrow slot that allowed sound to escape, which was the only way to speak to the patient inside. The setup was old-school, and a prime example of the many quirks at the Dante Clinic.

  He paced endlessly, emulating an animal in a cage. It bothered me how close the analogy was to the truth. However, the safety of the staff and the other patients took precedence over his comfort. How soon he got out was entirely up to him . . . and, well, me. I was still getting used to being in charge of the clinic. I’d been given control over an entire building and the people within it after I’d already proven—in public, no less—how incapable I was of controlling myself.