Matching Dragons Chinese Zodiac Romance Series Book 6
Read Matching Dragons Chinese Zodiac Romance Series Book 6 Online
Authors: Rachael Slate
Tags: #General Fiction, #Paranormal Romance
Nothing—and no one—will stand in her way
Kadence Thorne will do anything to save her sister, even risk the fury of her seductive new Lotus League partner, Lok. But she didn’t join the secret league of assassins to become a Lotus, and failing the entry test was only the beginning. As punishment, they’re sent to the island of the Eight Immortal, Han Xiangzi. Only through offering the Immortal a trade he can’t resist can she find a cure for her sister. And Lok? Well, he’ll just have to tag along for the ride.
An outcast in one world, a fugitive in the other
Amongst his dragon kin, Lok of the Shenlong Dragons is an azure-scaled beast, capable of manipulating the skies to his every whim. In the human realm, he is Lok Smith, a powerless human who must conceal his true identity at all costs. Falsely accused of murdering his den-mates, Lok has spent the past century searching for their killer—and a way to clear his name. When the Matchmaker offers him her aid in exchange for joining her Lotus League, it’s a chance Lok can’t refuse. Even if it means being paired with a woman as intoxicating as she is infuriating.
Pushed to the edge of passion
Kadence’s search brings Lok dangerously close to exposure. Even worse, there’s a treasure hidden inside Kadence, one that he—and every other dragon—will do anything to possess. When Kadence’s schemes throw his plans off-balance, Lok will have to straddle both worlds and pray they don’t collide.
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REMATCH
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REMATCH
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This book is a work of fiction. Any references to historical events, real people, or real places are used fictitiously. Other names, characters, places, and events are products of the author’s imagination, and any resemblance to actual events, places, or persons, living or dead, is entirely coincidental.
Copyright © 2016 by Rachael Slate
All rights reserved, including the right to reproduce, distribute, or transmit this book or portions thereof in any form whatsoever.
First Edition July 2016
Edited by Kelley Heckart
Cover design by NovelArt Designs
Tribal Artwork by Jeanette Palafox
Formatting by NovelArt Designs
Epub: ISBN 978-1-988396-01-9
Kindle: ISBN 978-1-988396-02-6
For dragons everywhere
Table of Contents
Preview of Book 7, IN WOLF'S CLOTHING
Lotus League Training Facility – undisclosed location
665 days since the first outbreak of the Red Death
Lok was staring. Not polite, stolen glimpses, but outright fucking gawking at her. The long tendrils of her hair flickered beneath the fluorescent lighting while she jabbed her fists into a punching bag. Reds, oranges, and golds sparked like the flames of a greedy fire.
Distraction.
He shook his head and wrenched his gaze aside. This entire situation was a bloody jest. Gripping the puny barbell in his hand, he curled his bicep toward his body.
Pathetic.
After a century of concealing his true nature, he ought to be used to the ruse, but these displays still frustrated him. He could lift every one of these weights, twice over, but doing so was a risk he would never take.
Just like her.
He sniffed the air and her scent carried to him. Sweet, blossomy, and…
hmm
. Not quite human. Clenching his jaw, he forced himself not to study her, not to attempt to discern her nature. Unlike him, she either wasn’t powerful enough to mask her scent, or she didn’t care.
A luxury beyond his reach. What he wouldn’t give to stretch his wings and roam the skies as he used to. Sighing, Lok replaced the barbell and twisted to study their instructor. What a bloody joke. He was in no more need of “training” than a dragon youngling claiming its first kill.
His instincts, his nature, had been bred into him from the moment he’d hatched from his gilded egg. He belonged to the race of Shenlong dragons. Godlike beasts capable of manipulating the weather. Powerful and majestic, and nothing like the pathetic human he portrayed to the world.
A human female, the instructor, stepped into the center of the room. She was pretty, in a girl-next-door fashion, with dark auburn hair and expressive brown eyes. He took in a whiff of her feminine scent. Interesting. Not merely a human, but a Chosen. Snake, if he wasn’t mistaken. The Jade Emperor—the supreme ruler of the heavens—paired the twelve Chosen humans with the spirit animals of the Chinese Zodiac and tasked them with restoring the
yin-yang
balance to the world.
Well, good fucking luck with that. The Red Death—a plague that continued to decimate millions—was just the beginning. A war was brewing between the humans and the supernatural beings of the Jade Emperor’s realms. And Lok was pretty damn sure which side would win.
He planned to be long gone when that happened. Already, several dragon clans had begun their migration. If he hoped to join them…
In the back of the room, the instructor raised her voice at a large male. Lok sniffed. Ox? Well, well, two Chosen in one room. The Matchmaker certainly had her manicured hands everywhere.
Even on me.
Still, her offer wasn’t one he could risk refusing. A century of hiding had brought him no closer to the truth, no closer to clearing his name. Joining her little Lotus League seemed an easy trade.
“No. I love you, Nat.” The big male drew the instructor aside.
This was definitely getting interesting. The other dozen students in the room watched as well, snickering or smirking at the lover’s spat. Including
her
. Lok angled his gaze, peering from beneath the slashes of his hair, toward the flaming-haired female. Like him and the other recruits, she sported the flowering lotus tat on her inner left wrist. No other markings appeared to be inked across her pale, creamy skin. She wasn’t a Chosen. Nor a fox spirit.
Huh.
What the hell was she?
The doors swung open and a familiar clack of heels resonated off the floors. The Matchmaker. He stiffened, but she strolled straight for the sparring couple. The instructor, Nat, rushed to her side, the male trailing.
“I have decided to change the order of your training for this session,” the Matchmaker addressed the trainees. The instructor shuffled through her clipboard, but the Matchmaker continued, “You will be partnered in teams of two. The task is this. Ensure the survival of your partner. Follow me.” She spun on her heel and departed through another set of steel doors toward the back.
The recruits assembled into pairs and filed through the exit. But not the fiery-haired female. She hung back, twisting her fists at her sides. Before he questioned what he was doing, Lok rose and strode toward her. “Guess we’re partners.” Pausing a few feet away, he raked a hand through his hair. “I’m Lok. Smith.”
“Kadence Thorne.” She inclined her head, studying him with sparkling violet eyes, a quirk to her lips likely aimed at his ridiculous name.
Holy hell. She was exquisite. His throat went dry, his muscles tensing. He dragged his hand to grip the back of his neck, fingers aching to stroke her pearlescent skin. The urge to swoop her into his arms, spread his wings, and carry her off to his cave consumed him.
He was staring at her, but hell, only one thought pinged in his mind.
I want her.
***
Kadence narrowed her eyes at the intense man who reached forward to stroke her cheek with the back of his finger like she was his…possession.
Oh hell, no.
She dodged his hand, glowering. “Don’t touch me.” Just because he was sexy as hell didn’t mean she would welcome his groping.
He blinked at her, then at his hand, his thick brows drawing together over blue eyes so dark they were nearly black. “Ah, sorry.” He shoved that large hand through his rugged, black coal locks, swiping them away from his face.
Wow. She swallowed hard and struggled not to gape at this gorgeous male. His ethnicity was hard to pinpoint, but his chiseled cheekbones and broad, strong jaw lent him a timeless air of beauty. At five-nine, she was used to looking most men in the eyes, but she had to tilt her head back pretty far to do that with him. He was wearing the same outfit she was—black short-sleeved shirt and cargo pants, but man, did he fill them out nicely. His biceps were easily as thick as her thighs, yet he’d been lifting one of the lightest barbells. Weird.
Even weirder was how he’d kept casting her sly glances, like she wouldn’t notice him ogling her.
Ugh. Men.
Despite how hot he was, she didn’t have any intention of hooking up with him.
Or anyone.
Not while her sister, Melody, depended on her.
Right.
Kadence squared her shoulders. Her stomach had done a flip-flop when the Matchmaker had announced they’d be doing this in pairs, but after this dude’s unwelcomed leering? Yeah, she’d be more than happy to ditch him.
“Well, come on then,
partner
.” Rolling her eyes, she strolled through the door. Her contact—a shop owner in Hong Kong—had set this up with perfect timing. Ling had one foot in the Jade Emperor’s world and one in the human realm, making her an excellent resource.