Showing results by narrator "NIck J. Russo" in All Categories

A collection of short stories set in the Mercy Hills Universe. One extra story for each of the first three novels in the series, plus one extra - the story of a rambunctious, kind, and determined alpha shifter from way up north, who we'll be seeing again in a later book.

Elliot McKenzie is the king of reinvention. Five years after losing his job, his lover, and almost going to prison, his self-help program, Charmed Life, is more successful than he'd ever dreamed. He thinks he's put his sordid past firmly behind him, until he starts receiving cryptic threats, and realizes it might not be as over as he'd hoped.

After years of saving every penny, Nathan has finally managed to buy Tsarina, the horse of his dreams, and he's looking forward to a summer of exploring the mountains above Tucker Springs with her. But on their very first ride, a motorcyclist makes a wrong turn, scaring the mare into bolting and leaving Nathan with a broken leg, a broken hand, and a ruined summer. Ryan is a loner and a nomad, content with working odd jobs before moving on to the next town.

Rue's deceased mother kind of "fibbed" about who her real father was. Big time. On her 21st birthday, she learns the truth by way of a $55 million inheritance from a man she never got the chance to know. More shocking? The two famous brothers Rue's been reading about in magazines all her life are suddenly family. Jack and Sean Stone aren't happy to meet their new secret sister. And their mom? She had no idea the nanny and her husband had a little girl, long ago.

Isaiah Nettles wants a chance. A chance to help his family. The prestigious Gage Scholarship will secure his future. He needs this. The competition might be hot, but Darren Gage is a golden child. No way will Isaiah let an entitled rich kid be handed the award. But what if Darren is more than an entitled rich kid? Darren Gage wants to be seen. Seen as more than just his name. The Gage Scholarship will let him shine. He needs this. Sure, Isaiah is insanely sexy - and right to stand up for himself - but he is the competition.

Coury Henderson has wanted to play professional baseball since he threw his first pitch. If he’s drafted, he’s off to Tiny Town, USA, to earn his ticket to the majors. But a freak injury threatens to derail his dream. If that weren’t enough, his graduation is in jeopardy. Physical therapy might solve the first hurdle, but he’ll need a tutor who is aces in science to solve the second.

In this sequel to Dominus, Gaius Fabius Rufus, the victorious general of Rome’s brutal Dacian Wars, finds his loyalties and his affections pulled in different directions. Should he return to Rome and secure his claim to the imperial throne, or remain at his seaside villa and protect his pleasure slave, the fierce Dacian prince, Allerix? Retaliation for the murder of his beloved friend beckons him home, but his desire for justice could put both him and Allerix in mortal danger. As Gaius’s deceptions multiply, another tragedy strikes.

Gaius Fabius knows a healthy son will secure his claim to the throne of Rome, but his devotion to his illegal Dacian pleasure slave, Allerix, could destroy his dreams of supreme power. Determined to solve the mysterious murder of a dear friend, Gaius searches for clues hidden deep in the palace that threaten his future and his family.

A year after his divorce, Shane Andrews isn’t interested in dating - not that he has time, between three kids and a demanding job as a grip. When a windstorm knocks a tree onto one of the Wolf’s Landing soundstages, Shane’s there to help with the mess...and so is firefighter Aaron Tucker. A former smoke jumper, Aaron’s an adrenaline junkie and way too restless and reckless to be relationship material. As far as he’s concerned, monogamy is for penguins, and he’d rather be alone than tied down. Signing up to be a stepparent? No, thank you.

Orris Spencer is an abomination. At least that was what his father said in 1886 before banishing him from their Fifth Avenue mansion and sending him across the continent to Oregon. Now Orris must try to find a place for himself on his brother’s farm. His studies did little to prepare him for pioneer living, and when he’s called on to help protect the livestock from a predator, he’s not at all certain he’s up to the task. Then he meets Henry Bonn, a strange and intriguing man who lives in a cabin in the hills.

August 1939. Roger Miller and Jack O’Brien have been close since childhood. By the time they realize there’s more between them than friendship, Jack is leaving their sleepy Iowa town for college. But they console themselves knowing he’ll be home for Christmas. Right? It is Christmas before they see each other again, but that Christmas comes six years and a world war later. Aged, beaten, and shaken by combat, they’re not the boys they were back then, but their feelings for each other are stronger than ever.

A young girl vanishes in broad daylight on her tenth birthday. Her father, FBI Special Agent Phil Preston of the Child Abduction Rapid Deployment Team, devotes his life to finding her and discovers a pattern in a recent string of abductions. Dr. Les Grant leads a group of graduate students into the Wyoming wilderness in search of an unidentified Native American medicine wheel photographed by an anonymous hiker. Instead, they stumble upon a macabre tableau of suffering.

When Reggie’s garage became part of a popular reality show, business went through the roof. As the show’s lowest-ranking producer, Wes is tasked with proposing a new spin-off show to Reggie. The network is counting on Reggie refusing to sign. But they’re not counting on their messenger falling for the man they’re trying to fire.

Months after being forced to leave his lover and mate Ari Jannsen behind, Hunter Devin settles into his role as enforcer for the newly formed Deagan Clan under the rule of his new alpha and best friend Tristan "Trip" Hagan. Along with Hunter's brother Boone, their nephews, sister, and mother, Hunter finally has the family he's always wanted, but without his little rebel Ari, his heart is incomplete.

Brad "Frat Boy" Feller and Sebastian "Toppy" DeWitt have been together for nine months, and their relationship is as hot as ever. The only cloud Brad sees on their horizon is Sebastian's stress over his thesis. And their uncertain future together after graduation. And how Sebastian sometimes takes Brad for granted. And Sebastian's unwillingness to introduce Brad to his father. Other than that, everything's awesome.

Commitment, loyalty, and strength aren't enough to make Wesley Stone's birth pack accept an Alpha with a physical imperfection, even if it's a meaningless mark. Putting the safety of his pack above his own wellbeing, Wesley trades himself for another Alpha and agrees to mate with a stranger in a mysterious, insular pack. Alphas from Jobe Root's family have led the Red River pack from the first day shifters walked the earth. Now the time has come for Jobe to fulfill his destiny, but to do that, he needs his mate by his side.

Charles Hunter’s team is on a mission to extract an unidentified ATF agent from an undercover job gone wrong. All they’ve got to go on is the rendezvous location — until Charles recognizes the ex he hasn’t seen in years. Their "simple rescue mission" is about to get a lot more complicated.

Luke Emerson is the last person Sebastian Wakefield expects to see strolling into his tattoo shop. But Luke’s not back after four years to take up where they left off. Not even to apologize for the cheating that broke them up. Luke wants a custom tattoo, a memorial for someone known only as "A.J." Much as Seb would love to tell Luke to take this ink and shove it, he’s a professional. Plus, he’s reluctant to admit, he wouldn’t mind getting his hands on Luke again. Even if it’s just business.

Greg Dawson’s not sure which he regrets more - becoming a vampire or becoming a software engineer. Then relief comes from an unexpected source - Zane Webber, the hot programmer Greg’s been fantasizing about for two years. Zane lets him feed, but kind of forgets to mention he’s got some weed in his system. The next thing Greg knows, he’s high as a kite...and he likes it. He wants more. That chemistry draws them back to each other again and again. Except how much of that high is secondhand weed, and how much is the electric and undeniable chemistry between him and Zane?

MA1 Iskander Ayhan's orders are simple: stay with Admiral Dalton's son as his plainclothes bodyguard while he attends university classes. So typical - a high-ranking officer abusing Navy resources for unnecessary security as a status symbol. But it doesn't take long before Iskander realizes he's not really there to protect the kid from benign harassment by homophobic classmates. Behind the piercings, eyeliner, and bad attitude, Troy Dalton is hiding something.