Brandon:

I'm pumped to be one of the first humans to attend a monster university, but a minor, negligible, insignificant issue arises almost immediately: My new roommate wants to drag me to his underground realm and take my soul.

He's a nokk who could almost pass for human, except his webbed fingers and entirely black eyes give him away. In my attempt to befriend him, I give him three drops of my blood, a black animal, and a bottle of vodka (I hear it's a n?kk thing). Which apparently triggers some ancient bonding ritual. My bad.

I must admit I'm into him. Maybe those online tests that say I'm only mostly straight are right. But there are a few hiccups: I can't know his real name. He won't show me his true form. And he's both an omen and a cause of drowning … which is troubling, since he's on the water polo team with me.

Still, something about him calls to me, even if it shouldn't.

The Nokk:

This human is mine.

Stay away from him.

Picking up your favorite adult film star at a bar in Vegas is a bad idea—especially when you wake up the next morning married to him. Ask me how I know.

Before I met Velvet the Cowboy, the public knew me as an innocuous guy who was running for office.

Now I've gone from boring to notorious in twenty-four hours.

The hot stranger's ring on my finger puts a damper on my political ambitions, since his day job isn't voter-friendly. An annulment is a no-go, and a quickie divorce would make me look unreliable.

In any case, when I find out Velvet's dark plans, I know I can't let him out of my sight. Which means I'm taking a gorgeous, 6'6”, slow-talking cowboy home with me to protect him from himself.

Being with him might light my career on fire. I'm just not expecting it to do the same to my heart.

They say revenge is a dish best served cold, but I'm going to do it in silver sequined hot pants and a black leather harness.

To be clear, retribution isn't usually my style—nor is this outfit. But there's only so much I can take.

My ex needs to know how it feels to be cheated on.

So I'm going to get even … by seducing his dad.

Mixed Motives is an 18,000-word short story. It was originally published as part of the Heart2Heart Anthology, volume 7.