Trust no one. Hide who I am. Complete the mission. Easy until I meet him.

Evie

When a dying Xurtal princess makes me promise to save her planet, I have no choice but to take her place. Me, a human girl, pretending to be an alien royal. To survive the assassination attempts, I need a bodyguard. Enter Aramon: cocky, infuriating, and scorchingly hot.

He has to pretend to be my mate to protect me. A fake fiancé for a fake princess. What could possibly go wrong?

But the way he looks at me feels anything but fake. And if he discovers my secrets, I’ll lose more than my mission—I might lose him too.

Aramon

Playing bodyguard to a spoiled princess? Not my dream job. But the second I meet Evadne, everything changes. She’s my perfect match, even if this is all supposed to be an act.

I’ve sworn to protect her, and it’s more than duty now. It’s instinct. The deeper we go into this dangerous game, the harder it is to let her go.

She may not trust me, but I’ll prove one thing: this princess is mine, no matter what galaxy-shattering secrets she’s hiding.

Min-Ji knows one thing for certain: Corin, the fierce, inventive Naga warrior, is her mate. So why does he avoid her?

Min-Ji

It's my fault we crashed on this strange, barbaric alien planet. The others might have forgotten for now, but I haven't. Then why does even my supposed mate avoid me?

Corin is smart, brave, and has a heart so big, he takes on far too much to keep our new clan safe. When he goes off on a mission to save our missing friends, I follow him. This is my chance to prove that we belong together, no matter the risk.

Corin

Once, my only goal in life was to protect my friends and uncover relics from the past. Now? The only thing I want is to keep my mate safe, and she does everything in her power to thwart me.

Going on a mission to rescue our friends and defeat an ancient evil is not the time or place to figure this out. But she leaves me no choice—neither does Triff, the little cleaning bot that insists on following me everywhere.

As dangers mount, I'm faced with a choice: Do I fight for our bond and let the passion between us ignite? Or is the greatest danger losing her forever?

Secrets are bad. Murder is worse, and yet… When an assassin rides to my rescue, I can't help but fall for this dark knight.

Lexi

My boss sucks, and when I uncover his embezzling, I know I'm in serious danger. Then Rurick shows up, sexy, with shimmering golden skin and elf-like ears. He takes out my boss like it's nothing, and then he invites me on a wild ride.

Do I trust the assassin with my life? When mobsters put a hit out on me to silence me for what I know. I have no choice. And when passion explodes between us during all the actual explosions, can I trust him with my heart?

Rurick

A job is a job, even if mine takes me to the underbelly of every world I visit. I like the action, the adventure. But this job takes me to the opportunity of a lifetime: my fated mate.

When a mobster pays me to go after her, I know this job is anything but a job. I need to take her from her home and hide her on my ship. Once there, I will never let her go. She's mine, mine to keep, and mine to protect.

This is a standalone novella and part of the Villains Do It Better series. This steamy sci-fi romance features one morally gray assassin, a curious, badass heroine, and a steamy HEA.

Trapped in a terrible situation, I decide to hire a mercenary to help me escape. Pay him? I'm sure we'll figure that out…Rikki I've been kidnapped and auctioned off. I'm not waiting around for my new ‘owner' to do whatever he wants with me. When he leaves me with his guard in a sleazy bar, I see my chance. There's this even more terrifying looking male, horns, glowing blue lines on his skin, and a freaking tail! The glances he gives me leave no room for interpretation. He wants me. I can work with that… When I hear he's a mercenary, I take a gamble, and offer him the sweetest of payment if he helps me escape. Once he has me alone, I soon discover that the price is much steeper than just my body. He might just demand my heart.Thar'oc When I see her, I'm not the only one who stares, but I am the only one who cares. A tiny little human, trapped in a terrible situation. She's all fire, bravado, pale skin, and wild curls. Then she offers me a deal I simply can't refuse. Against the wishes of my friends, the advice of my mentor, and my sanity, I take her. Once I've taken her, I won't let her go. Ever. She'll soon discover that she's mine to protect, to spoil, and to pleasure. Those that seek to steal her from me will learn that nothing gets past a Kertinal in mating rut.

My lab and research are my life until a ruthless royal swoops in to steal me for his own purposes.

Caitlyn

I was one of the lucky ones. That's what I always thought. Abducted but embraced by the Aderians that fanned the flames of my passion as a scientist and a healer. I had a lab Earth-me couldn't even dream of, and if it was a little lonely? What did it matter when I had my research.

Then he happens. Kal. A body like a rock, literally. Wings like a bat, horns, and a lion's tail. He sweeps into my life in the dark of night and steals me like he has every right. His horns are like a crown on his proud head, proclaiming him a king.

His passion stirs my own, but I intend to fight him tooth and nail, and get out of this with my heart in one piece.

Kalzudaud

My heart daughter lies dying after the latest assassination attempt, I refuse to let them steal my throne or the one bright light in my life. Kidnapping the right healer is my only choice. I can be ruthless when I have to be. Heads will roll for this.

Once I have the healer in my control, I quickly discover that I need the tiny, feisty human for far more reasons than I ever imagined. She is my mate, the answer to all my prayers.

Another attempt on my life sends us both into mortal danger, but a Tarkan with a mate to protect is a force to be reckoned with. A King with a mate, a child, and a throne to save? Unstoppable.

Kidnapped, locked up, and then stolen by a ruthless, sexy mercenary.

Harper

Kidnapped from my dorm room. Locked in a vault and left to die. And then? Stolen by a ruthless mercenary who claims I'm his mate. What's a girl supposed to do? Run? Hide? Or surrender to those smoldering looks, the steamy touches, and the sizzling kisses?

When a nasty alien crimelord tries to kidnap and sell me for the information he stored on a chip inside my head. Danger lurks from every corner, and my mercenary might hold the answers, he's certainly devoted to my protection. Like he's devoted to my pleasure

Mitnick

My captain is furious that I stole Harper from a crimelord, then hid her on our ship. She's my mate, I'll do anything, break any rules for her. When they throw me in the brig, I break out. When that crimelord conspires to steal her back, I will kill him.

Harper is mine, and soon she'll know it, and everyone else will too. Then, nothing will stand in my way to see to her every pleasure, to claim her in every way. Heart, body, and soul.

My vacation turns on its head when ancient stones throw me straight into the arms of an Orc.

Hannah

I'm dying, that's what the doctors told me. Visiting my ancestral farm in Ireland is the one thing I still want to do. Well, I get to see green. Lots of it, but not in the way I imagined.

When I touch ancient stones, they send me through a portal and into the arms of a real-life Orc on a flying motorcycle. He's bright, handsome, too young, and oh-so-tempting. But I can't commit to anything but going home when I know I won't last another year.

He doesn't care. He protects me, covets me, temps me. When his whole society conspires to throw me away, he stands by my side.

Blade

My clan wants me to find a mate, and there she is, landing straight in my lap. She's gorgeous and mutinous. She seems to think she's too old for me, but I don't believe that.

I will uncover whatever secrets she hides, the weakness she tries not to show. Even while I endeavor to convince her to stay, to tempt her into my bed.

The overlords are on our tail, eager to throw her off the planet as long as she is unmated. I will dodge them, protect her, and fight them. Nobody takes my mate. She is mine to keep, mine to protect, and mine to heal.