Chapter One

W inter H arbor, M aine

2023

K EIRA SCREAMED IN pain and bolted upright only to discover she wasn't going up in flames and choking on burning, oxygen-deprived smoke but dragging in cool, refreshing air. Out of habit, despite the time of year, she'd left the hotel window open for this very reason, grateful as nausea abated as quickly as it had swelled.

Right on time, her phone rang.

She answered the video call from her best friend, Athena, and managed a wobbly smile. "How do you do that, sweetie?"

"Know when you're waking from one of your nightmares and need some grounding?" Athena issued a warm, comforting smile and shrugged. "Just one of those pesky gifts we don't like talking about, I suppose."

By pesky, she meant side effects of their inner beasts. A part of them they would rather not dwell on too much, and with good reason. After all, she and Athena had met years ago in an online forum for dragons with fire problems. Flaming issues , they liked to joke. Either they hated or loved it a little too much and were considered unstable by the rest of their kind.

In Keira's case, she was infatuated with putting out fires, so she became a firefighter. A bit of a no-no for their breed as they took pride in creating fire, not dousing it. Either way, she had only ever shifted once when she was younger and hated it.

Especially the fire-breathing part.

"Ah, yes, pesky gifts," she muttered, yawning. "I'm not sure I have any of those."

"Of course you do." Athena's brilliant blue eyes were more prominent than usual behind her thick corrective lenses as she pushed her black horn-rimmed glasses up her nose. "You've just become really good at suppressing them." She eyed Keira's hair and chuckled. "Mostly."

"Hell." Keira blew a stubborn crimson curl out of her eye that hadn't been there the night before, sighed, and rested the phone against the lamp on the bedside table. "Damn stubborn hair."

She tried her magical best to keep it short and dark, but it always returned to its normal mayhem within a few weeks. So, with another fed-up sigh, she clipped up her long, red, moody curls and grumbled under her breath because she wouldn't be able to fix them for a few days. A worlds-worst-hair reminder her inner beast enjoyed inflicting on her.

"I never understood why you hate it so much." Athena headed outside and kept talking. "Most women would die for your hair. Especially me! To have all those long, wild, luxurious curls that, depending on your mood, can't decide what color they want to be. And every last shade, from the light red to the dark, looks stunning against your skin color. They really do."

Unlike Athena—curious scientist that she was—Keira had never bothered with a DNA test but imagined she was a variety of nationalities based on the light bronze hue of her skin. Generally speaking, she'd never been one to fuss over her looks and couldn't care less how men saw her. The hair, however, had been a nuisance on the job, so she did her best to keep it short and practical.

She was about to respond, but Athena beat her to it when her eyes lit up. "Guess who's heading for his car too?" She grinned and tucked a lock of smooth black hair behind her ear. "I'm going to say hello to him before heading north. See you soon!"

"Drive safe," she tried to say, but it was too late. Athena had spotted the hot guy who just moved in next door. At least hot in her eyes with his crooked wire-rimmed glasses and studious nature.

Keira checked the time only to realize she needed to get going, too. As usual, when she thought about the chalet she and her friends would rent over the next few months, a rush of excitement shot through her. When she had seen the listing, she'd had an overwhelming feeling it would be the perfect getaway for them. Even though most people traveled to these parts during the summer, they liked the chill of winter. What better place to find that than in coastal Maine?

Even better? An Alberta Clipper was passing through with the potential for a more significant snowstorm later in the week. Her kind of weather. She loved everything about it, including driving in it. So, even though she wasn't going all that far after she bundled up, she thoroughly enjoyed the slippery drive north through Winter Harbor.

A commute made all that much better by her building anticipation.

She had parked in front of the chalet for hours yesterday, staring at it, but hadn't gotten out, so the owner didn't spy nosy footsteps in the snow today. An owner who, as it turned out, would be staying in the log cabin just up the street. According to Rune's emails, she had been out of town and felt more comfortable being at the spacious oceanside chalet when Keira first arrived.

"Oh, wow ," she whispered when she pulled into the driveway. How had Rune accomplished so much in so little time? The driveway and walkway had been shoveled, and the home was tastefully decorated in spruce and soft white twinkling Christmas lights.

She was just about to knock on the front door when it swung open, and a stunning woman with shimmering ebony hair and fair skin smiled. "You must be Keira."

Her voice was as warm and soothing as her smile.

"I am." She couldn't help but smile, too, if for no other reason than the strange sense of familiarity she felt toward her new landlord. Not just at the sight of her but the sound of her accent. One she couldn't quite place. Or could she? "And you must be Rune."

"I am." Rune stepped back and welcomed her into the cinnamon and apple-scented home with well-polished hardwood floors. "I apologize that we were unable to speak sooner. The connection between my ancestral home and here can be a tad...how do you say, vanskelig ? h?re. Krapp ."

A chill washed over her, and she stopped short, understanding the words perfectly. "Hard to hear. Choppy." Startled because the male dragon in her nightmare had just spoken the same language, she looked at Rune. "What language is that?" Then, before she could stop herself, "And why do I understand it?"

"It's Norse." An odd yet comforting warmth spread through her when Rune rested her hand on Keira's shoulder before helping her out of her down jacket. "As to understanding it, I'm afraid I cannot say."

"Why do I get the feeling that isn't true?" she whispered, only to catch something out of the corner of her eye in the darkened recesses of the hallway. A blink later, it was gone, but she could have sworn she'd seen the outline of a tiny red dragon.

"Come." Rune steered her down the hallway. "Let us get you settled in before Athena arrives. I wasn't sure what everyone celebrated at this time of year, so I decorated with diversity in hopes of making all feel welcome."

Her jaw dropped when Rune led her into an open-concept, top-of-the-line kitchen rich with mahogany and stainless steel that sidled a massive living room with floor-to-ceiling windows. A towering Christmas tree twinkled alongside a crackling fire, Hanukkah candles, Kwanzaa decorations, plus a variety of other festive trinkets.

That wasn't what caught her attention, though.

Rather, her gaze went straight to a variety of huge, lifelike paintings of Viking ships with dragons sailing over them. "You know what we are, don't you?" she murmured, drifting without realizing she moved when the towering ash tree beyond the windows caught her attention. "That's it. That's the tree from my nightmare..."

The tree that had appeared in the fiery ring.

Although bulb-free, the impressive ash emitted a lovely golden glow that seemed to spread across the whole of Frenchman Bay. Light she instinctually knew most couldn't see.

"It is the Yggdrasil," Rune said softly, respectfully, joining her at the window. "And ja , I know what you are, my friend."

"Yet, you aren't dragon." If she wasn't mistaken, Rune grew more beautiful by the moment. Her deep, dark chocolate eyes almost seemed a mysterious shade of black. "Are you?"

"No." Rune handed Keira a chilled bottle of her favorite beer. One she hadn't seen her grab from the refrigerator but instead magically appeared out of thin air. "But I am a friend to your kind."

Every instinct told her to go on high alert, but whatever juju Rune possessed kept her calm and unafraid. Kept her from hightailing it out of there because somewhere in the back of her mind, she knew most would. Whatever Rune was, she was more powerful than a dragon shifter. Far more powerful. And that, of course, would apply to a dragon that embraced magic regularly to begin with.

Which was definitely not Keira.

She was about to question Rune further when her phone rang. It was John, a friend and fellow firefighter, no doubt checking in to make sure she'd made it safely. Rather than answer, she'd text him when she had a chance. No sooner did she pocket her phone when it rang again. This time, it was another co-worker, Alex. She shot off a text to both of them that she was okay before the phone rang again.

Cameron.

Concerned by the sudden influx of calls, she answered. Maybe someone had gotten hurt on the job. "Hey, Cameron, everyone okay?"

"Yeah." She heard the amusement in his voice. "Just glad you decided to pick up for me and not them."

Even though they were just friends, he was the biggest flirt of the bunch.

"I picked up because I thought someone was hurt." She bit back a smile because she loved every last one of them and rolled her eyes. "Tell everyone I'm safe. Talk to you guys later."

She hung up and pocketed her phone before he could reply.

"I imagine that happens often—" knowing amusement flickered in Rune's thickly lashed eyes— "especially if you grow distressed."

When Keira frowned in confusion, Rune went on.

"Whether you realize it or not, you are stunning, Keira." Rune touched one of her damnable curls that had escaped. "More than that, you are one of them in your own way. More comfortable among men, and they sense that. Like you even more for it." Her gaze swept over Keira. "I cannot imagine what you do to those poor humans you think mere friends. Yet they, like male dragons, are prone to being more protective of you and clearly sense your distress on some subliminal level."

"I highly doubt that," she assured, saying more than intended, but Rune had a way about her. Not to mention, Keira preferred bluntness to skirting around things. "And just to be clear, I don't sleep with co-workers. Our relationships are purely platonic." She shook her head. "And I sure as heck don't sleep with dragons."

The mere thought of it made her queasy. Why would she ever be attracted to a dragon? They created the one element she made a living at extinguishing.

Rune said nothing to that but urged her to enjoy her ale, as she called it, and make herself at home. Typically, Keira would have grown confrontational by now, but again, something about Rune kept her alarm at bay as she sipped her beer and kept eyeing everything, including the tree outside.

That is until her gaze wandered to a sizeable portrait hanging above the fireplace mantle. A spiked helmet was affixed to the wall on one side and an equally daunting sword on the other. Weapons and a portrait she could have sworn hadn't been there moments before.

The painting depicted Viking ships that seemed mightier than all the rest as they faced off on a dark, stormy sea. Their striped sails billowed in the wind, and crowned men stood at their helms. Although impossible to see clearly from a distance, they were fierce in a way that made her grow uncomfortably warm.

"It is quite the portrait, is it not?" Rune's gaze never left Keira. "Terrifying yet incredibly alluring all at once...just as fire can be...just as he can be..."

"Who?" Her attention shot from the warrior on the left ship to Rune. "Who is he?" Almost as if trying to break free from a waking dream, she blinked a few times. "And why is that tree outside glowing?" She frowned and shook her head. "Better still, who are you again? Because I've never felt anything like you."

Once more, Rune was about to respond when they were interrupted.

This time, by the doorbell.

"Ah, there she is." Rune smiled, took Keira's empty beer, and handed her a full, icy-cold one before heading for the door.

What the? Keira frowned at the empty bottle Rune tossed in the recycling bin. As far as she knew, she'd only taken a few sips from it.

"Hi," came Athena's voice from down the hall. "I'm Keira's friend, Athena."

How the hell had her friend made a two-hour drive on messy roads so quickly? More and more confused, she glanced at her phone only to nearly drop it when she discovered almost three hours had passed since she'd arrived. Impossible. She had been here maybe ten minutes, tops.

For the first time in longer than she could remember, her vision hazed red with her inner beast as she strode to the kitchen only to confirm that, yes, Athena was here in record time. No, not record, but impossible time, considering it had passed so quickly.

"Hey, there," Athena said tentatively, her smile fading when she saw Keira's dragon eyes. "Are you okay, sweetie?" She went to flick her wrist at Rune, undoubtedly intending to use magic on her to hide Keira's eyes, but their hostess lowered Athena's hand and shook her head.

"It's all right, love. I know she's half dragon." Rune helped Athena with her blazer-type snow-covered brown jacket and looked at Keira with what could only be described as sympathetic compassion. "Keira is just adjusting to the beginnings of a very unexpected adventure here in Winter Harbor."

"Don't you mean vacation?" Athena's finely arched ebony eyebrows furrowed as she headed Keira's way. "What's going on?" She frowned from Rune to Keira. "Because you seriously don't look all right. I've never seen you so upset. I've never seen you..."

Athena trailed off when something caught her attention over Keira's shoulder. Something that made no sense at all and seriously ratcheted up Keira's alarm.