Heat & Ink

A few months ago, we danced. We flirted. I've never wanted a woman more. But she was too young for me. Too unguarded. Wide-eyed college girls with curves for days don't end up with possessive bikers that have blood on their hands. Somehow, I found the strength to push her away. Now she's back, walking into my tattoo shop and asking another man to put his mark on her skin. Over my dead body. If she gets inked, it'll be by my hand or no one's. My bad boy biker rep might not match with her sunshine. But I know we belong together, so this time I'm not letting her go.

I'm broke and need a job fast. The best tattoo artist in the Pacific Northwest is hiring a manager for his tattoo shop. So I don't have any experience... A few lies on my resume can fix that. Anyway, how hard can it be? I get the job and quickly find out that running a tattoo shop is very hard. Especially dealing with my new wild, brooding boss. He's an orc. An orc with a fiery temper. He's not all bad, though, with a deep love for his three black cats. But for me? Not so much.

I finally went to get a tattoo. It was supposed to be a beautiful white lily, but the big, grumpy tattoo artist had something else in mind. Only, he didn't freaking tell me before he got started. When it's time for the big reveal, I don't see a pretty flower; I see his name tattooed across the back of my shoulder. He says I'm his. That I'm his mate. My friends tell him to go to hell. That we're suing. But this grouchy beast isn't shaken. He doesn't care one bit and keeps saying that he's marked me, so I belong to him now.

Adrian Cross was never supposed to walk back into my life—especially not looking like that. Towering. Tattooed. With eyes that burn hotter than his tattoo gun. He's my brother's best friend. A polar bear shifter. My lifelong crush. And the new artist filling in at our shop while Magnus is out. He says I'm his fated mate. That he's known since we were kids. He says that he's waited long enough and he's done pretending.