Bram: Dragon Shifter Romance: Fated Mates Dragon Romance: Dragon Rules, #2

By Tia Didmon

Fate brought them together. Now a serial killer could tear them apart. 

 

Aspiring Detective, Zara Torres has landed the case of a lifetime with multiple bodies drained of blood. But hunting the killer exposes a dark secret from her past, and delivers her into the arms of an immortal dragon who claims she is his mate. 

 

With the death toll escalating, Zara's latent magic rises to bond with the sexy dragon intent on protecting her. But can she embrace her supernatural powers before she falls prey to the creature determined to destroy her? 

 

This series is perfect for fans of Zoe Chant, Terry Bolryder, T.S. Joyce, Nalini Singh, Donna Grant, Christine Feehan, and Lora Leigh.

 

One click this sizzling shifter romance now!

• Language: English
• Publisher: Bold Butterfly Publishing Inc.
• Release date: Dec 1, 2022
• ISBN: 9798215060520

Tia Didmon

Tia Didmon is a USA Today bestselling author of provocative paranormal romance and paranormal women’s fiction. When Tia isn't busy writing about sexy shifters and dreamy demons, she spends her time binge-watching The Order and reruns of The Vampire Diaries, cooking with her daughter, and serving her cat. Her love of writing stems from a self-diagnosed book addiction.  Subscribe to Tia's newsletter at tiadidmon.com for a free book and start your journey through Tia's supernatural world today! 

Book preview

CHAPTER 1

Crimson rivulets reached out like fingers from the corner of the rust-pitted dumpster. Two police officers stood on water-stained wooden pallets, peering into the garbage bin as Zara ducked under the yellow tape bordering the scene. Ratty pieces of cloth and flattened cardboard squished beneath her boots as she approached. The wailing sirens echoed in the narrow alleyway as the smell of rotting meat and stale vomit assaulted her nostrils.

Zara pulled her gloves from her pocket as her partner approached. Good morning, John.

John pulled back one side of his suit jacket to rest his hand on his extended middle. He glanced from one end of the alley to the other. Nothing good about a woman getting her throat ripped out. His eyes continued to scan their surroundings.

Zara motioned toward the dumpster. Are you going to inspect the body?

He huffed. Hell no. I’m about as nimble as an ox. I’m not getting in that tin box. You weigh a buck ten and have the agility of a goddam Gazelle.

Zara tempered her smile. John was a senior detective and hadn’t taken a partner in ten years. Nobody, including their captain, had understood his request to train Zara. Least of all her. He was a wealth of knowledge, wrapped in an enigma, and she planned to take advantage of the opportunity offered to her. I will get in the bin. Do you want to stand on those pallets? I can ask officer Dorn and Johnson to move.

John waved at the men. Get your asses off there. I want to spot Zara. I’m sending her in.

The men smirked as they climbed down from the pallets.

Zara ascended the makeshift stairs, but leaned back as the smell of human waste, rotting seafood, and motor oil mixed in the pungent aroma. She coughed into her hand before setting her mask over her nose and mouth. Once she had her hands secured on the metal rail, she climbed in.

The bottom of the bin crunched under her feet as Styrofoam, and cardboard broke under her weight. She wadded through the garbage before removing the black plastic bags that covered the body. Her uniform jacket did nothing to stem the shiver that ran over her skin when the woman’s face was unmasked. Milky eyes stared up, begging the heavens for mercy that was denied.

Zara knelt down, pulling back the lavender collar of the woman’s shirt to inspect the wound. He ripped apart her jugular, same as the last two.

John shook his head. Dammit. Three dead women in two weeks. He’s just getting started.

Zara straightened, glancing at her partner. What makes you say that.

John frowned, making him appear older than his sixty years. Call it a hunch. He motioned the body. Look her over before the coroner arrives, then meet me by the car. The smell makes me want to puke.

Zara inspected the well-dressed woman’s body. Her light frame, the perfect makeup. Even the red petals she clutched in her fingers. Was she attacked on her way to meet her boyfriend? A date? Scenarios ran through her mind as she pulled herself out of garbage bin. Despite the gravity of the scene, this was the type of case that got a cop her detective badge, and nothing was going to stand in her way.

John leaned against his cop car, nibbling on a toothpick when she approached. You get any background on our victim? she asked.

John took the stick from his mouth. Yeah, her name is Abby Lawson. She lives in an apartment three blocks away. Davis was just about to give us her background information.

Zara turned as the tall, thin officer approached them. His usual sneer was already in place. He stood too close, allowing his shoulder to brush against her when he’d stopped. Kesslar. He nodded to John.

Zara cleared her throat. You get the background on Miss Lawson?

He huffed rudely, keeping his eyes on John. She’s thirty-nine and works at the flower shop on Maine St. She has a twenty-year-old daughter named Lacey. The daughter is out of town. We’re attempting to track her down, but she is on a road trip with friends. Abby’s widowed. Her husband was a firefighter. He died on the job three years ago.

Any other pertinent information? Zara asked.

Davis turned on her. You’re not my boss, Torres, he snapped.

John adjusted the leather belt at his thick waist. I’m meeting your dad for a drink later, Davis. I will mention what a stand-up officer you’ve become.

Davis paled. My apologies, Detective Kesslar.

John glanced at the coroner’s vehicle when it pulled up. Send me Abby Lawson’s file.

Davis nodded before he left.

Zara raised an eyebrow. You can’t protect me from the past. You already lost enough friends on the force when you decided to train me.

John put the toothpick back in his mouth. Never liked those assholes, anyway. Let’s head back to the station. We need to look into Abby Lawson’s love life.

Zara’s lip twitched. You saw the rose petals. She does work at a flower shop.

John’s eyes remained on Davis as he talked to another officer. Maybe, but you don’t give yourself red roses.

Zara nodded, turned toward her vehicle, and smacked into a wall. As her hands grabbed the well-muscled waist, she realized it was a man’s chest. Jesus Christ.

He looked down at her with red fires flickering in his crystalline eyes. You may call me, Bram.

She backed up, putting a hand to her weapon. While he appeared unarmed, Bram sent warning bells blaring in her mind. She’d always possessed a sixth sense for danger. It was the only reason she had made it through training. That alarm shrieked in her head, louder than any of the surrounding sirens.

Bram wasn’t big, he was massive. Thick, broad shoulders convinced Zara he bench-pressed semi-trailers in his spare time. His tanned skin was perfection, but his face held irritation.

This is a crime scene. I suggest you move along, she stuttered.

He raised an eyebrow. No. You must come with me... now.

Her face hardened. Look, buddy. If you don’t leave in the next five seconds. I’m arresting you.

He glanced at John, who sat in his car, watching the two of them. Your diminutive size makes that unlikely. He looked her over slowly. Tell me why you wear your hair so …? I am not accustomed to a woman wearing it so short.

Zara glanced toward the two officers talking to the right of them. They were oblivious to the strange byplay between her and Bram. Lots of women have short hair. She wasn’t sure why she felt the need to defend her hairstyle. Her profession was proof she didn’t care what others thought of her.

Bram’s eyes roamed over her. I will become accustomed to it.

Look buddy, you either move your ass along or you’re going to the station.

If you wish to go to the station, we shall, but it does not change the fact that you are mine, Zara.

CHAPTER 2

Bram memorized every detail of the angry woman clutching the butt of her gun. She was nothing he’d expected in a mate. While Legion had shared a thousand years of social evolution, the reality had his dragon growling its displeasure. Why would a human woman choose men’s clothing over the long, intricate dresses they wore in the past? While her blue uniform demanded he defer to her wishes to leave, his beast had other ideas, and they centered on the petite beauty with blue eyes who wanted to shoot him.

He glanced down the alleyway. His enhanced senses rebelled against the pungent odors of stale food, and human waste. This was no place for his mate, but he found himself in unfamiliar territory. He could alter human memory, but how did he extract Zara from her job? Her life? Bram glanced at the older man sitting in the car, motioning him over as he scanned John’s memories and added new ones.

John got out of the car and waved before he walked over. Bram, I didn’t realize you were consulting on this case.

Bram smiled, shaking John’s hand. It’s good to see you, John. How is Mary?

Good. She’s making lasagna tonight. You should come over after work.

Bram cleared his throat. It had been eons since emotion plagued him. The serene smile on John’s face had lulled the ancient dragon into a false sense of ease. His dragon grunted as the man’s past, his pain, pummeled the beast within. The truth was a bitter enemy, and it removed Bram’s option of walking away with his mate in tow. Just thinking about Mary’s lasagna has made me ravenous. Can we grab a bite to eat, or do you and Zara have to get back to the station?

John glanced down the street. I’m waiting for a report on the latest victim, so we can grab a snack and discuss the case.

Zara frowned as she glanced between the men. How do you know each other?

John pointed at Bram. Bram Rule is a consultant. I worked with him a few years ago. His family is in the import-export business and they helped to bring down several smuggling operations.

Zara’s eyes narrowed. His mate was not warming up to him. An electric current ran beneath his skin. Was that excitement? The thrill of the hunt? A challenge was one thing a dragon couldn’t ignore. His lips twitched before she spoke. This is a murder investigation. Why is he here?

John rubbed his chin. Mara Rule was friends with the first victim. I told the Rule family I would keep them apprised of our progress. I didn’t know we were dealing with a serial killer.

Bram reached out to Legion. I have found my mate.

Legion’s power flooded Bram’s mind before he spoke. I’m pleased for you, Bram. Has she come into her power?

Not yet. There was a slight spike in her magic that alerted me. Had I not been flying over the alley she was investigating; I would have missed it.

Investigating?

She is a police officer. I have inserted myself into her investigation by infiltrating her partner’s mind. I added memories of Rule Industries helping the Department and that Mara was friends with the first victim in a series of murders.

That is a large operation, Bram. Be careful. While you can alter humans’ minds, you have no control over modern technology. Having a law officer forget pertinent information only to have it show up in a digital file later on, will not bode well. We have avoided human policing agencies so far, and I would like to keep it that way.

I will not remove any memories before consulting with you. I’m aware I have not acclimatized to the current environment.

You are doing well. I can barely detect your accent.

Bram cut contact with his leader as Zara’s hand moved away from her weapon. He sent a quick command into John’s mind before turning to Zara. Where do you recommend for breakfast?

John grabbed his phone before hitting a contact number. Zara, take Bram over to Josie’s. Order me a breakfast wrap. Sausage. No cheese. He turned back toward his car with his phone to his ear.

Zara’s lips pursed. The twitch in her right eye gave the impression she was winking at him, yet he felt her anger. Let’s get this over with. She walked away, leaving him to take in her backside.

Her jacket attempted to hide her womanly curves, as did the blue pants that made up her uniform. They hugged her ass seductively like a present waiting to be unwrapped. If there was a penalty for destroying city property, he was about to rack up some fines. Those pants would be in tatters before they hit the floor. The walk to the diner was short and painful as his cock reacted to her subtle movements.

Josie’s was located around the block from the alley. He stepped in front of her when she attempted to open the glass door with the cardboard open sign attached. Allow me.

She stepped back, allowing him to open the door for her. This isn’t a date.

Bram motioned her through the door. Agreed. I will choose a more desirable location when the time comes.

Zara put her hand on his chest. Her small fingers splayed