The biggest fight for the
new Lycan King is convincing his Queen that he is committed to her forever.
Darren has already fought to convince Cass to give him a chance, but a new
Monarchy is just the beginning of the changes to the Lycan Kingdom. But as
secrets and challenges to Darren's crown emerge, his inner circle must close
ranks to protect their Kingdom, and to make sure the newly-returned Lycan King
keeps his crown. Candace Blackburn returns to the world of the Lycan King in
this epic, edge of your seat third installment!
Return of
the Lycan King: Book 3 Darren and Cassandra by Candace Blackburn
Genre: Paranormal Romance
Release Date: December 11, 2018
Publisher: Candace Blackburn
Series: Return of the Lycan King #3
Format: Digital eBook
Digital ISBN: 1-7328151-0-0
Darren chases
Cass to Ireland, determined to make up for his mistakes. When they return to
North Carolina to build their lives together, nothing is the same. Darren has
already fought to convince Cass to give him a chance, but a new Monarchy is
just the beginning of the changes to the Lycan Kingdom. Secrets and challenges
to Darren's crown emerge, and his inner circle closes ranks, to protect their
Kingdom, and to make sure the newly-returned Lycan King keeps his crown.
Available at: Amazon | Barnes and Noble |
Copyright
© 2018 Return of the Lycan King: Book 3 Darren and Cassandra
Candace
Blackburn
Chapter
One
Liam's
completion of flight training had rather fortuitous timing. Liam was one of the
members of Lex's security team before Darren moved in. Darren snagged the other
Lycan on the way to the airport with the subtle threat to "move your ass
and don't breathe a word to anyone." Darren looked out the window of the
Konstantine jet and didn't see ocean, but he didn't know how close they were to
Dublin Airport.
Reading
Liam's thoughts would have been easy enough, if Darren hadn't happily
discovered that he could block that ability. So, he hadn't been subjected to
the "have you lost your fucking mind" lecture that Liam likely
received from Lex. Or the "you let anything happen to him, I'll kill you,
myself" that undoubtedly followed said lecture.
Darren
spent the entirety of the flight thinking of his mate. The pain in her voice,
on her face, and the tears in her eyes, all as a result of Darren not claiming
her. Pain, he had his own. Not claiming her was a physical, mental hell--it was
pain from head to toe. But, he had reasoned that he'd rather live with that pain, than put Cass through one
second of his impressive--or not--collection of screw-ups. Not to mention, all
the bullshit that came with being King.
I'd rather cut off my own
head than cause her pain like I saw that day.
Which
is why they were over European airspace, because Cass was in Ireland. She left
to escape him.
Because seeing me hurt her.
"Darren,
we're ten minutes out from Dublin."
Liam's
voice cleared his guilt-filled thoughts. He ran his hands through his hair and
realized he needed to go splash some water on his face. "Thanks."
"No
problem."
A
minute later, he stood in front of the mirror and frowned. One of his buddies
in college looked like he was in a perpetual hangover. Darren's roommate used
to tease the guy, telling him that he looked like he'd been ridden hard and put
away wet. That saying pretty much summed up the reflection in the mirror.
Maybe I should stop off and
get a haircut, buy a new shirt and jeans.
He
probably would do that, if it didn't
take much time. His primary objective was to find Cass and get them back to the
plane as soon as possible. Hell, he might as well tell Liam to file a return
flight plan for, what, five hours from now? Yeah, that should do it. He hated
the thought of claiming his mate in the bedroom on the plane, but damned if he
was going to wait to get back to Raleigh. And, they wouldn't be in Ireland for
very long. Oh no. In and out, that was his plan. They'd be back in no time.
***
Liam
kept up with Darren's footsteps, barely.
"Still
don't understand why you wouldn't want another beer. That may have been the
best I've ever had. We should take a European beer tasting trip, just for
comparison, though. German ales are pretty damned good." They'd only gone
in the last bar because Darren caught Cass's scent.
"Not
interested." Glancing around the crowded Temple Bar section of Dublin,
Darren wondered why Cass would be there. She was private, definitely not the
type to hang out in tourist spots.
"Or
we could just stay here and sample whiskey. All
the whiskey."
Technically,
that didn't sound like too bad of a plan, if he weren't searching for his
missing mate. "You should get on your knees and thank God that you can't
get cirrhosis."
Liam
snorted just as Darren thought he'd, again, picked up on Cass's scent. He froze
mid stride and almost took out a group of people. Peering inside the closest
bar, he inhaled deeply and looked for her glossy black hair. Nada.
Shit.
Darren
turned, making a complete circle so he could visualize everything around him.
His frustration was growing. Cass was so close,
and he needed to see her. Feel her. Wrap her in his arms. Drop to his knees and
apologize for being a colossal ass. Spend the next century begging her
forgiveness. Then spend the rest of his life making her happy.
The
sounds of barf splattering the pavement shook him out of his thoughts.
"This"--he
pointed down at the moaning human in front of him--"is what all the whiskey gets you."
Liam
glanced down with disdain as they stepped around the human. "Not me."
He waved a negligent hand. "Higher tolerance and all that."
"Mmm
hmm." Looking around, again,
Darren barely restrained a growl. Cass's scent grew fainter, and he was no
damned closer to finding her.
Going to lose my
motherfucking mind.
Material
brushed his arm, and Darren snarled as his head snapped around. "Hey, do
you mind holding my jacket while I tie my shoe?"
What the fuck? Darren snatched the jacket
and Liam bent, after casting a pointed glare toward Darren's hands. Claws had
already punched through the tips, and if he were a betting person, he'd put
money on his eyes glowing. Taking a deep breath and closing his eyes, he
slipped on his polarized Ray Bans, covered both fists with the jacket and
willed himself to calm.
"No
problem."
Biggest white lie ever. If Darren spent two more
seconds out there without Liam's assistance, he'd likely have shifted and torn
a bloody path through the Temple Bar district.
They
needed to get out of public, check into a room and Darren needed to sleep off
any jet lag. Then come sunrise, he'd try again.
Liam
stood and cast a worried glance at Darren. "Okay?"
Not in the slightest. "Fine. Let's get
something to eat, go find a room, and search again tomorrow."
Liam
almost seemed to slouch in relief. "Sounds good. We'll hit the roads in
the morning."
He
confirmed that with a small nod. And I'll
spend another sleepless night without her.
Candace is offering two lucky winners their choice of either a $25 Amazon Gift Card of $25 Barnes and Noble Gift Card! To enter, simply fill out the Rafflecopter below
Other Books in the Return of the
Lycan King Trilogy
Return of the Lycan King:
Book 1 Nicholas and Kristen
One life, one
mate. Nicholas Konstantine has been waiting over a thousand
years for his mate. But when he finds her, she's completely unaware of her
Lycan biology, and she's battling her own personal demons.
Kristen O'Connor is a recovering addict, with some
major trust issues. By not letting anyone get close, she won't get hurt. Yet
after one meetiing with Nicholas, her walls are crumbling, and she wants more
with this man.
But Nicholas reveals his Lycan side, and hers as
well. In addition, ghosts from both of their pasts come back to haunt them.
Will they face everything together, or will Kristen's fears be stronger than
her love?
Return of the Lycan King:
Book 2 Lex and Elizabeth
Lex thought
he'd lost her, but Elizabeth is back and she is his mate. But between her
getting used to life as a Lycan, threats from dangerous elements looming over
their heads and very odd changes in the Lycan kingdom happening all around
them, nothing will be easy. Lex and Elizabeth's love has to be the strength to
pull them through.
Candace makes her home in North
Carolina with her high school sweetheart husband and their two sons. She's an indie author who has published two
previous romances (with a bit of fantasy in each), Tristan's Redemption and Nate's
Forgiveness. Her current works are
all paranormal romance (her favorite genre to read!) and are set in her home
state. She loves coffee, cold weather,
the Boston Red Sox, the Carolina Panthers, and hearing from fans.
