Kelos: Spring (Shifter Seasons Book 4) Read online

  Table of Contents

  Copyright

  Shifter Seasons

  Foreword

  Chapter One – Kelos

  Chapter Two – Amber

  Chapter Three – Kelos

  Chapter Four – Amber

  Chapter Five – Kelos

  Chapter Six – Amber

  Chapter Seven – Kelos

  Chapter Eight – Amber

  Chapter Nine – Kelos

  Chapter Ten – Amber

  Chapter Eleven – Kelos

  Chapter Twelve – Amber

  Chapter Thirteen – Kelos

  Chapter Fourteen – Amber

  Chapter Fifteen – Kelos

  Chapter Sixteen – Amber

  Chapter Seventeen – Kelos

  Chapter Eighteen – Amber

  Chapter Nineteen – Kelos

  Chapter Twenty – Amber

  Chapter Twenty-One – Kelos

  Chapter Twenty-Two – Amber

  Chapter Twenty-Three – Kelos

  Chapter Twenty-Four – Amber

  Epilogue

  Also By Harmony Raines

  Get In Touch

  Kelos

  (Spring) Shifter Seasons

  Book Four

  ***

  All rights reserved. This book, or any portion thereof may not be reproduced or used in any manner without the express written consent of the author or publisher.

  This is a work of fiction and is intended for mature audiences only. All characters within are eighteen years of age or older. Names, places, businesses, characters and incidents are either the product of the author’s imagination or are used in a fictitious manner. Any resemblance to real persons, living or dead, actual events or places is purely coincidental.

  © 2020 Harmony Raines

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  Shifter Seasons

  Hex

  Winter-Shifter Seasons Book One

  Beck

  Winter-Shifter Seasons Book Two

  Mac

  Winter-Shifter Seasons Book Three

  Kelos

  Spring-Shifter Seasons Book Four

  Kelos

  Spring-Shifter Seasons

  Book Four

  A silverback seasoned shifters romance

  His mate is on the run. His dragon will do whatever it takes to protect her...

  Will their love survive?

  Dragon shifter, Kelos, has lived a solitary life. When he finally decides to settle down in Bear Creek the last thing he expects is to find his true mate. After all, he’s waited centuries for her.

  It’s love, and lust, at first sight. But Kelos needs to keep his emotions in check until the danger surrounding his mate is dealt with.

  Who is he trying to fool? There’s no way this dragon shifter can deny his feelings for his mate. Which means he has to deal with the people threatening his mate’s family now.

  Would breathing dragon-fire over their foe or biting their head off be too much? Unfortunately, those days are way in the past and they have to play by the rules of the modern world. Pity.

  A phone call from her brother sends Amber on the run with her sister-in-law and two children. Sworn to keep them safe, she travels to the house of an old friend...never expecting to meet a dragon shifter who claims she is his mate.

  Amber doesn’t have time to deal with being anyone’s mate. Not when her brother’s family are in danger.

  However, meeting Kelos is a blessing in disguise, literally, since he swears to protect them with his life. Not that she wants him to die any time soon.

  Especially not when she’s already falling in love with him. Who wouldn’t? He’s handsome, strong, and has a primal need to protect her.

  His treasure is not so bad either!

  But he says he’d give it all up for her. Now that’s how to win a woman’s heart.

  Can a dragon shifter and his mate work together to give everyone a happy ever after?

  Chapter One – Kelos

  “Going on a hot date?” Martha waddled toward him, her hand under her swollen belly. Hex’s mate was just about ready to pop out their first child and Kelos couldn’t be happier for his friend.

  Or more jealous. His dragon puffed smoke out of his nose, and he slinked off. Guilt over his intense feelings of envy made his bad mood worse. Not that his dragon didn’t wish Hex and the other Winter brothers health, happiness, and a bunch of bear cubs running around the sawmill.

  Kelos’s dragon simply wished they could find their own mate. Hadn’t they waited long enough?

  Fate certainly seems to be dragging its heels where this dragon is concerned. His dragon settled his head down on his feet and closed his eyes.

  “I’m meeting Shawn and Joey,” Kelos told Martha as he headed toward the truck he’d recently purchased. He didn’t like driving much and preferred to fly. But since he’d come to the decision to buy a house and set down roots in Bear Creek, he figured it made sense to have a set of wheels.

  “Ahh.” Martha chewed the inside of her cheek and nodded.

  “Ahh. What does that mean?” Kelos frowned, convinced Martha was laughing at him.

  “Nothing.” She pressed her lips together. Yes. Kelos definitely detected humor in her voice.

  “What’s so funny?” Kelos asked, taking a step or two closer to the pregnant Martha. She was in no danger from him. He would protect her with his life, even if she were laughing at him.

  “Honestly, Kelos, I’m just pleased you have settled down here and found…like-minded friends.” She grinned at him and his brows knitted together as he tried to figure out what he meant.

  “You mean like-minded bachelors,” he said the word with distaste.

  She nodded. “It’s tough being on your own. It’s good that you have friends that you can talk to. Shifter friends who know what you are going through. Who can relate.”

  He sighed wearily. “Yes, they can relate. But with one difference. They have not been a bachelor for centuries.”

  Martha’s expression clouded. “I never thought of it like that.” She twirled her finger around her head. “I guess it’s hard for a simple cougar shifter to comprehend that amount of time.”

  “You are not simple, and you know it.” He turned back toward his truck and stalked over to it, his mood matching that of his dragon.

  “You say the sweetest things, and one day you’ll have a mate to say them to.” The humor had gone from her voice as she followed him to the truck. “And when you do, I’ll be the first to tell her how lucky she is.”

  Kelos leaned on the open driver’s door as he looked over his shoulder at Martha. “I hope she will see the truth in your words.”

  “Why wouldn’t she?” Martha tilted her head and studied his expression, which he purposefully kept neutral. “Do you have secrets in your past you want to share?” She was more inquisitive than any other feline he’d ever met. And he’d met a few in his time.

  “No secrets. Or if I have, they are all but forgotten.” He slid inside the truck and pulled on his seatbelt, clicking it closed. Even a dragon shifter was capable of being killed in a car crash. He shuddered, give him a horse and cart, and a slower pace of life any day.

  “So why?” Martha asked.

  “Because I’m not the easiest person to live with.” He shrugged and leaned back in his seat as he sifted through his thoughts. It was true he was set in his ways and didn’t always mix well with others. Perhaps because he’d had to hide his true self from so many people. “I’m use
d to my own company and I don’t tolerate others easily.”

  “Well, when you meet your mate, you can get to know each other slowly. Then work your way up to having children.” Martha caressed her baby bump. “I think you’d make a great father, Kelos. And maybe having a child in your life will teach you a little about having fun.”

  “I know how to have fun,” he protested.

  “So, go have some.” The smile returned to her face. “The Bachelor Three.”

  “You gave us a name?” he asked in horror.

  “Not me,” Martha said innocently.

  “Then who?” Kelos asked hotly.

  “I don’t remember when I heard it first.” She tapped her chin and looked upward. “Nope, can’t recall.”

  “So, we’re the talk of the town?” he asked as he inserted the key in the ignition and turned the engine over.

  “Not exactly the town.” She backed away as he put the truck in drive. “Just the sawmill.”

  “That’s not so bad,” he conceded.

  “And maybe The Happy Bear Club.” She chuckled as she waved at him and then turned around and walked away. Or waddled away. The child she carried would be born soon and secretly, Kelos could not wait to meet the little one and be part of its life.

  You are like a broody hen, his dragon told him. His mood seemed to have lightened with talk of fun and babies.

  And you are not? Kelos asked.

  It would be good to have a child of our own. I long to pass on all the knowledge we have gleaned over our many long years. His dragon huffed and blew smoke from his nostrils. But our secrets should stay hidden.

  Kelos was not going to argue that fact. There were facets of their past that they would never share with anyone. Even their mate whom they would trust above all else.

  Kelos rolled down the window and leaned on his elbow as he drove away from the sawmill heading for Cougar Ridge. It was out of his way, but he’d arranged to give Shawn a ride to The Happy Bear Club where they were meeting Joey for a drink.

  “The Bachelors Three,” Kelos muttered to himself.

  His dragon chuckled. I can guarantee that no one would be brave enough to call me that. Not to my face.

  Kelos huffed. I must be losing my touch. Years ago, no one would have dared say that to my face either.

  Ah, the days when the land was lawless, and we roamed the land and the skies with no rules to follow. We were young and free.

  Now, we’re middle-aged and working in a sawmill. He could, of course, spend his dragon hoard and live a good life without ever having to think about work. But he hated the thought of parting with any of his treasure. Instead, he’d chosen to work for Mac Winter at the sawmill and lived a simple life full of simple pleasures.

  Even the house he’d bought was a fixer-upper that was cheap enough for him to buy without dipping too much into the gold he’d stashed away over the years.

  That would all change if we found a mate, his dragon warned him.

  I’d part with it all for the chance to spend the rest of our lives with our mate. Kelos sighed with longing as he turned his focus to the road ahead. Cougar Ridge was reached via a steep road that curved back on itself. He wouldn’t admit it to anyone, but his driving was a little rusty and he didn’t want to drive off the side of the road and bend the truck around the tall trees that grew down in the valley below the town.

  How things had changed since he’d first taken this route to Cougar Ridge. The road had been nothing but a dirt track that became impassable in the long mountain winters. It was during those times when the inhabitants of the town had grown used to not hiding their animal sides away. A tradition that continued today.

  We can’t live in the past, his dragon reminded him.

  I would like the present and the future a whole lot more if we had a mate to share it with, Kelos told his dragon as he navigated the sharp turning and put his foot on the gas as the truck climbed the last section of road into Cougar Ridge.

  Driving along the quiet roads through town, he narrowly avoided a couple of cougars as they raced each other toward the trail that led into the mountains. Maybe his driving wasn’t so rusty after all.

  He reached Shawn’s house and parked the truck on the road outside. Smoothing down his shoulder-length hair, he yanked open the truck door and got out. His booted feet landed on the asphalt and he inhaled the clear mountain air as he slammed the door shut.

  The air sure did smell sweeter up here, especially when the scent of sun-warmed pine drifted down on the breeze. Kelos sighed. On days like this, he would say he was halfway to content. But until he found his mate, he would never be fully happy. His glass would always be half empty.

  Turning away from the truck, Kelos headed along the driveway where the doctor’s car was parked. Knocking lightly on the front door, he listened for Shawn to invite him in.

  “We’re in the kitchen,” Shawn called and Kelos pushed the door open and went inside. “We’ve baked brownies.”

  “Do you want one, Kelos?” Jane, Shawn’s daughter, asked as she slid down off a chair and came out to meet the dragon shifter.

  “Does the sun rise in the morning?” Kelos asked with a grin as the young girl launched herself at him.

  “Of course, it does, silly.” She hugged him before she slid back down to the floor and took hold of his hand. “Come on.”

  “Hi there, Kelos.” Shawn looked up from where he was placing the brownies inside a Tupperware container.

  “Evening, Shawn. Are you taking the brownies to the bar?” Kelos nodded toward the Tupperware. “Are you hoping Jason might trade you a couple of bottles of honey beer for brownies?”

  Shawn chuckled. “These are for Jane to take over to Emily’s house. They’re having a sleepover. Remember?”

  “I remember.” It was the reason Kelos had offered to drive Shawn to the bar. It meant the single parent could have a well-earned night off where he could forget his responsibilities and get drunk. “I just hoped we might be taking some with us.”

  “There’s plenty left,” Jane told Kelos as she offered him a brownie on a plate. “You can take some with you, if you want.”

  Jane was the sweetest kid and Kelos loved her as though she were his own daughter. Since deciding to stay in Bear Creek permanently, at least in the near future, he’d let his guard down and allowed her into his heart. Maybe it was because she only had her father to depend on.

  Or perhaps it’s because her mother is a mystery Shawn never talks about, his dragon suggested.

  There is nothing wrong with a good mystery, Kelos replied.

  “These are delicious,” Kelos complimented Jane, who grinned happily.

  “Thanks. You can have another one.” Jane offered Kelos the plate of brownies and he eagerly took one.

  “You spoil him,” Shawn told his daughter.

  “I know.” She grinned wider. “That’s because he’s special.”

  “Oh, I see.” Shawn arched his eyebrows at Kelos. “See, that’s favoritism right there.”

  Kelos didn’t feel special, but he accepted Jane’s compliment. “Thank you, Jane.”

  “She’s trying to get on your good side,” Shawn told his friend.

  “Dad,” Jane complained.

  “And why would you want to do that?” Kelos asked even though he knew full well.

  “When it’s my birthday, you said I could ride on your back.” Jane’s face paled. “You haven’t changed your mind, have you?”

  “No, I gave you my word.” He inclined his head toward Jane. “And a dragon always keeps his word.”

  “Great.” She clapped her hands together happily before grabbing the Tupperware, crossing the kitchen, and hooking her arm through her backpack. “I’m ready.”

  “And so are we.” Shawn grabbed his keys and gave the kitchen a quick once-over. “Everything is switched off, the back door is locked so no one can get in and steal your brownies. Let’s go.”

  Kelos tipped the last of his second brownie into
his mouth and turned on his heel, heading toward the front door. A few minutes later they were driving down the street to Emily’s house.

  “Be good,” Shawn called and waved to his daughter after she insisted she was old enough to walk to Emily’s front door on her own.

  “I always am,” Jane called back as Emily opened her front door. With a wave Jane was gone, leaving the two men alone.

  “You are the special one, Shawn.” Kelos glanced sideways at his friend. “You’re a good father.”

  “I do my best.” Shawn smiled the same sad smile he always smiled when Kelos complimented him on his fatherly duties. The pain in Shawn’s smile told Kelos that Shawn didn’t see himself in the same way that most other people did. Shawn carried a secret that he kept to himself.

  “I hope that one day I will be a father and have the opportunity to do my best,” Kelos admitted. If Shawn had a secret, it was his to keep for as long as he needed.

  “You will, Kelos. I’m sure of it.” Shawn glanced out of the truck window. “I’m lucky Jane is so good. I just hope it lasts.”

  “You’ve raised her well. I don’t think you have to worry about her going off the rails,” Kelos reassured him.

  “I hope not.” Shawn sat up straighter in his seat. “So, is Joey meeting us there?”

  Kelos chuckled. “Yes, the final member of the Bear Creek Bachelors Three is making his own way there.”

  “You gave us a name?” Shawn looked suitably appalled.

  “Not me.” Kelos shook his head as he pulled into The Happy Bear Club parking lot. Joey’s motorbike stood next to the entrance.

  “That’s it. One of us needs to find a mate and break our little group up.” Shawn slapped Kelos on the back. “I vote you go first.”

  “I wish.” Kelos glanced sideways at Shawn. “But I think you are the best catch.”

  “I have my hands full with Jane,” Shawn protested.