Burning for Love Read online

  Burning for Love

  A Kindred Tales Novel

  Evangeline Anderson

  www.evangelineanderson.com

  Burning for Love, 1st Edition,

  A Kindred Tales Novel

  Copyright © 2021 by Evangeline Anderson

  All rights reserved.

  Cover Art Design © 2021 by Reese Dante

  This book is a work of fiction. The names, characters, places and incidents are products of the writers’ imagination or have been used factiously and are not to be construed as real. Any resemblance to persons, living or dead, actual events, locale or organizations is entirely coincidental.

  All rights are reserved. No part of this book may be used or reproduced in any manner whatsoever without written permission except in the case of brief quotations embodied in critical articles and reviews.

  This ebook is licensed for your personal enjoyment only. This ebook may not be re-sold or given away to other people. If you would like to share this book with another person, please purchase an additional copy for each person you share it with. If you're reading this book and did not purchase it, or it was not purchased for your use only, then you should return to a retailer of your choice or evangelineanderson.com and purchase your own copy. Thank you for respecting the author's work.

  Cover content is for illustrative purposes only.

  Any person depicted on the cover is a model.

  Contents

  Burning for Love

  Author's Note #1

  Author's Note #2

  Chapter 1

  Chapter 2

  Chapter 3

  Chapter 4

  Chapter 5

  Chapter 6

  Chapter 7

  Chapter 8

  Chapter 9

  Chapter 10

  Chapter 11

  Chapter 12

  Chapter 13

  Chapter 14

  Chapter 15

  Chapter 16

  Chapter 17

  Chapter 18

  Chapter 19

  Chapter 20

  Chapter 21

  Chapter 22

  Chapter 23

  Chapter 24

  Chapter 25

  Chapter 26

  Chapter 27

  Chapter 28

  Chapter 29

  Chapter 30

  Chapter 31

  Chapter 32

  Chapter 33

  Chapter 34

  Chapter 35

  Chapter 36

  Chapter 37

  Chapter 38

  Chapter 39

  Chapter 40

  Chapter 41

  Chapter 42

  Chapter 43

  Chapter 44

  Chapter 45

  Chapter 46

  Chapter 47

  Chapter 48

  Chapter 49

  Chapter 50

  Chapter 51

  Chapter 52

  Chapter 53

  Chapter 54

  Chapter 55

  Chapter 56

  Chapter 57

  Chapter 58

  Chapter 59

  Chapter 60

  Chapter 61

  Chapter 62

  Epilogue

  The End?

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  Also by Evangeline Anderson

  About the Author

  Burning for Love

  A Kindred Tales Novel

  What happens when a Dark Kindred warrior with no emotions is sent to guard a frightened Princess with Fire Blood?

  Can James save Ka'rissa from the sinister Duke who wants her dead?

  Read Burning for Love to find out!

  The Princess and the Cyborg...

  Ka'rissa is a Princess of the Very First Family, destined to rule all of Regalia Five. Unfortunately, her esteemed lineage comes with a genetic price—she has what is called "Fire Blood" which causes her to overheat so drastically that she is in very real danger of spontaneously combusting and burning to a pile of ashes. But that isn't the only danger in her life—someone is trying to kill her. After a botched assassination attempt, her uncle hires a Kindred warrior to serve as her bodyguard and Constant Companion. Normally, it would be improper for a young lady to have a male so close to her, but in this case it's all right because Sir James, as he is known, is a cyborg with no human emotions.

  J-8 is a Dark Kindred who has taken the designation "James" in order to fit in at the Royal Court of Regalia Five. His mission is to guard Princess Ka'rissa until she finds a proper suitor to marry and rule her planet with. The man she marries will "Slake her Heat" and cool the Fire Blood in her veins, which puts her at risk of spontaneous combustion. James knows all this and he also knows he shouldn't care who Ka'rissa chooses as her future mate. But when feelings of protectiveness turn instead to possessiveness, he has to accept the fact that his emotion damper may be broken and he is having feelings for the curvy little female.

  As it happens, Ka'rissa is having feeling for James as well. How can she help it when he's so dashing and handsome? When her latest suitor, Duke Grabbington, begins making some very improper advances, the big Kindred rushes to her rescue. But when her Chastity Wire starts giving her problems and James must fight a duel, will their love survive? Or will Ka'rissa be forced to marry another?

  Read Burning for Love to find out!

  Dedicated to Randi Orr for finding me the hot guy I used as inspiration for the hero in this book. Thanks Randi, you rock!

  Author's Note #1

  Readers sometimes like to know how I came up with an idea for a story so here goes. I freely admit that the idea of Burning for Love came from a re-watch of Bridgerton on Netflix. I loved the Regency setting and it occurred to me that I had never written anything resembling that time period. (Please note that I said ‘resembling’ because this is obviously not a real Regency novel and I have taken a few liberties with the fashions.) Also, I was very drawn to the idea of the heroine being kept completely innocent so that she has absolutely no clue about sex or any of the facts of life. I wanted to write about duels of honor and intrigues in the ballroom. And best of all, I loved the idea of using a scandal paper published by some unknown author as a way to convey juicy tidbits of information to the reader.

  But of course, I had to put a sci-fi twist on it—hence my hero who is a Dark Kindred, my version of a cyborg. And my heroine who might literally burn to ashes if she doesn’t get what she needs from him.

  It was so much fun to mix all this up together and serve it to you on a silver platter, Dear Reader. I sincerely hope that you enjoy reading Burning for Love as much as I have enjoyed writing it.

  Hugs and Happy Reading!

  Evangeline

  August 8, 2021

  Author's Note #2

  This has nothing to do with the book, so skip to chapter one if you want to start reading. I don’t want to be in any way political, I just wanted to answer some questions some of you had about my experience getting vaccinated.

  Back in April 2021, my hubby and I got the J&J shot. DH had a few flu-like symptoms and fatigue for a couple of days afterwards. I, on the other hand, only had a sore arm for a little while. Then he felt better and life went on—we had no bad effects. (In case you’re wondering, he is 55 and I am 48.)

  In June, when it was allowed, I got my son, who is 13, vaccinated as well. He got both Pfizer shots and barely even had a sore arm. (Ah, to be young again!) Having him vaccinated made me feel better about sending him back to regular school this fall. (Because this last year of homeschooling was really tough, people! I seriously didn’t think I was going to survive the math!) So getting him the shot made both
of us *very* happy. He was getting really tired of "The School of Mom" as we called our homeschool program, lol.

  Anyway, that’s all I wanted to tell you. Just that my family and I are all vaccinated and we have had no ill effects from it. I hope this answers the questions some of you had when you asked for my personal experience.

  Hugs and be safe!

  Evangeline

  1

  “Thank you for coming today, J-8,” Commander Sylvan said, nodding his head formally. He offered his forearm for a warrior’s clasp.

  J-8 offered his own forearm but he clasped his commander’s arm carefully, mindful of the immense strength in his enhanced right arm and hand. He could have crushed the other male’s bones with ease if he’d wanted to, though of course he did not.

  As they finished the clasp, Commander Sylvan made a courteous gesture.

  “Please, have a seat. I have an assignment I believe you are uniquely suited for that is of the utmost urgency.”

  J-8 nodded his head at his commander and sat in the chair across from the other male’s desk. After spending most of his life on Zeaga Four, the home world of the Dark Kindred, he had decided to make a move to the Kindred Mother Ship and had taken a job in the Kindred Elite Espionage Corps.

  Just as he had once sworn his unswerving allegiance to the Collective—the computer hive mind that had run his old planet and ruled the Dark Kindred with an iron fist—he now swore it to Commander Sylvan, who was the Head of the Kindred High Council. And whatever his commanding officer ordered him to do, he would achieve without fail.

  “I am ready to complete whatever mission you send me on, Commander,” he said. “Tell me where you wish me to go and what you wish me to do and I will do it.”

  “Thank you.” Sylvan nodded approval. “Are you familiar with the planet, Regalia Five in the Bolevard System?”

  J-8 frowned.

  “Is that the star system which was supposedly transported from an alternate universe into our own?”

  “Exactly.” Sylvan nodded. “The entire system came through a gigantic worm hole some fifty cycles ago. And some of the planets—Regalia included—bear a striking resemblance to some planets here in our own universe—to Earth, in fact.”

  “I see.” J-8 nodded, though he wondered what all this had to do with his mission. His people, the Dark Kindred, had at one time tried to take over the Earth, which was being protected by the Kindred of the Mother Ship. They had been under the control of the Collective at that time, however, and he himself had not fought in the war. In fact, he knew little of Earth or its cultures, except what he had observed from the Earthlings he had met aboard the Mother Ship.

  They were an illogical people, J-8 had found, prone to all kinds of extreme emotions. But then, almost anyone was emotional compared to himself and his fellow Dark Kindred. Emotions were forbidden on his home planet of Zeaga Four where “Feel Crime” was punishable by death.

  Despite the fact that he had been living on the Kindred Mother Ship for five cycles now, where emotions were not only permitted but actually encouraged, J-8 still had his original emotion damper implanted at the back of his neck. He had lived his whole life without the messy encumbrance of emotions and he didn’t intend to start feeling now, just because it was allowed in his new home.

  “In what way does Regalia Five resemble Earth?” he asked, because he had learned that it was polite to ask questions on a topic if it was introduced by another, even if he had no interest in it.

  “Well, it doesn’t resemble present day Earth,” Commander Sylvan said, frowning. “According to my mate, Sophia, it’s more analogous to Earth of the past. We visited there recently, to establish diplomatic relations with the Regalians, as they call themselves, and Sophia said she felt as though she’d just stepped into a ‘period piece’—which is a film or vid that is set in a historical period from Earth’s past,” he explained. “Of course, they have space flight and some advanced technology, but it’s oddly mixed with elements of the past from several different time periods.”

  “I see,” J-8 said neutrally, though he didn’t see at all—nor did he care. He didn’t know anything about Earth’s past historical periods and he didn’t really see what bearing this information had on his mission. “Commander,” he said. “Can you please tell me what you want me to do on Regalia Five?”

  “Ah yes, you Dark Kindred are always straight to the point,” Commander Sylvan said dryly. “Well, while Sophia and I were at the Regalia High Court, the Steward—who is in temporary control of the planet—confided to me that he feared for the Princess’s life. She is coming of age and into her first Heat Cycle very soon, which makes her uniquely vulnerable because…but I see that I’ve already lost you,” he said, looking at the confusion J-8 could feel on his own face. “Here—maybe this will explain things better than I can.”

  Reaching into his desk, he pulled out an old-fashioned piece of stiff parchment paper which was printed with a dense block of words. He handed it to J-8 with a nod.

  Frowning, J-8 took the parchment and looked at it. The words were in an unfamiliar language, but that wasn’t a problem for him. In an instant, the ocular scanner that usually molded itself to the right side of his skull extended and positioned itself over his right eye.

  When J-8 looked through the scanner, it began to translate the printed words into his own language. At the same time, the implants in his brain stored the new language so that in the future, he wouldn’t need any help to translate it. In fact, after reading this single sheet of paper, he would be able to speak, read, and write in the Regalian language with perfect ease.

  But the workings of his implants and enhancements were so natural and expected, that J-8 didn’t even notice them. Instead, he was engrossed in the contents of the parchment, which seemed to say some very strange things indeed.

  At the top of the parchment, in flowing script was the heading,

  Lady TittleTattle’s Breadcrumbs.

  Under the heading, the writing went straight to the point.

  Gentle Reader, it began. Has there ever been such intrigue in the High Court as we have lately seen? The Season has but just begun and already there has been an attempt upon the Crown Princess’s life! Thankfully, the despicable attempt was foiled by the loyal palace guards, but one can only imagine the fear and anguish it caused our dear Princess Ka’rissa—and just as she is entering her very first Heat Cycle, too!

  Of course, we all know of the tragedy of the sweet Princess’s life. Her own dear Papa, our late King, died when the Princess was but ten years old and her mother, the Queen, followed him only a year later when no suitable match could be found before she self-immolated in a dire and dramatic display, right in the middle of the Grand Ballroom!

  J-8 frowned. Self-immolated? Was his scanner translating that correctly? It sounded as though the Regalia Queen had burned to death in the middle of a ballroom. Could that possibly be right? It had to be a mistake of his language-translation program.

  Reading on, however, he saw that he hadn’t been mistaken after all.

  Who can ever forget that moment, when our beloved monarch went up in a tower of flames, right in the middle of a splendid cotillion? And who can forget the Princess’s grief as she became an orphan, with no one to care for her but her fine old family Steward, who even now guides our planet with a gentle, fatherly hand, just as he guides the Princess’s own life and Royal career.

  With a Papa cold in the ground and a Mama who is sadly no more than a handful of ash, the dear Princess Ka’rissa needs all the guidance she can get—especially as she enters her first Cycle and the search for a suitable suitor to cool her Royal Heat begins, the parchment went on, in a rather gossipy tone.

  Already the Royal points glow pink and some say there is a distinct smell of burning about the Princess—though we may hope that scent is simply a new perfume or wig powder Her Highness is trying out. Surely she will find the right suitor—one deemed eligible and correct by the Steward himself—to
cool her Heat before she, too, succumbs to the awful fate of her sweet Mama—that of spontaneous combustion.

  We can only hope for the best, Dear Reader. Until we know Princess Ka’rissa’s fate, I shall continue to faithfully report to you all the intimate details of the High Court. Follow my breadcrumbs to know the latest news!

  I remain your obedient and humble servant,

  Lady TittleTattle.

  * * *

  J-8 read the strange words twice more and then frowned as he looked up at Commander Sylvan.

  “As far as I can tell, the gist of this…” He waved the parchment. “Seems to be that this ‘Princess Ka’rissa’ is in some kind of danger—either of being assassinated or burned to a crisp. Though I confess, I don’t fully comprehend the last threat.”