A Sci-Fi Monster Romance Fresh out of college, with a degree in Biochemistry and wild dreams for the future, I can’t believe my luck when I get a job as a lab assistant with the mysterious organization IMRA. But then I find out IMRA stands for… umm… International Monster Research Association, and that… umm… alien monsters exist, and now I’m not even allowed to talk about my job at home! Deep breath. I can handle this. I’m a professional, and this is a great opportunity. Oh, what’s the job description? So glad you asked! It’s… let me check. Ah, right! Collecting test samples from a recently captured green-skinned beast that’s as tall as a mountain, a bit too growly for my taste, and could certainly break out of his cage if he wanted to. An orc. I’m to collect various bodily fluids from an alien orc. Deep breath. Don’t panic, Lou. Come on! You’re a professional. \sweat drop\

I've traveled the world, put distance between me and my past, never spent too much time in one place. When the father who abandoned me reaches out and tells me I'm the only one who can help him with a top-secret project, I don't hesitate. All I've ever wanted was for him to see me; that's why I became a scientist. In the IMRA research labs, they study alien monsters. I've been passionate about snakes since I was a kid, so I'm used to being around the cold-blooded reptiles. But when Dad shows me his test subject, the temptation to run is overwhelming. This isn't just an alien snake. It's a gold-skinned naga! Sixteen feet long tail, shimmering scales, deep, intelligent eyes. And venomous beyond belief! He's already killed one lab assistant, and if I don't turn out to be the snake whisperer I think I am, I'm next.

I became a marine veterinarian because I wanted to make a difference in the world. No one gets it, because why would I want to work when I come from old money? I don’t care. I want to make something of myself, not marry well and spend my life playing tennis and throwing yacht parties. I get my chance to prove my skills when Dr. Glenda Smith bursts into my workplace and whisks me away to a secret island off the coast, where I have to save the life of an octopus. Except when I get there, I realize she’s kind of lied to me… Yes, the sea creature has the tentacles of an octopus, but the head and torso of a man. He’s a kraken, an alien from a faraway planet, and he’s been wounded in battle. I will do anything to save him. It’s my job. But then I approach him, he gazes at me, and his three hearts stop at once.

Being a technician on the Belua Space Station is a dream job! I get to be a part of something extraordinary, and also top secret. But when I find out that building spaceships isn’t the only purpose of the ring station, things change. When the Director makes contact with an alien ship and his men capture it, we get our hands on the aliens’ most prized possession – a star portal. Now I’m tasked with pulling it apart and figuring out how it works. But I can’t do it alone. I need answers from the ship’s Captain. Travak Khator. He looks like a minotaur from the Greek myths, but of course, he doesn’t identify as one. He and his crew have been imprisoned, tortured, and experimented on. The moment I meet him, I know… The star portal doesn’t matter. What we’re doing on the station doesn’t matter. All that matters is to help this hot-as-sin alien escape, and hope he takes me with him.

There are two things that define me: my career in science, and my status as a single woman. When people meet Dr. Lola Reyes, they immediately know I’m only interested in the hard facts. But after working for the International Monster Research Association for two years, I’m starting to lose faith in what I do. Yes, I want to continue studying aliens. No, I don’t want to do it in the inhumane manner IMRA seems to do everything. I’m about to quit when I’m assigned to Project Gargoyle. I give in and accept to at least see the subject first. The alien specimen is tall, dark, with horns, wings, and a tail. He is Project Gargoyle because his skin is like hard, unbreakable stone. I look into his eyes, and I know I can’t leave now. He intrigues me. He says he’s a prince from planet Petera, on the run from his brother’s assassins. He also says I’m his fated mate, and if I escape with him, he can take back the throne. Indeed, he intrigues me.

I thought I was doing the right thing. Hunting down alien monsters for IMRA, stopping them from hurting people. I’m a hunter, and my job is done once they’re captured and caged. But then the tables turn, and I end up the prisoner of a centaur. He calls himself Athos and says he’s a scholar from planet Yacheron. He’s been living on Earth for years, isolated in the mountains, never hurting anyone. I don’t know if I should believe him. He tells me I’m his guest, not his prisoner, and as time passes and we’re forced to live in his hut until I heal, he reveals to me that I’m his… mate. How can it be possible? This attraction I feel… All-consuming, almost obsessive… It’s madness. Because I’m human, and he’s only half man. We weren’t made to fit together.