My standard issued lab badge reads 'Simon' but it really should say 'unexciting nerd with no social life' Don't get me wrong—I love what I do with a passion, but it doesn't leave a lot of time for much else. Especially romance. While chipping away at my work, I'm suddenly the person between hired cartel muscle and the fossil that will define my career. Which isn't the most insane part of the story. My savior is a chaotic, bat-wielding punk with a bubble gum pink mohawk and a killer smile. In a mad dash to escape the thieves, my knight in studded armor sweeps me across the country while hitting every tourist trap along the way. While smuggling a fossil, might I add. Oh, and did I mention this pink punk can shift into a dinosaur?

Trapped on a cruise ship with a man I absolutely hate is not how I wanted to spend this fake honeymoon. Especially when my “fiancé” has a deadly ex on the same boat. Jackson is everything I’m not: brash, careless and a former fossil thief. But he’s my ticket to getting what I want—the original Spinosaurus fossils that have been lost for decades. Now I have to play the part, win the fossils and try not to kill him in the process. The danger of being caught, tortured or killed isn’t what scares me. Navigating the waters of this fake relationship is threatening to pull me under. And I’m terrified of sinking.

Running into your one night stand is always awkward. It’s especially awkward when said hunky hookup pulls you into a secret war over fossils and a kidnapped, newly awakened Albertosaurus shifter. As if my life wasn’t already a mess (understatement), now I’m cruising through Canada hunting down an ancient monster who tried to kill us, attempting to get my social media career off the ground, and ignoring my feelings for my one time fling. Royal is hot as fire, funny, brilliant and has a thing for dinosaurs almost as much as I do. Probably because he is one. Bonus.

Being alive for millions of years means I’m rarely surprised. In the long expanse of my existence, I’ve been rescuing fossils for only a breath. During that time, my path has crossed with many different people—shifter and human alike. Some friendly, some nefarious. A hundred years ago, one such man graced me with his presence. He was one of the few to have almost killed me. Imagine my surprise when I see him again, buying the rarest amber fossil to have ever been discovered. Precious. Beautiful. Unique. A true treasure millions of years in the making. I won’t let him get away again.

For the past few years, I’ve been living with a ghost. My husband - my mate - was lost because of choices I made. As one of only a few tyrannosaur shifters on this planet, I have resigned myself to an immortality alone, married to my work. I am more than happy to keep my walls up, heart guarded, and my focus set on my missions. That was until a compassionate, plant obsessed man stomped into my life. Henry is everything I don’t have time young, reckless, eager to prove himself, and desperate to push all of my buttons. Some of those buttons he hits with expert precision. When we learn about a rare, and life changing shifter fossil being traded on the black market, Henry and I set out into the concrete jungle of Chicago to steal it back. The treasure is heavily guarded, worth a fortune, and sought after by all manner of deadly adversaries. If we can keep our heads down and maintain a professional relationship, we might make it through this alive. Henry has other plans. \\\\ Gardens & Ghosts can be read as a standalone, but it is highly recommended you read King & Queen (RELIC #3) so you get all the story!