While on the run from the aliens who abducted me from Earth, I find an abandoned shack on this alien planet and hide inside. When a winter storm descends, I’m stuck inside with no food, no warm clothes, and only melted snow for water.

But I’m not alone. There is a blue alien outside watching me with his violet eyes. I’ve seen his bulk, his powerful tail, and the sharp blades that emerge from underneath his scaly skin. I figure that I’m done for, and that I’ll freeze to death in this shack like a lonely human popsicle. But then the gifts start appearing under a snow-covered tree. And I have to wonder—is this a lure to coax me out of my hiding spot, or is this some sort of miracle?

Baki is part of a shared series with talented authors in the science fiction romance genre. It is also a part of the Outcasts of Corin series by Ella Maven, but can be read as standalone.

I don’t play by the rules… until her.

Maisie: I’m tired of being scared, but fear is like a constant companion these days. Some big blue alien stole the last of my friends, and now I’m alone as a prisoner on a spaceship on my way back to the planet that stole everything from me.

I thought I’d seen the last of the blue aliens, until suddenly I’m staring into the eyes of one as he gets ready to fire a laser right into the cockpit where I sit. And at this point in my life, I’m thinking this might be the best way to go.

Maddic: I’m minding my own business when an enemy aircraft tries to shoot me out of the sky. Of course I’m going to retaliate, and as I line up my final shot, something from inside the enemies cockpit catches my eye—the face of a terrified human female.

Now I’m trying to save both of us from hurtling to the ground and going splat. I figure that’s my most difficult task yet. I don’t factor in learning that this human is my mate, and if I don’t get her to trust me, we’re never getting home.

“I don’t deserve her, but I’ll risk everything to save her.”

Tasha: We’ve carved out a little life for ourselves on Corin—me and the other human survivors. It’s not perfect, and I miss Earth, but we could never return. Not after what was done to us. Not after what we’ve become. So we keep to ourselves, hiding from anyone and anything that would do us harm, until our peaceful settlement is raided. Suddenly I’m a prisoner, and from the looks of it, I’m also about to be a sacrifice…

Lukent: Corin was meant to be a fresh start, but I knew better. I’d always be a scarred outcast from the rest of the Drixonian males, and no way would I ever have a chance to mate with the few human survivors we’ve rescued. Far from the happy villages, I plan to live out the rest of my days securing our borders and protecting the precious families of the fortunate mated Drixonians.

Until one day, my patrol leads me off my usual path and I find my entire worldview shift the first moment I lock eyes on the fighting, snarling human female in the grips of a deadly captor. Saving her means disrupting the peace for not only myself, but the rest of the Drixonians. Still, I’ll risk it all to save her… and to convince her she’s my fated mate.

She’s something I didn’t want, but everything I crave.

Lu: This planet is the pits. I’m being handed off to different aliens one after another like I’m a dog-eared novel. My latest captors are about to take me off planet when a big blue alien botches the rescue mission. Now we’re both prisoners of a fierce lizard species who will let us free on one condition, and I think our life span is looking bleak.

Axton: I know my way around swords, enemies, and blood, but this human is something else. She never stops talking, asks too many questions, and makes my blood hot. All we need to do is find the missing offspring of the lizard king. Between my muscles and her sporadic ability to tell the future, I figure we might just make it out alive.

While battling for our lives, I’m also fighting to keep my hands off the fiery human. But time is running out, and if I want a future with her, I have to complete the hardest hunt of my life.

I uncaged a monster…

Amber: The blue alien warrior pacing in his cage terrifies me. His long dark hair is wild and messy, and his scarred body looks made for murder. I deliver food to him every day, and I’m sure by the way he stares at me that he’d rather eat me. Yet there’s something about him that captivates me, and I can’t stop watching him. When he lets the snarling, fearsome mask slip for a moment, I start to see there’s a cool calculation to his actions. I would be risking everything—his life and mine—to help him escape, but do I dare let this monster free from his cage?

Vinz: Getting captured on purpose is not my favorite activity. The food sucks, the guards beat me as their favorite pastime, and more than anything, I miss a good flask of spirits. But I’ll endure all of that for her—the human. She walks like she’s floating, has a voice as soft as Fatas herself, and always gives me the fullest food bowl.

As long as I’m here, I can ensure she’s safe. Until my hands are forced. Until suddenly she’s a vulnerable female in my hands. Until her entire fate rests on me, the outcast of the outcasts. They think I’m a monster? I haven’t even come close to my final form, and for her, I’ll be the worst beast of all.

I offer myself as bait… but am I really just a pawn?

Trix: The red aliens make me a deal I can’t refuse—help them fight their enemies and they’ll rescue my friends. I agree to act as bait to lure the blue Drixonian leader. But the heated, knowing look in his violet eyes makes me suspect I made a bargain with the wrong aliens…

Kutzal: This female isn’t like the others. She’s prickly, cold, and shot me with an arrow. I want her. But she thinks I’m the enemy, and unless I can find a way to communicate despite our language barrier, her friends will be the ones at risk. I never back down from a battle, so this is one I will win. And then I’ll claim my mate.

“She’s my match… in more ways than one.”

Sherif: Although my brother disappeared many cycles ago, I’ve never given up hope that he’s alive. I get word about a human who has seen him, but she’s evading me. When I finally come face to face with her, the situation becomes a whole lot more complicated, because I can’t deny the pull toward the female with the smart mouth. She doesn’t know it yet, but she’ll be by my side as I rule over my people.

Zuri: I heard about the Kaluma looking for me, and I’m not interested. No way. It’s bad enough he knows I’m human, but if he finds out the reason I’m free from my captors, he’ll surely lop my head off with his deadly blades.

But he’s hard to shake, and when we finally meet, I realize there’s a whole other problem—he’s claiming me as his mate, and I’m not sure I can resist.

Claimed by the Alien Chieftain features a determined alien hero with alpha tendencies and a hacker heroine with deadly aim.