Now that the Drexians have revealed themselves to humans, the two species are working together to protect Earth and the galaxy from alien invaders. That means women aren't just tribute brides anymore. And they aren't going to be bossed around by anyone--not even the badass Inferno Force warriors.

A detective who refuses to modify her body teams up with her cyborg rival to track down a burglar who is putting toys into homes. A solitary ice miner finds love and friendship while stranded on the surface of Galileo. And two hardheaded negotiators put their differences aside to evade an assassin and save their planets. Enjoy these visions of Christmases yet to come with three science-fiction novellas from Carina Press.

After Captain Caleb Shepperd escapes from prison, all he wants to do is keep his head down and earn a living smuggling guns and drugs through the nine systems. But, when a synth known as #1001 stows away on the captain's ship, bringing with her a ton of problems - including guilt-ridden secrets he thought he'd left behind - he'd prefer to toss her out the airlock. The problem is, she's priceless tech and he's fresh out of credit.

Solara Brooks needs a fresh start, someplace where nobody cares about the engine grease beneath her fingernails or the felony tattoos across her knuckles. The outer realm may be lawless, but it's not like the law has ever been on her side. Still, off-world travel doesn't come cheap; Solara is left with no choice but to indenture herself in exchange for passage to the outer realm.

Skulking around in the ruins on a planet swarming with treasure hunters, slavers, and bounty hunters isn't good for one's health. But Ankari Markovich needs a few archaeological samples for her latest business venture, a venture that might prove lucrative enough to move her family off the impoverished planet where she grew up. Unfortunately, she has no sooner collected her samples than she's captured by a band of brawny mercenaries.

Taken to a high-tech space station designed to entice human women, LA socialite Mandy is anything but impressed. She’s not falling for their holographic fantasy suites, their promise of a dream wedding, or their gorgeous, brawny warriors. Especially not the arrogant, hot-shot commander she’s been matched with. He may be used to being obeyed, but no way is she following his orders. She could care less that he's huge and ripped and drop-dead gorgeous.

Inmate 5313 reached the end of his sentence after 10 grueling years. That is, until the wrong question led to a beating with an exclusive stay in the fridge. Before the badges manage to lock him into cryostorage for a nightmare-fueled nap, several explosions send the prison barge plummeting into a frozen planet in unclaimed space. This is the first day of Seb’s freedom, an ill-starred future that includes banding together with cutthroat mercenaries, bartering with sordid information brokers, and fighting against the galaxy's ruthless corporations.

Octavia Zarola would do anything to keep her tiny, close-knit bounty hunting crew together—even if it means accepting a job from Torran Fletcher, a ruthless former general and her sworn enemy. When Torran offers her enough credits to not only keep her crew afloat but also hire someone to fix her ship, Tavi knows that she can’t refuse—no matter how much she’d like to.

Humans made a deal with the Stryxian males: Help us defend Earth, and when the war is over, we’ll send you women to help rebuild your dying species. Now, the war appears to be over and Trinity Bentzer’s number has been called in the lottery. Only, instead of winning a boatload of money, she’s getting some badass winged alien she’s never met. Trin’s not thrilled to be shipped off and matched up, until she meets Raig. Maybe she hit the jackpot, after all.

Two centuries ago, the First Expansionary Fleet set off to the farthest reaches of the galaxy, hoping to explore, colonize, and conquer new worlds in the name of humanity. But when the fleet was violently and unexpectedly thrown off course, the colonists found themselves trapped in an unexplored region of the galaxy—and caught right in the middle of a bloody interstellar war. Now, after generations of relentless fighting, a tentative truce has finally ushered in an era of growth and prosperity.

Sigrid and Suko are two girls from the impoverished and crime-infested streets of 24th century Earth. Sold into slavery to save their families from financial ruin, the girls are forced to live out their lives in service to the Kimura Corporation, a prestigious mercenary clan with a lineage stretching back long before the formation of the Federated Corporations.

NASA discovered the alien ship lurking in the asteroid belt in the 1960's. They kept the Target under intense surveillance for decades, letting the public believe they were exploring the solar system, while they worked feverishly to refine the technology needed to reach it. Dr. Jane Holloway is content documenting nearly-extinct languages and had never contemplated becoming an astronaut. But when NASA recruits her to join a team of military scientists for an expedition to the Target, it's an adventure she can't refuse.

Kylie Rhoads is a junker. She makes her living traveling the stars, salvaging abandoned ships left over from pirate attacks on the edge of the Gedri system. Some of the hulls are legal for the taking, most aren't. When a salvage job goes bad, Kylie finds herself on the wrong end of a gun. The hand holding that gun? The SA Space Force, just the people Kylie wants to avoid. To avoid prison, Kylie makes a deal to go deep into the Gedri System and rescue a simple girl. But out on the fringe, nothing is as it seems.

Tattooed, muscled, and fierce, they look like felons; but these highly trained agents are humanity's protectors - the only ones standing between Earth and the threats of the galaxy. They are the Star Guardians. A born geek, Juanita has dreamed of exploring the stars for as long as she can remember. Getting kidnapped by slavers from another planet? Not so much. If she's lucky, she might be able to convince the hot guy protecting her from the others to help her escape.

It wasn't easy for Molly being the only girl in Flight Academy, but getting expelled was even worse. Abandoned by her family when she was young and now tossed from the only home she's ever known, her future looks bleak.

But then Molly hears that her father's old starship has turned up halfway across the galaxy. Setting off to retrieve the old craft, she hopes it will hold clues to his disappearance. Accompanying her as a chaperone is Cole, her old flight partner from the Academy.