Crown of Embers

He demanded tribute in gold. He left with a woman whose words are sharper than his claws.

Khloe is the "Dove of the West," a diplomat famous for ending wars with nothing but a quill and a quiet voice. But when the skies turn black and the Dragon Warlord descends upon the peace summit, she realizes some monsters cannot be reasoned with.

Wyrith of the Obsidian Peaks is a creature of magma and rage, a Warlord on the brink of going feral. His inner fire is consuming him, and only a mate can balance the heat. He doesn't want a companion; he wants a distraction. And the little human who dares to lecture him on "sovereignty" while he burns her kingdom's crops is the most interesting distraction he's found in centuries.

Kidnapped and chained in a mountain hoard, Khloe is told to write treaties for a beast who only understands fire. But as she navigates Wyrith's volatile temper and the ancient politics of dragon clans, she discovers the Warlord's secret: he isn't burning the world because he hates it. He's burning it because he's terrified of what he will become when the fire goes out.

The rest of the world sees a monster. Khloe sees a king waiting to be crowned. But to save him, she'll have to do the one thing a diplomat never does: start a war.

"I told him I would not bow to a beast. He smiled, and the mountain shook. 'Then you will kneel for a King.'"