Title: The Fire We Crave
Series: Iron Outlaws MC: Colorado #3
Author: S. Cole
Genre: MC Romance
Tropes: Age Gap, Grumpy/Sunshine
Enemies to Lovers
Release Date: June 5, 2025
BLURB
From USA Today best selling author, Scarlett Cole, writing as S. Cole, comes an electrifying small town MC, grumpy/sunshine, enemies to lovers romance.
Quinn
Two things happened on my thirteenth birthday. My older sister went missing. And I told Smoke Callahan, the Iron Outlaws Road Captain, that it was his fault she was gone.
Fourteen years later, I still hate him.
But hate doesn’t keep me safe when the Bratva sets its sights on me.
I need protection. The kind only a ruthless, broken man like Smoke can provide.
So I make him an offer. I’ll help him recover from the burns that nearly cost him his life. In return, he keeps me breathing.
It should be simple. It isn’t.
Because the more time I spend in his orbit, the more I see the man behind the scars. The one who carries a past as heavy as mine. And when he looks at me, it’s not hatred I see in his dark eyes anymore.
It’s something far more dangerous.
Smoke
Quinn Moran was just a kid when she came at me, fists flying, blaming me for her sister’s disappearance. I let her. I deserved it.
Now she’s all grown up—sharp-tongued, stubborn as hell, and standing in my cabin, asking for my protection.
I should say no. I should send her away.
But I don’t. Because even if she still hates me, I’ll kill anyone who tries to hurt her.
Even if it means she learns the truth.
Even if it means she never forgives me.
Because she was never meant to be mine. But that won’t stop me from taking her.
PURCHASE LINKS
EXCERPT
Smoke’s eyes drop to his chest, and he places his hand over mine.
“You’re okay, Smoke. So am I. It’s all okay.” The words are softly spoken. Soothing, like you would for a frightened child.
My heart hammers loudly in my chest, and it’s not just the adrenaline of the situation.
It’s the way I feel Smoke’s heartbeat beneath my palm. It’s the way his hand sits over mine, covering it completely, so strong and warm. It’s the way his thumb rubs over my fingers and the way his eyes darken with heat and arousal.
It’s his presence. The way we feel so…joined. His eyes raise to my lips as he runs his tongue over his lower lip.
Neither of us moves.
The world continues around us. Birds chirp, cicadas do their thing, but we’re stuck in a vortex. Swirling. Chaotic. All consuming.
“The prospects need to be protecting you,” he says finally.
But his voice is gruff, layered with nuance it’s impossible to interpret.
“And he was. Who was protecting you?”
“I don’t need protecting.”
I shake my head sadly. “I think you do.”
Smoke cups my cheeks before I have time to process, his hold firm.
“Fuck it,” he mutters, more to himself than to me, I think.
Then, he dips his head and kisses me.
And it’s everything I ever read about.
It’s angry yet filled with the kind of passion that sweeps you up and knocks you over into the tumble of a huge wave of emotion.
My treacherous body capitulates to every small movement.
His lips stroke my mouth; I open.
His hands wrap around my waist; I throw mine around his neck.
I struggle to see anything beyond the way he feels against me.
When I step up against him, his cock lengthens and hardens against my stomach. His whole body envelops me, showing just how disparate our size difference is.
He doesn’t ask. He takes. But I’m wholeheartedly a willing participant. If anything, I want more. Every part of my body meets Smoke. If he began to strip my clothes to take me on the parched ground, I’d let him.
“Quinn,” he mutters against my lips as his hands roam my body, familiarizing themselves with my shape.
I’m gentle where he’s injured, but I slide my hand beneath his cut, and I’m immersed in the scent of leather and tobacco and him.
“Shit. No,” Smoke says suddenly, lightly gripping my wrists before pushing me away from him.
The shift in his expression from need to disgust churns my stomach.
“I’m sorry,” I say, almost on autopilot, even though I’m not a hundred percent sure what I’m sorry for.
Hell, I’m not even sure how I fell headfirst into that kiss.
Smoke shakes his head. “Not your fault. Just—we can’t do that again.”
Unable to come up with anything else to say, I blurt one word: “Okay.”
Four letters that do absolutely nothing to convey the storm raging inside me right now.
“Okay,” he repeats.
But as I watch him stride into the house, ignoring the glass Shane left on the step, I know the fragile truce we were building is broken. And I wonder if we’ll ever truly be okay again.
Review
This is the 3rd book of a series. I am loving this MC and all the members!
Smoke and Quinn have had interesting lives. They have always been on each others periphery. It isn't until Quinn's life is in danger that they agree to calla truce to past feelings and support each other in the here and now.
I love a good slow burn enemies to lovers story. Quinn has had her guard up for years around Smoke. When the truth finally comes out, Quin starts to crumble but Smoke is right there giving her the courage she needs to face the past.
Loved seeing the other couples. I love the small town atmosphere of this whole series. Looking forward to reading more!
I voluntarily read and reviewed an advanced copy of this book. All thoughts and opinions are my own.
ALSO AVAILABLE
Free in Kindle Unlimited
COMING SOON
Releasing August 7
Only available at the following
retailers for a limited time
B&N / KOBO / APPLE BOOKS
