Chapter 1
Chapter 1 A loud, high-pitched yip rang out right next to Iris’s ear, causing her to jump. Until that point, their long ride from Providence had been relatively quiet. She had just pulled off the highway and onto a winding country road when Riley, her dark gray Alaskan Malamute, finally expressed his displeasure with their road trip. The dog appeared to plead with his stark blue eyes as he continued to whine and pace in a circle as best as he could in the back seat of her old Jeep Cherokee. “Hold on a few more minutes, buddy. I just need to find somewhere to pull over.” Just as the words left her mouth, Iris spotted a vintage sign on the side of the road. Welcome to Grey Lake, NH was written in bright white on a dark blue background. The words Incorporated in 1779 were in smaller font underneath. “Great. We’re here.” Iris sighed loudly. She pulled the jeep over to the side of the road and turned off the engine. She clipped Riley’s leash to his collar and opened the back door to let the canine have a pee break. It was a beautiful late summer day. The sky was a clear blue canvas scattered with fluffy white clouds. Iris walked an excited Riley into the woods a short distance from the side of the road. They were surrounded by massive pine and maple trees with an occasional birch as well. Iris’s gaze wandered over the terrain as they meandered under the verdant canopy when, all of a sudden, Riley froze and refused to move. Iris tried to pull him along, but the wolf-like dog weighed close to a hundred pounds so it wasn’t that easy to move him when he decided not to cooperate. Suddenly, he crouched down, his pointed ears erect. His fur stood straight up in the air as he bared his teeth and emitted a feral growl. Goosebumps erupted on Iris’s skin. She had never seen him act like this. She crouched next to her pet and asked, “What’s the matter, buddy?” just as Riley sprinted out ahead of her, ripping the leash from her grasp and running like a bat out of hell. Iris screeched, “Come back!” as she plowed through the tree branches after the runaway dog. Running was not her favorite activity—actually, it was probably her least favorite activity – but she had no choice. The tree branches whipped at her bare arms and legs as she raced after him. She had to keep Riley in her sights so he didn’t get lost in the woods. He was a city dog. Riley had lived the last year with her in her small apartment in Providence. He wasn’t used to the wilderness where there were probably bears and coyote hunting for dinner. Iris’s lungs burned as she ran deeper into the dense forest. She came to a small clearing where Riley had finally stopped and was now sitting, staring up at a hill. Iris grabbed his leash and bent over catching her breath. “What the hell!” she wheezed. “I could have lost you! You could’ve been eaten!” “What the hell is going on?” a deep voice bellowed from right behind Iris. “Ayeeee!” Iris jumped and turned. Standing about five feet away was a man dressed in a dark uniform with a GLPD patch on the left side of his chest. Her face heated as she stared dumbly at a cross between a SWAT team member and a Norse God. The man was easily over six feet tall, probably 6’4 or 5 if she had to guess. He was huge and broad-shouldered. His light blondish-brown hair was longer, reaching almost to the collar of his shirt, making him quite a rugged sight. It was as if one of the Vikings from that television show she loved had sprung to life in the woods…in the woods of New Hampshire. Yeah, right. She shook her head and saw that Riley lay down on his stomach, peering up at who she guessed was a member of the Grey Lake Police Department. Iris finally came to her senses and noticed the imposing, yet very hot, cop glaring at her. “Who are you?” she demanded. The officer’s face remained almost frozen, but she swore she saw his eyes widen just a tiny bit before seeming to catch himself. “Who am I? No. I think the better question is who are you and why are you trespassing on private property?” “What?” Iris was dumbfounded. “I let my dog out of the car to go to the bathroom, and he took off. I chased him.” “So, is that your jeep illegally parked on the side of the road?” he asked. “What? No—I mean yes.” Iris sounded like a babbling idiot even to her own ears. The SWAT Viking smirked. “Well, which is it?” She groaned. “The jeep is mine, but I didn’t know it was illegally parked. I just stopped to let Riley out. I was coming right back to it,” Iris argued. She was normally very mild mannered—actually, too mild mannered. But there was something about this man’s disapproving glare that riled her up. She hated how he stared at her with disdain in his eyes. The look was familiar to Iris. Her father used it as one of his ways to make her feel worthless, as if she didn’t matter. “My dog took off and I chased him until he finally stopped. I just want to get him back to my car, officer. You’re with the police, right?” “Yes.” He reached into his back pocket and handed her a business card. “He just stopped right here?” The man, an Officer Deacon Clay according to his card, glanced at the surrounding woods. “Right here. He was just staring up at the hill over there.” Iris pointed to where Riley had been focusing when he finally stopped running. “Now, can I please bring him back to the car? I’m supposed to be meeting someone soon. I don’t want to be late.” He nodded without turning to face her. “Mmm. I’ll bring you back to your car.” He finally pulled his gaze from the tree-covered hill and stared at her. Oh, damn. That is one hot man. His eyes were grayish-blue and his arms, the parts she could see not covered by his tight-fitting black T-shirt, were covered in black tattoos that seemed to be some kind of tribal art. He smelled good, too, like the forest. Wait, what the hell was she thinking? Iris shook the crazy thoughts from her head. “Thanks, but we’re fine. We can find our way back,” Iris insisted, trying to pull Riley along. The dog, however, refused to budge. He was still lying on his belly, staring up at Officer Hot-as-Hell Viking. “I insist,” he growled. “This area is not safe.” He grabbed Riley’s leash and led the dog back through the woods as Iris followed with her mouth open. Traitor, she thought, staring at the now obedient canine. “You need to be careful. You shouldn’t be running around these woods by yourself. There have been animal attacks nearby,” he continued. “I have pepper spray,” Iris grumbled under her breath. The man was practically scolding her like a child. He could only be a little older than her 26 years, maybe 30 or so, far too young to be treating her like this. He stopped walking and turned back to face her. “Do you have it on you?” he asked, glancing at her outfit. She was wearing jean shorts and a V-neck white T-shirt with her favorite Vans. His eyes roved her from head to toe, a little too slowly for her liking. She had left her purse in the car. “It’s in your car, isn’t it?” he asked with a hint of a grin. Iris couldn’t meet his eyes. This was so embarrassing. “I didn’t think I was going to be gallivanting through the forest after my very bad dog.” She glared at Riley. He turned away from her and once again marched toward the road. “Well, no matter. Pepper spray wouldn’t do much against these animals anyway.” “What do you mean?” she asked, following a little bit closer to the hot, but rude, man. He was so dismissive, so annoying. He ignored her question and asked, “Where are you headed?” “My new job in town. I was just hired at a bakery. Why?” He stopped and turned to face her with a look of surprise before continuing to hike through the woods toward the road. “Grey Lake is a small town. We like to know when outsiders move in.” “How did you know…?” “Your jeep is full of stuff. I assumed you were moving somewhere,” he answered. “The only bakery I know is Tessa’s.” “Yes, she hired me. I’m her new head baker,” Iris answered as they reached the road where a police cruiser was parked right behind her dark blue Cherokee. He grunted. “Well, I’ll take you to Tessa. Just follow my car,” he ordered. He handed her Riley’s leash and stalked to his car without glancing back at her. “I have directions. I don’t need—” Iris stammered. “I insist, Miss…?” He turned, giving her a raised eyebrow as he opened his car door. “Iris. My name is Iris Williamson,” Iris answered, gritting her teeth. “Well, Miss Williamson, please follow me,” he said firmly, getting into his car before she could answer. Less than 15 minutes later, Iris followed the police car into a small parking lot in front of a russet-colored building. Iris gasped. The bakery seemed to have been transported from a fairy tale with color-filled window boxes, bright white shutters, and a stone chimney on one side. A smooth, pebbled stone path lined by beds of bright blooms led to the glass door with TESSA’S TREATS written in script. She left the car windows open halfway for Riley and climbed out of the car. She turned to lock her car door and screeched when she saw Officer Clay standing right next to her. “Eeek! You have to stop sneaking up on people!” Iris yelled. He cringed at her high-pitched yell then glowered at her, but he didn’t get a chance to say anything since the bakery door opened and a sprightly redhead walked toward them. The smiling woman had a glorious mass of curls pulled into a messy bun high on her head. Powdered sugar covered the pastel blue apron with TESSA’S TREATS written in large white letters. The woman was smaller than Iris, but almost all women were since she was 5’9. She appeared to be slightly older than Iris, maybe about 30 or so. “Good morning, Deacon.” The woman smiled at the still frowning policeman. “I see you found my new employee.” Before Deacon could answer, Tessa turned immediately to Iris. “Iris, it’s nice to finally meet you in person.” She grasped both of Iris’s hands in her own. “And this handsome beast must be Riley.” She leaned into the open car window and rubbed the dog under his muzzle. “Tessa Lane,” she said while continuing to scratch Riley with her other. “And I’m very happy to have you here to help with my shop. I’ve gotten too busy to be a one-woman show.” “Tessa, please make sure you have a word with your new employee about personal safety. I found her and her dog deep in the woods near Hanover Hill,” Deacon said, speaking to Tessa as if Iris wasn’t standing right in front of him. “Oh, don’t you worry. I’ll make sure to give her a tour of the town real soon. Thank you for keeping them safe,” Tessa said with a gleam in her eye as Iris’s face warmed with the combination of anger and embarrassment. “Well, I have to get back to the station. Remember what I said,” he said pointedly to Iris. Iris just scowled back at him as he got in his police car and drove off. Riley lifted his head lazily for the petite redhead to give him a more extensive scratch. Iris was shocked. “Riley never lets anyone but me pet him normally.” “Well, he must sense I’m an animal lover,” she said. “If this handsome gentleman wouldn’t mind moving to the backseat, I can navigate you to the cottage.” Tessa dusted the powdered sugar from her apron and climbed into the passenger front seat of the jeep as Riley nimbly vaulted into the back. “We can unload some of these boxes, and then I’ll show you the shop.” “Can you just leave the bakery empty?” Iris asked. “It’ll be fine. We’ll be back in a little bit. No one will bother anything. People here are pretty respectful,” she said with a wry smile. “OK, then. That would be great. Thank you so much again for giving me this chance.” “Don’t thank me yet, sweetie. You’re going to be very busy. The hours are early and the pay isn’t great, but I think you’ll like it here,” she said, closing the car door. “The people are nice, and even in this new health-conscious America, the good people of Grey Lake love their baked goods.” Tessa gave directions as Iris steered the jeep slowly, examining the town as she drove. “We need to take a right onto Main and then head two miles before taking a left onto Old Mill Road. I’m about three-quarters of a mile down on the left. It’s the big white house with green shutters, number eighty-four.” They drove past colonial-style houses of varying sizes, all with quaint, landscaped yards. The townsfolk obviously spent a lot of time maintaining their property. Lush, bright green grass and rainbows of flowers appeared to be the norm, even in the hot summer weather. Iris was most impressed with the amount of land surrounding each home. She felt her shoulders drop a bit as she breathed in deeply. Space, so much space here. She could breathe. “From the way you’re gawking, I’m guessing where you come from is pretty different,” Tessa reflected. “Yeah, so, so different. I grew up in Providence. My family lived in the suburbs, but I moved to the city for work after culinary school. Lots of gray buildings, tons of people, crime. Grey Lake, it’s so beautiful here. The houses are so cute. So many trees and flowers. So much grass.” She pulled onto Old Mill Road. Riley now was sitting up in the backseat, facing the window with his tongue hanging out. A bright white wooden fence with 84 in bold black numbers stood out against the greens and browns of the forest. The gate was open so Iris pulled the jeep down the long gravel driveway. A large white two-story home came into view. The cozy farmhouse had been well-taken care of. Iris was smiling as she pulled to a stop in front of the house. There was even a pine-green bench swing on the front porch. “You like the swing?” Tessa asked with a smile. “One of my friends is good with his hands. Makes custom furniture, beautiful pieces. He sells them online now, too. The cottage doesn’t have a porch, but maybe we can get you a couple of Adirondack chairs and a small table instead?” Iris was still gaping at the porch. She finally snapped out of it and let Riley out of the jeep. “That would be amazing,” she said excitedly. “The cottage is out around the back just a little ways. Let me show you around, and then we’ll come back for the boxes.” Iris followed Tessa with Riley trailing behind, sniffing along the way. “This little cottage was originally built for the mother-in-law of the prior owner. When I moved in about ten years ago, I used it as an office slash test kitchen. Once I opened my shop, I really didn’t have the need for this extra kitchen. I’ve just basically been using it for storage since then. Once you accepted my offer, I had it cleaned out. It still needs some updating. I can reimburse you for anything that will increase the property value. Paint, new flooring, whatever. Let me give you the grand tour,” Tessa said, walking through the pine-green front door. “Let’s go see our new house, buddy,” Iris said, rubbing the fur along Riley’s back as she followed Tessa through the door. They walked into a small, bright living room with a dusky blue loveseat, matching recliner, and a flat screen television on a small dark brown wooden stand. There were large windows on two of the walls. Through the living room there was a short hallway leading to a furnished bedroom on the left, a bright white newly remodeled bathroom on the right, and a kitchen straight back. Tessa walked through to the kitchen. The kitchen was clean with new appliances, but in need of a coat of paint. There was a four-burner gas stove/oven and a bright white refrigerator along one wall next to a deep white farmhouse sink. Iris ran her right hand along the cool black granite countertop. “This is so nice.” “It needs some work, but it should be plenty comfortable for you and the pup,” she said while scratching Riley between the ears. “It’s perfect!” she squeaked. “There’s plenty enough room for the two of us. This kitchen is great. I can do a lot of test baking in here.” “Then let’s unload your jeep, and I can show you the shop.”
Chapter 2
Chapter 2 “Would you just stop talking?” Deacon snarled at the man in the back of his police car. “I’m going to get a lawyer and persecute you for police brutality,” the dirty, strung-out young man screeched at Deacon. “It’s prosecute, and go ahead and try it. You threw a punch at a police officer, Sean. I was well within my rights to defend myself. Be glad I only hit you once,” Deacon growled out. “You broke my goddamn nose,” the prisoner whined again as Deacon drove back to the station. Deacon thought hard about stopping the car and slapping the young man until he stopped talking. He had pulled the twentysomething cougar shifter over after seeing him driving erratically on Old Ridge Road near the Grey Mountain Ski Resort. It turns out the car was stolen, and Sean Bowen, one of the cougar shifters who had moved into Grey Lake from Connecticut two years ago, was heavily intoxicated. I better not hit him. I’ll just end up with more paperwork. I need to get some sleep. “You better watch it, wolf. I have lots of friends that won’t like that I was arrested.” What an idiot. This little punk had no idea who he was talking to. Deacon Clay was a wolf shifter who was born and raised in Grey Lake. After his mother was killed and his sonofabitch father was put down a few years later, Deacon was raised by the then-alpha and his family. Ted Jensen and his human wife, Annie, had taken Deacon in when he was a messed up 12-year-old and raised him as if he were one of their own. His foster brother, Heath, was the current alpha as well as the Chief of the Grey Lake police force. His younger foster sister, May, was also a cop and a pain in both Deacon and Heath’s asses. Deacon was the beta in the wolf pack and essentially served as Heath’s right-hand man and main enforcer. He was a beast, and that wasn’t bragging—it was just true. Deacon and the Jensen siblings were wolf shifters since birth, as were a good number of the Grey Lake townsfolk. He had used his impressive abilities as a fighter to help Heath control a lot of out-of-control shifters including other wolves, panthers, and bears ever since he started shifting in his teens. It was probably the only useful thing he’d inherited from his abusive father, the ability to fight. He groaned, thinking about the cougars. Ever since they moved to Grey Lake, they had been nothing but trouble. A large pride of them had moved from Connecticut to work on the construction of some new businesses that had sprung up in the area. As long as they were busy working, they were OK, but after-hours, a good number of them were a drinking and drugging bunch of trouble. Sean was a repeat offender, liked booze a little more than he should. When the kid drank, he tended to do stupid things like steal cars and break into the homes of the few humans who lived in Grey Lake. It was important the humans never found out about shifters. The only humans who really knew of their existence were those that were mated to shifters or those human children born from shifter parents, which happened every now and then. When the cougars committed crimes against the humans, it was a risk they’d catch one of them in the act of shifting, and that would bring a whole lot of unwanted attention to Grey Lake. He pulled into the police station and led the handcuffed cougar shifter through the prisoner entrance. “Sean, nice to see you again,” Chief Heath Jensen said as Deacon took off the man’s handcuffs and locked him into one of the station’s six shifter-proof reinforced cells. “Screw you, chief. I want to file a complaint against him.” Sean gestured to Deacon with his head as he rubbed his wrists. “Yeah, I’m sure I’ll hear all about it in a few. I’ll be back to talk to you,” Heath said, following Deacon out to the front of the station where most of the officers had their desks and where Heath’s private office was at one end through a frosted glass door. Heath gestured for Deacon to follow him. Deacon trailed Heath into his office and sat down while the chief closed the door and walked around his enormous desk. “So, did you beat up the kid?” Heath asked after sitting down at his desk and leaning back in his chair. “What? No! He threw a punch so I hit him once, but that was it. He went down quick, and I cuffed him.” “Were there any witnesses?” “No, but it’s the truth,” Deacon yelled, but then realized he should have more respect for his alpha. He bared his neck and lowered his voice, “I’m telling the truth. I’m sorry if I sound upset, but I haven’t been sleeping worth a damn.” “Nightmares again?” Heath asked, eyebrows furrowed. Deacon flinched. He hated talking about personal, touchy-feely stuff with anyone, especially his other brother. He could only nod. “Your mom?” Heath asked, leaning forward onto his elbows on top of the desk. Deacon nodded again and kept his head down. He couldn’t face his alpha—he was ashamed. He had been having dreams of his mother’s death for years off and on, but they had become worse, more vivid as he had gotten older. He could hear her screams as if he were still in the room with her. It wasn’t worth sleeping if he kept having those same horrifying dreams. “We can’t help you if you won’t talk about it,” Heath said quietly. “You were only a kid. There was nothing you could do to help her.” “It’s fine. I know. I just need some sleep. I’ll be fine.” Changing the subject, Deacon raised his head and said, “Did you know that Tessa hired an outsider to work at her shop? Some girl from Rhode Island according to the plate on her jeep. Something’s off with her, though. She smells like a shifter, but doesn’t act like one.” Strangely, Heath did not appear surprised. “Maybe she can’t shift. That’s rare, but not impossible. How’d you hear about this?” Heath asked. It was true that sometimes shifters, especially those born from human-shifter pairings, inherited some shifter abilities but were unable to completely shift into their animal form. “I found her at Hanover Hill. She pulled her car over and tore through the woods after her dog, only her dog is not a dog. She was leading around a wolf shifter on a leash. He had a collar with his name on it and everything.” Heath frowned. “You’re sure it was a shifter?” Deacon huffed a laugh. “One-hundred percent wolf shifter—I could tell. He smelled a little off, not quite right, but he behaved like a submissive wolf. I think he saw the cougars that were hidden in the trees. He was staring right at them and growling. The woman seemed completely clueless. I don’t think she had any idea three cougar shifters were watching her. There were three males. She could’ve been attacked,” he said angrily. His face turned hot. It could have been bad. She really could have been hurt and she had no idea. She was defenseless. “I’ll have a word with Tessa and try to find out what’s going on. You better get some sleep. You look like shit. If you can’t get some sleep, I’ll have to insist you see someone about these dreams for your own good. I need my officer and my beta fully functional. This isn’t over, but your shift is, so go home.” Heath stood, rounded the desk, and grasped Deacon’s shoulder as Deacon stood. “I’ll go deal with our cougar frequent flyer.” “Thanks,” Deacon said quietly and walked out of Heath’s office ready to collapse into sleep.
Chapter 3
Chapter 3 Iris and Tessa spent the next hour unloading the boxes from her jeep. After giving Riley some food and water, the women returned to the bakery. The rest of Saturday consisted of Iris learning the layout and routines of the shop. She returned back to the cottage close to six with a promise to head to Tessa’s with Riley for dinner at seven. Standing under the spray of the shower, Iris ran through the events of the past few months. She couldn’t believe her luck. She had emailed and snail-mailed her resume out to small bakeries and restaurants all throughout New Hampshire, Vermont, and Maine about a year ago, hoping for a fresh start. At that point she had been working as a pastry chef at the Union Depot in downtown Providence for almost six months and was really tired of trying to keep her anxiety levels down. Medication had almost no effect on her. She had been prescribed a variety of different pills since her teenage years in an effort to control the anxiety that gripped her, but nothing seemed to work. She was doing yoga three days a week and trying to meditate for relaxation. She also played with Riley, who functioned as her therapy animal, any time her anxiety levels peaked to help calm her down. She’d gotten so tired of just existing in the city. There were so many people, so much noise, so much congestion. She was tired of fighting to just be. She was sick of feeling like she was drowning. She’d thought a small town in a beautiful setting would be a nice change of pace. She’d been so excited when Tessa called her to offer her the position of head baker in her coffee shop slash bakery in the vacation spot of Grey Lake. On top of the stress of living and working in the city, she had to deal with the constant nagging of her family to go back to school for a real career. To say they were not supportive of her vocational interests was an understatement. She came from a long line of what her father liked to call “distinguished land barons.” She liked to think of them as upscale real estate salesmen. Her family, especially her father, Alden, and older brother, Aiden, had expected Iris to follow in their footsteps and, after getting a degree in business at an Ivy League college, would learn the ropes of the family empire. Her chest hurt just thinking of Aiden. Her only sibling was a good ten years older than her and had been her protector from the day she was born until he went off to college in Boston. When he returned four years later, his once sunny disposition was replaced by cold indifference at best and hostility at worst. When she instead decided to go to culinary school to learn how to be a pastry chef, both her Dad and brother concluded that if she wasn’t going to be a developer, then she could marry one. By the time Tessa had contacted her with a job offer, she’d had enough and was ready to get away from it all. She’d replied to Tessa that she was definitely interested, and now, three months later, she was out here on her own. She dried off, quickly dressed in a yellow floral sundress and sandals, and threw her still damp chestnut hair up in a loose bun. She gave herself a once-over in the full-length bedroom mirror and grabbed the keys to lock up the cottage. Normally, she would have brought dessert, but having just arrived in town, she hadn’t had the chance to buy any supplies. Tessa insisted that all she needed to do was bring herself and Riley. “Come on, boy, let’s go try to be social.” They walked the short distance to Tessa’s farmhouse. Just as Iris had raised her hand to knock, Tessa’s front door opened. “Change of plans, guys. In honor of your first night in town, we’re going out to eat, my treat,” Tessa said, walking out the door. “But I’m not dressed to go out in public. I’m a mess,” Iris sputtered, following Tessa to her shiny white Silverado. “What! Your dress is cute. You’re fine. We’re not going anywhere fancy anyway. We’re just going to the pub,” Tessa insisted, getting into the truck. “It’s laid back there, and they allow animals on the patio. You’ll love it.” “Oh, ok…great,” Iris said, trying to sound as enthusiastic as Tessa. “Come on, Riley.” She opened the back door of the cab for Riley. She then climbed up into the passenger seat as lady-like as she could in a sundress and closed the door. “Trust me, there’s almost no place in Grey Lake that doesn’t allow casual. Remember, this is mostly a tourist town. Mostly city folk coming up for the weekend or for the week to enjoy themselves. It’s not real stuffy anywhere, except the Grey Lake Inn Dining Room or the Yacht Club,” Tessa said as she drove toward the main drag. “We’re going to the Hawk’s Eye Pub and Grille tonight. My friend Sadie and her husband Linc own and manage it. They have their own brewery on the premises and a great chef that they stole from one of those fancy Boston restaurants.” “Sounds great,” Iris said, forcing a smile, but she was already starting to feel uneasy. Her heart started to beat faster and her face flushed with blazing heat. As if he could sense it, Riley started to whine and sat up on his haunches, leaning his head toward Iris. She turned to the side and scratched between his ears. His mottled gray fur was so soft and thick. His coat was not as fluffy as she had thought Alaskan Malamutes’ were, though. Riley’s coat was smoother and sleeker than the pictures of his breed she had seen online. She figured he must be a mutt, a malamute and something without a fluffy coat. She started to feel her pulse slow as she rubbed his muzzle. “That’s a good boy,” she cooed to the dog as the action calmed her. “We’re here.” Tessa announced a few minutes later as she pulled into the parking lot of a gray two-story colonial-type building. Being a Saturday night, the parking lot was just about full. Tessa shut off the truck and opened her door, surveying the parking lot. “It’s a full house tonight.” The tiny woman somehow managed to gracefully leap from the truck. Iris mimicked her, trying not to flash anyone walking through the parking lot, and then opened the door for Riley. “Whoa. Is it always this crowded?” Iris asked. “Over the past couple of years, we’ve been getting more and more tourists. Years ago, we mainly would get an uptick in visitors in the middle of summer and the winter, but recently we’ve been seeing tourism year-round.” “I guess word got out this is a beautiful place. It must be good for the bakery?” she asked. “Sure, but there are pluses and minuses to everything,” Tessa said noncommittally. Tessa walked toward the front door with Iris and Riley close on her heels. “Sweetie, how are you?” Tessa greeted a tall, thin brunette manning the front desk. “I’m fine. I haven’t seen you for a couple of weeks. What have you been up to?” the hostess asked. “I’ve been working like a dog—ha!—but I finally have some help. Sadie Hall, this is Iris Williamson, my new baker extraordinaire,” Tessa put her arm on Iris’s shoulder, slowly drawing her closer to Sadie. “Well, nice to meet you. And who is this?” Sadie asked, gesturing to Riley. “Nice to meet you, too. This is Riley. I hope it’s OK for me to bring him?” Iris answered. “Sure,” Sadie said, briefly glancing at Tessa. “We love animals in Grey Lake, that is as long as they behave.” She furrowed her brows at Riley, a look of confusion briefly passing over her features. “Oh, he’ll behave. He’s a sweetie,” Tessa answered for Iris, rubbing Riley’s head. “How about a nice table on the patio?” Sadie asked. “Perfect. That would be great,” Tessa answered cheerily. They sat down on the patio at a table facing the woods. It was close to 7:15, so it was starting to get dark out. The pub had lanterns, making it a very cozy experience. They each ordered one of the on-site brewery’s craft beers along with a dish of water for Riley. Iris had just started perusing the menu when a tingling sensation crawled along the back of her neck.
Chapter 4
Chapter 4 Deacon was exhausted. He had just walked up to his front door after finally leaving the station when his cellphone rang. From the annoying ringtone, he could tell it was May. His little sister had set the tone soon after he bought his new smartphone. She thought it was hilarious that every time she called Deacon, “It’s Raining Men!” came screaming out of his back pocket. There was no point in resetting it again since she managed to get her hands on it each time he tried. He groaned and answered the phone, “Yes, May, what can I do for you?” His sister was so crazy. “That’s no way to speak to your favorite sister,” she teased. “You just have that title because you’re my only sister,” he mumbled back to his foster sister and fellow police officer. “I’m tired. I just got done with my double. I need a shower and sleep, not nonsense.” “Well, you get a shower, but no sleep just yet. We’re going out tonight, my second favorite brother,” May said. “Tessa says we need to go to the pub. She is taking out her new baker and wants us to come meet her.” “Oh, no. Not tonight. I’m in no mood for that witch’s games tonight. I’m tired. Besides, I’ve already met the woman,” he muttered angrily. “Stop it. You know she’s a phoenix, not a witch. She always has a good reason for her so-called games,” May continued. “She just wants us to come down to the pub and eat dinner, her treat. She’ll stop by with her new friend on their way out. That’s it. No big deal. By the way, how come you’re so tired? You’re not that old. And how do you know this woman?” May said. “I just haven’t been sleeping well. And you know it’s always a big deal when Tessa is involved.” He grunted, rubbing his beard, thinking about the mysterious phoenix. He was used to fighting all sorts of shifters and didn’t fear much, but even he had to admit he was sort of afraid of the only phoenix shifter in existence—well, the only one he knew of. “You never want to go out anymore. It’s always work, work, work. You need to get out a little, see the townsfolk you work so hard to protect,” May argued. “It’s because I’m exhausted after all my work, work, work. I need sleep, sleep, sleep,” he answered. “C’mon, I already said we’d go. Tessa won’t be happy if I have to call and tell her you refused.” “Well, I suppose you won’t let this go until we do this, right?” he asked. “Exactly, so the faster you get ready, the faster this will be done and you can get your grumpy butt to sleep, you boring old man,” May teased. “And you still haven’t answered my question.” Old man, huh? He had just turned 30 last month to May’s 24. He wasn’t as old as Heath, who was 34. He studied himself in his entryway mirror while trying to get off the phone with his sister. Not old, but pretty damn tired. “I’m surprised you don’t know. I thought you knew all the gossip that happened in this town. This woman is the one I found out in cougar territory, wandering around trying to get herself killed.” “Oh, the shifter who doesn’t know she’s a shifter? Heath mentioned something about it. Sounds like an exciting story.” “You need to watch it. Don’t say anything about shifters to her before we speak with Tessa. We don’t know what, if anything, she knows about us.” Deacon groaned. “Ok, what time is this free meal scheduled for?” he asked. “Tessa said we need to be there at 7:30. You can pick me up on the way.” May hung up before he could argue. Deacon hit END and threw the phone on the couch. He moved as if in a trance toward the shower. Two shifts in a row stuck in his patrol car makes for a rank shifter. His wolf seemed to agree. He quickly stripped off his uniform and jumped under the hot spray. He leaned against the cool white shower tile and let the water pound the sweat and dirt off him. Deacon loved his shower. It was custom built to shifter dimensions with a huge rainforest showerhead and sprays that came out from the walls. It took him almost six months to finish, but that’s because he had done it all himself while he was working full time on the force. There was plenty of room to stretch out his 6’5, 235-pound frame, plus extra in case there happened to be someone else in here with him. Hah! There hadn’t been anyone to fill the extra space in this shower for the past year. He was in the middle of a drought, which normally wouldn’t be a big deal. The concerning matter was that neither him nor his wolf seemed interested in ending it. He had no interest right now in dating or even just screwing around. He sometimes wondered if he was depressed. Ah! I’ve got no time to be depressed. He was working extra shifts on the force whenever Heath needed him, in addition to helping maintain order in their pack. If he worked himself to exhaustion, maybe the nightmares of his past wouldn’t interrupt his sleep, or at least that was his theory. He hated to sit still and always had this urgency to do something to help the pack. Deacon had this internal drive to prove himself. No matter what he did, it would never make up for what his father had done. Deacon spent a lot of time settling disputes among the male wolves in his pack and between the wolves and other shifters in the area. Aside from his pack, Grey Lake had a population of black bear shifters, as well as foxes, and now the unruly cougars who were a pain in his ass most of the time. A few of the cougars were OK; there was one of them he saw fairly often at the Grey Lake Gym. As for the rest of them, he wished they would move back south along with all the developers that were causing him grief. He finished scrubbing the dirt from his tanned skin, grabbed a towel, and dried off. He stared at his reflection in the steamed-up mirror. Still pretty good. Shifters aged a bit slower than humans so he appeared younger than his true age. Figuring it was not a good idea to tick off the lady who could burn you to ashes in less than 30 seconds, Deacon decided to put his best foot forward. He pulled on a cleanish pair of jeans and a not-too wrinkled T-shirt. It was best for him and his inner wolf if he managed to stay on Tessa’s good side. Deacon pulled his gray F-350 up to his sister’s cottage at 7:25. May was standing at her mailbox with her pale blond hair in a long braid, bouncing around on her feet. She was dressed in jeans shorts, a black V-neck T-shirt, and white converse gym shoes, carrying one of those giant designer purses that she always brought with her. She seemed to have an endless supply of new purses, yet she drove a 15-year-old VW Golf that was always being repaired. Not for the first time, Deacon pitied May’s future mate. He sure would have his hands full with his younger sister. He hoped the guy ended up being a strong shifter with a good sense of humor and a shit-ton of patience. “Finally, I thought you would never get here!” She jumped into the passenger seat before he had completely pulled the truck to a stop. “Why are you so excited?” he asked as he turned onto the main drag toward the pub. “Tessa invited us both, Deke. I have a feeling something exciting is going to happen. My wolf is excited, too. By the way, I heard you brought another one of the cougars in,” May said as she applied mascara using his passenger side mirror as her own personal vanity. “Yeah, Sean again. Those guys need a hobby or something. I don’t know what their issue is. They need to stay away from the booze, and they’d be a lot better off.” “They must be drinking a whole hell of a lot to get as messed up as they do, being shifters and all. I wonder what has got them feeling like they have to drink their troubles away…” May offered. “I know for a fact they’re not all bad. That big guy who works at the gym seems pretty nice. I think a couple of them work for the ranger service, too.” She put her mascara back in her purse and sat back. Deacon grumbled, “I think four of them work for the forestry service.” He then shook his head to clear the fog and said, “And stay away from ‘that big guy who works at the gym.’ He may be nice, but he’s still a cougar. He’d sell you out for his own kind.” Deacon growled. “Deke! How can you say that?” “It’s true. We’re wolves, and our main loyalty is to our family and the pack. It’s the same for the cougars.” “That’s bullshit, and you know it. This isn’t the dark ages. I’d never do something I didn’t believe in, even if it was for the pack,” May said. “I know you wouldn’t either. You’re a good guy no matter what your messed-up dad told you. We’re just lucky our alpha is a good one. Those cougars can’t help it if theirs is messed up. They just need to be responsible for themselves.” Deacon held his right hand up in surrender. “OK, enough. I’m sorry. I’m not feeling quite right. Can we please just have a nice dinner?” Deacon asked. Yikes. He knew he must’ve pushed some of May’s buttons for her to mention his dead father. The tiny shifter normally didn’t pull out the big guns unless she was really riled up. “Apology accepted. Of course, we can have a nice dinner, just as long as you can behave yourself,” May chirped back, watching the road ahead of them. Deacon inwardly groaned. May might be tiny in stature, but she sure made up for it in attitude. He was glad she was on his side, at least most of the time. As the Hawk’s Eye came into view, Deacon observed that the parking lot was almost full. He grimaced, thinking about having to wait for a table and then food. He just wanted to get done with whatever nonsense Tessa was playing and get to bed. He already met this woman. He didn’t know what Tessa was thinking. He maneuvered the truck into a spot behind the restaurant. As he shut off the truck, his right hand began shaking. What the fuck? His left hand was trembling, too. He must have low sugar or something. He swore to himself and then followed an almost skipping May into the front door of the pub. “How’re you two doing?” a smiling Sadie asked Deacon and May from her hostess podium. Sadie and her mate Lincoln were good people. They were loyal members of the pack who didn’t cause problems. Sadie and Linc had been classmates with Heath at the local high school, while Deacon was a few years behind. Deacon mustered up his best impression of a smile for the kind woman. “We’re doing great,” May squeaked. “Tessa is treating us to dinner tonight. Said she wanted us to meet some friend of hers.” Deacon was trying to follow their conversation, but along with his shaking hands, he was now feeling flushed. What the hell was going on? “Oh, yes, the new girl she just hired from the city. Nice, quiet girl, supposed to be a hell of a good baker. I’m hoping we can buy some of her stuff for the pub once she settles in.” Sadie dropped her voice lower and leaned into the two siblings. “Strangest thing is, she doesn’t realize she has a bear in her.” Deacon’s head was now pounding. He must be more tired than he thought. Goddamn Tessa. “I met her this morning. Wait a minute, what did you say?” he said a little louder than he intended. May and Sadie’s eyes widened at his bellow. He lowered his voice. “So, she really doesn’t know she’s a shifter? How the hell is that possible?” Even if she couldn’t shift, she must know she has shifter blood in her. Bear, huh. Made sense. He knew she wasn’t a wolf, but couldn’t figure out what type of animal she had inside. “I have no clue how she doesn’t know she’s got a black bear in her, but that’s what Tessa told me. She called me before they came to give me a heads up. She also told me no one should spill this news. She wants to break it to her gently in time. Tessa doesn’t think Iris even knows that shifters exist. She’s one of those sheltered city people,” Sadie finished. “Well, I hope nobody upsets this city girl and causes a bear to burst out of her. That’d be one hell of a way to learn about shifters.” Deacon rubbed his forehead and frowned. “Jesus, what happened to her parents? It doesn’t make any sense.” “Not your problem tonight, officers,” Sadie said. “You two get to enjoy a nice dinner courtesy of Ms. Lane—nice brother-sister time.” Sadie walked them to their table. “By the way, where’s the Chief been?” she asked about Heath. “He’s around, but he’s taking one of my shifts tonight to pay me back for covering for him last week,” Deacon answered. “If I had to do three in a row, I’d really be hurting.” He rubbed his chest as Sadie sat them on the patio and handed them each a menu. “Are you OK?” May asked. “You seemed fine before, but now you seem frazzled or something.” She furrowed her blond brows questioningly. “I don’t know what the hell is happening,” he said quietly. “I haven’t been sleeping. I thought I was just tired, but as soon as I pulled into the lot, I started to feel off. If this is some of Tessa’s witch voodoo shit, I’m going to be really pissed off.” “Just try to relax. You’re getting all riled up,” May said quietly across the table. “Calm yourself down. You have wolf eyes right now.” She pointed to her own eyes with two fingers. “Oh, for God’s sake,” he mumbled, “I’ll be right back. Just order me a 22-ounce red, OK?” Heath stood up to head to the restroom. “No problem.” May said happily as she perused the drink menu. “I’ll order you two even. We’re not paying tonight.”
Chapter 5
Chapter 5 The evening was going very well. Iris’s anxiety was under control. It helped that the Hawk’s Eye Pub was a cozy, comfortable family-friendly restaurant. It was designed to resemble a ski lodge with old wooden cross-country skis nailed to the walls along with framed pictures of skiers swishing down the Grey Mountain ski trails. The plush leather booths and rustic tables were filled with couples on romantic dates as well as families of all ages enjoying their meals. Shortly after seating them, Sadie had brought her husband over to meet Iris. Linc was another tall bearded man, just like the policeman she’d met earlier. While Officer Clay was fair-haired, Linc had dark brown-almost black hair and dark eyes. And Linc was much more jovial than the officer. He and Sadie greeted each of their customers with a smile and kind word. They seemed like nice people. Tessa was in the middle of telling Iris how her last employee left her when she became pregnant with triplets about a year ago when, all of a sudden, Iris got a chill and felt like someone was watching her. It was the strangest feeling. She looked around, but no one was staring at her. There were just customers enjoying their meals, talking amongst themselves. It started to become harder to hear what Tessa was saying. Iris’s attention was diverted toward the back of the pub, near the bar. Riley got up from the floor and leaned against her legs, applying the pressure he knew helped her get her distress under control. “It’s OK boy. Nothing’s wrong,” she said softly. Her hands started to shake, and she began to feel really warm from her cheeks down to her girl parts. Weird. She finished her glass of water and then a refill from the pitcher on the table. Crap, still feel weird. “Tessa, I’ll be right back. I need to, um…” She stood up from her seat. “It’s fine, Riley. You stay here,” she said to the dog leaning against her left leg. “No problem, Iris. Restroom is all the way in the back behind the bar. You can’t miss it.” Tessa said. She managed to find her way to the restroom and splashed some water on her burning cheeks. She wiped her face with a paper towel. What was going on? This wasn’t a panic attack. She studied her reflection in the mirror. She appeared OK, aside from reddened cheeks. Maybe I’m coming down with something. It can’t be something I ate as all we got so far was bread. Keep it together. So far, your new boss thinks you’re pretty much normal. As she exited through the bathroom door to head back to her table, she bumped into something solid. “Ooof. I’m sorry,” she said, automatically clutching onto what she ran into with both hands. She then realized she had grabbed onto a pair of very firm arms with dark tribal-looking tattoos covering them. “Ooh. I’m really sorry,” she repeated slowly, her gaze roving up to see who was attached to those delicious arms. “We meet again, Miss Williamson. Funny to run into you twice on the first day you arrive in town,” Officer Clay said with one side of his mouth tilted in what seemed like the start of a smile, or the world’s smallest smile, Iris couldn’t tell for sure. Iris groaned. It would have to be the bossy cop. Why did such an ass have to be so hot? She closed her eyes, took a calming breath, opened them to stare up at him and said, “Sorry. It’s my fault. I wasn’t paying attention. I’ll just be going now.” She started to pull away. “Are you going to let go or take me back to your table?” he asked, still smirking. “What?” She shook her head, trying to clear the fogginess. She glanced down at her hands, and only realized she was still squeezing his forearms. She let go as if she were burned by fire, stepped back quickly, and stared at her feet. She winced. “Ah, again, I’m sorry, really sorry.” “This time I think it was my fault, too.” Iris hesitantly raised her eyes and noticed he was staring at her with a funny expression, somewhere between interest and confusion. “Wait a minute. Are you OK?” she asked, sounding panicked. “Your eyes are yellow. I think you need help.” “Shit!” He flinched as if he was in pain. “No. My eyes aren’t yellow Miss William—” “Oh, just call me Iris,” she spat out. This time when she peered back into the Viking’s eyes, they were a deep blue. I must be nuts. “Sorry I ran into you. I have to get back to dinner,” she mumbled before she turned to walk briskly back to her table with her cheeks flaming. “Holy crap!” Iris said in a low voice as she returned to her seat. “What happened? I thought you abandoned us. I was getting ready to rename your dog Princess,” Tessa said with a small smile. Riley let out a huff. “Oh, I’m sorry. I ran into someone,” she sputtered, focusing on her plate that was now covered with juicy prime rib and vegetables. “I mean, I literally ran into someone. Well, not someone, but Officer Clay. He’s so bossy. He yelled at me in the woods after I found Riley,” she said quietly. “Oh, Deacon…he’s a good guy. Been here all his life. I think he’s just a little protective.” Tessa went on. “Are you OK? You seem upset.” “I’m fine,” Iris said, rubbing Riley’s head. “I’m just embarrassed after almost knocking over a cop,” she said quietly. She stared at the mouthwatering meal that was in front of her. “This looks and smells so good. Thanks again for inviting us out.” * “What happened to you?” May asked as Deacon sat down at their table. “I was going to go looking for you, but I thought it might be an issue. You know, like if I ran into the men’s room. People tend to not like when I do that.” She smiled. “I’m fine. I just ran into Tessa’s new employee again. Or she ran into me, I’m not sure,” he said quietly, staring off into space. “What do you mean you’re not sure? How is she? Does she seem nice? Can you tell she’s a bear?” May asked rapid-fire. “She seems very nice and, no, I didn’t notice she was a bear. She smells like a shifter, but nothing specific.” He stared blankly at his empty plate. “Earth to Deacon! How could you not notice if she was a bear?” she asked. “I wasn’t paying attention. I was just talking with her,” he said gruffly. “Don’t worry about it,” he said as the waitress came by to take their order. They managed to eat their meal and were almost finished when Deacon’s hands started shaking again. What the hell? Just as May was opening her mouth to ask him something, Tessa’s voice interrupted from behind Deacon, “Well, hello there. I hope you two are having a nice dinner.” She smiled at the two. “Yes, we are. Everything is delicious as usual. Thank you so much,” May answered happily. “Who’re your friends, Tessa?” she asked with a smile before Deacon could say a word. Deacon turned and was now staring at Iris who was to the side of Tessa with a wolf leaning against her left leg. The gray wolf was obviously a shifter—this was evident to any other shifter—but he was still wearing a red dog collar and was attached to a leash that Iris was holding. “May Jensen, this is my new employee, Iris Williamson, and her dog, Riley. Deacon and Iris have already met—twice, I think.” Tessa smiled while making the introductions. Deacon and May quickly peered down at Riley and then their eyes simultaneously snapped back up to Tessa. Iris glanced at Deacon briefly, her cheeks bright red, before dropping her eyes to the floor, fiddling with the wolf’s leash. “Well, it’s nice to meet you,” May responded brightly, jumping up. She walked around the table and grabbed Iris’s hand. “Welcome to Grey Lake.” She leaned down and spoke to Riley, “Welcome to you as well.” “I’m sorry my brother almost knocked you down. He doesn’t realize how huge he is sometimes,” May said, turning to Deacon with a small smirk. Good God! I’m going to kill her and the witch, Deacon thought. “It was my fault. I ran into him and it’s OK. Nice to meet you,” Iris said quickly and then dropped her eyes again as her cheeks flushed even redder than before. “Well, we’ve been told you’re some kind of an expert with sweets. I’m not sure if you’re aware of this, but as cops, we’re what’s known as ‘donut connoisseurs,’” May joked, using air quotes. “I can’t wait to try yours. I’m sure we’ll be by the bakery soon.” “I think Tessa’s exaggerating,” Iris said, appearing embarrassed. “I’m not exaggerating!” Tessa huffed. “Girl, you have to learn to take a compliment! We can let Tessa’s Treats speak for themselves, can’t we? Hopefully, we’ll see you both soon,” the red-head said pointedly, looking Deacon in the eye. “Yeah, see you around,” May chirped with a bright smile. Iris smiled and nodded back to the two. Deacon just stared at Iris. As they both watched Tessa and the newcomers leave the pub, May returned to her seat and started, “Why was that shifter on a leash? Does she not know he’s a wolf shifter? And why is he staying on the leash like a poodle?” “Listen, sis, I have no idea. I just want to get home and hit the sack. I’m sure you’ll have plenty of time to get the answers to all your questions. I would wager a guess the sweet little bear has no clue she’s got a shifter as a pet, and I would guess the wolf is protecting her for some reason.” Oh, crap! Did I just say what I’m thinking? “Sweet little bear. I knew it!” May giggled. “Finally, my monk brother has the hots for someone. Oh, thank God. I’ve been really worried about you dying alone in some shifter nursing home with no wife by your side. Now I just have to find someone for Heath, and my work is done.” Deacon cringed. He was never going to hear the end of this from May.
There are limited chapters to put here, click the button below to continue reading "The Curvy Beauty"
(It will automatically jump to the book when you open the app).
❤️Click to read more exciting content❤️