Authors: Aubrey Moyes
Chapter Five
He collapsed on top of her and nuzzled her. She wrapped her arms around him and waited for her heart rate to return to normal.
“Are you okay?” he whispered when he raised his head. “I don’t usually do that. You just sort of drove me crazy,” he admitted.
She bit her lip. “You didn’t hurt or scare me at all.”
Relief swept through him, and he nuzzled her neck. She’d been everything he’d hoped and more. And if she still thought this was just going to be a one-night stand, she had another thing coming.
He’d understood that she was scared, and he’d kept his distance. Part of it was frustration. Just seeing her was enough to push him over the edge. But he didn’t understand why she was scared. Usually, when a shifter found a mate, it was easy and seamless. But she’d literally run in the opposite direction.
“What are you thinking about?” he asked quietly.
“I’m just trying to wrap my head around it, that’s all. I’ve been here for less than a week. Ending up in the landlord’s bed wasn’t exactly the plan.”
He laughed. “If it makes you feel any better, you’re the first tenant I’ve ever slept with.” He raised his head to study her. “You’re the first woman I’ve ever slept with in this town. You feel this connection, right?”
She stilled under him, and suddenly he realized the problem. She knew she was his mate, and it terrified her. “Can we just take this one step at a time,” she said hesitantly.
“It doesn’t work that way, Sage. It’s meant to be intense. It’s meant to bind a couple instantly and forever. Why does that scare you?”
She pushed at him, and he rolled off. She gathered the sheets up under her armpits and sat up. “First off, why wouldn’t that scare someone? I don’t know you. I’m human. I don’t share my body with another soul, so when I feel something like this, it’s intense and overwhelming. You grow up knowing that you’ll find your mate. I’m told I’m someone’s mate, and it takes me two years to realize that it’s not true.”
He felt a streak of anger inside him. “Your ex told you that you were his mate?” he asked in a dangerous voice. It was bad enough that sleeping with a shifter was the new trend, but to have a shifter lie about the emotional bond that connected a shifter and a mate? That was sacrilegious.”
She laughed shortly. “I know it sounds ridiculous. It’s so different than what I feel with you. I should have known right away, but he was handsome and charming. He wouldn’t leave me alone, and then he was controlling and manipulative. It wasn’t until I found out he was cheating that I knew for certain he’d been lying this whole time.”
She turned to him. “Davis, that was less than a month ago. So yes, what I feel, right now, scares me.”
“But you do feel it,” he said as he sat up and wrapped his arms around her. “I’m not trying to force it on you, Sage. I want you to come to the decision on your own. You feel it. I’m not telling you that you feel it.”
“Yes,” she whispered as she relaxed against him. “I felt it the moment I saw you.”
He smiled and kissed the top of her forehead. “You were so mean to me.”
She laughed. “You started it.”
“I felt it too. I thought for certain that I was wrong. I always thought I’d be paired with some docile little thing. You’re enough to scare the lion inside me. You always tame him, though. No one has ever done that.”
“What am I supposed to do?” she said quietly.
“You don’t have to do anything. Just let me love you. Let me know when you are ready. Then marry me and spend the rest of your life with me.”
She laughed, and he smiled. He’d spend the rest of his life making her laugh. “Oh sure. I just have to marry you. Nothing big.”
He settled back down in the bed and cradled her as she rested her head on his chest. This felt so right. Being inside her felt right. Having her in his arms felt right. “What do you want to do? I want to do this right so you don’t pack up your stuff and leave me.”
“I don’t think I could leave you even if I tried,” she whispered. She pressed her lips to his chest, and he felt himself stirring. After all that, he was still ready for her. “I’m nervous, but it has nothing to do with you. I’m not second-guessing you. I feel safe in your arms, but what if I mess this up? What if I’m just some shifter groupie, and your misreading all the signs?”
He stroked her hair. “There is no misreading you. And if you give me the chance, I’ll prove it to you.”
After a few moment of silence, she spoke again. “I’m still scared, but I want to hear you say it.”
He smiled. “I love you, Sage West. You’re meant to be with me. You’re my mate. You’re my happily ever after.”
She smiled and slung a leg around his. “I thought I would freak out, but I liked hearing it.” She propped herself up and stared at him.
“And how do you feel about me?”
“I love you, Davis Weathers. You’re meant to be mine. You’re my soul mate. You’re my happily ever after.”
Hearing those words made him growl and lift his head to claim her kiss. After a moment, she broke apart. Breathless. “So this is it?”
“This is it,” he murmured. His sex twitched against her leg, and her eyes widened.
“Already?”
“ It’s your own fault. You’re just so damn sexy.”
She licked her lips hungrily, and he laughed. “Clearly you have no issues with that.”
“Mine,” she said possessively as she straddled him. “Forever.”
“Forever,” he agreed, and soon she was riding him back to heaven.
They were married within a month, and her store opened with great success. She knew without a doubt that every part of her life had led up to this. Had she never spent so much time with Connor, she never would have run so far away. She would have never run into the arms of her true mate.
Sage Weathers. She was loved and protected. She loved and protected. And she was happy.
THE END
Chapter One
Lydia leaned back and rolled her head from side to side to ease the ache in her shoulders. The letters were piled high on the desk, and she was making little progress. As the mastermind behind Hairy and Fluffy, a dating agency, she had the duty to create the perfect matches. The last meet and greet party turned into a high success. Most of her matches paired up together, and she’d managed to finally pair the elusive Cole Greyson with his mate. It had taken some extra effort to finally get Sasha at the party, but it was well worth the effort.
Maxwell Torrent was now at the top of her list. The alpha lion shifter had refused to settle down, and the lion community was growing uneasy. If he didn’t find his mate soon, they would have to replace him with the second-in-command, and they weren’t keen on that idea. Maxwell was their favorite.
They’d turned to her to find his mate, but it wasn’t easy. As she sifted through the letters of women who wanted to be matched, she hadn’t found anyone that stood out. None were strong enough to withstand the lion’s domineering personality. Most wouldn’t last a night with Maxwell.
“Lydia Jones?”
She looked up to see a brunette standing in the doorway She was tall and curvy with an irritated look on her face. Lydia blinked. She hadn’t heard the bell on the door.
“That’s me. If you want to fill out an application, the paperwork is outside the door. We’re on a waiting list right now, but I might get you in at a fall party,” she said absently.
The brunette laughed. “Oh, no I’m not here for that. My name is Cassie Branders. I’m a reporter for The Weekly Report. My editor would like a human-interest piece on your dating service. Would you be able to do an interview for me?”
Lydia narrowed her eyes. She was keen on reading people, and the vibes coming off this woman were most interesting. “Cassie Branders from the Cassie Column?”
The writer smiled. “So you have heard of me!”
“Yes,” Lydia said slowly. “You tend to write rather strongly worded editorials. Why would you be slated for the human interest story?”
“You caught me,” Cassie said with a frown. “The last column I wrote hinted about the inequality of dating services, and the advertisers were not pleased. I didn’t mean for it to have such a negative response, so I offered to do an in-depth study on one dating service. You have a high success rate of couples meeting at your parties and sticking it out long after the wedding. I’d like to discuss your process.”
Lydia cocked her head. Cassie was known for her independence, her witty words, her talent, and her beauty. An idea started to form in her head. “Are you married or seeing anyone, Cassie?”
Cassie shook her head. “Married to the job, I’m afraid.”
“And have you ever been to one of my parties?”
Again, the lovely brunette shook her head. “It’s by invitation only, correct? I don’t do much dating.”
“I’m putting a party together for Friday evening. Why don’t you come to the party, and then we’ll do there?”
Cassie smiled. “That sounds great.” She offered her card. “Here is all my contact information. Would it be okay if I talked to the guests at the party? I’d like to know what they’re looking for.”
She was making it too easy for Lydia. She took the card and nodded. “I think that would be perfect.”
Cassie nodded and existed the office. Lydia pulled out the invitation and a blank envelope. With an air of satisfaction, she addressed the envelope to Maxwell Torrent. It was time to knock another big name off her list.
Cassie Branders was going to make the perfect lioness.
Chapter Two
Max’s stomach rumbled. He’d been forced to skip out on lunch when his assistant hadn’t showed up, and now that the workday was over, his stomach was demanding some attention.
The breeze rippled through his gold hair as he rolled the window down to grab his mail, and he was torn. Work had been hell, and he really wanted to put on his tennis shoes and do a few miles around the neighborhood, but running on an empty stomach tended to make him even more temperamental.
And Max was not a stand-up guy when his temper got the best of him.
So his shoved a frozen lasagna in the microwave and flipped through his mail while he waited. A black envelope with gold lettering caught his eye, and he frowned.
Hairy and Fluffy Dating Agency
What the hell? Max tossed it aside without bothering to open it. He’d heard of the agency of course. It was big in the shifter community, and rumor had it that they were good. But Max was far too busy to search for a mate. He had his own business to run not to mention a pride to oversee. Even though the pride was demanding that he finally settle down, there simply wasn’t enough time in the day.
In the past, he’d been interested. His former days were filled with women and dreams of a mate and a family, but eventually, all of his flings ended the same. None of them could handle him at his worse, and sometimes, his worse was all he had to offer.
The microwaved beeped, and Max devoured the cardboard tasting meal. Something tugged at his peripheral, and his eyes slid over to the counter.
With a low grown, he snagged the envelope and ripped it open with far more aggression than was necessary.
You are cordially invited to a meet and greet Friday evening. Shifters and carefully sifted human applicants will be there in hopes of finding their true love. Eighty percent of shifters find their mates. Are you ready for yours?
He rolled his eyes. Nonsense. He certainly did not need to find his mate in a room of pumped up testosterone and alphas or alpha wannabees. That’s just a recipe for disaster.
As he tossed the card aside, he flipped over, and he noticed a message on the back.
Maxwell, your pride encourages you to attend.
His eyes widened. The barstool hit the floor as he lunged to his phone. It only took two seconds for his father to pick up. “Before you say anything,” Charles said mildly.
“Are you fucking kidding me?” Max hissed. “Is this a threat?”
His father had obviously been waiting for the phone call. “Maxwell, the stipulations for being an alpha are clear. You have to mate. You’re pushing thirty-five and the pride is getting nervous. If you don’t take a wife soon, they’re going to be forced to place Jerome as alpha, and nobody wants that.”
Max gripped the phone. His father wasn’t wrong. The Torrent family had been the alphas of the local tribe for several generations, and it would continue as long as the pride was happy and the alpha took a mate and continued the line. If an alpha died without an heir, the strongest male took over, and while Jerome was the strongest, he was also the most temperamental and unpredictable. It was a recipe for disaster.
“But a Hairy and Fluffy party?” he said as his anger escaped him. He leaned against the counter and dropped his head. “That’s degrading.”
“It’s hardly degrading. That agency has the best reputation in the shifter community. I know you’re busy. They do all the work for you. Just give it a shot.”
Charles had been a great leader, and had he not fallen ill several years ago, he would still be alpha. But the community feared he would not make it, so Max, as the oldest son, took over. Charles recovered, and he had no issues with his son taking over. Max wanted to earn the pride’s respect like his father had earned it.
He wanted his father to proud of him as well.
“Fine,” he muttered. “I’ll go. But we’re going to have some words about personal space at the next meeting,” he snapped.
“Good luck with that,” Charles snorted.
Max hung up the phone and sighed. Shrugging his shoulders to ease the tension, he stripped out of his business clothes and put on his jogging gear. He had quite a bit of frustrations to burn before he tried to take on the dating agency.
Even the pounding of his heels hitting the ground didn’t do anything to release the anxiety he had about potentially meeting his mate. It made him anxious to think that he was meant to be with one person. What if he got it wrong and he picked the wrong woman? What if his woman didn’t like him?
So he ran harder and farther, but before he could completely escape the situation, he turned back around to take a shower and get ready for the damn party.