Yielding to the Wolves

"Yielding to the Wolves" (MFM) "Werewolf Brides" book 3

Okapi Cooper and Tedros Cooper know one of the mail-order brides, Keisha Robinson, is the perfect woman for them. But not until things go wrong is she prepared to seriously consider their request. And now she has the terrible fear that it might be too late for all of them to find happiness. Someone is targeting the werewolf shape-shifter community at Cooper’s Farm, but why? And are they really dangerous or is it all just a misunderstanding?

Learning a new job and proving she is worthy of trust and respect so she can rebuild her life is Keisha’s focus right now. Okapi is more interested in securing her as his mate. And Tedros won’t rest until the other two are both his partners. Okapi and Tedros won’t be content until she is mated to them and under their protection, but it’s not Keisha whose life is endangered.

Buy link: http://www.bookstrand.com/yielding-to-the-wolves


STORY EXCERPT

She’d stocked shelves in a hardware store. She’d been a checkout chick in a grocery store. She’d had a few casual short-term positions in an office as a very junior junior. But she’d never ever had a real job. And for the last two years, ever since she’d turned twenty-one, that had been the most damning thing of all when she sent in job applications.

In her neighborhood girls worked in shops or brothels. There really wasn’t much else to choose from. Which was why she’d left and come here as a mail-order bride. But today she’d proven to herself she could do proper office work. Well, as long as it was relatively simple, anyway.

The sound of a man clearing his throat had her looking up at the door and there stood Okapi and Tedros. Okapi looked exactly the same as he’d looked this morning. Crisp white shirt, dark pants, and shiny black shoes. Tedros looked as if he’d just gotten out of the shower. His dark brown hair appeared to be damp, and his navy jeans and blue T-shirt looked freshly ironed. But likely she was just imagining that.

Keisha wanted to ask, “Why are you here?” She knew what she wanted the answer to be, that they wanted to date her. But she couldn’t imagine that’s why there were here in her brand new workplace on her very first day. So instead she asked as blandly as she could manage, “Can I help you?”

Teddy looked at her with those enormous eyes. It was almost as if he were pleading with her to do something, but she had no idea what that could be. She’d scarcely spoken to him and he’d never even hinted that he wanted her to agree to do something for him. And as for Okapi, he’d been completely businesslike with never a hint of anything personal in any of his requests. She kept her helpful look on her face and waited.

“Do you know anything about chess?” asked Okapi.

“Chess? Like, the board game?” Keisha was confused. She’d heard of it, of course. In fact, she’d even known a couple kids who played the game back in high school, or maybe it was middle school.

“Some people play it on computers, too. These days, the computer often wins, but when computers first started to play people who were very good, they always lost,” added Tedros.

Keisha nodded but she had no idea where the conversation was going.

“On Saturday there’s going to be a huge chess display in Coopersville, including a match played with life-size pieces. The game is going to be a reenactment of a famous contest. A match that’s unusual because it was played very offensively where most players prefer to play defensively. So it should be a lot more exciting to watch than a regular game,” explained Okapi.

“You said life-size pieces. However do they move them then?” asked Keisha.

“Oh, they’re people in costumes who move themselves as directed by the two payers, on a huge board. A chess board has sixty-four squares, eight wide and eight long. The chessboard here is laid out on the ground with different colored squares for the people to stand on so it’s twenty-four feet wide and twenty-four feet long. Spectators sit on bleachers like at a baseball game so they can see everything properly,” explained Okapi.

“That does sound like fun,” she said.

“I have tickets for the chess match and the display hall as well. Would you like to come with us?”

Keisha was surprised at how hesitant Okapi sounded. Almost as if he expected her to say no. But she meant what she’d said. It did sound like fun. “Yes, I would, thank you. I’ve never seen anything like that before.”

Tedros smiled hugely and she was glad she’d said yes. He seemed so happy.

“Is eleven all right? That’ll give us time to look at the displays and eat lunch before the chess match begins.”

“Yes, of course. Thanks.”

“Great.” Tedros was still smiling at her and she couldn’t help but smile back at him.

“Right. Well, I’ll see you here tomorrow at nine then. Is everything okay with the data entry?” asked Okapi.

“Yes. I don’t have any questions for you. I hope I’m not going too slowly.”

“Take as long as you need. Call me if you don’t understand something.” Okapi nodded at her and he and Teddy left, Teddy smiling back over his shoulder at her.

A date. Okapi and Tedros had asked her out. She’d better Google chess tonight to make sure she understood what was happening. Oh, and the display, too? What would that be? Like chess sets or something? Perhaps she’d better Google that as well. Keisha shivered with excitement. Finally, finally, finally! A date with Teddy and Okapi. Hell yes!


http://www.bookstrand.com/yielding-to-the-wolves

Tamed by the Wolves

"Tamed by the Wolves" (MFM) "Werewolf Brides" book 2.

Dera Williams is very happy when Gowan and Maitho Cooper finally invite her out on a date. But the day turns to disaster when there’s a downpour and they’re far from shelter. And that’s before Dera notices strangers watching Cooper’s Farm. Who are they and what is happening?

Gowan is determined their second date will be a success and he and Maitho put in an enormous amount of effort into cooking up the perfect scene. The evening is a great success and their romance is progressing really well. The men are certain she’ll soon agree to a much closer relationship with them.

Then Dera accepts an interview at a dodgy recruitment firm and the men are determined to protect her no matter what she wants or what anyone else says. Is someone targeting the women on the farm? And how can they keep such an independent woman safe?

http://www.bookstrand.com/tamed-by-the-wolves

STORY EXCERPT

“We’re really excited about spending time with you today,” added Maitho.

I am, too. I really like you both, but I don’t know much about you. Today I’ll find out if I still like you after spending the day alone with you. I really, really hope you’re both as nice as you appear to be.

Maitho came and stood beside her. “You said you’d ridden a quad bike before. I expect you remember that you rest your feet on the little step here, and hold on to the padded area of the bar here,” he said pointing to a higher step on the main step of the bike, then to a metal bar that ran along both sides of the back of the passenger’s seat.

Dera nodded and climbed on the back of his bike, then said, “So where are we going first?”

Maitho easily swung his body onto the quad bike in front of her, while Gowan said, “We’ll show you along the main roads of the community first. The first settlers were very logical. They camped in the center of the village and laid out their houses along four roads, north, south, east, and west. Later, cross streets were added connecting them in a sort of squarish ring about a quarter mile from the heart of the community.”

The quad bikes had a top speed of only about fifteen miles an hour, but driving through the center of the farm community, that was a suitable speed which allowed her to see everything without taking so long to travel it would seem like she was staring at people or their homes. From there, they drove down to the river and followed it for quite a long time before heading up to Lookout Hill. Esther had taken her here because it provided an excellent view out over the farm and its fields of cabbages, onions, and rich green grass.

On the top of the hill, Dera shivered, wishing she’d thought to bring a sweater or even a jacket. When they’d left, the sun had been shining brightly, and she’d expected today to be another warm sunny summer’s day. But the sky was gray and cloudy now and the wind had freshened and gotten colder.

Gowan pulled his own sweater off and handed it to her. “Here, it’ll be too big, but it should keep you warm.”

“Thanks, but what about you?”

“Wolves are physically tougher than humans. I’m less likely to catch a cold than you are.”

Hmm. That didn’t sound nearly as romantic as his actions were. Nevertheless, she pulled his sweater down over her head, sniffing the man-smell and enjoying his body warmth as well as the heat from the woolen fabric.

“We’d planned to have a picnic lunch up here, but it’s a bit windy. We were going to take you to the wild area where the wolves like to run and play next. That’s more sheltered and would be a better place for our picnic, I think,” said Gowan.

“That’s fine by me.”

Dera was happy to leave all the arrangements in their hands. They knew the area and she didn’t. Esther had taken her around a bit, but really she only knew the small area near the community hall where the women were staying. There was a general store opposite, and the office building where all the work of the farm was organized. Truly, the management of the farm had provided almost everything the women needed in their own building. Apart from taking a blanket out to the central grassed area and sitting in the sun with some of the other human women sometimes, , Dera had felt no urge to wander. Although she knew if this was to be her home she had to learn to find her own way around.

She climbed back on the quad bike, and said, “Will you teach me how to drive it, later?”

“Of course.” Maitho pointed out various knobs to her, but then his voice was swallowed up by a loud clap of thunder, followed immediately by a torrential downpour. It was almost like standing in a shower. Rain just poured out of the sky as if someone up there had opened a floodgate.

The two men yelled at each other but the only words she could understand were “Hold on tight!”

Her hands were so wet and slippery she didn’t feel safe holding the bar, so she leaned forward, tucked her body against Maitho’s and grabbed his belt with both hands. Even huddled against his back, spray was getting in her face, so she shut her eyes and used his burly body as shelter. The bike was moving faster now as they raced downhill and back toward the community. That was fine by her. The expedition was at an end and her plan for the immediate future was a hot shower and dry clothes. She opened her eyes when the tires hit the paved road again, but they weren’t near the community hall so she shut them again, only to be surprised as the bike bounced under shelter and the rain was drumming on a roof instead of pounding against her body.

Dera opened her mouth to demand to be taken home, instead of waiting the rain out under shelter and getting even colder, but then she realized perhaps the men were struggling to drive the bikes in the bad weather. It wasn’t safe if they couldn’t see properly and after all, no one had bought swimming goggles with them!

But no. Gowan was racing up half a dozen steps onto a porch and Maitho was pulling her sleeve. “Let’s go.”

“Is this your house?” she asked as he hustled her onto the stoop.

http://www.bookstrand.com/tamed-by-the-wolves

Mail-order brides for the werewolf pack!

The first book in the "Werewolf Brides" series is out now! Mail-order brides for a werewolf pack!

Surrendered to the Wolves

http://www.bookstrand.com/surrendered-to-the-wolves



Esther Johnson answers an advertisement for mail-order brides to marry two men of their choice from twenty-four eligible bachelors. Then she learns they’re werewolves. But the werewolf community at Cooper’s Farm is very welcoming, and Xola and Kairu Cooper are extremely yummy. It’s not how she’d planned her life, but once she finds a job, she’ll consider their attractions.

However, getting a job isn’t all that easy. Oh, it’s way better than in her old neighborhood, but there are so many other considerations. She’s made friends with the other mail-order brides, and Xola and Kairu keep distracting her with outings and their wonderful bodies.

Then Xola sees some people watching the farm and he and Okapi learn that there’s something not quite right going on in the local BDSM club. Is Esther safe? Are any of the human women safe? And how will Xola and Kairu protect her when she’s determined to go work in Coopersville town.


STORY EXCERPT

Clipboard man came down the aisle collecting the contracts and she handed hers in silently. Once he had them all he returned to the front of the plane and called out, “Okay. Prepare for departure.” He locked the airplane door, strapped himself into an empty seat, and the plane taxied over to a runway. A couple of other airplanes took off first and they looked huge beside the little one she was in. But their plane didn’t need much runway to lift off and was soon banking over the city, then heading due east.

Clipboard man stood up and moved to the front again. “Coopersville is a medium-sized town of about a quarter million inhabitants. Our community is on the outskirts of the city and most of our people work in town. Whatever career you want or kind of job you’d like, you should be able to find there. If you want to study, there’s a community college in town and we will pay all your study expenses as long as you pass your tests. Unemployment is very low and the town council is not corrupt or inefficient. Our own people have lived in this area for half a dozen generations now and we are active in local affairs.”

Esther really hoped that didn’t mean the town was as corrupt as hell, but that their community was running the crime. But really, if they were the bad guys why would they advertise for women. Surely they’d just buy them or kidnap them instead of getting them so openly?

“All the people born in our community share the surname Cooper. We were the original inhabitants of Coopersville and have kept the name to illustrate our connection. My name is Xola. It starts with an X, not a Z though.” The man grinned at them and suddenly looked years younger than he had before. Esther decided likely he wasn’t really all that much older than her after all. Maybe thirty, but no more than that.

“The reason we advertised for women is that for several generations now far more boys than girls have been born into our community. At first our leader was concerned that it was because of inbreeding, although many of our members had found partners outside the town. More recently we’ve learned that it’s a worldwide problem. People like us seem to give birth to two boys for every girl. Hence our need for brides for our men, and the need for men to share a woman.”

He waited quite a while this time, as if expecting questions. Esther looked around the airplane as best she could, but none of the other women had raised her hand, or seemed particularly upset or concerned at the news. After all, if they were flying women into the town, there had to be a reason for spending so much time and effort to do that.

“Over the past year our unmarried men have formed themselves into pairs. Two men who are used to working with each other and are prepared to share a woman. Men who have stood the test of time as good friends or companions. When you choose your husbands, you will be choosing a pair. The two men you’ll marry. Do you understand? Are there any questions?”

“How many pairs are there to choose from? Like, I mean, is there just enough for us each to have a pair?”

The question came from right up the back and Esther didn’t see which woman had asked it.

“We advertised for twelve women. Only nine passed our tests and agreed to come. So even the woman who decides last will have a choice,” replied Xola.

He waited for a while, Esther guessed it was for any other questions, but no one said anything. Finally he said, “There is one other thing you all need to know.” He clicked his fingers together and the curtain behind him into the cockpit parted. Esther got a glimpse of the back of the pilot’s head, and then a big black dog stood beside Xola.

Xola clicked his fingers again and the dog paced through the cabin, stopping beside each seat. Some of the women stared at him, others petted his head. Esther was trying to work out what was happening. Obviously this was some kind of test, but what for? When the dog stopped by her she stroked his head and ears. His fur was silky soft so he was evidently well cared for. But he was very big with a long tail and she had no idea what breed he was, never having owned a companion animal or even had a close friend with a dog.

Eventually the dog had visited each of the women and stalked back to Xola. He did look quite fierce, but he had behaved with perfect manners. Was he perhaps a guard dog or something?

Xola clicked his fingers a third time and the huge dog shimmered, and turned into the man who’d helped with the luggage. Xola held his clipboard over the man’s genitals, hiding them, but Esther didn’t think anyone would be checking out his cock. Most of the women were gasping and chattering. One had shrieked, although whether that was in fear or surprise, Esther wasn’t sure. She really couldn’t think right now. Fucking hell. What have I agreed to?

http://www.bookstrand.com/surrendered-to-the-wolves

Happy First Birthday!

My first book was contracted to Siren Bookstrand in August 2012 and published on 26 December 2012. Happy Holidays to me! It was “The Dom Unleashes His Wolf”. It was the start of the “Unchained Love” series.



http://www.bookstrand.com/the-dom-unleashes-his-wolf



My 28th book is releasing on 27 December and is available now for pre-order. Happy Holidays and Happy First Birthday to me all in one release! It's called, “Surrendered to the Wolves” (“Werewolf Brides” book 1)

Esther Johnson answers an advertisement for mail-order brides to marry two men of their choice from twenty-four eligible bachelors. Then she learns they’re werewolves. But the werewolf community at Cooper’s Farm is very welcoming, and Xola and Kairu Cooper are extremely yummy. It’s not how she’d planned her life, but once she finds a job, she’ll consider their attractions.
However, getting a job isn’t all that easy. Oh, it’s way better than in her old neighborhood, but there are so many other considerations. She’s made friends with the other mail-order brides, and Xola and Kairu keep distracting her with outings and their wonderful bodies.
Then Xola sees some people watching the farm and he and Okapi learn that there’s something not quite right going on in the local BDSM club. Is Esther safe? Are any of the human women safe? And how will Xola and Kairu protect her when she’s determined to go work in Coopersville town.



http://www.bookstrand.com/surrendered-to-the-wolves

Two Wolves and a Librarian

The final book in the Werewolf Castle series is out!!
http://www.bookstrand.com/two-wolves-and-a-librarian


Magnus Adler and Kiril Engel have spent two years searching Germany for their mate. Is Flynn Jensen, a librarian with untidy brown hair and pale blue eyes hidden behind glasses, The One? And how can they find out without letting her know that they’re werewolves, and where they really live?

The Alpha has sent them to Stuttgart to prepare a house for him to attend the inauguration ceremony for the new Supreme Alpha of Europe. How can they obey their Alpha and still spend enough time with Flynn to see if she is their mate? They’re desperate to get to know her, but so much is happening all around them it’s hard to find the time. And there is danger, too. The Alpha values his privacy very highly and other packs want to know more about him. Will their time here run out before they know for sure?

Three men and one lucky woman

Look what's out now!!

Two Wolves, a Man, and Their Woman (MFM) Werewolf Castle book 5

All three Golubev brothers—two werewolves, Dominik and Stefan, and one human, Uwe—want the same human woman, Kady Balan, who works at Werewolf Castle with their sister Anastasia. They decide to unite their efforts to claim her. With all three of them on the job, they can’t possibly fail to attract her to them. But none of their attempts to get to know her better succeed.

First they take her to a waterfall, but she’s wearing a swimsuit under her clothes so they don’t get to see her body. Then they meet strangers on the mountain who are planning trouble for their Alpha, so their date is cut short as they rush Kady out of danger and go to tell the Alpha what is happening. With various Alphas fighting to be the Supreme Alpha of Europe, will they ever find time and safety to romance Kady properly?

STORY EXCERPT

Food. That was why she was working at the castle this summer. She’d recently graduated from the local college with qualifications as a chef. She’d worked part-time all through school in a fast food restaurant and there was a job waiting for her there again, any time she cared to return. But she’d wanted this summer doing what she thought of as “real” cooking. At the castle she’d made pies and cakes, baked bread, and experimented with a range of semimedieval meals and all the attendant spices. Kady’d spent hours and hours researching medieval recipes and practicing how to make a medieval dish taste good to a twenty-first century palate.

She loved the work and was going to miss it like hell when the tourist season ended and she wasn’t needed anymore. She was going to miss Uwe Golubev, too. Kady walked over to a tree and sat on the grass, resting her back against its trunk.

Uwe. Such a yummy man. And human like her, not a werewolf like his father and two older brothers. Kady’s friend and coworker, Anastasia Golubev, was the baby of her family and a trained chef. She’d been working at the castle for three years even though she was human, too. A few months ago there’d been trouble with some people spying on workers in the castle, and the Alpha of the Werewolf Castle pack had called in Anastasia’s three brothers, all big fierce men, to keep a watch on the troublemakers. Uwe was an excellent baker, even though he had no training, so he’d started working in the kitchens and he was every bit as delicious as his pies and tarts.

Actually, all three brothers were mighty nice to look at. All big and dark and wild, like so many of the mountain werewolves, but smart and funny and good company as well. Although the oldest brother, Dominik, could be scary at times.

Kady grinned. The Werewolf Castle wolves suffered from a shortage of females, so they had a policy that two male wolves mated a human female. Anastasia herself had recently agreed to marry two of the wolves, Evan Huber, the head chef in the Castle Kitchen, and Ion Varga, an IT geek in the castle.

Kady wouldn’t have minded marrying a couple of handsome wolves herself. Especially Dominik and Stefan Golubev, but she liked the youngest brother, Uwe, even more. And he was human. Not that he’d ever made a move on her. He hadn’t asked her on a date or kissed her or anything. But she knew he was interested in her. Maybe she should make a move on him instead. Maybe she’d back him into the walk-in refrigerator and kiss him when he couldn’t get away from her or something. It’d be fun to see if he kissed her back or panicked. Except, she’d hate to be fired from this job. She loved it too much to jeopardize it. Dammit!

Kady caught a flash of movement out of the corner of her eye. She turned her head around to see behind her tree so fast she almost gave herself whiplash. Then she smiled. It was a wolf, a big black one, standing maybe a hundred feet away from her, watching her.

“Hi. It’s okay. I work at the castle,” she told him.

Well she supposed it was a him. She didn’t think one of their few females would be out here alone.

She rested back against the tree trunk again, closing her eyes, only to find the huge wolf’s front paws straddling her legs, his face almost in hers.

Her eyes snapped open at his hot breath on her face. Her heart was beating so fast she thought she might have a stroke, and she suddenly remembered there were actual wolves as well as werewolf shape-shifters, in these mountains. She opened her mouth to scream, as she stared into his gray eyes.

Gray eyes.

“Fuck it, Dominik Golubev! Back off, you big lump. You just about gave me a heart attack,” she yelled, ignoring the fact that strokes and heart attacks were different things, and people her age, twenty-two, didn’t usually have either of them.

“How did you know it was me and not Stefan?” Dominik had only taken the smallest of paces back from her, and he was stark naked. So naked, his long thick cock was just about at her chin level and very tempting. She forced her gaze higher, to rest on his face.

“Stefan isn’t as much of an asshole as you are. He wouldn’t deliberately try to scare me for no reason.”

“I wouldn’t be so sure of that.” Dominik clicked his fingers and a second wolf appeared. This one was just as big and just as black, but it stood a few feet away from her, proving her point in her mind, at least.

“Go and put some pants on, Dominik. Or get back into your fur,” she said.

“We left our clothes by the gate. Who gave you the key to the gate? Humans aren’t supposed to come here, not even Werewolf Castle pack humans.”

“I climbed over the fence. It’s my day off and I’ve wanted to come up this mountain ever since I started work at the castle.”

Dominik stretched his hand down to hers, gripped, and hauled her to her feet.

“Well, you’ve seen the mountain and now it’s time to go. This area is private and you’re not a wolf.”

Kady eyed both man and wolf thoughtfully, then decided her chances of out arguing them were nonexistent. She shouldered her backpack and followed them down the mountain.

http://www.bookstrand.com/two-wolves-a-man-and-their-woman

Two Wolves and a Cook OUT NOW!

Where can an IT geek take two chefs on a date? Ion Varga is a werewolf and a Dom. Evan Huber is also a wolf, but Anastasia Golubev is human. Apart from that, they start work insanely early each day and work a seven-day week. By the time Ion solves that riddle, trouble has broken out in the Castle Kitchens.

It’s the height of the tourist season at Werewolf Castle, Anastasia has three big, bossy, older brothers, the new banquets are creating an enormous amount of work, and Evan thinks Lev is spying on them all. Ion worries Lev wants Anastasia for himself. Anastasia just wants them to take her down into the dungeons for some nice relaxing BDSM scenes. Lucky for her, Ion knows exactly how to please her and teach her and Evan some new games. But can his IT skills help solve their problems? Or will Lev’s people succeed?

http://www.bookstrand.com/two-wolves-and-a-cook

STORY EXCERPT

Ion Varga was a geek. He almost never wore medieval costume. He stayed in a nice quiet office, tucked away behind various security doors in the east wing, and did geeky stuff with mathematical models, statistical analysis, and computer programs the average tourist didn’t even know existed. There was a lot more to running a successful tourist attraction than sweeping the courtyard and having a few pretty girls dotted around to redirect lost tourists. He got to do the fun stuff without having to face the crowds and be nice to overweight, overtired paying customers.

Unfortunately, he was one of the few wolves who knew how to joust with a medieval sword and make it look exciting and dramatic, without actually hurting anyone. When his fellow geek, Grigori, had told him about the plans for the banquets, he’d thought it sounded like a great way for tourists to spend more money and have an added adventure without making an inordinate amount of extra work for the castle wolves. When Grigori had mentioned having some entertainment during the banquet, he’d agreed happily. When he found out that extra entertainment included him having a sword fight with someone else, he’d even thought it might be fun. Until he’d figured out just how much practice it took to make the moves look fluid and unexpected.

The practices had been long, and draining, and then he’d had to rearrange some of what he’d planned to do, as the banquet rooms were fairly narrow. However, they’d had their final rehearsals in the rooms themselves and he was fairly sure the customers would enjoy the show. Damask played a lute and Tatiana a wooden pipe similar to an early flute and they both sang an old medieval-style ballad about the wolves of Werewolf Castle. Then he explained a little about the swords he and Grigori would use.

Finally they had their fight, and apart from Grigori almost falling over at one stage, it went as planned. Actually the almost-fall just made it look even more realistic but he wouldn’t suggest they add it into their choreography in case one of them really did slip in the future. They bowed and left the room, walking the few steps to the identical room next door and doing at all again, minus the slip. After that, he took the second sword from Grigori and returned to his nice quiet office.

But seeing Damask there with Jairus and Grigori just reminded him of how badly he wanted to get to know Anastasia better. She’d been working here in the castle for years now, and he’d scarcely progressed beyond “hi” with her. Oh, he was a geek so he knew all about her human mother and werewolf father, her three older brothers—two wolves, one human—her home in the mountains, and the wild nature of her father and brothers. He knew she’d done very well at the specialist cooking school she’d attended, and he also knew she was single. All of that he’d gotten from the records in the castle computer files. He had access to all sorts of things other wolves knew nothing about.

What he didn’t have access to was her mind and her heart. Was she interested in forming a relationship with a couple of wolves? Was she ready for some dungeon play? Being from a wolf family she’d know all about BDSM but that didn’t mean she wanted to be involved in it and wanted that lifestyle herself. Maybe she was more like her human mother.

Then there was the matter of the second man to be included in the relationship. Watching her, Ion thought she was attracted to Evan. That was natural. She worked with him all day long and he was a talented man, an expert in the field she’d chosen. But did Evan like her? Ion had no idea at all.

The obvious way to find out was to invite her out on a date. But her first question, quite reasonably, would be, who is the other man? And if Evan wasn’t interested in joining them he was in big trouble. He’d be in even bigger trouble if she specifically wanted Evan and he wasn’t prepared to join them. Ion cringed at the kinds of disaster that could be.

Besides where could he take a couple of cooks out for dinner? The nearby town had a range of eateries, but whereas a bowl of Hungarian goulash or a burger would suit him just fine, they were not likely to be what Anastasia and Evan were looking for. There was a much bigger town an hour away which likely would offer better dining choices but he knew they started work very early in the morning. Cooking all the food for so many people was a huge job. Plus they made a lot of the treats sold by the Village Traders, as well. All of which meant it couldn’t be a late night out or they’d be tired the next morning. So an hour road trip each way would be a no.

Dammit. This was going to be more difficult than he’d thought. How was he supposed to get to know Anastasia? Was he going to have to wait until winter when Werewolf Castle only opened weekends and holidays?

http://www.bookstrand.com/two-wolves-and-a-cook