Sherry’s Wolf Update and Excerpt

I’ve been hard at work on Sherry’s Wolf, and the end is in sight at last. I won’t actually have it done this weekend as hoped, so now my deadline is February 25.  In my defense, I have to say that Sherry is a much more complicated woman than I had first believed. I will have to do some fairly major re-writing of chapters 2-5. It will probably be about 28,000 words, a solid novella length and I hope to have it out around March 25. Depends on how long my beta readers and editor take with it and how easy it is to format it for Amazon and Barnes & Noble.

Here is a short excerpt of Sherry finally accepting Stag’s mate bond. Sherry is sitting up in bed, and Stag is perched on the edge of the bed. This is totally unedited, so please excuse the errors.

Sherry shifted on the bed, a mere inch from Stag’s naked thigh. “I guess what I’m trying to say is: I’m sorry I’ve been so … so dither-y.”

“Dither-y?” Stag blinked with adorable confusion.

“Yeah, first I’m coming on to you, then I’m pushing you away.” She reached up to put the empty glass on the top of chest of drawers. “I’m done with that. I won’t lie; I’m a little nervous about this, so be gentle, okay?”

His mystified expression froze when she put her hands on his warm bare shoulders and dragged them down his pecs and lower. She hesitated at his belly button, all too aware that his nakedness didn’t hide his body’s reaction to her touch. But she didn’t stroke any lower. She didn’t dare. Her boldness trembled on the verge of collapsing as it was.

“Stag?” she asked nervously. “Is this okay? Do you mind if I touch you?”

She watched his adam’s apple bob when he swallowed hard. “Are you accepting me as your mate?”

Now she was the one to swallow hard. “Yes.” The word cracked, so she swallowed again and spoke more firmly. “Yes. Be patient with me. I didn’t do a very good job being a wife the first time around, but I’ll try harder with you.”

“You were a good wife, better than that man deserved.” Stag reached a long brown hand to cup her cheek. “I’ll be the best mate I can be. I’ll protect you and provide for you always. I’m not in love with you. That’s for giddy children who base their commitment on feelings. I love you, which is more permanent because it’s a choice I’ve made. I think you’re beautiful, and a lot braver than you give yourself credit for. I’ve seen how good you are with the other women at the Plane Womens’ House.  You work hard to help them. You deserve to have someone to take care of you. You will always come first with me.”

“And you’ll let me have a little freedom, right?”

“Right,” he agreed. “I’m not the only one of us who will need to be patient. I promise to try to not be a male chauvinist pig, but habits are hard to break.”

She suppressed a spurt of surprise that he even knew what a male chauvinist pig was. Of course, he –and all the other wolves– defined ‘male chauvinist pig’. “Kiss me, Stag,” she whispered.

His hands settled on her shoulders. “I thought you’d never ask,” he said fervently. “I promised Taye I wouldn’t touch you until you invited me to.”

That made her snort out a chuckle. She’d never imagined Taye Wolfe as a chaperone before. It made her like him a little better. “Consider yourself invited, dear.”

Stag kissed her lips once gently. And again. Sherry wanted more. She opened her lips under his and licked at his closed mouth.

“Open your mouth, Stag,” she whispered against his lips.

“Okay. I just don’t want to go too far and scare you again.”

“You can go as far as you like now. You can go all the way. You better go all the way. I like you being gentle, but you don’t have to be so gentle.”