Tuesday Teaser 9/8/15: Olivia’s Mate

The teaser is pretty short this week. Sorry about that! I am submitting a short, short snip to a Halloween anthology and it took me much longer to do that than I expected it to. That will be coming out in mid-October and I’;ll share details with you when I get them.

I did settle on a name for the story and it is Daughters of the Wolf Clan 1: Olivia’s Mate. That means, as I’m sure you guessed, that there very well might be more stories in the Daughters series. Victoria? Patia? Maybe.  And here is the cover art.  As I said, the snip is short, but I hope you can enjoy it anyway.

Uncle Hawk nodded to Nathan and told him to follow Kit, but Marty waved him back. “I’ll go,” he said.

Victoria stiffened in protest. “But lunch,” she began.

Marty glanced regretfully at the workroom. “Hate to miss that good food. And I especially hate missing time with you, but sometimes a man has to do what he has to do. Ray?”

“Yeah,” Ray grumbled. “Right behind you.”

The two Madison men went to the workroom to collect their coats and came back out and left the store, leaving Patia and Victoria looking miffed. Uncle Hawk and told them all his gravelly low voice to hurry up and get their drinks before the food got cold.

Olivia selected a root beer and took it back to the workroom. She grabbed a seat at the end of a table. As she expected all the girls wanted to sit beside her and pump her for information.

Kit was here. Olivia had a hard time believing it. Had he really been searching for her, or was this meeting accident?

Predictably, Victoria secured the seat beside her. Aunt Carla and Patia sat across the table from her. The inquisition was coming, but Olivia hoped food would delay it. Uncle Hawk was eating standing up, leaning a shoulder on the wall behind Olivia. Nathan was at one side of the door, with his dad Red Wing at the other. All three of the wolf warriors exuded an air of watchfulness. No, watchdog-edness. If a stranger passed through that door, he might not live to go back out. Olivia felt like her shoulders were weighed down with lead. They were going to ask her questions that she didn’t want to answer, maybe couldn’t answer.

Victoria’s bowl of spaghetti was heaped full, and two garlic breadsticks balanced over the edge of the bowl. She twirled pasta masterfully around her fork and ate it with a hum of appreciation. After devouring half the bowl and one breadstick, she slowed down enough to nudge Olivia’s shoulder.

“So, that’s the crazy feline who stole you?”

Olivia took her time chewing her breadstick. “Yep.”

Her cousin looked at her for a long minute, her fork unmoving. “He doesn’t look all that scary,” she said with a thoughtful tone.

Olivia remembered when she’d first woken up in his cave. He had tried to rape her. He thought she wanted to have sex, and that her struggles were just a game. That had been scary. He did look young and boyish and handsome, but he was a mountain cat who didn’t understand the way civilized people lived. But she couldn’t say any of that. Uncle Hawk and Uncle Red Wing and Nathan could hear every word they said, and she knew they were already itching to kill Kit.

“It was scary when he first took me,” she admitted carefully. “But he didn’t hurt me.”

Aunt Carla tapped a finger on the table to get her attention. “You be careful with him. He’s already shown what he is willing to do.”

“Yes, Aunt Carla,” Olivia replied respectfully. But she was remembering what he had said to Uncle Hawk. He had admitted he was wrong to steal her but he loved her and wanted to court her. Was that truth, or was he just saying what he thought they wanted to hear. Uncle Stone would be here in a few days. If Kit was still here, Stone could tell her if Kit was lying.

“Don’t worry, Aunt Carla,” Nathan said darkly. “Olivia won’t be alone for a minute with him.”