The Billionaire Werewolf's Princess. Michele Hauf
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it maintained, he wasn’t owned by the upkeep of it.
He unlocked the front door and tossed his duffel bag to the floor. It was cool and quiet inside. He didn’t bother to close the door because he immediately began to strip and toss aside his clothes.
Nothing felt better than a four-legged lope through the forest. And it was rare he got farther than the front doorway when he came here for two or three days of quiet and relaxation.
Shifting was immediate. His limbs loosened and shortened and coalesced to that of a gray wolf, which, when standing next to a natural wolf, would be perhaps six or eight inches taller and longer, but not much bigger.
Strutting out into the night, the wolf loped around the fieldstone walls and then raced toward the grassy field spotted with wildflowers. When he reached the forest, he let out a long and rangy howl that was answered by another natural wolf many miles off. He would ignore the howl. It was merely a property marker, not an invitation.
Charging through the forest, the night crisp against his fur, the wolf reached the small clearing that was lit like a stage with cool white moonlight.
And as the beast soared into the wild grasses and, briefly, all four limbs were off the ground, again the shift overtook Ry and his body lengthened. His legs grew and tight, furred muscles wrapped about his burly chest. He landed on legs similar to a man’s, yet his feet were powerful paws with claws that could dig into the ground for propulsion, or kick and kill with a slice of those sharp weapons.
Head growing and yet remaining in wolf shape, Ry stood tall. He thrust back his shoulders and arms, and lifted his chest. His lungs deflated as he let out a howl that mastered the night and laid claim to his territory.
And with a sniff of the air and a tilt of its ear, the werewolf tracked a nearby fox. He took off toward the small creature, the invigorating rush of adrenaline, and the release after a month in human form, quickening his strides.
* * *
The website had been updated. The bills were paid. And the new product samples had been delivered an hour earlier. Indi looked over the many assorted boxes that she’d received from companies vying to be featured by Goddess Goodies’ new self-care line. While she’d thus far stuck with adding a few hair accessories and one pretty moonstone necklace to the website, Janet had suggested she branch out to a few more female-centric items. Books on self-care. Healthy teas. Crystals. And...why not a vibrator? Self-pleasure was a big part of being a happy, gorgeous goddess. So Indi had agreed to at least consider the vibrators.
And the research could prove interesting, if not also satisfying.
Chuckling at what her job description required, Indi stood up from the boxes she’d unpacked and stretched. She’d been working all morning. Her office was the front living area at the side of the house. It was walled on the curved side with windows and sat up two short steps from the main sunken living room. A dressmaker’s dummy, currently wearing vintage Alexander McQueen, was her main project. While she employed a staff in a small warehouse, and they managed the bulk of the sewing and online orders, she did choose a few gowns to revamp because she loved the process of redesigning what had been a gorgeous piece to begin with, and she was an excellent seamstress. Home economics had been a favorite course in high school, and she’d taken fashion, textiles and business in college.
It was Saturday and the sun was high in the sky. She tried to keep her weekends free and not work too much. And she did have fresh peaches in the fridge...
Stripping away her clothes, Indi walked away from work and into the weekend.
Later, she floated on an inflatable lounge chair in the pool behind her home, eyes closed and one hand clasped about a peach sangria. No swimsuit. Nudity was her thing. Her shrubs were tall enough that she didn’t worry about nosy neighbors.
Indi wondered what Ry was up to. She’d told him she had intended to give the news about his nature a good think. But she’d been so busy the past few days she hadn’t taken a moment to look up werewolf online.
The man was a werewolf.
Half werewolf. And half faery.
And why was she not überfreaked about that? Shouldn’t she be worried that he was mentally disturbed and that to date him could put her in a dangerous situation with a psychopath? It was a stretch to go there with a man who had only been kind to her, but she had to consider the psychopath possibility. The world had gotten less kind and more strange. And that was just the humans.
Yet at the same time, she had seen those black sparkly faeries. Collectors, he’d called them. And she had witnessed Ry partially shift. His entire head had changed to a wolf’s head. Despite being drunk that night, she would never doubt her instincts, which confirmed everything he’d told her was true.
Now to decide where she stood with all this information. Could she date a werewolf? Because he’d intimated he’d wanted to get to know her better. What was different about him than any other man?
“Besides that he can change into a wolf,” she muttered. The sun beamed across her skin, glistening in the water droplets. “I wonder if he has sex with other wolves. As a wolf? Would he have sex with me as a wolf?”
Because those were the squicky questions that needed answers.
But she was rushing far ahead of herself. First things first. Ryland James was an amazingly sexy man that she wanted to date. And their first date was already on the calendar. He was also, seemingly, very kind, philanthropic and concerned for others. The man was keeping babies safe from abduction. It didn’t get any more honorable than that. He really was a superhero.
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