by R. E. Butler
Chasing Cristabel
Ashland Pride Six
By R. E. Butler
Copyright 2016 R. E. Butler
Chasing Cristabel (Ashland Pride Six)
By R. E. Butler
License Notes
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Cover by Valerie Tibbs
This ebook is a work of fiction. Names, characters, places, and incidents are the product of the author’s imagination and not to be construed as real. Any resemblance to actual persons, living or dead, events or locations is coincidental.
Disclaimer: The material in this book is for mature audiences only and contains graphic sexual content and is intended for those older than the age of 18 only.
* * *
Editing by Jennifer Moorman
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For Joyce, the bestest bestie ever…St. Louis is always for you.
Many thanks to Shelley and Mandy for beta reading.
Much love to Aunt B. L. and my husband.
Table of Contents
Chapter 1
Chapter 2
Chapter 3
Chapter 4
Chapter 5
Chapter 6
Chapter 7
Chapter 8
Chapter 9
Chapter 10
Chapter 11
Chapter 12
Chapter 13
Chapter 14
Chapter 15
Chapter 16
Chapter 17
Chapter 18
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Other Words by R. E. Butler
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Chasing Cristabel (Ashland Pride Six)
By R. E. Butler
Lioness Cristabel Hardison would do just about anything to avoid going home to Kentucky, where her father, the king of their pride, wants to mate her to a male of his choosing. When her roommate needs to vacate his condo, she takes her best friend, Lily, up on her offer to let her stay in Ashland until she can find another job and a new place to live.
Cousins Dylan, Chase, and Hunter Hall aren’t sure they’ll ever find a mate to share. Just because other lions have found their mates doesn’t mean that every male is meant to. Then one day at the town diner, they scent their mate, except no one knows who she is, and they only know that she smells like sunshine and tall grass. Their desire to find their mate takes over their lives and nothing – not even a pesky new waitress at Kickers Bar – is going to stop them from figuring out who their mate is and loving her forever.
When Cris meets her mates, sparks fly fast, and she finds herself at the center of their world. Her father isn’t happy, and when he brings an uninvited guest to crash her happiness, her own future may not be the only thing on the line.
This book contains three males who want to hold on to their lioness forever, a female with some unresolved family issues, a house full of lions who will protect their own, and enough heat to melt the snow. Contains m/f/m/m interaction.
Chapter 1
Were-lioness Cristabel Hardison checked the contents of her suitcase one last time before zipping it closed, carrying it through the condo, and setting it by the front door. She sublet the condo from her friend Lance who traveled extensively and let her stay rent-free as long as she watered his plants and got the mail. He was a banker, and his company had merged with another. In order to keep his job, he had to move to another location, which meant he needed to put his condo on the market. She offered to pay rent if he would let her stay, but half of his mortgage was more than she made in a month working at the reception desk at a family-owned dentistry office, so she’d had to pack up her things.
Her parents wanted her to leave Indiana and come home to the pride in Kentucky. They said she’d been away from the pride for too long. As soon as she’d finished college, she’d opted to move out of her parents’ home and move into Lance’s condo, several hours away from the pride’s territory. Her parents, especially her father, who was the leader of the pride, hadn’t been happy that she’d made the choices she’d made in her life. Although she missed both of them and the camaraderie of the pride, she knew she’d had to make the choices she did so she could live life on her own terms.
The pride, and her family, had a rigid structure. Her dad was haj, the king lion, and he expected her to behave in a certain way – to always be a good daughter, to put the pride first in all things, and to go along with whatever choices he made on her behalf. While her father’s rules were stifling, she had very fond childhood memories of him teaching her to tie her shoes, to ride a bike, and to learn to drive. She’d seen the compassionate side of him when she was younger, but as she’d grown older, she’d known that his expectations for her were leading her down a road she didn’t want to go – namely to an arranged mating. Pride females didn’t normally choose their own mates, but Cris wanted to. So leaving home had been her only real choice.
While she and her dad had been at odds since Cris had graduated from college and moved into the condo, she and her mother had maintained a good relationship. They talked on the phone weekly and texted often.
Just as she was thinking about her mom, her phone buzzed and she saw that her mother had texted her a picture. Opening the messaging program, Cris stifled a groan at the picture of a slice of chocolate cream pie.
“You’re killing me,” Cris texted her mom. “That looks delicious. Feel free to mail it to me.”
Her mom texted back, “No way! This pie is only for people living in my house. You can feel free to come home, though, and I’ll save you a slice.”
Cris chuckled and sent her mom an emoji for a face with rolling eyes. Some of her favorite times with her mom happened in the kitchen. Her mom loved to bake. When she’d come home from school, her mom would have a snack of some freshly baked goodie and a tall glass of milk waiting at the kitchen table, and they’d sit together and talk. The kitchen had been a haven. She could tell her mom anything and know that she would listen and not judge. Her mom was disappointed in Cris’s choice to explore the world on her own – away from the pride – but she had continued to be supportive to Cris in any way she could be.
Picking up her bags, Cris walked into the kitchen and found Lance at the counter with his laptop open, scruff on his cheeks and his eyes red from lack of sleep.
“Any appointments to show the condo today?” she asked, snagging an apple from the basket on the counter and taking a bite. The condo had been on the market for three weeks with no showings yet. She felt bad for him. He was worried about being unable to sell the condo and stretching himself financially thin.
He rubbed at his eyes and groaned. “No. The realtor said I needed to drop the price again, but it’s already dangerously close to what I owe.”
“I’m sorry. I wish I could buy it.”
“Me too.” He closed the laptop with a grimace. “The bank is paying for rental housing for ninety days. If I don’t find a buyer before that time is up, I’m going to lose the condo. If the bank finds out I’ve got bad debt on my record, I’ll lose my job, and then I’ll have to live with my parents in Myrtle Beach.”
She chuckled. “Sounds like a real hardship.”
“Oh please, princess. You aren’t exactly running home to mommy and daddy either.”
She bristled at the term princess. “Your parents aren’t trying to mate you off to on
e of the unmated males who strut around the pride like their cocks are made of gold. I spent a week with your parents for spring break, remember? All your dad does is watch sports while your mom does all the cooking and cleaning. Our two scenarios,” she whisked her hand between the two of them, “are light years apart.”
“You’re right. I’m sorry. I forget how testy you are about your parents and your dad’s desire to shove you in the direction of the nearest princely penis.”
She groaned. “You didn’t just say that.”
He winked. “I’ll miss you, Cris. You didn’t kill any of my plants.”
Tossing the core into the trash, she kissed his cheek. “I liked living here, too. You never once tried to molest me in my sleep.”
His eyes flashed with humor, and he gave her a mock surprised look. “Was that an option? Damn, I missed out!”
She used the remote start to get her car’s heater going before bundling up with wool gloves, a hat, and a warm coat and heading outside with her bags. Lance helped her, and after one last check through the shared bathroom and her bedroom, she hugged him goodbye and wished him luck.
As she got behind the wheel, she thought about what Lance had said. She wasn’t running home, because she was afraid that her father would arrange a mating for her. As long as she stayed away from her pride and their territory, she could live her life as she wished. It meant she hadn’t seen her mother in eight months, not since she graduated from college and moved to Cranston. Even though she talked to her mom on the phone frequently, Cris missed her.
Her parents lived on Lake Lemanar in Kentucky, in a thick stretch of woods that bordered one side of the large lake. She’d spend her childhood summers swimming and fishing. Once she shifted at age fifteen, she’d taken to hunting like a real lioness and was easily one of the best female hunters in her pride. But as her father liked to say, a female’s place wasn’t in the woods hunting; it was in the home. Neanderthal thoughts like that made her leave home as soon as possible. She’d always been worried that her father would use his authority as haj and force her into a mating.
Her parents were the product of an arranged mating, and their marriage had worked out for them. But she didn’t want to put her romantic future in her father’s hands. How could he possibly know what she would want in a mate when he’d never asked her what she liked? She wasn’t even really sure herself.
When she was in high school, she’d had a list of potential-mate qualities that was a mile long. Everything was superficial, from hair style to eye color. Now she was a little wiser about what was really important in a future mate, and although it would be nice if he were gorgeous, she knew that all she really cared about was that he loved her. She didn’t even care if he shifted into something other than a lion or into nothing at all.
She called Lily’s cell, using her car’s hands-free system. “I’m on the way, Lil.”
“Sweet! When will you get here?”
“About one.”
“I’m working, so stop by the restaurant first and I’ll give you the keys, okay? I have a class after my shift is over, so I won’t be able to hang out until later.”
“I’ll be fine by myself. I need to unpack and start looking for a job.”
“Speaking of jobs, there’s a new were-clinic opening in town, and they’re hiring office staff. I’ll text you the details so you can call and set up an interview.”
“Really? Cool. Thanks for thinking of me.”
“You know I’m happy to have you as a roommate for however long you want, but I also know that you want to get settled on your own as soon as possible and that means finding a good job. I’d love for you to work and live in Ashland. It’s the best place. Plus, there are plenty of sexy guys in town. They seem to gravitate here for some reason.”
She snorted. “Must be something in the water.”
“Maybe. Gotta run. I’ve got a table.”
“See you in a few hours.”
As soon as the call ended, her phone buzzed with a text containing the contact information for the were-clinic. She pulled into a gas station parking lot and dialed the number, explaining to the man who answered that she’d been given the number by Lily St. James.
“I’ve known Lily’s grandmother since I came to Ashland twenty years ago. She has the best meatloaf in the county,” Dr. Kenneth Radcliff said, chuckling.
“Lily and I have known each other for a long time. I would agree with you on the meatloaf for sure.”
After explaining her credentials to the pediatrician, he said, “I’d love to have you come in for an interview. Would tomorrow morning work, say ten?”
“That’s perfect. Thank you so much. I’ll see you tomorrow.”
Smiling as the call ended, Cris pulled out of the parking lot and turned up the radio, thrilled to be starting things off right in Ashland. If all went well at the job interview, she’d be able to find a place of her own. Intrigued by Ashland and by Lily’s claim of hot men, she let her thoughts drift as she drove, wondering if she might find her truemate along the way.
Were-lions, by and large, didn’t believe in truemates. They were more practical when it came to mating. While many did mate for love, there was still a surprising number of lions who agreed to arranged marriages, allowing their hajes or families to choose their future mates. Cris had perhaps read too many romance novels as a teenager, or hung around werewolves too much in college, and that was why she did believe in truemates. She earnestly believed that there really was one male who was perfect for her out there somewhere; she just hadn’t met him yet. And if she entered into an arranged mating, then she would be giving up on finding the guy who was right for her. She wasn’t ready to admit defeat yet.
Cris pulled into the parking lot of Cherie’s Diner a little after one p.m. Her body ached from the long drive, and she was glad to get out of the car and stretch her legs. When she opened the diner’s front door, the scents of hundreds of meals filled her nose. As a shifter, she had heightened senses and sometimes was overwhelmed in places like this, where grease hung in the air.
Cris pulled off her gloves and stocking cap and scanned the nearly empty diner, finding Lily standing in front of a corner booth. Lily glanced up, waved at Cris, and excused herself from the table.
After one of Lily’s big tackle-hugs, she said, “Come over and meet some of my best customers.”
Lily brought Cris over to a table of three – two men and a woman. Cris scented discreetly and found the female was a wolf and the males were mountain lions. She’d never met a mountain lion before. “Guys, this is my bestie, Cristabel Hardison. She just moved to Ashland.”
They all shook her hand. “Where are you from?” Scarlett the she-wolf asked.
“Kentucky, the Lake Lemanar area. Until recently, though, I was living near Indianapolis.”
“She lived with my brother, Lance,” Lily said.
Scarlett said, “I didn’t know you have a brother.”
“He hasn’t lived in Ashland since he went off to college. He’s a finance guy, and his firm that is based in Cranston merged with another, so he has to move to a different location. But anyway, my bestie is going to work for the new were-clinic here in town.”
Cris elbowed Lily. “I haven’t even been interviewed yet. You’re going to jinx me.”
Lily chuckled. “Scarlett, Grandma says she has a special dessert for you to take home along with your regular extra French toast and bacon, so don’t let me forget. I’ll be back with your food in a few minutes.”
“It was nice to meet you,” Cris said and followed Lily into the kitchen.
Lily handed Cris a key and said, “Do you need directions?”
“No, I’ve already got the address in my GPS.”
“Did you call the clinic?”
“I did. I talked to Dr. Radcliff, the pediatrician who is opening the clinic, and I’m meeting with him at ten tomorrow morning. I need to drop my suit off at a dry cleaner so I look presentable.”
�
��There’s a cleaner in town, and they have one-hour service, too.” Lily pulled out her order pad and quickly drew a map, tearing off the sheet and giving it to Cris. “I’ll be home after class around eight.”
“I know you’re not leaving without giving me a hug, young lady,” Cherie, the diner’s owner and namesake, said as she walked out of the tiny office at the rear of the kitchen.
“Of course not,” Cris said.
Cherie enveloped her in a hug that made tears sting her eyes. Cherie was one of the kindest, sweetest women Cris had ever known, and being around her always reminded her of her own mother and how she didn’t feel comfortable going home because of her father’s insistence she mate as soon as possible with a pride male.
“Oh, don’t cry, honey,” Cherie said, stroking her hair. “You’ll find what you’re looking for.”
“How do you know I’m looking for something?” Cris asked with a chuckle. She was surprised by the sudden rush of emotion.
“Intuition,” Cherie said. She lifted a plastic bag from a counter and handed it to Cris. “Here’s dinner and dessert. I expect you to come visit again soon.”
“Yes, ma’am.”
Cris kissed Cherie on the cheek and thanked her for the meal, and then she walked out with Lily. “Have fun at class,” Cris said.
“We’re making pie crust tonight, so be prepared to eat nothing but pie for the next week.”
“I think I can manage,” Cris said, laughing. She loved pie, especially pecan.
On the way to Lily’s apartment, Cris stopped at the one-hour cleaner and dropped off the navy blue suit she’d purchased for job interviews, along with a white blouse to wear under it. Normally, she didn’t like to dress so conservatively, preferring bright colors and fun, casual clothes, but she wanted to put her best foot forward when meeting Dr. Radcliff.
