by Holley Trent
Why she’d expected Sean would let her approach him willingly after she’d done everything she could to keep him away since her arrival in New Mexico, she’d never know. She shouldn’t have expected him to let her do this “favor” for him easily. If his mind really was more cougar than man at the moment, he’d see her as a person not to trust, and maybe she deserved it.
She took a bite of her sandwich and set it on the floor beside her, chewing thoughtfully.
She’d been trying to embrace the changes in her life one item at a time, starting with accepting this new creature she was. In the past couple of months, she’d rubbed elbows with witches, demons, minor gods, and shapeshifters, and had even fought against some.
It was becoming harder to be angry with Sean doing what his nature impelled him to do. She was a logical woman—despite what her parents believed—and understood that if he’d had a choice, he wouldn’t have kidnapped a stranger to gain a mate. No one needed that kind of frustration, especially not for a woman like Hannah. Although in the days leading up to the fight where she’d been scratched, he’d wanted to put her on a plane and send her home—even if it meant succumbing to the curse. He’d said he would have preferred to spend the rest of his life—however long it might be—in his animal form to enduring any more frustration with her.
And yet he was the man who was supposed to be her fated match. If he couldn’t deal with her, then what man could?
“I’m so fucked.” Laughing at the silliness of it all, she rested a tentative hand between Sean’s ears, and gave him the gentlest rub that made the fur down his spine stand on end.
His body was tense, but he kept his eyes closed. She listened out for a growl or hiss, but it didn’t come, so she rubbed a little harder, down the slope of his neck, and let her arm drape over his back.
There were some words she had to say. The specific ones didn’t matter, or even the tone she said them in. He just needed to believe them. Getting him to believe anything she said that wasn’t obvious malice would be the hard part.
“I …”
He opened his eyes halfway and peered at her out of the corners.
Now or never. If she waited long enough, she would talk herself out of it. The guilt would go away and eventually, she’d tell herself it was all for the best if Sean didn’t come back.
His mother and brothers wouldn’t think that, though, nor would Miles and Ellery.
“Sean, I … I guess I accept you as a mate. For now.” She cringed and drew her hand back. The doubt would cancel out the impact, she was certain of that. “I mean, I do accept you as my mate. I … I don’t know what else to say.”
She tucked her chin atop her knees and tightened her arms around her shins. If he didn’t come back, it’d be her fault. And if he did come back, she had to start an immediate quest to find him someone new—someone “more suitable”—or Lola would slam them right back to where they started, and probably curse Hannah, too, even if she was her avenger.
She wasn’t cut out to be anyone’s mate, fated or not, so she hoped that woman was out there somewhere and easy to find.
To purchase this ebook and learn more about the author, click here.
For more books by Holley Trent, check out:
The Cougar’s Pawn
A Demon in Waiting
A Demon in Love
A Demoness Matched (Melt My Heart anthology)
A Demon Bewitched
Colleen’s Choice
My Nora
Sold as Is
“A Demon in Waiting is a quick, enjoyable read. The characters are very well developed and the story moves along at a great pace. John is a refreshing hero. I loved the ‘new to the job’ demon angle. I am looking forward to future books in this series.” —Book Chick City
"A Demon in Love succeeds in being both sizzling and ‘awww’ inspiring, so there will be no shortage of people interested in the adventures of the next sibling in line!" —InD'Tale Magazine
“Trent once again had me hooked with her seamless and creative storytelling as well as her vivid world.” —Pure Jonel
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