Lauren told her that she lived deep in the national park, and that her address was hard to find, so she sent her a pin for the satnav. Forty-five minutes later, Kenzie was parking her car up by the side of the dense pine forest, then picking her way through a forest track, as Lauren’s instructions had explained. She arrived at a huge, beautifully built cabin, with Lauren, Melissa, Kristin, and another woman named Dina greeting her at the door, shrieking with excitement.
“I’m so glad you made it tonight!” Lauren said, draping an arm around her waist and showing her into the house. The house was very cozy. It was all wood inside, with rustic wooden furniture, and nothing at all like the kind of place Kenzie would’ve expected her to live in.
“And it’s all girls tonight. Dina’s husband, Logan, and Connor are looking after all the kids at Dina’s place,” Lauren said gleefully.
“Wow, that’s awesome,” Kenzie replied.
“I know. Our guys are very invested in parenting, thankfully. Now, go hang out with the girls in the living room, while I finish making dinner.”
Lauren was a great cook, and the casserole she made was delicious, but Kenzie got the feeling that everyone was looking forward to dinner being over. The girls kept casting each other meaningful glances, as if they could barely restrain their excitement.
Once they’d all finished eating, they went back to the cozy living room, with its softly glowing lights and comfy sofas, and Lauren opened another bottle of wine.
“We’ve all got something to share with you,” Kristin began. “But it’s a big, big secret. It’s probably going to freak you out when you first hear it. But you can never share it with anyone at all, in the whole world.”
“Okay,” Kenzie said slowly. “Sounds intriguing. And of course I promise to keep it a secret.” She glanced at the women, noting the tension on their faces. “Do you want me to sign an NDA or something?” They all nodded.
“Yes,” they said in unison. Kenzie laughed, but before she knew it, Lauren was producing a piece of paper full of legal terms.
“You can read this at your leisure if you want. But it just says that you agree never to reveal anything relating to what we’re about to tell you to another living soul.” Kenzie shrugged and reached for the pen.
“I’m happy to sign it,” she said, signing her still unfamiliar signature on the line at the bottom of the document. Lauren clapped her hands together.
“Great! Now the fun starts. Kenzie, I want to welcome you to the rest of your life.” Kenzie let out a nervous laugh.
“I have no clue what you guys are about to tell me,” she said.
“Believe me, that’s a good thing,” Melissa said. “The more you prepare yourself to be surprised, the less you’re likely to freak.” Lauren folded her hands in her lap as if she was preparing to give a speech that she’d already rehearsed.
“We’ve brought you here today to tell you about the dating site that we all used to meet our husbands. Who are the most loving, protective, sexy guys you can imagine. But we don’t call them our husbands. They are actually our mates. Because the fact is that they are shape shifters, – which means that that they are half human, and half animal, and they can change between these two sides at will.” Kenzie blinked several times and opened her mouth to say something, but Lauren held up a hand. “Let me show you the site first. Pass me your phone.” Kenzie handed it over and Lauren immediately began installing something. “I know this is going to sound very weird and unlikely at first. And, believe me, it was the same for all of us. But very soon, you’re going to realize that it’s the most amazing thing ever.”
Lauren handed the phone back to Kenzie. “Now tap on that app.” She pointed to the orange icon now sitting on Kenzie’s home screen, which appeared to depict a paw print in the shape of a heart. Kenzie tapped the icon and her eyes widened as the screen filled with an image of a shirtless guy with an incredibly hot body. He looked like a Greek god, every muscle honed to perfection, with bulging pecs, and a luscious set of six pack abs. And what a face. It was all angles, with sloping cheekbones and a strong, square jaw, complemented by narrow blue eyes and full, lush lips. She could practically feel her pupils dilating.
“Now, scroll up,” Lauren said. There was a hot blond guy, followed by another dark-haired guy, followed by a guy with golden-brown hair. Kenzie kept scrolling and scrolling. They were all so different; some rugged, some sleek, some heavy-set, others lean. But what they all shared was model looks. “These guys are all shifters, and are all looking for their human mates. If you swipe to the left on their photo, you can see them in their animal forms.” Kenzie did just that, replacing the first guy’s image with a photo of a beautiful, elegant panther, crouching half way up a tree. The blond guy became a polar bear, and the third and fourth guys became huge brown bears.
“So, I get it. It’s an app that matches people based on what kind of animals they would choose to be. Neat.” The women all laughed.
“Nice idea, but, nope. These guys really are shape shifters.” Kenzie shook her head.
“You’re saying that Connor is half human and half animal? Like he can turn into a bear or something?” Lauren laughed again.
“You got it in one. I’m very proud to say that my amazing mate, Connor, is half bear. As is Dina’s mate, Logan. Meanwhile Kristin’s mate, Roman, is half tiger, and Melissa’s mate, Harley is half wolf. So you don’t run away thinking we’re all crazy, allow me to demonstrate for you.” Kenzie shrugged, wondering if her old friend had lost the plot.
“Sure.” Lauren picked up her phone and dialed.
“Honey, can you come over for a minute and do the honors?” she said.
Less than a minute later, the front door was opening, and Connor bounded in, looking very handsome in a red check shirt and jeans.
“Hey,” he said to Kenzie with a hint of shyness in his smile. And then he unbuttoned his shirt and pulled it off, while kicking off his boots at the same time. Kenzie gawked as his body was revealed to her. He was stacked, with big, powerful muscles, just like the other guys on the app with the weird bear obsessions. His hands went to his zipper.
“You might want to look away for a moment, to preserve your blushes,” he said in his deep, rumbling voice. Kenzie covered her eyes, so she could only see his feet, and watched as his pants hit the ground. And then something very strange happened. There was a series of loud cracks and crunches, Connor’s feet seemed to sprout fur and long, black claws, there was a big thud, and Kenzie moved her hands away from her eyes, just in time to see a huge brown bear crashing to the ground on all fours. She clapped her hand over her mouth and stifled a scream. She’d never seen a bear before, never mind one standing inside a house, which barely seemed big enough to contain it.
“Where’s Connor?” she said, her throat almost too tight to speak.
“He’s right here,” Lauren said. “You can stroke his fur. Connor, c’mere.” As Kenzie watched in terror, the bear walked right over to her and gazed at her with big, soulful eyes. Connor’s eyes, she realized.
“Is this a magic trick?” she said.
“No. Touch him, go on.” She reached out a trembling hand and touched the fur on top of his head. To her surprise, it was amazingly soft and luxuriant. And then his tongue shot out and he licked her hand. She tried not to shriek at the soft, velvety texture of it.
“Okay, he’s going to shift again. But I want you to watch properly this time, so you know there’s no sleight of hand going on,” Lauren said with mock sternness.
As Kenzie watched. The bear began to change shape, its bulk reducing and its fur retracting, until, with a kind of whoosh, it went up onto its back legs, its jaws narrowed, and suddenly, Connor was standing there again. With an apologetic grin, he placed his hand in front of his manhood and began to get dressed again.
“Goodnight, ladies,” he said, and slipped out of the door.
“Have some more wine,” Dina said, refilling Kenzie’s glass.
Kenzie wasn’
t even aware that she’d slumped back against the couch cushions, or that her eyes were like saucers and her mouth was hanging open.
“Take your time. This is a lot to absorb,” Kristin said gently. “And while you’re doing that, we’ll tell you about the history of shifters.”
Taking it in turns, Lauren and Kristin explained how shifters had always existed throughout history, but people mostly only knew about them through myths and legends, like the Greek myths and tales of werewolves. And they’d always been kept a secret from the human race, which would seek to destroy them if it knew about them.
“But we are very lucky,” Kristin said, brushing a strand of her long auburn hair back from her face. “Because shifters have a preference for curvy girls like ourselves, which is why they’ve come into our lives.”
“You’re serious? These big, muscular gym bunnies prefer plus-size women?” Lauren laughed.
“The last thing they are is gym bunnies, trust me. These guys get their muscles from running around in their animal forms. But as far as plus-size women go, ab-so-lutely! They can’t get enough of our bodies.” Kenzie breathed in and out slowly, trying to process the things she was hearing.
“Look at this.” Lauren directed her attention to her phone again. “This guy’s profile says ‘looking for a beautiful, curvy human female to share my bed and my life.’”
“I – I don’t know what to say. This is a lot to take in.” They all laughed, kindly.
“You don’t have to say anything. All you have to do is set up your profile,” Kristin said, and she showed Kenzie how to enter her personal details. “The app walks you through, one step at a time, then it asks you a lot of personality questions to help you find your ideal match. You can answer those later, if you want.”
“No, it’s okay. I’ll do it now,” Kenzie muttered, needing a moment to herself, and already becoming absorbed in the questions that popped up one after another.
The other girls left her to her own devices, until, almost an hour later, she announced that she was done.
“It’s processing my answers.” The girls gathered around her and waited.
“Now, just hit that button and the app will display your matches in order of compatibility.”
Kenzie tapped the button and waited.
And then she let out a scream.
8
Kenzie stared at the screen of her phone, blinking fast.
“Is this a joke?”
“What?” The other women piled around her. “Ooh, he’s hot!”
“No. He is not hot.” Lauren laid a hand on Kenzie’s shoulder to propel herself even closer to the screen.
“He’s got sexy eyes, great abs. What’s not to like?”
“Just his entire being,” Kenzie said, still unable to believe what she was seeing.
“Wait, you know this guy?” Kristin said.
“Yes. He’s my incredibly annoying workmate, Nash.” They all drew in a breath.
“No way! This is crazy. Are you sure?”
“Yup. I know that smug face very well, believe me.”
“Let’s see what kind of animal he is. I think wolf.”
“Me too,” Melissa chipped in.
“Same,” Dina and Kristin both said. Lauren reached out an elegant, purple-tipped finger and swiped to the left. A huge, silver gray wolf now filled the screen, staring back at them with very intense blue eyes.
“Nash is a wolf?” Kenzie breathed. “This is too much. I feel like my head is going to explode.”
“Where did you say you work?” Dina said.
“At Jackson’s garden center.”
“Jackson’s a bear, I think? Yeah, he comes from this old bear shifter family.” Kenzie’s mouth fell open.
“You’re telling me that I work with a wolf and a bear, and I’ve had no idea this entire time? Are we all actually surrounded by shape shifters?” They all laughed.
“No, they’re not so common,” Lauren said. “You just got very lucky. Actually, there’s a big shifter community in Hope Valley.”
“Why here?”
“It started with some old bear clans that have lived in the national park for centuries. Then some other shifters moved here too because it was a friendly environment. Then, more recently, an amazing lady named Tamika created the Shiftr dating app, to help bring curvy girls together with the shifters who love them, and Hope Valley has started to get famous among shifter communities across the country as the place to come find a mate.”
“Have you ever seen my workmate before?” They shook their heads.
“On the whole, wolves and bears don’t mix, with a few notable exceptions – like Melissa’s mate Harley. He was a lone wolf who was adopted by the bear clan. Interesting that Jackson employed a wolf. I’d like to know the story behind that.”
Kenzie looked at her phone again switching between Nash as a human and Nash as a wolf. Who would’ve thought Nash had such a smoking-hot body? If he wasn’t Nash, she’d be drooling right now.
“What does that 100% at the top mean?” She said. The other four women let out a collective whoop.
“It means he’s your perfect match!” Lauren said. Kenzie’s head snapped in her direction, and she stared at her in horror.
“No! That cannot be right. Nash and I hate each other. We can’t agree on anything. The app must be mistaken.”
“That little app is never wrong!” Lauren said in a singsong voice. “It helped all of us find our perfect matches, and we all had compatibility ratings in the high 90s. There’s a very sophisticated algorithm sitting behind Shiftr, and Tamika is always working to improve it.”
“Maybe I didn’t spend enough time on my answers,” Kenzie said helplessly. “Or maybe Nash was full of his usual bullshit and tried to make out that he was an amazing guy.” Lauren gave a small smile.
“What is it you don’t like about him?”
“He’s really boastful and irritating, and always showing off. Like a teenage boy.”
“Maybe that’s what you secretly need?” Lauren said, laughing.
“That’s the last thing I need. It’s so nice when he goes off to run an errand and I get to work in peace for a while. Or those times when he knows he’s really offended me and he leaves me to cool off for a few hours.”
“Let’s see his profile,” Kristin said, swiping her finger across the phone’s screen. “It says he’s very independent and doesn’t have a pack; he’s looking for his forever mate. He definitely wants pups. He’s a laidback, fun guy, with a serious side that most people don’t get to see. He likes movies, and reading thrillers. His dream is to build his own cabin one day. He actually sounds pretty cool. More like a bear than a wolf actually. And I wonder why he doesn’t have his own pack. Lone wolves are very rare, and it often points to some kind of early trauma.”
“This profile sounds nothing like Nash,” Kenzie said. “It’s like he got somebody else to write it for him. Someone who didn’t know him all that well. What’s he even doing online anyway? He’s always showing off about all the girls he’s dating.”
“Wait!” Melissa cut in. “I haven’t been on the app for a long time, but doesn’t that little green dot mean he’s online right now?”
“And I think he’s got something to say,” Lauren said, pointing to the new message alert. She tapped and the inbox opened.
“Kenzie-meister! Who would’ve thought I’d find a girl like you in a place like this?”
“What? He calls you Kenzie-meister?” Lauren said, cackling. “That’s so funny!”
“Yeah, I might have mentioned that he’s a jerk,” Kenzie said. “I don’t think I’m even going to reply to him.”
“No! You have to say something. Let me.” Before Kenzie had time to react, Lauren had snatched the phone from her fingers and was already typing something:
“What, you didn’t know that I dated shifters?” Lauren cocked an eyebrow, asking permission to send it. Kenzie hesitated, then nodded.
He replied right a
way:
“Nope. Wish I’d known that I didn’t have to hide my true self from you. Respect, Kenzie-meister! You’re cooler than I realized.” Kenzie snatched the phone back and jabbed out a reply:
“What’s that supposed to mean?”
“Ah, you know, it takes a lot to handle a shifter. I guess I imagined you with some buttoned-up guy.” Kenzie gasped and began to reply.
“Hold up.” Lauren laid her hand on Kenzie’s. “I can see how the dynamic between you two works.”
“You mean he insults me, and I respond.” Lauren flashed her a kind smile.
“I mean, you enable him. He makes out that you’re uptight and prudish, right?” Kenzie nodded. “I’m sure he doesn’t even believe that about you. He’s just bored and looking for entertainment. But you rise to every comment he makes, which just encourages him. You need to step out of that box! Give as good as you get.”
“How do I do that?”
“Make fun of him in return, girl. Let me see.” Lauren took the phone back. She thought for a moment then typed:
“You’re only saying that because you know you could never handle me.” Kenzie stared at the sent message in horror.
“Oh my god,” she whispered.
“Is that a challenge, Kenzie-meister? I like it…grrr!”
“Now he thinks I want him!” Kenzie shrieked. “This is the worst! I’m going to tell him right now, there’s no chance of us ever getting together.”
“Kenzie, don’t be so hasty. He’s your match,” Melissa said in her gentle voice. “Hardly anyone gets a 100% match. It basically means that he’s your soul mate. The one person in the whole universe who’s right for you. Your fated mate.”
“Fated mate?”
“Shifters believe in fated mates. That the one they’re meant to be with is ordained from the heavens, and they often spend their entire lives seeking them.”
“I like that idea, but –” Kenzie gave a snort. “There’s zero chance that Nash is my fated mate, or soul mate, or even someone that I’d want to spend a single evening of my life with.” Before the others could stop her, she typed out a reply:
Shiftr: Swipe Left For Love (Nash) BBW Wolf Shifter Romance (Hope Valley BBW Dating App Romance Book 10) Page 6
