Read One Last Prowl: BBW Were Mountain Lion Shapeshifter Mail Order Bride Romance (Shifter Grove Brides Book 6) for Free Online Page B

begin with, or a malicious bone in their body.
    “The wives. Most of us have come to ‘visit’ the strapping hunk of man we met on SassyDate,” Teresa said in a sing-songy voice, chuckling. “I was supposed to come take some photographs of the mountains and nature preserves with Slate last year. And now we’re married with a baby girl at home.”
    “Oh, I was wondering what was up with the veritable wealth of glowing young women walking around with strollers or obviously pregnant.”
    Dahlia chuckled, feeling like she was in entirely good company. It was rare that she felt comfortable chatting with someone. In New York, everybody seemed to have an agenda, something they wanted from you that you would have to give before they bothered to show an ounce of kindness. Shifter Grove was the polar opposite and it felt somehow soothing knowing that she wasn’t the only one who had come to the town and then quickly found herself falling in love. Not just to the lovely scenery, but to the scrumptious men roaming about as well—or at least one in particular.
    “Mm-hmm. Warren, one of the founders, got the ball rolling with SassyDate and I think this whole town is essentially a testament to how well it works. Women who’ve become fed up with their pasts and want something new, something better, and men looking for their fated. We all come together in a rather neat package, if I do say so myself. How long have you known Austin?”
    “Not too long,” Dahlia admitted. “We’ve been chatting for a few months and I had some time, so I decided to come meet him.”
    It was close enough to the truth, even if saying it made her cheeks burn a little. The time they’d known each other for seemed entirely too short to be falling so head-over-heels for him, but she was glad that she had dared to take the chance to come meet him if for no other reason than to put her mind at ease. If she would have had to leave that same day though, Dahlia was rather certain that she would leave with a lot more questions about herself than answers.
    “A few months?! Honey, you’ve known Austin for longer now than some of us did before we married ours,” Teresa admitted with a giggle.
    “Maybe I’m old-fashioned that way,” Dahlia chuckled, feeling that blush of insecurity fade from her cheeks.
    There wasn’t a drop of malice in Teresa and like with most things in Shifter Grove, Dahlia felt her defenses slackening and her body relaxing along with her mind. It was such a stark difference between the stress and the constantfight or flight mode she experienced in New York. Glancing at the pool table, she saw Marcus grinning widely as he pocketed a ball, Slate and Austin both cheering and Austin patting him on the back for it.
    Instead of jumping away with a glowering stare, Marcus stood up straighter and seemed almost smug in the light of the congratulations he was receiving. He laughed along with what seemed to be a joke Slate was telling, and looked up at the two tall shifters with real, honest interest. It warmed Dahlia’s heart to see that boy finally enjoying himself a little, and especially in the company of other shifters.
    “Is that your boy?” Teresa asked, looking at the three men as well. “He’ll be a tall drink of water.”
    Dahlia nodded. “That’s Marcus. I haven’t seen him smile like that in far too long.”
    There was a note of sadness to her voice that Teresa picked up effortlessly.
    “Why not?” she asked, coaxing Dahlia to speak but not forcing it out of her.
    “His father passed away some years ago. I don’t think he’s moved past that. Of course I don’t expect him to forget about him, I’d never allow that, but there’s been this… darkness around him ever since Arthur died. Nothing seems to lift it and time just makes it worse.”
    That gloom and doom she’d been fighting with came flooding back, weighing down Dahlia’s shoulders like a heavy sack. Teresa grabbed her hand, squeezing it and making Dahlia