By the Tail

with her tongue. “Joy is great.”

Zoe, Esmeralda Castille’s pride and joy, turned to her and nodded. “Yep. Past time we went back. You were right. Big brother needs me, Mama. All that crap with Michael passing and then that asshole Lex must have worn him thin. He didn’t sound right on the phone.”

“He’s a protector, you know that.” Esmie adjusted the strap on her deep-green bikini and lazed next to her daughter, conscious of the male attention focused on them. Rio was by far the most beautiful beach they’d visited, but as she’d known for a while now, it was time to go home. Time to visit her boy’s new mate. Time for the future to come to pass.

Esmie knew things. The way her mother and grandmother had. Like Quince, her daughter had a destiny just waiting for her. In Zoe’s case, a big, blond-haired destiny with an attitude and a need for the right woman to fix him but good. She smiled at her daughter, proud and a touch arrogant that she’d had a part in creating such a beautiful feline with such style. Such power.

Problem was the girl had too much energy for most men to handle. But not him— the one Esmie had been dreaming about for months. She’d known their time neared. Now she just had to get the two of them together and watch the fireworks explode. Time for a few grandchildren. She might look thirty, but truth to tell, Esmie was beginning to feel all of her fifty-three years.

“Honey, there’s something I need to tell you.” She would miss this time with her daughter, but Zoe had the training and knowhow to do what needed to be done. With the encroaching raptors flying close to Miami’s shores, the pride would need a strong leader. Someone different than those who’d come before, to lead them in a fight that would either end the pride or make them twice as strong.

“Yes?” Zoe rolled to her back, and Esmie noticed another man not too far away nod to his friend before pointing at Zoe. Not a bad looking human. But still, he wasn’t Ac-taw.

Esmie sighed. “Nothing. Enjoy yourself while you can. I have a feeling that when we get back home and settle down where we belong, you’re going to have your work cut out for you. You know they won’t easily accept a woman taking charge.”

Typical, Zoe shrugged away her mother’s worries and eased into her lounger, basking in the sun. “Too bad. I’m not taking no for an answer. It’s my destiny, Mama. You know that.”

Esmie shielded her eyes against the glare of the water and grinned. “And so is he.”

“What?”

“Nothing. Enjoy the sun, chica. And let your mama dream about fireworks.”

“Whatever makes you happy,” Zoe mumbled and dozed while Esmie watched the men watching her daughter and thought about the dream she’d had of Zoe’s blond-haired babies in Miles Bermin’s strong arms.

About the Author

Marie Harte is an avid reader who loves all things sci-fi, fantasy and paranormal. Reading romances since she was twelve, she fell in love with books and knew writing was her calling. Twenty-plus years later, the Marine Corps, a foray through Information Technology, and children, and her dream has finally come true. Marie lives in Oregon with her family and loves hearing from readers.

You can contact her at [email protected].

To read more about Marie, visit www.marieharte.com.

When a cat tries to outsmart a sexy fox, only love can save him. Outfoxed © 2012 Marie Harte A Cougar Falls Story

Grady Chastell, Shifter extraordinaire, wants to take a mate—the delectable Gabby Easton. She’s sexy, kind, and has the extraordinary ability to shift into two animal spirits, cat and fox. There’s just one problem.

Gabby won’t take him seriously.

He’s at his wits’ end trying to convince her to give him a chance when trouble comes knocking at his door. Before he knows it, he’s unwittingly party to one whopper of a lie that finally has Gabby where he wants her…but will she feel the same when she realizes she’s been duped?

It will take all his cunning, the help of the pride, and a good bit of mutual trickery to convince his foxy lady to forgive and forget. And more, to love him—the cat born to be hers.

Warning: Arrogant cats who think they can outsmart the slyest of foxes. A cat war, devious siblings, hijinks with consequences, and the threat of sexualized danger as a foxy feline turns the tables on a man who likes to tell tales

Enjoy the following excerpt for Outfoxed.

“You guys aren’t taking that bet seriously.”

“As a heart attack.” Monty nodded to the full house on the green, felt-covered table. “Read ’em and weep.”

Grady Chastell stared at his pridemate with alarm. Monty wasn’t budging. “Dean?” Surely his brother would have his back. Dean knew how badly he needed to not screw up his chances—any more than he already had—with the delectable Gabby Easton.

“Sorry, bro. All that smack talk last week and the best you can come up with is a pair of eights? You lost the bet—time to pay up.”

The other Ac-taw around the table watched with expectant curiosity, more than willing to watch Grady make a fool of himself in front of the only woman who mattered.

Annoying shapeshifters. Not a one of them had a decent sense of humor except Dean. But after this, even he was starting to look suspect. “Come on. Guys, don’t do this to me. Please?”

Dean’s golden eyes glinted, his inner cat more than amused at playing with his older brother’s feelings. “It pains me, it really does. But a bet’s a bet. Can’t have it said the Chastells welsh, now can we?”

Grady cursed the lot of them under his breath and ignored the new bets being placed. Somehow, Thursday night poker had been replaced with let’s see how miserable we can make Grady night. ’Course, winning a friggin’ game might have alleviated his run of bad luck when it came to Gabby Easton.

He stripped down to nothing and shifted into his animal spirit, his bones and sinew reshaping into the form of a large, tawny catamount. King of the mountain, he was a savvy hunter with extraordinary senses…and an asshole of a younger brother.

He grunted his displeasure at Dean, who grinned at him. Then he hissed at the rest of the table.

The birds and wolf flipped him off. The bear grunted back. The lone fox tipped back his hat and waited for the fallout. Too bad the fox happened to be the sheriff, or Grady might have chewed on the others before spitting them out.

“Oh Gab-by,” Dean called out in a singsong voice. “Honey, could you come here for a minute?”

The predators around the table waited with bated breath. Monty slipped an elastic bow tie around Grady’s thick neck and shoved a top hat on his head, then poised a finger over his MP3 player, all-too-coincidentally plugged into portable speakers.

Grady caught the scent of her before she walked in. A new addition to the Catamount Pride, Gabrielle Easton was the hottest thing on two feet or four. He’d seen her around town for years, of course, but he’d never gotten close to the fox Shifter. The pride tended to keep to themselves. But then came the news Gabby could shift into not one, but two animal spirits—fox and puma—and his cat had fallen in complete and utter lust.