GENRE: Gay Paranormal Spicy Romance
LENGTH: 50,450 words
RATING:

Book 3 in the Misfit Shifters series and sequel to Thor

Reindeer shifter Donner intends to spend his precious time off before Christmas relaxing. That includes hanging out at a local watering hole when a tall, dark, and handsome shifter walks in. Just as he’s figuring out how to hang onto Nate a little longer, he gets a call. Seems his brother stole a certain sleigh and Donner’s tasked with bringing it back by Christmas Eve. The last thing he wants to do is chase after his wayward brother on his days off. The only bright side is that the shifter he didn't want to leave behind agrees to tag along.

Heartbroken, Nate leaves the Bluebird Valley Preserve for a much needed vacation only to land in the middle of karaoke night. What starts out as a casual hook up turns into a wild goose chase with the man who stirs emotions in Nate that he’d previously shut away. With nothing more pressing and unable to let Donner slip through his fingers, Nate agrees to follow wherever their crazy journey might lead. While he leaves the Bluebird Valley Preserve behind, he can’t get the place out of his mind. Home is where the heart is, but can it be in two places at the same time?

Trust isn't Nate's strong suit, and he’s long since given up on finding love. Yet, deep down, he knows Donner's special. Just how special remains to be seen.

EXCERPT:
Note: may contain sexually explicit scenes of a homoerotic nature.

He closed his eyes for a second, gathered his thoughts, and beat down the yearning riding him hard. Too hard. A deep, steadying breath later, he reopened his eyes and focused on Nate. “One of our delivery vehicles is missing.”

Nate’s eyebrows furrowed in obvious confusion. “Seemingly, you’d have dozens of those vans, so why the big importance? Sure, if it’s loaded with packages, that’s a problem, as people will have lost their stuff.”

“It’s empty.” Donner shut down the idea that people’s Christmas packages had been lost. That would have been worse, though this situation bordered on a disaster.

“If it’s empty, then why the sudden commotion? Besides the cost of replacement or the hassle with insurance.”

If you only knew. Donner chose his words carefully. “This is a distinctive one. The items it delivers are pretty special.”

“I see.” Nate nodded. “Not to eavesdrop, but it sounds like you know who pulled off the heist.”

For a second, Donner considered ending the conversation at that point. After all, in most ways, Nate was still a stranger. A few hours hot and heavy in the sack lent to physical familiarity, sure, but so much more existed on the road to solid trust.

Tell him, his inner reindeer whispered in his mind.

Are you absolutely sure?

Yep. The beast figuratively stretched and seemed content to doze back off.

“Did I pass the test?” Nate asked with a crooked smirk on his face.

Donner bit back a grin at the man’s arrogance and self-importance. Nate, despite his seriousness and straight forward attitude, showed moments of playfulness and swagger, though it appeared at odd times. Like now. Just another piece of a larger puzzle Donner wanted to solve. One night with Nate wouldn’t be enough. His gut told him so. “My brother.”

Nate’s eyes widened before he whistled low. “No wonder they called you.” He tossed the linens aside, baring his nude body for Donner’s appraisal on the way to gathering up his discarded clothes and slipping them back on.

“What are you doing?” Donner watched as Nate finished dressing and clipped his cell phone to his belt. The thought of Nate taking off, never to be seen again, left a raw burning in Donner’s stomach.

“There’s nothing pressing that I have to do.” He tugged on his jacket and faced Donner. “I’m pretty good at puzzles and you seem to need a bit of help.”

“How do you know that?”

Nate shrugged. “Read it in your face. You need a sidekick and I’m up for the job.”

Hesitant, Donner took the opportunity to get dressed while considering the logistics of taking Nate with him. He wanted more time with the guy, though he’d anticipated a day or three in bed. Traipsing around the countryside together was another dilemma. He weighed the pros and cons in his mind. After all, he had secrets to keep and some of those would surely be revealed along the journey.

He’d sensed an outgoing, upbeat nature to Nate that had been cloaked by some hurtful event. The small peeks at his inner self were compelling and motivated Donner to dig deeper, to find the true Nate and free him from whatever stole his happiness. To realize the true man proved a worthy challenge that held huge potential for both of them.

The question is do I take a chance on Nate?