by R. E. Butler
Emberly
Tails Book Three
By R. E. Butler
Copyright 2020, R. E. Butler
Emberly (Tails Book Three)
By R. E. Butler
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This ebook is a work of fiction. Names, characters, places, and incidents are the product of the author’s imagination and not to be construed as real. Any resemblance to actual persons, living or dead, events or locations is coincidental.
Disclaimer: The material in this book is for mature audiences only and contains graphic sexual content. The contents herein are intended for those older than the age of 18.
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Edited by Evil Eye Editing
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Thanks to Joyce, Shelley, and Ann for beta reading
Table of Contents
Chapter One
Chapter Two
Chapter Three
Chapter Four
Chapter Five
Chapter Six
Chapter Seven
Chapter Eight
Chapter Nine
Chapter Ten
Chapter Eleven
Chapter Twelve
Coming Next in the Tails Series
Contact the Author
More Books by R. E. Butler
AnnaRose (Tails Book Four)
Emberly (Tails Book Three)
By R. E. Butler
Lion shifter Diesel Cowan thought the worst thing he’d ever dealt with was the fall from a tree that gave him a very noticeable limp. But that terrible day has nothing on being rejected by the female the pride match-maker chose for him. Devastated, Diesel wonders if he’ll be alone forever.
The most exciting thing to have ever happened to Emberly Greer was when the TV weatherman ordered a latte from her parents’ coffee shop. When her friend Chloe’s bachelorette party ends up at a shifter bar, Em feels like she was destined to be there.
It doesn’t take long for Diesel to realize his heart-match is in the shifter bar where he works. Finding Emberly is the easy part, but revealing his flawed leg fills him with dread. If he can’t convince his beautiful mate that he’s worth loving, he doesn’t know what he’ll do. To complicate matters, the female who previously rejected him has had a change of heart, demanding the alpha enforce the mating contract. Can Diesel keep Emberly by his side forever?
Chapter One
Diesel Cowan sat behind the wheel of his pickup and stared at the match-maker’s home. He was early.
He knew a few things about Valerie. She was a lioness from a pride in southern Indiana, a college graduate with a degree in finance who liked red tulips. The thought of flowers had him glancing at the bouquet he’d ordered. There wasn’t a florist in Kedrick, where he lived with his pride, so he’d had to drive forty-five minutes to pick them up. But it would be worth it to make his future mate smile.
His left leg ached suddenly, and he rubbed his palm on it, a snarl rising in his chest. The damn drive to the florist had inflamed his old injury.
He’d fallen from a tree when he was a kid, and even though he had swift healing abilities as a shifter, the injury had been too great and he’d been too young to shift and force a healing. Many surgeries later, he had a big scar, a noticeable limp, and aches that flared up from time to time. It was hard not to think less of himself because of it. The injury made him low-ranked in the pride. Not that he couldn’t fight his way up higher, because he had a damn good right hook, but the injury affected his cat’s ability to run well, and that made him ineligible for high ranks.
It was shit logic, of course. The high-ranked males were given protection jobs, watching over females and cubs when their males were needed elsewhere. That his injury made people, particularly his alpha, believe that he wouldn’t do everything in his power to keep a female or cub safe made him feel like hell. He’d never get a chance to prove otherwise, because he was viewed as flawed.
Which was why he’d asked Abbie to find him a mate-match.
Lions had two ways of finding their mates – mate-match, where the pride match-maker chose a mate from a secret binder that contained who-knew-what kind of information, or by heart-match, where a lion found his mate on his own.
His parents had been mate-matched, but his father had split for another pride when Diesel was young, and his mother had never re-mated. Still, just because his parents’ mating hadn’t worked out didn’t mean Diesel’s would fizzle.
Of course, he wasn’t sure if Abbie’s information on him had included his injury.
Blowing out a breath, Diesel grabbed the flowers and got out of his truck. The door creaked as he shut it. He walked up the stairs to the front porch, stifling a groan at the way his muscles pulled, and knocked on the front door.
“Come in, Diesel,” Abbie called.
He opened the door and stepped inside, the scent of citrus and sugar in the air. He looked around the parlor but found it empty. Following the sounds to the kitchen, he found her setting a cake on a platter.
“That looks good,” he said.
“It’s a 7-Up cake,” she said. “My aunt’s recipe. You’re early.”
“Nervous, I guess.”
She gestured to the stool in front of the counter and he sat, setting the flowers on the granite surface.
“Why?” she asked, stirring something.
He sighed. “I think you know why.”
“Enlighten me,” she said, turning the bowl sideways to drizzle a thin glaze over the cake.
“Does Valerie know about my leg?”
Abbie was humming as she emptied the bowl and then set it in the sink. She placed her hands on the counter and gave him a long look. “No. What she knows is what you look like from a picture, your family history, and your current job and living status. It’s not my place to tell her anything about your leg. Are you worried?”
He shrugged. “A little. No female in the pride will look at me twice because of it. It’s not as if it’s a defect that I’ll pass on to my kids, you know. Or that we’re at war with another pride and I’d fail. It just sucks.”
“I’m sure it does,” she said, her face softening. “You’re a fine male, Diesel. You’re handsome and have excellent references from the alpha and his son; you have a great job, and a house of your own. I don’t foresee you having any problems with Valerie.”
He wanted to believe Abbie. She was a professional, after all. But he’d been shot down often enough for anything more than a tumble in the sheets, and while he was aware that he had a confidence issue, it was hard to believe anything good was going to come his way.
There was a knock at the front door, and Abbie looked past him and said, “That’s Valerie. Ready to meet your mate?”
He nodded, not trusting his voice not to squeak with nerves. Abbie strode from the room and Diesel listened as she opened the door and greeted the visitors. He heard two females and one male speaking low enough that he couldn’t make out what they were saying, even with his enhanced hearing. Rising to his feet, he smoothed his sweaty hands down his pants and picked up the flowers.
Walking into the sitting room where Abbie received guests, Diesel plastered a smile on his face and did his best to not only hide his nerves but also his limp. He knew he’d failed when Valerie’s gaze dropped from his face to his leg. Her smile slipped into a frown.
Abbie cle
ared her throat as he came to stand by her. “Valerie, I’d like to introduce you to Diesel Cowan. Diesel, this is Valerie, and these are her parents, Rick and Denise.”
Diesel offered the flowers to Valerie and she took them. “Thank you,” she said. She looked at her father, who was standing between his mate and his daughter, his arms crossed and his gaze narrowed.
“I hope that limp is from a recent injury,” Rick said.
Though he had years of practice, Diesel was unable to keep from wincing at the statement.
“Let’s sit,” Abbie said.
“I think he needs to answer my dad before we go any further,” Valerie said.
Schooling his features once more, Diesel said, “No. It’s not a new injury – it’s quite old. I can still shift, and it doesn’t keep me from functioning in any way.”
“But you’re not whole,” Rick said. “And that was not disclosed.” He turned his attention to Abbie. “Just what are you trying to pull here? I’m the brother of the alpha, and that means any male who mates my daughter will be highly ranked within the pride. We can’t have a ruined male close to the alpha, or one who’s not capable of protecting my precious daughter and future grandcubs.”
Diesel snarled. “I can fully protect anyone. I’d do anything in my power to protect my mate and cubs.”
“I want to see your leg,” Valerie said.
His snarl turned into a full-blown growl. “I’m not dropping my pants right now.”
Abbie put up her hands, stepping between them. “That’s highly unnecessary, Valerie. Diesel is a wonderful male and he’s the one I chose for you. Either you sign the papers to commit to your mating or you don’t get matched by me. Ever.”
“You can’t threaten her like that,” Rick said.
“I can and I will. I’m the best match-maker in the state. You sent me your daughter’s information years ago in preparation for me finding her a suitable male, which I did. Diesel would make an excellent mate and father, and son-in-law. If you can’t see past his injury, then you’re not the sort of people I want to associate with anyway.”
“I won’t do it, Daddy,” Valerie said, her voice tipping to a high-pitched whine. “I won’t mate a male who comes to me injured. You promised me a perfect match. This isn’t perfect.”
Diesel’s heart fell. No, he wasn’t perfect, but who the hell was?
“I’m sorry, Abbie,” Diesel said. “I just turned out to be prophetic.”
Her eyes were flashing when she turned to face him. “You’re not at fault here. I’ll find you a better match.”
“No thanks.” Shaking his head, he walked toward the front door, biting his tongue against the string of curse words he wanted to lob at them like bombs. He stalked out the door, the pain in his leg intensifying with his hurried movements. He climbed in the truck and left.
He should have known a lioness mate was well and truly out of bounds for him. If he couldn’t get an arranged mate to see past his injury, then what the hell chance did he have of finding something so rare and precious as a heart-match?
His lion let out a mournful sound as Abbie’s house disappeared in the rearview. It was time to face the facts: he was going to be alone forever.
* * *
“Thanks, man,” Diesel said as he accepted the stool from Barron, his fellow bouncer, and sat, rubbing his leg.
“No problem.”
Diesel liked working at the bar. It was owned by Duke, the alpha’s son, and Duke’s friend Titus. On Fridays, the bar opened at seven, and there was always a long line of people waiting. Humans and shifters alike hung out in the bar, and on Fridays, ladies drank free. Diesel noticed Barron looking speculatively at the line of people waiting to get in.
“What’s that look for?” he asked.
“My cat wants to settle down,” Barron said, tapping the side of his head.
“Ah. I think that happens to all males after they hit twenty-five. At least you don’t have an injury derailing your prospects.”
“What do you mean?”
Diesel gave him an incredulous look.
“I know about your leg. I meant what prospects?”
Diesel immediately regretted his big mouth. He hadn’t told anyone what had happened during his disastrous meeting at Abbie’s. Even his mother didn’t know. He hadn’t even told anyone that he’d asked Abbie to mate-match him, because part of him hadn’t believed she’d be able to find anyone. Blowing out a breath, he told Barron the short version of what happened.
“That’s bullshit,” Barron said.
“It is what it is.”
“It’s still fucking awful. I’m sorry.”
Diesel shrugged, trying not to let that night get to him again. He’d already spent the last week wishing he could crawl into a hole and not come out again.
“I think I’ll be single forever. What’s the male version of a spinster?”
Barron shook his head. “You’ll find someone when the time is right. I believe if a lion chooses to wait for his heart-match then he’ll find her.”
“I think I don’t have a choice but to wait for her.”
Titus opened the door. “Send ‘em in, guys.”
Diesel was glad that they didn’t have to continue their conversation. He hoped that Barron was right, and every lion who decided to wait would eventually find his heart-match, but he wasn’t sure that would happen. He didn’t really want any sympathy, and he didn’t want to talk anymore about the crappy situation.
As if the universe had some kind of twisted sense of humor – which he was beginning to believe it might – not only did Barron find his heart-match that night, but so did Duke. The females in question were human, and the current pride laws stated a pride member couldn’t mate with anyone other than another lion or they’d face exile. He wasn’t psychic, but Diesel was betting that the pride laws would change.
He was happy for his friend and future pride leader. And maybe, if he happened to meet his heart-match and she was a human, he wouldn’t need to leave, either. Although if it came down to it, he would walk away from the pride for his mate. Nothing would ever be more important to him than her – that much he was sure of.
He just didn’t know when he’d ever meet her.
Wherever she was, he hoped she showed up soon.
Chapter Two
Emberly Greer stifled a sneeze as she opened a pouch of espresso, a tiny cloud of coffee puffing up with the motion. She filled the cup and tamped the grounds down, then clicked it into place in the fancy machine at her parents’ coffee shop, Wide Awake. The family business was located in the sleepy little town of Cabot’s Mill, Kentucky, where Emberly had grown up.
She loved working at the shop, even though spending so much time with her parents could be tedious. Especially when her mom asked about potential dates, suggesting in a none-too-quiet voice when a cute guy walked in that he might “be worth dating.” She’d just roll her eyes and smile politely, hoping she wouldn’t go so far as to try to set her up with a random stranger.
Of course, she did wish she had a boyfriend, or even a close guy friend, she could take to her friend’s wedding Saturday. But she didn’t think she’d find Prince Charming in four days.
Heck, at this point she’d settle for Prince Just-Okay.
She was a bridesmaid in her childhood friend Chloe Vander’s wedding. Chloe had gone to college but had ended up getting engaged to her high school boyfriend Tommy. The couple wasn’t staying in Cabot’s Mill, but moving to Georgia for his job after the wedding. She’d miss Chloe, although the two weren’t as close as they’d been in high school.
Em turned her attention back to the coffee as the machine beeped. She set the ceramic cup of espresso on the counter and added milk to make it a latte, topping it with foam and a dusting of cinnamon.
“Here you go, Mr. Johns,” she said.
“Thanks, hon,” he said, smiling at her from over his laptop as she set the mug on the coffee table.
She returned to the coun
ter and cleaned up.
“You look like you’re really thinking hard about something,” her mother, Amy, said as she joined her.
“The wedding.”
“Ah. Need me to help you find a date?” Amy looked out at the shop patrons, and Emberly stifled a sigh.
“No thanks. I’m trusting fate.”
“Since when?” Amy turned to her, leaning her hip against the counter.
“Since I figured out that none of the available men in town are my soul mate. I have to believe that somewhere out there is the guy for me, and I’ll meet him when the time is right.”
“I think you just don’t want your mom to set you up,” Em’s dad, Chris, said with a wink as he joined them with a tray of dirty dishes.
“Oh, shut up, I’m totally great at fixing people up.”
“Uh huh,” Chris said, shaking his head. “You think you are, but you’re not. Em will find the right man when she’s supposed to. You can’t rush fate.”
Amy huffed. “Fine. But you could at least ask Darrell to take you to the wedding. He’s going.”
Darrell was one of three police officers in town, and two years older than Em. They’d dated briefly in high school, when she’d been a wide-eyed freshman and easily flattered by the good-looking star quarterback. He’d been a player back then, though, and from the rumors swirling around town, he hadn’t changed his tune.
“Hard pass,” Em said. She tossed the dish towel into the tub on the floor. “Chloe said there’s going to be some single guys there from Tommy’s new job, so who knows what might happen? And if I walk away from the wedding with a nice buzz from free champagne and nothing else, that’s okay, too.”
“If I see a cute, single guy, though…” Amy said.
“Send him my way. But don’t give him my number.”