Taking the Bull by the Horns

by Chant, Zoe

  “What the hell do you people think you’re doing?!” Wyatt yelled as they emerged, shining the flashlight directly at the two stunned-looking people standing there, eyes wide, hands instinctively raised – at least, until one of them suddenly shifted, body shrinking and becoming –

  A huge chicken?!

  Tora blinked, staring up at it where it flapped up into the sky. It wasn’t really a chicken, she realized a moment later – it was more of a rooster, with a long, drooping tail. Though it was about four times the size of any rooster she’d ever seen.

  “Hey!”

  Tora forced herself to tear her gaze away from the huge, fluttering rooster at the sound of its friend’s outraged yell.

  “Kai!” the man yelled, shaking his fist up at the sky. “Get back here, you creep! Don’t leave me here by myself! Asshole!”

  Tora knew she should probably be doing something, but right now, she couldn’t really do anything except stand there and look at the absurd tableau before her. She supposed that the yelling man – if he even was a shifter – didn’t shift into anything that could fly, otherwise he would’ve taken to the skies himself. But as it was, he seemed just as earth-bound as herself and Wyatt.

  “Never mind him,” Wyatt growled, training the flashlight at the man’s chest – not high enough to blind him, but high enough that they could clearly see his face. “The two of you have got some explaining to do. Like just what the hell all this has been about.”

  The man seemed to look up to the heavens for a long moment, as if hoping against hope that his rooster friend might descend, before sighing heavily and turning to look first Wyatt and then Tora in the eye.

  “Well, I guess the jig is up,” he said, shaking his head. “But it certainly did get people’s attention while it lasted!”

  “What are you talking about?” Wyatt asked, his voice lower now, but still obviously demanding. It was clear he was all out of patience for these guys, whoever they were.

  “All right, all right,” the man said, holding his hands up again, before narrowing his eyes. “Say… you guys aren’t the cops, are you?”

  “No,” Wyatt said. “But that doesn’t mean you don’t have to answer my questions.”

  “No, no, that’s actually better,” the man said, rubbing his hands together in a way that reminded Tora of a slimy salesman. “I’d prefer to keep this… off the books, as it were.”

  “I didn’t say we wouldn’t take you to the cops later,” Wyatt warned. “Especially since you’re kind of testing my patience right now.”

  “All right, all right. Let’s all just calm down,” the man said. “I’ll answer your questions. Starting with – as I guess will be your first one – my name. Adrian Keilor, of Keilor and Keilor Advertising. I’m also the other Keilor in the name, just in case you were wondering.”

  Tora stared at him as he extended his hand – which Wyatt didn’t take.

  Wait… advertising?! Has this whole thing just been one big advertising campaign?!

  That couldn’t possibly be right, Tora thought. So much trouble, just to advertise… something? What on earth could this man be advertising by making everyone think there were aliens lurking around these farms?!

  “Advertising?” Wyatt asked, sounding just as confused as Tora felt. “What do you mean?”

  “Just what I said, friend,” Adrian said, seeming unperturbed by Wyatt not taking his hand. “You’ve stumbled upon us in the middle of a viral marketing campaign for an upcoming movie – Aliens Among Us. It’s all very hush-hush early stages stuff yet, everything’s sealed up tighter than a drum. But the production company hired us, the world’s first all-shifter advertising company, to whip the people up into a fever of –”

  “You destroyed all these crops and have been scaring people silly – not to mention how you attracted a bunch of… of people who trespass all over the place and let out people’s animals for some… some movie?” Tora burst out, unable to hold back anymore. “What the hell were you thinking?!”

  “Hey now, everyone will be fairly compensated from the advertising budget if they think they’ve been wronged somehow,” Adrian said, a hint of defensiveness creeping into his voice. “We just didn’t want to have everyone sign a bunch of stuff beforehand – these things always leak. You can’t trust people these days! It’s tragic. Really tragic.” He shook his head sadly.

  “You’re telling me,” Wyatt said in disbelief. “So all this stuff – the crop circles, the lights – that was all you?”

  “I designed the campaign, yes,” Adrian said proudly. “But it was my associate – who, as you can see, has left me here alone – who was the one behind the action. He’s a basan shifter, you see, so –”

  “Basan?” Tora asked. “He looked like a giant rooster.”

  “Well yes, that’s what a basan is,” Adrian replied. “A giant, fire-breathing rooster. So we’ve been using his particular talents for this campaign. His fire is a little different – kind of like a cold glow, if you will. More like a free-roaming lantern than a fire, I suppose. He can split it up and control it, so we’ve –”

  “The lights in the sky – that was him, then?” Tora knew she was interrupting a lot, but if Adrian was the one responsible for all of this, then she wasn’t sure she could see why she should be polite to him!

  “Bingo!” Adrian’s smile was wide and smarmy. “Pretty clever, right?”

  Tora stared at him, flabbergasted. He didn’t even seem to realize what he’d done had caused Wyatt and the other property owners trouble!

  But hang on, wait… did he say a giant fire-breathing rooster?!

  She’d been so amazed at Adrian’s blasé attitude that it had taken a few moments for that particular piece of information to penetrate her brain. She glanced across at Wyatt, but he didn’t seem especially fazed – maybe, in shifter circles, a giant fire-breathing rooster was just normal?!

  We are definitely going to talk all about this later, Tora decided. But one problem at a time for the moment.

  “So. Given that you admit to… to all of this,” Wyatt said slowly. “What do you suggest we do next? You can’t keep doing this. Do you even have any idea how much trouble this has caused?”

  Adrian looked surprised. “Trouble? Well, I suppose it must’ve been a little annoying to have those kids wandering everywhere. But it’ll all be worthwhile once the campaign is over and we reveal that this has all been viral marketing! Plus, like I said, everyone will be compensated fairly for any money they might’ve lost. We were planning on unveiling everything next week anyway, so –”

  As Adrian rambled on, Wyatt shot Tora a look that was halfway between exasperation and bewilderment. It was almost as if Tora could read his mind: This is like talking to a brick wall.

  “Okay, I get it,” Wyatt cut Adrian off a moment later, shaking his head. “But next week is too late. You get in contact with Mayor Gunn first thing, and you tell him everything about what’s been going on today. Not next week, today. And you better not be lying about that compensation – people have lost hundreds of man-hours chasing livestock around, not to mention all the crops you and your friend destroyed. Don’t think I’ll hesitate even for a second to make sure you make good on all of that.”

  “Of course I will!” For the first time, Adrian looked ruffled. “I’m a man of my word, and this was all included in the budget for the campaign! I never intended for anyone to be out of pocket. We’re a company that finds new and exciting ways to entertain people, not crooks!”

  Wyatt looked about as skeptical as Tora felt about that claim, but there was nothing she could do about it now.

  “And in addition to compensation, I intend to offer everyone in town free tickets to the movie when it comes out – it’s a real ground-breaking achievement, let me tell you! The special effects – incredible! You’d swear the aliens were real. Which is actually how we came up with the campaign! You see, once I got thinking about the title, I started to realize: what if people thought there reall
y were aliens… among us? And from there it was all very simple –”

  Tora honestly started tuning him out at this point, looking over at Wyatt. It was clear from the expression on his face that he’d had enough.

  “Okay, okay, I get it,” he said tiredly. “You accept that you’ll tell everyone what’s been going on today, then? And tell them about your offer of compensation, too?”

  Adrian hesitated a moment, then sighed. “All right. I can see you’re not going to get off this topic until I agree. It’s a shame, though. Imagine what a surprise they would have gotten! To know they were part of such a genius campaign all along! I really think that –”

  Whatever Adrian thought, Tora never found out. Wyatt, his patience finally exhausted, simply turned and walked away, and Tora followed suit. It was entirely possible that Adrian, enamored of his own genius, simply continued to talk to an empty field long after they’d left.

  They walked together in silence for a short time. To be honest, Tora was feeling kind of… stunned.

  An advertising campaign? Really?!

  “Well,” she said, when she glanced across at Wyatt, catching his eye. “All’s well that ends well, I guess?”

  “I suppose that’s one way of putting it,” Wyatt agreed – and then a smile tugged at the corner of his lips, which quickly broke out across his entire face, wide and broad and gorgeous.

  And it was infectious, too – in no time at all, Tora was smiling back at him, and then, together, they broke out into peals of laughter, Tora staggering into Wyatt’s side as she gasped for breath. He caught her hand, holding it up to his lips, as they made their way side by side across the fields, just as the dawn began to break over the horizon.

  Epilogue

  Six months later

  “Phew! Well, that’s the last one,” Tora said as she loaded the last carton of sheep’s milk ice cream into the refrigerated truck. “I still can’t believe you managed to get so many people interested so quickly!”

  Wyatt’s friend Salvatore, the genius behind the ice cream, just laughed lightly. “Well, when you have such a great product, the customers will come,” he said, grinning and closing up the back of the truck. “Do you know, I originally came out to Robson Hills to retire from all this kind of stuff, but after meeting Wyatt and realizing I could help him with his sanctuary, I just couldn’t help myself. I’m a sucker for a good cause.”

  “It definitely has helped,” Tora said, following Salvatore around to the driver’s side door. “Seriously.”

  Tora wasn’t joking – ever since the ice cream made with Wyatt’s sheep’s milk had gone on sale, interest in the sanctuary had skyrocketed. They had more inquiries about how to donate or volunteer than they knew what to do with – and it had all meant, of course, they were able to take in more animals, and create better facilities for the ones they already had.

  Tora had thrown herself into taking care of that side of things with gusto, though she still had plenty of time to help Wyatt out in the fields, tend the chickens, fork the compost, clear the stream, take horse riding lessons, assistant coach the local school’s track team… and sit in front of the fireplace in the evenings, wrapped in Wyatt’s arms and eating a big bowl of the best ice cream she’d ever had.

  I came out here hoping I’d find a sense of purpose, Tora thought as Salvatore said his goodbyes and then hopped in his truck, driving off down the dirt road. And I kind of think I got more than I bargained for.

  Tora never could have imagined things turning out this way six months ago – but then again, six months ago, she’d never even heard of shifters, let alone imagined that she might be a shifter’s mate.

  It had been a steep learning curve – that was for sure. But right now, Tora wouldn’t swap it for anything in the world. Her days were filled with new things to learn, caring for animals, and good, hard work that left her feeling tired and satisfied. And her nights…

  Tora bit her lip, feeling heat suffusing her cheeks. Well, let’s just say they also leave me feeling tired and satisfied, she thought, as she watched Wyatt ride his horse across the adjacent field toward her, coming in for his lunch break after spending the morning inspecting the fences around the border of the property.

  He still took her breath away every time he kissed her – which he did now, after pulling up and dismounting, capturing her lips in a searing kiss as if he hadn’t seen her in weeks, rather than just a few hours.

  “Hey,” he said when he pulled away. “Miss me?”

  “More than you know,” Tora said warmly. “Come on – let’s go get you some lunch.”

  Lunch was corn fritters with chili sauce, eggs, and poached chicken breasts – something Tora had used to eat when she was training, but had actually liked eating. It was filling and wholesome, just the thing to get both of them through a day of farm work. They munched away in happy, contented silence – at least until Tora remembered the news she had for Wyatt.

  “Oh – guess what came in the mail today,” she said, as she swallowed the last of her chicken. She reached across the table, holding up two brightly colored movie vouchers to show Wyatt. “Look – free tickets to Aliens Among Us, just like Adrian promised.”

  Wyatt let out a low, soft laugh. “Well, he did say he wasn’t a crook. And he did do what I asked, and got in contact with the mayor to hold that town meeting right away.”

  Tora shook her head at the memory. It’d been bizarre, perhaps even more bizarre than finding out that not only did shifters exist, but that some of them shifted into giant, fire-breathing roosters – though Wyatt had explained to her that mythical shifters were pretty rare.

  So… there really are dragon shifters? she’d asked him, eyes wide – but Wyatt had told her that if there were, he’d never met one.

  Which was probably for the best, Tora had decided. She’d been amazed enough at the fire-breathing chicken – more than that she thought she’d have a hard time coping with!

  Luckily, although there’d been some initial anger, most of the residents of Robson Hills had been able to see the funny side of the whole ALIENS???!!! episode – though some of the ones who’d really talked themselves into believing the whole thing was true still didn’t quite believe Adrian and Kai’s explanation that it had been them all along.

  Tora was sure the compensation money the ranchers had received had helped smooth things over – not to mention the free movie tickets.

  “So, do you want to go?” Tora asked. “Because I can give these away, otherwise.”

  Wyatt grinned. “Nah – let’s go. Since we’ll have to drive to the city anyway I’ll get Nate and Ash to hold things down here, and we can make a weekend of it. A little getaway for just you and me. Well, and some aliens, I guess. I need to see what all that fuss was about, after all.”

  Tora laughed. “That sounds amazing,” she said. And truly, it did. She loved her new life here on the sanctuary, but the idea of spending a weekend just with Wyatt was appealing to her in more ways than one.

  After they’d finished eating, Wyatt cleared up their plates, washing them in the sink. “I guess I better get back to it,” he said regretfully. “Though on the upside, I’ll be back early – I gotta clean out that sheep shed. If you have some free time, you could come and help, if you want.”

  “Just make me an offer I can’t refuse, why don’t you,” Tora laughed – but to be honest, even clearing out a sheep shed sounded like fun, if she was doing it with Wyatt.

  Maybe that’s what being loved by the person you love does to you, she thought warmly. Even clearing out a shed sounds like fun.

  “Hey, but you forgot something, though,” she said, as Wyatt began to turn toward the door.

  “What’s that?” he asked.

  Tora wrapped her arms around his waist, standing on tiptoe. “This,” she said, pressing a kiss against his lips.

  As his arms came up to wrap around her back, pulling her close against him, Tora closed her eyes and allowed herself to sink into bliss, knowing th
at she’d finally found her forever.

  A Note From Zoe Chant

  Thank you for reading Taking the Bull by the Horns. I hope you had as much fun reading it as I did writing it. It’s part of my Shifter Bites line of shifter romances that are short enough to read on your lunch break!

  If you’d like to be emailed when I release my next book, please click here to be added to my mailing list. You can also visit my webpage, or join my VIP Readers Group on Facebook!

  Please review this book on Amazon. Hearing from readers like you is what keeps me writing!

  More Paranormal Romance by Zoe Chant

  Outback Shifters Series

  Hector

  Callan

  Euan

  More coming soon!

  The Lost Dragons Series

  A Mate for the Dragon

  Fated for the Dragon

  Destined for the Dragon

  A Bride for the Dragon

  Bound to the Dragon

  Shifter Bites

  Cute But Prickly

  Fire & Rescue: First Mission

  Unicorn Vet

  The Dragon’s Lost Letters

  Hard Luck Hellhound

  Ruffled Feathers

  Taking the Bull by the Horns

  See Zoe Chant’s complete list of books here!