by Zoe Chant
The request line blinked, waking up along with her listeners. Through her headset, Jess’s laughing voice advised, “You want to take this call, I promise. Off air.”
With a curious smile, she turned away from the view and hit the button. “KJAM, you’ve got Alison. What’s your request?”
A warm, familiar voice filled her ears. “Good morning, sweetheart. Can I ask you to play a song for me?”
Alison flushed and glanced at the music queue on her screen. “Oh, I suppose so,” she teased. “I might have a spot where I could squeeze you in.”
Gage laughed low and intimate in her ear. “Oh really?”
Alison squirmed in her seat at the sound, stomach fluttering. “Maybe.”
“I would certainly appreciate that,” he murmured. “What time can you make it home?”
Alison laughed out loud. “You’ve got to wait a few hours yet, mister.”
He sighed, pretending to sound put-upon. “Well, since I’ll just be lying here all alone in our big bed, listening to you until then, how about that song?”
She bit her lip, imagining her mate sprawled out in bed, waiting for her. Sometimes Gage made it hard to want to leave for work in the evening, but the mornings when she got home had never been so amazing. “All right.” Her voice dipped soft with affection. “I’ve got just the one. See you soon, I love you.”
“Love you, too, sweetheart.” Gage’s morning-rough voice smiled through the phone.
Alison hung up with a little sigh, an irrepressible smile playing around her mouth. Turning to the computer screen, she checked her set and queued up a new track. Twenty seconds until live air. She sipped at her caramel latte and thought about how far she and Gage had come over the past few months together. The clan’s house felt like her home now, and last weekend everyone had pitched in to help move her into Gage’s suite. She loved coming home to a busy, cheerful family and sliding into a warm bed with his strong arms wrapped around her. Just thinking about the sense of peace it gave her made her heart ache with happiness.
Smiling in anticipation, she leaned forward and checked the time. “It’s quarter past five on KJAM and you’re waking up with Alison,” she husked into the mic. “I’m feeling good this morning and I hope you are, too. I have a request on deck for a special someone, and I want to tell you all something. Don’t be afraid of what you truly want. Trust yourself to recognize it when it comes along.”
As she finished fading in the track, Alison’s eyes felt damp. She turned back to the window, blinking in the warm rays of light. As the gentle first notes of “Here Comes the Sun” picked up into the melody, she took a deep, cleansing breath. With one ear on her set, she watched the mist slowly settle into the pockets of the landscape and the morning sky brighten.
A note from Zoe Chant
Thank you for buying my book! I hope you enjoyed it. 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 follow me on Facebook or Twitter.
Please consider reviewing Private Eye Bear’s Mate, even if you only write a line or two. I appreciate all reviews, whether positive or negative.
Page down to read a special sneak preview of Alpha Bear Detective.
The cover of Private Eye Bear’s Mate was designed by Emerson Pym.
More Paranormal Romance by Zoe Chant
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The Lion’s Hunt. A curvy woman who longs for adventure + a daring lion shifter on a dangerous mission + evil experiments in a secret lab = one action-packed romance!
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Alpha Lion. A frightened but determined BBW + a sexy lion shifter martial artist + a dangerous enemy = one unforgettable romance!
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Zoe on Audio
Kodiak Moment - Audiobook - Workaholic wildlife photographer + loner bear shifter + Alaskan wilderness = one warming and sensual story!
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Alpha Bear Detective
by Zoe Chant
Special Sneak Preview
Maria Hernandez was working late again.
It was Friday night at midnight, and she was still at the office. Earlier that evening, Maria’s boss, Illinois State Senator Laura Davis, had had a dinner to thank her donors. Now Maria was sitting down with her to do the post-mortem.
Laura Davis was the first shapeshifter to ever be elected to state office in Illinois. There were still a lot of people who didn’t like shifters, and even some who thought they were all dangerous and couldn’t be trusted. Spreading goodwill and good information about the shifter community was one of Laura’s biggest goals.
So she spent time asking everyone who supported her how their friends and acquaintances had reacted to her election. Maria’s job had been to get as many notes down as she could. Now they were comparing what they remembered, and it was a long process. They weren’t going to get out of the Capitol building before one AM.
Though, to be honest, Maria didn’t mind staying so late. Laura had even o
ffered her the night off if she wanted it—you work too much already, Maria! Go out and have some fun, instead of coming to another political function.
Maria had protested, insisting that she wanted to stay and help Laura out. And that was true, as far as it went. She truly believed in Laura’s cause and she wanted to do as much as she could to ensure that shifters were recognized as equal citizens everywhere.
The other truth was just that she didn’t have anything else to do on a Friday night.
She’d dumped her last boyfriend, Dave, almost two months ago. He’d been tall, good-looking, athletic, and muscular. When he’d asked her out, she’d thought she’d scored a real catch.
The relationship had lasted for about five minutes before she’d discovered that, as usual, those big muscles came with a big ego. It had been clear that he thought that because he was a big strong man, he didn’t have to listen to a word she said.
Maria had always been into men with strong bodies and strong personalities, who weren’t afraid to go after what they wanted, and who could bench-press her generously-curved body.
But over and over, she’d ended up with boyfriends who wouldn’t listen to a woman. They thought her big boobs and her big butt meant that she couldn’t possibly have a big brain, too.
After Dave, Maria had decided that she was fed up with being disrespected by her boyfriend, and she was taking a break from men to focus on her job. Which had been good, because the campaign had taken up all of her attention and all of her energy—she hadn’t had time to think about dating.
Now that Laura was firmly in office, though, Maria was starting to remember why she resented the Daves of the world.
If only—
No, she told herself firmly. No, no, no. She was not falling into that trap again. Men were jerks, and she still had too much to do to worry about dating. Laura deserved her full attention.
***
“I still don’t see why we had to run out here right away,” Danny complained. “He’s not going to be there.”
Detective Levi Hale turned the car left with some lingering hope that they were going the right way. “He might be.”
“Even if he is, what are we going to do? Arrest him based on how he looks kind of like someone our drunk witness described?” Danny was scanning the neighborhood from his window, but obviously seeing nothing.
“We might catch him in the act,” Levi pointed out. “And anyway, we can’t ignore a lead. Even a drunk lead.”
“You and your procedure, man.” Danny shook his head, although he didn’t take his eyes off his window—as much as he complained sometimes, he was a good cop. Levi suspected that with another partner he might’ve goofed off a bit more, but whenever Levi insisted they follow something through, Danny was right behind him. They made a good team.
It was too bad they hardly ever got to do anything.
“Procedure is there for a reason.” Levi turned again, with less and less hope that they were actually going to find their drug dealer.
Potential drug dealer. Potential small-time drug dealer. The lieutenant had dropped this case in Levi’s lap with the air of someone doing him a favor, and Levi was grateful to get a chance to be out on the street instead of staring at paperwork, but it was a tenuous case against a guy who probably wasn’t all that bad in the first place.
But maybe if Levi could arrest this guy even on their flimsy information, the lieutenant would realize that he was a capable detective and give him something a bit more challenging. Finally.
Levi had been with the Springfield Police Department for almost two years now, and the lieutenant still treated him like he was a green rookie. Levi couldn’t figure out why—he was a hard worker and he thought he was as smart as any other detective in the department. But maybe what he needed was to take initiative on a case like this, and the lieutenant would see his potential.
He turned again. Still no one in sight. “Taking directions from a drunk witness might have been a mistake,” he admitted to Danny.
Danny grinned. “But what could be better than a late-night tour of scenic, empty downtown Springfield? On your left, the Capitol building. On your right…maybe just keep looking at the Capitol building.”
It was hard to look at anything else—the place was monolithic, and it loomed over everything nearby. The witness’s statement had directed them to a possible deal being conducted by their prime suspect, right by the Capitol building, you know, just right there. He had refused to elaborate as to whether he meant to the north, south, east, or west, or how far away “right there” was.
Levi had to acknowledge that their chances of finding anything were basically nil, but they were at such a dead-end right now that they couldn’t afford to ignore any information. Even information as dumb as this.
“I’ll circle around it a few times, and then we’re going back to the station.” Levi scanned the side of the road as he spoke, but there was no sign of anyone.
“Unless we see something,” Danny said. “Like, oh, crime.”
“I promise if we see any crime, I’ll stop immediately.” Levi turned onto another empty street. It didn’t seem likely.
***
Maria and Laura wrapped up at the office around one AM. Maria saved all her notes on her laptop and stretched mightily. It had been a long job but it was worth it.
This was the sort of thing that kept them on top, whether they’d been socializing with donors, lobbyists, or other politicians. Maria really liked this part of the job, if she was honest—tracking what everyone was trying to do behind the scenes. Separating what they said they wanted from what they actually wanted.
It was good work, too. For so long, shifters had been hidden in the shadows, and now they were finally getting to come out into the light. Laura, as a smart, articulate, well-educated, not at all dangerous sparrow shifter, was doing an amazing job of showing the public that shifters were just people like anybody else.
Maria did wonder sometimes if the larger shifters, like bears and lions, would ever feel comfortable revealing themselves to the public. She knew of a few who had admitted what they were, but too many people thought they were dangerous. People were afraid that they wouldn’t be able to control their animal instincts.
Well, Laura was taking the first steps now, and that was what mattered.
“Thank you for staying so late, Maria.” Laura filed their notes away and smiled warmly at her. “Take the weekend off. Go away overnight or something. You deserve it after these last few months.”
And with the bonus Laura had given her when she was elected, Maria could even afford a spur-of-the-moment vacation if she wanted to go. But…“I’d rather be available,” she said firmly.
After all, it wasn’t like she had anyone to go away with, was it?
Laura shook her head, smiling. “Well, I’m not going to call you at all this weekend. You deserve to relax.”
“So do you,” Maria pointed out. “You work harder than I do.”
“I’m not young like you! You should have some good times around all of this work.” Laura shook her head at Maria’s dubious look. “At least take a bath and have a glass of wine or two.”
That did sound nice. “Maybe. But promise you’ll call if there’s an emergency.”
Laura put her hand over her heart. “I promise. If there’s an emergency, I’ll call.”
***
“Man, this is a bust,” Danny complained, staring out at the empty streets. “I cancelled a date so that I could work tonight, I hope you know.”
“One night off the dating scene this week won’t kill you.” Levi scanned his side of the road. Still nothing.
“Fair point. I’m going out with Tanya tomorrow night, anyway. Are you sure you’re not up for seeing her friend? I bet she’s hot.”
“Thanks, I’ll pass.” Levi turned off onto a side street.
Danny went out with tons of women, and hardly ever saw the same one twice. Levi was more of a monogamous kind of a guy, but h
e’d broken up with his last serious girlfriend over a year ago, and since then, Danny kept trying to set him up with some of the endless string of women he knew.
The thing was, Levi wasn’t into Danny’s kind of woman. They were party girls, skinny and heavily made-up and looking for a good time. And once that good time was done, all they wanted was another one.
Levi wanted to take his time getting to know one woman, a woman who was smart and motivated to do more than drink and party. A woman who listened to him instead of just looking him over, and who had something to say back.
And frankly, he liked a woman with a few more curves than Danny’s skinny blondes. He was getting sick of it being fashionable for women to starve themselves—he wanted someone who looked like she knew how to eat more than a salad.
Then there was also the fact that he knew that as a shifter, he was always waiting for his mate. His bear had never even twitched at any of the women Danny had introduced him to. His mate was still out there somewhere, waiting for him to find her.
He thought about her sometimes, wondering where she was, hoping she was doing all right without him. Thinking, I’ll be there for you soon. Someday soon.
He just hoped he knew her when he saw her. Sometimes it hit people like a bolt out of the blue, but sometimes it took a little longer for a bear to realize their mate was standing right in front of them, looking them in the eye.
Someday.
“One more pass around,” he told Danny as he turned again. “Then we can head back. Maybe you can hook up with Tanya tonight after all.”
“No, man, Tanya’s tomorrow night.” Danny shook his head in despair. “Tonight is Stephanie. You’ll never make it on the dating scene if you can’t keep their names straight, take it from me.”