by Zoe Chant
“Of course,” Gabriel murmured, winking at Emily over Julie’s head.
Emily stifled a laugh and promised her daughter, “I’ll do your hair. Nail polish too, if you like.”
“Pink,” Julie said eagerly. “Sparkle pink!”
“I can’t wait,” said Gabriel.
“We’ll do it this afternoon,” Emily said. “But first, we all need to get off this sofa and bake a Lazy Sunday pie.”
Julie shifted in a shower of golden sparks, threw back her head and gave a piercing eagle’s shriek, and zipped into the kitchen.
Gabriel again put his hand on her belly. “He’s going to be a big boy.”
Emily nodded. “I decided on a name. That is, if you like it.”
“What is it?”
“James. For my father.”
“Julie and James. I like it.” Gabriel stroked her hair. “And naming him after your father is a great idea.”
“He’d have loved all this.” She made a wide gesture, encompassing everything: Gabriel, Julie, Blue Oak Cakes And Pies, the house, the woods, the Christmas tree. “I wish he could have seen it.”
“Maybe he does,” Gabriel said quietly.
Emily was silent for a moment, wondering if her husband was right. She could almost hear her father’s voice, saying, “You did it, sweetheart. You went into the woods and fought the dragon and got your happily ever after. I always knew you would.”
“I think you’re right,” she said at last.
Gabriel kissed her, then stood up and scooped her into his arms. “Special delivery.”
As he headed for the kitchen, she relaxed into the warm strength of his arms and thought of the fairytales her father had told her, and the life she had now. She had a cabin and a park ranger instead of a castle and a prince. Dragons weren’t beasts to be slain, they were friends who flew in to have some pie and play with her daughter. And none of the fairytales had ever had a heroine who could become a griffin.
It wasn’t the life she’d dreamed of.
It was better.
At long last, Emily had her happily ever after. In the woods.
A note from Zoe Chant
Thank you for reading Ranger Griffin! 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 Ranger Griffin, even if you only write a line or two. I appreciate all reviews, whether positive or negative.
Keep paging down to read a special sneak preview of Bodyguard Bear (Protection, Inc # 1.) It’s the first in my series about an all-shifter private security agency and the mates they protect with their lives.
The cover of Ranger Griffin was designed by Augusta Scarlett.
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More Paranormal Romance by Zoe Chant
Bodyguard Bear. (Protection, Inc. # 1). A curvy paramedic who witnesses a murder + the sexy bear shifter bodyguard sworn to protect her with his life + firefights and fiery passion = one hot thrill ride!
Defender Dragon. (Protection, Inc. # 2). A curvy backpacker who loses a shoe at a ball + a lonely dragon prince facing an arranged marriage to a princess he doesn’t love + magnificent castles and deadly assassins = one thrilling romance!
Protector Panther. (Protection, Inc. # 3). A curvy paramedic who doesn’t know the meaning of fear + a mysterious panther shifter bodyguard with the power to inflict terror + sinister experiments and desperate passion = one heart-pounding romance!
Warrior Wolf. (Protection, Inc. # 4). A runaway dragon princess who wants to experience life outside of castle walls + an ex-gangster werewolf bodyguard with a chip on his shoulder the size of Texas + uptown parties, downtown nightclubs, and deadly assassins = one explosive good girl/bad boy romance!
The Griffin’s Mate. A curvy businesswoman who’s new in town + a lonely griffin shifter searching for someone to share his nest + a small town with a big secret = a hot and heartwarming story of love and family.
A Pair of Bears. One lonely cat shifter + two sizzling hot bears who want to share + a whole lot of action (in and out of bed) = one wild and sexy adventure!
Bought by the Billionbear. A curvy single woman + a billionaire bear shifter + a bachelorette auction = one broiling-hot story!
Sheriff Bear. A small-town sheriff + a wrongly accused BBW on the run + deadly enemies and dangerous passions = a sizzling forbidden love!
Firefighter Dragon. (Fire & Rescue Shifters # 1). A curvy archaeologist with the find of a lifetime + a firefighter dragon shifter battling his instincts + a priceless artifact coveted by a ruthless rival = one blazing hot romance!
Firefighter Pegasus. (Fire & Rescue Shifters # 2). A curvy pilot wary of flighty men + a firefighter pegasus shifter determined to win her heart + a high speed air race with even higher stakes = one explosive romance!
Firefighter Griffin. (Fire & Rescue Shifters # 3). A curvy single mom burned by love + a unique half-eagle, half-lion shifter firefighter with a wounded soul + the little boy who brings them together = one heart-warming romance!
Hollywood Dragon. A curvy singer + a billionaire music mogul dragon shifter + shifter battles and sizzling passion = one blockbuster romance!
The Christmas Dragon’s Mate. A lonely bookkeeper in search of Christmas + a mysterious dragon shifter with a past full of pain + a beautiful snow castle hiding a ruthless enemy = one glittering Christmas romance!
See Zoe Chant’s complete list of books here!
***
If you love Zoe Chant, you’ll also love these books!
Laura’s Wolf (Werewolf Marines # 1), by Lia Silver. Werewolf Marine Roy Farrell, scarred in body and mind, thinks he has no future. Curvy Laura Kaplan, running from danger and her own guilty secrets, is desperate to escape her past. Together, they have all that they need to heal. A full-length novel.
Prisoner (Werewolf Marines # 2), by Lia Silver. Werewolf Marine DJ Torres is a born rebel. Genetically engineered assassin Echo was created to be a weapon. When DJ is captured by the agency that made Echo, the two misfits find that they fit together perfectly. A full-length novel.
Partner (Werewolf Marines # 3), by Lia Silver. DJ and Echo’s relationship grows stronger under fire... until they’re confronted by a terrible choice. A full-length novel.
Mated to the Meerkat, by Lia Silver. Jasmine Jones, a curvy tabloid reporter, meets her match— in more ways than one— in notorious paparazzi and secret shifter Chance Marcotte. A BWWM romantic comedy novelette.
Wolf in Sheep’s Clothing, by Lauren Esker. Curvy farm girl Julie Capshaw was warned away from the wolf shifters next door, but Damon Wolfe is the motorcycle-riding, smoking hot alpha of her dreams. Can the big bad wolf and his sheep shifter find their own happy ending? A full-length novel.
Handcuffed to the Bear (Shifter Agents # 1) by Lauren Esker. A bear-shifter ex-mercenary and a curvy lynx shifter searching for her best friend's killer are handcuffed together and hunted in the wilderness. A full-length novel.
Guard Wolf (Shifter Agents # 2) by Lauren Esker. Avery is a lone werewolf without a pack; Nicole is a social worker trying to put her life back together. When he shows up with a box of orphaned werewolf puppies, and danger in pursuit, can two lonely people find the family they've been missing in each other? A full-length novel.
Dragon’s Luck (Shifter Agents # 3) by Lauren Esker. Gecko shifter and infiltration expert Jen Cho teams up with sexy dragon-shifter gambler "Lucky" Lucado to win a high-stakes poker game. Now they're trapped on a cruise ship full of mobsters, mysterious enemy agents, and evil dragons! A full-length novel.
Tiger in the Hot Zone (Shifter Agents # 4) by Lauren Esker. In her search for the truth about shifters, tell-all blogger Peri Moreland has been clashing with tiger shifter and SCB agent Noah Easton for years. Now she and Noah are on the run with an unstoppable assassin after them and a custom-made plague threatening the entire shifter world! A full-length novel.
Page down to read the first chapter of Zoe Chant’s Bodyguard Bear!
Special Sneak Preview
Bodyguard Bear (Protection, Inc. # 1)
By Zoe Chant
Chapter One
Ellie
Ellie McNeil was not having the best night of her life.
It was 3:49 AM, and she felt every second of the sleep she hadn’t gotten. Her eyes burned, her feet hurt, her head throbbed, and her muscles ached with weariness.
Remind me why I volunteered for the overnight shift, again? Ellie asked herself. Oh, right. Because I really, really need the money.
And also, she had to admit, because sometimes there was nothing more exciting than being the paramedic on call in the middle of the night.
This wasn’t one of those times.
Ellie and her partner, Catalina Mendez, had taken call after call since their shift had begun at midnight, speeding out in the ambulance with sirens screaming. And not a single call had been for an actual emergency. In between calls, Ellie and Catalina debated over which was more ridiculous, the drunken frat boy who thought his sleeping roommate was dead because he’d stopped snoring or the elderly man who thought he had a fever because he’d forgotten to turn off his electric blanket.
As the ambulance sped through increasingly sketchy neighborhoods, Ellie decided that it wouldn’t hurt to close her eyes. Just for a second...
Catalina brought the ambulance to a stop with a screech of brakes, nearly flinging Ellie into the dashboard.
“Wakey, wakey!” Catalina sang out, her voice bright with sadistic cheer. She was a night owl by nature, and volunteered for overnight shifts because she actually preferred them.
“I was not asleep,” Ellie retorted. “I was just... resting my eyes.”
“That’s what sleep is,” Catalina pointed out. “Up and at ’em, Ellie. Just two more hours till we can go home and cuddle up with... Uh, cuddle up.”
Ellie repressed a sigh as she grabbed her medical bag. At 6:00 AM, Catalina got to go home and cuddle up with her cats. Ellie had nothing to cuddle with but her pillow.
One year, eight months, and two weeks since I last had sex, Ellie thought glumly. Not that she was counting.
It could easily be another year— or two, or five, or ten— till she found a man willing to put up with a woman who spent half her nights saving lives away from home. Catalina made do with short-term flings, but Ellie didn’t want to settle for anything less than a committed relationship. Which meant that she’d settled on nothing at all.
When Ellie scrambled out of the ambulance, the icy night air chilled her lungs and face, shocking her to full awareness. She forgot about her weariness and lack of romantic prospects, and focused on her job.
“Review call,” she said automatically.
Equally automatically, Catalina recited, “Male, age eighteen, awoke disoriented and combative. Call placed by mother.”
“Bet you a pizza he snuck out and partied too hard,” Ellie suggested.
Catalina elbowed her in the ribs. “I’m not taking your sucker bets.”
The apartment building faced an alley too narrow for the ambulance to park in. They left the ambulance parked on the wider street that the alley intersected, and walked down the dark, garbage-strewn alley toward the apartment belonging to the disoriented, combative male and his mom.
Ellie’s smile vanished as they hurried up the stairs. She and Catalina might privately joke about their jobs— they had to have a sense of humor, or they’d lose their minds— but once they were in the presence of their patients, the paramedics were completely focused on doing the best they could for them. Even if the boy was just drunk or high, Ellie and Catalina would examine him, make sure he was all right, and reassure his worried mother.
The woman who opened the door was tiny and white-haired, ninety if she was a day. “Oh, thank God you’re here! My poor baby Ricky!”
Ellie frowned in confusion as she followed the woman, who seemed way too old to have an eighteen-year-old son. Maybe the 911 operator had misheard ‘grandmother’ as ‘mother.’
The woman pointed dramatically. “Here he is!”
Ellie bit down on her lower lip to stop herself from bursting out laughing.
Ricky was a fat, fluffy, contented-looking Angora cat. He blinked up and yawned at them from his perch on the back of the sofa.
“Ricky is a cat,” Catalina said, her voice quivering slightly.
“He’s my baby,” the woman corrected them. “I woke up and went to get a drink of water, and I reached out to pet him as I passed by. He always purrs when I pet him, but tonight he meowed and twitched his head like he was going to bite me. My poor baby!”
“I think you just startled him,” Ellie said soothingly.
The woman shot her a doubtful look. “I guess that could be it. He does look better now, don’t you, baby? But better safe than sorry! Aren’t you going to examine him, just to be sure?”
Fighting to keep a straight face, Ellie said, “Catalina, why don’t you do the exam? I’ll just go out and radio the hospital with our estimated time of return.”
As Ellie walked past her partner, Catalina whispered, “You owe me a pizza.”
“Come on, you love cats,” Ellie whispered back, and made her escape.
Once she was safely out the door, she gave in to laughter. Poor baby Ricky, the world’s most pampered cat!
Ellie was still smiling as she walked down the stairs. It was calls like these that reminded her of why she loved being a paramedic, despite the crazy hours and the lonely nights at home. Whatever else you could say about the job, it was never boring.
She entered the alley. Blinking down the dark strip of asphalt, lined with garbage cans and buildings with darkened windows, Ellie tried to remember which end of the alley led to the street where they’d left the ambulance. One dented trash can looked vaguely familiar. Yawning, she turned right.
The alley stretched on for longer than she remembered walking when they’d first come to the apartment. The only light was from distant street lights, and everything was dim and shadowy. The still air smelled strongly of mold, oil, and rotting garbage. There was no sound but the occasional rumble of a car driving by several streets away.
Uneasy, Ellie wondered if she’d gone the wrong way. Then she came to a dead end at a brick wall. It was a T-shaped intersection, with even darker and narrower alleys leading to the left and right.
Definitely the wrong way, she thought. She turned around to go back.
“Are you sure he’s dead?” The voice came from the alley to her left. The speaker was a man with a low voice.
Ellie froze in her tracks. Obviously, someone was in desperate need of medical help. Normally she’d have run forward to offer her assistance. But the speaker’s tone chilled her blood. She felt certain that he wanted someone to be dead.
“I’m pretty sure, Mr. Nagle,” said a different man, sounding slightly nervous. “I shot him three times.”
Ellie knew that the best thing for her to do was to walk away quietly and call the police. But she hadn’t become a paramedic because she liked to play it safe. She stepped behind a dumpster, careful to place her feet away from anything that might snap or squish or crunch. Her heart pounding, she cautiously peered out into the alley. Though the light was dim, her eyes had adjusted to it. She could see perfectly.
Two men stood in the alley, looking down at the limp body of a third man. One man was in his fifties, tall and gray-haired, dressed in a black suit that looked out of place in the filthy surroundings. The other was in his late twenties, a big bruiser in jeans and a blood-spattered T-shirt, holding a gun. But it was the sight of the man down on the ground that made Ellie stifle a gasp.
She wasn’t shocked because he was bleeding, or because he might be dead. Ellie had cared for lots of injured people, and seen her share of dead-on-arrival bodies. What shocked her was that she recognized the man.
She didn’t know him personally, but she was fami
liar with his face. She’d voted for him at the last election, barely three months ago. It was Bill Whitfield, the new district attorney of Santa Martina. He’d run on the promise to fight organized crime.
He was dead. She’d been a paramedic long enough to know that, even from a distance. There was nothing she could do for him.
“Shoot him again,” the tall man ordered. “In the head. Execution-style. Just to send a message.”
“Okay, Mr. Nagle,” the younger man— the hit man— replied.
He adjusted his aim, then shot the dead man in the head. The gun must have been silenced; it made a soft popping sound, not a loud bang.
Ellie flinched. Her heart was beating so hard, she felt like it would smash through her ribs. She had to get out of there and call the police, before these men saw her and killed her too. She took one last look, memorizing their faces, then turned to tip-toe away.
A rat emerged from beneath the dumpster and scurried over her foot. She jerked backward, barely managing to stop herself from letting out a yelp. But the rat was as surprised as she was. It bolted madly into a nearby heap of beer bottles and soda cans, producing a tremendous clatter.
“What’s that?” demanded Mr. Nagle.
“Someone’s there!” the hit man shouted.
Ellie flung herself forward, a second before she heard another soft pop. The bullet barely missed her head, hitting the brick wall beside her. Chips and dust exploded out, and a sharp pain stung her cheek.
She ran like she’d never run in her life. Sheer terror lent her speed. She heard the men shouting behind her, and heard another soft pop. Her lungs burned as she forced herself to go faster, expecting any second to feel the impact of a bullet in her back. Or to feel a brief explosion of pain in her head, and then nothing ever again.
She burst out of the alley, looked around wildly, and spotted the ambulance. Ellie yanked out her keys, dove for the rear door, wrenched it open, and scrambled into the rear compartment. She heard another soft pop as she slammed the heavy metal door. Ellie flinched, but she felt no pain. She hadn’t been hit.