Wild Side

What if becoming a werewolf was as simple as joining a club? Lori has no idea what she has gotten herself into when she and her friend Tina try to join the Lycanthropic Society. She thinks she is applying for membership in an outdoor group, although she really just wants to get close to Dominick. He’s the sexy guy whose family runs the Society, and he seems to know things about her instinctively. Lori is even willing to go up against Angelique, her competition for Dominick’s affection. But can she handle a man whose love bite draws blood? And what does he mean his nipping her was her initiation?

(Previously published by Liquid Silver Books)

Available at Amazon (US, UK, CA, AU, etc.), Barnes & Noble, Kobo (US & UK), iBooks/Apple, Everand, Smashwords, and more! Universal Buy Link 

Goodreads

"Wild Side is definitely a wild ride." - DebA at Night Owl Reviews

Excerpt from Wild Side

We pulled into an empty space at the end of the parking lot, and I looked at the shadowed beach grass in front of us while my friend Tina killed the engine.

“Ready, Lori?” she asked.

“As I’ll ever be,” I said to irritate her.

The gravel poked at the bottom of my sandals when I got out. I was dressed casually tonight in a low-cut white shirt and black capris. My dark blonde hair was tied up so that it wouldn’t fly in my face. Tina wore a long denim skirt and an airtight black top, and her large hoop earrings swung and glittered as she walked around to the passenger side.

As I watched her bouncy gait and pearly smile, I envied her. While Tina lived for socializing, I had never felt very comfortable at parties. Judging by the assembly of cars, everyone had already arrived, and the howl-at-the-moon party was in full swing. The sound of music and voices reached us on the wind.

“Come on, Lori.” Tina squeezed my arm. “It will be fun. You know you’ll have a good time.”

I tried to let her optimism infect me, but I was doubtful. “We’ll see.”

We crossed the boardwalk over the dunes and made our way toward the people crowded around the pavilion and grills. I was a stranger to most of the invited guests, and the party had apparently attracted dozens of others. It was all I could do to keep up with Tina as we threaded our way through the crowd. A few people waved as we passed, but their greetings were directed more toward her than me.

We had probably gone about fifty feet when a large man holding a beer suddenly stepped back and collided with me. He nearly sent me toppling, though fortunately his spilled drink missed me by half an inch. The guy gave me an offhanded apology and returned to his conversation. By the time I looked up, Tina had disappeared.

I grumbled, though I had known it was only a matter of time before I lost her in the crowd. Though I looked around and even jumped up and down, I couldn’t find her. She was gone, and I was on my own.

After much bumping and sidestepping, I wandered over to the food table and grabbed a hamburger and a drink. Most of the people nearby had their backs to me, so I couldn’t exactly carry on a conversation. I finished my meal and decided the beach looked inviting.

The sand sank beneath my feet, and the sound of the surf drowned out some of the noise once I got away from the crowd. The moon wasn’t quite full, but it stood out brilliantly against the speckled night sky.

“Beautiful,” someone said behind me.

I spun around, and standing there was the most gorgeous man I had ever laid eyes on. He was probably in his late twenties, and he was lean and muscular with dark hair and sharp brown eyes. I felt a flutter in my chest as my gaze met his.

I cleared my throat. “Yes, it is.”

“I meant you,” he said without missing a beat. “You’re beautiful.”

“Thanks.” I blushed.

No one had ever delivered such a line to me before. While I was passably attractive with my blue eyes and clear skin, everything about me was pretty much average. I was flattered by the compliment.

He smiled as if my reaction amused him. “I’m Dominick.”

He extended his hand, and I automatically shook it.

“Lori.”

“It’s a pleasure, Lori.” He slid his thumb over the back of my knuckles before he let go. “Why are you over here all alone? Weren’t you enjoying the party?”

“I could ask the same of you,” I said.

His grin reached his eyes. “But I’m not alone. I followed you, and now you’re with me.”

“By that logic, I’m not alone, either,” I pointed out.

My answer seemed to please him. “All right. Since neither of us has wandered off by ourselves, then it wouldn’t be antisocial to walk farther along the beach. Do you want to?”

Where had this guy come from? Though I was interested, I was a little wary. He seemed all right, but for all I knew he was really a creep. I glanced back at the others.

He must have seen my hesitation. “It’s good you’re cautious. Women need to be careful these days. I tell you what. How about I keep you well within sight of your friends?”

I gave him a long look. “Okay. You’re on.”

To my surprise, he offered me his arm. I didn’t feel the awkwardness I expected. Instead, his touch seemed to deepen the spell I was under. I felt very comfortable with him.

As we walked, Dominick didn’t say anything, so I stared at him until he looked at me.

“What?” he asked. “What are you thinking?”

“You’re very strange,” I said. “Do you know that?”

He arched his eyebrow, but he didn’t appear insulted or even surprised by my comment.

“Do you usually meet total strangers on the beach and escort them on silent walks? Don’t you think that’s odd?”

“No,” he said. “Do you?”

“Yes. This is the strangest encounter I’ve ever had with a man.”

He assumed a shocked expression. “An encounter? Is that what we’re having? I can see why you’re upset.”

“Hey!”

He returned a short laugh. “It’s simple. I saw you by yourself, I wanted to meet you, and I acted. How is that strange?”

“Most people work their way up to that sort of thing,” I told him. “They say hello and maybe talk about the weather. They don’t walk up to someone, tell them they’re beautiful, and then ask for their company.”

“Then they miss out on a great opportunity.” He sounded smug. “I know my own mind and have the courage to take the direct route. Is that such a fault?”

“I didn’t say it was a fault,” I mumbled.

Dominick grinned. “Thank you. To answer your question, though, no I don’t.”

“Don’t what?”

“I don’t usually take strangers on long moonlit walks. The situation just happened to present itself, and it was too good to pass up.”

I returned a smile. I had the impression Dominick was pulling my strings—loosening some and creating tension in others.

When I took a moment to listen to the night breeze, I realized it was too quiet. I glanced over my shoulder and saw we had reached the limit of my comfort zone away from the party. With my arm still around his, I made a simple U-turn.

“It looks like I only have you to myself for a few more minutes,” he said. “Tell me about yourself.”

“What exactly do you want to know?”

I expected him to ask about my job or my family, but Dominick apparently didn’t do anything ordinary.

“Sugar or salt?” he asked.

“I beg your pardon?”

“People generally have a preference between sweet and salty foods,” he said. “Which are you?”

“Oh.” I laughed. “Sugar. I definitely have a sweet-tooth.”

He nodded without saying a word.

“That’s it?” I asked. “That tells you all about me?”

He responded with a sexy grin. “I can figure out the rest for myself.”

“Oh, really?”

“You demand proof?”

“Yes.” I couldn’t wait to hear what he had to say.

When he stopped and looked at me, moonlight sparkled in his eyes. I fidgeted under his piercing gaze.

“Words affect you deeply,” he said. “You get too caught up in the unimportant things in life, but you feel a powerful connection with nature. You have a good sense of humor but often hold back. You live alone.” He paused for a moment, and one corner of his mouth kicked up. “You could do incredible things if you just stepped out into the world and stopped worrying all the time.”

My breath caught. How did he know that?

“Okay,” I said, trying to redirect his attention. “I’m impressed. You got all that out of sugar?”

“No.” He leaned forward and brought his mouth close to my ear. “I just pay attention.”

“Huh.” The sound came out more like a sigh than a word.

He backed up and regarded me for a moment before we resumed our walk.

“So which are you?” I asked.

“Not telling.”

“No fair!”

He laughed.

Once we closed the distance to the rest of the group, Dominick looked like he was searching for someone. I wasn’t sure how he could make out everyone’s faces in the pale light.

“Let me introduce you to my friends,” he said. “They can vouch for me so you’ll know I’m safe and sane, and then maybe we can get to know each other better.”

“Okay.” I liked that possibility, and maybe I could find Tina again and bring her along as backup.

“Ow-ow-owwwwoooooo!” A cacophony of howls burst from the party. The collective voices rang against the waves, and the noise was eerie over the water.

Dominick answered back in a loud call and then looked at me. “Come on. This is the whole point of a howl-at-the-moon party.”

“No thanks.” It was too silly.

“Live a little.” He touched the small of my back. “You should learn to relax and enjoy the simple pleasures.”

I rolled my eyes, but I couldn’t resist. Maybe it was the way he said the word “pleasures.” I inhaled a lungful of air and let out a long howl. As I did so, Dominick’s lower timbre joined in, and then the crowd echoed us. When my breath ran out, I let my voice die and looked at him.

“Much better,” he said.

We continued back to the pavilion. As soon as we got closer, Tina spotted me and popped out from the crowd.

“Where have you been?” she demanded. “There are some people here you have to meet. Come with me.”

Before I could respond, she grabbed my hand and dragged me through the other partiers. I silently mouthed an apology to Dominick, who followed close behind me. We stopped in front of a little cluster of people.

“Here she is,” Tina announced. She turned to me. “Lori, this is Victoria.”

She pointed to a russet-haired woman. Victoria was one of those women who was cute, not sexy, and her delicate features made it hard to determine her age. I shook her hand, instantly at ease thanks to her friendly smile.

“And here’s David.” Tina introduced a guy with bronzy-colored hair, and her tone let me know he was her primary interest.

A wink served as David’s only response, and he gave me the once-over. Although he wasn’t bad looking, I cringed. My friend was not a good judge of character when it came to men.

“And over here,” Tina said with a slight drop of her voice, “is Angelique.”

Angelique was a tall, slim woman with straight, bleached-blonde hair. She gave me a languid wave. Although she was physically beautiful, her sour expression was one any woman could instinctively read: bitch.

Tina finally noticed Dominick. “Who’s your new friend?”

“This is—”

“Dominick!” Angelique walked over and slipped her arm around his waist. “I was wondering where you were.”

My gut clenched when I saw the way she touched him. It was an intimate gesture that was too familiar for a friend.

Tina must have caught my reaction because she glared at Angelique with obvious dislike. I noticed she purposefully ignored the woman as she reached out to shake Dominick’s hand.

“It’s nice to meet you,” she told him, “though it looks like my friend has already beaten me to the pleasure.”

“The pleasure was mine.” Dominick turned to face me again, apparently oblivious to the mixed signals he was sending. “These are the friends I wanted you to meet.”

“I figured.”

At least Tina had already checked them out. I could use her as a reference later.

I quickly decided that I really liked Victoria. She was laid-back and had a nice aura about her. As for David, I would do my best to give him the benefit of the doubt since Tina liked him. Maybe he was a hopeless flirt but otherwise okay.

Dominick was the one I couldn’t figure out. Although Angelique continued to hang all over him, he didn’t seem to return her affection. Maybe she wasn’t his girlfriend after all, though I wasn’t sure what their relationship was. Would he have approached me if he had brought a date?

“Why don’t we invite these two to our Society meeting next week?” Dominick said.

His suggestion interrupted my thoughts and stopped me from glaring at Angelique. She appeared surprised, but the rest of his friends expressed agreement.

“What’s this?” Tina asked.

“A secret society,” David said. “Very exclusive.”

“We’d love to have you join us,” Dominick told me. “We meet next Friday night, seven o’clock at the old convention center downtown. Do you know where it is?”

“Yes,” I said.

He seemed to take my answer as agreement to attend. “Good. I look forward to seeing you there.”

I glanced at Tina, and she nodded excitedly.

“We’ll be there,” she promised him.

I could tell there would be no talking her out of it, and if I was honest, the attraction I felt toward Dominick was enough to entice me.

“Isn’t this great?” Tina asked as we walked back over the boardwalk. “A secret society!”

I just smiled. The society wasn’t what intrigued me.