Hello, everyone! I’m here as Holly today because we have a new story out! 🥳 Squirrel Hunt was released a few days ago, and I wrote it to celebrate Read in the Bathtub Day.
It’s a lot of fun to write squirrel shifters, and I don’t think I’m done with the guys in Doson just yet. The first book in the series is Squirrel Circus, but you don’t have to read it to read Squirrel Hunt.
It’s the same world and a few of the characters in Squirrel Circus make an appearance in Squirrel Hunt too, but we also meet a lot of new characters, and the plots of the two stories aren’t intertwined. My goal is to keep it that way even if (when) I write more stories in the series.
It’s fated mates, interspecies couple, there is a little kidnapping and other fun things going on, and I thought I’d leave you with the first chapter below 😊
Squirrel Hunt
The smartest thing a squirrel can do is avoid werewolves, not get mated to one.
All Dahy Doocey wants is an unlimited supply of nuts and a safe place to stay. As a squirrel shifter, he always has to hide and watch out for stupid wolves and other predators. Frozen and starving, he reaches out to a friend, not knowing she recently mated a shifter. She agrees to hide him anyway, but now he’s neck-deep in wolves. Not ideal.
Konrad Broody is the alpha of a werewolf pack. When he agreed to hide a friend of the newest pack member, he assumed it was a human woman, not a squirrel. And he certainly didn’t believe Dahy would turn out to be his mate. The problem is squirrels often end up dead when spending time around wolves.
Konrad will fight anyone who dares go near Dahy, but when Dahy goes missing, there is no one he can fight. Dahy should’ve known hanging around wolves would get him in trouble. How will he be able to escape the idiots keeping him prisoner before they eat him? Stupid wolves.
Buy links:
Paranormal Gay Romance: 39,881 words
JMS Books :: Amazon :: Books2Read
Chapter 1
Dahy Doocey hid in a tree outside a bakery. He’d spent three nights in the small park across from it, both because he liked the scents coming from the building, and because kind people who fed the birds worked there. Every day someone topped off the bird feeder with seeds and nuts, and Dahy wasn’t sure he’d survive the February cold if they hadn’t.
He’d come to Doson on a whim. Or, not a whim. He’d been all over the country, always moving around, always staying hidden, but he’d heard his cousin, Jyran, lived here. Cousins were a loose concept among squirrels. Jyran was his mother’s sister’s mate’s third cousin or something. Close enough, and if one squirrel could survive in Doson, then maybe two could, too. Or not.
Squirrels didn’t stand much of a chance anywhere, and Dahy didn’t know how much longer he could go on. Any day now, some predatory shifter would find and eat him.
Staying in cities wasn’t smart. He had a far greater chance of survival if he stuck to the forests far from civilization, but Dahy was touch-starved, not only physical touch, though it was part of it, but intellectually starved. He hadn’t spoken to a person in ages. Not face-to-face, at least.
He had his phone, charger, and a change of clothes hidden in a tree a block away, but he hadn’t dared to change into human form since he got here. He should check in with Myka though. He’d said he was coming here, but she’d told him she was away on a trip and wouldn’t be back until Thursday. He didn’t know if it was true or not. He wouldn’t blame her if it was a lie.
He was a random guy on the internet who’d struck up a conversation and then said he’d come to her town. It was a massive red flag, but he didn’t know what else to do. He’d have most likely lied too, had he been in her shoes, so he didn’t blame her.
He couldn’t go on like this. He had to find a place to live, a job, and steady meals that weren’t birdseeds.
Tucking his tail around himself, he sat on a branch for a few minutes. He’d try to contact her again, ask if she could recommend somewhere he could stay in the least creepy-stalkery way he could come up with.
He ran along the branch, jumped to the neighboring tree, and climbed down its trunk. He had to run a few feet on the ground, and he carefully scented the air before jumping from the tree. All he could smell was exhaust from the cars, bread from the bakery, and humans. No wolves, no bears, no other shifters. They could appear fast, though, so lack of scent didn’t mean he was safe. And vampires didn’t have a scent at all. On the other hand, vampires didn’t care about squirrels, so he didn’t have them on his list of enemies.
He scurried from tree to tree, spent a few minutes in a hollow trunk about halfway to his hiding place to make sure no one was following him. Then he climbed high into the tree next to the one where he had his clothes and phone hidden.
There he waited until it got dark. The days were short in February, and the wind was icy, so there weren’t many people around. He chanced a jump over to his hiding tree and shifted into his human form. If he’d believed the night had been cold before, it was nothing compared to sitting naked on a branch where the freezing air could wrap around him.
Shivering, he reached into the hollow in the trunk. The clothes were damp despite it not having rained or snowed for several days, and he could hardly get his fingers to work when trying to button his dirty jeans. He didn’t have any socks, and the yellow Crocs he’d stolen a few towns over were two sizes too big.
With a sigh, he reached into the hollow and got hold of the phone. It took some time to get it to start, and he’d soon need to find a way to charge it, but he was good for now.
He found the conversation with Myka, apologized for bothering her again, and asked if she knew of somewhere he could hole up for a few days.
There was a reply almost instantly where she listed the only hotel in Doson and a bed and breakfast on the outskirts.
Dahy gritted his teeth. He couldn’t afford a hotel. He had a credit card, but with no income, he wouldn’t be able to pay off his debts if he used it to pay for a hotel.
He answered her, trying not to sound too pathetic but telling her he was on the run and couldn’t stay anywhere where people could track him. It was only half a lie. He didn’t think anyone was actively hunting him, but if a shifter found out there was a squirrel shifter in town—one who wasn’t mated to a wolf—they’d track him down and kill him.
Several minutes went by, and there was no reply from Myka. If she was smart, she’d block him, but he hoped she wouldn’t.
When the phone buzzed in his hand, he almost dropped it. She wrote she was seeing some friends at seven tonight, but if he wanted to, she could meet him for a coffee at Mildred’s in half an hour. Dahy had no idea where or what it was, but he was freezing his ass off and desperately wanted to be inside somewhere.
Was it safe to go into a restaurant or coffee shop or whatever Mildred’s was, though? All it took was one wolf getting a whiff of him—or bear, or lion, or whatever else might live here.
In the end, he agreed. Worst case scenario, he’d get eaten, best case, she’d take one look at his pathetic self and want to help him.
* * * *
More than one person turned to stare at him as he entered Mildred’s. It was a coffee shop with old-fashioned interior design. The chairs and tables didn’t match, and neither did the cups and plates, but it was cozy. Lots of scarred surfaces and dim lights.
He took several deep breaths, but there were too many scents to know if he was safe. When the door opened behind him, he was forced to take a step forward. He spotted a dark-haired woman sitting alone by a table, and he was almost certain it was Myka. She hadn’t shared a lot of photos of herself on her social media, but he’d seen some.
Carefully, he walked in her direction, ignoring the group of teenage girls giggling when he passed their table. It was the yellow Crocs, or maybe it was his dirty clothes and unwashed hair. Who could tell with teenagers?
The closer he came to the table, the more alarm bells went off in his head, and he almost stumbled backward when Myka looked up at him.
She smelled of wolf.
A pained sound escaped him, and his heart went into overdrive.
“Dahy?” Her voice was soft, and she tilted her head to the side.
He looked around, expecting to be jumped by a pack of wolves any second. He turned to run, only to bump into a massive man.
“Oh, careful there. Good I was going for a refill and not the other way around.” The man held up an empty cup and smiled at him. Human.
A hand grabbed his arm, and he barked—not a human sound. Myka’s eyes widened. “Oh…” Then she frowned. “What… eh…” The frown deepened. “Are you a… wolf?”
“What?” He stared at her. She smelled of wolf, but this close, Dahy could tell she wasn’t one. She was with one. This was a trap. He whimpered and yanked to get her to let go.
“Sit, Dahy.”
He shook his head and wished the human man would move faster so he could run toward the door without causing too much of a scene.
“Come on now. Sit.”
He shook his head again.
“I’ll get us a cup of coffee, and you’ll tell me… I always imagined bears would be big in human form, but maybe that’s prejudice.”
Dahy’s mouth dropped open, then he composed himself. “What?”
“If you’re not a wolf, you have to be a bear, right? I’m pretty new to this world, and I didn’t mean to insult you. I’m sorry if I did.”
Dahy gaped at her, then he snorted only to chuckle. When the chuckle threatened to turn into something resembling sobs, he snapped his mouth shut to prevent any sound from leaving him.
She looked into his eyes. “Sit. I’ll get coffee or do you prefer tea or eh… hot cocoa?”
“Cocoa.”
She smiled, nodded, and gestured at the chair. “Don’t run. You’re safe, I promise.”
He wanted to scoff. Safe. She believed he was a bear.
It didn’t take long before she was back carrying two large mugs, one with tea and one with whipped cream on top. She placed the mugs on the table and sat. “So… you need a place to hide?”
Dahy glanced over his shoulder. There was a long line by the counter. How had she managed to get their drinks so fast? “Where did you get these?”
“Oh, I work here. I’m off now, but I popped in behind the counter and fixed them.” She blew on her tea. “Enjoy. They’re on the house.” She winked.
Dahy cradled the mug in his hands, allowing the warmth to seep into his soul.
“You’re hiding from someone?” Her voice was no louder than a whisper.
“Several someones.”
She grimaced. “I don’t know much. I’m mated to Roan who’s part of the local pack. I could ask him.”
Dahy shook his head and nearly spilled his cocoa.
She sighed. “I could… Konrad Brody is the alpha.”
Ice washed through Dahy’s veins. She wanted to take him to the alpha?
“He’s a reasonable man.”
Dahy scrunched his nose. No, alphas were not reasonable men. They were brutal and ruthless. They had to be if they were going to keep a pack in line. And sometimes they needed to reward their pack with a squirrel hunt or two. He’d heard wolves took great pleasure in those.
“I could ask if there is some place you can stay for a while.” She grimaced. “I know there are a few empty apartments at the moment.”
“Apartments?” Did wolves live in apartments?
“Or cabins. People who are away on pack business. Sometimes, they’re sent to neighboring packs to help out with certain things. It was how I met Roan. I’m not from here. I met him at a coffee shop where I was working in Ordbury. It’s about an hour’s drive from here. He was loaned out to the pack there for six months.” She beamed at him.
Loaned out? They loaned people out? He’d always known wolves were insane.
“I could ask Konrad.”
Dahy shook his head.
“He doesn’t need to know you’re a bear. I can tell him you’re human. A friend of mine from Ordbury who needs a place to hide for a few weeks.”
“Scent.” Dahy took a sip of cocoa and almost groaned. He hadn’t had anything but birdseed for days.
“We’ll drench you in perfume.” She laughed. “Roan hates it when I use perfume. He says he can’t smell me under all the crap stinging his nose.”
Dahy hated perfume too, but it could work. For a short amount of time. “I don’t know.”
“Come on, Dahy. You can’t walk around dressed like that in the middle of winter.” She gestured at him. “People are gonna notice, and then you won’t be able to hide.”
He didn’t tell her he spent most of his time in squirrel form; it would ruin the illusion she was creating. “I don’t have any money.” He gestured at himself. “This is all I have, and my phone and charger.” He tapped his pocket where he’d stuffed the charger.
“I’ll call Konrad.” She shot to her feet. “I’ll do it outside. Wait here.” She hurried off, and fear curled an icy fist around his heart. What if she called the pack and told them she had a squirrel trapped in a coffee shop?
He searched for a back door. A fire exit. Something. The restroom. Some restrooms had windows you could get out through. But if he rushed in there and there were no windows—
“He said you could stay in Farris’ cabin.”
Dahy screeched and several people turned to stare at him. Myka frowned. “Eh… Konrad said Farris’ cabin is empty at the moment. Or not empty, it’s furnished, but he’s not there. Konrad said you can stay for a couple of weeks if you agree to keep the plants alive. Apparently, he goes there to water every Sunday.”
Dahy nodded.
“Awesome! Let’s go get the key, and I’ll drop you off before I meet the girls.” She glanced at her phone, checking the time. “We better hurry. Konrad lives outside of town in the opposite direction of Farris who also lives outside of town, so there will be some driving.”
Gulping down the cocoa, Dahy hoped he hadn’t signed his death warrant.
“We need to pop into Bella’s before we go and buy something to disguise your scent.”
“Bella’s?”
“One of the girls.” She grinned at him. “Everyone has been so friendly here. Bella has become one of my best friends. She runs the shop next door; sells makeup and perfumes and stuff. Cheap-ish, so there are mostly teenage girls shopping there, but I’m sure we can find something sufficient.”
Dahy might have longed for human interaction, but he feared he was going into overload. Myka had a lot going on.
