The Jaguar's Halloween Bride (Holiday Mail Order Mates Book 5) Read online

  The Jaguar’s Halloween Bride

  Holiday Mail-Order Mates

  Lola Kidd

  Copyright 2017 by Lola Kidd

  Cover Design: Melody Simmons

  All rights reserved.

  This book is a work of fiction. Any resemblance to actual persons, living or dead, or actual events is entirely coincidental. Names, characters, businesses, organizations, places, events, and incidents are the product of the author’s imagination or used fictitiously. No part of this work may be copied or reproduced without the express consent of the author.

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  About This Book

  Curvy girl Lizzy Below has a good life. She’s owns her own business and gets to do what she loves every day. The only thing missing is someone to share it with. She’s even had no luck using “sure thing” online dating sites. Lizzy hasn’t given up yet but her hope is at an all-time low.

  Jaguar shifter Ray wants to find his mate more than anything else. He’s ready to sign up for an online matchmaking site but there’s one thing standing in his way, his twin brother Abe. They have to find a woman to complete their alpha triad and Abe wants to keep searching the old-fashioned way. He refuses to even sign up for a dating service even as his brother gets more desperate in his search.

  When he decides to take matters into his own hands, Ray sets events into motion that could change all of their lives. But will Abe be able to overcome his fears and go after his true mate? Find out in this Halloween Mail-Order Mates story!

  Table of Contents

  Chapter One

  Chapter Two

  Chapter Three

  Chapter Four

  Chapter Five

  Chapter Six

  Chapter Seven

  Chapter Eight

  Chapter Nine

  Chapter Ten

  Chapter Eleven

  Chapter Twelve

  Chapter Thirteen

  Chapter Fourteen

  Chapter Fifteen

  Chapter Sixteen

  Chapter Seventeen

  Chapter Eighteen

  Chapter Nineteen

  A Note from Lola

  Other Books by Lola Kidd

  Chapter One

  Lizzy Below read the email again, her stomach twisting in knots. Maple Creek Daily wanted to feature her in their paper. It was a series about local business owners who were revitalizing the town. Her friend Emma had gotten the email last week. Emma ran her own dance studio in town. Emma was gorgeous and her studio was a hit. She had assured Lizzy that she would get her own invite to the series soon. That had been weeks ago and Emma’s feature had already run. Lizzy was happy for her friend but had been hoping to get a feature herself. Even an honorable mention would have been good enough.

  When she saw the email, she had been elated but that feeling was quickly replaced with dread. Normally, this would have made Lizzy run around screaming in excitement. Her feature was going to run the week before Halloween. The perfect time to bring new business to her candy shop. Halloween kicked off her busy season and she was always looking for new ways to advertise. Most of the year, she got most of her business doing customized candy for local weddings. That was great but for Halloween her imagination got to run wild. Every year she made candy around a theme. She still hadn’t decided on the theme for this year but she just knew that this feature in the paper was the perfect place to announce it.

  It was all so perfect except for one little thing. The feature would include a full-body shot of Lizzy in her shop. Her stomach twisted in knots thinking about doing a photoshoot. She was ashamed to admit it but she was incredibly self-conscious about her body. She knew she wasn’t the smallest girl but she had always been confident in her ability to mask her imperfections. A wrap dress did wonders to hide her problem tummy and thighs while making her waist look smaller and highlighting her bust. She was skilled at doing her makeup and drawing the eye to her pretty face instead of her big behind. At least, she had thought she was skilled at camouflaging herself.

  Even with all her skills, she still hated getting her picture taken. She had yet to see a picture that she loved of herself. All she could see was how wide her hips were or how flabby her arms looked. It always shook her confidence when she looked at pictures of herself. For the last few years, she had been feeling good about herself and comfortable in her skin. Starting her business had really given her confidence a shot in the arm. But an event over the summer had brought her down from the clouds.

  A few months earlier, she’d gone to a charity boxing match in town. She was with her new friends and had felt sexy in a black skater dress. The dress was beautiful with intricate silver designs on the skirt and sparkles on the top. She had bought it special for that night and had felt so beautiful in the dressing room. She had a lot of fun that night and had stayed out partying until the wee hours of the morning.

  The next day she was in for a nasty shock when she checked her social media accounts. There was a private Facebook group for Maple Creek news. The group was mostly gossip but there was also local sales. Lizzy had found a gorgeous gently used nightstand and had been stalking the group for a new coffee table. That fateful day, she’d been surprised to see pictures of herself and Emma from the previous evening. Someone had taken a picture without asking them and had posted it to the group. They were at the Brazen Bull, a local bar, and Emma’s head was tilted back mid-laugh. Lizzy had a drink in one hand and was gesturing with the other.

  She hadn’t thought she looked that bad. The dress fit her so perfectly. She hadn’t been able to stop admiring herself before she’d left the house that night. Apparently, she was mistaken. It seemed like everyone in the group had come to make a comment on her picture. The comments were so cruel and had cut Lizzy to the core.

  The nicest comment? Never seen a pigshifter before. She blushed alone in her apartment. She had left the group immediately but their words had stayed with her. They were right. She looked terrible in that picture. She had gone though her tagged pictures that night and been sure to untag any that were too unflattering. And she’d gone to her online dating profiles and removed all of the pictures. She couldn’t trust her judgment. She thought she’d picked cute pictures but she was probably wrong. It wasn’t like she was getting matches either. Which only solidified her choice.

  Her friends and family hadn’t been too happy when she’d asked them to stop tagging her in pictures. but Lizzy couldn’t take seeing anymore unflattering pictures of herself. She’d been too ashamed to talk to anyone about what she’d seen in the secret group. She knew they would all tell her she was beautiful and that she shouldn’t care what other people think.

  And she knew that. She knew that those people didn’t really matter. But she hated feeling like people were laughing at her everywhere she went. As crazy as it was, it was how she felt and deleting those bad pictures made her feel better. If she did the newspaper interview, she would have her picture in the paper. She wouldn’t be able to delete the picture if it wasn’t good. She wondered if they would let her have final say over what picture they used. If she did it, she knew it would be a full-body shot because they used the same format for all the articles. Everyone took a picture in front of their business or inside their shop.

  It would be humiliating to ask that they break from form and only shoot her from the waist up. It would be obvious why she was asking.

  She didn’t think she could do it. But she didn’t want to miss out on the opportunity either. She chec
ked her calendar. There was almost two months before she had to do the interview. Six weeks was a long time.

  She could start working out tomorrow and change her diet. By the time the photo shoot rolled around, she could already be down twenty pounds. It was possible with a strict regime. She had tried to lose weight and tone up before without much success. But this time was different. She had a professional reason to do it. If she didn’t drop the weight, she would refuse to have her picture run with her story. But that wasn’t going to happen.

  In fact, she was going to get herself a personal trainer. Emma’s husband wouldn’t shut up about how awesome having a trainer was which was crazy because he was a shifter. He already had prefect body. But he said his trainer pushed him to workout more and make his body more of a machine. It didn’t make sense for someone with a great body but it was what someone like her needed. She wanted someone to hold her accountable for skipping the gym if she wanted to reach her insane goal. She was going to have to become a workout machine to reach her goal and be ready for this photoshoot.

  Just thinking about the changes made her giddy. She was going to make those people eat their words. All she had to do was find a gym and the prefect trainer. She quickly researched around town and saw that Emma’s husband was right. His gym did have the best trainers in town. The only other good option was in the next town.

  That wasn’t best-case scenario. Lizzy had a feeling that if she had to travel to get to the gym, she would be less inclined to go every day. Even with a trainer, she was going to be tired after work. The only upside of that gym was that it was women only. That did appeal to her but she decided to try the gym in town first.

  It was close to her house and they had some great deals. She printed out the coupon from their website and put in her purse. She ordered some cute workout clothes before turning in for the night. By the time the clothes got there, she would have a membership and she’d be ready to get started. She couldn’t wait.

  Chapter Two

  Ray drummed his fingers impatiently on the steering wheel. He was waiting for his brother Abe to leave the bar. He was talking to some stupid girl near the door. It was always the same with Abe. He was going to get the girls number tonight and by the next morning, he wouldn’t want to call her anymore. It was always the same.

  Ray wished his brother would stop wasting his time and leave already. He’d been waiting fifteen minutes. It was starting to get ridiculous. He was tired and has had enough of being out. He wanted to get home and get to bed.

  Besides, the twin jaguar shifters were never going to find their mate at the Brazen Bull. Picking up random girls at the bars had never worked for them in the past and this girl would be no different. She hadn’t even shown any interest in Ray the entire night. She’d had no problem dancing up on Abe but she hadn’t said so much as hello to Ray. She could never complete their triad.

  “Finally,” Ray muttered as the girl hugged his brother. The girl watched Abe as he jogged down the block to the SUV.

  “It’s not going to work,” Ray told his brother has he slid into the passenger seat.

  Abe waved to the girl as Ray pulled out of the parking spot. “Maybe not but it can’t hurt to try. Try, try again and you’ll succeed. You miss a hundred percent of the shots you don’t take. Fill in whatever wise advice you want here.”

  “Why not try my idea then?” Ray asked.

  “We aren’t going to talk about that stupid site again.” Abe put his phone away. “I have a good feeling about this one. She could be it.”

  “She is not the one. She doesn’t even like me. I can’t be mates with someone who isn’t interested in me.”

  “But she’s interested in me. She’ll come around on you.”

  Ray laughed. “She’s interested in sleeping with you. She doesn’t want to be your wife.”

  “Naw. If she wants to sleep with me, she’ll come around on you. We’re identical twins. If she thinks I’m hot, you’re hot too.”

  “What does that have to do with being mates?”

  Abe shrugged. “You have to find your future mate attractive right?”

  Ray sighed. “That has nothing to do with being mates. Lovely and Kind Brides had helped three of my friend find their wives.”

  “You can’t count Jack and Macy,” Abe said. “They met on their own.”

  “So two of my friends. That’s better odds than you’ve had with any bar hook up. We’ve never even been able to date one of those girls.”

  “But I’ve met some really cool girls at the Brazen Bull.”

  “Cool girls who are your friends. Not any girlfriends.”

  “They could turn into girlfriends.” Abe slid down in his seat. “You don’t know. Organic is better. You know I’m not into that contrived BS. One of these girls who’s my friend could turn into our wife.”

  “A dating website isn’t contrived. It’s putting ourselves in places we’re more apt to find a woman serious about becoming out mate.”

  “No thanks. I’m not some loser who needs a computer to find me a mate. I can find one myself the old fashioned way.”

  “Do you think Cade, Jack, or Aaron are losers?” Ray asked indignant.

  Abe’s phone chimed saving him from having to answer. He showed it to Ray. “That’s the girl from the bar. I’d say she’s more than a little interested.”

  “In you. Not us! I’m starting to think you’re not even serious about finding us a mate.”

  It was Abe’s turn to be indignant. “Just because I don’t want to use some stupid website doesn’t mean I’m not serious. When was the last time you tried to talk to a woman in real life?”

  Ray shook his head. “I don’t just pick up random women. I have to have some kind of connection before I try to get in a woman into bed.”

  “You can’t make a connection if you won’t even talk to people.” Abe yawned. “I don’t want to have this conversation right now. I’m tired.”

  They were in front of the home they shared. The twins had saved every penny since they’d began working in their teens. After a decade, they’d had enough to buy a great home on foreclosure. They’d spent the better part of the last five years fixing it up but it was worth it. Ray was proud of the home they’d built. And he was more than ready to fill it with a handful of cubs and a happy wife. If only his brother would listen to him.

  They’d been searching for their one true mate for as long as they’d been homeowners. They’d figured once they had a house, it would be easier to find someone. It had been impossible to date when they were at home with their parents. Not many women were interested in coming home and spending a night in their childhood bedroom.

  Now with their own home, they found it much easier to bring a girl back to share their bed. Not that it happened often but still it was more than it happened when they lived at home. Instead, they were having serious problems finding a woman willing to share their hearts. The situation didn’t seem to be bothering Abe at all. He was out meeting new women every weekend.

  Ray went to the bars too but he wasn’t interested in the women he met there. He had heard that when you found your mate, you knew right away. He felt no connection with these women even after going on multiple dates. It felt like he was wasting his time.

  Seeing the luck his friends were having with the mail-order bride company, Ray was ready to sign up with LK Brides. The site had a great track record and could even find brides for alpha triads. It seemed like a no-brainer to at least try them out. They more than met the income requirements and Ray knew they had a good chance of finding a match. He had a good feeling about the site. If only he could convince his brother to try.

  He couldn’t let the conversation drop. He was too irritated.

  “What do you have against the site?” he asked Abe after he had brushed his teeth.

  Abe sighed. “Nothing. I just think it’ll be easier to find someone in person.”

  “But we’ve been trying that for five years with no luck.” />
  “And I think we should try for five more,” Abe said. “We’ll find someone when the time is right. Until then, let’s keep our heads down and keep knocking out our goals. We’ll find her bro. You just need to chill.”

  “So you want to wait five more years?” Ray asked incredulous. “You don’t think that’s too long? We’re already thirty. I thought the plan was to have a few kids by the time we were thirty-five.”

  “It was and I want a mate as bad as you.” Abe put his hand on his brother’s shoulder as he passed him. “I want to go about a different way that’s all. Be patient. Internet dating is fairly new. People had no problem finding mates without the help of dating services before now.”

  “But mail-order bride services have been around for more than hundred years. This isn’t new. Yeah, we could wait around to find our mate but it won’t hurt to sign-up. Like you said, we won’t find a mate without putting in some effort.”

  “Give me some time to think about. I can’t promise that I’ll say yes but I’ll talk with Nate about it.”

  “Ok.”

  “Night.”

  Ray went to his room and laid back on his bed. He put his hands behind his head and exhaled. He had been patient. He didn’t want to wait anymore. He wanted a mate and he wanted to find her yesterday. He wasn’t going to hold his breathe waiting for Abe to talk to his friend at the gym. Nate had found his bride with LK’s help months ago. He’d been talking nonstop about it for the last few months to any shifter who would listen.

  He had even had a conversation about LK Brides with Nate and Abe. It wasn’t like Abe hadn’t already heard all about the great things LK Brides could do for them. He didn’t know why his brother was stalling but he couldn’t wait much longer. If Abe wasn’t going to be reasonable, Ray would sign up on his own. Once they had a match, Abe would have no choice but to at least go on a date with the woman.