QSFer M.D. Grimm has a new MMM paranormal romance out: Wisdom’s Allegiance.
Can a loyal and sensual owl shifter couple woo a human mate who’s convinced he’s an ugly duckling?
When socially awkward Dexter Fortis rescues an elf owl blown off course by a storm, he has no idea the bird is a shifter named Orion. Or that his life is about to change.Orion falls in love with the kind custodian, but he must convince his long-term partner, Talon, that Dexter is just who they’ve been searching for to establish a permanent ménage. Even if they can gently break down Dexter’s walls, they’ll have to contend with a dangerous cult rising in the shifter community and a hidden enemy determined to keep Dexter from them.
Amazon | Dreamspinner
Excerpt
Dexter managed to finish up the extra buildings on his route in record time since he didn’t have any more interruptions. It was too late—or too early—for anyone to be functional on campus. He moved over to the building where he’d met Talon and Orion the night before. He hoped to God those men weren’t in the office.
Talon and Orion. Odd names. Pretty but odd.
Then again, who was he to speak? Dexter? Seemed his parents decided to take a disliking to him the moment he was out of the womb.
Shaking his head, Dexter began on the first floor. He emptied offices and labs of their trash before heading to the bathroom. As he stepped inside, there was one occupant. He was about to turn around and wait outside, but upon a second look, he realized the man was Talon. He was tall, maybe a little over six feet, if Dexter were to guess, and his lanky form was garbed in a conservative suit of brown and white. He looked nice for so late at night.
Even as Talon zipped up his pants and flushed the urinal, Dexter came back to himself and hurried outside. He swallowed hard and kept his eyes on the floor, waiting, hoping Talon would just walk out and pass him by. Every other attractive man did, so why wouldn’t he?
The spray of water and the hand dryer sounded before Talon walked out, straightening his suit jacket. He glanced over at Dexter and stopped short, eyes sharp and assessing. Dexter only managed one peek before staring resolutely at the floor.
“Pardon me,” Talon said as he approached, holding out his hand. “We never introduced ourselves, and if you’re going to be cleaning my office for the time being, I’d feel more comfortable knowing your name. I’m Talon.”
Dexter stared at the offered hand. He tried to stealthily wipe his damp palm against his leg before gripping it. Unfortunately he stumbled a few times over his own name and flushed, sweat breaking out all over his body.
“Dexter,” he finally managed. “I’m Dexter.” Then he realized Talon could have read the name on his name badge. He didn’t know whether to feel stupid or confused.
“Nice to meet you, Dexter. Could you do me a favor? Could you look at my face while we talk?”
Dexter cleared his throat, and what little pride he had forced him to look up. He couldn’t meet Talon’s eyes, so he stared at his nose.
“Thank you.” Talon kept a firm hold on his hand. “Painfully shy, aren’t you?”
“Um. Er. Um.”
Talon smirked in apparent amusement. “I’ll take that as a yes.” He finally let go of Dexter’s hand. “Listen, you remember the energetic man from the other night? His name is Orion, and he’s my boyfriend.”
“Oh.” The sudden image of the two of them naked and rolling around on a bed flashed through Dexter’s mind. He bit his tongue, the pain shattering any fantasy and killing the erection before it began.
“Well,” Talon continued, “Orion wants to be your friend.”
Dexter blinked. “Um, what?”
“He’s taken a liking to you and has decided to become your friend. Since I often give him whatever he wants, I’ve decided to become your friend as well.”
“Well, I—” What could he say to that?
In a flash Talon had Dexter’s phone out of his shirt pocket and in his hands. Dexter gasped, and instinct had him attempting to grab it back.
“Easy there,” Talon said, chuckling as he danced out of reach. “I’m not stealing it.”
“Could you, hey, stop that. What—?”
“Relax. I’m simply giving you my and Orion’s phone numbers.” Then he called his own phone with Dexter’s. “And now I have yours. So will Orion when I text it to him. Makes things a whole lot simpler, don’t you think?”
Talon handed back the phone. Dexter took it with stiff fingers, his mouth open and slack.
Talon smirked again. “As I said, we’ve decided to be your friends. We’re good men. No need to look so afraid.”
He turned and took two steps before spinning around. “Oh, and for the benefit of full disclosure, we want to have sex with you in the near future.” His eyes seemed to glow with a golden fire. “Consider this a two-for-one. You get friends and lovers.”
After spinning on his heel, Talon strutted off, all confidence and arrogance. For a long, frozen moment, Dexter simply stood there, still holding his phone, his jaw still touching the floor. When he finally managed to shake himself loose of the shock, he stared at his phone, feeling like it had betrayed him.
Had that really just happened?
With shaky fingers, Dexter went to his contact list and found two new names: Talon Horn and Orion Matias. He could delete them. No one said he had to keep the numbers or play by whatever game Talon and Orion had planned for him. But hope, that tiny bright thing, nestled in his breast at the thought of someone choosing him out of a crowd.
Shaking his head, he stuffed the phone in his pocket and got to work on the bathroom. As he scrubbed and wiped, he couldn’t shake the hope. For the first time in his life, someone wanted him. Two someones. They noticed him, singled him out. He would be a fool to give that up. But what if it was all a trick? Some cruel joke? Was he really going to let himself be set up to have his heart crushed?
Again?He dropped his forehead on the counter and focused on breathing. What was he going to do?
Author Bio
M.D. Grimm has wanted to write stories since second grade (kind of young to make life decisions, but whatever) and nothing has changed since then (well, plenty of things, actually, but not that!).
Thankfully, she has indulgent parents who let her dream, but also made sure she understood she’d need a steady job to pay the bills (they never let her forget it!). After graduating from the University of Oregon and majoring in English (let’s be honest: useless degree what else was she going to do it with it?), she started on her writing career and couldn’t be happier.
Working by day and writing by night (or any spare time she can carve out), she enjoys embarking on romantic quests and daring adventures (living vicariously, you could say) and creating characters that always triumph against the villain (or else what’s the point?), finding their soul mate in the process.
AUTHOR LINKS: https://www.mdgrimmwrites.com