Night Owl Reviews
Dusty has had a harsh existence and things aren't looking much brighter when a shifter "princess" approaches her for a favor. She is screwed if she does and screwed if she doesn't, so she chooses what she envisions as the least dangerous option. Joss is taking one for the team. Or pack as it were. He's resigned himself to never meeting his fated mate, and is ecstatic when she is on the traditional pre-nuptial hunt that will join them and is non other than his intended. But circumstances aren't as they seem, and when Dusty is revealed as his mate but not his intended, things promise to get ugly. Age doesn't determine leadership, as illustrated by Joss's brothers. When Joss follows his heart and chooses Dusty as his bride, things do decline but Dusty proves herself more than capable as an alpha's mate. This was a case of insta-love and while Joss was the hero, Dusty stole the show for me. The short story flowed well and kept me interested and was tied up nicely with an epilogue.