2008 CAPA Nominee - Paranormal Romance - FATED by Lauren Dane

This is the other Cascadia Wolves book nominated this year and it takes place two years after Standoff ends so the war with the Pellinis is over and the wolves we met in that story arc are mated and growing families. It's only Megan left as all the rest of her siblings have found their mates.

Blurb: Just because Fate brings you your perfect mate doesn’t mean it’ll be easy.

Could there be any worse fate than a road trip from Seattle to L.A.—with one’s mother—to attend a wedding? Why yes, when one isn’t married yet, like Megan Warden. Toss in a grandmother and a carload of already married sisters and it’s a recipe for sneaking sips of “special” coffee while someone else drives.

Shane Rosario has better things to do than attend a wedding where his father’s relatives will be at him nonstop about getting married and having children. If it weren’t for seeing his anchor bond, Layla, he’d have taken a pass on the entire weekend. It would be easy, since he’s become adept at hiding who and what he is.

When the two weren’t even looking, Fate steps in and before they know it, their bond is sealed. Bonded pair, married in the eyes of their people. Two people tied together in every way. Trouble is, Shane’s not sure he wants all that comes with Megan. And Megan’s certain she’s not willing to live outside her pack, pretending to be human.

The distance between them is more than geographical. It’s a widening gulf rapidly filling with resentment…an emotional divide only acceptance could bridge. Can Shane can accept himself to cross it? Only if they let love take control.

Here's a quick excerpt from when Shane and Megan first meet!

Once he’d exited the security area, he passed by a small bar. The Dodger game on the big screen caught his attention first, but nearly immediately he stopped dead in his tracks at the sight of the honeyed blonde sitting alone, sipping her drink. Slow green eyes, heavy lidded but sharp, slid from the game to his face and recognition hit, holding him rooted to the spot.

Her otherness radiated from her body. She wasn’t human but her smile, the way one corner of her mouth tilted up like the curve of a waist, was more than reason enough to overlook it. He was in Los Angeles after all, loads of shifters in the Southland.

He ambled over and she cocked her head as she leaned back and pushed the chair opposite hers out with a prettily sandaled foot.

“Hi there.” He grinned.

The scent of the lime in her soda water tickled his nose. But it was her elemental scent that made his hormones sit up and take notice. She smelled like honey and heady flowers.

She tucked her hair behind an ear and simple gold hoops winked in the low light. “Hi yourself.”

“So the story goes like this,” he said, leaning in to take a deep whiff of her and liking it. A lot. "Here I am, dreading seeing a bunch of relatives and I walk past and see you. The sight of those green eyes of yours just made my day a lot better.”

God he was usually way smoother than this but she made him feel sort of giddy. Stupid with wanting to touch her.

She laughed. “My goodness, I bet you say that to all the werewolves you meet in airport bars.” Her graceful hands fiddled with her napkin, shredding it into long strips and then balling the strips up. Over and over. Silly but it mesmerized him.

He figured Layla would forgive him for being late if he stayed and chatted this lovely lady up for a bit longer. His plane would only be arriving just now anyway, he thought as he checked his watch.

That’s when she checked her watch and swore softly. “I’m sorry. I’m picking someone up. I need to get to baggage claim. If I lose him, my sister will kill me.”

He nearly lost his mind when she stood. Her waist was so close he could have leaned in and brushed his lips against her belly. He smelled her, the heat of her skin, the full-on spice of her arousal. Licking his lips to try and get himself under control, he thought hard and realized what she’d said.