Granite Read Free

looked dumbfounded, her eyes wide and mouth open. She almost looked upset, though Frost couldn’t think why that would be. Before she could respond, a man sidled up beside her. He was the definition of big, burly lumberjack, down to the full beard and red flannel shirt, and good-looking in an especially manly-man type way.
    Several hairs had gotten loose from the upswept bun the woman wore, and he pushed one gently behind her ear. “Everything oaky?” he asked, looking at Frost like if the answer was no, he was going to toss her out of the shop.
    It took a moment, but the woman’s expression changed, a wide smile now gracing her sweet features. “She said I should model.”
    “Fuck no,” the man said, and before Frost could take umbrage on behalf of the woman, he leaned closer, his tone intimate, and if Frost wasn’t so close – and also happened to be a werewolf – she’d have never heard what he was saying. “This gorgeous body is mine alone. Like hell I’m going to let anyone else look at it. But if you want, I’ll take pictures of you tonight.”
    The woman turned the most endearing shade of pink, and she leaned up on tiptoes to give him a kiss. Frost could see the man hold himself back from deepening the kiss and take things from sweet to porno, and the woman gave him a small final kiss before shooing him away.
    She shook her head, turning her attention back to Frost. “Sorry about that. He’s very protective.”
    “You did look upset,” Frost allowed.
    “Very surprised, but that was lovely of you to say. I’m Sophie,” and the woman held out her hand.
    “Frost.”
    “Really?” Sophie leaned forward, her face open and inquisitive. “That’s an unusual name.”
    “It’s a professional name.”
    “Professional?” Sophie’s eyebrows furrowed for only a moment before she nodded to herself. “You’re a model, then? That’s why you suggested it.”
    Frost gave a half-shrug. “Yes, or at least I was. I’ve been on a break for a couple months.”
    “Do you like it?”
    “Sophie, can I interrupt?”
    Coming next to Sophie was the single most stunning man Frost had ever seen. Just like the previous guy owned the whole ‘manly-man lumberjack’, this guy was pure classic beautiful male. Put him beside some of those statues in museums, the statues of warriors and not boy poets, and he’d fit right in.
    His ensemble of white shirt and black slacks was classic, but damned if he didn’t make it work like the most cutting-edge fashion, and the dark tan of throat against the casually unbuttoned collar made Frost swallow hard to bring some moisture back into her mouth. Dark hair that begged to be pulled, hazel-brown eyes, and a beard that was stylish and not lumberjack.
    His smell was divine, and completed the glorious picture. This was not like when she was human, when she adored breathing in the smell of a nice-looking man as he sat next to her. No, this was primal, drilling into the core of her, the musk, the essence of him enveloping her, making her want to stretch over him and rub her skin over his, to let it invade her.
    “Granite. What do you need?” Sophie’s voice brought Frost out of her trance, and she took a sip of her tea to stop herself from acting on her sudden desire.
    “I’m here to meet this lady. Could I have a coffee and a scone, and tell Mica not to yell at me for making you work, please?” His smile held a hint of a tease, the tone suggesting he was doing something he knew was a little irritating, and he was going to do it anyway. All of it good-natured, and all of it in fun.
    “Honestly, that man. I never have a problem doing my job.” And here Sophie rolled her eyes, the casual tone suggesting to even the most unobservant that these two were friends. Sophie turned her attention to Frost, her smile still friendly, though not as intimate. “Call if you need anything else, and enjoy.”
    Granite took the chair across from Frost before she could say anything or ask any