Sassy Shifter Brides: Complete Series - BBW Paranormal Shapeshifter Mail-Order Romance (26 page)

Sabra sighed under her breath, gripping the building plans in her hands as if they were a raft and she was about to be whisked out onto the stormy sea. Her eyes were narrowed, the hot midday heat pounding down on her, and she could feel her hair frizz under the hard hat.

Breathe. Just. Breathe.
Sabra told herself, her lips pressed into a thin line as she stared at the carnage before her. When she came out to see the construction of one of the new retirement villages in Florida, she had expected a few things. She’d expected to see someone running around without safety equipment, certainly. She’d also been completely prepared for someone having laid a few beams in the wrong order or a roof having a slight slant. That’s what came with the job of being a project management for these building projects – sometimes the men simply didn’t check their work as thoroughly as they ought to.

However, Sabra was not prepared to find the complete and utter disarray that she was now looking at. Not only were the roofs slanted, some were damn near hazardous. She could count more than 20 safety violations just walking onto the site, and as far as she could tell, no one but her and maybe the carpenter, who had cut out the original beams and set the load-bearing walls, had even looked at the building plans. What was supposed to be a neat building site nearing its last month of construction, was instead something more akin to a circus. All it needed was a smoking monkey.

Speak of the devil
, Sabra thought grimly, catching a glimpse of the hefty foreman, who was making his meandering way to her, a smoke sticking out of the corner of his mouth.

She tried her best to conjure up a smile, but she was pretty sure it looked more like a death mask.

„Joe, morning. Care to tell me something?“ she asked, quirking a brow at the man. He looked like a bulldog, overweight and sloppy, just like the houses he had supervised. The thought made the corner of Sabra’s mouth twitch up a little.

„Nope, not really, Sabra. I told you a hundred times, I don’t need none of you corporate types coming to check up on me and the boys. We’re doing just fine. Everything’s on schedule and as demanded,“ he announced, making a sweeping gesture across the building site, which was almost completely devoid of any actual constructing going on. Sabra assumed it was because of the game of cards going on by the gates she had spied when she drove onto the lot.

„Now, Joe, you say that, but I’m going to say that there are a number of issues we need to address,“ she started gently, already weary from the conversation she knew she was going to have with the man. As expected, he inflated like a puffer fish, his cheeks getting round and red and a thick plume of smoke wafting out of his nostrils as he exchanged.

„Like what, Sabra? What you got a problem with now?“ he asked, his voice getting a bit squeaky as he roared.

„Like the fact that none of these buildings are finished while half of them were supposed to be done by last week. I see roofs that are not going to stand through the next gust of wind. I’m pretty sure there are three buildings that are simply built on the wrong lots! We can take the building plans and go through every one of them, and frankly, that’s what I think we should…“

„I don’t think you can tell me what to do, missy. I’ve been working for this company for twenty years and never in that time has anyone had a problem with the kind of work I’m doing!“ Joe announced, cutting Sabra off mid-sentence.

I wonder if that’s because no one’s ever bothered to come look at what the hell you’re doing,
Sabra mused quietly.

“That’s all well and good, Joe, and I’m not saying that it’s entirely your fault. But the fact of the matter is that we’re behind schedule, and these houses look nothing like what was expected on the building plans. Your men aren’t wearing hard hats, there’s a forklift with its engine running in the middle of a site without anyone working on it, the walls look like they’ll collapse on a few of these. If you’d just take a moment to go over these plans with me, maybe we can figure out what’s going wrong. How about that, Joe?” she asked, trying to sound as pleasant as she could. No man had ever liked hearing that he was doing something wrong, especially when it came from a curvy black woman, and Sabra had expected no less from Joe. It kind of became second habit, dealing with the fact that good work was only rewarded with screaming and irritation.

“No, missy. I don’t have time for your nonsense. I’m going to go back to work, and you can take your plans and shove them right where the sun doesn’t shine, you hear me?!” he huffed, throwing his cigarette to the ground and turning around. He headed away from her with long, aggravated steps, and Sabra couldn’t do much other than watch his retreating back, knowing that she was going to get a very angry phone call from a peeved supervisor in a matter of minutes. She fished out her phone from her back pocket, the happy sunshine doing nothing to brighten her mood as she thumbed the device on.

Despite her glumness, a smile spread across her lips as she saw the little blue box blinking on her screen, signaling a message from Tyler Warfang. Okay, so maybe the day wasn’t going to be entirely wasted!

***

“I can’t stand that company,” Sabra grumbled, curled up on the couch, nursing a big glass of red wine. They’d spared no expense tonight – the bottle was mid-shelf, through and through! With her salary, that was the epitome of splurging. Sabra wiggled her toes, the soft, worn leather of the couch brushing against them. As every night, her feet hurt from running from construction site to construction site, and her head pounded from getting yelled, cussed and complained at all day. Working for Sunset Property Development had never been an ideal job, and as time went by, it seemed to be getting worse and worse from where Sabra was standing. Or sitting, as it were.

“I’ve been hearing that for two years now, but I still don’t see you quitting,” Tara teased, topping off her glass. Sabra pursed her lips. Tara wasn’t wrong. The bubbly Georgia peach tended to be spot on with her observations, much to Sabra’s chagrin.

“Well, a girl’s got to eat,” Sabra noted half-heartedly, glancing at her phone that lay on the couch between her and Tara. She’d sent a text back to Tyler as soon as she’d received his, and she was beginning to wonder if she was getting a bit too eager. Weren’t men supposed to like the kind of women who were aloof, distant and hard to get? Well, tough luck then, because Sabra Adams was not that kind of woman. Not by a long shot. She took a sip from her wine, enjoying the tangy, oaky taste as it went down her throat. If Tyler Warfang didn’t want her as she was then she didn’t need any of that noise! It only took her another second before she checked the phone again. So maybe she wanted him to like her a little. At least as much as she liked him, anyway.

“Earth to Sabra!” Tara called, waving her hand in front of Sabra’s face. Sabra jolted up, blinking her deep chestnut-colored eyes.

“What!?”

“I asked if you’ve been talking to Tyler, but I think the way you’re trying to will your phone to buzz is kind of telling me that you have,” Tara said with a giggle, expertly avoiding the throw pillow that was flying towards her head. “Hey, no attacking the casual observer! Not my fault you can be read like a book!”

“I’m not
that
obvious,” Sabra grumbled, giving Tara a look from under her lashes. The expression on Tara’s face told her that she hadn’t been quite as convincing as she’d hoped.

“So, are you? Talking to Tyler? Is he still all you think a man should be?” Tara teased, settling in on the couch. Their apartment wasn’t great, but it was good enough. Sabra’s pay as a project manager for Sunset Property Development, combined with Tara’s pay as a personal assistant to a local fashion designer didn’t exactly add up to a lot of money, but they got by. After a long day of work, it felt good coming home and commiserating with someone about how damn difficult it was to get from one day to the next. She wasn’t going to lie– she would have preferred that someone to be tall, dark and handsome. Maybe like one particular werewolf she had come to know lately.

“Yes, I am talking to Tyler,” Sabra admitted, determined not to blush or get all jittery in front of Tara like she did every time there was a new message on SassyDate. She’d signed up on the dating site on a whim, after having broken up with her last boyfriend more than a few years ago, not expecting to find anyone there that could pique her interest. But she couldn’t have been more wrong. She’d seen Tyler’s profile and even thought about writing him a message, but he beat her to it. It felt like fate when she read his first message, and already she could tell she was going to like the good-hearted, funny man. Maybe he could have been a little bit more down to earth about some things, but Sabra was serious enough for the both of them, she thought.

There you go again, plotting a future with a man you hardly know. Stop it! It’s just a fling! You have a career to think about! No babies!
Sabra chided herself, immediately dimming her mood. If only babies weren’t so cute and Tyler so damn addictive.

“Aaaand? Tell me all the details!” Tara demanded, wiggling her brows at Sabra. She couldn’t help but giggle.

“Well, he’s in Idaho. He and his brother have a construction company there. They live in some small town called Shifter Grove. They’re twins, but he keeps telling me that they’re not at all alike. He’s been teasing me that I should go work for him, that he and his brother need someone to crack the whip and make them work in an organized fashion. Sort of like what I do here. I don’t know. I like him. He’s a cowboy. The kind that opens doors and takes his hat off in the presence of a lady. I bet he wouldn’t scream at me when I point out he did something wrong,” Sabra said, smiling a little.

“Oh, I think every man would yell at you a little when you really get going,” Tara noted sheepishly, trying to avoid her friend’s gaze.

“Like you’re such a delicate daisy yourself, right? Pfft.”

“Are you guys going to meet? It’s been a while since you started talking to him.” Tara pointed out.

Sabra nodded, contemplating the notion. If it were up to her, she’d jump on a plane the next day and go see what the Idaho man was all about. She was itching for a change, but the last thing she wanted to do was put all her eggs in one basket. Having got burned a few times before, she knew all too well what it meant to put herself out there and then get her hopes dashed.

“Maybe. If he proposes it. I don’t want to be too pushy, like I usually am. But some time in Idaho sounds like a good plan, to be honest.” Now, if only there was a way to make her phone buzz and to magically have an invite to Idaho on it.

Not a moment after the thought had crossed her mind, Sabra’s phone buzzed. Before she could grab it, Tara had snatched it up and opened the message. Sabra could just sigh in exasperation. They kept doing that to one another whenever one of them really had the hots for someone. An outside filter was usually a good thing, and this time seemed no different. Sabra was definitely getting more than a little excited about every message Tyler sent. Tara’s brows shot up after she read the message, and when she looked back up at Sabra with her blue eyes wide with surprise, Sabra frowned.

“What is it? What did he say?”

“I think you just got your wish!” Tara said, flipping the phone towards Sabra.

The message read: “Sabra, enough playing around! How about you come over to Idaho and help us out with a few projects for a month? I promise I’ll behave. I think we have something special between us, and if we don’t give it a chance, I’ll never be able to forgive myself. Say yes.”

For the first time in a very long time, Sabra was honestly speechless.

CHAPTER TWO

“I told you this shit would happen,” Trey said, visibly glum as he shot his twin a scathing look. Tyler’s arms were crossed over his chest, and while Trey’s expression spoke of annoyance and sheer irritation, Tyler was all unbridled anger. They were standing on the sight of the soon to be Shifter Grove kindergarten, or what used to be the soon to be kindergarten. Now it was just a smoking pile of rubble, still smoldering as the midday sun beat down on it. Tyler kicked a scorched bit of wood across the concrete foundation – the only thing that had survived the blaze. It skidded over the edge before stopping in a larger stack of burnt wood. Some rat bastard had come and set fire to the latest building he and his brother were constructing, and they just had to pick Slate’s new mate’s pet project. Not that burning down anything was a particularly welcome thing to do, but the kindergarten had so much love and hope put into it already that it damn near broke Tyler’s heart to see it in ruins.

He took a deep breath and scuffed a hand through his hair, leaving his palm on the back of his neck. The day had started out so well. He’d heard from Sabra that she was willing to take him up on his offer, and that was just about the best news in the world. On the way to the site he’d been contemplating how to tell his brother that he was intending to bring a woman home – one who he was sure would complete their Alpha trifecta. Tyler had honestly hoped that the most difficult thing he would have to do that day was dealing with his incredulous brother demanding to know why on earth he thought that choosing a mate for the both of them would be a good idea.

“You did indeed,” Tyler agreed. “So what are we thinking? Blacktooth brothers?”

“Has to be. Who else would be such incredible shitheads to burn down a kindergarten?”

“Well, it wasn’t a kindergarten yet,” Tyler offered with a placating smile. The huff he received from his twin was enough to extinguish any hopes of making light of the topic. “Right. I guess we get to clean this up and start all over again. Good thing we didn’t move all of the timber from Warren’s mill to the site yet.”