Blue Moon: Love In The Woods, #1

By Shelly Ferguson

All I wanted was a quiet Halloween in the country with my two witchy best friends.

 

For the first time since we got our driver's licenses my two best friends and I were running away from Halloween. We didn't want to go back to the drunken street festival in New Orleans, the all night parties in New York, or the glittery overdone clubs of Las Vegas. This year we just wanted a quiet cabin in the woods where we could drink tea and be in bed by eleven – if the baby let us.

 

The problem? A hot as sin man with the sunniest personality I'd ever met decided to crash our little getaway. I had no idea what kind of man he was - incubus, shifter, vampire, elf or alien - and I really needed to figure it out since he announced we got married over dinner.

 

Blue Moon is the prequel for the new Love In The Woods Series by Shelly Ferguson. It is a fun twist on the grumpy/sunshine trope with just enough magic to make things spicy.

 

Written in single POV, no cheating, and a happily ever after with a hot dark elf.

• Language: English
• Publisher: Shelly Ferguson
• Release date: Mar 1, 2023
• ISBN: 9798223644446

Shelly Ferguson

Shelly Ferguson is best described as a horrible housewife, an awesome mother, an introverted nerd and a hopeless romantic. She lives in the South with her loving hubby, a mermaid for a daughter, two hell hounds, and two miniature divine beings. (Cats – they are cats.) She loves to write stories where the women save themselves, find the man of their dreams, and have a little fun along the way.

Book preview

Chapter 1

I dropped my bag on the sofa as I looked around the living room of the cabin. It wasn’t as bad as I thought it would be, but it wasn’t the fancy hotel we stayed in last year, either. Then again, Del, Lynn and I picked a cabin in the middle of nowhere for a reason.

Look at that. They know exactly what I need. A coffee table sturdy enough for the baby carrier.

I grabbed the candle and mat off the table so Lynn could set the carrier in question down. Honey, you’ve gotten so easy to please. I remember a time when you demanded we switch rooms in a hotel because you didn’t like the art.

She shrugged. These days my needs are pretty simple: food, sleep, and for Audrey to be happy. She hates being on the floor and the coffee table is big enough for her carrier. She’s happy, so I’m happy.

I nodded as I headed out the door for the rest of the bags. I was completely on board with keeping the two-month-old who ran our lives happy.

Thankfully the cabin had a parking space right near the front door, so I only had to carry the suitcases, cat junk, formula, diapers, a portable crib, and boxes of random baby things that were required to keep little Audrey alive and happy a short distance.

A grin spread over my face on the way back to the car. My cat Shady was announcing his displeasure at being left in the car. You wouldn’t think a ball of fluff weighing in at ten pounds could make that much noise, but you would be wrong. I tapped the paw sticking through the wire door until he pulled it back inside. I learned the hard way not to carry him with it sticking out. In the past he’d grabbed everything from plants to a stranger’s ass trying to pull himself to freedom.

I spoke in the same cutesy voice I used on all babies and animals as I picked up his crate. You’re a horrible wittle monster aren’t you? 

It’s a little early in our relationship for you to call me a monster, isn’t it?

One day in the future when I tell this story I’ll claim I calmly faced the stranger behind me with the ultimate Betty Davis sneer. I won’t admit I simultaneously screamed, ducked, and shoved the cat carrier back into the car after being scared out of my wits in a supposedly private driveway in the middle of BFE Tennessee.

I dragged in a deep breath as I turned around, which I promptly choked on when I saw the man attached to the voice. For fuck’s sake he was impossibly hot. A few inches taller than me with a lantern jaw covered in black scruff, messy short hair and a set of shoulders that could carry my ass back to his cave—or wherever a mountain man like him lived.

He tucked his hands into the pockets of his jeans and grinned at me, completely unbothered that he’d taken a year off my life by sneaking up on me.

Excuse me?

My inner hoe snapped to attention when he tilted his head and smiled. I said, it’s too early in our relationship to call me a monster.

Shivers ran down my spine when he asked in the same velvety voice, What’s your name?

Shady brought me back to my senses by sinking his claws in my thigh. What the hell’s wrong with you? Sneaking up on a woman like that in the middle of nowhere and scaring the shit out of her.

Doubt clouded his face. I thought it was funny.

A small part of me wanted to introduce myself so when I jumped his bones we wouldn’t be strangers. My pride, however, had zero interest in letting him off the hook. Fortunately, Lynn stepped on the porch before either of them had a chance to say anything.

Hey, did you find ...

A small smile replaced the doubt on his face when he spotted Lynn. My annoyance ratcheted up a level when he said hello in his velvety voice.

Lynn came down the steps with a smile of her own. Hello.

Mountain man’s eyebrows furrowed as he studied us. I wasn’t sure what he thought had changed since Lynn came out of the house, but he clearly didn’t like something.

She held out her hand. It’s nice to know someone else is here. I thought it’d be just us and the bears until this weekend.

She dropped her hand when he made no move to shake it.

Alrighty then. I’m just gonna grab the port-a-crib. You have a... nice day.

I kept my eyes on him as I lifted a box of food out of the trunk so she could pull out the crib. I wrapped my hand around the crowbar I left in the trunk when I sat the box down. I’d known there was going to come a day when some asshat tried to mug me in a parking lot, but I never thought I’d need it in the woods.

If you’re not a monster, you’re an asshole.

He raised one thick eyebrow as he watched Lynn retreat into the house.

I’m the one you need to be worried about, not her.

His eyes went wide when Audrey squealed.

You’re married to her?

I adjusted my hand on the bar for a better grip. He was rude and homophobic. Excuse me?

Something flashed through my gut when he demanded, Is that your baby?

First, you sneak up on me. Then you’re an asshole to Lynn. Now you want to know if we are lesbian lovers with a baby? What the hell is wrong with you? I pulled the bar from the car and rested my hands on my hips. I wanted him to know I had zero problems knocking him out if he said the wrong thing.

I kept my eyes on his face when he ran a hand through his hair, messing it up even more. I absolutely didn’t notice the way his biceps bunched, or his man boob contracted. Not even a little.

Can we start over?

I don’t think so, you homophobe.

If I wasn’t watching his face so closely I would have missed the flash of anger in his eyes. Don’t call me that. My brother is happily paired with two men.

It was my turn to raise an eyebrow in disbelief. So, you’re not being shitty because you think we’re lesbians with a baby, then why are you being shitty?

He crossed his arms over his chest. I’m not being shitty.

I mirrored his stance. What would you call it?

A failed attempt to break the ice with a beautiful woman?

I snorted. I couldn’t have stopped it if I tried. Dude, you have been alone in the woods way too long. Assuming we were a couple and turning into an asshat? Definitely shitty.

I stomped on the flutters in my belly when he scrubbed his hand down his face, shook his arms loose, and rocked his head from side to side like he was shaking off bad juju.

I’m gonna do this again. Turn around and act like you’re getting your cat.

I didn’t move; not even an eyebrow.

I muttered a string of curse words and turned around when he took three big steps back and did a little shimmy indicating he was waiting and turned around. I kept my grip on the crowbar and watched him through the window’s reflection.

My eyes