Free Lucky Lion (Shifter Mail Order Bride Holiday Romance) (Holiday Mail Order Mates Book 2) by Lola Kidd Page B

to say, things had gotten very out of hand very fast. The theme was bad enough. If it had ended there, Aaron would have only gotten in trouble for throwing a party.
    Instead, he’d gone full idiot. He’d invited his cousins, the ones his mom hated and who were banned from his home. He’d realized why when they showed up in full blackface. That should have been his cue to shut the night down. But nope, Aaron had kept the party rolling until his parents’ home, the one they’d worked so hard to have, had been trashed. Thousands of dollars of damage and several ruined family photo albums later, Aaron had realized he’d made a big mistake. The police weren’t called until the next day. That was the small miracle.
    It didn’t matter that he didn’t get in any trouble with the law. His mom had cried when she saw the house. His dad had punched the wall in rage and then shifted. When Aaron got home, all they would say was that they were “very disappointed.” That was all. Neither of his parents had ever brought it up again, but the damage was done. Pictures from the event were all over town and just his luck, it was a slow news week. There was an editorial in the newspaper about what was wrong with today’s youth.
    He had never been able to live down the shame. Thinking about it made Aaron mad at himself all over again. Over ten years removed, and people would still make jokes in bars. He was occasionally introduced as “you know, Aaron, the guy who had the racist party.” It didn’t come up often, but twice a month was more than enough to ruin his day.
    Aaron was getting himself worked up again. He went to get some air and almost tripped over Nate in the process.
    “What the hell, man!” Aaron stepped over the tiger shifter. “What are you doing back here?”
    Nate blushed. “I was just…looking something up on my phone. Sorry. I’ll get out of your way.”
    He tried to put his phone away, but he wasn’t quick enough. Aaron saw what he had been looking at and laughed.
    “LK Brides? No way, man. Don’t tell me you heard about Kira and Cade? You want a sweet little thing of your own?”
    “Maybe,” Nate muttered, shoving his phone in his pocket. “You gonna make fun of me now?”
    “No. I wouldn’t do that.” Aaron looked serious. “Actually, don’t spread this around or anything, but I was thinking about signing up too.”
    “No way. Why would a guy like you need to use a dating agency?”
    “I don’t have a mate yet, do I?”
    “Good point. Let me know how it goes for you. Good luck.”
    Nate left Aaron alone in the alley.
    He hadn’t been thinking seriously about signing up, but it sounded like a good idea. He didn’t have a mate yet. Maybe LK Brides could help him out like they had his buddy Cade Lincoln. Cade had met a woman on the site the month before and they were already engaged. Kira was a great-looking girl and perfect for Cade. His friend was head over heels, and if he was honest, Aaron was jealous. He wished he had a mate of his own.
    He would sign up as soon as he got off work. They would find him a girl who didn’t know anything about him. A clean start.
    LK Brides had a great reputation among shifters and humans. They specialized in hooking shifters up with their mates. The women he met through them wouldn’t want to play games and date. These women wanted to get married. That sounded great to Aaron. No more messing around. Once he had a good woman at his side and a family, he would finally be able to start a new chapter of his life. His past wouldn’t matter anymore. One stupid party wasn’t going to define him anymore. This would also make his parents very happy. He knew they wanted grandchildren.
    The more he thought about it, the more excited he was. This was the best idea he’d ever had. So what if he’d had rotten luck up until now? That was going to change. He was going to find himself an LK Bride and make his own luck.

Two
    “We’re going to need a lot more garbage