Free Defiance at Werewolf Keep (Werewolf Keep Trilogy) by Nhys Glover

her. But the vixen hadn’t backed down more than a step. She’d thrown back her head to meet Will’s threatening gaze with a sullen glare of her own.
    ‘We’ve been through this before, Charlotte ,’ Will said with exasperation. ‘The roses are yours to care for, but they’re here for everyone to enjoy. If Lily wants to walk these paths and smell the blooms, she can. Do I make myself clear?’
    For a moment longer , Charlotte held her ground. Then she threw a haughty scowl in Lily’s direction and flounced away, black curls bobbing cheekily with each step.
    ‘Don’ t let that one intimidate you, Lass. She’s all bluster. I’m glad to see you out and about, getting a rose in your cheeks. Stayin’ cooped up in that library all day isna healthy.’ He smiled kindly at her and she nodded politely back.
    When she made no attempt to converse with him , Will turned on his heel and strode off as quickly and efficiently as he had come.
    At that moment, Phil came down the path toward her. She had obviously seen the confrontation with Charlotte. When she reached Lily , she looked her over carefully.
    ‘Will keeps a close eye on you, I notice. I have never seen him behave thus,’ she said matter-of-factly.
    ‘Will does not think highly of my ability to look after myself. He also thinks I have set my cap for him. He has told me in no uncertain terms that he has no such feelings for me.’ She couldn’t help huffing a little as she revealed all to this kind but comparative stranger.
    Phil flicked a piece of copper coloured hair back over her shoulder and leaned down to smell a yellow rose. ‘ Have you set your cap for him?’
    ‘No, of course not. In the last twenty-five years, I have never had thoughts of marriage, as other women have. Given my health, it was unrealistic. And I see no reason why I should entertain such thoughts now when I have discovered I may well be a werewolf. From everything I have been led to believe, werewolves are a solitary breed. Jasper appears to be the only exception. If I am to be one of them, then I will also be a solitary creature.  Setting my cap for Will would be both foolhardy and senseless.’
    ‘ I am pleased to hear that. And yes, what you say about werewolves is true. They have never shown an interest in forming close bonds with each other, and our lack of knowledge has kept them from taking romantic risks with uninfected partners. All save Jasper.’
    ‘No werewolf has ever become involved with another of his kind? Why ever not? Charlotte , for instance, is very beautiful. I would have thought someone like Will would have found her to his taste. Far more than…’
    ‘Will has never shown any interest in a female here, as far as I am aware. That is why I find his interest in you so curious. I have felt from the first that their self-loathing keeps them separate. And yet, Will exhibits no such attitude towards himself. He is very at home with his wolf side. So I have no idea why he has never sought out female companionship here, although he would be a fool to look to Charlotte for affection.  She holds few men in high regard.’
    ‘She appears to hold few people in high regard,’ Lily said.
    Phil laughed lightly. ‘Oh, do not be misled by her way. She is not nearly as fierce as she appears. I think her good looks brought her trouble in her old life.’
    ‘However could that be? Someone as pretty and vivacious as she would have had men eating out of her hands.’
    ‘Some men. Other s simply see a pretty face as a trophy to be won and then thrown aside. Charlotte was one of the first residents here, some eleven years ago. I gather she had a wealth of experience with men before being turned at eighteen. Women who become cynical of men at such a young age have been badly treated somewhere along the way.’
    Lily nodded thoughtfully. She had never considered beauty as a detriment. In all the stories she had read, the heroines were always beautiful. It was a requisite for a