Page 6 of Craved by the Werewolf (Mystic Ridge Monster Mates #2)

VALA

B uzz. Buzz-buzz. BUZZ. Buzz-buzz-buzz.

"What the hell?" I croaked, reaching for the phone with all the enthusiasm of someone defusing a bomb.

Three Hundred. And. Forty. Seven.

"Oh, shit."

I sat up so fast my head spun. My Glitter mentions looked like a war zone. Glimpse was having what could only be described as a collective meltdown. And Fangbook—sweet Goddess, even Fangbook was losing its mind, and nothing interesting ever happened on Fangbook.

The first post I saw made me drop the phone like it was on fire.

OMG DID ANYONE ELSE JUST HEAR THE SEXUAL TENSION BETWEEN NIGHTINGALE AND THORNE??? I'm DEAD.

"No, no, no, no, no."

I scrambled to pick up the phone, accidentally opening Eclipz instead. Big mistake. HUGE mistake.

Someone had made a remix.

A REMIX.

Of Thorne saying "I like a woman who doesn't flinch when I bare my teeth" set to some kind of sultry jazz background with my dead-air silence as the dramatic pause. It had 1.3 million views.

"I'm going to die. I'm actually going to die."

I scrolled down. The next one was worse. Someone had edited together every word from the promo, slowed it down, and added heavy growling and text that said "POV: You're hearing two people fall in love in real time."

I made a sound that probably violated several noise ordinances.

The comments were... a lot.

"THE WAY HE SAID HER NAME THOUGH"

"The CHEMISTRY. I felt like I was interrupting something."

"Alpha Thorne can bare his teeth at me ANYTIME"

"Someone check on Nightingale, I think she short-circuited when he said that"

Glitter was somehow worse. #BareYourTeeth was trending. #AlphaThorne was trending. #NightingaleBae was trending, which made me want to crawl into a hole.

But the real kicker? #NightAlpha.

I sat down. On the floor. Because my legs had given up.

They'd given us a ship name. WE HAD A SHIP NAME. And if that wasn't bad enough, a splinter faction was pushing for #Valpha instead, with a whole thread debating the merits of each option like it was some kind of critical global issue.

My phone rang, nearly giving me a heart attack. Mika's face appeared on the screen, grinning like she'd won the lottery.

"Don't answer that," I told myself. "Just let it go to voicemail. Pretend you're dead. Change your name and move to Montana."

I answered it.

"VALA!" Mika's voice was so loud I had to hold the phone away from my ear. "Have you seen?—"

"The internet having a collective breakdown about my non-existent love life? Yeah, I'm aware."

"Non-existent? Honey, I was standing three feet away from you two! The temperature in that studio went up about twenty degrees when he?—"

"Mika. No."

"When he leaned in and practically growled into that microphone while staring at you like?—"

"MIKA. NO."

"Fine, fine. But you need to see this." Her voice took on that dangerous tone that meant she was about to make my day infinitely worse. "Check your email."

"I don't want to check my email."

"Check. Your. Email. Now."

I switched to email, immediately regretting it. The subject line made my stomach drop.

RE: Last Night's Ratings and This Morning's... Developments

"Corporate?" I asked weakly.

"Corporate. They're thrilled. Apparently, last night's show had the highest ratings in Ridge FM history. And this morning's social media explosion has been—and I quote—'beyond their wildest dreams for audience engagement.'" She didn't breathe. "And I'll be at the meeting today for support."

"Really?" Thank the heavens.

I opened the email with all the enthusiasm of someone opening an official letter from ARC.

Ms. Nightingale,

Last night's promotional segment exceeded all expectations. The social media response has been unprecedented, with #BareYourTeeth trending nationally, and Ridge FM mentioned in Enchanted Weekly's morning roundup.

Your chemistry with Alpha Kaine is exactly the kind of authentic connection that drives audience investment. We're moving forward with an expanded promotional campaign featuring both of you.

Congratulations on this exciting development.

Best regards, Jancy Morrison Regional Director

"Oh Goddess, they think we have 'chemistry,'" I said, air-quoting with my free hand. "They want to use our 'authentic connection' for marketing."

"Don't you?" Mika asked, and I could hear the smirk in her voice.

"Don't I what?"

"Have chemistry. Because, sweetie, I've heard a lot of promos, and that was not just good radio. That was?—"

I hung up on her.

Immediately, my phone started buzzing again. I ignored it and stumbled to the kitchen, desperately needing coffee before I dealt with whatever fresh hell awaited me.

But I couldn't stop myself from looking.

Someone had made fan art. TASTEFUL fan art, but still. There I was, drawn in some kind of anime style, sitting across from a very attractive cartoon version of Thorne. The caption read: "When the radio host meets her match"

I opened Glimpse. Mistake number... I'd lost count.

Ridge FM's official account had posted a photo from last night—Thorne and me in the studio, him leaning toward his mic, me staring at him with what I now realized was probably the most obvious expression of attraction ever captured on camera. I cursed Ladran and his damn camera.

The caption: Last night's show was hot. What did you think of Alpha Kaine and Nightingale's dynamic?

The comments were... a journey.

"Ma'am we all know what we witnessed last night"

"The way he looked at her in that picture, when she introduced him... I CAN'T"

"Someone needs to check if there's a wedding date yet because I'm CRASHING"

"Nightingale.exe stopped working when he said that thing about baring teeth"

And then, buried in the comments, one that made me spit coffee all over my kitchen counter:

"My grandmother called me this morning to ask if 'that nice radio girl is dating the Alpha boy' because apparently the whole Senior Center was listening, and they have OPINIONS."

And right beneath it:

"Team #NightAlpha or Team #Valpha? Discuss"

"#Valpha is shorter but #NightAlpha sounds more badass"

"Only basic witches use #Valpha"

"I need stronger coffee," I muttered. "Or alcohol. Definitely alcohol."

My phone rang again. This time it was an unknown number.

"Hello?"

"Vala! This is Becca Harwood from Channel 7 News. We were wondering if you'd be available for a quick interview about your relationship with Alpha Kaine and how it might affect supernatural-human relations in the region."

I hung up so fast I probably broke the speed of sound.

The phone immediately rang again. Different number.

"Northwest Paranormal Podcast here! We'd love to have you on to discuss the romantic dynamics between?—"

Click.

Again.

"Monster Mate Magazine?—"

Click.

"OH FOR THE LOVE OF—" I turned off my phone and threw it on the couch like it had personally offended me. Which, to be fair, it had.

In a few hours, I had to look Thorne in the eye and pretend the internet hadn't just planned our honeymoon.

I looked at my reflection in the dark coffee pot. My hair looked like I'd been electrocuted, I was wearing a tank top that said, "I'm Not Morning People," and I had the general appearance of someone who'd been hit by a truck full of mortification.

"Okay, Vala," I said to my reflection. "You're a professional.

You can handle this. So what if the entire Mystic Ridge community thinks you and the Alpha are destined soulmates?

So what if there are probably fanfiction stories being written about you right now?

So what if you have to look him in the eye after everyone heard your entire malfunction on live radio? "

I paused.

"I'll be okay."

But first, I was going to need the strongest coffee known to humankind and whatever was left of my dignity.

"I'm so screwed."