Jayden and Alisha really must not have anything to do with their time, because by the time I wake, my phone starts blowing up with their texts informing me that the school theater has been reserved, audio equipment and an operator are lined up, they have a few music people they can ask for help, and today they'd gather the prospects on their list.

I make my way down to Juliet's kitchen to find Alisha typing away on her laptop and Jayden chattering to Juliet about singers. I'm in exercise gear for my morning jog, but I walk over to the pot for coffee first.

"That's decaf," says Juliet. "But I'll make a fresh pot of the rocket fuel you like."

I'm tempted to complain before I realize it could be worse. I could be a werewolf, pregnant and sentenced to decaf as well. "Thanks," I say as I plop down next to Alisha so I can see what she's doing. "You've been busy."

"I know," she says. "But you remember how much I love organizing things."

I frown as I assess her spreadsheet, and then I nudge her out of the way when I see it's all wrong. "You really should have separate sheets." I stop talking while I read through the list of names on the screen, and my heart stops for a moment when I see Quinten Cross. The vision of him combing his fingers through his hair and pulling it up flashes in my mind, and my face flushes with the tingle of desire I feel.

"These are just the guys we know who sing well," says Alisha in an apologetic voice. "Most are fireman friends of our mates. But I'm sure since we put the word out, we'll get more."

Keys click as I rearrange the spreadsheet, and Jayden says, "You sure will. I don't know if you noticed at my wedding, but most werewolves love to perform."

I chuckle as I recall the antics of the werewolves on the dance floor and turn Alisha's laptop toward her so she can see what I did.

"Wow," she says. "That's nice."

"It's simple organization. You'd pick it up quickly if you ever decided to come to LA.” I train my gaze on her. “I'm going to need a great assistant someday."

"Never going to happen." Alisha lets out a sigh as she gets a dreamy look on her face. "I'd never leave Jackson or this place."

"Me either," says Jayden with the same look.

I'd roll my eyes at them, but Juliet is watching me, so I smile. "It’s nice to see you two so happy."

The coffee maker beeps to indicate it's done brewing, and I get up to pour myself a cup. Jayden says, "I booked us an appointment to check out the acoustics at the auditorium at nine."

"Nine?" So much for a vacation. I take a quick swig of my coffee, because giving up my run is out of the question. I'll have to load up on caffeine later. "Don't pour this out. I'll drink it while I get ready."

An hour and a half later, I'm figuring out how to climb into Alisha's truck with my straight skirt. I finally shimmy my skirt up to keep it from ripping and hoist myself up. My friends refuse to ride in my car with the spare tire on it, and Alisha's truck is the only other option since Juliet has pack business to attend to. Jayden is in the back, and she and Alisha wisely keep their thoughts about my outfit to themselves as I scramble into my seat. I yank my skirt down with annoyance.

"Would one of you please help me drop my car off at a tire place later?"

"Of course." Jayden hands me my travel mug. "I've already heard from six guys who are interested in the auditions."

"That's great." I take a sip of my coffee. "How many are on the list now?"

"I added three," says Alisha as we ride down the dirt road, which is significantly less bumpy in her truck than it was in my rental. “I think we're up to eighteen."

Jayden scoots up to be closer. "How many should we aim for?"

"We only need one." Quinten makes an appearance in my thoughts, and my heart flutters as I think about the fact that I'm going to see him again soon.

"That's true," Alisha says as she looks up at the rearview mirror and smiles.

I turn to see that Jayden has a guilty look on her face. "What are you two up to?"

"Nothing," Alisha says as her eyes dance with mischief.

"Jayden. Tell me."

"It's not a big deal. But since only single guys would be willing to move to California for a few months, you're going to be meeting a slew of eligible bachelors. And one might happen to be your true mate."

I laugh. "Right. Don't you think if one of the wolves in this pack were my true mate, I'd have met him at the wedding?"

"I sure hoped so," says Jayden. "But not every free man was there. Four guys had to be on duty at the fire station that night."

It occurs to me that Quinten was likely one of them.

"Yeah." Alisha's truck revs as she speeds up on the main road. "And a few had other commitments."

The last thing I need is my friends trying to fix me up. Especially since I don’t have any intention of leaving California. "Guys, I know you'd love to have me here, and believe me, I'd love to live near you all again too. But I'm afraid you're going to have to accept that the werewolf life is not for me."

"We'll see about that," says Alisha as she slows to pull into a school parking lot. "Never underestimate the power of true-mate love."

"Or fame and fortune." My seatbelt buckle clicks as I unfasten it. "Let's go check out that auditorium."

As we walk across the parking lot, I notice that we can see the falls in the distance. I stop for a moment in the shade of the building to appreciate the beauty. My lungs open up, and I drink in the fresh air of the mountains before we go inside.

I discover that the Smokey Falls high school has a nice setup, and the theater is going to be a suitable location for the auditions.

On the way back to Juliet's, we stop at Sugar Explosion, the bakery the girls mentioned, and get a box of pastries to share with Juliet.

As we pull up in front of the house, I notice my car is gone.

As I scowl, Alisha says, "I bet Juliet arranged to have your tire taken care of."

"That’s very sweet," I say with relief.

"Since she’s the alpha's mate, every werewolf in this pack will jump at the chance to help her. It's nice to have friends in high places," says Jayden as we climb out of the truck.

The aroma of baked goodness wafts toward me as we make our way inside, and my stomach growls as I crave one of the muffins we bought. The pang of hunger disappears quickly though, because once we get inside, I see the calendar Quinten gave me on the kitchen counter. My stomach knots up when I notice Juliet has an amused look that makes me think she opened it up and read what he wrote. And now I wonder what he said, since I never actually looked.

To torture me further, she drums her fingers on top of the calendar as she asks, "How did it go?"

I set the bakery box down on the kitchen counter and reach for the calendar with the hope I can casually take it up to my room. "It's a great space, and it'll work well for what we need."

The moment I grasp the calendar with my fingers, Juliet presses her hand down on it to keep it in place. "I took your car over to the garage. Bruce was backed up, but I told him it was no trouble and to take his time, since you've got plenty of us to drive you around."

I tug on the calendar again, but it doesn't budge. "Thanks. That was very thoughtful of you."

"Any time."

"We brought you a red velvet cupcake," says Alisha as she walks over to the cabinet to get plates.

Jayden pulls down glasses to pour us drinks as I scowl at Juliet. Her lips twitch with a smile. "I never asked who helped you out with your flat tire yesterday."

"Oh yeah," says Alisha. "We didn't hear the story. What happened?"

"A guy on a motorcycle rescued me." I give up on retrieving my calendar and reach for the muffin I'm no longer craving. "It was no big deal."

Juliet lifts the calendar up. "Maybe not to you, but someone made quite an impression on Mr. August."

"What?" Jayden asks as she rushes over to see. "Oh my god. Quinten." She lets out a whoosh of air. "He's super hot."

"Smoking," says Alisha as she comes over too.

"Oh my god!" cries out Jayden again. She looks at me with big eyes. "Why didn't you tell us?"

"Chelsea," reads Alisha as she peers over Juliet's shoulder. "Welcome to Smokey Falls. Call me when you're ready. Love, Quinten." She looks at me. "And he gave you his number." She glances at Jayden. "We know what that means." She gives me a satisfied smirk.

Jayden hits my arm. "I can't believe you. You meet your true mate and don't even tell us? What's wrong with you?"

"Whoa, there," I say. "I did not meet my true mate. I met a guy who is a typical cocky werewolf trying to score with any unsuspecting female he runs across."

Alisha and Jayden shake their heads like I'm an idiot, and I look at Juliet. "Help me out here."

"He is quite full of himself," she says. "But who knows?" She squints at me. "It wouldn't be so bad if you were, though. I bet you'd be on my side and help keep these two out of trouble."

I smile at her even though my chest is tight with my panic. "Sorry. I think you're on your own with that."

"Did you hear that?" Jayden asks Alisha. "Finally, Juliet is on board with one of us joining the pack."

Alisha lifts her hands toward the sky. "Please. Let Quinten be her true mate so she'll stay."

I laugh at her theatrics along with the others, but I'm not laughing on the inside. Instead, I’m trying to figure out what I'll do if Quinten is my true mate, because becoming a werewolf is not an option.