Violet Robichaux was sitting on the chair in front of the large oak desk waiting patiently for Benjamin Walker to come inside to start the interview.

Mine, her tiger hissed. Mine.

So that foul-mouthed man—wolf—was supposedly her mate?

Those really existed?

Violet didn’t have any shifter peers in the New Orleans neighborhood where she grew up. She had a normal upbringing, which her parents had strived to give her. They weren’t mates either; they had explained they chose each other because their personalities were suitable. They had similar goals, and it didn’t hurt that they were both shifters and scientists. Her father was a chemist and her mother was a botanist. Of course, had one of them been a geneticist, perhaps they wouldn’t have thought they were so compatible. Recessive genes, after all, had higher chances of mutations, which her own animal certainly was.

Mine, it insisted, interrupting her reverie.

“Oh hush,” she said aloud. “I told you this can’t happen. Not now.”

It growled unhappily, but she pushed it away deep inside her so she didn't have to listen to it whine. She wouldn’t have gotten this far in her career if she gave in to her animal’s demands all the time. Science required discipline and dedication. Her parents, who were also at the forefront of their own fields, taught her that. It was hard enough for a woman in STEM to get ahead, but a shifter, too? She’d learned to hide that part of her over the years by controlling her inner animal.

And now it seemed to want to break free. All for a wolf. The irony.

She supposed he was attractive in that conventional bad boy kind of way, but he wasn’t her usual type. Like most shifters he was tall and built like a bodybuilder, though he looked like someone who liked to work outdoors and with his hands. The way his white shirt clung to his broad shoulders and chest was practically obscene. And his dark blond hair was a tad too long, although she wondered what they would feel like between her fingers—

The sound of someone clearing their throat jolted her out of her thoughts. “Dr. Robichaux?” Ben Walker said as he walked through the door. “Sorry to keep you waiting. I had to see my wife off.”

“Not a problem.”

He sat on the worn leather chair behind the desk. “You said you had a long flight? From where?”

She rolled her eyes inwardly. Small talk? She didn’t have time for this. "London."

He scratched his head. "Dr. Philipps said you'd been working abroad for six months, but I could have sworn it wasn't London."

She gave him a tight smile. "No, I've been living in Eritana.”

“Eri—wha?”

“It’s a small country in the Caucuses, north of Azerbaijan.”

“And what were you doing there?”

“I was doing research on the properties of the minerals found in the Vaisjaani Nature Reserves,” she said smoothly.

“Sounds, er, interesting.”

She smirked. “Yes, it was fascinating.”

“So why did you leave?”

“We ran out of funding,” she said. It was close enough to the truth. Hopefully he didn't notice the white lie because she had a feeling that despite his hulking size, Ben Walker wasn’t a dumb oaf.

“I see.” He picked up a folder on his desk. “Well, I’ve read through the resume Dr. Philipps forwarded to me. He’s done nothing but sing praises about you. But tell me: why would you want to be our Chief Geologist?”

Violet sighed and her shoulders sagged. This was an amazing opportunity. She would get to study blackstone, the hardest substance on Earth which could only be mined by dragon fire. Anyone in her field would have given their right arm for this and she had been flattered that her mentor, Dr. Scott Philipps, had chosen her as his replacement. But she wished the timing were better.

“Dr. Robichaux?”

“Right.” She cleared her throat delicately. “Mr. Walker—”

“Ben, please.”

“All right. Ben. This job would be excellent for my career. I’ve always been fascinated with the properties of blackstone ever since Dr. Philipps brought a sample to class. So, when he told me about this job a few weeks ago, I jumped at the chance. But I also need to be honest with you. Something came up, and I’m still waiting on another opportunity.”

“And what’s that?”

She cleared her throat. “I’m trying to secure funding to further my research back in Eritania. I’ve left a few things undone. I’m afraid I won’t be able to accept any position at the moment.” She stood up. “My flight was already booked, so I thought I’d come anyway. My apologies for wasting your time.”

“Wait.” Ben got to his feet and raised a hand. “I mean, please stay, Dr. Robichaux, and hear me out.”

Huh? Curiosity pricked at her. “All right.” She sat back down and crossed a leg over her knee.

“Dr. Philipps has been with us for almost twenty years now, and he’s a well-respected part of our team. We’re sad to see him go, but of course he deserves to retire. As you know the position is highly specialized, but aside from the skill and knowledge we also need someone who would fit in around here. With our people.”

“Oh.” He meant shifters, of course. She knew the prejudices they faced.

“I know Dr. Philipps really wants to get on with his retirement, and I hate to keep him here. So how about this: why don’t you fill in temporarily until we can find someone else?”

“Really? You’d let me stay knowing I could leave any moment?”

“Why not? I’ll give you a full six months’ salary, plus housing and all the benefits if you can stay and help us with the transition. I mean who knows, you might like it here and decide to stay.”

She highly doubted that but bit her tongue. A whole six months’ salary for a few weeks of work? If she secured her funding for the year, that additional money could keep her going for another couple of months. Plus she could see them mine the blackstone. She would be stupid to refuse.

“That’s very generous of you. Are you sure?”

“Oh, I’m very sure.”

There was this … glint in Ben Walker’s eye. Was this some kind of trick?

Take it, the logical voice inside her said. The salary was pocket change to Lennox Corporation but would mean all the world to her.

“All right. That sounds reasonable. I also know a few people who might be a good fit.” If she helped them find a replacement, she could leave Blackstone right away and have money to go back to Eritania. This was the perfect solution.

“I’ll have HR draw up the papers. Are you staying in town?”

“At the Blackstone Hotel,” she said.

Ben nodded. “You can keep staying there while you’re here or move into one of our corporate apartments. Just let Janice in HR know what you’d like, and she’ll take care of it for you.”

“That sounds excellent.”

“Can you start tomorrow?”

“Of course,” she said.

“Good. You’ll be working with our Chief Engineer, Nathan Caldwell. He works with Dr. Philipps closely.” He paused. “Is that okay?”

She shrugged. If this Nathan Caldwell worked with Dr. Philipps, she was sure he would be a fine colleague. “That’s fine.”

Ben’s face lit up. “Great.”

She stood up. “If you don’t mind, I’d like to get some rest.”

“Of course. Just call if you need anything else. And, uh …” He looked at her outfit.

“Don’t worry. I have some appropriate work clothes.” She was used to digging in the dirt after all. But, since today was a formal interview, she wanted to look nice.

“Good. You’ll be doing a lot of work inside the mines, so you should wear some sturdy shoes.”

“I will. Thank you again, I’ll see myself out.” With a final nod, she pivoted on her heels and headed out the door.

As she walked to her car, Violet still couldn’t believe what had happened. She was going to be working with blackstone of all things, making a generous salary, and she could walk away anytime she wanted? Maybe the Ben Walker wasn’t as smart as he looked or there was something in the mountain air that was rotting his brain.

A scent in the air caught her attention. It was male, spicy, and smelled so good her knees buckled.

Mine!

“Stop!” She was glad no one was around. It must have been her imagination, or her hyper senses picking up the lingering scent. “He is not ours. Didn’t you hear what he said?”

If her sense of smell was good, her hearing was even better.

Newsflash Ben: I don’t want her either.

You think I want a mate?

I’m drowning in so much—

Jealous growls silenced her thoughts.

“You’re being unreasonable.” She yanked open the door of her rented car. “And I can’t believe I’m even talking to you.”

Violet slid into the front seat and shoved the key into the ignition. A deep breath escaped her lips.

“He’s not interested. He’s far too busy entertaining other women.” The angry snarl was something she’d never heard before, especially not from her own mouth.

“No, we have to forget about him.” She closed her eyes. “Remember why we’re here. So we can go back. Remember.”

Her tiger quieted down as her own chest tightened with pain.

“Now, let’s focus.”

When she didn’t hear any more protests, she turned the key and drove back to her hotel.