A Mate's Escape by Hazel Gower

 
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Prologue
     
     
    Alissa was fourteen years old and probably the only one of her friends who wasn’t dating. No guy had asked her out. She sat in her room wiping tears from her eyes. Three of her friends were out tonight on dates. Last weekend they’d gone on a group date. Alissa was happy for them, but she wanted what they had. Tonight when she wanted to go to the movies and they’d been busy she’d gotten upset.
    A knock on her bedroom door had her brushing under her eyes to make sure her tears were gone. She didn’t want her brothers to see her crying. Her oldest brother was home from base this weekend with one of Alissa’s favorite people, Dolton Brown. He was a family friend, a bear shifter, and Alissa’s biggest crush.
    “Hey brat, what are you up too?” Dolton opened her bedroom door and stepped in. She gazed at him and when his eyes caught hers they narrowed and he growled, “Who the hell hurt you?”
    Alissa shook her head. Her emotions betraying the pain of her friends leaving her out. Shifters had strong senses. “No one.” She sighed. “I just, well I wanted to go to the movies, but all my friends are dating on the weekends and didn’t invite me. I also didn’t get asked by anyone.”
    Dolton’s gaze turned warm and he came and sat on the end of her bed. “Your brother