Rhino You Love Me by Lola Kidd Page A

public wasn’t happy. A group of shifter investors bought out the company in a hostile takeover. Then, instead of a hunters’ club, they turned it into a giant vacation island. But there was a special twist to this one: the island was staffed mostly by shifters. There were different areas of the park, including a safari-themed amusement park, an actual safari tour, Safari Town where the staff lived, and a five-star beach resort.
    The hunky shifters were a big draw for people. There was nowhere else you could be on safari and the lions would stroll over and turn out to be one of the tour guides. It was wild. As a poor kid turned even poorer college student, Addison could never afford to go. She didn’t think she’d be able to wait the week until they left.
    “You deserve this, Addison,” Lily told her. “After the crappy two years you’ve had, you need a little holiday. I’m really proud of how you’ve handled yourself. I don’t think I’ve said that before, but I am.”
    Addison teared up. It had been a tough two years. Her parents had lost their home and couldn’t co-sign for her loans anymore after mid-junior year. If it hadn’t been for Lily’s parents offering to foot her half of the rent and getting her a job at the local grocery store, Addison didn’t know how she would have stayed in school. The whole Aris family had been so kind to her and had helped her through her rough patch. It had taken her an extra year to finish school but she’d done it. She was proud of herself too.
    This trip was the perfect way to celebrate her accomplishment. She was still working at the grocery store and had four weeks of vacation saved up. She and Lily were going to have a blast. Those shifters weren’t going to know what hit them.
    ***
    “Thank you for the smooth ride.” A little old lady pinched Chet Gallow’s butt and winked at him.
    “No problem. Have a nice night, ma’am.” Chet smiled down at her. After eight years on Safari Island, he knew it was just part of the job. They didn’t mean any harm and it didn’t happen very often.
    “You too, dear.” The woman grabbed Chet’s arm and stepped off the van.
    He went back inside and checked to make sure everyone and all their stuff was off his bus.
    “I’m all clear,” Branch Durst said, coming onto the van. “They were all so sweet.”
    “They left a big tip, didn’t they?” Chet came to the front of the bus. Branch flashed twenties at him. “Whoa. Can we take all that?”
    “Who’s going to know?” Branch counted the money and then handed Chet half the stack. “We’re allowed to keep tips, man. That’s why we have the envelope.”
    “I thought we were supposed to report anything this big to the front office.”
    Branch laughed. “No way am I reporting this fat tip. I’m going to go out and buy some lovely ladies some drinks. You’re welcome to join me.”
    Chet shook his head. “I don’t think so. Have fun.”
    “Come on. You’re not still thinking about quitting, are you?”
    Chet sat down on the hard plastic seat and nodded. “I think it’s time for me to find something new.”
    “No way, man. You are Safari Island. You’ve been here longer than anyone else and you’re the best driver.”
    “Anyone can drive a van.” Chet got back in the driver’s seat and headed for the garage.
    “No, anyone can’t. We’ve gone through three idiots in the last month.”
    Chet didn’t doubt it was true. All his job required was that he have a clean driving record, no felonies, and not drive the van under the influence. That was it. You could do drugs and drink as much you wanted off the clock as long as you showed up to work clean. Every summer, they’d have a rash of new recruits and without fail, many would show up to work drunk or stoned. It was infuriating.
    Every day tourists put their lives in his hands and there was no way he’d ever take that lightly. He had been the very first shifter hire on Safari Island. He’d gone to high