It was nearing sunset when the roar of a motorcycle engine close by rumbled loud, then suddenly silenced.  Curious, I got up from my seat and stepped over to the side gate. And there was Aidan, sliding off his bike with ease, heading over to me. He moved like he didn’t have a care in the world, but I knew better. His bright eyes swept around, assessing his surroundings like second nature. Long, smooth strides towards me like he was in a music video, my breath caught in my throat. Upon seeing me gawking, his lips curved into a welcoming smile. 

“Hello Kharma,” he finally spoke, taking off his aviators to reveal stark green eyes. “Sorry, I’m late.” He opened the gate that separated us and united us in a hug.  I swear, this guy gave some of the greatest hugs! 

His tight, welcoming embrace sent a rush of endorphins that felt a lot like a deep sigh of relief. Releasing him I grinned. “No worries at all. I was well taken care of while I waited. Thanks for having me over.” I sat back down in my seat, watching him quietly sit across from me. He set his backpack next to his feet and looked around. 

“Can I get you anything?” He raised an eyebrow.  “Water to wash down that deer sausage?”

I cleared my throat, realizing there’s not much hidden from an Aristan Shadowshifter. “You didn’t have to put me out there like that. I couldn’t say no…it smelled too delicious and didn’t want to offend.”

Aidan chuckled. “I’m just teasing. I’m glad some of my people came by and shared. We love feeding folks. Breaking bread is a deep signal of trust and goodwill.”

I nodded. I’m honored. And actually water would be great. I’m pretty chatty and will run my mouth dry I’m sure.”

His bright green eyes flickered with amusement as he stood up to his tall, intimidating frame. “No trouble at all.  I’ll be right back.” 

I watched his swagger as he went through the back door and fanned myself.  And yes, it was hot outside, but no, that wasn’t the reason I was fanning if you catch my drift (and I think you do). He didn’t let me wait long as before I had time to let my imagination go to fantasyland, I heard the slide door open. I sat up as Aidan strode towards me with a frosty, wet bottle of water in his hand. 

“Here you go, Miss Kelley.” Handing it to me, I let the cold water drip onto my thigh as a welcomed comfort.

“Thank you!” I replied wasting no time opening the top and taking a sip. The ice cold liquid soothed my throat and instinctively made me smack my lips. “Ahh.”

Aidan sat down across from me and laughed at my over dramatization of feeling refreshed as I pulled out my phone and got it situated to record our session. 

“So, my readers would love to know more about you, but first, please tell us more about your world. What is the difference between a ShadowShifter and a werewolf? Or is there even a difference?”

“Well, I think the term werewolf has been used too loosely these days. But of course in the old days, the breakdown of the word ‘were’ meaning ‘man’ and 'wolf’.  We are humans with the power and soul of a wolf, so perhaps the term could work.”

“Well, you’re not what comes to mind when I think “American Werewolf in London” or “Bitten”

He scoffed. “Gees. Maddie loves that show.” He rubbed the back of his neck. “Well, probably not. We are different because unlike those creatures, we can change into different stages of a wolf. Depending on my strength, I can turn some of my body into a wolf, or completely, for various lengths of time.”

I nodded as his explanation made sense. “So basically you can either be the creature from ‘American Werewolf in London’ or “Bitten.”

He smiled. “Exactly. I can change at will.” 

I suddenly was giddy with sweaty palms, trying to be bold in my request. “Could you please change for us?” I quickly waved my hand, afraid he would fully turn in front of me. “Just a small change!” 

Aidan raised an eyebrow, shaking his head at my concern. “Okay. Something small.” He leaned back in his seat and closed his eyes. After a moment he opened them to reveal a stark pair of bright amber eyes staring back at me. They were no less gorgeous as they were haunting. My breath caught in my throat. “Whoa. That’s really cool.”

As gorgeous as they were, he blinked and they were gone. He cleared his throat and took a sip of water. “Our Thesian counterparts are not so fortunate. They can only change with the full moon. It’s a big disadvantage to them.”

“Do you think the feud will ever stop between the Aristans and Thesians?”

“That’s a hard question.  Would I like the feud to cease? Absolutely.  We’ve lost countless friends and family to these battles. He rubbed the medallion on his neck. “We’ll never see them again until we cross the great halls of the Selene Palace and into Eoncé.” He looked up. “But will it stop? It depends on if there’s belief we can forgive and learn to co-exist. The sad thing is that we’re really not that different from each other. We believe in packs, family, a mate to love. Children to bore and lives to live.  We love the wolf inside us and crave the moon and the Goddess who made us. In the end, we’re all ShadowShifters.”

I sighed deeply, understanding exactly what he meant. “Perhaps one day, things will change, with Aristan and Thesian alike fighting for a common future.”

Aidan looked into the flames of the fire pit, then finally to me, a small, hopeful smile. “I look forward to that one day.”

I moved my phone to the arm of the chair as I shifted to get more comfortable.  It was time for my favorite part of the interview. “Okay, now it’s time for you to share a bit more about you, Aidan.  This part of the interview is called Rapid Fire.  I throw you some questions and you answer immediately.  Just say the first thing that comes to mind.”

His brows drew together. “Alright. I think I can do that. Whatever answer comes to mind?”

“Yep.”

“What rating?”

I frowned. “Huh?”

Aidan leaned closer. “Should my answers be PG-13…R…NC-17—”

I gasped. “Aidan!”

He grinned. Gah, that smile was devastating. “I’m kidding, sort of.”

“We’re all adults. So say what you’re comfortable with. You ready?”

He leaned back in his chair, folding his arms. “Go for it, xerhmon.”

I’m not gonna lie, I got a little giddy when he referred to me as the Aristan term of endearment. I had to take another drink of water and settle myself.

“The wolf from “Little Red Riding Hood”...” 

“Uh huh.”

“Good guy or Bad guy?” I asked.

Aidan winked. “Bad guy in a good way.”

My mouth twitched. “The wolf from The Three Little Pigs Good guy or Bad guy?”

“Misunderstood.”

I choked on my water. “Looks like someone has a bias, but I’m not saying any names.”

Aidan’s eyes widened into feigned shock. “Who? Me?”

I finally sobered, with eyes narrowed. “MmmHmm.” I looked down for my next question.  “Okay--what’s your favorite treat to enjoy?”

When all I got was silence, I looked up to see Aidan sporting a little sexy smirk. It was like he was dying to say something wildly inappropriate. “Do you have a PG-13 answer for me, Mr. Bloodlocke?”

He slowly shook his head. “Not at all, Miss Kelley” his eyes blazed with wicked intent. “But I will say that it lies in a wondrous valley between--”

With wide eyes, I cleared my throat. “Ohh-kay! Duly noted, loverboy.” I chucked nervously. “Are you a morning or night person?”

“Definitely a night person. I love the darkness and going for runs under the cover of  night.  It’s liberating.”

“What were you like in High School?”

“I don’t think anyone would’ve liked me in those days. I was a real problem child, and hanging with Cam wasn’t any better.  But, he was the only wolf my age that understood me and judge. We seemed to balance each other out and so we became, for lack of a better term, road dogs. We moved around a lot back then, so school was miserable being the new kid.”

“Yeah, that’s not exactly gonna help you put down roots and be a good student. What about your Beta, Cameron Flanagan? Seems a pretty interesting guy.  He’s a bit mysterious.”

Aidan laughed. “Well, let’s just say that Cam’s a royal pain in the ass. But he has a right to be sometimes.”

“Any advice for your previous boss?”

“Yes. Sleep with one eye open, asshole.” 

I couldn’t help but laugh.

“Don’t go near that guy, seriously. I wouldn’t want to have to bury someone out in the forest.  He was a creeper and a cheapskate.”

“Here’s one I’ve been dying to ask. What word would you add to the dictionary if you could, what would it mean?”

Aidan tilted his head. “Funny you should ask that. There’s not a direct translation for it into your language, but it’s called K’yeshuwan. It basically means the power one gains after suffering so much loss.  The human heart is amazingly strong and fragile at the very same time.  That resilience one must have even in the face of so much failure is powerful.  It is believed that the Goddess Arista rewards those who choose the hard road and chooses to fight even in the face of loss. That is K’yeshuwan.”

“That’s a really interesting share and I love what it means. I’m gonna need help spelling that later.” I winked. “Describe the perfect kiss in 3 words.”

Aidan looked off as to ponder the question.

“Well, don’t think too long on it.” I warned.

“Soft. Passionate. Possessive.”

Nice, I thought as I looked at his lips. Gonna be thinking about that the rest of the night, along with that “treat” question! “What is your biggest addiction?”

He casually took a sip of water. “A beautiful veterinarian named Maddie Ardelle.”

Poor Maddie. I don’t know how the woman manages to get any rest with that dude chasing her around. 

“Here’s a fun one for ya. What’s the sexiest trait of a woman for you?”

Aidan shifted in his seat, smiling. “That’s really tough. I would say it would be her mouth.”

“You mean lips?” I try to correct.

Aidan shook his head. “No, that’s not enough.  Some of the most amazing things come from a woman’s mouth.”

I lean forward, listening to him, but also anticipating something insanely dirty coming from his sexy mouth, but I wait it out. “Go on…” I encouraged.

“I love a woman’s laugh when she’s amused or finds joy. Her mouth curves up to make a beautiful smile and in that moment, you’d swear you were looking at the Goddess herself. When she speaks her mind, you realize that she has let you in and suddenly you’ve connected in a way that very few men get to see…and even less get to know.” the flickers of the embers played against the masculine features of his handsome face. “And when she calls your name the first time you give her pleasure, the pleas of surrender, honestly, there’s no greater satisfaction in the world.”

He finally looked over to me with a gentle smile. “You’re spilling your water, Miss Kelley.”

“Huh?”

Aidan’s eyes looked down and finally I snapped out of whatever spell he cast to find I’d leaned over so far enthralled by the images his words played in my head, my water was pouring out onto the deck. Jumping, I quickly recovered, setting the near-empty bottle down on the table and shaking water from my shoes. “Shit! It’s all good. Just needed a way to cool off.” 

He laughed. “You’re blushing. Do you need a minute?”

I wiped my heated face trying to cover it briefly before chiding him playfully. “Nope! Mind your business, wolf!”

Aidan put up his hands defensively, feigning offense. “My mistake, Miss Kelley. We can continue if you like.” His adorable and playful laugh was enough to relax me; It really felt  like I was just visiting a friend and shooting the shit.

“Alright, back to questions.” I tap the pen against my lips. “What compliment do people give you the most?”

“That I have nice eyes.”

And yes folks, he does. Among other things.

“Okay, last question. How do you say “I love you” in your native tongue?”

“Xerhio mesha” 

My eyes lit up.“Ooh. How do you say it again?” I loved the way it rolled off his tongue. 

He leaned forward. “It’s pronounced Zer-hee-Oh-mesh-ah.”

“Wow. I’m learning that your language is really pretty, Aidan.  Is the Thesian language different?”

Aidan nodded. “Only a little. Some words mean a little different in their language and the dialect is definitely different.  I guess to someone who doesn’t speak Aristan or Thesian I imagine they would both sound pretty much the same. But little subtle changes make them very different.”

“Thank you, Aidan for taking time out to talk with me and my readers. It’s been a pleasure chatting with you.”

Aidan stood up and walked over to my chair. “Likewise. I hope your readers had fun. I did. I’m happy to hang back and answer any questions they may have for me.” He extended his hand, offering to help me up from the seat.

Looking at the time, I switched off my phone from recording and placed it in my bag. Gently, I took his hand to stand. “That’s very sweet of you.  Maddie was right about you,” I teased. 

Intrigued, his brows furrowed. “Oh? What did she say?”

“Said that you’re quite the sweetheart when you think no one’s lookin’.” I grinned. 

Aidan laughed, his eyes now bright amber. “Oh darlin, don’t let the sweet smile fool you. She knows as well as you do, I’m nothing but a wolf in sheep’s clothing.”

And that, ladies, is why Aidan Bloodlocke is the leader of the pack :)

***

Hope you all enjoyed my interview with the hero of Selenium Night, Aidan Bloodlocke. If you haven’t read his story yet, what are you waiting for?  There’s so many things I like about him: An Alpha wolf shifter biker badboy - I couldn’t find a bad word in the sentence, could you?