Howl Language (Paranormal Dating Agency #97)

Chapter 1

ONE

ELECTRA

Electra folded another sweater into her suitcase as she tried to ignore the hollow ache in her chest. Sunlight streamed through the floor-to-ceiling windows of her Hartford apartment that overlooked the bustling city, illuminating the empty spaces where her desk used to sit.

The same infamous desk where she’d written Alpha’s Redemption and Moonlight Surrender, and where readers first fell in love with her brooding shifters and fierce heroines.

Where I used to be somebody who mattered.

The thought hit harder than she expected.

Three months. Three months of staring at blank pages, of characters who refused to speak, and of plots that crumbled before they began.

Her publisher’s deadline loomed like a storm cloud, and every passing day without progress felt like another nail in the coffin of her career.

“Maybe I should just quit.” The words escaped before she could stop them, hanging in the empty apartment like a confession.

She shook her head and grabbed another handful of clothes.

Quitting wasn’t an option—Cosette had made that abundantly clear.

When Electra had mentioned it two weeks ago, her editor had gone into full crisis mode, making frantic calls and pulling strings until she’d somehow connected with this Gerri Wilder woman who claimed she could solve everything with a change of scenery.

A cabin in the mountains.

Electra still couldn’t believe she’d agreed to it.

She, who thrived on coffee shops and city energy, was about to relocate to the middle of nowhere based on the recommendation of a woman she’d never met.

The whole thing screamed disaster, but something deep in her gut had whispered yes when Gerri described the remote location.

Her phone buzzed with a text from Cosette: Almost there. Coffee in hand. Prepare for chaos.

Right on cue, the apartment door burst open. Cosette swept in like a redheaded hurricane, her hazel eyes bright with manic energy and two steaming coffee cups balanced in her hands.

“Emergency caffeine delivery!” She thrust a cup toward Electra, her stylish bob swinging as she surveyed the packed boxes. “Good lord, you actually did it. You’re really leaving civilization behind.”

“Well, Gerri guaranteed the mountain air would clear my creative blocks.” Electra accepted the coffee gratefully, inhaling the rich aroma. “Though I’m starting to think this is just an elaborate way for you to get rid of me.”

“Please. If I wanted to get rid of you, I’d have shipped you to Nebraska.” Cosette perched on the edge of a box, her laptop bag slung across her shoulder like always. “This is about saving your sanity and your career. Gerri knows exactly what she’s doing.”

“Does she? Because agreeing to move somewhere sight unseen based on a five-minute phone call feels like the setup for a horror movie.” Electra took a sip of coffee, letting the warmth steady her nerves. “What if I get there and it’s some decrepit shack with no Wi-Fi and bears outside my door?”

“Then you’ll have the most authentic writing retreat ever.” Cosette’s grin turned wicked. “Think of it now. City Girl Survives the Wilderness: A Romance. Your readers would eat it up.”

“Assuming I actually survive to write it.” But despite her protests, something fluttered in Electra’s chest—not quite excitement, but close. For the first time in months, she felt something other than the crushing weight of creative emptiness.

Cosette stood and began grabbing random items, tossing them into the nearest suitcase with characteristic chaos. “You know what your problem is? You’ve been writing about adventure and passion for years, but you’ve been playing it safe in your own life. When’s the last time you took a real risk?”

Electra opened her mouth to argue, then closed it. The truth was, she couldn’t remember. Her life had become a comfortable routine of writing, editing, and repeat. Safe. Predictable.

Boring.

“That’s what I thought.” Cosette’s expression softened slightly.

“Look, I know this feels insane. Trust me, when Gerri suggested a remote mountain cabin for my burned-out romance author, I nearly hung up on her. But something about the way she described it...” She trailed off, shaking her head.

“She said it was exactly what you needed to find your inspiration again.”

“What if there’s none to find?” The question slipped out, raw and vulnerable.

Cosette’s hazel eyes flashed. “Don’t you dare. You’re Electra Calloway. You created Raven Sinclair and her pack of gorgeous alphas. You made readers believe in fated mates and true love and happily ever after. That doesn’t just disappear because you hit a rough patch.”

“Three months isn’t a rough patch. It’s a creative coma.”

“Then consider this experimental surgery.” Cosette glanced at her phone. “Speaking of which, we need to move. Gerri’s waiting at the real estate office, and she doesn’t strike me as the patient type.”

They worked in companionable silence for the next few minutes, Cosette’s chaotic packing style somehow managing to fit everything that mattered.

As Electra zipped up the last suitcase, she caught her reflection in the bedroom mirror.

Dark circles shadowed her green eyes, and her usually vibrant smile had faded to something wan and uncertain.

“What if this doesn’t work?” The question escaped as a whisper.

Cosette paused in her assault on the remaining items. “Then we’ll figure out plan B.

But Electra?” She turned, her expression fierce with loyalty.

“You’re not allowed to give up. Not on your writing, not on yourself, and definitely not on the possibility that something amazing is waiting for you in those mountains. ”

Something amazing.

The words stirred something in Electra’s chest. Maybe Cosette was right.

Or maybe this would be the biggest mistake of her life.

“Come on.” Cosette hefted her laptop bag and headed for the door. “Time to meet the mysterious Gerri Wilder.”

Electra took one last look around the apartment that had been her sanctuary, her creative haven, and her home for the past decade. Then she grabbed her suitcases and followed Cosette out the door, stepping into the unknown.

The real estate office squatted between a coffee shop and a bookstore on Hartford’s main drag, its glass windows reflecting the afternoon sun. Electra pushed through the door, Cosette close behind, and immediately spotted the woman who could only be Gerri Wilder.

She commanded the small office despite her diminutive stature—maybe four-eleven in heels, her snow-white bob gleaming under the fluorescent lights, and her bold blue designer pantsuit fitting like it had been tailored specifically for her frame.

But it was her presence that made Electra pause.

Confidence radiated from Gerri like heat from a furnace, the kind of self-assurance that belonged to someone twice her size.

When she looked up from the papers spread across the real estate agent’s desk, her gaze hit Electra with uncomfortable precision.

“Electra Calloway.” Gerri’s voice carried warmth and authority in equal measure. “You’re even more beautiful than your author photos suggest.”

Heat crept up Electra’s neck. “Thank you. And you must be Gerri.”

“Guilty as charged.” Gerri’s smile revealed perfect teeth. “Though I prefer to think of myself as your fairy godmother with better shoes.”

Cosette snorted beside her. “I like her already.”

The real estate agent, a nervous man in his fifties, shuffled papers with shaking hands. “Ms. Calloway, everything’s ready for your signature. The cabin’s been prepared, utilities connected, and your furniture arrived this morning as scheduled.”

Electra stared at the contract. The mountain cabin sat in Blackpine—a town she’d never heard of with a population under two thousand.

Less than two thousand people.

“This is incredibly remote.” She looked up at Gerri. “Are you sure this is what I need?”

Gerri’s eyes—were they blue or gold?—seemed to shift in the light. “Wild places find the lost.”

The cryptic response sent a shiver down Electra’s spine. There was something too knowing about Gerri’s expression, as if she could see straight through Electra’s carefully constructed walls to the creative wasteland beneath.

“That’s either profound or complete nonsense,” Electra muttered.

“Sometimes they’re the same thing.” Gerri’s laugh tinkled like wind chimes. “Trust me, darling. This cabin will give you exactly what you need.”

What I need is inspiration, not isolation.

But Electra’s hand moved toward the pen anyway. Something deep in her gut whispered that this was right, even as her rational mind screamed warnings.

The signing happened in a blur. Her signature flowed across documents she barely read, committing her to a year-long lease on a property she’d never seen. Within minutes, the real estate agent handed over keys that felt warm against her palm.

“Everything should be exactly as you requested,” he said.

Cosette squeezed her shoulder. “I’ll arrange for the rest of your things to be delivered in a few days. You’ll have everything you need.”

Panic fluttered in Electra’s chest as they stood to leave. Three hours north to a town that barely existed on maps, to live alone in the wilderness.

What had she done?

“If you’d like,” Gerri said, her voice casual as she gathered a large designer bag, “I can accompany you to keep you company and make sure you settle in safely. There’s more to these woods than meets the eye.”

Electra hesitated. Independence had been her armor since childhood—she handled things alone, made her own decisions. But something in Gerri’s offer felt like a lifeline.

“Take her with you,” Cosette nudged her with an elbow. “It will be fun.”

Fun. When was the last time anything had been fun?

“All right. If you don’t mind the drive.”

“Darling, I’ve been looking forward to some adventure all week.”

Once outside, Gerri’s bag proved surprisingly heavy as they loaded it into Electra’s sedan. When Electra peeked inside, she found an arsenal of snacks, bottled water, and what looked like homemade cookies wrapped in tissue paper.

“You came prepared.” Electra raised an eyebrow.

“I believe in being ready for anything.” Gerri settled into the passenger seat with the satisfaction of someone whose plans were falling perfectly into place.

Too perfectly.

But Electra pushed the thought aside as she started the engine and headed north. Hartford’s familiar skyline disappeared in her rearview mirror, replaced by rolling hills that gradually transformed into dense forest.

Gerri remained silent and observant for the first hour, her presence both comforting and unnerving.

Electra felt like she was being evaluated against some invisible standard.

She turned up the radio, letting pop music fill the uncomfortable quiet.

But as they climbed higher into the mountains, the signal began to fracture.

Static replaced melody, then faded entirely. Her phone showed one bar, then none.

“Welcome to the wilderness,” Gerri said, reaching over to turn off the radio. “Where connection means something different.”

The forest pressed closer to the road now, towering pines that blocked most of the late afternoon sun. Electra couldn’t remember the last time she’d seen so much green, so much untouched nature.

“So tell me about your love life.” Gerri’s question came out of nowhere, delivered with the same casual tone she might use to comment on the weather.

Electra nearly swerved. “Excuse me?”

“Your romance novels are absolutely divine. All that passion, and those alpha heroes who’d move mountains for their women. Surely your own love life must be equally inspiring.”

A laugh escaped before Electra could stop it, bitter and sharp. “God, no. My love life is a graveyard of men who were either terrified of commitment or so committed they wanted to plan our wedding on the second date. None of them ever gave me that spark I write about.”

“Ah, interesting.” Gerri nodded as if this confirmed something. “You haven’t found your soulmate yet.”

“Soulmates don’t exist outside of fiction,” Electra replied quickly. “Those fated mate bonds I write about? Pure fantasy. Real life is messier and a lot more disappointing.”

“You would be surprised.” Gerri’s smile held secrets. “The universe has a sense of humor about these things.”

“The universe can keep its sense of humor. I’m fine being alone.” The words came automatically, the same defense she’d used for years. “Ever since my parents died when I was twelve and my aunt raised me, I learned to handle things myself. Self-sufficiency is underrated.”

“I admire that kind of resilience.” Gerri’s voice softened. “That inner strength will prove useful here.”

Electra glanced at the sign they were approaching: Blackpine - 30 miles. Her pulse quickened without reason.

“The wildlife here is remarkable,” Gerri continued, her gaze fixed on the darkening forest. “Wolves, mostly. Beautiful creatures. Intelligent. Loyal. They mate for life, you know.”

Something in her tone made Electra’s skin prickle. “Are they dangerous?”

“Only if you threaten what they protect.” Gerri’s eyes glinted gold.

The comment echoed in Electra’s mind as she pressed harder on the accelerator without realizing it. The speedometer crept past the limit as anticipation coiled in her chest, electric and unfamiliar.

The sun hung low behind the mountains now, painting the sky in shades of amber and rose. Mist began to curl between the trees, and somewhere in the distance, a sound echoed through the forest.

A howl.

Another answered from the opposite direction, then another, until the mountains rang with wild music.

Electra’s hands tightened on the steering wheel as they rounded a sharp bend. The cabin was still miles ahead, but something had changed in the air. Something that made her heart race and her skin flush with heat she couldn’t explain.

Adventure and danger.

The words whispered through her mind as the mist thickened and the howls grew closer.