Mantras & Minotaurs (Leviathan Fitness, 3) - Softcover

Bennett, Ashley

Softcover

ISBN 10: 0593957016 ISBN 13: 9780593957011

Verlag: Penguin Publishing Group, 2026

Inhaltsangabe

REVISED AND EXPANDED

A single mom decides to take life—and love—by the horns as she falls for a hunky minotaur in this steamy monster romance.

Pam Rollins is ready to date again after spending the last few years alone. Now that her kids have grown up and moved out, she’s committed to changing her life by starting yoga classes and, at her daughter’s urging, joining a dating app. She doesn’t expect much to come from her swiping, especially not a first date with buff, kind, and generous minotaur Alistair.

Alistair Reid is the kind of swoon-worthy monster that every woman dreams of. After one date, Pam is feeling hopeful in love for the first time ever—and Alistair has fallen head over hoof for her. The only problem: they live states apart and have thriving lives of their own.

However, as romance blooms, it becomes harder to envision a future without the other in it. Distance makes the heart grow fonder, after all....

Über diesen Titel

Über die Autorin bzw. den Autor

Ashley Bennett is a small-town paranormal and monster romance author from Baltimore, Maryland. She writes stories that are equal parts spice and swoon. When she's not writing, you can find her reading webtoons, playing cozy video games, and taking care of her houseful of rescue animals.

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One

Pam

January 1

Look back at the past, marvel at how far you have come.

Winding down for the evening, I sipped my boxed wine and let out a deep sigh as Harry kissed Sally in what was probably one of the most romantic cinematic kisses of all time. I mean, Billy Crystal definitely didn't do it for me, but Meg Ryan-that was a totally different story.

The holiday season had come and gone here in Briar Glenn, and I'd spent last night, New Year's Eve, alone at home watching romance movies with my cat.

Since the loss of my husband, Don, two years ago, a certain hairless gentleman had become my constant companion. My son, Reece, swore that Remi was some sort of alien, but the cat rescue assured me that he was a sphynx.

"You know, Remi," I said to him, lifting the blanket he was sleeping under so he would have to acknowledge me, "that right there is true love. When you meet someone and you just know."

My daughter, Tegan, and her fated mate came to mind. She'd called me raving about the buff wolven the same day he'd helped her scrape wedding cake off the pavement outside my bakery. Well, it was her bakery now.

When Don passed, he left me his life insurance policy and a sizable pension from the Parks Department. It was more than enough money for me to live comfortably, and I was happy to pass on my business to Tegan. She'd been helping out at the bakery since she was a little girl. Truth be told, she was probably glad I was out of her hair.

I'd been feeling like that a lot lately.

Both of my children had their own lives. They'd been drawn to their fated mates by the goddess. Atlas and Tegan were engaged to be married, and Reece and Cyrus were, well, they were new puppy parents.

Everyone else around me was thriving. Living. But it felt like I was stuck in the same place, watching as life passed me by.

Don't get me wrong, I had my hobbies: reading, knitting Remi and myself matching sweaters, and volunteering at the library two days a week.

But there was still a void.

Yes, Don was gone, but his passing hadn't impacted me the way I expected it would.

Our relationship had been complicated since the very beginning. In high school, we were on-again, off-again, and when I got pregnant with Reece shortly after graduation, marriage seemed like the obvious step. There was no real honeymoon period because having a baby changes things. Suddenly you're responsible for this tiny helpless being, focusing all your time and energy on them. I always felt like Don resented me and Reece because of that. I got the sense that he felt like we ruined his life. By the time Tegan came along, Don had settled into fatherhood, but he always treated Reece differently.

There were some good moments, but they were outweighed by disagreements and nights spent with the kids at my mother's house. When you have kids and a life that is so utterly interconnected, especially in a small town, you're just sort of . . . stuck.

Seeing my children in such healthy, happy relationships made me elated, but every once in a while, jealousy crept in.

This was one of those times.

I grabbed my phone and scrolled my social media feed absentmindedly before pulling up my messages.

I typed out a quick text to Tegan, just like I did anytime I was bored.

Pam: Hi, honey. I hope you and Atlas had a great New Year's. Are you up for a chat?

My phone rang a few moments later.

"Hey, Mom! What's up?" Tegan sounded awfully upbeat for it being New Year's Day, but then again, she didn't really drink. Neither of my kids did. It made me proud, but it also made me question if Don and I were the reason why.

Without thinking too hard about it, I took another sip of my wine before answering. "Just sitting at home with Remi. Did you and Atlas have a good New Year's?"

She let out a deep sigh. "It was okay, I guess. We went over to Javier's house. Him and Fallon got drunk and wrestled in the front yard. Atlas had to break it up."

Javier was so sweet; I had a hard time believing it. "Are you serious? Is everyone okay?"

"Yeah. Atlas managed to calm both of them down and everyone was fine by the time the ball dropped, but it was still a stupid display of masculinity."

"Were your brother and Cyrus there?" I was positive the answer would be yes. Reece and Tegan had worked to repair their relationship over the past few months, and more often than not, they could be found hanging out together with their mates.

It helped that Atlas and Cyrus were best friends, too.

"Of course they were. They left before the fight happened, though. Reece said they had to go home to check on Beau. He is such a worrywart when it comes to that puppy," Tegan teased with a laugh.

"I still can't believe Cyrus surprised him like that. He is such a gem." I had all but given up on Reece finding a partner, but when he'd started training for the triathlon with Cyrus, it was obvious they had more than just a coach-trainee relationship. The two were mates, and for Christmas, Cyrus had surprised my son with something he'd always wanted but Don would never allow: a puppy.

"Yeah, he is. I'm still not sure Mr. Grumpy Pants deserves him, though."

I was mid-sip when she said that, my snort almost sending my wine out of my nose and all over my white knit blanket.

Her lighthearted giggle echoed through the phone. "What about you, Mom? Did you do anything fun last night?"

I answered as soon as the burning sensation in my sinuses subsided. "Well, I drank wine, watched romance movies on the couch with Remi, and worked on a new set of matching sweaters." Gods, it sounded so depressing when I rehashed it aloud like that.

"Mom . . ." Tegan's voice was heavy with concern, or maybe pity. "I really wish you'd get out more."

I did go out on occasion. Lunch with my friend Nancy, or dinner with Sue and Dale, Tegan's best friend's parents. But I knew that platonic relationships weren't what Tegan was referring to. She meant dating.

"I'd love to, but it's hard to meet new people when you live in a town like Briar Glenn."

"You know, there's this dating app Javier uses-"

I cut her off. "Don't you think I'm a little too old for a dating app?" I thought they were something used by young people to find hookups, not fifty-four-year-old women seeking companionship with the potential for romance.

Tegan snorted, which brought a smile to my face. She was definitely my daughter. "Mom, you're not old. I really think you should download it and make a profile. If you don't like it, you can just delete the app, and it'll be like it never happened."

I did want to see who was out there . . .

"Fine. I'll check it out. What's it called?" I transferred her to speakerphone so I could search for it.

"It's called Mate Match. It only allows profiles to message you if you've already marked them as a match you'd be interested in."

Huh. Well, it sounded like there was a certain level of safety and anti-harassment built into the app. "All right, I'm downloading it now."

Tegan squealed and I jumped, almost spilling my wine.

"You have to tell me if you match with anyone. Promise me you'll tell me?" she pleaded.

"I promise, but I doubt I'm going to match with anyone."

"Mom. Seriously? You're a babe. Besides, some younger men are into older women."

I tsked. "Oh, no, no, no. No younger men for me. They need to be my age or older-no exceptions."

"Make sure you set your age preferences on the app, then. Let me know if I need to come over tomorrow and help you with it, okay?"

I knew she was trying to be helpful, but I wasn't so old that I couldn't figure out how to set up my own profile on a dating app. How hard could it be?

"Will do, honey. Give Atlas my...

Details zur Ausgabe

• Verlag: Penguin Publishing Group
• Erscheinungsdatum: 2026
• Sprache: Englisch
• ISBN 10: 0593957016
• ISBN 13: 9780593957011
• Einband: Taschenbuch
• Anzahl der Seiten: 305
• Kontakt zum Hersteller: Nicht verfügbar
• Verantwortliche Person: gpsr@libri.de; gpsr@libri.de; ; Europaallee 1; Bad Hersfeld; 36244; Deutschland