The Creatively Green Write at Home Mom: Alpha Receptor by Karenna Colcroft

Honoring Those Gone Before

My favorite Halloween costume when I was growing up was a witch. I wore that costume twice, when I was 13 and again when I was 16. It was simple: a black miniskirt, black leotard, black tights, and a black cape my mother made for me. But wearing it, I felt confident. I felt right.

That probably should have told me something…

I didn’t actually find my path and footing as a witch until I was in my 40s, but once I found that path, I knew it was where I belonged. And that gave me a different take on Halloween.

In the path I follow, as with many “witchy” and Pagan paths, October 31st is Samhain, one of the major Sabbats. Samhain is somewhat equivalent to New Year’s; it’s a time to reflect on the past year and set intentions for the coming year.

Every year on Samhain, I take some time to think about what happened in the past year that I’m pleased with and what I would like to change, and then I set intentions around those things.

It’s also considered to be a time when the veil between the world of the living and the world of spirits is thinner than at any other point in the year. This means that for some of us, it’s the time to honor and even speak to those who went before.

Loved ones we’ve lost in this lifetime or ancestors that we might never have known.

Every year as part of my observance of Samhain, I do a short ritual honoring anyone I or my family members have lost in the previous year. This isn’t a big thing; I light a candle, say the person’s name and a happy memory I have of them, and ask that they find their way peacefully to whatever comes next. This enables me to remember the person and feel connected to them even though they’re no longer part of this life.

Unfortunately, the older I get, the more people I have on my Samhain list each year. But I love having the opportunity to speak to them, experience memories of them (this is a big one for me; I have memory issues related to health conditions), and feel that connection once more. For me, this is the most important and valuable part of October 31.

Alpha Receptor

Real Werewolves True Mates

Book One

Karenna Colcroft

Genre: Paranormal Romance

Publisher: Vegan Wolf Productions

Date of Publication: July 14, 2022

ISBN: 978-1958346006

ASIN: B0B4T6FMPR

Number of pages: 263

Word Count: 72,300

Cover Artist: Winterheart Design

Tagline: Can a “curmudgeonly” Alpha who has closed his heart to love open up when he finds his true mate?

Book Description:

When Lara Jameson’s employer transferred her from Orlando, Florida, to Boston, Massachusetts, moving wasn’t as simple as just finding an apartment. As a werewolf, Lara also had to transfer to a new pack. And when she met Chal Torres, the Alpha of City Pack in Boston, she knew she had found not only a new pack but her mate.

Chal Torres has resisted love since a dominance fight shortly after he was changed resulted in the death of the woman he believed he loved. Now, as Alpha of the largest pack in the United States, he allows no one close to him out of fear they might be used against him. But when Chal meets Lara and recognizes her as his mate, his resistance is no match for the call of the mate bond and of his heart.

As Chal and Lara begin to build their relationship, Chal lets down his guard. But an attack on Lara during the pack’s hunt night and the reveal of a plot within the pack to take down Chal as Alpha lead Chal to begin putting up those walls again. Will he let Lara in, or will his fear end their relationship before it truly starts?

Amazon

When he was confident none of his pack remained among the trees, he went to the house and found Art already in human form near the back door. Art possessed the distinct ability to shift instantaneously with no pain or effects; for him, it was as fluid as breathing. Meaning Chal needed to shift rapidly and give no sign of the effects.

Once back in human form, he straightened, towering over Art, who flinched. The reaction pleased Chal. The man deserved to be afraid.

“You attacked a pack member,” he said.

“Can…” Sweat beaded Art’s forehead as he frantically searched around for an escape. “Can we discuss this privately, Alpha?”

“We cannot.” He spoke more loudly than he intended, not caring that he’d drawn the attention of the other wolves. “Lara is lower ranked than you. She wasn’t interfering with you. You had neither cause nor right to attack her. Go home, Art. You are confined to your apartment until I speak with you.”

Art bowed his head. “I have no way to get home, Alpha. I rode here with others.”

“Dave.”

A small, wiry man hurried over to him. One of the trackers, second in command to Connor.

“Yes, Alpha?”

“Are you able to leave at this time?” Chal asked, continuing to pin Art beneath his gaze. “Art is going home.”

“Yes, Alpha. I’ll tell Hillary to find another ride.” Dave grasped Art’s elbow. “Let’s go.”

Art followed the other man without protest. But when he peered back over his shoulder at Chal, his eyes were filled with the same darkness weighing on Chal.
It would be crucial to resolve the situation more permanently. For the moment, Art was dealt with. It was time for Chal to check on his mate.

He found her a short distance from the house, lying on her side in wolf form, panting heavily.

Tobias, in human form, sat cross-legged beside her. “Follow my voice, Lara,” he said in a low, almost hypnotic cadence. “It’s time to shift back. I’m here. Your Alpha is here. We’re both with you. Come back.”

Painstakingly, so much so Chal trembled with sympathetic agony, Tobias guided Lara back into human form. When she finished the shift, she lay gasping on the ground.

“I can’t do anything more for her,” Tobias said.

“I can. Thank you, old friend.”
Chal crouched and gathered Lara into his arms. She stirred and murmured something unintelligible. Ignoring the others around them, Chal carried her into the house and up to the second floor, to the bedroom where he and Tobias had spoken earlier.
Tenderly, he lay her on the bed. He wished he could kiss her, stay with her, but he still had a duty to his pack. He maneuvered the sheet from under her and covered her.
“Sleep,” he said. “We’ll speak in the morning.” Quickly, he left the room.

About the Author:

Karenna Colcroft lives just north of Boston, Massachusetts, and has been in love with the city since childhood, though she has yet to encounter any werewolves, vampires, or other paranormal beings in her travels. At least none that she knows of. Though since in her non-writing life, under another name, she offers services as a channel and energy healing practitioner, it could be said that she herself is a paranormal being. The jury’s still out on that.

Karenna is a polyamorous, nonbinary human who splits time between the home she shares with her husband and the one she shares with her committed partner. She also has two adult children and a bonus son, three grandchildren, and two and a half cats. (Half in terms of time the cat lives with her, not in terms of the cat itself…)

Website: https://karennacolcroft.com

Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/KarennaColcroft