Page 1 of Purrfectly Trapped

Prologue

Hmm. What to do first?

Uzzi Stregovich, or Uncle Uzzi as his clients lovingly referred to the elderly Witch, sat at his desk contemplating his next case. He had so much work at the moment, but for some reason he kept coming back to one particular group of pussies.

Snickering at his own clever use of the term, he blushed as his gaze raked across the photo of his liebling on their wedding day.

Oh, she’d been the picture of beauty and grace. Too good for a crass Witch like him, but he’d loved her. How he’d loved her! Still did, in fact. His Betty was a treasure unlike any other.

A descendent of the goddess of love herself, as some in his family tree had declared and often, Uncle Uzzi was gifted with a certain talent for bringing fated mates together. It was difficult at times, especially when his clients proved ornery, or even worse, clueless.

His mind wandered back to that Tiger Shifter Pride out in Burlington County, New Jersey. They were a handful, but he absolutely adored them. Especially the Neta and Nari of the Maverick Pride.

Elissa and Hunter were like honorary family to Uncle Uzzi, and they felt the same about him. He knew from the frequency with which they wrote, and the fact that, being a Witch whose talent involved matters of the heart, Uzzi had a nose for these things. No wonder he couldn’t stop thinking about them.

Settling in with a delicious cup of tea and one of the special double chocolate fudge cookies his housekeeper had baked, Uncle Uzzi scanned his runes and muttered a spell.

Yes. That is the one.

He reached for the confoundedvunderbox, or cell phone, as they were called and opened his electronic mail thingamajig. This is the note he’d been searching for, he thought with a crunch of the delicious cookie. Uncle Uzzi clicked on the message, double checking the name of the sender first.

Gretchen. Gretchen? Ah, yes!

She was a close friend of Elissa’s, the Nari of the Maverick Pride. He skimmed the email quickly at first, then re-read the missive slowly. A small smile teased at the corner of his lips, and Uncle Uzzi chuckled to himself. This was going to be perfect.

Dear Uncle Uzzi,

My name is Gretchen Kaepernick. You might have heard about me, you see, I’m Elissa Phoenix-Maverick’s former roommate. Well, I suppose I should just get right to it.

As it happens, I am moving to Maverick Point to take over the lease on the old hair salon from Mrs. Bowers. The owner is giving me the space with an option to buy at the end of one year.

I’ve always wanted to run my own salon, and this is a great opportunity. Everything is in perfect order. I just have a few changes in furniture and appliances, and bam, I am ready to move in. I should have it all up and running just in time for spring haircuts and prom season! LOL.

Now, to get to the real point of this email. You see, I haven’t had much luck with men in like forever, and I was wondering if you could arrange for me to meet a nice one? I am a bigger than average girl, and I don’t want to settle for anyone who thinks they can change me into something else.

Pardon my frankness, but I’m not looking for a dietician or a gym instructor. I’m looking for a man who can handle and appreciate all this goodness.

It is true, I can come on a bit strong and, okay, well, I’m just plain blunt when it comes to how I feel about my size and looks. They just aren’t up for discussion.

Praise—yes. Hints about how I can look better--- hard no.

Elissa tells me I am too frank, but I can’t help it. I turn all my dates away with talk of wanting a future and a family someday. But it’s the truth, Uncle Uzzi. It’s what I want.

You did such a wonderful job with helping Elissa, I wanted to contact you about maybe helping me find my own happily-ever-after?

So, what do you think? Can you help me, Uncle Uzzi?

Thank you for your consideration,

Gretchen K.

Uncle Uzzi clicked the button on the tiny box in his hand, turning the screen black.

Well, how about that?He thought with a full grin on his face.

Things were certainly going to heat up in the Pride with this feisty little human moving in, and wouldn’t you know it, Uncle Uzzi had just the Tiger in mind for the sassy female.

He stirred his tea, foregoing more sugar,and began to make plans. Plotting was ninety percent of any good matchmaker’s bag of tricks. And Uncle Uzzi was the best, to hear others tell it.

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