Unappreciated Gifts

Unappreciated Gifts (2014) Patricia Briggs from A Fantastic Holiday Season: The Gift of Stories

I thought I’d finish up my read of the Alpha & Omega series with a re-read of the Asil short story, Unappreciated Gifts.

Someone in the Pack has decided that Asil is lonely and needs some companionship. So they set him up on blind dates.

Dear Asil:

We have become worried about you. A werewolf alone is a sad thing, especially at Christmas time. So we have a challenge for you. Five dates in two weeks. We have taken the work out of it and connected you with five people (from online dating sites) who should make interesting dates. The dates, except for meals which we thought should be up to you and your date, are planned and paid for (when necessary). Tickets for some events should arrive in today’s mail— all you have to do is write an email to each person and set up a time or place.

And then bet he he couldn’t do it.

A successful date is one in which a) neither party runs screaming into the night b) there are no dead bodies at the end of it and c) lasts longer than two hours— at least an hour and a half of which is spent with your date— which is an hour and fifty minutes longer than we expect any date of yours to last.

Asil is hands down my favorite secondary character in this series, and this story gives you a much lighter side than you normally see.

he had briefly considered an outfit he’d saved from the rococo era. The silver-blue looked particularly good on him and the fabric looked as though it had been manufactured yesterday instead of nearly three hundred years ago. But, in keeping with the style of the era, it made him appear a little pot-bellied. It hadn’t bothered him at the time, but his tastes had changed. He also had no inclination to wear a powdered wig.

He looked in the mirror and regretted that his hair was cut short. Properly he should have a mane of curls to balance the lace, but he looked magnificent, anyway.

It’s a delight, especially if you are already aware of Asil’s history and character.

WordFire Press
Rating: 8.5/10

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