In 1866, three McCallister youths set out on a quest to find and spy on Lozen, the Apache warrior priestess. The seer has captured Charlie Wolf, the half-Kiowa McCallister's imagination and he's determined to share this adventure with his white cousins, Robert and Sam. The boys are half-grown striplings when they leave the McCallister ranch. After their encounter with destiny, they are men. This short story is a non-erotic companion read to Wolf's Tender, Five Card Stud, and Trouble in Disguise. Prior familiarity with those books is not necessary. Length: approx. 6,600 words.

Wolf’s Tender McCallister Bounty Hunters Miss Naomi Parker, deportment instructor at the Sparrow Creek Young Ladies Academy, can't forgive herself for hiding during an outlaw attack. When the local sheriff refuses to pursue the gang of renegades who kidnapped her students, she decides to rescue the girls herself. But, she needs the help of the best tracker in the territory—half-Kiowa bounty hunter, Charlie Wolf McCallister. Before he goes out on another bounty hunt, Charlie wants a long soak in a hot bath, a bottle of whiskey, and the pleasure of a woman’s company. He has two out of three when a school marm with cornflower-blue eyes invades his privacy. Having established that he only works for pay, Miss Parker offers Charlie one night of sexual favors in exchange for his tracking services. Though he knows bedding a white woman will cause all kinds of trouble, he operates on the philosophy that a bird in hand is better than no bird at all. After they’ve sealed their bargain with more than a kiss, Charlie tries to leave Naomi safely behind. But the opinionated teacher insists on accompanying him. She’s impatient with his decisions, questions his authority, and generally ignores his warnings. But each time they make love, Naomi captures another piece of Charlie Wolf’s heart. When one straight-laced spinster tenders her body to one cynical sometimes savage, the unexpected bounty, is love.

Sam McCallister enjoys looking at Eden Pace across a poker table. She has to be the prettiest woman he’s ever seen, smart too, and the best card sharp he’s ever likely to meet. He has no doubt the lady gambler thinks she’ll win in their game of five card stud. He’s got a hole card that says she won’t–a Wanted for Murder poster with Eden’s picture on it. Eden’s doing her own outlaw hunting. She’s on the trail of the man who killed her husband. Though she’d like to forget the past and let Sam McCallister give her a future, she won’t do it. She’ll bring her husband’s murderer to justice or die trying. When Sam gets in the way of her goal, she uses seduction to free herself. But the hard-headed bounty hunter keeps dogging her steps, blurring the line between pursuer and protector. Eden’s got more trouble than Sam chasing her. She’s using herself as bait to unmask a master criminal. The monster knows who she is, and he wants her dead. But Sam’s not about to lose the woman he loves. He’s pushing all the limits in their high stakes game. With hearts are on the table and death on the line, nothing is certain until the last card’s played.

Since both his partners have married and retired from the hunt, Deacon McCallister is alone when he visits the Pleasure Dome, an infamous brothel in Fort Worth’s Hell’s Half Acre. He’s tracking a counterfeiter but what he finds is Trouble—dressed in a man’s ruffled shirt and nothing more. Bounty hunter Miracle Beauregard pretends to be male, calls herself Beau and for years has fooled everyone. But underneath Miri’s disguise beats a feminine heart lusting for Deacon McCallister. Though she spends a lot of time dreaming about her rival, she never expects to act upon her longings. When Miri follows an outlaw to the fanciest whorehouse in Texas and crosses paths with her heart’s desire, she trades her buckskins for bare skin to play the part of Deacon’s paid companion.