Everlasting Love

by R. Cooper

Albert is a mated werewolf without a mate—sort of. He has feelings for his childhood best friend, Graham, and suspects that someday, Graham will be his mate. But Graham is all the way across the country in college while Albert works in a coffee shop, and anyway, the two of them currently aren’t speaking to one another. Confused, and facing down the dim future of a Rejected mate, Albert leaves his small town on a quest to figure out what he wants to do and maybe also to avoid all the knowing looks from his friends and family back home.

In Everlasting, famed for rain, redwoods, and dragons, Albert makes unexpected friends and plays a small part in several unfolding love stories. Each romance might just help Albert decide how to deal with his possible a tiny elf-dragon antiques restorer catches the attention of a loud flirt, an elf housekeeper finally realizes he has been pining for the dragon lady of the house he keeps and immediately decides to do something about it, a mated werewolf with a snarky reputation wants to try being soft for his mate, a widower mechanic thinks an educated college boy is out of his league, and two victims of Everlasting’s old prejudices finally find their happiness, all with some guidance from the slightly magical baristas in Everlasting’s famous coffee shop.

A collection of queer romance short stories and novellas, featuring m/m, m/f, and f/f

Genres: Shapeshifters, Short Stories

562 pages, Kindle Edition

Published May 2, 2026

About the author

I'm R. Cooper, a somewhat absentminded, often distracted, writer of queer romance. I'm probably most known for the Being(s) in Love series and The Suitable 'Verse stories. Also the occasional story about witches or firefighters in love.

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Reviews

[Drache.... (Angelika)]

3,5 stars
Beautiful and heartwarming stories that tie together a few loose ends from other books in the series.
This doesn't work as standalone.
I'd recommend to read especially these installments before diving into Everlasting Love:
-Treasure for Treasure,
-His Mossy Boy,
-Little Wolf.

I loved all the single stories, had hoped for a bit more for Albert, though. It did make sense however how his story arc progressed, he was still very young at only barely 20 years at the end of the book.

Love the author's note at the beginning of the book:
"This book is a collection of short stories and tiny novellas, split into chapters merely to make navigation easier. Things should be a easier for all of us, don't you think? Even if only in small things like romance novels."


A few quotes

“Is that what the smoke was about yesterday? Because you looked surprised and that was also adorable. Sorry. Fearsome. Fierce. Sexy. Whichever adjective you prefer.” Frederick wet his bottom lip but couldn’t find any scents in the air. “Are you flirting with me?” Both of Galen’s eyebrows went up. “Yes. Thanks for noticing. Wow. I’ve never been accused of subtlety before, so this is new.”
---
“Loneliness might just be a condition of being alive,” Frederick said and purposefully didn’t meet Galen’s eyes.
---
Anyway, Bernard wasn’t difficult. He made perfect sense. It was everyone else who got in the way.

[Achim]

Ah, look at all those lonely people … I couldn't imagine Everlasting as anything else than a bit gloomy with the occasional drizzle of rain where love isn't exactly salvation but a hopeful yearning, where people cocooned in their loneliness and hard earned bruises are drawn instinctively into the local coffee shop. There the magic of caffeine and sweet delights brings them step by step out of their shell and with a little push by the friendly barista they start their way of healing. It might be still a longer way but there's someone to walk with them, maybe even their treasure or their mate or like a fairy would see it: someone shiny, so, so shiny.

Everlasting Love is certainly no stand-alone and you obviously have to have an affinity to R. Cooper's adorably melancholy and rambling because a lot only happens in the head and heart of the characters but would you expect anything else when there is loneliness to overcome, doubt and confusion to be cleared and misconceptions to be solved? There is a world of low self-esteem and a anxious lack of conversation but while I quite often roll my eyes if other authors pick that trope, here it's build naturally and I love the characters for it, maybe because I can relate so easily.

Strangely the atmosphere is changing with Benny's and Sol's story which doesn't happen at Everlasting Cuppa, which doesn't even happen in the present of the story but sometime in the 60's and maybe that's also the reason why the author allows a vibe change that at last even leads into the visit of a fairy although Everlasting should be to cold and secluded for that kind of being. Wonder how far that spark of live is holding because while his entry is a perfect ending for this book, I like to see him getting a happy ending as well and please Ms. Cooper don't stop Albert's and Graham's story at the point where it's now. All the other couples got at least their HFN but their's is only a first step into healing …. oh, but kudos for including the first sea Being.

[S. G]

I Need moreee

I love Everlasting and all the romantic fools living there. I was not disappointed. This book was one of the sweetest reads of the year. I can't wait to find out what's next. LOVE IT

[ds321]

I loved this so much. It became an immediate comfort read (like most of R. Cooper’s work, tbh). I’m holding off on an immediate reread only by going back to Little Wolf and Beginner’s Guide. (I recently reread His Mossy Boy and Firebird, and Treasure for Treasure not too long ago, so didn’t need to start there.)

The stories and also the… structure? layout? I don’t know. How the stories are layered together? Whatever that is, it made the book far more than the sum of its parts.
I do think some other beings books do need to be read to fully enjoy it, fortunately R. Cooper gives some recommendations for that - it doesn’t have to be all of them.

[Georgie-who-is-Sarah-Drew]

All R. Cooper's hallmarks are here: relationships moving at glacial pace; yearning; oblique conversations; strong sense of place; well-established sort-of-fantasy background; carefully chosen detail; humanity and gentle goodwill.

When Cooper is good, she is very very good: the "Four Secrets" (Benny & Sol) section of this loosely linked collection is a total winner. But Albert's over-arching story really needed to be half the length and double the pace.

Probably a book best enjoyed by "Beings" fans (me, me). If R. Cooper wanted new readers, publishing "Four Secrets" on its perfect own might be a way to go.

[Melissa]

Well I was utterly charmed to revisit old faves and gain a whole bunch of new faves that I want more from please.

[Wolla]

3.5 star, rounded up
Not my favorite format personally. I get too attached to the characters, I'm never ready to switch story haha🥲. I've skipped 2 short stories because I wanted to know more about Albert and Graham. I've waited litteral years to read it!😂 And I have to say...I'm disappointed with the ending of their story. I was like... is that all? Not much of a HEA honestly. Maybe that was not their full story? But it doesn't seem like they have another book worth of story left. Oh well🤷‍♂️ Disappointed though 😢

[Mom Needs Coffee]

I could read a dozen more books set on Everlasting. It's my favorite place, no doubt.

Every story was fantastic and I read all 500+ pages in just a few days. Cried a bit for Alice and Addy I'll admit. Hopefully Jessie gets her HEA, even if it's just on the side in someone else's story. I love her more and more with each book.

I'm a bit disappointed in Arthur's tentative HFN - I'm much like Graham and prefer things to be black and white although I can handle the grays in between- but am looking forward to the next book which will hopefully show some more from Cuppa and Arthur.

[Kevin]

This is a collection of paranormal romance short stories, with young and old people, various gender pairings, and magical beings such as dragons and werewolves. I enjoyed the ones the most that involved magical beings.
This book made me so happy that I wanted to cry. I was disappointed that it ended, when there were so many stories left to tell.

[Karla]

A really fun, sweet collection of short stories, about all the characters in Everlasting. This has been a delight to read, a bit naughty, & definitely swoon worthy, I loved every minute reading this. Will likely read it again, just for some feel good romance.. although, I know there is more to come..

[Cail]

I've read the Being(s) books so many times, reading this newest entry is like coming home. Delightful. I would be just as happy with many more compilations of short stories with friends like this as I would full novels in this series.

[WMD]

Several stories...all everlasting

Enjoy this generous set of tales about old and new friends in Beings world. I know you have wondered about unfinished tales.....here are endings and new beginnings in my favorite magical town claimed by dragons along the west coast....

[Meredith]

Gentle and full of all kinds of yearning and a reminder that our differences can be what makes us better, not worse.

[Jes]

charming

Intertwined stories of people connected to the same town of Everlasting, figuring out how to love well, even when they’ve been through it.

[aspeccharactersoftheday]

Graham from Everlasting Love is asexual!