Page 47 of The Bear's Fated Mate
A collective sigh of happiness went up from the wolf pack, and Lara turned to him with love in her eyes. “Awww. The gifts were from you all along.”
“I guess so,” he admitted. “I should give my bear credit.”
“Then he is quite the charmer.” There was more video playing from the time after Lara and Crystal’s fight, the days when Alex had begun to get to know the pack members, playing games and talking and hanging out in the evenings.
It was entertaining to watch, and it made something glow in Alex’s heart. He had a new place in the world. Not only at Lara’s side, but in the midst of a wild and unruly pack of wolves.
Not bad for a straitlaced security expert.
Not bad for someone who’d been planning to avoid mating fever at all costs.
He took the glass of whiskey his brother offered him, staring down at the amber fluid that reminded him so much of the highlights in his mate’s eyes. The sweet scent rose to his nostrils, and he looked across the room to find Gramps staring at him, a satisfied smirk on the old man’s face.
He’d been manipulative, and yet it had been exactly what Alex needed to light a fire under him.
He raised his glass to the old man. “I’ll admit it. You were right. Thank you.”
Grandfather Giles grinned and lifted his glass in return. “I figured you’d see things my way. That’s why I was nice and didn’t offer up the Canada Day security footage of you in that staircase for the show.”
Alex choked on his whiskey. “No way.”
Gramps tilted his head slightly, his expression one step away from full-out grin. “To your happily mated future.”
Alex didn’t know if he should laugh or scream. The old man was incredible. At some point Alex wanted to grow up to be as sneaky as him.
“Does this mean I don’t get to chastise him anytime soon?”Lara asked dryly.
“You can go ahead and offer my grandmother all the suggestions you want to get him force fed more vegetables, but I think we’ll keep him unharmed for a while. Grandma likes him, and he’s kind of amusing.”
Lara pulled Alex to his feet, gesturing with a hand as the chairs were pulled out of the way and the music started, and the two of them danced.
She rested her head against his chest, sighing contentedly. “I love you, Alex Borealis. Thanks for stepping into my world.”
“I love you, Lara Lazuli. Thanks for trusting this grumpy bear with your heart.”
“Always and forever.”
Which was, Alex realized, exactly the way it was supposed to be.“My fated mate.”
Epilogue
Amber sat next to her friends, laughing at one of their jokes before sliding off the bench and accepting the invitation from another wolf for a dance.
The entire evening she’d wondered exactly how to go about what she needed to do. It seemed an appropriate moment—a celebration where two very different individuals were showcasing their ability to join together and make their lives even better.
Watching her friend Kaylee fall in love and become mated to James had been a bit of a miracle in Amber’s books. Not because she didn’t think Kaylee deserved such happiness, but because being up close and personal watching someone fall in love hadn’t been a big part of Amber’s past experiences.
Her world had been very small, with her brother her only real family for the past couple years. When he’d gone missing, she’d been devastated. Being accepted into the Borealis family the way she had was so meaningful.
And now she stared with deep emotion as grumbly Alex teased his mate until Lara effortlessly flipped him to the ground. She stood with one four-inch heel pressed against his sternum, baring her teeth until he held up his hands in mock surrender and begged for mercy—
Something warm and fuzzy that could only be called joy rumbled around in Amber’s chest.
A hand rested on her shoulder briefly. “You okay?”
Amber stared into Cooper’s piercing blue eyes, the silver-tipped highlights in his hair reflecting the colours dancing off the disco ball in the corner of the room. Was she okay? She would be doing fantastic if she could get up the courage to tell a certain someone that she was feeling all sorts of very non-coworker-y emotions for him.
Although, was he really a coworker when he was her boss?
