Page 27 of Shifter Mate Magic
9
Jackie woke deliciously relaxed, for the first morning in what seemed like forever. She didn’t even care that it was well past nine. Trevor had nudged her awake sometime earlier to tell her he was going out to run errands and bring back more food. She snorted with amusement as she walked by the multiple bags of food on the dresser on the way to the bathroom. Bears must like full larders.
In the shower, she started planning her day. Eat, pounce on her new mate, buy a dress, get married, invite her mate to pounce on her, and go to sleep in his arms. A far cry from her former, very structured corporate life, even though she’d been satisfied with it at the time. Funny how kidnapping, pregnancy, escaping, and falling in love could change a woman’s priorities.
She felt her new mate bond energize. Trevor was close by. In case he brought company as well as food, she pulled on her sleep T-shirt, then went back to contemplating what to do with her hair. It hadn’t been trimmed in months, but was still too short to pull back into anything elegant. She fluffed it to encourage it to dry, and figured she’d worry about it later.
Trevor walked in carrying a stack of containers that smelled of bacon and pastry, and a huge suitcase.
She kissed him as she took the containers from him. “Hello kisses are never going to get old.”
She set the food on the chair, since they had no more table space. He put the suitcase on the bed and opened it, then stood back, watching her, with an anticipatory look on his face.
She crossed to the suitcase, which was filled with clothes. Her clothes, from her apartment in Houston. She raised an eyebrow at him. “I see that smug look on your face, cowboy. Start talkin’.”
He grinned. “While you were meeting with Brooker yesterday, I asked Matteo to check your legal status in Texas. Seems your shit-for-brains ex was ducking some loan collectors and has been staying in your place, since you’d paid your lease a year in advance. He told your boss you’d had a death in the family, and that you needed more time to take care of things.” He pointed toward the suitcase. “Matteo sent someone to stuff this suitcase and had it ported to Kotoyeesinay. His wedding present to you.”
She laughed. “What a lovely gift.” She pulled out a ruffled, cream-colored silk blouse to hold over her torso. “Most of this should even fit, if not the way it used to. I lost about twenty pounds when I was cleaning for the pride and eating frozen dinners, then gained most of it back in the last month as Princess started really growing.”
She opened the closet to hang up the blouse.
“After we eat, we have a schedule for the day.” He pulled a folded piece of paper out of the chest pocket of his T-shirt and handed it to her.
She opened it and puzzled over his abbreviations. “Okay, I get the wedding at four, but what are these others?”
He pointed. “The eleven-thirty is a fitting at Fairy Fineries, so I’ll have something to get married in besides jeans, boots, and a shirt with snaps. They want to make a dress for you because you charmed their scissors to always stay visible in their workroom.”
“But they already… oh, never mind.” She’d have to work out how to do something else nice for them later.
“The one-o’clock is a trip to the real estate office, so we can choose a lot to build on. I already gave them a deposit.” He rocked back on his heels and dropped his eyes. “While I was on the road, I bought plans and materials for a two-bedroom cabin. They’re in my trailer.” He tilted his head toward the motel’s parking lot. “I wanted you and Princess to have a place to live, even if it wasn’t going to be with me.”
Jackie rubbed his biceps, determined not to cry. “It was always going to be with you, cowboy. You’re my rock.”
He smiled. “I’m glad. The three-thirty is at the town hall, for the license. We’ll walk to the glade from there. They tell me there’s a shortcut.”
She pulled the pen out of his pocket to add a two-o’clock item to his schedule, then handed both back to him.
“What does ‘N & N’ stand for?”
She gave him a smart-ass smile. “Nap and nookie, of course.”
* * *
The glade reminded Jackie of a botanic garden, with mossy, floral scents in the air and winding paths to show off each shrub and tree. Her frothy, fluttery red-and-pink beaded dress was right out of an epic fantasy, but her low-heeled ruby slippers were thankfully practical enough to keep her from falling on her ass.
Trevor wore an embellished deep red vest, a cream-colored tunic, and tight black pants and high, cuffed boots. He’d asked for swashbuckling, and Fairy Frocks delivered.
She squeezed Trevor’s hand and pulsed her profound happiness through their mate bond, which was growing stronger with each hour. He smiled as he lifted their joined hands and kissed the back of her hand.
The path let them out into an open meadow that shimmered with sunlight and magic. Wooden plank tables mixed with white plastic deck chairs clustered toward one end. Everyone she’d met in town during the week sat or stood, chatting with many more she’d never met.
Jackie drew Trevor’s attention to two women striding toward them. Trevor beamed and crossed to them quickly.
“Aunt Straya!” He kissed the beautiful black woman on her cheek. Her fitted dress had African design elements and showed her figure to advantage. He nodded to the other, much paler woman in gray whose resemblance to human was only superficial. “I’m glad you both could make it.” He stepped back to put his arm around Jackie. “This is my mate and wife, Jacqueline Breton.”
“Please, call me Jackie.” She smiled. Any woman who could convince a teenage bear to dig her garden and chase away the critters was someone worth getting shifter parenting advice from.
“Call me Straya. Congratulations on your mate bond.” She turned to motion her companion closer. “This is my friend, Auris.”
