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“The jellies fund my shoe addiction.” Desendra pointed to the floor, where she tapped the toe of a pair of lavender suede boots. “If you want to learn how to make jams and jellies, I can teach you. We can work together, and split the profits.”
“I’d really like that,” Kammie said.
Row squeezed her thigh, and she glanced at him. “Are you ready to stand up in front of everyone and promise to be the best mate to me in the world? Give me a blow job every morning and rub my feet?”
All the females at the table snarled, and Row laughed. “I’m just kidding,” he said, putting his hands up in defense.
His mom stabbed the air with her fork. “You better be.”
“I am, I promise. I’m the one vowing to be the best mate, because Kammie deserves the best of everything.”
“And the blow jobs?” Desendra asked.
Kammie blushed as Row’s mom laughed.
“I don’t think that’s what they’re called when it’s the guy on the girl,” Gloria said. “Maybe you could vow to lick her really good every morning. Nowthat’san excellent way to start the day,” she said, winking at Fayar.
Kammie’s blush deepened. “Oh my gosh.”
Row leaned over and kissed her cheek and then whispered in her ear, “Every morning.”
“Only if you let me return the favor.”
He wiggled his brows.
“I need to find a mate,” Desendra said. “One who will lick me a lot. I like the idea of daily foot rubs, too.”
Fayar said, “Before we end up with a laundry list of things the males will be doing for the females…”
“Doingtothe females,” Gloria said.
Laughing, Fayar continued, “Right. Let’s get to our ceremony. We’ve got a fierce female to bring into our sleuth.”
The bears clapped and cheered as Kammie and Row stood, following Fayar to the center of the building. Tables ringed the empty area, and Kammie could feel everyone watching them. There was a time in her life when she would’ve hated for people to be staring at her, but now she was reveling in being with her mate and joining the group.
Kammie unbuttoned her long-sleeved flannel shirt and tied it around her waist. She was wearing a tight-fitting teal cami that displayed the scars on her arms and chest. Row took her hands in his and looked down at her in adoration.
“My fierce, beautiful mate,” he whispered.
Fayar spoke loudly. “Once upon a time, shifters stayed within their breed groups. Wolves mated wolves, bears mated bears, humans stayed the hell away from us.”
The bears chuckled.
“Now, we welcome any and all mates. Finding a truemate is an event to be celebrated. We don’t look at these two and see a bear and a wolf—we see two people who love each other deeply enough to kill. There is no greater love than that of truemates.” Fayar placed his hands on Kammie’s and Row’s.
Row said, “I vow myself to my truemate, Kammie. I swear to be the best mate for her. To treat her with the love and respect she deserves, and to always think of her first. I welcome her into my life and my heart.”
Kammie repeated the vows to Row, her eyes filling with tears as she spoke.
“As king of this sleuth, I welcome Kammie into our group as a member and a treasured mate. If any object, let them raise their voices now or remain silent forever.”
Kammie’s heart pounded as she waited to see if anyone would say she didn’t belong. Row squeezed her hands gently and smiled.
“I declare Kammie formally a member of the sleuth. Welcome!”
The bears lifted their heads and roared. The sound was so loud that the building shook. Kammie howled as Row joined in, and she felt, for the first time, that she was finally, truly home. The bears had opened their arms to her as if they’d been waiting all this time for Row’s mate. She hadn’t known a shifter group like the sleuth, and she was deliriously thankful to be one of them now.
Fayar squeezed their hands and said, “Welcome, Kammie. May your union be blessed.”
