Justus

by R. E. Butler

  “Yep. When I first moved here, Seneca was seventeen and I was eighteen, so Marcus had us move in together for a few years while more houses were being built. Then he took a new house and I stayed in this one.”

  “Are any of the bears mated?”

  “No. Marcus had a mate, but she died.”

  “That’s so sad. Will he ever get another mate?”

  “We only get one soulmate, sweet thing. He could mate someone he liked if he chose to, but soulmates are special. The connection is different and deeper than love.”

  She bumped his shoulder with a smile. “I know. I feel like I’ve known you forever.”

  “Me too.”

  The door to Marcus’s home opened and the alpha stood inside. Justus could see that the house was packed with sleuth members, and he grinned.

  “Everyone’s here,” he said.

  “Of course. You’re the first bear to find his soulmate at this park. It’s worth celebrating. It’s nice to see you again, Trina.”

  “Thanks for inviting us to dinner, Marcus.”

  Justus took Trina around to meet all the bears, and then they moved into the big dining room to eat. While huge bowls of roasted vegetables, large platters of sliced meats, and baskets of rolls were passed around, the bears peppered his soulmate with questions about her life before she came to the zoo. Justus had learned a lot about her during their time together, but he was anxious to know everything. She was candid about her life and gracious with her answers, and he fell a little bit more in love with her with each passing second.

  Moss said, “There are four soulmates in the park right now. Adrianna and Celeste are best friends, and you and Lexy are best friends. I’m sensing a theme here.”

  Justus laughed. “You’re wondering if Trina has any other best friends?”

  He nodded. “Just asking.”

  Trina smiled and shook her head. “Sorry. It’s just me and Lex.”

  “Nice try,” Tayme said with a chuckle. “I was going to ask the same thing.”

  When the meal was finished, Justus and Trina prepared to leave. He said to Marcus, “I’d like to take Trina home tomorrow so she can pack and turn in her 30-day notice to the apartment manager.”

  “Make arrangements with the lions to take one of the park SUVs. When is she supposed to work with Lexy at the sweets shop?”

  “Lexy said she’d let her have tomorrow off too, but the party is Thursday night so she has to report to the shop at six a.m. to help get things ready.”

  “That’s fine. During the VIP tours, you can coordinate with the others to help man the food stalls, but I do expect you to make time to be in your shift in the paddock.”

  “Sure thing.” Trina came over to them and he slipped his arm over her shoulder. “Ready to go, sweet thing?”

  “Yeah. Thanks for dinner, Marcus. It was great.”

  “Welcome to the sleuth, Trina.”

  When the door was shut behind them and they walked on the sidewalk toward home, he said, “I want you to know that my house is yours, now. Whatever you want to do to decorate is okay with me. I know the place is pretty much a man cave.”

  She snorted lightly and then laughed. “I thought bears liked dens?”

  He tweaked her side until she giggled a second time. “Fine, man-den.”

  “That’s more like it.”

  He opened the front door and followed her inside. “I have an idea,” he said, pausing as something soft smacked the back of his head after he closed the door. He turned and found Trina without a dress, grinning shamelessly.

  “I bet I have a better idea,” she whispered.

  “Great minds think alike,” he promised, growling excitedly as she turned on her heels and raced to the bedroom. He followed her, stripping out of his clothes, the only thing on his mind was making his mate happy.

  Again and again.

  Chapter 8

  Trina yawned and took a drink of coffee from a travel mug as she walked with Justus to Lexy’s shop. He drank coffee from a matching mug, that had a pattern of bears wrapped around it.

  “Can I pick you up for lunch?” he asked.

  “I’d love that.”

  “Not like a date, though. I want to take you out on a real date.”

  “That sounds fun. Maybe Saturday night?”

  “After the VIP tours.”

  She and Lexy had gotten the free tickets and parking passes, but they’d figured it to be a scam of some sort like an “all expenses paid vacation” that ended up being a time-share presentation. If she’d gone on a tour, then Justus would have scented her in his shift and she’d have met him weeks ago. But in spite of the longer wait to meet her hunky mate, she knew the timing was perfect. He was just what she needed and wanted, and she couldn’t wait for him to meet her family.

  Which was happening that evening during the grand opening of the shop. Lexy was throwing a small party to preview the treats that would be on sale to the public beginning on Friday. Trina was excited to be part of the fun with her bestie. She’d spoken to her parents the day before and told them about meeting Justus, and how much she liked him. They were looking forward to meeting him. Devlin, as usual, was acting like a protective older brother and wanting to know everything about her new man. She knew that Justus could handle himself with Devlin, not only because he was strong, but because he cared about her and wanted to get along with her family.

  He stopped at the door to the shop and said, “I’ll see you at lunch, sweet thing. Have fun on your first day at work.”

  “Thanks.” She went onto her toes and kissed him briefly. “I hope you have fun, too.”

  “I’m trying out recipes for red velvet funnel cakes. I’ll bring you some samples.”

  “Can’t wait.”

  He opened the door for her, gave her one of his devastating smiles, and then walked away. She watched him leave, striding down the cobblestone path toward the commercial kitchen.

  “You don’t want to be late on your first day,” Lexy said from behind Trina.

  She turned and faced her bestie. “I thought my new boss might be more lenient since I just found my soulmate.”

  Lexy chuckled. “It’s freaking awesome, isn’t it? I wish I’d met Win years ago.”

  Glancing back to where Justus had disappeared, not really expecting to see him come back so soon but kind of hoping he would, she sighed. “I feel the same way about Justus.”

  She followed Lexy into the shop, which smelled like chocolate. When they walked past the counter and through the swinging doors into the kitchen, Trina saw a blonde woman standing at the taffy pulling machine, which was twisting a golden colored taffy.

  “Trina, this is Jenni. She’s the one I told you about that wanted to take a break from all the testosterone and work with us. Jenni, this is Trina, my bestie and cousin.”

  Jenni stepped away from the machine, pulled off a latex glove and shook Trina’s hand. “Nice to meet you, Trina. You’re Justus’s mate, right?”

  “That’s me. It’s nice to meet you, too.”

  Lexy said, “How’s the taffy looking?”

  “I’d like it better if I liked bananas,” Jenni said, making a face.

  “You know I had to make banana taffy. The guys made me promise,” Lexy said with a chuckle.

  Jenni rolled her eyes with a smile. “Those gorillas and their bananas. According to the instructions, it’s just about ready to go into the rollers.”

  “I’m sure we’ll have lots of help with taste-testing from the band.”

  “Band?” Trina asked.

  “That’s what a group of gorillas is called,” Lexy answered. “Wolves are a pack, lions are a pride, gorillas are a band, elephants are a memory, and bears are a sleuth.”

  Trina hummed. “I didn’t know they all had different names for their people. That’s pretty cool.”

  “Have you told your parents about Justus?” she asked.

  “Yes. They’re excited to meet him. Devlin, of course, is being
his usual self and asking a million overprotective brother questions. They’re all looking forward to meeting him during the party.”

  “Devlin is going to interview him like a crime suspect.”

  “I warned Justus about his alpha male behavior, and he just laughed.”

  “Why?” Lexy asked.

  Jenni piped up. “Because shifters have actual alpha males, not just dominating behavior from human males.”

  “Maybe I’ll get lucky and Devlin will find a girlfriend between now and the party, so he’ll be too busy with his own love life to inquire on mine.”

  “Sure, sure,” Lexy said. “And later on I’m going to sprout wings and tap dance.”

  Trina rolled her eyes with a laugh. “I’d pay to see that.”

  “Okay, bestie. Are you ready to make gummies?”

  “You do remember that time I burned mac and cheese and you made me swear to never touch a stove again?” Trina asked as she followed Lexy around a long counter and to a line of gleaming stainless stoves.

  “Yes, but I know you’ll be great at this. Gummies are easy to make. I found a simple recipe online that uses only a few ingredients, and you won’t believe the cute molds I got for you to try out.” Lexy turned to a counter and lifted a red silicone mold up. The rectangular mold had sixteen teddy bear shapes.

  “Oh my gosh, that’s adorable,” Trina said.

  “Well, we had to go traditional, right? I’ve got a tablet for you to use to watch a how-to video, and all the ingredients you need to make a few batches. We’ll put them in glass bowls on the table out front for the party tonight, but when we sell them to the public, we’ll put them in the candy bins at the counter for people to buy by the pound. Sound good?”

  Trina didn’t say anything for a moment because she was a little emotionally overwhelmed. “A few days ago, I thought I didn’t have much going on in my life. Now everything’s coming together in a way I never imagined it would.”

  “I think that’s the magic of soulmates.”

  Lexy lifted a folded piece of fabric from the counter and as it unfolded, Trina saw it was a bright yellow apron with her name embroidered on the front. Lexy and Jenni were wearing similar aprons. “I’ve got a shirt for you to wear tonight so we’ll all match. Pair it with khaki pants, skirts, or shorts and it’ll be your uniform.”

  “Thanks, Lex,” Trina said as she took the apron and fit it over her head. Lexy tied the strings at Trina’s back. Then Trina tucked her hair into a hair net, put gloves on and turned her attention to the tablet that was leaning on a stand on the counter.

  Over the course of the next few hours, Trina made several batches of gummies, using molds with different animal shapes. Her favorite, of course, was the teddy bears, which she’d picked to be grape flavored.

  There was a knock on the door of the shop, which had been locked with a sign indicating the shop was closed to prevent zoo visitors from entering. Lexy pushed open the swinging doors of the kitchen and then said, “It’s Win and Justus.”

  She disappeared into the front and Trina finished removing elephant shaped gummies from the mold and setting them in a plastic container for storage. She hung up her apron in the cabinet and said to Jenni, “I’m going to lunch with Justus. Are you heading to the cafeteria?”

  She looked up from the taffy machine that was cutting and wrapping taffy. “Not right now. I want to get this batch finished up. Have fun.”

  “Thanks,” Trina said as she pulled off her gloves and hair net and dropped them in a trash can. She smoothed her hair back and stepped through the swinging doors to find Lexy and Win hugging in the corner and whispering to each other, and Justus leaning on the candy counter with a sexy smile.

  “I have a request,” he said. “A special order item.”

  “Oh?” she asked, moving to the counter.

  “I’d like to place an order for a sweet female who makes my bear go crazy.”

  “I’m sure I can find one for you,” Trina said, trying not to laugh.

  “Not just any one,” he corrected. “The one.”

  Trina went onto her toes and leaned over the counter. “You’re the sweet one,” she said and then kissed him.

  “Are you ready for lunch?” he asked.

  “You bet,” she answered. She moved around the counter and joined him, sliding her arms around his waist as he pulled her close. “I have to tell you that I’m not thinking about food at all right now. How are you so irresistible?”

  He wiggled his brows. “It’s because we’re soulmates. But I’ll have to disappoint you, at least for a little while.”

  “Oh?”

  He just smiled and said nothing, leading her from the shop. Lexy and Win followed behind them, with Lexy locking the door. They didn’t walk toward the cafeteria but circled around the shop to a grassy area that was covered in shade by trees. A picnic table had been set up, covered with a red gingham tablecloth and set for four. A large picnic basket sat at the end of the table.

  “What did you do?” Trina asked as she sat down.

  “Win and I decided to join forces and have a lunch date so we could all get to know each other better,” Justus answered.

  He sat next to her as Win and Lexy sat on the other side of the table. Win opened the picnic basket and began removing covered containers, and Justus helped.

  “Our groups stay pretty much apart from each other. We all know each other, because of the zoo, but it’s not like we’re friends hanging out in the different areas,” Win said.

  “Why is that?” Trina asked.

  “It’s just the way it’s always been. Until now, of course,” Justus said. “The other two couples here – Adriana and Zane and Celeste and Jupiter – spend time together because Adriana and Celeste are best friends. You and Lexy are not only best friends but related.”

  “Right,” Win said. “That makes Justus and I related, too. And he’s promised to start making more banana flavored items, so he’s golden in my book.”

  “Oh my gosh, how much banana stuff do you need?” Lexy admonished with a broad smile.

  “All of it,” Win said.

  “I found a recipe for deep fried bananas,” Justus said. “I’m sure you’ll help with taste testing.”

  “Definitely,” Win said.

  “What about my red velvet funnel cakes?” Trina asked.

  Justus lifted the lid off a small foil container. Set inside was a red velvet funnel cake shaped like a heart and dusted with powdered sugar. “I’ve got you covered, sweet thing.”

  She couldn’t help but smile as she tore a piece from the funnel cake and popped it into her mouth. “Oh, that’s good! It’s perfect.”

  He looked so proud of himself, she thought he would dance a jig. “You’re the only perfect thing I see here.”

  “There you go, being all sweet.”

  “Just for you,” he whispered.

  The rest of the foil containers were opened. Win and Justus filled hers and Lexy’s plates first with chicken tenders, pasta salad, and steamed green beans. When the girls’ plates were full, they filled their own, and she was not surprised to see that both guys had filled their plates to almost overflowing. Justus had told her that shifters had a high metabolism and needed to eat more to satisfy their hunger.

  As they ate the delicious food, courtesy of her soulmate, they talked about the party that evening, and the grand opening of the shop the following day. She was excited not only for the party but for her family to meet Justus. He was the sweetest guy she’d ever met, and she was falling hard for her bear.

  When the meal was over, Win and Lexy disappeared into the shop, and she helped Justus clean up the table. “This was a great idea,” she said.

  “I’m glad you enjoyed it. I wanted it to be just the two of us because I want to keep you all to myself, but I know family’s important to you.”

  “You’re my family,” she pointed out.

  “I know, sweet thing. You’re mine, too.”

  When the wicke
r basket was packed and the table was empty, she moved into his arms and rested her head over his heart. She loved to hear the steady beat, especially when his arms were around her and she could hear the soft rumble of his bear in his chest.

  “I don’t know how I ever thought I was living before you,” he murmured. “I feel like my life started the moment we met.”

  She lifted her head and looked at him. His eyes were darkening as his bear rose inside him, pushing to be seen, too. “I feel the same way.”

  “I love you, sweet thing. You’re the only female to ever hold my heart.”

  As she told him she loved him too, and happy tears pricked at her eyes, their lips met and the world fell away. In that moment, it was just her and Justus, and that was just fine with her. She knew that whatever came their way – good or bad – they could get through it together. She hadn’t believed in soulmates before she met him, but she believed with her whole heart now. The one guy on the planet who was perfect for her was a bear shifter. Theirs was a destiny that seemed impossible – a shifter living in hiding and a human who didn’t know they existed – but in her mind, they were living proof that soulmates did exist. Justus was the only guy she’d ever loved, and she was glad she’d saved those words for him.

  Coming Next from R. E. Butler

  Villi’s Bride (Norlanian Brides Book Four)

  ~*~ May 21, 2017 ~*~

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  * * *

  Also from R. E. Butler

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  A Flash of Fang

  A Price for a Princess

  A Bond of Brothers

  A Bead of Blood

  A Twitch of Tail