My Perfect Mate

by Caryn Moya Block

  Being mated to a witch would be interesting, Susan thought.

  “Well, getting back to Mathis’s house will cut off one hour. I guess that’ll help,” Ujarak grumbled.

  “What about the pack’s Jeep?” Susan asked.

  “I can take it to the Quebec City pack’s alpha. I’ve been dating one of his men. He’ll make sure it gets back to Mathis,” Marguerite suggested.

  “That would be a big help. Thank you, Marguerite,” Ujarak said.

  “I’ll be right back. There’s something I need to get.” JP rushed from the room leaving Susan feeling abandoned again. She stiffened, fighting her wolf from wanting to run after him. It was ridiculous to be so sensitive to a man’s every move.

  Jean-Paul hurried back into the room, reached for Susan’s hand, and knelt on one knee. “Susan, you’re my Destined One, or heartmate as the lycan’s call it. Will you marry me and be my bride?” Susan looked around the room.

  Marguerite squealed and clasped her hands.

  “It’s about time,” Ujarak muttered before bowing his head.

  This is what she wanted. What her wolf wanted. So why did she hesitate? JP was handsome, smart, and a trusted friend of the pack. She should be jumping at this chance. But her human heart wasn’t sure. She didn’t know JP well enough to say yes to forever. Still, this was the expected outcome of magic picking your mate. It wasn’t like she had a choice.

  “Yes, I’ll be your wife,” Susan struggled to say.

  “I know this seems fast, sweetheart, and it wasn’t that long ago you were human and unaware of the magical races. I promise you, I will try to make you happy. Our bonding is a gift not everyone finds. We’ll make it work out wonderfully.”

  “For goodness sake, JP. She said yes already,” Ujarak growled.

  JP shook his head and then slipped a ring onto her finger. The metal work swirled around a green stone that caught the light and reflected emerald bursts of color. Jean-Paul rose to his feet and kissed her knuckle below where the ring rested. “I hope you like it.”

  The ring was gorgeous. So many emotions overwhelmed her. Susan blinked when her eyes grew moist. “It’s beautiful. Thank you, Jean-Paul.”

  JP smiled and reached out a hand to brush the lone tear that rolled down her cheek. Then he slowly drew her into his arms. Her hands rested on his chest and felt the rapid beating of his heart. His gaze never left her face as he lowered his head and his lips touched hers. Susan’s eyes fluttered closed as JP continued to kiss her.

  Gently, coaxing her to give in to the inevitable. Little tingles burst as their lips touched. Heat swept through her body. She whimpered. Jean-Paul’s arms tightened and his tongue pushed at her mouth. She opened and he dove in, rubbing against her tongue and mouth, claiming her with a kiss.

  “We really don’t have time for this,” Ujarak growled. “We’ve got to get back to my village, remember?”

  §

  Jean-Paul lifted his head, irritated that the bear called him back to his duty. He needed to get the Gryphon’s Eye for the queen and save the arctic from the bear’s uncle. Still, Susan was soft in his arms. It felt so right to hold her. He wanted to take her to bed for a week and learn each spot that caused her to whimper, every caress that drove her wild.

  She was conflicted. He felt it. With the mating bond taking hold, he would soon know her thoughts, a gift the Fae and witch-kind didn’t possess. Their bonding was inevitable. He wanted her to want him. Not just her wolf spirit that shared her soul, but the lost little girl who’d had her world turned upside down when a crazy doctor changed her into a lycan. Sharing their thoughts would be hard enough if she was happy and content. He didn’t know if he could handle knowing she was disappointed in their bonding.

  “I’m afraid we’ll have to continue this at another time, sweetheart. Your polar bear friend is very impatient and rightfully so. Let’s save the world, shall we?”

  “Now you’re talking,” Ujarak said walking up and pounding JP on the back.

  “It was so nice to meet you, both,” Marguerite said. “Mother and Father will be disappointed you couldn’t stay, but they’ll understand the emergency. JP’s always running off to save someone. Be safe, all of you.”

  Jean-Paul winked at his sister and then grabbed Ujarak by the shirt. Before the polar bear could respond, JP ported them into Mathis’s front room. He released the bear who slowly sank to the floor and turned to Susan in his arms. “Are you all right, darling?” Susan blinked and nodded holding her head.

  “Holy Hell! A little warning would have been nice,” Ujarak grumbled from the floor.

  “Mom! Uncle Ujarak is swearing again!” a little voice yelled. The sound of little feet filled the air.

  “Oh, no you don’t,” Mathis’s voice called out. “It’s bedtime for all of you!”

  JP turned to see his friend walk into the room. JP had met Susan, helping Mathis save his lycan mate from a human stalker. His friend was retired now from all the excitement of the magical councils. Instead he had the chaos of raising six children rejected by their polar bear and lycan parents for being arctic wolf shifters. The Nanuk thought it acceptable to mate with a lycan, but only pure Nanuk children should be raised by the polar bear villages. Mathis was the perfect alpha of their small pack, since he too was an Amarok, a child of mixed breeding.

  “Jean-Paul, what took you so long? I thought you’d be here before now,” Mathis asked.

  “He was too busy kissing Susan,” Ujarak growled. “God my head hurts. Can I get something?”

  “You know aspirin won’t work on shifters,” Mathis said to his brother with a shake of his head. “Come on, let’s get you off the floor.” Mathis helped Ujarak stand and then led him to a chair. “You’ll get used to the porting once you’ve done it a time or two.”

  “Sure, sure. I take it our sister called to tell you what went on at home?”

  Mathis stiffened and clenched his jaw. The polar bear village threw Mathis out when he was a small boy. He wouldn’t think of the village as home.

  “Malina must have called me first, thinking you were here, little brother.” Mathis ruffled his brother’s hair. JP smiled at their antics. At least the brothers were still close. Ujarak wasn’t as closed minded as some of the polar bear shifters.

  Jean-Paul led Susan to the couch and sat, pulling her close to his side. Her scent of ripe peaches wafted over him and he couldn’t wait to taste her again. A knock at the door made them all turn. Before Mathis could move toward the entrance, the door opened and Jared Wolfe and his mate, Esme, walked into the house.

  Esme marched over and stood glaring down at JP with her hands on her hips.

  “How dare you make my sister cry! Do you know the kind of hell you’ve put her through by disappearing like you did? You’re lucky she needs you for her continued happiness or my wolf would tear you a huge one!”

  “Now, Esme, calm down,” Mathis quickly jumped to his defense. “JP didn’t know about the separation anxiety that leads to grieving.”

  Jared picked up his mate and settled into a chair with Esme on his lap. He held her close and nuzzled her neck. Jean-Paul was glad to see the alpha female settle down. No one in their right mind wanted a lycan mad at them.

  “I promise you, I didn’t realize I hurt Susan by leaving. Now that I know, I’ll keep her close to me.”

  Margot walked into the room carrying cups of coffee on a tray. “Sorry I didn’t come down right away,” she said putting the tray on a table. “I finished getting the little ones to bed. Tikaani was disappointed that his Uncle Ujarak wasn’t coming upstairs to tuck him in. So fill me in while I hand out cups.”

  “Esme was just about to rip into JP for hurting Susan,” Ujarak said a little too gleefully.

  Jean-Paul grimaced. “Actually, I apologized about not knowing my absence would be so painful to my Destined One.”

  “So the witch-kind know about heartmates?” Esme asked curiously.

  “We certainly believe in a special person de
stined to join with us. The witch-kind don’t share thoughts like the lycans or grieve with separation. I won’t leave Susan behind, now that I know.”

  “I’m glad to hear you say that. The lycan mating bond is all consuming,” Jared said. “We mate for life, with the death of a spouse causing the death of their mate. Once you and Susan cement the bond in place, you too will be vulnerable to these side effects.”

  “If you’re afraid that’ll scare me away, it won’t. I want to bond with Susan,” JP said giving Susan a squeeze and smiling down at her.

  “I wish we could give you the time you need, but with my uncle on the loose and a magic item melting the arctic, you need to get a move on,” Mathis pointed out. “It’s already dark outside and the farther north you travel, the less light there will be.”

  “That’s my brother’s way of saying, hit the road, Jack,” Ujarak said.

  “Jared and Esme brought a couple of snowmobiles for you to take to the polar bear village. Try not to get them banged up; they’re new,” Mathis said.

  “We also brought snowsuits. Susan, you’ll need to bundle up,” Jared said.

  “Come on, Sus. Let’s get you changed,” Esme said moving to the bag at the door and pulling an orange snowsuit from inside.

  JP reluctantly released Susan to change. She rose from the couch and followed her lycan sister upstairs.

  “My father has talked to the polar bear elders and explained that you’re coming with Susan. I can’t guarantee that’ll keep Susan safe, but it’s the only thing I can do,” Mathis said.

  “Don’t worry,” Ujarak spoke up. “Malina and I will keep Susan safe.”

  JP gritted his teeth. Susan was his Destined One, he would keep her safe, even from well-meaning polar bears if necessary.

  “Go get changed, little brother,” Mathis directed. Ujarak got up and headed upstairs. “He means well, JP. He doesn’t understand about heartmates. He’s all bear.”

  Jean-Paul nodded and stood.

  “I wish we could send some of our men with you, Jean-Paul, but with relations on a slippery edge with the polar bears, it might cause more trouble than it’s worth.” Jared rose and walked to the two men.

  “It’s probably better this way,” Jean-Paul said. “We don’t want the whole world to find out about us. Having a magic item loose in the arctic is bad enough. This way there won’t be many witnesses. If your uncle learns how to control the ring, we could all be in trouble.”

  “He’s a mean, bitter man. I wouldn’t trust him to do what’s right. He’ll fight you if he can.” Mathis shook his head.

  “That’s what worries me,” JP said.

  §

  “How are you doing, Susan?” Esme asked closing the door to the bathroom upstairs. “I see JP gave you a ring.”

  Susan stopped unbuttoning her shirt to hold out her hand. “It’s a gorgeous ring. I think the stone is an emerald. JP was very apologetic about leaving me. He asked me to marry him. I said yes.”

  “Why do I hear a ‘but’ in there somewhere?” Esme asked, concern etching her face.

  Susan pulled on the silk thermal underwear. “I don’t really know him well enough to promise him forever. I know the lycan mating bond is never wrong, but how do I know what I feel is love?” She continued putting on layer after layer of clothes.

  “I know you’re confused, honey. You can trust in the bond. Love will come. Your wolf knows what she’s doing.”

  “You’re always going on about how great it is being bonded to Jared. Didn’t you have any doubts?” Susan asked, pulling up the zipper on the one-piece snowsuit.

  “Of course I did,” Esme said. “I didn’t know anything about lycans when the bond snapped into place. My brother still kept me locked in the basement when I shifted. Then when the bond connected me to Jared, he was so far away.” Then after a pause, she asked. “Do you like JP?”

  “Who wouldn’t?” Susan asked putting on her snow boots. “He’s totally hot, though not in the lycan way. Still, his body is very fine. He treats me like a valuable treasure, always respectful and kind. It drives me crazy! At least when he kisses me I feel his passion. Then something comes up to interrupt us. At Christmas time, I think Tikaani made it his mission to interrupt us.”

  “The little scamp probably thought he needed to protect you,” Esme suggested.

  “Or protect his favorite uncle’s interests. I’m ready to go. Are you sure all these clothes are necessary? I’m burning up in here.”

  “Let’s get you outside. You’ll feel better. Hopefully the guys are taking care of the rest of the gear. Mathis had us bring camping equipment and a satellite phone for emergencies.”

  “The emergency is going to be me trying to get these clothes off when I need to go to the bathroom. Are you sure it wouldn’t be easier for me to go wolf. I could follow the guys on the snowmobiles.”

  “We don’t know where Mathis’s uncle went in the Arctic Circle. For all we know he’s headed onto the ice. The Nanuk don’t like lycans, so showing up as a wolf isn’t a good idea.”

  “What’s their problem with lycans?” Susan asked as they started down the stairs.

  “I don’t think anyone really knows. Our kinds have interbred when the mating bond snapped into place. Mathis and the children prove that by turning into arctic wolves. Something must have happened in the past and now some, not all, of the polar bear shifters hate the lycans. They keep saying it’s about territorial hunting grounds. Lycans don’t hunt the seal or whale. Maybe you can find out more while you’re up there.”

  “There you are, Suzy-Q. Ready to go?” Ujarak asked from the front door.

  “Where’s JP?” Why did she have to sound so needy?

  Ujarak frowned. “He’s outside with Mathis and Jared. I guess you’ll want to ride with him.”

  “Yeah, I guess so,” Susan said.

  Ujarak turned and stomped out the door. Esme squeezed her hand. “He must really like you to be so jealous. Are you going to be all right with these two?”

  “Sure. I have every woman’s dream, a mate and a spare. What could go wrong?”

  Chapter Three

  “Dammit to hell, this water should be frozen solid!” Ujarak cursed. He got off his snowmobile and went to the bank of the stream.

  JP stopped his machine next to Ujarak’s. The ride so far had been heaven and hell. Susan was soft and warm against Jean-Paul’s body, her arms holding him tightly, her thighs pressed around him. Occasionally, she would lay her head against his back. His body responded with each squeeze and made riding the snowmobile an exercise in frustration. He patted Susan’s hands to release him and waited for her to disembark. She walked toward Ujarak. JP removed his helmet and joined Susan at the stream.

  “What are we going to do?” Susan asked.

  JP winked at her. “I can refreeze the stream. It won’t last long, but should give us the time to get the machines across. Can you drive ours over, Susan?”

  “Sure, no problem.”

  “Okay, you two get ready and I’ll build you a bridge. Wait until I signal you to go forward.”

  “I guess you might be useful after all,” Ujarak grumbled. He reached for Susan’s hand and led her back to the snowmobiles.

  Jean-Paul gritted his teeth, tempted to shoot a fireball at the polar bear for touching Susan. Of course it would be a waste of magic since shifters were immune to spells. The only way to get to them was by magically affecting their environment.

  A fireball wouldn’t hurt the bear, but a tree branch to the head would. Ujarak and Susan started the snowmobiles and sat idling. Jean-Paul turned toward the stream and reached for the water with his magic. “Stream that flows, feel the cold, ice so solid, build and develop. Sturdy and strong, bridge builds long, as I command, let it be so.”

  JP watched with satisfaction as ice crystals began to grow across the top of the water and the flow slowly trickled and then stopped. Jean-Paul stepped on the ice, testing it, and then motioned to Ujarak to cross. He made it with
out a problem and then Susan followed him with her snowmobile.

  When she stopped on the other side, JP got on behind her. He put on his helmet and wrapped his arms around her. He mentally groaned as he snuggled up to her and wondered if she could feel how much he desired her. Before he could say anything, Susan started after Ujarak. JP gritted his teeth and held tightly to the one woman who belonged to him.

  §

  Susan smiled. Watching JP turn a stream to ice was a little intimidating, but the proof that he desired her pressed against her behind and gave her a sense of empowerment. He belonged to her, her mate. He’d said turning into a wolf was magical and she could attest to that, but being a lycan wasn’t anything like what JP could do with the elements.

  Ujarak made a slight turn and Susan followed. They left the line of trees and headed across the plains. Their headlights didn’t take away from the night sky filled with stars, the white of the snow glowing softly with the light. She could see clearly with her lycan sight and wondered if JP as a witch could see as far.

  She yawned and wondered when they would reach the polar bear village. She felt weary as it was. All of them would need to rest before they traveled farther north. Her stomach rumbled. They hadn’t stopped to eat. The tea at JP’s was the last food she touched. Jean-Paul rubbed her stomach and Susan blushed. Had he felt her stomach complaining? Ahead of them, Susan could see a glow of lights. They must be getting close.

  It was already late when they pulled into the small village on the edge of Hudson Bay. Ujarak showed them where to park before leading them to a small house. The door flew open and a young woman with dark hair grabbed Ujarak in a hug.

  “I’m so glad you’re back. The whole village is in an uproar over the fires. Poor Anaaya is here with mother since Uncle Itigaituk ran off.”

  “She’s here?” Ujarak asked. Susan couldn’t help but notice how his voice squeaked.