“Frost Clan has paid in full for you to have a second,” Silas adds, pride evident in his voice. My bear swells with gratitude for my brother and clan, for how they’ve embraced Jackie as one of their own.
Kade falls quiet, then places her hand on Jackie’s belly, sniffling a little. “Now you’re going to make me cry.”
Jackie laughs and pulls Kade into another hug, but Kade pulls back, wiping at her eyes. “I know you have a niche for your brand, but can you help me with my pants sometimes?”
“I’m glad you asked,” she says with a warm smile. “I have a special place in my heart for my plus size girlies and I’m always going to show out for them, but I’m rebranding. My shop is for everyone now.”
“Well, I’m glad for the rebrand,” Kade says, then teleports out, only to reappear seconds later holding a stack of folded pants. “I need a hem, desperately.”
Leah slaps Kade’s arm. “Your timing is horrible.”
Kade shrugs. “What?”
Jackie rubs her belly, the gesture almost unconscious now. “I love all of this, what you all went out of your way to do for me. I don’t think I’m going to open up right away, though. I want to put my baby first, my family.”
She looks up at me, and I’m stunned by her words. This woman, who fought so hard for her independence, is choosing our family first. My bear rumbles deep within me.
Jackie approaches me, taking my hand and placing it on her belly. I lean down and kiss her cheek, inhaling her sweet honey scent that now carries the subtle undertones of our cub.
“My pregnancy is high risk, you know how that goes,” she continues. “But, when I’m settled into my life as a mother, I’d like to come back and open my retail space. If that’s okay.”
Damon walks around us and hands Kade a manila folder with documents for the new cruise ships. “This is your space, Jackie. You decide when you open and when you close. We’ll keep it well maintained for you.”
“Really?” Jackie asks, her voice tinged with disbelief.
“You’re growing a strong bear cub,” Damon says simply. “We need more bears.”
Jackie looks up at me again, and I feel my heart swell with love for her. My bear, usually restless and demanding, is sound asleep for hibernation season and completely at peace thanks to Jackie’s claim.
Leah walks over and places a hand against my arm. “You’re looking mighty handsome there, giving Silas and Tristian some competition.”
I blush at her words, unused to compliments about my appearance. Jackie has been helping me take better care of myself—keeping my beard trimmed, my clothes clean and fitting properly.
“Our women have a way of changing, taming our bears in ways we never thought possible,” Silas says, his voice laced withsomething I can’t quite place.
Jackie blushes at his words, but I notice the forced smile on my brother’s face. He’s sulking inside—I can tell. His bear is also in hibernation, making us all more vulnerable in our human state. I realize he envies the bond I have with Jackie, the way she can command my bear. Jewel can’t do this with his bear.
It’s a strange reversal. I’ve gone from envying my cousin clan to now being the envied among the bear shifter community—the shifter with a fully tamed bear.
“All this time since I’ve been here, I’ve been thinking about something missing, my business,” Jackie says, looking around the empty store. “But now that it’s here, I really see what matters. All of you. I have a family now.”
“I’ve gotten in contact with your parents,” Damon interjects. “They’re willing to visit the tourist island to see their grandson. We’re working things out with immigration on the Canadian border.”
“Really?” Jackie’s eyes fill with tears again. She hasn’t seen her parents in a while, their contact reduced by busy lives and distance. “This is a blessing from Mother Fate. I’ll be careful not to rub it in within the community. I know a lot of the women that come here don’t have families that are accepting.”
“I am happy to meet your parents,” I tell her, already thinking about making a good impression on the people who created my wonderful mate.
Jackie looks at me with such love. “I love you, Jabari.”
I take my fingers and trace them down her forehead, over the tip of her nose, and brush them over her lips. “I love you too,” I say aloud.
Silas suddenly chimes in, breaking the moment. “One day my woman is going to chase my bear too.”
Kade and everyone burst into laughter at his sulking. “Oh, you’ll get over it,” Kade tells him. “Everyone sulked hard when Gabriel had the best, biggest claim mark out of all the shifters in Wintermoon. Got over that quickly.”
“Want to leave this stuff here and come back later?” I ask Jackie, noting the fatigue beginning to show in her eyes again.
Kade places her clothes on the counter next to the sewing machine. “Yes, I’ve got some changes I want to make if that’s okay.”
