Fen threw a scrap of gristle at him. "You're all terrible."
They laughed, and I found myself grinning until Torin turned his grin on me.
"What about you, Alpha? When are you going to stop turning down every female who looks at you twice and actually pick a mate?"
I kept my expression easy, confident. "When I meet the right one."
"Therightone," Jarak repeated, shaking his head. "You sound like you're waiting for the Mother to drop someone perfect in your lap."
"Maybe I am," I said, grinning. "Why settle for good enough when you can wait for perfect?"
"Because the pack needs—" Miska started.
"The pack needs a strong alpha who knows what he wants," I interrupted, my tone still light but carrying an edge of authority. "And I know exactly what I want. I'll mate when I find her. Not before."
Daska snorted beside me. "His parents were true mates. He watched them be disgustingly perfect for each other his whole life. Now he's ruined for anything less."
I shoved him, grinning. "They weren'tdisgusting."
"They were absolutely disgusting," Daska said. "Your father looked at your mother like she'd hung the moon. It was nauseating."
"It wasromantic."
"It was both," Jarak said, laughing. "And now you're waiting for that same thing while every unmated female in the pack loses her mind trying to catch your attention."
"Not my problem," I said cheerfully.
"It kind of is though," Miska pointed out. "You're alpha. You're supposed to set an example, strengthen the pack bonds, produce strong pups—"
"I will," I said, still easy, still confident. "When I find the right female. Until then, you'll all just have to be patient."
"Spirits save us," Torin muttered, but he was grinning.
"Speaking of females," Jarak said, "Sila brought down an elk by herself yesterday. Practically dragged it back to camp alone just to prove she could."
"Showing off for someone," Miska said knowingly.
"Showing off for Rivik," Fen corrected, and they all looked at me with varying degrees of amusement.
I raised my hands in mock surrender. "Sila is a strong hunter and a valued member of the pack. That's all I'm saying about it."
"That's not a no," Torin pointed out.
"It's not a yes either."
Daska was laughing beside me, the sound warm and familiar. I glanced at him. "You think this is funny?"
"I think watching you dodge questions about mating is the most entertainment I've had all winter," he said.
"Traitor."
"Brother," he corrected, grinning.
The word settled something in my chest, warm and solid. Daska had been my closest friend since we were boys—my brother in every way that mattered. The fact that he shifted into a bear instead of a wolf had never mattered to me, not once.
Though I'd noticed, over the years, the subtle ways it mattered to everyone else.
"At least you don't have to deal with this," I said to Daska. "Nobody's pesteringyouabout taking a mate."
