The Wolf's Mate Book 5: Bo & Reika (20 page)

Her own wolf practically purred right then.  “Mine, too.”

Bo’s parents and older brother, Mack, were in town for the full moon ceremony because she and Bo were joining together as official mates in the pack and he wanted them to share it with them.  The night before, she and Bo had taken them to dinner and she got to meet not only his mom and dad and brother, but her new sister-in-law and three nephews.  Mack’s wife, Colette, was a human, and their three boys were also human.  Bo’s parents, Dustin and Jessie, were sweet and friendly, and asked Bo and Reika to come visit them in the summer with their pack, in Atlanta.

Bo told her later that his parents had been close to Jason’s parents, Tina and Peter.  When Peter stepped down because of an injury and Jason took over, Dustin and Jessie chose to leave the Tressel Pack and go back to Jessie’s home pack.  Bo had stayed behind because he was already out of the house and living on his own and had his friends and a position of high rank in the pack.  He visited them a couple times a year.

“So we need to talk about something very serious,” she said.

His head lifted quickly and a worried look crossed his face.  “What is it?”

“You leaving your wet towels on the bathroom floor.  Now that we’re engaged and about to become official mates, there are some things I’m going to want to change about you.”

His eyes narrowed, and he said, “Oh, I see.  And just what else do I need to change?”

She lifted a brow in a dare and said, “You could stop snoring, that would be awesome.”

“I do not snore!” he growled.

“Bull.  Shit.”

He lifted a hand and curled it, meeting her gaze for just a moment before he caught her side with it and started tickling her.  She shrieked in laughter and tried to get away from him, but he had her pinned with his body as he tickled her until tears streamed from her eyes and she couldn’t catch her breath.

“Who needs to be fixed?”  He stopped tickling her but held his hand very close to her side.

“Not you, Bo, never you.  You’re perfect.”  She swore, hoping he wouldn’t tickle her again.

“Good answer.  Still, for good measure …” he started tickling her again, but only for a moment, and then he kissed away her laughter and they made love.

He left her on the bed to go take a shower before they had to leave for the cookout, and she reclined on the bed and sent a few texts to her new pack friends.  A towel slung low on his waist was the only thing he wore when he came out of the bathroom, and her body, that had spent most of the day in the throes of crashing orgasms, bloomed to life immediately.

Bo’s nostrils flared, and he took in a slow breath that ended in a growl.  “We don’t have time, but later, baby.  Definitely later.”

She bit her lower lip at the thought of the pleasures that lay ahead of her that night, and got out of bed to shower.  She pushed open the bathroom door to find the floor littered with every towel that had been in the cabinet.

“Bo!” she yelled, trying to hide her amusement at his teasing.

His answer was a chuckle.

* * * * *

Reika took a bite of rare porterhouse from the plate that Bo held with one hand.  She was perched on his lap as he sat on a chair in the kitchen of Jason and Cadence’s home.  The house was bustling with pack members, all congratulating Reika and Ben on joining up.  She had seen Ben little over the last two weeks since they had come back to Allen because he was busy with his new job at Lonestar’s and his three new buddies
–
Luka, Drake, and Paul.  Reika liked the young men and could tell that Ben fit right in with them.  Luka worked as a waiter at the restaurant, and Paul and Drake worked as security guards at the retirement development.

She noticed all four boys were very popular with the single females in the pack, and a bit of sisterly protectiveness flared inside her.

Bo took a bite of steak from the fork she held in front of his mouth, and after he swallowed, he said, “Why do you look like you’re going to punch someone?”

She looked away from two girls hanging on Ben’s arms and sighed.  “I’m just feeling like a big sister right now.”

Bo looked towards Ben and then back to her.  “I wouldn’t worry about him.  He’s smart and capable, and he’s away from home for the first time and probably eager as hell to experience everything life has to offer.”

“It’s my first time away from home, too,” she said as she wiggled her brows.  “What else does life with Bo Elliot have to offer me?”

He slipped a hand up to the back of her neck and drew her forward until their mouths were so close she could feel the heat from his breath against her lips.  “Anything you want, baby.”

She closed the distance to his mouth and kissed him, sliding her tongue into his mouth and tasting the intoxicating mixture of red meat and the man she loved.  Her wolf took notice and began pacing her mind, knowing that tonight she’d get to hunt with Bo for the first time.  The first of many full moon hunts as mates.

She caught sight of Ben as he extracted himself from the two girls and joined his roommates, and she smiled to herself.  Bo was right.  Ben was smart, and even if he was a
man
, he was a sweetheart who deserved to have a good time when he’d suffered right along with her for so long.  Silently wishing him a happy night, she turned her attention back to her mate, and they finished the steak just as Jason clapped his hands together and called for the wolves to journey to the full moon meeting place.

Bo held her still until the crowd cleared out and it was just the upper ranked members, Karly, Shyne, and Cades.  Jason said, “The elders are waiting for us.  Let’s get this night going.”

Bo put Reika on her feet, and they walked out of Jason and Cades’ home and into the woods behind their house, where the full moon meeting place was.  A firepit in the center of a ring of stones had been filled with wood and burned brightly, lighting up the woods around them.

Reika had seen many mating ceremonies before, but she knew that every pack had their own special customs, and she was excited for what was to come.

Jason called for his high ranked to join him in the circle.  Bo squeezed her hand and stepped over the stones, joining Michael, Linus, Logan, and Cades in the circle.  To the side stood Peter and Tina, the former alphas, and the three pack elders, Lon, Dae, and Getty.  Each held something in their hands.

The current and retired members of the pack surrounded the circle as Reika stood next to Ben in the chilly night, just outside of the stone circle.  The five young wolves who had helped in the restaurant when the lynxes had attacked stood with her and Ben.

Jason called for silence, and it seemed that even the creatures in the woods fell quiet as well.

“When wolves show themselves to be honorable, it is our duty as a pack to recognize and encourage that behavior.”  Jason motioned for the five young males to step forward and they did.  “You showed yourselves to be true pack members, following the orders of those in rank above you and protecting those that were unable to protect themselves.  We are grateful for your courage, and in thanks for what you did, I ask you to hunt with the high ranked members tonight.”

The young males all grinned as Jason spoke each of their names loudly and the pack applauded while Jason and Cades both shook their hands.  The young males, faces glowing with pride, joined the pack away from the circle.  The noise from the pack died down again.

“Ben Snow,” Jason said with a loud voice.  “Do you come to the Tressel Pack willingly tonight, to join with us and share in our joys and in our heartaches?  Do you swear to protect those below you, respect those in authority above you, and honor the traditions of our people?”

He answered with a strong voice, “I do.”

“Are there any here who can say why this male should not join our ranks?  Speak now or remain silent for eternity.”

Reika felt the silence around them and felt as if her heart stopped beating until Jason broke it by saying, “State your name.”

 “Benjamin Tin Snow.”

“Welcome, Benjamin.  Brother.  Packmate.”

The crowd repeated the word
welcome
.

Ben stepped back to join his friends and left Reika alone.  Jason said, “There are those of our kind who are unique, blessed from the great wolf spirit with powers that are extraordinary.  When wolves with special abilities choose to join a pack, their skills are honored and protected by giving them the rank of a treasured member.”

He looked at Cades, and she cleared her throat.  “Reika is a healing wolf known as an
apex
.  Her abilities to heal are incredible, and it is our honor as a pack to have her as a member.  To protect her from rank fights so no harm comes to her, she is given the status of
lykar
, known as healer, above all but the alphas.”

Cades’ gaze settled on Reika, and she said, “State your name,
lykar
.”

“Reika Felice Snow.”

This time, Jason lifted his head to the sky and unleashed a joyous howl.  The pack echoed it, and Reika glanced backwards at Ben with a grin, and he howled, too.  Her new pack welcomed her, and both her wolf and her human side were overjoyed.

Peter and Tina handed a strap of leather to Jason, and the three elders stepped forward with three jars.

She and Bo faced each other and took off their jackets, tossing them towards Ben who caught them with a grin.  Bo was shirtless, and Reika wore a corset.  She smiled as Bo’s eyes widened and his nostrils flared.

Love you
, he mouthed, and she mouthed the words back.

She and Bo grasped their left hands together between them, and Jason wrapped the one-inch thick strip of leather around Bo’s wrist, around their entwined hands, and tucked in the end around her wrist.  The mating strap was a symbol of them joining together.

Jason spoke loudly.  “We come tonight to join Bo and Reika as truemates.  Are there any here who would protest this joining?  Speak now or remain silent for all eternity.”

Jason looked around the pack slowly, and when he was satisfied, he lifted his voice and began to speak in ancient Greek, what wolves knew as the
Old Tongue
.  The elders stepped forward one by one and stood next to Jason, extending an open jar to Jason who put his index finger inside the jar.

When he lifted his finger, it was dark with soot that was the ash of the ancestors of their pack.  He brushed a line up the inside of Bo’s wrist, following the vein, and then did the same to her, reminding the pack that the ashes were part of the mating ceremony to cause them to remember that the history of their people was their responsibility, to ensure that the traditions and laws of their kind were passed on to their children and future generations.

The second elder joined Jason, who dipped his finger into the next open jar.  When he lifted his finger, it was coated with dark liquid.  He touched the back of Bo’s neck and then the back of Reika’s.

It was the blood of a fresh kill, a sacrifice to appease and honor the wolf spirits.  Jason thanked the great wolf spirit for allowing the joining to proceed, and he asked for a prosperous hunt.

The third elder came forward, and Bo put his finger in the jar.  His oil-coated finger drew an infinity symbol over her heart and then he rested his hand on top of their joined ones.  She did the same to him, pressing lightly against his hand when she finished.

Jason rested his hands on top of theirs and said, “The olive tree is sacred to our people as a symbol for eternity.  Marked under the full moon, this joining is blessed for all to witness and never forget.  This joining is forever and ever, until death parts you and you join again, together, in the great beyond.”

Bo pulled her to him with their bound hands and kissed her as the pack cheered and howled.  Jason called for everyone to shift and hunt, and all around them, the pack began to strip and shift.

Bo tugged Reika into the woods a ways and stepped behind a tree.

“What are you doing?”  She laughed, when he kissed her again and then began to unwind the strap.  “We are going to shift, aren’t we?  I’m looking forward to hunting with my mate for the first time.”

He unwound the mating strap and folded it, tucking it into his front pocket.  “Of course, baby, but I don’t want anyone to see you naked but me.”

She cocked her head to the side and smiled at him.  “I don’t want anyone to see you naked, either.”

“‘Cause you love me?”  He reached for the zipper on the back of the corset.