"Did you bring the potato salad?" asked Sylvia Kincaid, Jessie Kincaid’s sister-in-law.

Sylvia was pregnant with her and Leland's second child. The couple glowed as Leland slid his hand down the small of Sylvia’s back.

"I did," Jessie said. "I made it myself.”

“Good job, Jessie," giggled Daisy, Cyrus’s mate, her blonde curls shimmering in the early evening sunlight.

Daisy held her baby son in a sling as she sat at the picnic table next to Maria, Buck’s mate. Daisy and Maria had become great friends over the last year, finding that they had a great deal in common, even though their backgrounds were very different. Maria and Buck's baby, Joy, was already a year and a half, and Leland and Sylvia's baby Henry was going on three. The whole family was growing and changing right before Jessie’s eyes.

Leland stood at the grill, flipping Timber Bear Ranch burgers. The herd was doing great since Leland had come home. They’d even won some blue ribbons at the county fair. Jessie walked along the food table, paper plate in hand, and dished up a hamburger and some of the potato salad he'd brought.

“When are you going to sign up for Mate.com, Jessie?” Daisy asked when he sat back down at the picnic table. Cyrus gave her a smirk and everyone else at the table began to chuckle.

"I wish you would all stop pestering me about that. I've told you a hundred times that I do not want a mate. Why can't a bear just be left alone to mind his own business?”

“We just want you to be happy," Sylvia said, holding Henry on her lap.

“I would be much happier if you all just left me alone."

"What would be the fun in that?” asked Daisy.

“It would be more fun than being pestered about finding a mate all the time,” he said roughly.

He immediately regretted talking to Daisy that way. She could be kind of a pest, but at the same time she was his brother’s mate. He didn't want to hurt her feelings.

"If Jessie wants to be alone and miserable for the rest of his life, we should let him,” Maria said sarcastically.

"Come on ladies, I can't handle this from both of you," Jessie said.

"I think that was kind of the point," Daisy giggled.

"Why don't you just sign up for Mate.com and see if your mate is on there? You don't have to make any commitments. You could just check it out and see,” said Sylvia.

"We all know it doesn't work like that," Jessie said. “If I find my fated mate, then, of course, she’ll want to meet, and, of course, she's going to fall in love with me. There is no other option. I just don't know if I can break someone's heart right now.”

“So don't," said Daisy. "Just kiss her and claim her and live happily ever after.”

“You people are impossible," Jessie said, shaking his head. He looked at his brothers for support, but all three were smirking. He glared at Buck and Cyrus across the table. Leland was snickering at the barbecue.

"Did you guys put them up to this?" he asked his brothers. “Because it’s tacky to get your wives to do your dirty work.”

"Don't look at us," said Leland, turning from the barbecue. “It's all them. Our mates just know what you need better than you do.”

He was so tired of them pestering him, but he had to admit to himself that maybe they had a point.

"Fine. I'll sign up for Mate.com if that will shut you all up," Jessie said, pulling out his cellphone. The last thing he wanted was to find a mate because his family was being obnoxious, but this was the last straw. He flicked on his cellphone and did a search for Mate.com.

"I can't believe you still haven't signed up after all these years," Buck said.

"Not everybody is as awesome as you, Buck,” Jessie said dryly.

"You don’t have to be a dick about it," Buck laughed.

Jessie growled as he filled out the questionnaire on the dating app. He tried to be honest in his answers. He knew it would come back to haunt him, in the form of more teasing from his family, if he lied.

When he was finished with the questionnaire, he uploaded his profile picture and added some information about himself. When it was complete, he pressed the enter button and waited for his matches to load. His heart beat wildly in anticipation, which confused him even more.

When the matches finally came up on the screen, he scrolled down to the bottom of the page, just out of curiosity, to see if there was a 100% match.

There was.

And he was blown away by what he saw on his screen.

The girl in front of him seemed oddly familiar. Had he met her before? She was absolutely beautiful, with dark auburn hair, pale, freckled skin, and curves so luscious he had to bite his knuckles just to keep from groaning out loud. He was sure he'd seen this woman before. He would not forget a face like that. Where had he met her? He couldn't remember.

"Did you find your mate?" Daisy asked, leaning over the table to look at his screen.

"Yes, if you must know, not that it's any of you people's business,” he snapped.

"We just want you to be happy," Sylvia reiterated. "Each of us knows from experience that finding a mate is one of the best things that can happen to someone. We would hate for you to miss out on having love in your life just because you’re stubborn.”

“If you must know, Mate.com has located my fated mate. She’s beautiful, and she seems so familiar. I don't remember where I've seen her before. Why didn't I know she was my mate?" Jessie asked in a low voice. It just didn't make any sense.

"Let me see," Buck said, taking Jessie's phone. He gazed at the picture for long moments, wrinkling his brow above his big brown eyes.

"You know, she does look familiar. I just can't remember from where."

"Are you going to message her?" Maria asked.

"I told you, I do not want a mate. I don't know how many times I have to say that."

Even as the words left his mouth, Jessie knew it was a lie. The look in the girl's eyes called out to him. He would not be able to resist contacting her for very long.