Domino let his bear come as far forward as he dared in a public space as they took a nice, leisurely walk around a few blocks of the mage’s property so he could try to scent an exit route that Daisy might have taken. That little pup was going to give him a heart attack if they couldn’t find her. The two of them had started the search on the side where he had scented her before, and though the scent was still there, it was much weaker from the rain, before walking around the property. They’d covered two sides and were walking down the last one when he thought he caught a whiff of her but wasn’t sure.

He sent a quick text to Valentina, who said she’d wrap up the meeting with the mage and she and Imogen would be out to help him. It must have been going well if she felt comfortable enough to respond to his text. Mages and shifters weren’t naturally best friends, but if they were going to be neighbors, then it was a good idea to make nice before things went south.

The jingle of the leash and collar that Harper was carrying brought him back to the task at hand. There was still no sign of the dog, but her scent was on the air. Valentina and Imogen would help confirm his suspicions once they got there. Domino looked over at Harper, nerves fluttering in his chest. He didn’t get nervous. He was a black bear, for crying out loud. But the idea of Harper, the woman he wanted to pursue as his mate, meeting his alpha, well, it gave him the jitters.

Harper was calling for Daisy over and over again, and it just about broke his heart. The woman was strong and powerful and just wanted her damn dog back. His eyes couldn’t help but trail over the curve of her body as she paced around where they were standing, waiting for his alpha. Now that he knew what was under those clothes and what sex with her felt like, he couldn’t seem to stop thinking about it. So much so that he’d tucked his cock under his belt because his erection wouldn’t go away. He was sure he would be mercilessly made fun of for that by Imogen and the rest of the pack once he got home. Shifters could almost scent emotions, as well as read body language better than humans, so they would have no doubt that he was aroused when they met up. He tried to focus on baseball or golf or anything that could get his mind out of the gutter, but it was proving to be a monumental task.

“Dominic,” Valentina’s voice sounded behind him, the alpha power flowing from her like a tidal wave crashing into him.

He turned and dipped his head in respect and apology for the trouble he’d caused her that afternoon. “Alpha.”

“Why don’t you introduce us?” she asked as she glanced over at Imogen. Both of them were struggling to suppress a smile.

“Harper?” he called to his future mate, who had started wandering down the street.

When she turned and saw the other two women, she hurried back.

“I’d like you to meet my alpha, Valentina, and my packmate, Imogen. Ladies, this is Harper, Daisy’s new owner.”

“It’s a pleasure to meet you, and just so you know, I swear I am a responsible pet owner. She just spooked and pulled out of her collar. It won’t happen again, once we find her.”

“The pleasure is ours. I can’t speak for Imogen, but I, for one, have never met a woman who Domino wanted to introduce to us before, much less one who left him flustered.”

“Really? I thought Nic would be quite the ladies’ man.”

“Nic?” Imogen asked with her eyebrows raised.

“Don’t get any ideas,” he growled at her under his breath.

“Sorry, I meant Domino,” Harper said, looking concerned, like she might have put her foot in her mouth.

“Our Domino certainly can be a ladies’ man, but we’ve never met them before,” Imogen responded.

“Anyway”—he jumped in before they could discuss him any further—“I scented Daisy just over there by that lamppost, but it seemed to diverge somehow, so I thought we could split up and check it out.” He gestured to the two directions as he spoke so they knew what he was talking about.

“Certainly. Domino, you and I will go south, while Imogen and Harper will go east,” Valentina said, her voice commanding, not asking.

Harper looked at him, unsure, so he nodded and agreed with his alpha.

As they walked away from each other, he shot a glance over his shoulder and watched Harper walk away with Imogen. His bear was comfortable that the wolf could protect his human, so he settled into step beside his alpha.

“So,” she began, and he instinctively knew she wasn’t happy with him, “is there anything you didn’t tell Harper about us?”

Shit. He should have talked to her first before exposing them so thoroughly. “Where we live?”

“I see,” she said, glancing at him. Her eyes had gone cat, the color changing from a rich amber to a bright gold edged with gray. She left her mouth slightly parted to help her scent the dog.

They walked in silence for a while, looping around the block as they followed Daisy’s scent, occasionally calling her name in hopes that she would come running.

Finally, Valentina asked the question he’d been waiting for. “What are your intentions with the human?”

“I want her to be my mate, and I plan to pursue her accordingly, unless you forbid it, of course.”

“I would never forbid someone from their mate,” his alpha responded, looking slightly horrified. “Does she know that you want to mate with her? Have you told her what that entails?”

“Not yet. We haven’t exactly had time. Plus, I think she would probably like to get to know me better before we have that conversation. My bear has decided, so unless she refuses me, I will take as much time as needed to court her.”

“Careful, old man, your age is showing,” she teased.

He harrumphed at her, but before he could move away, her gentle hand landed on his shoulder.

“Dominic, I know you. You’ve already let your guard down. You need to tell her sooner rather than later so she knows how it will affect you if she decides to leave. Besides, she’s already infatuated with you. That much is obvious.

“I hope so, because my bear is set on mating with her, and I’m just as smitten as she is.”

“I’m glad to hear it. Choosing a mate is not to be taken lightly, as you well know.”

He nodded, thinking about everything he’d seen happen with mates over his lifetime. The thought of questioning the connection he had with Harper briefly flitted through his mind, but they were meant to be mated. He was sure of it.