Twenty-One

They had booked a huge outdoor pavilion in the nearby park, and guests were already arriving and milling about when Nessa arrived. The party planner who greeted guests with her mother had been a rare extravagance, but not a surprising one. This was the life Nessa’s mother had always hoped for, but had appealed less to Nessa. She loved parties, but hated being the center of attention—being a chef allowed her to experience the energy and excitement from behind the scenes, and she was more gratified by how her dishes were received than she was by actually interacting with the guests.

She tried to pretend that today wasn’t about her, but as she approached the pavilion along a path lined with strings of twinkling lights, heads turned and murmurs of acknowledgment picked up. She almost wished she’d chosen a less flashy dress than the deep blue body-hugging number she wore. It had reminded her of the color of Gaius’ eyes, which was a dumb reason to buy it, but she hadn’t been able to help herself.

Nessa’s entire body flushed under the attention. She wondered if her mate was here yet, and if he knew her identity or if he’d been kept in the dark the way she had been. All her mother had told her was that he was shifter nobility and that Gerri Wilder was bringing him to the party.

Unlike her mother, she preferred not to jump to the conclusion that the man in question was one of the local clan heirs. Once she’d pried the exact quote from her mother, she’d insisted that it could mean anything. There were hundreds of bear shifter clans scattered around Nova Aurora. The northern ones were more numerous than the southern ones. It could just as easily be one of the heirs to those clans as it was one of their own.

As she greeted the friends and acquaintances, she kept her eye out for an unfamiliar face. Would she feel a spark? Would she ever get over this feeling that she was betraying Gaius by even being here?

Everyone kept congratulating her and asking who the lucky man was, to which she could only reply, “You’ll see.” She didn’t want to admit that even she didn’t know who he was, which was honestly starting to get old.

After about an hour, she went to her mother, irritated by the conspicuous absence of anyone who could even remotely be the guy she was waiting for. “If he doesn’t show soon, I’m leaving, Mom.”

“Just a little longer, honey!” her mother said. “Mrs. Wilder just called. She’s bringing him now. Your friends Ignazio and Bryer are on their way too.”

“She didn’t happen to tell you his name, did she?”

Her mother’s gaze darted around the room and she pressed her lips into a hard line. “No, but it has to be one of the three clan leaders’ sons, otherwise I’ve just insulted all three clans by not inviting them.”

“You could have fooled me, because they’re here . . .” Nessa nodded toward the main entrance to the pavilion where a large group had just arrived. Her heartbeat sped up at the sight of the three handsome shifters and their entourages spilling into the big space and spreading out. The party itself picked up considerably with their arrival.

Nessa refilled her drink, hoping more alcohol would help calm her agitation. She forced herself to continue mingling, though all she wanted to do was stand and watch the entryway for signs of Gerri Wilder, who she only vaguely remembered from meeting her as a child.

“Excuse me,” a smooth, deep voice said, and Nessa turned suddenly, nearly spilling her wine. The big, brown-haired man who stood behind her smiled and reached out a hand to steady her. “Whoa, didn’t mean to scare you. You must be Nessa Baxter.”

“Yes, and you are?” she asked, flinching at how snappy her response came out.

He only smiled more broadly. His beautiful, straight white teeth and keen brown eyes fit perfectly in his strong, tanned features. “I’m Jacob Hansgen. Heir to the Green Hill clan. My friends and I have a question to ask, since you seem to be the guest of honor.”

Two other men strolled over with fresh drinks, one of them handing Jacob a full glass. They introduced themselves as Gunther and Teague, the heirs to the Rock Hill and Sunset Hill clans.

“We heard Gerri Wilder is a friend of yours,” Gunther said.

Nessa blinked at the trio and then said, “So it isn’t either of you three?”

“What isn’t?” Jacob asked.

“My mate. Neither of you three are my mate. If you were, she’d have arrived with you, or so I hear.”

Teague laughed. “God, I wish. No, your mate is on his way with Gerri. We know that much, but . . . are you saying you don’t know who he is yet?”

Nessa’s spine straightened at the appraising look he and the other two were giving her. They liked what they saw, which bolstered her confidence.

“I have no idea, so whoever it is, he’d better be worth the damn wait.”

The trio shared a look and Jacob cleared his throat. “If I tell you the truth, will you put in a good word with Mrs. Wilder for us?”

“A good word? I thought you three had already met with her.”

“Not yet . . . We plan to as soon as we can. Rumors started flying the very second it came out that we were even thinking about it, and all of a sudden, everyone believed we’d already done it. Of course, we’re aware of how that might look to her . . . which is not good. So, we were hoping since you’re friends that you could help set the record straight. We want to meet with her, desperately, but we want to make sure she knows the three of us are a package deal.”

“Oh?” Nessa asked, intrigued as she took in all three big, handsome men. The darker-haired Teague shot an almost desperate look at Jacob.

“We’re a bit attached to each other,” Jacob said. “We want to share a mate.”

“Oh,” Nessa said, giving them all a sly grin. “That sounds lovely. And I’m a little sad that I’m not the lucky girl who gets to be the center of your attention.”

Jacob laughed and shook his head. “You won’t be sad once you find out who your mate is . . .”

Nessa stood up straighter, more than ready for the news when more commotion came from the entrance to the pavilion.

Gunther leaned in and whispered into Jacob’s ear. Jacob turned and nodded, then stooped down to whisper to Nessa. “I guess I won’t need to tell you, after all. You can see for yourself.”