The Maverick Pride Tales - Chapter 116: Chapter 116

The next day, Javier picked Pamela and Paulie up and drove them to New York City to see the Rockefeller Center tree and to go ice skating.
It was a spectacular day for it! The sun was shining, and the streets looked like they were etched in frosting. Lights, sparkles, giant Christmas decorations New York was famous for decked out every street and corner. Javier handled himself expertly in the bustling city and always had a protective hand on Pamela’s back and on Paulie’s shoulder. She shouldn’t be so moved by it, but she was.
The she-Tiger inside of her loved the open display of affection and, yes, possession, too. Her beast wanted to belong to him. Hell, she already did, but Pamela was a modern woman and wasn’t sure she should like that sort of thing.
Who are you kidding?
Her inner Tiger chuffed, and she rolled her eyes at the animal. Afterwards, they’d gone out to lunch and Pamela had never seen so many beautifully prepared courses as they lunched at a tiny little Chinese place that had authentic dim sum and specialty dishes. The soup dumplings were her favorite, and Paulie ate an entire duck. Then, finally, Javi brought them to FAO Schwarz to pick out a special toy.
“I can’t believe he chose gifts for the twins instead of something for himself,” Javier whispered to Pamela.
“I know! He is so sweet. And don’t think I didn’t see you buy that handheld game system for him when we supposedly weren’t looking.”
“Shh,” Javi mock scolded.
Paulie slept soundly, clutching the carved llama Javier gave to him while sitting in the booster seat that was snug in the middle of the back row of his Mercedes truck. He’d gone out and purchased the safest model before picking them up.
Already his Bear had claimed the cub as his own, it was just a matter of formalizing everything, but his feelings were clear. His safety and happiness were tantamount to everything save Pamela’s in Javier’s eyes.
He loved them both with all his heart and wanted them to be a family. More than anything, he wanted her to acknowledge his claim, and maybe—if he was a very good Bear—she would claim him in turn.
“He had a great day,” she whispered and smiled at the sweet cub, then looked up at Javi with flashing gold eyes that were so beautiful, they brought him to his knees.
Mate.
“Thank you for coming with me today. It means a lot,” Javi told her and squeezed her hand before replacing his on the steering wheel.
“I should be thanking you. This was wonderful. You know, I have never been to the city at Christmastime,” she confessed.
“What? You live so close,” Javi replied, truly shocked.
“I know, but I just never had anyone special to share it with. I am glad I got to experience it with you,” she said, and his chest swelled with pride.
“Do you have dinner plans?”
“Um, no,” she shrugged. “Paulie was going to make some decorations at the Pride House with some of the other kids.”
“I see, do you think Elissa would mind watching him so I could take his mama out for the evening?”
“I can text her,” she bit her lip and started shooting off a text to the Nari, hoping beyond hope that she would agree to watch Paulie.
She bit her lip and frowned for a moment as old worries and fears tried to wriggle their way into her mind, but Pamela was not going to allow that to happen. This was her time now. She had a past, but it was behind her. Javier and Paulie were her future. If she could just find the courage to believe in herself and in him.
Caring for her son was as natural as breathing, and what better way to show him she cared than by giving the one man in the world destined for her, the opportunity to make them a family? Could she put her heart out there and risk it all? The answer was easy as pie.
Yes, she thought to herself. Yes, she could.
Javier proved he was good with children and tonight she was going to let him show her just how nice having a mate could be. With any luck, that would include some very naughty times, followed by a long discussion about their future.
Pamela could not wait. Her she-Cat chuffed and yowled impatiently. Her animal wanted to mark him with her bite, to claim him as she wanted to since that first night in his arms.
Soon, she promised.
Mine, growled her inner she-Tiger.
Nerves filled her, but she calmed herself, thinking over the last few days with Javier. They were better than any Pamela had ever experienced in her life. Maybe it had to do with it being the Christmas season or maybe the Fates were finally smiling down at her.
All she knew was that every moment she spent in his company, Pamela fell more and more for the big guy. Fine, She could admit it—even if only to herself. Pamela was falling in love with him.
Javier Auberon, independent business owner and Andean Bear Shifter from Ecuador, was a wonderful man, a thoughtful lover, and apparently, he was her fated mate.
Double forking fart balls…
The truth was, he was way out of her league, or so she’d thought at first. But that was how the old Pamela thought. This Pamela was worthy of love and respect and Javier managed to deliver both while assuaging any fears she had on that front.
He was exceedingly down to earth and approachable. Had no problem flailing around the ice skating rink just to make her son laugh—she’d seen how good he was on skates and knew it was all just a front, but it was positively adorable. He had effortlessly carried her cub on his shoulders throughout their travels when Paulie had started to wilt. He’d opened every door and found a million excuses to touch her hand or back, and to steal kisses from her lips.
Javier had won Paulie over instantly with his first fumble onto the surprisingly small ice skating rink beneath the behemoth tree. After her little boy had whispered to his mother that he was afraid to fall. Her protective instincts had made her want to leave the rink, but Javier had managed to take away his fear by falling down and getting back up.
He showed her son patiently the proper way to stand after falling down, and even better, he readily accepted her son’s mitted hand after Paulie wisely suggested Javier hold onto him until they both got the hang of it. After a few minutes, they were both skating circles around the other people who’d braved the wintry weather to experience Christmas in New York.
Pamela did alright by herself, but she loved it when Javier had surprised her by twirling her round and round on the rink. When Paulie giggled and clapped, Javier picked him up and tossed him in the air, making her sweet boy squeal with laughter.
Oh yes, she thought with a sigh. It had been a truly magical day.
Javier was sweeter and more patient than any of the men she’d ever had in her life before. Everything he did was carried out with manners and courtesy, affection, and respect. Loving him was easy, she realized suddenly.
Sure, Pamela might’ve doubted her ability to make a man like Javier happy at first sight, but every time he touched her and tossed a smile her way, it was like the sun coming out in her own personal universe. Javier seemed to project his own feelings about her to the entire world freely, plainly, and she longed to do the same.
Wouldn’t it be wonderful if everyone just admitted how they felt and loved each other honestly? How could she not love him back?
He’d already given her his bite and her she-Cat was desperate to return it. The beast scratched at her skin, wanting to sink her fangs into his skin and mark him as her own. Her heat cycle was still active and the more time she spent with him, she knew it was going to happen sooner or later. The need to claim him would hit her hard and fast.
“Good news,” she turned to him and smiled. “Elissa said no problem.”
“Is that all she said?” he asked with one perfect, dark brow arched.
“Not hardly,” Pamela snorted. “She typed ‘no problem, Pa-mela’ and I swear, I am going to kill her,” Pam groaned, unable to keep even the smallest secret from him.
He laughed easily, and she joined him, squeezing his thigh with her hand. She really loved touching him. It was new and exciting, this feeling of wanting to share everything.
If Javier was truly her fated mate, he would always want her, and she him. At least, that was what she’d learned watching the couples within the Pride. Her new friends and their mates, like the Neta and his Nari, were always so in love.
Was it wrong for Pamela to want that for herself? Was it even possible? Watching him as he laughed softly at Elissa’s texted remark, Pamela felt hopeful for the first time in forever.
“I like your Nari,” he said. “She is quite funny.”
“You do?”
“Yes.” Javi furrowed his thick brown eyebrows thoughtfully, and once more she was struck by how handsome he was. “I like all of them. The Maverick Pride is full of feisty women and honest men. I look forward to being part of that group, Pamela. That is, the minute you say yes, of course. Then our real mating can begin, but I won’t rush you, querida. We go at your pace, always,” he murmured and kissed her palm, keen eyes on the road.
Pamela was deep in thought for most of the drive back to Maverick Point. She was once again happily surprised that Javier did not seem to mind her contemplative mood in the least. It was the first time the male she was with did not demand all her attention—and wasn’t that nice for a change?
It was a hard fact that Javier was the only man she had ever known who had her comfort and safety at the foremost of his mind. Everything he did told her he cared, and her discussion with Elissa had confirmed it.
“You know, for a woman who was born a Shifter, you know very little about fated mates,” the Nari had remarked with a hint of sadness in her voice.
“I am so sorry I didn’t know you before, Pamela, but let me put your fears to rest. If your she-Tiger recognizes Javier as your mate, and his Bear does the same for you, then you are fated mates. It is practically his only biological imperative to keep you happy, safe, and, if you’re lucky, to fuck you stupid every single night.” Elissa had grinned at the last bit of her speech.
Pamela was grateful for the female in so many ways. And even more so now that she understood a little more about mates. She could trust in Javier, and in her feelings for him. The future was never certain, but if she had him in her life, it would be good, that much she was sure of.
The trip home was usually just over two hours, but with holiday traffic, it took nearly three. Paulie had slept most of the way, but they stopped and peed on the side of the road with half an hour to go. Javier was so cute, he shrugged his shoulders and peed too, when Paulie was too nervous to go. He did that just so the little guy didn’t feel alone. Silly as it was, she smiled and handed them both sanitizing wipes as they got into the car, and her heart beat a little faster.
Bum bum. Bum bum. Bum bum.
Was it possible for her to love him anymore?
“Mommy! Javi can make shapes in the snow with his pee!”
“What?” Pam opened her eyes wide and met Javi’s shocked face.
“Uh, well⁠—”
The expression on his face was priceless. Poor Javi looked horribly embarrassed. Pamela laughed, and he grinned beneath his bright cheeks. She nodded at her son as he described the event, and she strapped him safely back into his seat.
“I can only make a circle, but he got a good five-point star!” Paulie enthused.
“That’s very nice, baby,” she said.
“Mom!”
“Oh, I mean that’s nice, young man,” she corrected her grievous error.
“About that—” Javier rubbed the back of his neck before he continued. “My brother and I used to have contests.”
“Like, literal pissing contests?”
“Um—yes?”
Pamela laughed when his cheeks turned an even darker shade of red and he revved the engine, checking the empty road carefully before taking off.
“Music, Mom, please,” yelled Paulie, and Javi turned on the Christmas station.
The unlikely trio started singing carols loud as they could all the way home, and it was the happiest Pamela could remember being in a very long time.
Joy to the world.