In fact, it was bigger than a conclave. It actually had the makings of a shifter summit. The Lords of the North American were Tribes had come with their mate, Allie, who was also a priestess of the Lady. The Eurozone Lords had also come—a set of Alpha twins who were as yet unmated. The Russian Federation were had sent a highly ranked representative and other Tribes, Packs and Clans from around the world had either sent a representative or a gift, or both.
They were already comparing notes on recent unrest and Venifucus attacks. Mitch was even considering letting some of their new allies have a crack at the prisoners still being held in the stronghold, but that would come later. For now, they had a mating to celebrate.
Mitch knew Gina was a little overwhelmed by all the attention. Truth be told, he was a little intimidated himself. But having Cade and Ellie here in the stronghold helped considerably. They, along with Ria and a few of her Royal Guards Mitch had served with, were considered trustworthy enough to be allowed to stay at the stronghold. He actually enjoyed showing them around his domain, though it would take a lot of getting used to, being the landlord of a hidden, icy lair.
Ellie was a great help to Gina, Mitch knew. And when he finally saw Ellie with Cade, he thought he understood how the little human had completely stolen his best friend’s heart. Ellie had a kind soul, and with his new instincts for magic, he could see the goodness shining in her eyes. She may be human, but she was definitely mate material in every sense of the word. She would protect her mate and her friends to her last breath and she was very protective of Gina, of which Mitch heartily approved.#p#分页标题#e#
Mitch’s first meeting with Ria monarch-to-monarch felt odd, to say the least. Luckily, Ria put him at ease almost immediately, launching herself into his arms with a huge grin. She was like a little sister to him and he was touched by the happy smile on her pretty face. She kissed him on the cheek and gave him a big hug. Right there, the ice was broken and they were able to move on, comparing notes on the states of their respective Clans. Already they had a tentative agreement on working together to retake complete ownership of Phelix Corporation.
The two couples, plus Gina’s folks, Ria and some of her Guard spent the day together, working out details of an even closer relationship between the two Clans. Mitch took the opportunity to have the pantera Guard work out with his tigers. They sparred in human form and in their fur, taking over the largest chamber in the stronghold for their fighting practice.
Cade threw Mitch one of the towels as they finished up their workout. Cade was the only one who didn’t seem to be treating Mitch differently now that he was white instead of gold, and he valued his friend’s easy acceptance of the change.
“You have such pretty fur now, I’m almost afraid to damage that field of sparkly white,” Cade groused as they headed toward the hallway together.
“You suck at stealth in this part of the world, buddy,” Mitch teased back. “All that black sticks out like a sore thumb against the snow and ice.
“But I bet I’d still be better than you at night crawling, even up here in Frozen Ass, Iceland, whitey.”
“I guess we’ll have to see about that.”
“Maybe we will,” Cade countered with a calculating grin.
“Yeah, but not tonight. Tonight’s my mating night.”
Mitch looked forward to spending part of the night partying with his friends and getting to know the dignitaries who had come to witness their mating. The rest of the night he intended to spend balls deep in his mate, showing her again and again just how much he loved her.
“Yeah, we have to party with the other shifters and make nice for the dignitaries. I’m actually kind of impressed by how many different Clans showed up to pay their respects. You done good, buddy. I think you may have the start of one hell of an alliance if you can get even half the groups these guys represent on board.”
“You think?”
“Hell, yeah,” Cade answered seriously. “Ria’s age works against her. That and the fact that she’s not mated. They’d pay more attention to her if she at least had a mate.” Cade’s gaze grew troubled.
Cade truly cared for the Nyx. She was more than just a queen to him. She was part of his family. Few people realized that if something happened to her, Cade would be in line for the pantera throne.
Mitch had never been in a position before to help Ria politically, but now that he was…
“You know she’s got my full support. I’ll make that clear to anybody who’ll listen if you think it’ll help.”
Cade grinned. “I wasn’t going to ask, but since you volunteered…” Cade laughed outright as they walked through the halls of the stronghold.