South Mountain Pack Ch. 08

Morgan stood still as Dominic raced towards her, bracing herself for the expected impact. Instead of slowing down, he lowered his shoulder, arms enclosing her waist and flung her over his shoulder knocking the air out of her as he sprinted into the woods. The remaining members of the security detail took off after them.

Frank looked at Joe and said, "You go after Dominic, I'll go after Vincent. Papa Mike, you stay here with the rest of the girls."

The remaining members of the Clan got to their feet and made sure the Crew was okay. The little girls were giggling about Vinnie and Dommie acting silly as their brothers helped brush the dirt and grass off their clothes. Once they made sure their intendeds were okay, Anthony and Alberto glanced at each other and started laughing so hard that Anthony was holding his side and Alberto was gasping for breath.

"It's about time they found their intendeds, maybe now they'll give us a break," said Anthony as he continued to laugh. "I hope their mates cause them as much pain and suffering as ours do."

"I hope they'll be as miserable as we are," gasped Alberto as the rest of the male members of the Clan started laughing not just at Alberto and Anthony, but at the looks on Maria and Sophia's faces.

"Miserable? Miserable Alberto Moretti??? I'll show you miserable...you...you..." shouted Maria as she waved her hands in the air so upset she was unable to continue.

"Pain and suffering Anthony Rossi??? You haven't BEGUN to see pain and suffering yet," said Sophia with her eyes narrowed and hands on her hips.

Before either Anthony or Alberto could say anything, Sophia said, "Come on girls." The girls headed across the clearing with Paulo, Michael and Lorenzo laughing behind them. The last thing they heard was Sophia muttering, "Pain and suffering my ass..." and Maria saying, "Miserable son of a..."

Anthony and Alberto were scowling as they watched Maria and Sophia head across the clearing towards the Millers. Both boys moved quickly to follow them with the howls of laughter from the Clan echoing in their ears.

Morgan finally got her breath back and started hitting Dominic on the back. He continued to ignore her, the only sign that he noticed was his increased grip on her legs. She wasn't scared because she knew Matt and Mr. Carlucci weren't far behind them and after several moments she said, "Hey, tall dark and devastatingly handsome, are you going to put me down sometime? Or are you going to give me a tour of the woods? I can't see much of the scenery except for your ass, though I will admit you have a really nice ass. Can you at least tell me your name?"

Dominic finally saw what he was looking for and ran to the edge of the creek bed and sat Morgan gently on a boulder as he stood between her legs making sure there was plenty of distance between their bodies. He looked deep into her silver grey eyes hollering, "MINE" as he leaned down to deeply scent her neck and started pulling her black hair out of her braid to run his hands through it.

"Stop doing that to my hair, it took Brianna a long time to braid it," Morgan said as she swatted at his hands and pushed on his shoulders. "I know I'm yours, I knew as soon as we walked into the clearing. But you still haven't told me your name."

"Dominic Carlucci, I'm 18, 6'3", 230 lbs, Senior in high school, I have six brothers, Vincent, Gianni, Marcus, Enzo, Gino and Salvatore and one sister Sophia, my favorite color is green, I have a Ford F-150, play football, basketball and baseball, I'm going to the University of Maryland next year to study Architecture to help with our family company, Carlucci Construction, my mother and father are Rose and Frank, my favorite foods are steak, baked potatoes and broccoli, my favorite dessert is banana cream pie, I drink sweet tea with lemon, hate carrots, my favorite movie is 'Rounders', I'm Italian, my twin Vincent was chasing your sister, I like to bowl, go swimming, I'm at the top of my training class, I can't seem to shut up, I know I'm rambling but you smell so damn good, like gingerbread and it smells so good to me, what's odd is I never liked gingerbread until now and now I cant get enough of it, what else do you need to know except that I want to kiss you, I will always protect you, give you everything I possibly can and making you happy is my goal in life."

"Whoa, slow down big boy. Did you really mean that you want to protect me and make me happy? You're not going to force me to do things I'm not ready for?" Morgan asked as she looked deep into his emerald green eyes, her hands on his shoulders still holding him away from her.

Dominic gazed back into her fear filled silver eyes and took a step back, stating firmly, "I would never do anything you are uncomfortable with, to cause you pain or to hurt you in anyway would be like ripping out my own heart. Zenzero, keeping you safe and happy became the number one goal in my life as soon as I realized you were my mate. Nothing I do in my life will be more important to me, and it will only increase when we have little ones. The safety and welfare of my family will ALWAYS be the priority in my life."

Dominic tilted his head and scented his Uncle Joe and the detail standing on the other side of the tree line."Could you please give us a couple of minutes, Morgan and I are talking. She is scared and I am trying to reassure her that I would never hurt her,"he said to his Uncle.

Joe closed his eyes before answering,"Dominic, remember what Alpha Carlo said. She was never raped, but friends of hers were and I'm not sure of everything she saw, so take it easy and reassure her. Her wolf will sense she is safe with you, but you have to give it time."

Morgan looked at him with tear filled eyes, swallowing nervously before saying in a whisper, "Can we go slowly, like really slow? I'm really scared and I would like to go out on a couple of dates to get to know you. Maybe then we'll have our first kiss, but I want to do things at my pace, there are things I'm just not ready to do."

"Anything you want, I will do. We will go as slow or as fast as you like, the only thing I ask is you tell me if you are uncomfortable, scared or I do something you don't like. I will be honest with you, sometimes my need to be with you will overwhelm me, but as soon as you tell me to stop, I will," Dominic cupped her face in his hands as he watched the fear slowly leave her eyes to be replaced with happiness.

"Now, I would like to scent you again and I think your wolf would like to scent me also. Are you okay with that?" he asked softly. She glanced away before shyly nodding her head.

Dominic reached out and held her hands as he slowly moved towards her, searching her eyes for any hesitation or doubt. They stared into each others eyes and when he sensed she felt comfortable he brought her hands up and placed them on his shoulders. He placed his hands on her waist and looked into her eyes when he heard her sharp intake of breath. He didn't move his hands, just continued to let them rest lightly on her waist as he stared into her eyes, a gentle smile on his face. She sighed deeply and nervously nodded her head; he leaned forward and scented her deeply, growling low in his throat as he felt her tentatively scenting him.

Morgan inhaled deeply several times, cedar, he smelled like cedar and it was overwhelming her. Her wolf was prancing back and forth in delight; she knew their mate would protect them and their little ones. "I think you held me upside down too long, I'm getting dizzy."

Dominic started to laugh and said, "That's from scenting me so deeply, you're hyperventilating and that's why you're dizzy Zenzero. It's okay, just take slow deep breaths instead of quick ones, I'm not going anywhere without you by my side."

"What was that name you called me Zen something?" asked Morgan as she continued to scent his neck, following Dominic's advice. Her hands started running up and down his muscular arms causing him to growl deep in his throat.

"Zenzero, actually it should be Pan di Zenzero which means gingerbread, but I shortened it to Zenzero which means ginger," he answered keeping his hands on her waist to maintain the distance between them as she was trying to pull him closer.

"You've got to stop that, you have no idea the effect you are having on me and I'm trying not to lose control. Zenzero if you don't stop, then that first kiss is gonna happen, and I'm trying to do things at YOUR pace, but you are making it very difficult," said Dominic as he tried to reason with her and even though it went against every instinct he had he was pushing away from her.

"I can't seem to stop myself. I want to get closer to you and I'm not sure why, I don't even know you," said Morgan continuing to run her hands up and down his arms.

"That's exactly why we have to stop, it's the mating pull you are feeling," said Dominic with a groan as Morgan ran her hands through his hair. "When we have our first kiss, I want it to be because you want me as much as I want you, and I don't want you to have any regrets."

Dominic said in a deep husky growl, "My Uncle Joe and your detail are waiting for us behind those trees. We'll make plans for our first date when we get back to the clearing and if you'd like, we can double date with Brianna and Vin. Go out to dinner, movies or bowling, whatever you want." He gently lifted her off the boulder and waited until she was able to stand before he let go of her.

Joe and the security detail were standing there with their arms folded across their chests as Dom and Morgan came through the trees towards the trail. Joe stared at his nephew with his eye brow raised and even though Dom knew he was probably in trouble for running off with his intended, he looked at his Uncle and smiled.

"Are the two of you okay?" asked Joe quietly. Dominic and Morgan quickly nodded and Joe continued, "Good, they are waiting for you at the clearing. Dom, if I were you, I'd wipe that smile off your face before you meet your intendeds father."

As they walked away, Joe put his hand on Dominic's shoulder and gently squeezed letting his nephew know that everything would be okay. Dominic looked at his Uncle and thanked Luna for the two strong male influences in his life; he knew that no matter what happened his Dad and Uncle Joe would be standing behind him.

***

Vincent kept his mate in sight, allowing her to keep running before his wolf tired of the game. He ran to her side, grabbed her waist and twisted in midair to land on his back taking the brunt of the fall. "MINE" he hollered as he scented her neck and hair.

"Dumb ass, I know I'm yours, I knew before you did," said Brianna. "Do you have any idea how ginormous you are? Did you have to charge at me like that, you scared the bejeesus out of me? You couldn't just walk over and introduce yourself? What is your name anyway? Or do I keep calling you Dumb Ass?"

"Vincent Carlucci, my parents are Frank and Rose Carlucci," he said as he continued to scent her neck, running his hands up and down her back. "Cinnamon rolls, that's what you smell like, I love cinnamon rolls, when my mom makes them, she makes five batches at once because I can't stop eating them, when we go to the mall I always buy a couple cause they are so good, I shouldn't be holding you like this, I don't even know how old you are but right now I don't care, I just can't let you go and I know I should, you smell so good and I just can't think of anything but holding you in my arms, I know I shouldn't, I'm glad the rest of the Clan isn't here especially Damian because he would just laugh at me because I can't seem to stop rambling, I don't know how to stop, now I know what Ant and Alberto are going through, those poor bastards, I probably shouldn't have cursed in front of you..."

"Vincent, Daddy is coming and I'm not comfortable with him seeing me lying on top of you like this. I don't know if I'm ready to be lying on top of you like this, it's making me feel weird and my head is spinning," said Brianna, interrupting Vincent as she struggled to get out of his arms. Vin immediately let her go and helped her to stand then he sat down on a tree stump and pulled her between his outstretched legs being careful to leave plenty of room so their bodies weren't touching.

"I'm sorry for making you uncomfortable Cannella; can I hold you and scent you? My wolf is pacing back and forth from chasing you and I think that will calm him down," said Vincent as he put his hand under her chin so he could look into her eyes.

Brianna looked into his emerald green eyes before shyly lowering her gaze, she hesitated a few seconds before she stepped back into his arms and whispered, "What is that name you called me?" While Vincent was scenting her, she was breathing in his pine scent and it was making her dizzy and flushed at the same time, without her realizing it, her arms moved around his neck pulling him closer and he placed his hands on her hips, holding her lightly.

"Cannella means cinnamon," answered Vincent with a smile on his face as he scented her response to being near him. "I want to kiss you so bad right now, but I know you aren't ready, so we will wait until the right time and only you will decide that."

He scented the air and then lowered his head until their foreheads were touching, "For our first date, we will go out whenever you want and do what you want. We can double date with Morgan and Dominic, and of course we'll have chaperones with us. Now I need you to step back so we can calm down before our fathers get here, I don't think either of us wants them to see us like this."

"What do you mean, what are we doing?" said Brianna leaning in to scent his neck as her fingers moved to play with the hair at the nape of his neck sending shivers down his spine, and he wasn't positive but he would swear she licked his neck.

"Oh, fuck it. Don't stop Cannella, don't ever stop," moaned Vincent as he pulled her in closer to him, holding her head with his right hand as his left hand remained on her hip. He tilted his head so she could scent him deeper, his eyes flashing amber with streaks of emerald as he struggled for control.

"Vincent...do you think it's time for that kiss now?" she shyly whispered as she continued to bury her head in his neck.

Without saying a word, Vincent cupped her face between his two hands and slowly lowered his head looking deep into her silver eyes before they closed. He tilted her head and lightly brushed his lips over hers increasing the pressure when he felt no resistance. Gently nibbling on her lower lip he slipped his tongue into the warm moist heat of her mouth when he felt her sigh. She stiffened in his arms for a second before letting out a low whimper and hesitantly touched his tongue with her own. Vincent growled deep in his throat and lowered his left hand to her waist and pulled her closer, his right hand buried in her hair as he deepened the kiss.

Brianna was lost in a swirl of confusing emotions and sensations, she couldn't seem to gather her thoughts except for one, and that was to get closer to Vincent. She was running her right hand through his hair and her left hand was running up and down his back and shoulders feeling his muscles ripple as he moved.

Neither of them noticed the men arriving and Todd loudly cleared his throat, then cleared it again louder a second time. The security detail started laughing quietly as Todd said, "BRIANNA." This still got no response so Todd put his fingers in his mouth and whistled loudly.

Brianna jumped out of Vincent's arms and said, "Oh Daddy, Mr. Carlucci we were just... uhmm... talking...uhmm...Vincent was telling me he likes cinnamon rolls..." As she noticed all the men standing there her face flushed scarlet in color.

Todd looked at his daughter and said with just a hint of sarcasm, "Talking about cinnamon rolls, huh? Apparently Vincent really likes cinnamon rolls."

Frank looked at his son and said, "Yeah, we could see how engrossed in conversation the two of you were." Vincent looked at his father as he also blushed scarlet but he had a smile on his face as he pulled Brianna towards him again. She turned around and swatted at his hands mouthing "Stop" to him while she giggled.

Todd turned towards Frank and said, "So, is he yours or Joe's? And the other boy that was running across the clearing is obviously his twin."

Frank sighed loudly and said, "They're mine, my oldest set of boys and they're 18. This one is Vincent obviously and the other one is Dominic. Please tell me the girls are at least 16."

"They're 17 and will turn 18 in June," said Todd with a smile as he looked at Frank.

Both men looked at Brianna and Vincent who were staring into each others eyes and Frank said, "Okay you two, let's head on back to the clearing. Your Uncle Joe is bringing Dominic and Morgan back, your brother decided to go for a run with Morgan over his shoulder."

"I was hoping my daughters would find mates when we moved here, but I didn't think it would be this quick. It's going to get interesting, isn't it?" said Todd as everybody started walking up the trail, Brianna and Vincent holding hands and stealing glances at each other.

"You have no idea," said Frank as he started to laugh. "How much do your girls know about the dating rules? Vincent and Dominic know them, but after meeting your daughters I think they forgot everything. I'd be surprised if they remembered their names."

"I can't really say anything, when I realized Holly was my mate it was at a picnic at The Lodge," said Todd with a faraway look in his eyes and a smile on his face. "I knew her my entire life and all of a sudden it was like I had to make her mine. I ran towards her and knocked her father and the Alpha into the fountain in the courtyard, just barreled right through them. I got into so much trouble for that, but when I kissed her for the first time, it was worth it."

"I know exactly what you mean, our parents are best friends with Rose and Annie's parents so they were constantly around and Joe and I barely tolerated them. Then one day at school it changed," said Frank with a smile on his face. "We were in the cafeteria and Rose was with friends studying and John Benedetto bent towards her to look at her notes and I completely lost it. I went into a jealous rage, picking him up and throwing him across the table knocking lunch trays and books everywhere. Rose started screaming and I tackled her to the ground. It took Carlo, Joe and five other guys to get me off her and we've been inseparable since. A week later Joe felt the pull for Annie, but I'll let him tell you that story."

"So, this is identical twins falling for identical twins, just like you and Joe? In our previous Pack, only the girls were born as twins, all of them identical, the boys were all single births," remarked Todd.

"In our Pack, it's a mix. Every family has several males and then once a female is born, the births stop and no one can figure out why. The only consistency is when a female is born, she has a male twin. The only exception I can think of is Gabby, she was a single birth. Oh, and Angelica, but she was stillborn," said Frank as Todd looked at him with a questioning look on his face.

Frank continued in a whisper, "Gina was in an accident when she was almost eight months pregnant and had an emergency C-section, but Angelica didn't survive. It was a very dark time for our Pack and we do not talk about it. Even with all the births in our Pack, no one will use that name out of respect for the Alpha's."

Both men remained silent after that, lost in their thoughts as they entered the clearing. Frank noticed Joe introducing Dominic to the older Millers while Rose, Annie, Carlo and Gina stood there smiling. Frank motioned for Vincent and Brianna to follow them as they headed in that direction, his eyes scanned his other children as they stood talking with the Miller girls, he noted Anthony and Alberto standing behind the girls with their arms crossed over their chests and scowls on their faces.