South Mountain Pack Ch. 16

The youngsters talked excitedly as the men were complaining about the amount of items their families were taking. "What the hell is in here? Concrete?" Frank grunted as he moved a cooler into the back of Rose's SUV.

"Stop complaining you big baby," she replied with a smile. "It's breakfast casserole, lasagna, gravy and cinnamon buns."

Joe turned to Annie and she shrugged, "Chili and slippery pot pie."

Gina smiled, "Venison stew and baked ziti."

"Cakes, cookies, pies, scones and biscuits," Nana Ellen said.

Carlo began to laugh, "I told everyone we'd go shopping up there, why in hell are we bringing all this food?"

"So we can relax too. It's not much of a vacation if we're busy cooking for forty-two people," Gina said with a frown.

"I know you two didn't cook anything, so what do you have?" Carlo asked as he pointed to the back of Matt's SUV.

"Beer in the coolers... and two cartons of Pop- Tarts; chocolate fudge for Phil and frosted brown sugar cinnamon for me," Matt replied.

"You and your damn Pop-Tarts," Joe said with a laugh.

"And you?" Carlo asked as he turned to Rita.

"Beer, rum, tequila, whiskey, vodka, kahlua, mixers and snacks."

"Well damn, I think we should leave the youngsters here and have our own party, just like when we were younger," Carlo said as the adults began to laugh.

"If you bunch of degenerates want to go to the lake and leave us unsupervised, go right ahead... we won't mind," Damian said with an evil grin.

The adults stopped laughing and Todd snarled, "Millers, load up now." They quickly got in the assigned vehicles and Todd glared at the boys, "We're going to be keeping a close eye on all of you." He turned to Damian, "Especially you."

Damian's mouth fell open and his eyes were wide, but the twinkle in them was full of mischief, "What did I do?"

"Well... nothing yet," Todd admitted with a sigh. "But I'm still going to keep a close eye on you."

"You don't have to worry about me. I know the dating rules by heart even though I haven't had time to get them tattooed on my ass yet," Damian said with a crooked grin as everyone laughed.

"Alright everyone, load up," Carlo said and minutes later they were pulling out of the driveway for the 2.5 hour trip. Carlo began telling Maeve and Fiona the history of Western Maryland, its importance for settlers heading west and how those settlers were the beginnings of the Pack and the Rossi fortunes.

"So, that's how Rossi's grocery started, as Rossi's Outpost? Like the Oleson's on 'Little House on the Prairie'?" Maeve asked with a grin.

"Yes, we sold, bought and traded everything; horses, wagons, guns, food supplies, clothing, knives, hardware, candles, cookware... you name it, we dealt in it," Carlo said as he looked in the rear view mirror. "Route 40, also called the Cumberland Road, National Road or National Pike, was a major route to St. Louis and we had outposts along the trail, then we started outposts on other trails and finally in the settlements. As the settlements grew into towns and more specialized stores moved in, we began to focus on food and that's how Rossi's grocery started. People were familiar with the name and quality of the products we sold. After the Civil War, we sold the stores west of the Mississippi and concentrated on the eastern stores; we now have almost 1,100 stores in 24 states."

"How do you manage all of them?" Fiona asked with a smile.

"We hire good store managers, district managers and regional managers, but the most important employees are the ones who work the floor, like cashiers and stock people. They're the ones who deal directly with the public and are the 'face' of Rossi's," Gina replied as she turned in her seat to look at the girls. "Remember that when you start the bakery. You can have an average product but if you have exceptional staff serving it, people will come back. The opposite is also true, you can have exceptional product with bad, rude staff and the public will never come back."

"Do you have Were's working in your other stores, in the other states?" Maeve asked.

Carlo shook his head, "Years ago, even before the Were War, my family decided not to have other Packs working in the stores. If they manufacture food products, we'll buy it and carry it, but it wouldn't be in our best interests for them to be involved in the actual stores, especially in a managerial position."

"We buy wine, produce, cheese, meat and many assorted products from other Packs but we don't treat them any different from the thousands of vendors we have. You have to remember that first and most foremost, Rossi's is a business and must be treated as such," Gina said in a firm tone.

"You also have to remember who and what we are. We have to walk a fine line between our position in society as business leaders and maintaining the secrecy of our Packs. No matter what, our Pack will always comes first and we will do what needs to be done to protect them," Carlo said as the boys nodded.

The girls were quiet as they merged onto Interstate 68 heading towards Cumberland. "I'm glad we moved here," Maeve said quietly as she caught Carlo's eye in the mirror. "Even with everything going on, and I don't understand a lot of it, but I feel safe. I've never really felt safe before. Even before Charles took over, there were too many people with darkness around them, then after he took over everything got darker and darker."

Fiona reached over to hold her twin's hand, "Daddy and Papa Mike say as long as we listen and pay attention that we'll be safe. That you and the Carlucci's won't let anything happen to us and I believe them."

Enzo turned around to look at the girls, "I don't want to lie to you, we'll always be there to protect you, but things do happen; that's why we're teaching you as much as we can so you aren't defenseless."

"Like we may be fighting with the bad guys and if there are enough of them, you may be taken. But you'll know how to defend yourself; we taught you how to get out of restraints, but there's a lot more for you to learn," Gino added as Enzo nodded. "What we're teaching you is how to survive until we come for you."

Enzo stared into the eyes of the two young girls and they were mesmerized as his eyes flickered from green to amber to black and his snarl was almost feral, "And make no mistake... we will come for you... we will find you... and we will tear apart every person who dared to take you."

Carlo glanced at his mate, "They're getting more and more like their parent's everyday. I'm not sure if that reassures me or scares me."

The girls nodded and Maeve said, "I know you will. I can see it swirling all around you, such beautiful colors, and they're mixed with gold for protection."

Fiona looked at Gino and asked quietly, "Is he always that intense?"

Gino began to laugh, "We're Carlucci's. We're always intense... well, except for Damian. I have no idea what's going on with him most of the time." The girls began to laugh and the tension inside the car went down as they began to talk about what they would do at the lake.

***

Matt looked in the rearview mirror at his nieces and smiled as he saw their intendeds nuzzling their necks. "I've never seen Lorenzo when he's not scowling or Damian when he's not talking," he said as he reached over to hold his mates hand.

"Our family keeps getting bigger," Phil replied with a smile before he turned to look out the passenger window. "Do you ever have regrets that we're mates? That you lost everything?"

"Only one," Matt said as he glanced at his mate. "That I wasn't able to protect you better. Without you by my side, I had nothing. Nothing but emptiness inside... and now I feel complete. So, I lost nothing and gained everything. I wonder if you have regrets because you're the one who lost the most."

Phil was quiet before shaking his head, "When I look back at our previous life, I see the slights and insulted they directed my way and how I never truly fit into what they wanted me to be. Here, they've never made us feel that way and we have a family that loves us, unconditionally." He turned to the window again and sighed, "So no, I have no regrets, only for what could or should have been."

"Uncle Phil, how much longer is it going to be? I'm getting hungry," Caitlin asked as Damian continued to nuzzle her neck.

"About another hour Cait, if you're hungry we have Pop-Tarts in the back and a bag with snacks," he answered and turned around to see her smiling at him.

"Thanks Uncle Phil, love you," she responded before moving out of Damian's arms as he began to growl. "Hold on, I'm getting some snacks."

"Love you too sweetheart," he responded with a smile.

"If we had any doubts, there's our proof... a family bond. Everyone has said they've never heard of one spontaneously happening. Only Luna could have given us something we desperately needed, a family that loves us no matter what," Matt said as he rubbed his thumb over the back of his mates hand.

***

Rita looked at her mate and said, "I'm surprised you haven't said anything about Angelo not watching Gabriella."

Carmelo shrugged, "Salvatore at fifteen is as good a fighter as Angelo and I've seen the way he's protected her. If he is her mate, he will stop at nothing to protect her, so I have no worries."

"They look cute together," Rita said as she looked at them as they sat in the middle seat, while Aislin and Gianni were in the back. Gabby had his Science book on her lap and was quizzing him and Aislin on cell structure and function.

***

Paulo's fingers were flying over the laptop's keyboard as he listened to Michael talk about the activities they could do at the lake. He pulled up his email and sighed when he saw ten more had come in during the last five minutes. The end and the beginning of the month was always the worst; clients wanting to highlight their monthly specials, adjusting prices on sale or clearance items or adding new pictures, and they all seemed to wait until the last minute. He quickly scanned them and put them in a folder according to how much work would be involved.

"You're awful quiet, even quieter than normal," Shannon whispered into his ear from where she was sitting in the back seat.

Paulo could feel his face flushing, "Just busy doing stuff. I was hoping to get most of it done on the way to the lake, but I'm gonna need a few more hours."

"Michael was telling us they have putt-putt golf, jet skis, and those little racing cars. We've never done any of that. To be truthful, none of us have ever driven anything before, so it should be interesting," she said with a smile.

Paulo began to laugh quietly, "Don't worry, I'll teach you."

She said softly, "I'm not worried. I know you won't let me get hurt."

***

"I can't wait to get on the lake and do some fishing. Alpha Carlo said the lake has big mouth bass," Papa Mike said with a smile. "My boys and I went to Robertson's and got fishing rods and tackle the other day."

"Alpha Carlo got a really nice boat from Madame Gina for his fortieth birthday. You can fish from that, the dock or the lake shore. The land next to them is finally for sale, not much lake frontage, but it's about twelve acres of land. Dad and Uncle Joe said they were going to look at it and possibly put in an offer; that it was about time we built our own cabin," Dom said with a grin.

"That was last month, I'm not sure what they're going to do now," Vin said quietly as silence descended inside the SUV as everyone thought about all the things that had happened in the last month.

***

Joe looked in the rearview mirror at his daughter and her intended. Alberto was leaning against the side of the vehicle while Maria was stretched out on the seat. Her head was tucked on his chest and he had his arm around her shoulders while he scented her hair. Her even breathing indicated she was asleep and Joe quietly asked, "Does she have her arm on her pillow?"

Alberto nodded, "Yeah, it looks good, not swollen or anything. She took her pain meds before we left so she could rest on the drive."

"I know she's going to want to do all the activities they normally do at the lake, but I want you to keep an eye on her so she doesn't overdo it. She's stubborn..." Joe said with a grin. "Like her mother."

Quiet laughter filled the car as Annie whacked him on the arm. "I'm not stubborn you jackass, I'm just always right."

***

Rose looked at her mate, "We're almost there, a little over half an hour."

"I'm glad, because I'm hungry and I know if I'm hungry then the ravenous beasts must be starved," Frank answered with a smile.

"I could eat a whole deer... maybe two," Victor answered as he looked up from his English homework.

"Squirt, you couldn't even eat the flanks off of one, let alone two deer," Angelo said with a snort.

Victor glared at him, "I bet I can eat as much as you."

"Doubt that. I'm a foot taller and outweigh you by a buck fifty. My arms are bigger than your little twig legs," Angelo retorted as he began to grin.

"I do not have twig legs. You're jealous become I'm normal sized. Everything about you is jumbo-sized, including your head with that ginormous ego of yours," Victor said with a smile.

"My head's not big; it's proportionate to the rest of me. Face it Squirt, I'm a big man with a big personality," Angelo said with a grin as he bumped Victor with his shoulder almost knocking him off the seat.

***

"You tired?" Carlo asked Gina as he reached for her hand.

She nodded and sighed, "Yeah, it's been a long day."

"Instead of fixing the stuff you brought, how about if we stop at that Chinese buffet?" Carlo asked with a smile. "This way nobody has to prepare dinner or do dishes afterwards, we can relax the rest of the evening."

"That sounds wonderful," She replied with a smile before turning to the girls. "Chinese food okay with you two? If not we can stop somewhere else."

"Yes ma'am," both girls said, happy the Alpha's had asked their opinion.

"You'll like the buffet; you can try everything and see what you like. We like them because we can eat as much as we want," Enzo said with a grin.

"Maeve and Fiona are perishing from hunger and demanding we stop and feed them Chinese food. I tried reasoning with them, but they're relentless in their demands," Carlo said to everyone in a teasing tone as Maeve and Fiona gasped and Gina, Enzo and Gino laughed at their expressions.

"Alpha Carlo," Maeve replied in a horrified tone.

"They're tenacious like their mother and grandmother, like wolves after prey. It's better to give in than be nagged to death," Todd said with a laugh.

"Daddddyyy," Fiona squealed as everyone started to laugh.

"Joe, you're the lead car, we'll follow you," Carlo said with a grin as he closed the bond. He looked in the mirror at the girls and felt his heart clench, the ache was a familiar one and he felt his wolf hang his head before he started to whine. He took a deep breath and hid his emotions so no one else could feel them.

Gina squeezed his hand, "You don't have to hide it from me, I feel it too."

"You okay Carlo? Anything wrong?" Frank asked his voice laced with concern. As Frank was speaking, Joe broke in and asked the same thing.

"I'm fine; I should've known I couldn't hide anything from the two of you. Our bond is too strong. Seeing the two young ones brings up memories of my Angelica," Carlo said as he sighed again.

"We can always shift their seat assignments if that would help you and your wolf," Joe said as he took the next exit.

Carlo felt his wolf begin pacing back and forth, "No. In an odd way, it makes us feel better to protect them."

"Okay, but let us know whenever you want to change it, or need a break," Frank said as he pulled into the parking lot. Thirty minutes later the boys were demolishing the buffet, the girls had finished eating, the men were talking about fishing and the women discussed the new declarations.

"I don't know why you bother to sit. You should get one of those rolling chairs and just scoot along the counters," Kelly said to Marcus as he brought his sixth plate of food back to the table.

"Don't give them any ideas Kelly," Sophia said with a laugh.

"You know what 'Buffet' stands for, right?" Damian asked to no one in particular. Seeing the confused looks, he said, "Big Ugly Fat Friends Eating Together... that would work for the rest of you guys but since I'm here, it'll have to change to Brawny Utterly Fabulous Friends Eating Together."

"Carlucci, you're so full of shi..." Angelo began and stopped speaking as he looked around the restaurant.

"What was that you were saying Angelo?" Victor said with a smirk.

"Shove it Squirt, you know darn well what I was going to say," Angelo retorted as he threw a fortune cookie at Victor.

Frank looked around the restaurant and said, "The food's really good here, I'm surprised it's not busier, or are we eating early?"

Carlo looked at his watch, "It's almost 6, so we're not early. It's been a while since we've been to this part of our territory and I wonder what's been going on; the store manager says sales are down too." Carlo motioned for the waitress and he quietly asked to speak to the owner. Several minutes later an older gentleman in his sixties came out and slowly walked to their table.

"I'm Charles Wu, is there something I can help you with?" he asked with a smile.

Carlo stood to shake hands, "I'm Carlo Rossi and this is my wife Gina, we own Rossi's grocery stores. We have a cabin at the lake and are here for the weekend with our friends; Frank, Rose, Joe and Annie Carlucci of Carlucci Construction Corporation, Carmelo and Rita Moretti of Carmelo's Pizza Parlor's, Matt Washburn -Miller and Phillip Moeller-Miller of South Mountain Florists and Mike, Ellen, Todd and Holly Miller who are in the process of opening a bakery."

Mr. Wu nodded at each couple as they were introduced. "It's a pleasure to meet everyone. I've seen your families around town, but I don't remember seeing all those girls." He turned to Carlo with a questioning look, "Is something the matter? Was the food unsatisfactory?"

Carlo turned to the buffet where the boys were still getting plates of food and he smiled, "Obviously the food was wonderful and our children are eating everything in sight." Mr. Wu smiled and let out a deep breath. "We haven't been to the lake in several months and were wondering with the holiday weekend, why it isn't more crowded here."

Mr. Wu shrugged, "We had a large distribution center close three months ago." He turned to the Carlucci's, "I know you're bidding on the new shopping center they're building, and with your reputation I'm sure you'll get it. I have a feeling you're going to have hundreds of people applying for jobs, there's just no other companies hiring in the area. I don't know how much longer some of us can hold on, there are a lot of people who are selling their homes and businesses are starting to close. We've done everything we can to stay open. We used to have the buffet every night, now we only have it on weekends and I've laid off all my staff, the only ones working here are family now. Your group is the first business we've had today and I greatly appreciate you coming in."

"It was our pleasure, the food is excellent," Rose said with a smile.

"Do you know who to contact about the building? We've been in the same building for close to thirty years and not only is it outdated, but we've outgrown it. We've been looking to expand for a while now," Gina asked with a smile.