Chapter 2 - The men talk with Anthony and the boys

While the men were gathering food and refreshments, Carlo asked his son through their bond, “Son, are you ok?  I know things are happening very quickly and I am afraid I didn’t prepare you enough, thinking we had more time.”

Anthony replied, “I’m just scared Dad, I mean what the hell? One minute I’m throwing a football back and forth, talking to my buds about practice and girls, and the next second I’m mated?  Is it supposed to be like this, this all consuming urge?  I can’t even think about anything else, my brain is like mush right now, and I have football and schoolwork, not to mention my work at the store.  Most of all, I’m just scared of royally fucking this up; I have no clue what I’m supposed to be doing.  And what the hell was that with Scott, I couldn’t control myself, I wanted to hurt him and all he was doing was holding Sophia’s hand.  I feel the need to protect Sophia so bad its making my stomach hurt, will it always like that?”

Carlo said to his son, “We will be talking about a lot of these issues in the basement, but don’t worry about your intended mate, the house has been secured and she is with her mother, aunt and your mom, so she is safe. Just get something to eat, whatever you feel isn’t discussed in the basement, we will talk about at home. ”

Twenty minutes later the men were assembled down in Frank’s man cave.  It was one of his favorite Christmas presents to himself.  The 60” plasma was every man’s dream, with the soundproofing insulation even the surround sound system couldn’t penetrate outside the walls. There were three leather couches, recliners, bean bag chairs and along the back wall was a wet bar complete with a soda fountain machine. 

Like all new homes that Carlucci Construction Company built for pack members, the interior and exterior walls and floors were built of a combination of steel, rebar and concrete.  With a push of a button steel doors would enclose all of the windows from hidden pockets, even the sliding glass doors leading to the patios.  All doors, interior and exterior were manufactured from steel and painted to look like wood.  Each house also contained a safe room, with enough supplies to last several weeks and separate telephone, air and water filtration systems.  There hadn’t been any wars or skirmishes lately, but South Mountain Pack wasn’t taking any chances with their Pack members lives.

    

Frank made sure the door to the man cave was securely shut and entered the access code so it would beep if anyone attempted to enter the room.  What was going to be discussed tonight was for the men only.  Things would be said concerning the male psyche that their loving wives and daughters may not understand and Frank didn’t want to sleep on that damn lonely sofa. 

  

“In case some of you didn’t understand what was going on tonight, apparently Sophia is the intended mate of Anthony.  I know they are both young for this to happen; females are usually at least seventeen and males eighteen when this happens, but Luna works in mysterious ways and she must have a reason for this.  I must emphasize that regardless of her reason, Pack law MUST be obeyed.  There can be no carnal knowledge of Sophia until she reaches her age of majority at eighteen, no kissing until she is sixteen.  I cannot emphasize this enough Anthony.  To disobey this law means banishment from the Pack and it doesn’t matter if you are my son or not,” Alpha Rossi stated emphatically.  “You cannot be alone with her for any reason, believe me I know the temptation is immense.  What we need to do for both of your protection is to ensure you are never alone.  I’m not sure if any of you are aware of this or not, but every morning of a female weres birthday, from the age of fifteen until she turns eighteen, she is brought to a Doctor who ensures that she has remained pure.  If she is found to have been breached, there are harsh consequences for her and her partner.  I do not want that to happen to either of you.”

“These laws were put in place over fifty years ago to protect underage female weres from overzealous mates and predators and have protected them from unwanted attention not to mention rape.  Not to make any one individual suffer Anthony.  Believe me when I tell you that when I was dating your mother before she reached her age of majority, I thought my balls were going to fall off they were so blue.  It got to the point that every time I looked at her, I got a chub and had to run to the bathroom and rub one out.  Not to mention the times that she hugged me and I shot off in my pants.  I got to the point that I had to carry extra clothes just to be safe.”

“Ewww Dad, that is so disgusting and disturbing, I don’t think I’ll ever get those mental images out of my head. Thanks,” said Anthony while he pretended to fake vomit.  All the rest of the Carlucci boys had their hands over their mouths trying to keep the laughter inside, but failing miserably. 

The Alpha looked at Frank’s boys and smiled devilishly at them and said, “Don’t laugh; it happens to all of us.  Once we meet our mate, our only thought is to be with them physically.  Your dad was in the middle of a football game, standing in the huddle in the middle of the stadium watching your mom cheer on the sidelines and got so hard he could barely move.  He limped off the field and told Coach he had a cramp but couldn’t take his eyes off your mom and ended up shooting a load in his cup.”  At this pronouncement, everyone started laughing, including Frank. 

He hung his head down, before he raised it to his Alpha and best friend and said, “Yeah, but I ran for 150 yards that game.”  This brought even more laughter from the assembled men. 

The Alpha next looked at Joe’s sons and said, “Don’t worry; your father wasn’t any better.  One of his moments occurred during a basketball game, we were standing courtside right at the doorway thankfully, waiting for the cheerleaders to finish up their half-time routine.  I look over at your dad and nudged Frank and we quickly moved in front of him to block him from the crowds view.  Your dad was sporting this huge erection while he stared at your mom.  As soon as we did that, he doubled over and came right there in front of a crowd of hundreds, Frank and I almost fell over laughing, while your dad waddled back down the hall to the locker room to change.” 

Joe looked at Frank and his best friend and mirrored Frank’s response, “Yeah, but I scored 32 points that game.”  By now all of the boys were doubled over in laughter. 

“Anthony, we are telling you these stories to show you we understand what you are going through and to show our love and support.  The main difference is you have to wait three years before you fully claim Sophia, while we only had to wait a year or so.  This is going to be difficult for you, but with planning and family help we hope to make things easier on you,” said Frank.

“You will be allowed over to our house anytime, as long as at least two of her brothers are home and they will never leave you alone with her.  This shouldn’t be a problem since Sophia was never left alone with less then four of her brothers before if her mother or I wasn’t home.  Also you are NOT allowed upstairs for any reason, you must remain in the main floor family room, kitchen area and dining area.  When you are in the game room, if you are here with the boys’, that is ok, if you are with Sophia, you must again have at least two of her brothers with you. Any questions so far?” Frank asked.  Anthony shook his head no and glanced at Frank before looking to his father.

“You may pick her up and drive her to school, again as long as two of her brothers accompany you.  After school you generally have football or basketball practice and she has cheerleader practice which ends about an hour before yours does.  Her mother or Aunt Annie will take turns picking the girls up.  You will be allowed to hold her hand during school hours and basically whenever you feel like it, remember during school hours there will be twelve boys keeping an eye on you plus Maria.  Also the faculty at school will be made aware you are intended mates and will be observing the two of you to make sure you are following the rules.  Behave yourself and we won’t have to take any of these privileges away.  I feel your father and I have been pretty generous with all of this so far,” Frank stated firmly.

“Do you have any questions or comments so far son,” Carlo asked his son.

“I want to start driving Sophia to school but according to the rules, I can’t because my car is only a two seater,”  Anthony looked at Gianni and Marcus and asked if they could pick him up, this way they would already have Sophia in their truck. 

“Don’t worry about that son, I’ll call Vinnie at the Ford dealership tomorrow and arrange for you to get a new truck, one of the 4 x 4, extended cab F-150’s.  Since you will be driving Sophia around, her father and I will feel much better if it is a reliable all weather vehicle.  We should be able to pick it up by Monday afternoon.  You’ll work out the payments by putting in a couple of extra hours every week in the store,” stated Carlo.

“Before I forget,” Frank said, “Your grades must stay at the grade point average they are right now.  I don’t want either of you to fall behind in your school work, if your teachers notify us that your grades are slipping, privileges will be suspended until your grades come up.  Your dad tells me you are planning on attending the University of Maryland to study Business Administration after you graduate from South Mountain High School.  I hope you don’t change your mind, you will need to keep those stores profitable to be able to afford my daughter and her shoe and pocketbook obsession.”   At the mention of Sophia and her shopping habits, all the men started laughing hysterically, except for Anthony who just looked bewildered. 

“I hope you like shopping Ant, Sophia spends every Saturday morning with Maria at the local malls and boutiques, and if you want to spend time with her, she’ll expect you to be with her as well.  Dad and Uncle Joe always made six of us accompany them and it is my least favorite thing to do, but with you there and being tortured along with the rest of us, it may not be so bad,” Gianni started laughing and the rest of the boys laughed too. 

“Be prepared to answer her questions too and help her pick out outfits,” Gino said.

“Do these pants make my butt look big, are these shorts too short, is this shirt too tight across my chest, do these shoes make my ankles look fat, do these pants match this blouse,” Sal volunteered in a high falsetto.

“Should I get this pocketbook or that one, which headband should I get, would these shorts look better with my KEDS or should I look for another pair, can you see my bra strap through the back,” Vincent answered in a matching falsetto.

At the mention of lingerie Anthony wondered if he would be helping her pick out those outfits too.  With that thought his cock got even harder if possible.  With a glance at her father, he looked at her brothers and asked with a croak in his voice, “Does she, umm, do any lingerie shopping?”

“Not with you around she won’t,” roared Frank.  The boys, Carlo and Joe roared out their laughter at the crestfallen look on Anthony’s face.  Even Frank had to laugh. 

“Your protection and combat skills will be put to use carrying her bags and holding her pocketbook while her and Maria browse row upon row of things they have to look at and try on,” supplied Michael. 

“I’ll do whatever she wants me to, except hold her pocketbook, I’m NOT holding her pocketbook,” Anthony declared and then was silent for several moments, then blurted out, “Well, if she asked me to do that, I would even do that.”

    

Hanging his head down, he looked up at her brothers and cousins and pleaded, “Damn, we haven’t even been on an official date and I’m already whipped, please don’t let her know I just said that.  I’ll do anything she wants.  I am in so much trouble aren’t I?”  He asked this question of no one in particular, but the men just started laughing even harder to the point that Frank was wiping tears from his eyes. 

Anthony glared at the Carlucci Clan and said, “Just wait until this happens to you, and then see how much sympathy I give you.”   He leaned back in his chair and pulled the pillow up against his chest and started moaning, “God, I can smell her on this chair and this pillow, all I want to do is cuddle with it.  What the hell is the matter with me????”

“You want us to give you some alone time with the pillow, you perv?” questioned Dominic.  Anthony threw the pillow at him, then realizing that he threw the Sophia scented pillow away, he sprinted after it revealing his fully engorged cock tenting out his board shorts and the room erupted in ear splitting laughter.  Anthony didn’t care at this point; he just wanted his Sophia scented pillow back and he wondered if he could sneak it home with him tonight. 

“Let my poor son be,” said Alpha Rossi though he was laughing as hard as everybody else.  “Frank, should I tell Anthony a story that will make him feel better?”

Frank looked at him and said, “I’m sorry Carlo but I have no idea what you are referring to, and if you want me to put that addition onto your greenhouse within the next decade, I think you’ll forget it too.”

At this Joe laughed and said, “Don’t worry about it Carlo, I’ll tell the story, my brother and I have a mutual understanding and I owe him for ratting me out to Annie that I sneaked a cigar at last months poker game.” 

The room waited anxiously as Joe got up and got three more beers and handed one each to the Alpha and Frank and then popped his open.  “Boys, your father is a rather twisted individual.  He wanted your mom so bad and it was still months until her eighteenth birthday, so basically he was a walking erection.  He noticed she had left her hat inside his truck and he took advantage of it using it for nefarious purposes in his bedroom, if you know what I mean.  Thinking he could clean it up, he brought it downstairs not realizing she had come over because she needed it for cheerleading practice that evening.  Your mom was talking with our dad and he walked into the kitchen on the way to the laundry room with the hat in his hand.  She smiled sweetly to him, grabbed it out of his hand, leaned in and kissed him.  He was so shocked he couldn’t move or say anything, then as she was putting it on her head, a long strand of cum fell out of it and landed right on her face.  We heard her scream and then saw her run out of the house.  She didn’t talk to your dad for almost a week and he followed her around school and town like a little lost puppy and she made him buy her a new hat.  It was wonderful to watch him grovel.” 

The boys were on the floor laughing at this point and could barely breathe.  Enzo asked his father, “Is that why mom always looks inside her hat before she puts it on and looks at you?” which brought out even more bouts of laughter.  Even Frank had to laugh because Rose would always look inside her hats and then glance at him before she put it on, and this was over twenty years later. 

“What can I say?  That woman turns me inside out even twenty some years later, I look at her and still get hard every time I see her, how do you think the eight of you got here?” Frank emphatically stated. 

“Ewww”, “Gross”, “That’s disgusting”, “Damn Dad, that’s mom that you’re talking about”, “My ears, my ears” were only some of the comments the older men heard and laughed about. 

“Well Carlo, for bringing up that mortifying memory, I’ll provide the children with one of your tales,” Frank stated with a gleam in his eyes.   

“Anthony, did your dad ever tell the story of how he figured out your mom was his mate?  Or did he give you the cleaned up decent version?” asked Frank.

“He always told me he was on mandatory sabbatical with you and Mr. JC for two months the summer between junior and senior years and the three of you had come back home for the start of football practice.  If I remember the story correctly, he was driving down Main Street and noticed mom walking with Mrs. C and Mrs. JC and was instantly in love,” said Anthony. 

    

“Ahh, that would be the cleaned up decent version,” said Joe.  He wished those mandatory sabbaticals still occurred, they had been tons of fun and he wished his kids could experience something like that. 

“Well, parts of that are true; we were driving down Main Street on the way to Fred’s to get some ice cream and he did see your mom walking with Rose and Annie.  The rest of the story he seems to have neglected to tell you,” Frank said with a smirk directed at Carlo.  Carlo hunched down in his chair and wished he was somewhere else, anywhere else.

“As we were driving down Main Street, we had the windows down and were joking about starting football practice, discussing girls and my and Joe’s frustration in keeping our hormones under control regarding our mates.  Your dad was laughing at us and said nothing like that would ever happen to him, that he had more control over himself then we did.  All of a sudden he slammed on the brakes, causing us to get rear-ended from the car behind us; we rammed into two parked cars side-swiping them and he ran his pick-up on the curb almost hitting two people who were walking down the sidewalk,” Frank was laughing so hard he couldn’t continue talking.  The boys looked at their Alpha and couldn’t imagine him losing control like that, but laughing at him just the same.

“After the truck came to a stop, he leapt out and ran over to your mom and tackled her to the ground.  Now you have to remember we had all grown up together and he had never shown any interest or desire in your mom to get the correct mental image of this, but while we attended sabbatical she turned seventeen.  She lay there on the ground with her mouth opened in shock then started screaming.  Carlo kept sniffing her neck and hair and started shouting “MINE” at the top of his voice, then he started dry-humping her.  Right in the middle of Main Street in front of a crowd of people,” Joe said as he had tears pouring out of his eyes he was laughing so hard.  Carlo at this point had his hands over his face refusing to look at anyone, but thinking back to that day and smiling with satisfaction at the thought of his Gina. 

“Gina kept screaming, Carlo kept screaming “MINE” and sniffing her neck and hair and then all of a sudden he came.  Right in the middle of Main Street with a crowd of people looking at them and laughing.  Gina was mortified and started hitting him on his back.  Several older Pack members tried separating them and Carlo was growling at everybody to stay away from her.  He finally stood up still holding Gina, with this huge wet spot on his shorts and turned around and there was Gina’s dad and four brothers.  Her dad had this smile on his face and said, “Boy is there something you need to tell me or ask me”, Carlo looked right back at him and replied, “I think Gina may be my mate” to which her dad replied, “After that little show, she better be your mate.”  He came up and slapped him on his back and welcomed him to the family. That’s the story of how the two Alphas’ found out they were mates,” Frank said as he finished the story.  The boys at this point were gasping for breath because they were laughing so hard.

Frank got up and got the three adults another beer.  He was happy Anthony had chosen Sophia as his intended mate and he wondered if Maria would soon be claimed, he looked at Joe and asked through the family bond, making sure to include Carlos, “Do you think it will happen to Maria next?”

“OH, HELL NO,” Joe shouted, startling everyone into silence before everyone erupted in laughter; the boys not even understanding what Joe was talking about, but laughing at the look on his face. 

Carlo glanced over at his son, who was still holding the pillow up to his face.  He had the most serene smile on his face as he continued to inhale the scent on the pillow.  Victor leaned over and tried to take the pillow away which prompted Anthony to growl low in his throat, causing even more laughter. 

“Boys, all of these stories were told to you tonight to prove a point.  None of us are exempt from the mating pull.  You will all do stupid stuff because your only focus will be on your mate, being with her, but more importantly protecting her and keeping her safe.  You will zone out while talking to your friends because you catch a glimpse of her, something may remind you of her and you will feel compelled to find out where she is and if she is ok.  You’ll be overbearing and get on her nerves.  None of this can be helped,” said Frank adding, “Just know this has happened to countless helpless males before you and it will continue on with your sons.” 

“You will get into fights with your best friends because they talked to your mate without you being there.  Every time she glances at another male, you will feel the need to beat the absolute shit out of him to show her your strength and superiority to that other male.  If other males smile at her you will want to beat the absolute shit out of them to wipe that smile off their face and let them know she is yours,” stated Joe, “All of this is normal, so when you get those feelings, you need to take a deep breath before you actually do anything physical.  A low growl will generally make the other male back down.”

“You’ll find you will push your body to run farther and faster then before, train with more weights to add muscle mass and definition.  Also you will push to learn and perfect your fighting techniques, all of this is done subconsciously to prove to your mate that you are worthy of her and will be able to protect her and your little ones,” added Frank, “We will be glad to help with any additional training you feel you need.  We have always pushed you boys to work harder then the others simply because of whom you are, the son of the Alpha and his top two Betas’.”

“One unspoken benefit will be the fact that after training is over for the evening and you are with your intended mate at her house, remember to mention how sore your shoulders are from all the weight lifting.  They will always offer to rub them for you,” Joe said with a wink, “Just remember to follow the rules, make sure her family is close by and if you lift the back of your shirt over your head onto your chest so she can touch the skin on your back, you haven’t violated any rules.”

    

“Another thing is food.  Everyone wonders why cooking classes are mandatory starting at the age of fourteen.  We found out years ago that after the mating pull started that males became obsessed with making sure their mate has eaten, especially when they are carrying our little ones.  After several bouts of food poisoning, kitchens catching fire, trips to the Pack Doctor for stitches from knife cuts, numerous burns and one finger amputated from a food processer, we figured it would be easier if males actually learned how to cook then to let our females suffer from our ineptitude.  The females aren’t aware of why we make you take cooking classes, I’ve heard comments they think it’s done for male bonding.  As far as I know no one has said anything to change that opinion and I hope you all keep the secret also,” Alpha Rossi stated with a stern expression on his face. 

“Find out what your mate’s favorite foods are and invite her over for dinner and prepare her favorite meal. Talk to your parents and her brothers beforehand and set up two different tables so you can have an intimate dinner with her, while still following the rules.  Prepare a dessert that is really decadent and feed it to her yourself.  She will melt at how thoughtful and romantic you are.  When she offers to help clean the dishes, let her help you, this way you can sneak brushes up against her in an innocent fashion.  I found the best way is lean into her back with one hand on her waist to reach around her for something.  This gives you the opportunity to sniff her neck and whisper something into her ear.  I was a pro at this move,” Joe said with a smile on his face.

“Yeah, I remember watching that move and remember when Annie turned around and smacked you upside your head,” Frank retorted, “and why are you giving Anthony hints on how to seduce my daughter?” 

“Not seduce, that’s just not right because she’s underage,” said Joe, “I’m teaching him how to woo, court and romance her.”

The boys once again started cracking up with laughter hearing the men banter back and forth.  They felt like their fathers were finally realizing they were turning into men and felt a closeness with their fathers that had never been there before. 

Anthony quickly asked Sophia’s brothers what her favorite meal was and found out it was Chicken Parmigiano with angel hair pasta.  He could do this and wondered how soon he could ask Sophia over for dinner.  He quickly went over the weeks schedule in his head and realized between football and cheerleader practice, Pack training schedules and work that his first totally free evening was next Sunday.  That was a whole week away.  He started panicking; he couldn’t wait a week to see her again. 

“I CAN’T WAIT A WEEK,” he hollered.  Everyone stopped what they were doing and stared at him.  Joe had his beer halfway to his mouth, Dominic had his hand in a bag of chips, Paulo had his mouth full of Doritos and Gianni had birthday cake perched on his fork but everybody was looking at him.  He started blushing and stuttered, “My next free evening is next Saturday and I can’t wait that long to see her, what am I going to do, who is going to protect her, how am I going to be able to function without knowing where she is and what she is doing? I need help, I can’t even get this damn pillow out of my face because it smells like her, how am I going to last a week?” 

   

“Uhmm, Ant we all have to report to football and cheerleader practice at the same time every morning. On Monday, we have to go over school policies since it is the first day of practice.  Gianni and I will pick you up and we’ll have Sophia with us since you won’t have your truck yet.  As we usually do, we all take lunch breaks at the same time so you’ll see her then.  I’m sure mom and dad won’t mind you coming over for dinner after practice and its still warm enough that we’ll go swimming like we’ve always done,”  Marcus said to try and calm down his best friend. 

“The next two weeks you’ll have your truck and you can pick us up since we report at the same time in the mornings, since the cheerleaders let out an hour before us, you’ll still have lunch with her.  Sophia generally helps mom around the house in the afternoons, but we have several Pack training sessions in the evening which means Sophia will be there too.  You were here a lot before the pull started, and I’m sure your parents and ours won’t mind if it keeps up,” Gianni said with concern in his voice also trying to calm Anthony down. 

“As for who is going to protect Sophia, we will just as we always have.  We protected her before you felt the pull and we will continue to protect her until we draw our last breath,” Vincent said firmly as the oldest of the Carlucci Clan, as he looked at his sisters intended.  “Just because she is your intended mate, that doesn’t mean we will cease to protect our sister and cousin.  Like I just said Anthony, until we draw our last breath.  It is the way of the Pack, but more importantly, it is the way of the Carlucci’s, we protect our own.  Never forget Anthony, she may be your intended mate, but she will always be a Carlucci.”

“Remember she was our sister and cousin for fifteen years before she became your intended.  I’m glad you are Sophia’s mate, I couldn’t think of a better man for my cousin, but make no mistake about it, if you hurt her I will personally tear you limb from limb without a second thought,” added Lorenzo. 

Anthony looked at Sophia’s brothers and cousins and said quietly, “I want to apologize if it sounded like she would be unprotected if I wasn’t personally here.  I know she is safe with all of you to protect her.  Like you, I would give my life to protect her and I promise you here and now I will do everything in my power to make sure she is always happy.”

Frank looked at Anthony, a boy he had known since his birth and realized he had finally become a man.  Damn, I’m getting old he thought.  “I’m glad to hear that Anthony, and I am officially welcoming you into our crazy family.”

He got up and hugged Anthony first, then embraced Carlo.  As the older men watched each younger man get up and embraced Anthony and welcomed him into the Carlucci fold. 

“One thing you didn’t think of Ant, since you are now part of our family we’ll always have your back.  We protected you before since you were the Alpha heir and our friend as we were taught, but you are now our future brother-in-law and cousin-in-law which means we have to make sure you stay extra safe. No bumps, bruises or anything. None of us wants to have to answer to Sophia if you get hurt.  She scares us,” Enzo said with a terrorized look on his face. 

“Sophia?  How could that little thing scare you?  I’ve never even seen her in a bad mood, let alone doing something to scare the bunch of you,” answered Anthony with a bewildered look on his face. 

Everyone of the Carlucci’s looked at each other and laughed. 

“She was mad at us because we refused to let her and Maria go into the theater by themselves, we said we would go in and not sit with her, but that wasn’t good enough.  The whole time they were in the movies, they were whispering back and forth not even paying attention.  When we were driving home, she started crying and rubbing her stomach and acted embarrassed.  We were trying to figure out what was wrong with her and she admitted she had started her period and needed some pads and tampons, so I pulled into the store, your store in fact,” Dominic stated, “Vin, Sal, Marcus and I got out and waited for her to get out of the car.  She started crying again and said she was in too much pain to walk.”

“She said there was no way she could walk to get what she needed so we would need to get them for her.  The four of us stared at her and told her that there was no way in hell we were getting her that feminine stuff.  She started crying harder and said she would tell Dad we wouldn’t help her.  We argued and it was decided Vin and Dom would go in and get what she needed. Since they were the oldest,” added Sal.

Vincent picked up the story, “Dom and I had her write down on a piece of paper what kind of pads and tampons she needed and went into the store.  We went in and stood in front of the feminine hygiene products trying to decipher her handwriting.  She had written it almost illegible on purpose we found out later.  It took us like 10 minutes to figure out what she wanted.  Meanwhile tons of people we knew were walking by snickering at us.  I wanted to crawl in a hole and die.  Then we finally figured out what she wanted and went to the checkout.  Unknown, even to Sophia, the whole damn cheerleading squad was in the checkout line getting snacks for their evening practice, and there we stood holding pads and tampons.”  At this point everybody had tears running down their face from laughing so hard. 

Dominic could barely even talk he was laughing so hard, but he continued the story, “We looked at each other and our faces were bright red with embarrassment, I literally felt like laying down on the floor and praying that somehow I could die.  The cheerleaders stood to the side and let us cut ahead and kept giggling at us.  How can you be macho from that point on knowing that cheerleaders saw you with a box of Stayfree panty liners in your hand?”  At that comment hysterical laughter broke out in the basement.

“At least you had panty liners, I had a box of Playtex Gentle Glide tampons in my hand,” Vincent said.  “There’s still some girls on the cheerleading squad I can’t look in the eye.”  The men were gasping for air at this point.

“When we got back home, Sophia was instantly fine, like nothing had happened and she wasn’t in pain anymore.  Turns out she hadn’t started her period, she just wanted to embarrass us by making us buy her pads and tampons.  The four of us chased her until she hid behind Dad then ran into her room and hid from us the rest of the evening,” Dominic said as he concluded the story.  There wasn’t any more talk for several minutes as the men tried to regain their breath from laughing so hard.

“So you all are telling me I have to carry panty liners and tampons in my truck from now on?” Anthony asked with a laugh.  This brought even more laughter and quick agreement. 

“Since you brought up carrying supplies in your car, we’re going to get serious for a couple of minutes, so listen up closely,” Frank said.  All of the boys immediately sat up and looked intently at him, “Anthony, when you are with Sophia or both of the girls as they are usually inseparable, you will be the primary protector as is your right.  All twelve boys will follow your lead.  When your parents, Uncle Joe, Aunt Annie, her mom or I are around, we will be primaries, with you as our secondary.  There will be no arguments or questions if we give an order, are we understood?”

“Yes sir,” all thirteen boys replied.

Joe added, “If Anthony is not with the girls, then we go back to our normal routines.  Vin and Dom primaries for Sophia and Lorenzo and Damian primaries for Maria.  All of the brothers and cousins will follow your leads as we have always done.  Nothing will change as far as their safety goes.  Questions?”

“No sir,” all thirteen boys replied. 

Through the bond, Carlo said to Frank and Joe, “Don’t mention phones, cash or identification, see who notices.”

“Anthony you’ll be responsible to make sure Sophia has adequate supplies in your safe room since she’ll be spending time at your house.  I’m sure your mom and Rose will make sure she has everything needed, but it’ll be your job to check it weekly, as you do with your own supplies.  We don’t have to worry about the boys since you all are basically the same size, just put some more of your clothes in there to be sure.  Carlo, I recommend doubling the amount of food you have in there if two of the Carlucci’s will be in there for any length of time, our boys are big eaters,” Frank said.

Carlo added to Frank and the room in general, “Don’t forget ‘Go-bags’ for Anthony’s truck.  We’ll need one for Sophia and Maria and adequate clothing for at least two of the boys.  Are we forgetting anything?”

“Phones,” stated Vin, “Sal and I can go to the store and pick up some disposable cells for the ‘Go-bags’ for Ant’s truck.  Paulo, our electronics expert, will make sure they are pre-programmed with the list of emergency numbers so they are ready to go.”

“Identifications,” stated Anthony, “I already have one, so we’ll need new ones for Sophia and Maria.  Also include Gianni, Marcus, Lorenzo and Damian since those are the four I spend the most time with.”

All of the boys were silent and the men could tell that once again they were communicating through the bond.  It was obvious they were running down a mental checklist of what they had been taught.

Finally, Lorenzo looked up with a smile on his face and said, “Cash.  We need to make sure we have enough cash on hand to support at least five of us in case of emergency.”

“Which safe house do I bring Sophia and Maria to if we are away from home and an emergency comes up?  Ours or the Carlucci’s?” Anthony asked his father.

“Whichever one you can get to the safest and the fastest,” Carlo replied, “We already have communication set up between all three houses since they are my top Beta’s.  As soon as you get to either house, you know the policies to follow to let us know you are safe.  Just follow your training.”

“I cannot tell you how proud I am of you as your Alpha.  You have taken everything you were taught and applied it methodically and figured out what was needed.  I can tell the younger generation will carry on the fine traditions of South Mountain Pack and lead us well into the future,” Alpha Rossi stated with pride in his voice. 

The boys smiled at each other knowing they had made their Alpha and their fathers proud.  High-fives and fist bumps were exchanged in typical teenage fashion.

   

“Don’t worry about the cash; I’ll increase the amount hidden in Anthony’s vehicle to $50k, all in used untraceable bills of course.  I’ll have Vinnie take care of that issue after hours like he usually does for the Pack,” Alpha Rossi said. 

“We’ll have the bags, phones and identifications ready for you on Monday when you come over for dinner Anthony.  You do want to come over for dinner, don’t you Anthony?” Frank asked with a smile on his face.

“YES SIR,” Anthony shouted at him, and then slumped back in his chair and pulled the pillow back in front of his nose.  He was wondering how much longer he was going to be down here and if he would be allowed to say goodnight to Sophia. 

    

With a glance at the wall, Frank realized it was now after 1 AM.  He asked the young men if they had any more questions as they should wrap things up since the women were probably waiting on them.  Nobody had any questions, but several requested they talk again as they had enjoyed the newfound male bonding.  Everyone agreed they would make this a regular event.

Carlo asked his son through the bond as they ascended the stairs, “Son, do you feel better now?  I think we covered most of your questions and concerns.  Remember if you have any questions I will always be here for you. I am so proud of you, not only as your Alpha, but more importantly as your father.  Do you have any questions?”

Anthony replied, “I want to thank you Dad for everything you have done to help me to accept this so easily.  I’m sorry I freaked out earlier, I was just overwhelmed.  My only question is… where is my mate?”

While the men had been busy having their “Man talk” downstairs, the women were busy upstairs as well.  They had a lot of information to impart on the newly mated Sophia and to prepare Maria for what lay ahead.