The feeling of seeing them again was indescribable. I wept as I clutched them tight to me, my nose taking in their complex scents. I could sense my cat, she recognized the children as ours from my memories, and a wave of paternal love washed through her.
The bond between my cat and my children snapped into place, causing all of us to twitch in surprise as it hit. There was no doubt now. They were her kitts, her future, and she would protect them with her life.
Her reaction to Craig was a little more interesting. She knew who he was from my memories, and could feel the immediate reaction of my human side to him. I loved him, more than I could ever express, and she found that curious. To her instinct, men were a necessary part of reproduction; important during the heat, but otherwise a threat to her kits and her food supply. She didn't understand the pull, the need she was feeling to be touching him, to be around him.
Craig pulled back, his teeth shifting, and bit down hard on the left side of my neck where it met the shoulder. The pain was fleeting, soon morphing to pleasure as the claiming bite took. My mind recognized and rejoiced in it, my cat was confused. To her shock, another bond snapped into place, and she felt his emotions crashing in. For both of us, it was the first time we had a bond with our mate. He licked the wound, and pleasure and desire crashed through me as he gently cleaned the bite.
My relief was so great, I started to cry. The one thing I had been worried about, that my cat wouldn't accept my mate, had not occurred. In fact, the mating bond was strong, I could feel it as his emotions poured into my head. Relief, happiness, and most of all, love.
"What's going on with him?" Craig whispered in my ear, not wanting the kids to know. I turned my head to see Al; he was standing on the dock, frozen like a statue. His eyes were black, and his teeth were slightly shifted. He was on the verge of a shift. I turned to see what he was focused on, just to find his target was similarly gobsmacked. Her eyes were black and her wolf forward as she stared at her mate, a man she had given up on finding.
Marge found her mate. I started laughing, I was SO going to tease the shit out of her for this!
Everyone gathered at the dock gave them room, not that they noticed anyone but the other. Marge broke first, she ran forward and leapt into his arms. He caught her and spun her around, then their lips crashed together in a passionate kiss. She broke free, her hand pulling his shirt down and her jaws shifting before they bit hard into his shoulder. He screamed in pleasure as she moaned, the bond between them strengthening. His teeth shifted, and he bit her back. They held each other for a moment before she shifted, running off the beach into the trees. He quickly shifted into his panther form and chased after her.
"I told them to take the beach house on the west side for a few days," Mabel said. "They have decades of lust to work out before they are ready for us." I shook my head, she hadn't talked, it was in my head. That meant... my pack link was back!
"Holy shit, I've got a link!" I yelled it a bit too loud over the Pack bond in my excitement, and I could see them wincing as it slammed into them.
"Yes, you do. A strong one, too. Your cat, she has Alpha-like power, I can feel it." I stood up, keeping my boys in my arms as I did so. I looked down at Craig, he was still on his knees, smelling me down there. He shifted, his clothes tearing as he turned into his magnificent black wolf. I squealed and moved away as his nose buried itself in my crotch.
"Hey, not now, there are kids here," I sent to him. He didn't reply, so I focused on his emotions over the bond. His wolf was going nuts, his tail wagging furiously. His muzzle went down, lifting the skirt of my dress up and taking a smell and a lick over the thin panties I was wearing. I was already wet and ready for him, this nearly sent me over the edge, but we had the Pack around and the boys in my arms. "Stop it!"
"PUP PUP PUP PUP!!" It was all his wolf was thinking, and it resonated over the bond. I froze. It couldn't be, could it? I started to count back, and with a shock I realized my last period had been before I was sprung from Fort Detrick. I only had that one night... but what a night... and we didn't use protection.
My cat just chuckled at me, like she already knew and just hadn't told me. Craig shifted back to human form and pushed his ear into my stomach, grinning like a madman.
"Heartbeat! I can hear a heartbeat!" He jumped up and kissed me, then kissed the boys.
The Pack cheered as the news spread their Alphas were with child. "Jeez, Ella," Mabel said, "Can you have sex just ONCE without getting pregnant?" I turned pink as everyone laughed.
"Sure... I just have to be pregnant first!" I looked at everyone in my Pack, I was so happy to be home and the Pack bond was alive with happiness. "Come on, let's go sit down. I've got stories to tell, and I need to catch up." Craig took Darryl and we held hands as we walked up the beach to the former hotel that was now our Pack house.
It was just after lunch, and as much fun as seeing everyone was, there was only one person I truly wanted to be with right now. Mabel recognized what was going on and came over for the boys. "Nap time for the children," she said in a voice that brooked no disagreement. "Come on, you Mom will still be here when you wake up." They tried to cling to me but she soon had them walking up to their bedroom.
"Thank you," I said over the link. Damn, I had missed the ability to mind link, it was so handy.
Olivia was moving her own kids to the stairs. "I think we need to have a welcome home beach party for you tonight, but right now you need to rest." She winked at me, causing me to blush.
"We'll arrange everything, just be down here again at seven," Mark said.
Craig picked me up and placed me on his lap, then stood up with me, my arms around his neck as his supported my knees and back. "Let Marge know, they should be here to celebrate their mating, plus the adults need to have a talk after dinner."