“Ha. What a day.” Jake waited for Tim to open the door to their home, and chose to be oblivious to the scowl on his husband’s face. “First we are summoned to meet with the Pack Master and the Luna, and I made a new friend.” Tim held the door half open and shot his a husband a clear wtf look. 

“You made a new friend?”

“Yes.” Jake smirked. 

“A human, who is the best friend of the Luna when she was human, and is a walking embarrassment in heels?” 

“Who’d have thought our decision to get a quick cup of coffee on the way home would put me front and centre to meet such a fun new girl-pal.” 

“Good Lord.” Tim groaned and ushered his giddy husband into the house. “Just get inside.” 

“Oh look?” Jake cooed over his cell phone and walked with a spring in his step across the threshold. “Jessie has already messaged me.” 

*Wazzup wingman? It’s Jessie, and you are cordially invited to bring your butt over to my new apartment. Bring your own booze. I’ll order pizza and paint all our nails. You better love dirty dancing and glitter, because we’re talking weddings and hen dos.* Jake gasped with a big smile and had stars in his light brown eyes as he thrust his cell before Tim’s face. 

“Oh for fuck’s sake.” Tim pinched his brow and kicked off his boots by the front door. Jake didn’t even need to look as he stepped out of his shoes and into fluffy white duck slippers. 

“What’s wrong?” Hank walked out of the kitchen with a fresh cup of coffee. He held it ready to hand to Jake, who cooed over their little tradition. Time always messaged in the family group chat when they were on their way home, and Hank, the eldest of their litter, would have a cup of coffee ready for Jake. Normally, because he was exhausted from being on call, but the tradition stuck in place regardless of where he was coming home from. Hank had inherited Jake’s mousy brown hair and his wavy curtains flicked out like it was windswept. His blue eyes were kind, and his heart was gentle. Yet, this Alpha was built like his father. Six foot six, lean, wide hips and shoulders, with the physique of an adonis. Partly from his genes, but also from his hobby of boxing. Today he wore comfy grey sweat pants, and a white vest. His fireball tattoo was visible on his left shoulder, which he got when he turned 21 with his fraternal twin, Brian. His brother got a thunderbolt, and they both got screeched at from Jake. “Dad? Is everything alright?” Hank regarded the tenseness of his father, and Tim stormed past them both in a mood. His scent had the spiced edge of frustration. 

“Of course. Thank you, sweetie.” Jake accepted the coffee in his left hand, and re-read the text on his cell in his right hand. “I just made a new friend today.” 

“Your Dad has a new girlfriend.” Tim grunted, and those six words summoned all of the Stevens children from various locations in the house. Darn werewolf hearing. Jake chuckled as he was suddenly the centre of attention from all his sons. 

“You have a girlfriend?” Brain, Tim’s double at that age, came over to rest his elbow on Hank’s shoulder. “Does she know you’re gay?” He sniggered and ran his other hand back over his light brown fade cut. His brown eyes were full of mischief, and he still smelled of the various oils and metal shavings from the hardware store he worked at. 

“Like, not just ‘I like dick’ gay, but ‘I know all the words to mama mia and crush harder on Taylor Swift than most of North America combined, gay?” Matthew, the first twin from Jake’s second litter of twins did a highly unnecessary mime of sucking a cock, and Jake simply raised a brow at him. Matthew was blonde like Tim, and yet another Alpha, had wavey blonde hair and enough fake tan, that he looked like he should be living on the coast and surfing for a living. 

“Takes one to know one, bitch.” Jake pointed at Matthew with his phone with a smirk, and all his Alpha sons barked with laughter. They all knew they could tease Jake. He’d dish the banter back. Tim? He didn’t do humour. He preferred back hands, to returning sass. “And at least I’m not living up to the tango-orange fake sun look. Good God, look at you? Do you want to borrow a scouring pad from the kitchen to try and get some of that off?” 

“Nah, I hit up a piece of Omega-ass at the Dance hall when I want to get off, thanks.” Matthew, also openly gay, changed his mime to humping an invisible person in front of him. 

“Watch your damn manners!” Tim barked from the kitchen, and everyone but Jake stood to attention. He stormed out of the kitchen, Joey with him, and the patriarch had his hands cupped over the 12 year old’s ears. “Firstly, your Dad and your baby brother is an Omega. Show some damn respect.”

“Yes sir.” The three older Alphas chorused together. 

“Secondly, Joey doesn’t need to hear that filth, period. He’s 12. You’re all 25.” 

“I’m 24?” Matthew sassed, and Jake knew his husband was seconds away from pouncing on his rebellious son. 

“If you want to make it to 25, you’ll watch your mouth. Thirdly…wait?” Tim paused mid-chastisement and looked around their living room, where they’d all naturally gravitated. “Where is Nathan?” 

“The boring twin is doing overtime at the Pack House and drooling over Ellie, rather than picking up his balls to ask her out.” Matthew, the cattiest of Jake’s sons, just couldn’t help himself. 

“Come here.” Tim stormed after the son that honestly worried him the most regarding his damn mouth, and where he ‘docked his boat’. “Watch your mouth!” 

“Dad! Save me!” 

“Nope.” Jake sniggered and shook his head, blowing on his coffee and then sipping it. He winked in thanks to Hank, and shoved his cell phone into his white coat pocket. His hand then sought out the soft curls of Joey’s head, and his precious little Omega came over to cuddle his side. 

“Daddy?”

“Yes super-pie?” 

“Why wouldn’t Nathan have his balls with him?” Jake licked his lips into his mouth and struggled not to laugh. All of his sons sniggered with glee, and elsewhere in the house Tim playfully kicked Matthew’s backside for his trouble. All while mouthing ‘see? see what you did?’. 

“Matthew is being silly again.”

“Oh, okay.” 

Joey shrugged, and everyone dispersed. Joey went back to the kitchen to sit at the table and finish his math homework. Tim returned to the kitchen to sit beside his baby boy and checked his working out. Matthew laid on his bed in his room and messaged in the family group chat that ‘the boys’ were overdue a night at the Dance Hall. Hank sat in front of the TV with Brian to resume watching the Football game that was on. Later, Tim would join them for the highlights. In the living room, there were thick brown leather sofas, and one soft fabric comfy chair that belonged to Jake. As he sat down, he nursed his coffee and sighed with nostalgia. I nursed all my boys in this chair. 

Jake was the same age as Hank when he was sent to help out at Portland hospital after a rather nasty bout of infighting within the Bazin pack. Gregory Defoe ordered the doctor to go, as at the time he was trying to gain an alliance with the pack. It was at the main hospital he came across an injured soldier who turned out to be his soul mate. Gregory sanctioned ‘collecting’ the human, and Jake bit and turned his mate. It took a while for Jake to forgive me and fall in love with me. Then we had Hank and Brain in our first litter. And a year later I had Matthew and Nathan. All boys, and all Alphas. Joey was their little miracle pup. I was 38 and I thought I was past the age to have any more pups. Werewolves may age better than humans, and live longer, but our fertile window isn’t normally extended. It was the first time Jake didn’t take an anti-ovulation shot when he went into heat, and it was also the last heat he had. After falling pregnant with Joey, a single pregnancy at that, he didn’t have heats anymore. When Joey was born and he was an Omega like Jake, he was delighted. Even so? Jake had always hoped that at least one of his children would have been a girl. He wanted to do the whole girlie dresses, dolls and tea parties thing you got to do with girls. Matthew is gay, like his parents, but he wasn’t camp. He enjoyed football and play-fighting as much as any other guy. Joey is a sweet little Omega, but he still plays with action men, collects monster stickers, and would happily come home from school covered in dirt and worms, if given the choice. I adore every single one of my boys. I wouldn’t trade any of them for the world. 

But? 

Jake retrieved his cell from his coat pocket and smiled at the text from Jessie. If I had a daughter, I imagine she’d be like you. He felt like he vibed with her right away. 

*Yas Queen. Consider your wingman recruited and ready for dirty dancing. I’ll bring bubbly, and that pizza better be gluten-free. I’ll bloat like a balloon otherwise. As for my nails? I hope you have pink.* He smirked, finished his coffee, and silently, and giddily, wiggled in his chair like his wolf was trying to wag his backside with glee. 

*I have a bottle of hot-pink polish with your name on it.* Jessie replied with a selfie of herself holding said nail polish bottle, and pulling a face with her tongue sticking out to one side between her teeth. *Emma is being boring and won’t choose a pizza. Hawaiian?*

“I love her!” Jake declared and jumped up to swoon with his cell to his chest like he was hugging her. “Jessie likes Hawaiian pizza!” 

“‘Jessie’ needs to go and have a word with herself for ruining a perfectly good pizza with fruit.” Hank didn’t miss a beat and received a high five from his twin. 

“I raised you right!” Tim shouted from the kitchen. Jake leaned over to make sure Joey wasn’t in eyeline, and then flipped off Hank and Hank in turn. 

*No one in my house likes Hawaiian. It’s my favourite. I’ll see you soon.* Jake checked his husband was still in the kitchen, and then took a selfie, pulling an equally ludicrous expression for her. Akin to a pouting his lips forward and winking at her. 

“No.” 

“Ah!” Jake yelped at being caught, and found Tim hanging out of the kitchen doorway. “N-no? No what?”

“You heard Caleb? We are not turning Jessie into a werewolf.”

“Yes, I heard him say that.” He sheepishly looked off to one side, and Tim groaned, before walking over to his husband. 

“I mean it, babe. Put your broody hormones back in your Omega bag, and do not get your hopes up that Jessie will be made one of us.”

“She’s renting Emma’s old apartment. She has a suitcase packed to stay. She’s obviously not going anywhere anytime soon. So the chances are that-”

“No.” 

“But she might-”

“No.” 

“…but-”

“Repeat after me?” Tim lifted Jake’s chin and raised a brow at his pouting mate. “I will not get attached to this woman as a future pup.” 

“You’d think he didn’t have enough kids already.” Brian muttered, but Tim’s scathing look silenced him. 

“Say it, Jake.” 

“I will not…get attached to her.” He couldn’t look Tim in the eye. Tim growled in his chest, and still his husband wouldn’t meet his gaze. “Okay, now I need to shower and get ready for pizza, champagne, dirty dancing, pampering and wedding planning.” 

“Oh dear God.” Tim dropped his face into his hands as Jake ran around him, up the stairs and into the bathroom. All while chuckling with excitement. “God help that woman. She has no idea what she’s done.” 

“What has she done?” Hank asked as Tim dropped himself to sit beside him to watch the game. 

“Summoned a terrifying beast she will not be able to get rid of while she’s in Glen Valley.” He deadpanned Hank and Brian, and groaned. “The fifth horseman of the apocalypse. He comes riding a steed of glitter, chick flicks, bottomless brunches and hyperactive mischief.” He sighed deeply, despite how his eldest boys laughed. “Your Dad hoped that Emma would be the girl-pal he was looking for. But she’s like a square peg and a round hole when it comes to your Dad’s attempts to be social with her. They work well together, and it’s friendly now.” He looked off to one side, recalling when Emma wasn’t the Luna, and how she shook like a leaf on his porch. She came looking for Jake to apologise for slighting him. It didn’t end well, at first. Eventually, though, she became the Luna and they formed a stable affiliation, rather than the kind of friendship his husband was hoping for. If that Jessie woman was a werewolf, I could see those two being pals. But she isn’t, and she isn’t going to be. He sighed and returned his gaze to the game on TV. I just don’t want Jake’s heart to break when she’s either sent away, or leaves on her own.