Eira and Cannon approached the Macconwood Manor nervously. They were there to announce their mating officially as members of the Pack, but neither had had much to do with the Alpha or the Macconwood Pack Wolf Guard, at least, not directly.
They were buzzed inside the main gates and drove to the front entrance easily enough. Cannon helped Eira out of the car, there was still snow and ice on the ground, and he was always thoughtful like that.
“You ready, Doc?”
“I guess, I mean, are you sure the Alpha wants to see us, and not just some secretary?”
“I’m sure,” Cannon replied, Leading her to the door.
“Am I dressed okay? I mean, I have to work and didn’t think—”
“You know I think you’re hot in your green scrubs, Doc.”
Cannon winked at her, and she rolled her eyes.
“Hi! You must be Cannon and Eira and, ohmygawd, are you a doctor? Come in, come in!” a short, curvy female who smelled human, pulled Eira inside.
Her belly was large and swollen, obviously pregnant, but the noises coming from inside the house told her the female was not the one who needed a doctor.
“Dammit Charley,” howled Rafe Maccon, Alpha of the Macconwood Pack. “Get this furball off me!”
Eira and Cannon stopped in the doorway that led to an office space, shocked to see the enormous man they knew was their leader, with an orange striped cat stuck to his face.
“Don’t you dare hurt Buttercup, Rafe! I am not kidding.”
“She’s digging into my skin,” he snarled, but the house cat just hissed and dug in deeper.
“Um, I don’t know how I can help—” Eira just stared at the two of them. Cat and Wolf, facing off, as it were. Sure, she was a doctor, but aside from surgically removing the animal which would require a scalpel and stitches, she did not know what she could do.
“I got this,” Cannon said, reaching into Eira’s backpack for the small, insulated lunch sack he packed for her every day.
She had laughed the first time he told her feeding her was his job from now on, but she was more than happy he was not joking. Her mate had some serious skills in the kitchen.
“Here kitty, kitty,” Cannon whispered, unwrapping the turkey with sliced tomato, arugula, and homemade mayo on a croissant he’d prepared for her.
Dammit. She was going to wish she had that in a few hours.
“Genius,” Charley— Eira was guessing from the name the Alpha had yelled— replied. She was the Alpha’s mate, of course, and the mother of his children, the future heirs to the Macconwood Pack.
“Finally,” Rafe muttered as Buttercup, having sniffed the slow roasted turkey, withdrew her claws, and leaped off Rafe’s face.
He was bleeding from several scratches, and with permission, Eira stepped forward to clean them with the first aid kit, Charley had grabbed for her.
“Well, um, sir, you will be fine in a day,” Eira said.
“Call me Rafe,” the big Wolf muttered, glaring at the cat who was eating her lunch happily from her mate’s fingers.
“Thank you both! Since I am expecting, I moved Buttercup’s bed and litter box to Rafe’s office, you know, for my health and all, but sometimes, she gets a little territorial,” Charley muttered, biting her lip.
She was looking at her mate’s face, which was decidedly unhappy and covered in bright red, angry scratches from her cat.
“Um, maybe she should be moved to the hallway?” Eira suggested.
“No,” Rafe shook his head. “It was my fault. I, uh, tripped over her bed and startled her. I won’t do it again, besides, my mate prefers her to be with people,” Rafe said, smiling as Charley walked over to cup his face and kiss him before turning to face the new couple.
“Oh, and now I offer you both my blessing and welcome you to the Macconwood Pack as a mated pair. Welcome, Cannon and Eira!”
Charley and Rafe congratulated them again, and the couple was on their way.
“That was interesting,” Cannon observed as he pulled the car onto the highway and headed for the hospital.
“To say the least. Hey, I have no lunch now,” she told him, frowning.
“I was thinking I could come by and bring you something after I get in to work.”
“You would do that for me?”
“Of course, Doc. Gotta keep my mate happy.”
“That you do,” she told him, smiling, and feeling bright as the winter sun.
They had a lot to learn about one another, but Eira trusted in him when he called her his winter wish. Life was never certain, but she was about Cannon. In her heart, she and her Wolf knew they really be together.
They were fated mates. But even better, they chose each other.
They were a mated couple, a family now, sharing an unbreakable bond. Christmas was truly a magical time of year, and living in Maccon City made it even more so.
Yes, they were lucky to find each other, and they would spend the rest of their lives relishing that fact.
The end.
* * *