Everyone – meaning everyone in the entire pack – was waiting for them when they arrived, Maia opening the door in shock.

"Whoa."

They were a little worse for wear from having to commit arson to cover up the murders and then spending the entire night running back, the two of them needing to burgle a house to grab a change of clothes on the way.

Kali was the first person who came to embrace Maia, the two women burying their faces in each other's shoulder, Derek's wife sniffling quietly. "I was so scared for you – for both of you," the Alpha female whispered, Maia knowing that the others would think she was speaking of Derek. "We're okay, Kali." They parted and before anyone else could move, Isaac was there, the two of them flinging themselves at each other. Isaac kissed her face repeatedly before stroking her hair back, cupping her cheeks in his hands, "Maia, don't you ever fucking do that again. Don't you ever just up and leave without saying anything – did you even think about what everyone who was left here would feel? We were here losing our fucking minds, worried about you! Promise that you'll never do that again."

"I promise Isaac."

Maia then turned to look at everyone sitting in the living room, running her fingers back through her hair and sighing. She pulled down the sleeves of her sweatshirt over her hands, her voice weary when she spoke, "Well, I would like to start out by saying that it is good to be home. And I want to apologize for worrying you by leaving without saying anything…

"I needed some time away to figure out how to deal with the change that is coming to my life, and thankfully for us all, I've gotten it together."

Deucalion looked at her from his perch on the arm of the couch, his arms folded across his chest, "There is to be even more change? Despite the past year, you think it wise to make even more changes to our way of life?"

"Not your life," Derek replied almost smugly, leaning against the doorway. "Ours."

"We're going to have ourselves a pup soon, a hopeful succession to the leadership of the pack," Maia said with a brilliant smile, pressing her hands to her stomach.

The women in the pack all flocked to her, the men patting Derek on the back as they moved to make themselves busy with other things. Peter came to stand with his nephew, smirking at the father-to-be, "You look as stupidly pleased with yourself now as you did when you came to the care home to tell me about knocking her up for the first time."

"Can't help it."

Peter sighed and crossed his arms over his chest, looking at Maia.

She was visibly exhausted from the events of the full moon past, but seemingly happy, a great smile on her face. If anyone had asked Derek, he would have said – although very cliché – that she was glowing, Maia finally vowing to him that she was going to get it right from this point forward.

"You have to be sure to protect her in these next few months: her being pregnant is going to be a red flag to other Alphas – even our own – that she's vulnerable. As well, watch out for the pup; he or she is going to assure your status as the Alpha male of the entire pack but if anything happens between now and its birth, you won't be so safe," Peter warned quietly, the two Hale men looking at each other evenly. "Tread lightly, nephew."

"Why are you telling me this?"

The older Hale looked around before scoffing, leaning in to speak to Derek, "Because this is politics and you have made it very clear that you don't care much for the way the world works. Look at it like this, there are two other men vying for both power and possession of the pack and Maia – maybe three, but I can't be sure: Ethan's difficult to read. And you, Derek, are like a lovesick puppy. You're not thinking logically about this… you're not thinking like a wolf. Watch your back or they will eat you and your cub, and you will become nothing more than a distant memory to Maia…"

"You weird me out so badly sometimes."

Derek chuckled as he continued the feather light caresses from the soles of her feet up to her thighs, loving how she looked laying on her stomach with her face buried in her pillow, "And why is that?"

"Because, I swear I know you one moment and then you decide to pull some bullshit out of your ass, like cooking me dinner and running me a bubble bath and giving me a goddamn massage," Maia said, raising her head to look up at him. "Are you complaining?" She grinned and moved to rest on her knees, pulling up her nightgown so that she could easily straddle him. "Hell no… God, I have missed this Derek. I haven't seen you smile so much since we got married and realized that we were having Joshua-" He put her on her back and kissed her before reaching down to rub her still-flat but warm stomach. "I found a reason to do so," Derek replied quietly, using his free hand to brush her hair back from her face before letting the hand on her stomach move further. She gasped and arched up towards his hand, the Alpha smirking. "Can we agree that the pillow talk has ended for the night?"

"Of course."

Maia smiled and moved to prop herself up on her hands and knees, feeling the roughness of calloused palms moving up the back of her thighs. He wrapped his arms around her body as she readjusted her nightgown once more, Derek leaning over her shoulder to kiss her. There was something about her mouth that just drove him crazy, the way her skin burned against his and how her tongue twisted around his teasingly.

He pressed his hips against her backside, reaching down to adjust himself before sinking to the hilt within her, both of them grunting. "Good God Derek, you must really be trying to start off on a good foot this time around," Maia said through her teeth, feeling his hands tighten on her hips as they started to move.

"Be quiet, you."

She closed her eyes as she felt Derek start to plant kisses on the exposed skin of her shoulders and neck, knowing that they could only go up from here…

Later, Derek came back from the kitchen with a cup of water to find Maia just as he had left her, deeply asleep with a smile on her face. Her hair was fanned out around her pillow, one hand tangled there as the other rested on her stomach.

He moved to lie down beside her, sighing as he pulled her against him and buried his face in her neck. Derek just listened to the gentle hum of her breath and the almost silent thud of her heartbeat, thinking of when he could feel a baby kick within her again, the doctor's appointments and the ultrasounds, of making a nursery. He didn't want to think about holding his baby though, because he just wasn't ready to hope that much…

Seeming to sense his discomfort, Maia pressed herself further against him, opening her eyes for a moment to look at him before taking his hand in hers.

The next time her eyes closed, his did too.