Gray Back Bad Bear(33)
Movement along the tree line grabbed her attention, and the others looked up in unison, as if instinct had drawn their gazes. Easton paced just inside of the shadows.
“Well, come on,” Creed called out, waving his hand. “Food won’t last forever.”
“I’ll be damned,” Jason murmured as Easton made his way around the trucks and toward the table.
He didn’t join them right away. Instead, he grabbed another bowl of rice and gumbo before he came to stand beside Clinton.
“Food’s good,” Easton muttered with a quick look at her. “I forgot to say thank you.”
“The knife was thanks enough.” Willa was getting all choked up with happiness that he had joined them.
“You got a knife?” Clinton asked. “I’ve been asking for one of Easton’s knives for two years.” Turning to Easton, he said, “Why does she get one?”
Easton frowned and scooped another bite into his maw. Gulping it down, he growled out, “Because I like her, and you’re an asshole.”
“Oh,” Clinton muttered before he went back to peeling crawfish. “Fair enough.”
Matt chuckled warmly beside her and pulled her snug against his side. He’d been quiet tonight, but she couldn’t tell if it was because his injury was still hurting or if he was exhausted from work or what. All she knew was that she was happy his distance didn’t seem to be caused by something she’d done.
And as she looked around the table, a warm, fuzzy sensation filled her middle. Jason and Clinton were tossing empty crawfish shells at each other, while Creed shook his head and laughed. Easton ate her gumbo stoically, and Matt—her Matt—whispered in her ear. “I missed you today.”
Moments like these were ones she’d remember all her life. Tonight, she felt like she belonged, and that was a rare thing. She’d drifted from the bombshells to other friends she kept at a distance, just so she wouldn’t get hurt again. And she’d been stung when she’d tried to reconnect with Brittney, Kara, and Gia on this trip, but here, things were different.
She didn’t feel like an outcast with this crew. She wasn’t the ugly friend or the wingman. She wasn’t the pity call or the tagalong.
She was just Willa—knife-wielder, good cook, easy banterer, smarty-pants, lover-of-fun, and potential mate of Matt Barns.
She hadn’t ever fit into a box, but here, no one tried to shove her into one.
In the Grayland Mobile Park with these off-kilter bear shifters, she could be herself, and it was enough.
Chapter Eleven
Bear Trap Falls, six thirty, don’t bring clothes.
Matt’s texts were never dull. Skinny dipping? Okay, she’d never done that, but she was game.
Willa pulled her Tacoma up to the clearing near the river an hour early, then saddled herself down with a bag chair, cooler of fruity beer, and a beach towel. Just the thought of relaxing on the shore was enough to push away the stress of the week coming to an end. Tomorrow, she was supposed to pack up her camper and head back home. The bombshells had already left, citing that Saratoga was too boring for them. Willa had tried not to giggle when Kara had called her and told her that.
Saratoga had turned out to be the least boring place she’d ever been.
Her days had been filled with exploring the growing list of local attractions that Matt compiled for her, and her evenings had been spent with the Gray Backs. This week, she’d learned how to drive an ATV through mud, fish for trout, and climb trees. The last bit was because Clinton had hung out with her on his day off and dared her to hang a rope swing from one of the old trees near the river. She’d hung that thing like a boss, then giggled herself breathless when Matt had nearly fileted Clinton for putting her at risk. Protective, sexy bear.
And nights…oh, nights in Matt’s trailer were magic. She’d learned lots and lots of interesting lessons from him this week.
She set up her chair and pulled a book from her bag. Clad in the tiny green triangle bikini she’d bought earlier this week and a floppy hat, she settled in the sun for an hour with her guilty pleasure. She’d read three saucy romances this week in her spare time and didn’t even care when the boys teased her for reading them. Plus, one of them was missing from her pile on Matt’s porch table, and she was pretty sure it was either Jason or Easton who had stolen it. Imagining one of those burly bear shifters off in the woods, secretly reading a hot, erotic western romance made her laugh.
Something big moved across the river, and she jumped, startled. It was a massive grizzly, but she’d seen this one before. Matt had explained that the river served as a natural border between Gray Back territory and Boarlander territory.