A sharp whistle trilled across the valley. Creed was letting them know it was time for the crew to head up to the mountains to clear timber, but they would have to wait. She and Easton had an announcement to make before he went to work.
The Gray Backs were all gathered near the bricked-in fire pit talking when Easton led her out of the tree line.
“There they are,” Willa called, looking relieved. “Now we can have someone unbiased settle the score,” she said, looking pointedly at Gia. Georgia was rifling through a backpack sitting on a food prep table near them, and she shook her head, though she was still smiling.
“What is it?” Aviana asked, voice small and pathetic. With a frown, she said louder, “What is it?”
Easton looked at her proudly.
“Dude, Beaston’s holding her hand,” Matt said low to Jason.
Willa kicked her mate’s boot and held out both hands as they approached. In one was a pile of green M&Ms and in the other was a pile of orange. “Which ones are supposed to make you horny, green or orange?”
Aviana snorted and tried to think back on her school days. “I think it’s green makes you horny.”
“Here, Griz, eat these,” Willa said, dumping the green pile into Matt’s hand.
He snorted and popped them all in his mouth. “I can’t even believe you want me hornier than I already am,” he said around the mouthful of candy.
“So it’s orange to make your boobs big then,” Gia said matter-of-factly. “Told you.”
Aviana laughed and asked, “Can I have some orange ones then?”
With a big toothy grin, Willa handed her half the pile of oranges and poured the other half into her maw.
Easton slapped the candy out of Aviana’s hands with a look of panic in his eyes. “Don’t want bigger boobs on you. Too much.”
Aviana stood there stunned, looking at the bright colored chocolates scattered across the white gravel road.
Jason was laughing now, hands around his stomach, bent over, wheezing. “Dude, it’s not real.”
“Oh,” Easton said with a confused frown as he watched Jason fall over onto the ground, kicking his legs as he laughed. He swung his troubled gaze to Aviana and murmured, “Sorry.”
She was trying not to laugh, really she was, but Easton was so fucking cute. Sexy as all get-out, eyes wild and bright as he made sure she stayed just as she was. If she’d had any question that her flat chest bothered her mate before, it was dispelled now.
“Why are you eating M&Ms for breakfast?” she asked.
“Gia craves them all the time,” Georgia explained. “Willa just mooches them.”
“I help her eat them,” Willa corrected. “It’s not mooching if I’m doing it out of the goodness of my heart.”
Creed was quiet beside Matt, shaking his head and looking tired, as if his crew already exhausted him.
“I have something to say,” Easton announced in a strong, formal voice.
Jason kicked into a star shape on the ground and looked at Easton, upside down. “That sounds serious.”
“It is.” Easton lifted his gaze to Creed and cocked his head, exposing his neck. “I have to beg your forgiveness.”
Creed stood straighter as his black eyes lightened to a gray that matched the early morning sky. “What did you do?”
Aviana couldn’t even look at him like this. Not when Creed was making the air so heavy. It was hard to draw a breath under his stare, so she angled her chin down and looked at Willa instead.
“As Second, I forbid you to bleed him,” Willa said, standing to her full height of not even five foot tall and glaring at Creed.
“What?” Creed asked, looking even angrier. “It doesn’t work like that. You’re second, not alpha. What’s going on?”
“Show him,” Easton murmured, nudging Aviana’s shoulder.
Aviana pulled her stretchy pink cotton shirt to the side and exposed the tattered flesh of Easton’s claiming mark.
Creed’s dark eyebrows jacked up, and he swung a dangerous glare at Easton. “What the fuck did you do?”
“I’d say either a zombie bit her or Easton claimed her,” Willa said helpfully as she dug around in the crinkly package of M&M’s for more candy.
“Enough!” Creed yelled.
Willa didn’t even look cowed, but damn what the electricity in the alpha’s voice did to Aviana. With a grunt, she fell to her knees under the heaviness of the stomach-curdling anger Creed was throwing off in waves.
Easton looked down at her then back to Creed, eyes blazing as a low, menacing rumble rattled his throat. “Let her up.”
“You Turned her?” Creed bellowed. “After I forbid it, you Turned her?”