It's totally empty, and Avery wanders down the well-lit hallway towards the floor's kitchen.Once she arrives, her eyes land on Scott and Mike.She gives them both a genuine grin, jumping up onto one of the counters near them."Hey, guys," she beams, swinging her legs happily, "I hope I'm not interrupting.""You're not," Scott says with a frown on his face as he stares at her.His eyes are on her neck, and her own eyes shoot open as she realises that she doesn't have her mark fully covered.Fluffing her hair in an attempt to make it less visible, she looks around the small kitchen, stopping on Mike."How are you?" She asks with a cough, glancing at Scott to see him still staring intently at her throat."I'm pretty good, I'm missing Meredith," Mike says with a sigh, running a hand through his short black hair as he leans against the sink, a bottle of beer in his hand as he gazes over at Scott."You're looking at her like she's going to vanish, take a chill pill," Mike groans, shaking h
.....and Avery yelps, wiggling out of his hold."You monster," she grumbles, closing the bathroom door in his face as she walks over to the sink.She brushes her teeth and washes her face in record time, taking a minute to pee and sort herself out.She's finally fully awake when she reopens the bathroom door, glancing over at Roman, who plopped himself onto the bed."Okay, how much time do we have?" She asks as she applies her moisturiser, digging through her suitcase."Fifteen minutes till breakfast," he nods, and she squeaks, pulling out a pair of leggings and a workout top.The judges can be called in to stop fights, and she has to be dressed for it."Hurry up!" She exclaims once she realises that he isn't making any move to get dressed."I was waiting until you were done in the bathroom!" He responds in a matching high-pitched voice, scuttling into the bathroom with his hands raised in innocence.As soon as the door shuts, Avery clambers into her clothes, brushing her hair while s
"I know you're all going to do amazing, even if you don't. Just take your time, and ask for a pause if you need one. I'll be there, watching every fight that you guys are in. I've even planned my bathroom breaks around the schedule, so I'm not missing any," she grins, and the last part gets some small laughs out of the kids."Thanks, Alpha," one of the girls nearest her smiles, and Avery grins at her, recognising her from the weaponry lessons she held a few weeks ago."Play to your strengths, whatever they may be. Don't let anyone tell you that you can't," Avery reminds them, patting a few of them on the shoulders before she leaves.She knows that some of them want to sit in silence, and the few who chatter when they get nervous are sitting together at the end of the table, keeping the conversation going at a mile a minute.She feels a small smile appear on her lips as she walks back to Roman and Scott, shaking her head as she goes.She slides into her seat as a plate appears in front
This is what they mean by the mate bond, she thinks ruefully.Yes, it is, we're magnetised to him, Sonya says dreamily in response.Avery wanders over to where he's sitting, sliding into the uncomfortable seat beside him and taking his hand nervously."What's wrong?" He asks, glancing at her in concern."I'm just nervous one of the kids will get hurt," she mumbles, running a hand through her hair as she looks around at all of the spectators.The youngest children start off the fighting, with girls going before boys.The first rounds fly by, and Avery digs her nails into Roman every time one of her kids take a blow in the ring, her teeth drawing blood from her lips more than once."Relax, they're okay," he whispers, cringing a little.Right after he utters those words, one of the children take a particularly vicious hit and slams into the ground, making Avery leap up from her seat and race over to the barrier."Michael," she roars, and the referee blows his whistle aggressively."Non-a
The excitement in the air is infectious as Avery enters the room, a grin on her face.As soon as she enters, the teenagers release a roar, startling the nearby packs into moving away.Avery has to stop herself from snorting out loud at the sudden fleeing of the nearby people, and she barely has a chance to think about the entire thing before her pack engulfs her into a humungous group hug.They all start talking at once, and Avery can't focus on any voices, deciding to shush them and suggest that they take turns so that everyone is heard."Are we all happy?" She beams, and they all hoot, the trophies being lifted aloft and wiggled about, the light beams catching the shiny metal and reflecting around the room in rainbows."I'm so beyond proud of you all," she grins, shaking her head in disbelief as she looks at each and every face that surrounds her.The facial expressions on the teenagers range from simply satisfied to gleeful, all of them chattering to each other excitedly as they sh
"Well, you're perfectly sane. I didn't - well, we didn't - want to tell anybody yet, but I suppose you don't count. So, surprise!" She grins excitedly, grabbing his hand and squeezing it energetically.He shakes her off, using both of his hands to massage his temples, and he shakes his head."You've done some crazy shit in the time that I've known you, but I think this tops it off," he groans, leaning against the brick wall behind him as he glances up and down the alleyway to make sure that nobody is listening in on their conversation.Avery frowns, trying not to get upset that one of her closest friends isn't supporting her.He doesn't know Roman is our mate, Sonya roars suddenly, and Avery's eyes widen."I forgot to tell you something else, too," she starts nervously, and he releases an anguished groan."If you're pregnant, Avery, I will eat glass," he whines, staring at her in mild fear."No, no, I'm definitely not pregnant," she snorts, rolling her eyes at him with a chuckle."Wel
Why did you groan out loud, idiot?, Sonya whines, preparing herself for the onslaught of entitlement.Avery releases some of her dominance subtly, glancing around to see if it affects Alpha Carlton at all.He winces slightly, and she has to look away to hide the smirk growing on her face.In theory, all Alphas are at the same level of power and dominance.In practice, the ones who put work into mastering their craft and being good Alphas, as well as training consistently, are usually much more powerful.Alpha Carlton is a spoiled brat, a few years younger than Avery, and decades behind in social practice."Would you stop doing that?" He growls after a minute, and Avery stifles her giggle."Stop doing what?" She asks, glancing at him and noticing his clenched jaw."Releasing your power," he snarls, his eyes flashing at her.She grins and bats her eyelashes in confusion."I have no idea what you're talking about," she sighs, brushing him off as she folds her arms and faces the door."I
"Yeah, I did, I'm not being responsible for getting them all back to their rooms later," she chuckles, glancing out the window."Do you know how many people are going home tonight?" Roman calls from the bathroom, turning the water back on."I think a few Alphas are, but I'm not sure," she responds, laying the makeup she's using for the dinner dance out on the dresser."Oh, I thought everyone would stay for the dinner," he shouts, and she nods to herself."Some of the Alphas are really annoyed that they didn't rank too well, I'd say they're running home with their tails tucked between their legs," she sighs, and she reaches into her suitcase to find her hair products.Do you want to join me in here?, Roman links her, and Avery raises her eyebrows, trying not to laugh.No thanks, I don't want to get my hair wet, she snorts, quickly replying to some of the emails while she waits for him to get out of the shower.As soon as he opens the bathroom door, she breezes by him, clutching towels