Claws

Chapter Seventeen

Later on, I was introduced to the three alphas. Hayes was the first to introduce himself. He had dark brown hair, big brown eyes, and olive skin. He seemed to give off a laid-back, approachable vibe, which I found relaxing. Next, there were the two twins, Wylder and Roscoe. They may have been twins, but they didn't even look related. Wylder was as white as a sheet of paper with black hair and hazel eyes, while Roscoe was extremally sunkissed with blonde hair and green eyes. Of course, they were all huge, as alphas usually were, but they seemed calmer and easier going than I expected.

Then there was Perry, the only beta in the group other than Beck. He had strawberry-blonde hair, blue eyes, and a bunch of freckles placed on top of his pale skin. He was a lot like the others but maybe a bit goofier and louder.

"So, were you surprised when you saw Beck?" Roscoe asked me when Beck left to get two cups of hot apple cider. "He changed a heck of a lot in four years."

"Oh my gosh, yes," I grinned, glancing over at Beck, who was in the drinks line. "My friend Robin and I used to call him Becky because he looked like a girl when he was younger with his long blonde lashes and that pretty feminine face of his. But now, I can't call him that anymore. He doesn't look like anything like he used to."

"He's a spry young buck, inn't he?" Perry snickered, nudging Hayes, who just rolled his eyes.

"No more eccentric and spastic than you."

"Hey, I'm glad I'm different," Perry raised his hands in the air, raising his eyebrows. "That way, I don't have to be like the rest of you dominating alpha freaks. Angel, this doesn't include you. You seem normal." Perry looked at me and winked.

"Oh, thanks," I failed at holding back a smirk. The others just shot Perry a dead frown. I liked this group. They were entertaining.

"Oh great. Look who showed up," Wylder sighed, looking over my shoulder. "I never expected to see him here of all parties. He must be bored to show up here."

"What?" I frowned, turning around. My eyes grew wide when I saw Zale lounging alone at a smaller campfire not far away. He glanced up and shot me an irritated look, shaking his head as he looked away again. What was his deal? I was the one who should've given him that look. I exhaled through my teeth, rolling my eyes as I turned to the group again. "Crap. What is he doing here?"

"He must've cut things off with his recent hookup," Beck scoffed from behind me. I turned around and sighed in relief as he handed me the cup of hot cider and hooked his arm around my shoulders again. "He looks grumpy. I already told some omegas to spread the word and look out for him and keep the girls away. I'm not having him ruin this party, too."

"That was a good idea. Thank you," I sighed.

"He's looking at you with a really vile expression on his face. Do you have beef with him?" Hayes asked me with a curious expression. Oh no. He didn't think I hooked up with him or anything, did he?

"It's probably because I broke his nose this morning," I sighed, deciding to go with honesty.  Everyone looked at me in disbelief, including Beck. "Context. Right. Well, he's my best friend's older brother, and he...let's just say our reunion during breakfast wasn't pleasant. He did something to me that got me really mad, so I broke his nose."

"That was still pretty vague," Beck said, tightening his arm around me. I looked up at Beck and saw him shoot a guarded glance at Zale and then me. "What did he do to you? Did he make a move on you?"

I tugged the end of his shirt. "Ew, no. Don't look at him, and it doesn't matter. I already took care of it. He's like an older brother I wish I never had but am unfortunately stuck with. It's nothing like that," I lied. I couldn't tell anyone that he'd kissed me last night. I'd be ruined.