Page 6 of Warlander Beast Cat

“To anyone but Matt, and your cubs, and the entire Gray Back Crew, and you’ll probably talk to Beaston about anything I say, and then it’ll get back to Lucia.”

She smacked on the candy loudly for a couple of chews, then said, “Touché, I do have a blabbermouth, you may continue.”

This felt dangerous, but Willa just kept staring, and smiling, and staring and smiling.

“Fine. Being in this Crew is bringing up a bunch of memories I would rather forget. I’m watching the man I was in love with pair with Jenna, and I am actually happy for them. Truly, I am. I love Jenna and think they are a great match. But all my mistakes with Lucas, and with Gunner, are right there in my face all the time.”

“Mmm. So who’s the boy you’re having actual problems with?”

“I told you, Lucas and Gunner. Not because I care about them in that way, but it’s just a lot of guilt on how I handled everything when I was younger. I wish I could go back and do things differently now that I know how it was for them too, you know? I wasn’t the only one who got hurt back then.”

“What did Beaston tell you?”

Dammit, she was hoping Willa had forgotten about that little gem. “I should get back to work—”

“Spill the worms!”

“That’s not how the saying goes. It’s spill the beans.”

“Beans make you toot, honey, and ain’t no man gonna be interested in you spillin’ toots.”

Cadence scrunched up her face. “He just said my past won’t stop chasing me until I cut ties to it. He said the knife to cut the ties is hidden in the Warlanders.”

Willa grinned. “Ah, he sent you on a mystery quest.”

“He totally did that. And now I’m looking everywhere for a sign of some kind of knife I don’t understand. After Lucia joined the Crew, I’m thinking Beaston just wanted bodyguards for her.”

Willa belted out a laugh. “She doesn’t need bodyguards.”

Cadence wouldn’t say it out loud in case the Crews didn’t know yet, but Lucia didn’t have her animal right now for reasons Cadence hadn’t figured out yet. Lucia was vulnerable and absolutely needed bodyguards. That wasn’t her story to tell the other Crews though, and besides, Lucas had laid down the law on his first night as Alpha. They weren’t allowed to talk about the big stuff outside of the Crew until they had built up trust, and Cadence agreed.

They couldn’t go building a house on a cracked foundation.

So Cadence just smiled and said, “You’re probably right.”

“When’s Kru coming by?” Willa asked, and Cadence tensed.

“W-what?”

Willa’s smile grew. “There it is.”

“There what is?” Cadence asked.

“Nothing. I need you to re-label all of these boxes. Do it gentle, don’t shake up the worms too much.”

Cadence snorted. “You don’t have to tell me that. I actually care about our little babies. That one over there though?” she said, twitching her chin toward Landon. “He’s a disaster.”

She and Willa both glared at the blond behemoth who was sorting a bin of worms into shipping cups.

“Gentle!” both of them yelled in unison.

“Don’t fuckin’ tell me what to do!” Landon yelled back. “I’m making them tougher!”

“Why can’t we fire him?” Cadence asked.

“Well, he’s one of the sons of the Cursed Bear. That one will have to grow on you. Even if I fire him, I’m well-experienced with his father. Genetics say he would show up for work the next day without pay just to piss us off, and he would do an even worse job.”

“You know I can hear everything you say?” Landon asked, flashing them both a bright-eyed glare.

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