The evening was disastrous.It seemed like every fighter Avery had trained had stage-fright for a while, and some of them had even refused to fight the next day.Avery had ordered a tonne of pizza and ice cream to calm them down, even though the Generals didn't exactly approve of her methods, one of them going as far as to call it a 'bribe'.Sure enough, after they all had some carbs, they calmed down, and Avery had gotten them to talk about why they were afraid of fighting the following day.Some were afraid of disappointing their parents, and for those kids, Avery organised phone calls home to the families, with the parents under strict instructions to only be encouraging about the event taking place.Some were terrified they'd just do terribly, and Avery told them there was no shame in not winning. Her words did nothing to help, so Avery enlisted the help of some of the counsellors who were supplied by the Council, who organised the Trials with the help of some of the Senior Alphas

.....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

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

"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

"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