Sold AS The alpha King's Breeder

Chapter 23 Sharing A Room with Him

Lightning illuminated the sky above us, and I wrapped the raincoat Warren had packed for me tighter, but it wasn’t doing me a whole lot of good.

To avoid being tracked down by the city security, who reported directly to Theo, we intentionally avoided public transportation until we got outside of the greater capital city

area.

It had been raining for hours, and I was beginning to feel drowsy from trudging through the mud in such foul weather. I sneezed, again, this time barely getting my arm up to cover my face, and I willed myself to keep walking.

Warren was concerned about me, and he had been for the last few hours since I’d begun to cough and sneeze. He wanted to shift and let me climb on his back, but I’d refused. We would save that for if we were in danger. Right now, I was miserable, but I wasn’t going to die.

“I see city lights off in the distance, Ciana,” he told me. “We’re almost to a town.”

His words entered my mind, but I was having trouble processing them. Unless it was a town with a giant bubble over the top of it that would protect me from the rain, I didn’t

care.

Trudging on, I began to lose most of my conscious thought. I just continued to lift one foot and then the other. Eventually, I

noticed that Warren was guiding me, his arm around me, and then, the mud of the forest changed to open green grass, to pavement, to a sidewalk… to steps.

“Where are we going?” I muttered.

“A hotel,” he explained. “You need to rest and recover.”

“Let’s find a small one,” I mumbled my explanation. “Fewer security cameras around.”

“Good point!” He chuckled under his breath and commented, “You surprise me all the time, you know that?”

“Goodness gracious!” a loud female voice proclaimed. “You poor dears look half drowned.”

“Yes, we need a couple of rooms, please,” Warren explained to her as I leaned against his side to keep from falling over.

“I’m afraid I only have one,” the woman said. “But it’s got a big bed in it.”

“That will do.” Warren held on to me as he fished out payment for the room from beneath his raincoat, and I wrapped my arm around his middle to steady myself, my eyes locked on the floor where a puddle was forming from all the water dripping off of me.

I wanted to apologize to the custodial staff for making such a

mess.

Halfway up the stairs, I lost my footing and almost tumbled back down, despite Warren’s grip on me.

“All right, that’s it,” he proclaimed, and the next thing I knew, I was being lifted off of the steps into his arms. I didn’t protest. Even if I’d wanted to, the words wouldn’t come out of my mouth.

Once we were in the room, he helped me out of my raincoat, and then I insisted that I could change into dry clothes myself. I went into the bathroom and took a shower with very warm water, which I enjoyed.

fresh dry clothes, Warren had also changed. He looked

but even that seemed to be

for all of that time has left your immune

thing I knew, a spoon was being coaxed into my mouth. I split my lips and slurped up

Had I fallen asleep?

he said, “I’ll go see

“No…” I muttered; my mind was cloudy. “It’s not

chuckled under his breath. “I think I’ll be okay.

good prince…

“Unlike what?”

my head was so heavy and I felt I couldn’t think straight, but it didn’t prevent me from concluding

followed by Warren’s gentle voice. “While I don’t disagree with you, I know

words trailed away. My head lolled to the side, and I noticed the print on the wallpaper. It was a fleur-de-lis print, white on gray,

say something

in and out of sleep, tossing and turning. I had vague recollections of someone helping me with liquids and medicines, but for the most part, I had

I couldn’t remember the details,

one. Maybe it

that Theo had been kissing

arrived at the hostel, I awoke with a start, much like I had when I’d snapped out of

in through the window, and Warren was sitting in

awakens!” he teased, causing me

long was I asleep?” I stretched

with a grin. “How do

to get me medicine and fed me soup. “You

he nodded. “I wanted you to

He was such a good man. “We should be on our way soon so that you can

now.”

Besides, it’s getting kind of late. It’s been a bright, sunny day, but it’ll be dark in just a couple of hours.

to try to talk him out of it, so I nodded. “All right then. I’m going to go outside and

good idea,” he said. “There’s a

back, full of bright flowers that have flourished after the

for the suggestion and headed into the restroom to make myself somewhat presentable. I looked like I had slept for a long time, that was for sure. My hair was sticking up all over the place, and I had

help but chuckle at

dinner, I made my way outside and quickly found the courtyard he’d been speaking of. It was lovely. Sitting down on a quaint bench beneath a tree full of fuchsia blooms, next to several rose bushes in a variety of vibrant

the castle. I thought about Prince Theo and how, for a while, I’d thought perhaps he truly could be kind when he

me thrown in prison for doing nothing wrong. No, I was

unfolded while

a dream to

parts seemed like

then there was Warren. My long-lost childhood

many times if he had any memory whatsoever

hadn’t had the courage to bring it up