Sold AS The alpha King's Breeder

Chapter 42: That’s Not Helping

“Forty-seven,” I said, doing my best to avoid the thorns on this long-stemmed rose as I clipped the stem with a pair of

shears.

I had gotten them from the garden shed. I’d actually found several pairs and was trying each of them out to see which worked best. So far, that one was my favorite pair. It cut fairly cleanly, but it was still taking forever to harvest all of these roses. The stems were covered with thorns.

And I hadn’t found any gardening gloves.

Theo was standing off to the side, and I had to assume he was looking around, trying to figure out if there were any tunnels or secret doorways out there, but I was a little. annoyed that he wasn’t helping me. He was standing in the shade of a large flowering tree, while I was sweating

beneath the hot sun.

“We heard from other servants that you’re forced to work. What’s going on, my lady?” Brook asked worriedly. I turned to see her approaching along with Jake. It was clear from the way that she addressed me that she still hadn’t remembered who we really were or what we were doing here. Jake looked the same as before as well, so he also

didn’t know.

“I am picking roses for the king’s wedding,” I replied, snipping another stem and removing the thorns before I nestled this one on top of the others-number forty-eight.

“How many do you have to pick?” Jake asked, eyeing the basket that was already very full. I had seen a couple more in the shed, so I had a feeling I’d make them all fit, but it would be close.

“Uhm, four hundred,” I said, rounding up.

“Get out of town!” Brook said, and I almost laughed. She

was too sweet to swear.

“That’s right,” I told her. “I’m about an eighth of the way

there.”

“This is not your job, my lady!” Brook grabbed the shears from my hand. “I’ll call our guards and we’ll take care of this for you.”

Jake also agreed, “Brook is right, my lady.”

I shook my head and sighed. “She… I mean, the king’s fiancée, wants to humiliate me; that’s why she gave me this task. So if she finds out that I’m not working, I might be in more trouble.”

And I needed her to lower her guard with me, thinking I wouldn’t fight back, so that it would be easier for us to execute our plan.

“But you’ll be out here forever, working by yourself,” Brook noted. She turned and gave Theo a hard look, but he wasn’t even paying any attention to us from what I could tell. “Do you have any extra shears? Please, at least let us help you

then.”

“Okay, thank you!” I nodded at the shears sitting on the ground. “You don’t have to, but it would be nice.”

“Of course!” Brook said, practically skipping over to me to pick up the shears off of the ground. “What about gloves?”

“Sadly, no. I can’t find any. Just be careful. Some of these thorns are very long,” I warned them.

that,”

the next rose bush and began to

Brook continuously wiped her brow with the back of her hand because she was beginning to perspire. Jake looked like

noted that

bored. “I have another pair of shears, you know,” I called to him,

he asked. “In case

growled at him. “You know, you could

shook his head. “No. I don’t

myself that eventually we would get out of here, and he’d be the prince again. I needed

or helping your

“Picking flowers.”

like letting him get away with being a prima donna at the moment. “I’m sorry, remind me again. Who is

No, I

but at least he came over and picked up the shears. Dropping to a knee, he began to cut through the stems, and I had to turn my

her

say anything, Jake was

Let me look at it for you.” He gently took her hand and began to examine the wound, and I

they flirting with one

but smile at how cute they were. Jake pulled a handkerchief from his pocket, gently cleaned the wound, and then wrapped it up. It was

But knowing how observant he was, I was

thorn pierced my skin, biting through my thumb and cutting it deeply. “Ouch!” I shouted, shaking my hand and immediately shoving the wound into my mouth. I pulled it out to look

looked over at Theo, and he hadn’t even turned his

pretty deep on a thorn!” I explained to

painful.” He went about his work, not

his gaze.

bleeding profusely!” I told

clothes. It’ll stain.” He snapped through another

to myself as I wrapped my hand in the hem of my dress. I didn’t have anything else. I squeezed it tightly until

work.

shaking his head at me, like I had been slacking because I didn’t

to work.

actually had sex with him? I must not have fully

happened.

let me borrow your gloves, maybe I’d be less likely to poke myself again.” I looked at the pair of thick black gloves. he had on

your life,” he said, shaking his head. “Don’t

think about it.”

didn’t

those gloves. He’d

up while we were in his

attendant.

when we first arrived in this world

better, but I was so frustrated that he hadn’t helped for so long, and then he hadn’t even cared when I’d ripped my thumb

sharp.

I was growing angry. “Fine-if you don’t want to lend them to me, I guess I’ll just have to take them.” I knew there was no way in the world I was going