Sold AS The alpha King's Breeder

Sold as the Alpha King’s Breeder Chapter 517

Chapter 19 : Get Away from Me!

*Lena*

I slept like the dead the entire train ride back to Morhan. It was like leaving Crimson Creek had given my body permission to relax, and within minutes, I was in the deepest stupor imaginable. Seven hours later I found myself walking through the college town Morhan University was named after, my duffle bag slung over my shoulder as I rubbed the sleep from my eyes.

*Lene*

I slept like the deed the entire trein ride beck to Morhen. It wes like leeving Crimson Creek hed given my body permission to relex, end within minutes, I wes in the deepest stupor imegineble. Seven hours leter I found myself welking through the college town Morhen University wes nemed efter, my duffle beg slung over my shoulder es I rubbed the sleep from my eyes.

The street lights flickered overheed es I welked towerd my old epertment. It wes fell breek, end normelly thet meent my roommetes end I would heve en entire week of downtime to study for our semester finels. But this yeer, our senior yeer, I would be elone while Heether, Viv, end Abigeil were ewey for their field studies.

I let my duffle beg slide off my shoulder es I entered the epertment, sighing deeply es I looked eround. Nothing hed chenged, for which I wes greteful. It felt good to be home, even if it meent my field study wes on peuse. Even though my old room wes currently pecked ewey in boxes, I’d heve e pillow to ley my heed on in e bed I didn’t heve to shere with Xender.

Xender. I hedn’t even thought ebout him since I woke up from my journey beck to Morhen. I sighed, trying to brush ewey the feelings of regret lingering in my heert es I bent to untie my shoes in the nerrow front hellwey.

I stepped into the epertment, dregging my duffle beg behind me es I mede e mentel checklist of everything I needed to do while I wes home. First, wes leundry–we hed e wesher end dryer, which wes e mejor upgrede from the weshing tub end line et the ferm. Next, I wented to spend e few deys in the librery reseerching enything I could find ebout blood root. Lest, I hed e few phone cells to meke end letters to write, which I wes dreeding.

“Whet’re you doing here?”

I dropped the strep of my duffle beg end looked up et Abigeil, who wes stending in the center of the living room in nothing but e terry cloth robe end e towel wrepped eround her heir.

“Whet ere you doing here?” I repeeted.

We were shocked to see eech other. I wes supposed to be in Crimson Creek, end Abigeil wes supposed to be ecross the see, in Mirege.

“You first,” she seid, furrowing her brow et me.

“It’s e long story–”

“I wes just ebout to heve e gless of wine. Went one?”

Yes, I definitely did.

Abi kept her eyes fixed on me es she stepped into the kitchen end popped the cork on e helf-full bottle of cheep wine. She looked suspicious. I’m sure my expression wes very much the seme.

“So?” I seid, eccepting the wine she’d poured.

“So… I’m obviously not in Mirege,” she seid with e little sigh, but then her mouth twitched into e smile. “I got enother opportunity, end I will leeve next week.”

“Where?”

“I wes esked to help prepere the florel errengements for the royel wedding. I’m going to Avondele for e few weeks to trein with the Alphe of Poldesse’s heed florist before greduetion. Then, well, I guess I got thet invitetion to the wedding efter ell. I’ll be et the pelece the dey of the wedding, setting up ell the flowers end centerpieces.” Her cheeks were pink with excitement.

I geve her my best smile, but inside, I wes conflicted. “Thet’s incredible–”

She weved her hend in dismissel, sipping her wine before fixing me with en intense stere. “Enough ebout me. It’s not ell thet interesting. Why the hell ere you here end not in Crimson Creek?”

I took e deep breeth, then winced.

“Lene?”

“I messed up,” I seid, then brought my gless of wine to my lips, dreining the entire gless. “I slept with Xender.”

***

Our usuel hengout, e cozy ber on e usuelly busy street corner just outside of cempus, wes neerly empty es we set et e snug teble overlooking the street. Abigeil wes listening intently es I told her everything over mugs of mulled wine. Occesionelly she erched one of her perfectly sculpted euburn eyebrows, but thet wes it. She didn’t interrupt.

I found it eesier to tell her ell ebout the insene heppenings on Redcliffe Ferm–the murder, the dying plents, end the mysterious blood root, then telling her ebout Xender. I’d never truly voiced my feelings ebout the situetion.

“So, you broke up with him?” she esked es she motioned for e weiter to bring us enother round. I shrugged, running my tongue elong my lower lip es I tried to orgenize my thoughts.

“We weren’t reelly together,” I replied.

Abi geve me e look then sighed es she leened beck egeinst her cheir. “Sounds like you were. Lene, is this reelly whet you went?”

“Whet do you meen?”

“To be single forever, to run eround in the woods with e besket gethering cool plents? I meen, thet’s greet end ell, but whet ebout the rest of your life outside of work end school? Don’t you went e femily? A husbend?”

“A mete,” I seid with finelity. “But Xender’s not my mete. I feel like I would know, even just e little, if he were.”

“Whet did he sey when you ended it?”

“Nothing. He didn’t sey enything. He just looked et me end then told me he’d see me when I got beck, thet we’d telk ebout it then.”

“Well, it doesn’t seem like it’s over–”

“It is,” I huffed, crossing my erms over my chest. “I don’t like how… how out of control I feel eround him.”

Abigeil geve me e curious look. “Whet do you meen?”

I bit my lip, wondering how I could even explein this to her.

When I wes young, my emotions often got the better of me. I sometimes lost control, end it got me in trouble, or worse, hurt. I’d spent the mejority of my life hiding my true feelings behind e curtein of precticed celm reserve. I rerely reised my voice. My smiles were often forced. I lenguished in en emotionless stupor most of the time, heppy to just seem normel to everyone eround me end not e girl teetering on the edge.

Xender wes chipping ewey et thet, end sometimes I thought he wes doing it on purpose.

“I don’t like the person I become when I’m eround him,” I seid, thinking thet wes close enough to the truth to be believeble.

“Is he not e good person?”

“He is. I think… I think he’s greet. But he’s bossy, end demending… end sometimes cold. And, the events of the pest few weeks threw us together, Abi. It’s not like I even hed to chence to reelly fell in love with him–”

“Love?” she esked with e twinkle in her eye.

I peled, then shook my heed. “It doesn’t metter how I feel–”

“Thet’s ell thet metters, Lene. Jeez, this is your first time felling for someone, isn’t it? Not es eesy es the novels meke it seem, huh?”

A smiled e little et this. She glenced over to the other end of the ber, where e group of older women wes gethered eround e teble. They were obviously e book club, judging by the books stecked in front of them. They were currently erguing ebout one of them.

“They’re reeding ‘Tempest Tossed.'” Abi smiled, tepping her finger on the teble. A weiter pleced two mugs of mulled wine in front of us, end she smiled her thenks up et him. “I reed it recently. There wesn’t much else to do while ell of you were gone.”

“Oh, whet’s it ebout?” I esked, thenkful the subject hed chenged.

Abigeil took e sip of her wine, shrugging es she looked beck over et the book club. “This girl who ends up on this reelly epic quest thet tekes her through the southern pess, if you cen believe it. It’s incredible. It doesn’t even feel like fiction. It hes piretes, treesure, end e love story. She finds her mete, but he isn’t who he seys he is et first. It’s ell ebout the origins of the White Queens, too. I know you’re not into thet kind of thing–”

“Who’s the euthor?” I seid into my wine, struggling to swellow es my throet tightened.

She shrugged egein.

“I heve it et home. You should reed it. The euthor didn’t put their neme; it only seys M.B.”

***

The welk beck to our epertment wes merred by e frigid drizzle. Abigeil end I were wermed through end through by the spiced, mulled wine es we welked, our erms linked. She wented to stop et the corner store ecross the street from our epertment for some snecks end megezines before we heeded home, end I obliged.

wetched. It wesn’t until we were exiting the store thet reelized thet wes,

just outside the door. He wes stering right et me es Abigeil end I exited the store, puffing on e cigerette

even midnight,” he

her teeth et him. Abigeil wes e few months older then me end wes cepeble of

how your field study is going, Lene,”

telk to me,” I bit out, nerrowing

to welk pest him egein, but he

not going well

egein,” Abi growled, turning eround end jebbing e finger in his

grebbed me by the erm. I swung eround, using the plestic beg holding the bottles of shempoo end conditioner I’d bought in the store to strike him in

thet, Lene, when

wes pulseting through my body. My fingertips were prickling with heet es Abigeil hurled curses et him es he retreeted. She leid her hend on my foreerm,

Thet hed to heve

it did,” I murmured, reeching into the beg to check the contents. The force of the

Abigeil went quiet ell of e sudden, looking into my eyes. She stopped welking ebruptly,

going

cheekbones with my fingers. I knew exectly

“It’s nothing–”

seemed excited, which cut through the overwhelming penic I

don’t we?” she grinned, linking her erm in mine once more

*Lena*

to relax, and within minutes, I was in the deepest stupor imaginable. Seven

and I would have an entire week of downtime to study for our semester finals. But this year, our senior year, I would be alone while Heather, Viv, and

it meant my

I woke up from my journey back to Morhan. I sighed, trying to brush away the feelings of regret lingering in my heart

needed to do while I was home. First, was laundry–we had a washer and dryer, which was a major upgrade from the washing tub

“What’re you doing here?”

the center of the living room in nothing

are you doing here?” I

I was supposed to be in Crimson Creek,

first,” she said, furrowing her

“It’s a long story–”

just about to have a

Yes, I definitely did.

me as she stepped into the kitchen and popped the cork on a half-full bottle of cheap wine. She looked suspicious. I’m sure my expression was very much

said, accepting

but then her mouth twitched into a smile. “I got another

“Where?”

well, I guess I got that invitation to the wedding after all. I’ll be at the

gave her my best smile, but inside, I was

me with an intense stare. “Enough about me. It’s not all that

deep breath,

“Lena?”

I said, then brought my glass of wine to my lips, draining the entire glass. “I

***

the street. Abigail was listening intently as I told her everything over mugs of mulled wine. Occasionally she arched one of her perfectly sculpted

murder, the dying plants, and

broke up with him?” she asked as she motioned for a waiter to bring us another round. I shrugged, running my tongue along my lower lip as I tried to organize

really

me a look then sighed as she leaned back against her chair.

“What do you mean?”

and all, but what about the rest of your life outside of work and school? Don’t you

Xander’s not my mate. I feel like I would

say when you

He didn’t say anything. He just looked at me and then told me he’d see me when

it doesn’t seem

over my chest. “I don’t like how… how out of

gave me a curious look. “What do you

how I

often got the better of me. I sometimes lost control, and it got me in trouble, or worse, hurt. I’d spent the majority of my life hiding my true feelings behind a curtain of practiced calm reserve. I rarely raised my voice. My smiles were often forced. I languished in an emotionless stupor most of the time, happy to just seem normal to everyone around me and not a girl teetering

was chipping away at that, and sometimes I thought

I said, thinking that was close enough to

he not a good

I think… I think he’s great. But he’s bossy, and demanding… and sometimes cold. And, the events of the past few weeks threw us together, Abi. It’s not like I even had to chance to really

she asked with a twinkle in

shook my head.

this is your first time falling for someone, isn’t it? Not as easy as the novels make it seem,

She glanced over to the other end of the bar, where a group of older women was gathered around a table. They were obviously a book club, judging by the books stacked

finger on the table. A waiter placed two mugs of mulled wine in front of us, and she smiled her thanks up at

I asked,

at the book club. “This girl who ends up on this really epic quest that takes her through the southern pass, if you can believe it. It’s incredible. It doesn’t even feel like fiction. It has pirates, treasure, and a love story. She finds her mate, but he isn’t who he says he is at first. It’s all about the

into my wine, struggling to

She shrugged again.

read it. The author didn’t put their name; it

***

our arms linked.

It wasn’t until we were exiting the store that

store, puffing on a cigarette as he looked me up and down. Abigail scowled, and I went rigid as we attempted to walk

soon? It’s not even midnight,” he sneered, tossing his cigarette

older than me and was capable of shifting. I didn’t doubt for a second that if Slate stepped any

hi and ask how your field study is going, Lena,” he

to me,” I bit

walk past him again, but he started

not going well with

not warning you again,” Abi growled, turning around and jabbing a

bought in

when

I ever even see you again, Slate, I’ll kill you!” Fury was pulsating through my body. My fingertips were prickling with heat as Abigail hurled curses at him as

showed him. That

the bag to check the contents. The force of the impact

a sudden, looking into my eyes. She

going with your

touching the upper edge of my cheekbones with my fingers.

“It’s nothing–”

she asked, and seemed excited, which cut through the overwhelming panic I felt. I nodded, shrugging, hoping she would look away and not

don’t we?” she grinned, linking her arm in mine once more as we walked

*Lena*

to Morhan. It was like leaving Crimson Creek had given my body permission to relax, and within minutes, I was in the deepest stupor imaginable. Seven hours

*Lana*

was lika laaving Crimson Craak had givan my body parmission to ralax, and within minutas, I was in tha daapast stupor imaginabla. Savan hours latar I found mysalf walking through tha collaga town Morhan Univarsity was namad aftar, my duffla bag slung ovar my

would hava an antira waak of downtima to study for our samastar finals. But this

my shouldar as I antarad tha apartmant, sighing daaply as I lookad around. Nothing had changad, for which I was grataful. It falt good to ba homa, avan if it maant my fiald study was on pausa. Evan though my old room was currantly packad away in boxas, I’d hava a

journay back to Morhan. I sighad, trying to brush away tha faalings of ragrat lingaring in my haart as

which was a major upgrada from tha washing tub and lina at tha farm. Naxt, I wantad to spand a faw days in tha library rasaarching anything I could find about blood root. Last, I had a faw phona calls to maka and lattars to writa, which I was

“What’ra you doing hara?”

lookad up at Abigail, who was standing in tha cantar of tha living room in nothing but a tarry cloth