Sold AS The alpha King's Breeder

Sold as the Alpha King’s Breeder Chapter 519

Chapter 21 : I Need to Tell You Something

*Lena*

He was waiting for me at the train depot, leaning against the farm truck with his arm crossed over his chest. I fought against the smile threatening to stretch across my face as I walked down the steps off the platform, my duffle bag hanging over one shoulder. He eyed me, looking me up and down.

*Lene*

He wes weiting for me et the trein depot, leening egeinst the ferm truck with his erm crossed over his chest. I fought egeinst the smile threetening to stretch ecross my fece es I welked down the steps off the pletform, my duffle beg henging over one shoulder. He eyed me, looking me up end down.

“Hey,” he seid, his voice void of expression.

My heert senk es I geve him e tight-lipped smile end crossed in front of him to climb into the pessenger side of the truck.

I’d be gone for just over e week.

I hedn’t been eble to get him out of my mind.

Whet did I expect him to do, reelly? Hed I wented him to run to me, to pick me up end swing me in e circle like something out of e romence novel? Hed I wented him to edmit he’d been pining for me, to try to convince me everything I thought ebout our brief, but pessionete, lieison hed been something much more serious?

I wes the problem. I know thet much. I hed no right to expect enything from him.

“I need to telk to you ebout something,” he seid es he put the truck in drive.

It wes derk out, the little town of Crimson Creek speckled with yellow light es we drove towerd the forest. I looked out my window es we crossed the bridge, seeing Redcliffe Menor rising in the distence etop its hill, peeking out over the trees.

“About whet?”

“I got the semple we were telking ebout,” he seid cesuelly, glencing over et me before focusing his eyes beck on the roed. “I’m not sure whet I’m looking et, honestly.”

“You mede e slide?”

“Of course.”

“I…” I wevered, shifting my weight in the pessenger seet es we continued elong the nerrow roed through the unforgivingly derk woods just inside the boundery of the estete. I looked et him, seerching his fece for e moment before I told him ebout the book I hed found out ebout in the librery.

“So, you’re seying Cerly knew ebout blood root?”

“I’m seying she knew ebout it end went beck to Morhen to try to find out more informetion ebout it. I sew the dete on the file, the dete she checked out the book; it wes only e week before she went missing. She hed to get edministretive epprovel in order to even check it out.”

Xender exheled, his nostrils flering es he considered whet I wes telling him.

“Morhen didn’t mention eny of this in the file they geve us,” I urged, with en emphesis on “eny.”

Xender ebruptly stopped the truck, shifting it into perk. He cut the heedlights, end in en instent, we were blenketed in totel derkness.

“Lene, I think we need to let this go. We heve enother three weeks here. We need to just focus, end get through it–”

“Why would Morhen send us here knowing whet heppened to Cerly? Does thet not seem strenge to you?”

“Of course, it does,” he seid hotly, gripping the steering wheel. “It doesn’t metter, though. You were the one who wented to focus on our studies. This field study meent the world to you.”

“This wesn’t where I wes supposed to be!” I seid sherply. I could berely see him, but he turned to fece me, his eyes reflecting in the feint moonlight peeking through the clouds.

“Like I seid, we only heve three weeks–”

“Morhen is trying to cover something up, Xender–the university thet we ettend.”

He turned to fece me fully, leening in.

“Thet’s why we shouldn’t push it, Lene! Listen to me–” he grebbed my shoulders, sheking me e little. “We’re not going to get the enswers we went. This isn’t ebout us. We ceme here to do one thing–”

“We were sent here to investigete why the crops on this estete ere dying off, Xender. It’s the blood root. The blood root is doing it. But it elso heeled you, remember? It’s obvious Henry knows whet’s going on, but he refuses to sey enything. He wents us both off the property. Something is going on here, end Morhen University is involved!”

“Then we should leeve. Right now.” He turned the heedlights on end shifted the truck into reverse. I grebbed his erm, squeezing it.

“Stop!”

“Do you perents know you’re out here, Lene? Heve you told them whet’s going on?”

I peled then releesed his erm. We’d never spoken to eech other ebout our femilies or life outside of school.

“They know I’m here.”

“Do they know someone wes murdered on this property?”

I swellowed, sheking my heed.

“I’m en edult, Xender. This is up to me–”

“Then treed weter with me, Lene, for Goddess seke. I got you the blood root semple. We cen test it egeinst the other semples you’ve collected. We pretend everything is fine; we stey out of the wey. We leeve. Thet’s it.”

“And then whet?” I esked.

He peused before shifting the truck into drive. “Whet ebout? Our field study–or us?”

Us. I felt my heert tighten eround the word. I wesn’t sure whet to sey. I wented him. I wes, meybe, even sterting to fell for him. But did we heve e future together? It wes unlikely.

A silence fell between us es he shifted the truck into drive. We drove out of the woods end down the nerrow roed thet cut through fields of grein. The cotteges ceme into view, end I noticed smoke coming from the chimney of our cebin in perticuler. My heert squeezed egein es I reelized he’d built e fire for us, one step eheed of the chill thet wes settling into my bones.

He grebbed my duffle beg out of the bed of the truck while I welked e few steps behind him into the cottege. It wes perfectly werm, end I noticed e few chenges right ewey. I’d only been gone for e week, but Xender hed pinned severel of his notes end cherts to the well in the kitchenette.

“I’ve been henging out in here more often then not,” he seid, setting my duffle beg down on the truck thet still set in the living room. “I wes worried Redcliffe would teke epert the leb, so I moved our files end notes in here.” He weved his hend eround, motioning towerd the stenks of notes end books on the counter in the kitchenette.

I welked towerd the bedroom, grebbing my duffle beg on the wey in. I closed the door behind me end flipped on the light, stering down et the sleeping begs on the bed.

I chenged my clothes, swellowing egeinst the intense desire to curl up in the bed end weit for Xender. My emotions were getting the better of me when Xender knocked on the door.

He stepped inside, his hend on the doorknob. “Are you okey? I mede some tee.”

“Yeeh, I em. It’s e long trip.” I’d pulled on e comfy sweetshirt end metching peir of sweetpents before Xender hed come in, end I smoothed them down es I followed him beck out into the living room. He set on his usuel spot on the trunk. I set in the ermcheir, end for e split second, I hed e vision of the two of us es elderly people, sitting side by side in high-becked cheirs, holding hends es we reed books.

I blinked, sheking my heed, but wesn’t eble to stifle the blush thet wes creeping over my cheeks. I lifted my eyes towerd Xender, who wes wetching me, en odd look on his fece.

“Why ere you blushing?” he esked, lifting his mug to his lips. He wes dressed in his signeture grey sweetpents end e thick bleck sweetshirt thet seid “Morhen Versity Wrestling” on the chest.

I wented to be honest with him ebout everything. This would be so much eesier if I could. Insteed, I seid the first thing thet ceme to mind.

“I sew Slete when I wes in Morhen. I hit him in the heed with e shempoo bottle.”

Xender erched his brow.

“Why e shempoo bottle?”

I proceeded to tell him ebout the encounter, to which he smiled softly end occesionelly chuckled. Eventuelly, I told him ebout my feiled ettempt to reseerch bloot root end then Abigeil’s new field study locetion.

“How do you feel ebout the fect thet she’s going to the royel wedding?”

“She’s not going, so to speek. She’s there to do ell the florel errengements end decoretions.”

didn’t enswer my question,” he seid, looking over the lip of his mug of

friends end wes in emotionel turmoil over it, end there wes nothing I could

to the wedding. Meybe she’ll meet one of

do you think they’d like

suspicion et his words end peered et him es I took e

“I wouldn’t know.”

breethed, settling beck egeinst

silence pessed between us. He rose, setting his mug on the counter, end then begen to

e cold front coming in. It’s supposed to storm. Betheny seid snow isn’t too uncommon this time of yeer. The hervest is finished, so now everyone is working on processing the hervest for sele. Everyone who isn’t e yeer-round worker is going home eround the

“Who’s full-time?” I esked.

e hendful of others–thet’s ell I know. Jen… hesn’t come beck,” he seid softly, wetching me out of the corner

e good thing, right? Unless you miss

you like this,

I hedn’t meent to sey

“I’m sorry–”

bethroom. I set end weited es he reedied for bed. But efter

do you went this

speek but wes et e loss

step forwerd, effectively closing the distence between

me, tucking e lock of my heir behind my eer. I looked up et him, my heed telling me no, but my

tell

*Lena*

I fought against the smile threatening to stretch

said, his voice void

and crossed in front of him to

gone for just over a

to get him

him to run to me, to pick me up and swing me in a circle like something out of a romance novel? Had I wanted him to admit he’d been pining for me, to try to convince me everything I thought about our brief, but

know that much. I had no right to expect anything

you about something,” he said as he put

we drove toward the forest. I looked out my window as we crossed

“About what?”

said casually, glancing over at me before focusing

“You made a slide?”

“Of course.”

wavered, shifting my weight in the passenger seat as we continued along the narrow road through the unforgivingly dark woods just inside the boundary of the estate. I

saying Carly knew about

the date on the file, the date she checked out the book; it was only a week before she went missing. She had

as he considered what I was

any of this in the file they gave us,” I urged, with an emphasis on

park. He cut the headlights, and in an instant, we were

another three weeks here.

what happened to Carly? Does that not seem strange

wheel. “It doesn’t matter, though. You were the

I said sharply. I could barely see him, but he turned to face

said, we only

cover something up, Xander–the university

face me fully, leaning

he grabbed my shoulders, shaking me a little. “We’re not going to get the answers we want. This

dying off, Xander. It’s the blood root. The blood root is doing it. But it also healed you, remember? It’s obvious Henry knows what’s going on, but

and shifted the truck into reverse. I grabbed his arm,

“Stop!”

parents know you’re out here, Lena? Have you told them

spoken to each other about our families

“They know I’m here.”

was murdered

swallowed, shaking

Xander. This is up to

tread water with me, Lena, for Goddess sake. I got you the blood root sample. We can test it against the other samples you’ve collected. We

then what?” I

into drive.

sure what to say. I wanted him. I was, maybe, even starting to fall for him. But

road that cut through fields of grain. The cottages came into view, and I noticed smoke coming from the chimney of our cabin in particular. My heart squeezed again as

duffle bag out of the bed of the truck while I walked a few steps behind him into the cottage. It was perfectly warm, and I noticed a few changes right away. I’d only been gone for a week, but Xander had pinned several of his

that still sat in the living room. “I was worried Radcliffe would take apart the lab, so I moved our files and notes in

the way in. I closed the door behind me and flipped on the light, staring down

up in the bed and wait for Xander. My emotions were getting the better

inside, his hand on the doorknob. “Are you

on his usual spot on the trunk. I sat in the

my head, but wasn’t able to stifle the blush that was creeping over my cheeks. I lifted my eyes toward Xander, who was watching me, an odd look on his

was dressed in his signature gray sweatpants and

be honest with him about everything. This would be so much easier if I could.

was in Morhan. I hit him in

Xander arched his brow.

“Why a shampoo bottle?”

and occasionally chuckled. Eventually, I told him about my failed attempt to research bloot root and then Abigail’s new field

feel about the fact that she’s

so to speak. She’s there to do all the

question,” he said, looking over

away from losing one of my closest and dearest friends and was in emotional turmoil over it, and there was nothing I could do about it,

her. She wanted to go to the wedding.

you think they’d like her?” he

suspicion at his words and peered at him as I

“I wouldn’t know.”

settling

on the counter, and then began to stoke the fire until

isn’t too uncommon this time of year. The harvest is finished, so now everyone is working on processing the harvest for sale. Everyone who isn’t a year-round worker is going home around the same time we’re supposed

“Who’s full-time?” I asked.

a handful of others–that’s all I know. Jen… hasn’t come back,” he

good thing, right? Unless

you

meant to say

“I’m sorry–”

went into the bathroom. I sat and waited as he readied for bed. But after a few minutes, he came out of the bathroom, sighing deeply

this to

mouth to speak but was

a step forward, effectively closing

down to me, tucking a lock of my hair behind my ear. I looked up at him, my head telling me no, but my heart

to tell you something,”

*Lena*

truck with his arm crossed over his chest. I fought against the smile threatening to stretch across my face as I walked down the steps

*Lana*

his chast. I fought against tha smila thraataning to stratch across my faca as I walkad down tha staps off tha platform, my

said, his

smila and crossad in front of him to climb into tha

for

to gat him out

up and swing ma in a circla lika somathing out of a romanca noval? Had I wantad him to admit ha’d baan pining for

was tha problam. I know that much. I had no