Sould As The Alpha King's Breeder

Chapter 2: Some kind of Animal

Maeve

He stood only inches from me, his arm outstretched and his fingers gripping my arm. He had a bottle of beer in his other hand, the foam bubbling over the lip of the bottle. He let go once I regained my balance, giving me a sideways smile that showcased a single dimple in one cheek.

He was ruggedly handsome with tanned skin and brown unruly curls that were tucked behind his ears. He was tall, towering over my 5’8″ frame with ease. I felt hot, a little too hot, as I looked up at him, running my tongue along the inside of my lower lip.

“Uh, thanks,” 1 croaked, slightly taken aback. He nodded, his eyes taking in my face, eventually meeting my own.

One eye was blue, an icy, glacier blue. The other was steel gray. I couldn’t help but stare.

“Take a picture,” he said, his voice slightly lifted and playful.

“What?”

“Take-take a picture, it’ll last longer,” he stammered, his cheeks going a rosy pink as his mouth widened into a boyish grin.

I looked at him, blinking, then shook my head. “Are you serious? That’s the cheesiest-”

“Couldn’t help myself.” He breathed; his eyes still fixated firmly on my own. “I’ve been waiting for an opportunity to say that all day.”

I opened my mouth to speak, then closed it again, forcing down a laugh that was inching up my throat. There was a moment of silence then, just long enough to be acutely aware of the fact that we were still standing on the sidewalk,

staring at each other.

“You’re rather tall for a lady,” he said in all seriousness, taking a small sip of his beer.

“1-what?”

” SAID YOU’RE RATHER TALL FOR A—” he said loudly, leaning close as though I couldn’t hear him.

“I heard you the first time!” I interrupted, and this time I did laugh. “What’s wrong with you? Thank you for, um, stopping me from falling but… did you hit your head, or something?”

“Why do you ask?” He sipped from his beer again, his mouth twitching into a smile as the mouth of the bottle touched his lips.

“24” I was truly at a loss for words,

“Well, nice meeting you,” he said, turning away. I gaped after him as he took a few steps forward, then turned around again, tilting his head in the direction of the bar. “Want a beer?”

I did want a beer, and I was oddly curious about this man and his strange behavior. He was teasing me, trying to get a reaction out of me somehow. I liked it.

“You’re not going to try to kidnap and murder me, are you?” I asked in response. He pursed his lips, looking around at the crowd of people still hovering on the sidewalk as they watched the aftermath of the fight.

“Well, not anymore. Everyone heard you say that,” he said, looking around in mock suspicion before tilting his head toward the bar again in earnest. “You coming?”

“I’m actually supposed to be meeting someone

“Great, l’if go with you.”

“Why?” I laughed, shaking my head. “You have no idea who I am or where I’m going.”

“Well, I’ll probably know soon. That counts for something, right?”

hanter

some kind of Animal

still clutched in his hand, My stomach did a little flip as he

some?” He offered me the beer as we walked, but I shook my

don’t want your germs, and I

brow, giving me a look that sent a warm ripple up the base of

to myself, breaking eye contact with

that our mouths are cleaner in wolf form than

one, and it’s

“How do you know?”

me you’ve brushed your teeth as a wolf?

“Of course, what do you think I am?

in a literal

and genuine. He passed me the beer, and this time I took it,

the table cleared of her usual

said, looking around for Myla’s tell-tale raven black curls. She was nowhere to be

meeting someone?” said the man, following my gaze as I scanned the

my finger on the empty table. “I guess she’s

sip of beer, emptying

bun on the top of my head. It was hot, the sun beating down on the street and

I wanted to look at him as intensely as he was looking at me. Something about him was

you from around here?” he asked, breaking the spell. I looked for

here,” I said, purposefully leaving out the fact that I, in fact, lived at the Alpha of Drogomor’s castle. “What about

walk away from Myla’s stall, his hands stuffed into the pockets of his faded jeans. “Just visiting,” he said casually, smiling

against his loose, white button up shirt. He looked as though he had been

said as a woman shoved past him. I reached out and grabbed his arm, leading him closer to

you here,

check it out.

man who was walking a few yards in front of us abruptly stopped walking, then bent over and retched loudly into a waste basket. I snorted with laughter as my companion motioned toward the man, sarcastically alluding to the idea

always like this?” my new

all” I laughed, shak140 any head”‘s the spring festival People come from all over, you know. There are a least ning packs in Valenia now, Drogamer being the biggest there are files over there” | sald, pointing to an open heht m the far distance where the old buildings

stopped walking, glancing over at me with

Nanaume no They’re moatly event

It was a casual question, but his

these fostivals At

settling on a stall on the other side of the street. He walked toward i1, leaving me standing atupidly alone. I reached up to wipe the sweat from my brow, my breathcoming a little faster than usual. A bead of sweat rolled down my temple and pooled in the conher of my eye irubbed it away, opening iny eyes to find the man atanding in front of me with a giant cup of what

ao red?” he aaked, ahoving

with both hands and letting

“You look awful.”

drink of the lemonade

you have

why I

jeez You’re just fair. Can we get off the street and sit down somewhere? Before you pass out?” He didn’t wait for my reply, taking me forcefully by the elbow and leading me off the street and into the shade of an awning covering the entrance of a shop. I plopped down on a shaded bench, sighing with

“Hey!”

“What?”

away, almost spilling the lemonade I was

jacket?” he

“I can do it-”

I caught his hand in

You’re

arched one eyebrow, his eyes flashing with jest. “You want to go