Sold as the Alpha King’s Breeder

 Chapter 17: Ernest’s Mate

Maeve

“Don’t say your name? Why?”

*Just in that context. I don’t… we can’t-”

“I know,” I said hurriedly, feeling foolish. It couldn’t be personal. That had to be what he meant. I fidgeted, looking past him toward the door. He followed my gaze, then snapped his head back around, giving me a serious look.

“Leave them alone, Maeve. I know what you’re thinking.”

“I just really need to talk to Ernest—”

“No, you don’t.”

“You don’t understand, Aaron. Gemma is in a bit of a crisis right now,”

“Because they’re mates? That doesn’t sound like a crisis to me.” He stood there, staring at me blankly as my jaw dropped open.

“How the hell did you know that?”

“Uh, he told me? Is it supposed to be a secret-”

I turned from him, pacing over to a set of couches that had been pushed up against the wall so that the maid could polish and wax the floor. I felt a little guilty as I looked down at the very obvious footprints left in the fresh wax, but the room was rarely used. It was my first time spending more than a few minutes here myself. “Well, if you know about it then it’s not a secret, is it?”

He shrugged, reaching up to crack open the window. “What do you need to talk to him about that’s so pressing you’d interrupt them?”

“I wasn’t going to interrupt them,” I lied, pursing my lips as he cast me an incredulous look. “I just wanted to talk to him privately.”

“About why he won’t marry and have children?”

Igaped at him again, my jaw nearly hitting the floor. “You know about that? You know why?”

“Yeah, he told me all about it.” Aaron’s tone was so casual that I laughed, unable to stop myself. He peered at me, tilting his head as I sat down on one of the dusty couches. “Do you seriously not know? How could you not know? Your whole reason for being here is to produce the heir he refuses,”

“Refuses? No, he can’t have children.”

“Oh, he’s perfectly capable of having children.”

“1-How?”

either. He caught my gaze and I blushed, which was

“Aaron!”

his feet on the couch, facing me. “Ernest said he had a vision that his mate and their child would die,

gauge whether or

fact, he told me his own mother had the same vision, and she was the driving force behind

Aunt Georgia? You’re joking!” I felt myself flush, my skin prickling with a

There were wolves who had special traits, like my mother, but seers were rare if they were real at all. At least, that’s what my parents told me after Aaron’s own mother cursed me, after his accident. My mom’s powers were well known, but we descended from the Moon Goddess herself as White Queens. Aunt Georgia

thought it was just a dream until his mom

Forest with us, not thousands of miles away in Valoria. I didn’t know the details of the exchange of power, but I do know Ernest became Alpha at a ridiculously young age, sixteen or seventeen, when his

I tried to talk

true,” I

me, shaking his head. “You’re kidding, right? It’s fanciful at best-” He paused, the muscles of his neck contracting in the dim light as he swallowed. “You’re not cursed,

own mother cursed me,

not real, just like Ernest’s vision was

like my mother. I’m supposed to come into my power. I was. I told the nurse in the infirmary to save some of my blood for healing

That something an angry woman said now determines your future? How do you know your blood doesn’t have

on mine. “She believed it. I could see

is this

floor. “That I won’t find my

“Well, when’s your birthday?”

up at him.”Not

He stood, holding out his hand

“Where are we going?”

tell Ernest he’s

thought you said not to interrupt

changed my

day he got hurt in front of me, or his mother, or my possible curse. But, I was thankful for the break in conversation. I didn’t want to

see Ernest walking quickly down the corridor away from us, his back turned

Where are you going?”

my hand free from his grasp, but he squeezed my hand, tucking it behind his back, and we all came

the Alpha of Greenbriar was arriving for a conference today. I have to go down to the village to escort him to the castle. Give him

me and inhale, but his face was calm and firmly fixed on Ernest. Ernest ran his fingers

sure? I haven’t heard great things about

backward, his heel crunching my toes. I let out my breath in a hiss, glancing up at him and noticing the abrupt change in his demeanor. He was looking forward, his gaze traveling well past Ernest and into a darkened corner of the corridor where it wound back

three of us. I swallowed, exhaling as Aaron removed his heel from my toes. It had

But why?

said, still looking over the top of Ernest’s head at the figure

need to escort him and his entourage from the train station to the road leading to the castle. Lance will meet them there. I’d definitely feel