Sold as the Alpha King’s Breeder

Chapter 25: Back to Finish the Job 

Ernest

“Ernest? Ernest, hey.** Wake up. I’m so sorry,”

I opened my eyes, Gemma’s voice filling the dark, empty space around me. I blinked, somewhat startled, although pleasantly surprised to hear her so nearby

She always left after we had sex. Always. And I had never been man enough to stop her.

I wanted her, needed her, but I couldn’t let go of the notion that I would lose her. Part of me thought, you know, why the hell not? She was my mate. We were meant for each other. I was hurting both of us by pushing her away.

But another part of me knew with every fiber of my being that I would lose her.

I could live in agony and break her heart over and over if it meant saving her life.

We’d kept it a secret, even from Maeve. Maeve would push, and push, and push us to make it official if she knew. The only person I had ever confided in was Aaron.

And all the sudden he was at the foot of my bed.

“Aaron?” I sat up, the sheets falling over my bare chest. I realized quite quickly that I was as naked as the day I was born. I moved my foot beneath the covers, my boxers dragging under the sheets because they were still wrapped around one ankle. And I noticed, as I scrunched my toes, that the lacey blue pair of underwear Gemma had been wearing, briefly, was stuffed in the sheets near the end of the mattress as well.

I blushed, then Gemma blushed, and Aaron quickly turned away as I gingerly reached far beneath the covers to retrieve the evidence of what we had been up to only an hour before.

But there was no smug smile on his face. Gemma’s blush faded as I quickly, and discreetly, tossed her her underwear, which she shimmied into without even blinking.

Gemma looked up at me as she smoothed the fabric of her skirt, her neck moving as she swallowed. She looked scared to death.

“What’s going on? Is someone hurt?” I looked from Gemma to Aaron, adrenaline prickling my fingertips as I threw the sheets back and stood, not caring that I was flashing everyone as I hastily pulled my boxers up to my waist.

“Ernest, I-“Gemma was in tears. She was trembling. She looked at Aaron, a silent plea etched all over her face. I looked at the clock on the far wall, the hands barely visible in the darkened room.

“What time is it? For the love of the Goddess, will someone turn on a light?”

“No, it stays dark,” Aaron said with grave conviction, his face totally expressionless.

“Why?” I replied, pulling my shirt over my head and bending to fish for the pair of trousers I had been wearing. I pulled them from underneath the bed in time to see the fretful glance Gemma gave Aaron, something serious passing between them.

“No one is hurt. Not yet.”

“Not yet? Aaron-”

“It’s not Aaron. I’m not Aaron.”

I had only been in the tower a handful of times during my time as Alpha. I had seen Romero, heard his deranged, slightly senile ramblings before. He was just an old man, an ancient one, really. And he was serving a life sentence for war crimes that took place before I was even born.

took care of everything. He had insisted.

had told me everything. He started from the beginning. He had arrived in Valoria around the time the real Aaron was set to arrive, spending the first few days in secret correspondence with Horace before showing up to the castle, where he pretended to be Maeve’s

pack of Poldesse, the pack ruled by the Alpha Damian, who had taken over after Romero

hadn’t known of Poldesse’s impending invasion. He hadn’t known of Damian’ s

a pawn, and a man desperate to free the only

Romero, his grandfather.

would have done it too, he told me, if his mate

Back to Finish the

Maeve

that he was telling the truth. I just knew. Troy had seen right through me from the very beginning. He had broken open the carefully constructed persona i had spent my life perfecting, pulling me out of my abject, yet personally inflicted loneliness. I kept people

been my friend. I trusted him. And against all odds, I

of night. It was 2:00 in the morning, and despite

and together we climbed up the staircase to the top

the door to the circular room that had been Romero’s home for two

as he lunged forward, pushing through the cell door that was unlocked and left ajar. The cell itself was a mess, the sparse furniture toppled over, and books scattered

I whispered, looking around before casting a

crouching next to Romero, reaching down

us jumped, Troy leaping backward away from the withered form of Romero and Gemma

thought you were Horace,” Romero croaked, his bloodied mouth dribbling as it stretched into a

Troy said, looking

his head and spit a tooth fragment onto the stone floor, spraying blood. But what do you think happens when two old, gnarled wolves fight in close quarters, hmm? Makes a mess as you can see.” He laughed,

over Romero, who pointed a shaky finger

you

wasn’t going to let

wants what I have. Horace was meant to get it -to get the-” He coughed, blood spraying across Troy’s shirt. Troy leaned back, glancing over at me before looking back down at

growing impatient with obvious hatred in

pull it from the wall,” Romero coughed, “there’s a stone loose.

me. We

boy.

the little wooden cot away from the wall and reached behind it. A full minute passed before he pulled a stone the size of my head from the wall, placing it on the bed and glancing down at Romero before dramatically pulling the

stiffened suddenly, his shoulders going rigid as he straightened to his full height, turning around with a yellowed, rolled up piece of paper in his hands. “This is what Horace was looking for? What is it,

on a laugh Gemma jabbed

see,” Romero breathed, blood trickling from his

at Romero as he did so. But as he looked over the worn, frayed document his face began to change, his

“Doesn’t matter.”

“This is

this can’t be…”

step toward the cell door. Gemma pulled

Troy swallowed hard, his Adam’s apple bobbing in his throat. He looked down at Romero, who had a wide smile plastered

Gemma asked, peeking her