Sold as the Alpha King’s Breeder

Chapter 83 : Common Ground

Troy

Well, I was still alive.

I hadn’t been sure what to expect when we finally reached Maeve’s homeland, but I thought Maeve would have been more at peace.

Instead, I watched her crumble at the edge of her parents’ bed, the moonstones in her hands, realizing the act of bringing them together hadn’t worked.

That had been the first time I met her mother, the famous White Queen Rosalie… my future mother-in-law, if Ethan didn’t kill me before a wedding could take place.

We had been in Winter Forest for a full day at that point, and my conversations with Ethan had been short and to the point. I had turned over Opaline to him. I had returned his daughter to her pack. I had given him a complete report on everything that had happened from the moment I first stepped foot in Valoria to the day our boat pulled into the inlet that hugged the shore of Winters Forest’s main village.

Outside of that, he didn’t even look in my direction.

I was only slightly embarrassed that I fell off the dock in front of him, but Rowan made me look slightly better than himself when he jumped in a second time to help me get the moonstone before it was carried away by the tide.

The icy, glacial water had been a baptism of some kind, something that cemented an unlikely friendship between Maeve‘s brother and

1. me.

So, I wasn’t entirely surprised when I woke up the next morning to Rowan in the doorway of Maeve’s bedroom, peering down at me.

“Why are you sleeping on the floor?” he asked in a whisper, arching his brow.

I ran my fingers through my hair and then over my face, rubbing my eyes. “More room down here,” I tilted my head toward the bed where Maeve was still sleeping like a rock with basically all of the pillows in the house tucked around her body. “What time is it?”

“A little after seven,” he replied, leaning against the doorway and crossing his arms over his chest. I looked out the window behind the bed, seeing nothing. It was pitch black. “The sun doesn’t come up until, like, eleven this time of year. You’ll get used to it.”

“Oh, yeah. I forgot.” I blinked a few times, my body and mind not yet acclimated to the strangeness of this place. The sun had set the day before at just after 3:00 p.m., and all my body wanted to do was sleep even though I wasn’t particularly tired.

“It’s hard on everyone for a while,” Rowan continued as I stood and folded up the blanket I had been sleeping on. I laid it over Maeve’s feet, which were peeking out of the thick quilt that she had tucked up around her ears. “How’s she doing?”

I could hear the guilt in his voice as his gaze shifted from me to the bed.

In truth, Maeve wasn’t well. She had cried until she fell asleep the night before, spilling her feelings about her homecoming to me while I held her, whispering reassurances against her neck. Maeve was a wreck, and I couldn’t blame her. It was mostly my fault.

1. me.

So, I wasn’t entirely surprised when I woke up the next morning to Rowan in the doorway of Maeve’s bedroom, peering down at me.

“Why are you sleeping on the floor?” he asked in a whisper, arching his brow.

I ran my fingers through my hair and then over my face, rubbing my eyes. “More room down here,” I tilted my head toward the bed where Maeve was still sleeping like a rock with basically all of the pillows in the house tucked around her body. “What time is it?”

“A little after seven,” he replied, leaning against the doorway and crossing his arms over his chest. I looked out the window behind the bed, seeing nothing. It was pitch black. “The sun doesn’t come up until, like, eleven this time of year. You’ll get used to it.”

“Oh, yeah. I forgot.” I blinked a few times, my body and mind not yet acclimated to the strangeness of this place. The sun had set the day before at just after 3:00 p.m., and all my body wanted to do was sleep even though I wasn’t particularly tired.

“It’s hard on everyone for a while,” Rowan continued as I stood and folded up the blanket I had been sleeping on. I laid it over Maeve’s feet, which were peeking out of the thick quilt that she had tucked up around her ears. “How’s she doing?”

I could hear the guilt in his voice as his gaze shifted from me to the bed.

In truth, Maeve wasn’t well. She had cried until she fell asleep the night before, spilling her feelings about her homecoming to me while I held her, whispering reassurances against her neck. Maeve was a wreck, and I couldn’t blame her. It was mostly my fault.

“She’s fine. Tired,” I answered shortly, pulling one of the thick knit sweaters Gretchen had laid out for me over my shoulders. Rowan watched me closely. His eyes were so much like Maeve’s, the same color and shape, in fact. But Rowan looked more like Rosalie in the face, at least in my opinion. He had his father’s jaw, though, which tightened and flexed whenever they held back their words.

“I was hoping she’d be awake, so I could… talk to her. Say hi, I guess.”

days. It’s a lot…

and tilting his head from

you want me to

came for you. I wanted to, uh, talk to you for a minute before Talon and Ernest get back from Mirage today.” Rowan shifted uncomfortably, then tilted his head toward the hallway. I

coffee as she chopped potatoes. She looked up from the butcher block, her eyes creasing as

but dried food and grains for weeks, and no one aboard Damian’s cruiser could cook worth a damn. Yesterday, we‘d been too busy to eat a proper meal, so I was hoping whatever plan Rowan had for me could

breakfast.

and I followed suit, sipping my coffee and watching as Gretchen

said sweetly as she flipped the pancakes. “It certainly takes a specific type

you mean,” Rowan said over the rim of his coffee mug, smirking at Gretchen as she cast him a dirty look. She was a friendly older woman who exuded what I could only describe as “grandma energy,” and she looked the part as well, dressed in an apron decorated

man. You and Maeve should’ve been twins, I always say. So alike. It’s no wonder your mates are such quiet, humble

can swing by her place later, if not,” Rowan said, watching as Gretchen grabbed two plates from the dishrack. “Could we get

Gretchen rummaged around in the cabinets for two plastic containers as we continued to drink our coffee. I felt a little shy to the point of being uncomfortable. This was Rowan’s domain. Maeve’s childhood home. I was, to

containers in his hands, thanking Gretchen as she filled

helmet, Rowan. You

over his shoulder. “Thanks for

asked as we reached the stairwell that led down to the garage. I had slept there the night we arrived in Winter Forest, but it had been very dark.

shrugging as I followed him down the stairs. “Ever been on

“I’m from the Isles,”

we reached the bottom of the stairs, and the garage erupted into light. I took a moment to be shocked,

leaned against the walls, bikes and several sets of skis and snowboards. A large pickup truck sat idle in the far corner of the garage next to

my tongue along the inside of

the port, and it’s been sitting in the garage for

I said, unable to hide my shock, “I don’t think that matters that much. This place is

jackets. I walked around, glancing at the tool bench before letting my gaze wander

a set of rooms in the back, a bathroom and what looked like a small office or storage room. I could see an icon bouncing around on what looked like a screen and couldn’t hold back my questions any

a computer?” I asked, turning to face

was holding and inhaled deeply, his cheeks turning

“Yeah, it is.”

never

in his voice, and I quickly realized why his cheeks

serious? I‘ve only ever read about them. I didn’t think

had destroyed most of the technology to

some of their tension as he picked up on my excitement. “I’m building more radio towers. I needed a way to test the frequency needed to connect the

for him

a little more as he balanced the helmet on his hip. “Maybe when we

lips and shaking his head. “I’m not supposed

fifteen minutes suiting up to take the snowmobiles out. It was arduous work, and I was sweating by the time we had packed the

you how to

not sure if he could hear me. “You’re not planning on leading me away from the

and he threw his head back, laughing. “You’re not who I was expecting you to be, Troy. I think that would be a waste. Plus, Dad would kill me if anything

***

the snowmobiles and stepped off of them. I looked out over the village, which

A green band of light danced over the mountains on the other side of the

couldn’t have just shifted,” I said as I set my helmet down on the snowmobile and lifted the thermos of

is worse than getting snowballs stuck between the pads

yeah. I

food containers and we sat on our snowmobiles to eat in relative quiet, watching the aurora continue its

going to apologize for punching you,” Rowan said after a

wasn’t expecting an apology,” I replied, closing up the empty container and putting it in my backpack. He did the same, but