Sold as the Alpha King’s Breeder

Chapter 74: I'll Take That as a Yes.

Alright, Tallis and Theo might be two different people, but they both could be jerks!

Since the conversation with Tallis didn't go anywhere, I decided to call it a night.

But what I didn't expect was a group of thick, muscular thugs that appeared from nowhere, blocking my way back to my parents' house. They snickered and closed in around me.

"What do you want?" I asked harshly.

"They don't want anything. However, we have an unfinished score to settle," Hawke's angry, frustrated voice barked out from behind the thugs.

"I didn't do anything to you," I insisted, crossing my arms and trying to act more like a guy.

"Well, the last time we spoke, I ended up knocked out and face down in the dirt. You're telling me that you had nothing to do with that?" Hawke shouted viciously.

Apparently, he remembered more than I hoped. He wasn't drunk tonight, either.

"Grab this little twit!" Hawke ordered.

His thugs jumped at me. I jumped back, but they'd already closed in around me and one caught me from behind. All four of them grabbed my arms and legs and pinned me down to the ground.

I struggled against them, hissing and trying to bite whatever got close to my mouth. Hawke's thugs were too well trained and they were too strong!

"Hold that little swine down. I'm going to teach him a lesson for messing with me," Hawke chuckled, shoving the toe of his boot into the ground.

Now that I was eye level with his boots, I could see they were steel toed. If he kicked me with those, he'd break every bone in my body. I had to stall him.

"That's funny, seeing as the last time we met, you seemed to be interested in me, regardless of me being a boy," I hissed, still struggling against his cronies holding me down.

One of them nearly let me go as his head whipped around to Hawke.

Hawke sneered and shook his head. "Don't listen to this piece of crap. He's just trying to mess with you. Hold him steady."

Nothing I said now would turn their heads. Whether they were all loyal to Hawke or to Hawke's cunning dad, it wouldn't save me a good beating.

Hawke pulled his foot back, knee bent, ready to deliver a horrible kick to my side. I closed my eyes and held my breath, waiting for the heavy blow.

It never came.

"What the..."

I opened my eyes just as a pack of wild animals burst from the forest and attacked Hawke.

"Get them off, get them off!" Hawke screeched, flapping his partially broken arms around like he was fending off a swarm of bees.

to pull the beasts away,

on them and bit them. All of them were screaming and floundering around like

trying to fight off a gaggle of wild animals with his near useless arms. His guys hardly seemed to know what to do,

Hawke and his group further and further away

by someone. I glanced around the forest and

enough, Tallis was standing in the trees. He could also organize an animal attack like

I didn't believe in

be some sort of connection between

ignored Hawke's continued cries for help and I went after Tallis. As soon as I started approaching the woods, he vanished between

was acting like he was trying to evade me, which made me think

I called, reaching out to grab his arm before

pulled away from me.

you doing? Why are you following me? I told you, I' m not who you think I am. How many times do I have to

needed to figure out some other

after you for that. Can you just wait a minute, please?" I asked, my voice a

walking. He didn't turn to face me but

moved closer to him. "It is different this

eyebrow arched. "Is that

hands up to show I wasn't joking. "Hawke has come after me three times now and I don't think he

asked sharply.

Can I stay with you? I

I almost thought he was more intolerable than the Dark Prince. Yet, here I was, doing everything I could

was wrong

this moment, I could tell myself that I had a valid reason to stay with the man in front of me. It was for my own safety after

to stay. So, can I stay with

started walking through the woods again. He hadn't confirmed I could stay with him but he

quiet. It seemed like most of the performers had gone to bed for the night. Nelson

course, Tallis just waved

him. He couldn't even spare his friendly, charismatic brother a

Nelson asked. "Ah, young sir, hello again!"

me," Tallis grumbled in a slightly annoyed

kill you to try

looked absolutely surprised at us, and then laughed heartily and wiped a tear from his eye. "Yes, m'boy, it would probably kill Tallis to be

I gave

become... friends?" Nelson asked,

hot plate going with a big pot of soup on it.

dipping a ladle into the steaming broth

admitted, my

Nelson said, bustling

nodded toward it. I sat down and he stood right behind me. I'd half expected him to run off the moment someone else was there to

He perched on the edge of his folding table desk to eat his own