Sold as the Alpha King’s Breeder

Chapter 15: Did I Hurt You?

♦Lena*

Xander and Henry had been talking, closed up in the bedroom, for more than two hours. I'd been kicked out of the cottage completely, made to sit on the porch like a child, twiddling my thumbs. It was Saturday, midday, and the rest of the workers were still enjoying their weekend in the village.

It was eerily quiet and dumping rain.

Henry pushed the door open and stepped out, not even looking in my direction as he walked down the steps and out into the downpour. I glared at him as I rose, crossing my arms over my chest as I watched him disappear around the corner of the cottage, walking toward his own with his medkit tucked under his arm.

I went inside, taking three long strides before reaching the bedroom door, and pushed it open.

Xander was sitting upright in bed, his back against the wall and his legs splayed out in front of him. His chest was bare, despite the chill, and his bandages were fresh. Henry must have changed them, I thought as I stepped into the room and leaned on the doorway, giving him a dubious look.

"I'm fine,” he glared, adjusting his weight with a grimace. He patted the bed next to him, arching his brow at me. “Do you want to finish what we started?’

“You're insane,' I hissed, tapping my fingers on my elbow as I looked him up and down. He looked much better than the night before. To my utter disbelief, the strange bruising was almost completely gone. 'You screamed Jen's name, by the way.'

"Henry told me. He also said it upset you.“

"I was more upset about the thought of you dying right in front of me. You fell on top of me, you know. You passed out.'

“Did I hurt you?" he asked.

I colored, then shook my head. Maybe not physically, but emotionally?

He watched me for a moment, his eyes scanning my face to make sense of my troubled expression. 'Jen did this to me, Lena."

"What?" I asked, not sure I'd heard him correctly.

"She bit me,” he said casually, reaching over to grab a book off the bedside table.

I gaped at him, then furrowed my brow. "Stop messing with me, Xander!'

"I’m telling you the truth. She bit me. Obviously, she gave me... some kind of infection.'

"Was she marking you?' I asked, feeling suddenly weak and defensive. I hugged myself, wishing I hadn't asked it.

"She was trying to take a chunk out of me. Not the same thing," he actually laughed, then patted the bed again with more force.

I gave in to him and crawled onto the bed. but didn't sit next to him like he wanted me to. I felt incredibly uneasy, and shocked, if I was being honest.

"What did you talk to Henry about?" I asked, wanting nothing more than to force him to dress and head to his makeshift lab in the warehouse. I knew Henry had smeared the black, murky blood root powder over his wound.

"Look, Lena,' he breathed, sitting up a little straighter. "You're going back to Morhan next weekend. Henry is going to set everything up-"

"No," I said with force, but he held his hand up to silence me.

"It's not up for debate. And its not for good, just for a week or so until all of this gets sorted out-"

"No, Xander! You don't get to decide that for me!"

Henry said Maxwell Radcliffe want you off the property until the Alpha of Crimson Creek gives US an update on

of this is fair. You came here because for some reason you wanted to follow me. You said you felt obligated. And now? Someone gets murdered, you get a chunk bitten out of your chest, Henry is using some kind

arched his brow, interrupting

US anything. This place is weird, Xander. It's scary." I swallowed, feeling tears begin to well in my eyes. 'I'm scared, okay? What happened last night was scary.

bad has happened," he finished, shrugging

blood root Henry put on you. I can't leave

know. And we

me intently, waiting for me to say what I actually wanted to say. I didn't know how he knew, but he shook his head, his eyes hard

said calmly, tilting

away from him, settling my eyes on the curtains covering the window.

It wasn't

then turned to look at him again. When he'd kissed me, he'd been gentle. He'd been caring, asking me if I was okay. The first time we'd kissed, we had almost just gone all the way, and he

knew he'd been holding back. I could see the dissatisfaction now, lingering behind his eyes. For a split second, I wanted to know what he'd done with Jen...

felt the tears again and quickly changed

"So, she attacked you?"

proceeded to tell me what happened in the warehouse, just hours before he caught up to Elaine’s car as

she go to

see her," he said. "Did

brought my

happened. He's going to take

what? Telling Maxwell? He doesn't seem to be too interested

to go back to Morhan for a few

***

the night before he had passed

I watched him prepare the

I watched him work. I'd taken Xander for a playboy, someone who didn't take their studies seriously. In reality, he was meticulous and highly intelligent, even if I would never admit that I thought that way about him to his face. "It's mixed with my blood, but you’ll see that on the slide. You

chem," I said, deciding to leave out

but it was unbuttoned because of the pain in his chest, his bandages clearly visible as he placed the slide under the microscope. He peered into it for a

slides in the cabinet over there," he said,

of the cabinet and set it on the table then stood back

that says valerian root,"

rolled my eyes. "Do you ever

he deadpanned, squinting into the

"What's going on here?'

warehouse, wearing one of his strange, dated outfits. Xander glanced over at him, his gaze lingering on the man for a few seconds before he bent back to the

"Work, for our study-"

me up and down, a smile touching the corner of his mouth. I felt

here until next

do so in the fields. The last harvest of the year is coming up, and it'll be all hands on deck." Maxwell was looking at

I could feel the heat coming off of him as

talking about Jen. Xander eyed him but didn’t bother to correct him. "And Lena, it's been a week, and I haven't yet

that, he bobbed his head to US and turned on his heel, leaving the warehouse almost

He peered into it for several minutes, then sighed, his hands curling into

is too saturated

"You couldn’t see anything?"

tongue along the inside of his lower lip, meeting my eye.

"Of blood root?"