Sold as the Alpha King's Breeder
Chapter 303

Chapter 83 : Common GroundTroyWell, I was still alive.I hadn't been sure what to expect when we finally reached Maeve's homeland, but I thought Maevewould 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 beenshort and to the point. I had turned over Opaline to him. I had returned his daughter to her pack. Ihad given him a complete report on everything that had happened from the moment I first steppedfoot in Valoria to the day our boat pulled into the inlet that hugged the shore of Winters Forest'smain 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 lookslightly better than himself when he jumped in a second time to help me get the moonstone beforeit was carried away by the tide.The icy, glacial water had been a baptism of some kind, something that cemented an unlikelyfriendship 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 ofMaeve'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 thepillows 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. Ilooked out the window behind the bed, seeing nothing. It was pitch black. “The sun doesn't comeup 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 strangenessof this place. The sun had set the day before at just after 3:00 p.m., and all my body wanted to dowas 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 hadbeen sleeping on. I laid it over Maeve's feet, which were peeking out of the thick quilt that she hadtucked 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 feelingsabout her homecoming to me while I held her, whispering reassurances against her neck. Maevewas 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 ofMaeve’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 thepillows 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. Ilooked out the window behind the bed, seeing nothing. It was pitch black. “The sun doesn't comeup 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 strangenessof this place. The sun had set the day before at just after 3:00 p.m., and all my body wanted to dowas 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 hadbeen sleeping on. I laid it over Maeve's feet, which were peeking out of the thick quilt that she hadtucked 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 feelingsabout her homecoming to me while I held her, whispering reassurances against her neck. Maevewas 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 outfor me over my shoulders. Rowan watched me closely. His eyes were so much like Maeve's, thesame 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.”“She sleeps until noon most days. It's a lot... the pregnancy, you know.”"Uh, yeah,” he said awkwardly, pursing his lips and tilting his head from side to side, considering.“Do you want me to wake her up?”“No, no-I actually came for you. I wanted to, uh, talk to you for a minute before Talon and Ernest getback from Mirage today.” Rowan shifted uncomfortably, then tilted his head toward the hallway. Inodded firmly, my chest tightening with anxiety as followed him down the hallway and through thedarkened house.Gretchen was in the kitchen, surrounded by the smell of breakfast sausage and coffee as shechopped potatoes. She looked up from the butcher block, her eyes creasing as her mouth stretchedinto a beaming smile. “Good morning!” she exclaimed, setting the knife down and turning to pulltwo mugs out of a cabinet.She filled both of them with coffee and added a liberal amount of fresh cream, which made mystomach tighten with anticipation. We had been eating nothing 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 toeat a proper meal, so I was hoping whatever plan Rowan had for me could wait until afterbreakfast.Thankfully, Rowan settled himself on a stool next to the kitchen island, and I followed suit, sippingmy coffee and watching as Gretchen began to pour pancake batter into a large cast iron skilletslicked with bacon grease.“You're just as handsome and patient as I imagined you, Troy dear,” Gretchen said sweetly as sheflipped the pancakes. “It certainly takes a specific type of man to peak Maeve's interests,”"Handle her, you mean,” Rowan said over the rim of his coffee mug, smirking at Gretchen as shecast 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 withembroidered tea pots and apples. She clicked her tongue at Rowan, pointing her finger accusingly."You'd best watch your tongue, young man. You and Maeve should've been twins, I always say. Soalike. It's no wonder your mates are such quiet, humble people. Is Hanna coming up to the housetoday? I want to send her home with some blueberry jam my granddaughter made this fall.”“I can swing by her place later, if not,” Rowan said, watching as Gretchen grabbed two plates fromthe dishrack. "Could we get breakfast to go? Would that be too much trouble?”“Not at all, darling.” Gretchen rummaged around in the cabinets for two plastic containers as wecontinued to drink our coffee. I felt a little shy to the point of being uncomfortable. This wasRowan's domain. Maeve's childhood home. I was, to be blunt, an unwanted guest. Surely, Gretchenknew about the situation, having worked so closely with the family over the years. Maeve called herGrannie, in fact.Rowan got up with the plastic containers in his hands, thanking Gretchen as she filled twothermoses with coffee, which she handed to me to carry."You'd better be planning on wearing your helmet, Rowan. You know how your mother feels aboutthose deathtraps,”“I know, I know,” Rowan said over his shoulder. “Thanks for breakfast, Gretchen!”“Helmets?” I asked as we reached the stairwell that led down to the garage. I had slept there thenight we arrived in Winter Forest, but it had been very dark. I could only make out the immediatearea around me, which was a tool bench and a few bikes“Snowmobiles,” Rowan said simply, shrugging as I followed him down the stairs. “Ever been onone?"“I'm from the Isles,”“Then imagine a jetski, but for snow. It's very similar.” He flipped on a light switch as we reached thebottom of the stairs, and the garage erupted into light. I took a moment to be shocked, thencomposed myself and swallowed the many, many questions swirling through my mind.The garage was as large, if not larger, than the house itself. Four snowmobiles sat near the garagedoor, primed and ready for use. An assortment of other outdoor equipment leaned against thewalls, bikes and several sets of skis and snowboards. A large pickup truck sat idle in the far corner ofthe garage next to what looked like a tractor, both covered in tarps. I hadn't been around cars in mylife, but 1 could tell the truck was old... Vintage, some might say. Rowan caught me looking at it andgave me a crooked smile. “It's Dad's. He's been working on it for years.”"Where did he replace it? I've never seen a vehicle that old before.” I ran my tongue along the inside ofmy lower lip, wondering if Rowan would protest if I poked around the garage for a moment.“I don’t know. It just showed up one day. He had to have it towed up here from the port, and it'sbeen sitting in the garage for fifteen years or so now. Mom says it takes up too much space.”“I mean,” I said, unable to hide my shock, “I don't think that matters that much. This place is huge.”Rowan set the food containers on one of the snowmobiles and started to grab gear off the shelveson the far wall, pulling down an assortment of gloves and padded jackets. I walked around, glancingat the tool bench before letting my gaze wander further into the recesses of the garage, which wasdouble the length of the house, built like a basement beneath the backyard.There was a set of rooms in the back, a bathroom and what looked like a small office or storageroom. I could see an icon bouncing around on what looked like a screen and couldn’t hold back myquestions any longer.“Is that a computer?” I asked, turning to face Rowan.He set down the helmet he was holding and inhaled deeply, his cheeks turning a little red.“Yeah, it is.”"How? I've never seen one-"“1-1 built it.” I could hear the apprehension in his voice, and I quickly realized why his cheeks hadcolored. He was embarrassed.“Are you serious? I've only ever read about them. I didn’t think anywere left outside of... of the dashboards on boats and planes.” The war had destroyed most of thetechnology to use them, so there was no reason for anyone to have one.He stared blankly at me for a moment, his shoulders losing some of their tension as he picked upon my excitement. “I'm building more radio towers. I needed a way to test the frequency needed toconnect the packs of Valoria and keep track of the data. It doesn't do much besides that but... I'mproud of it.”“You should be," I said earnestly, wanting nothing more than for him to show me exactly what hecould do with it.Rowan smiled broadly, blushing a little more as he balanced the helmet on his hip. “Maybe when weget back I can show you, if Dad-" he paused, pursing his lips and shaking his head. “I'm not supposed to like you, you know.”"Yeah, I get it.” I couldn't help but laugh. Rowan motioned me over to him and we spent the nextfifteen minutes suiting up to take the snowmobiles out. It was arduous work, and I was sweating bythe time we had packed the food and coffee into two backpacks and backed the snowmobiles outinto the driveway.“I don't think I need to tell you how to ride one of these!” Rowan shouted through his helmet.“I'll figure it out!” I replied, not sure if he could hear me. “You're not planning on leading me awayfrom the village and stranding me somewhere, are you?”That he had heard, and he threw his head back, laughing. “You're not who I was expecting you tobe, Troy. I think that would be a waste. Plus, Dad would kill me if anything happened to thatsnowmobile.”The mountains were blanketed in snow so fine it didn't make a sound as we parked thesnowmobiles and stepped off of them. I looked out over the village, which seemed to be milesbelow us, the lights of the cabins just visible in the deep purple morning sky.The stars shining above us were like something I had never seen before, so close I felt like I couldtouch them. A green band of light danced over the mountains on the other side of the inlet, like aribbon, casting a strange glow over the far mountains.“I see why we couldn't have just shifted,” I said as I set my helmet down on the snowmobile andlifted the thermos of coffee to my lips“Well, you can. But nothing is worse than getting snowballs stuck between the pads of your paws.”"Ah, yeah. I can imagine.”Rowan handed me one of the food containers and we sat on our snowmobiles to eat in relativequiet, watching the aurora continue its spirited dance.“I'm not going to apologize for punching you,” Rowan said after a few minutes of silence.“I wasn't expecting an apology,” I replied, closing up the empty container and putting it in mybackpack. He did the same, but kept his eyes on me."What was your reasoning for everything that happened in Mirage? What exactly did you gain frompretending to be Aaron of Red Lakes?"I had seen this conversation coming. I'd had it already with Ethan, although he hadn't asked me asingle question the entire time. I had rattled off everything in quick succession, and he had simplywalked away when I was done. Rowan was interrogating me. He brought me up here to do it inprivate. .“Damian offered us money to break Romero out of the castle. I thought that was it. I didn't realizethere was something else going on until it was too late.”"And that something had to do with Maeve?”I nodded, leaning forward and resting my elbows on my knees. “Damian knew my parents. Or, atleast, he said he did. Romero was my grandfather, but I never knew him before I saw him in thetower for the first time. It was... not what I was expecting.”“You didn’t know your parents?”I looked over at him, shaking my head. “Not my mom. I have no memories of her. I assume she’sdead.”Rowan looked away. “Maddalyn, right? Ernest brought back your sketchbook from Mirage... We sawthe portrait. I didn’t know who it was, but my parents were sure-"I“Yeah. I didn’t even know her name until recently.”That caught him off guard. He looked at me, his expression twisted in confusion.“What do you mean you didn't know her name?”I inhaled, shaking my head, and then told him about my childhood. I watched his face go throughseveral transformations as I told him what I thought was information his family would need to paintme in a clear picture. How I had been a thief, a pirate... an orphan."Are you here to kill my Dad?" he asked once I had finished speaking. His words were said socasually for how much weight they bore. I looked up at him, steeling my expression. “Is that whyyou stayed with Maeve-"“No,” I said firmly, looking him squarely in the eyes. “She's my mate, Rowan. I knew it the second Isaw her. We met before I knew she was... the princess. I should've left Valoria that very second, but Icouldn't give her up-"“I understand,” he said quickly, interrupting me. “I couldn't do that either. Hanna, my mate. Youhaven't met her yet, but... you will. Today, probably. There's going to be a family meeting after Dadtalks to you about...” he trailed off, looking out over the inlet and then back to me again. “You doknow that you're the Alpha of Poldesse, right?”I let out my breath in a long whoosh, the warm air turning to mist. “If I have to be,” I said honestly,giving him a wry smile.He arched his brow, then laughed, shaking his head. “I knew we had a few things in common.”“You don’t want to take your Dad's title someday?”He shrugged, taking a sip of coffee. “Someone's gotta do it.”“Is that why you were embarrassed about the computer? Because you're-"“Going to be the Alpha of all Alpha’s one day?" he said, adding a dramatic flair to the words thatmade me smile. He exhaled, looking up at the fading stars.“I wanted to go to college in Mirage and study engineering. Literally any kind of engineering, Ididn't care. It goes against the type of man my dad needs me to be, you know. Someone fierce.Someone who can command not just a pack but EVERY pack. I'm not the type of person. I just wantto make things. I want to know how things work, how they used to work.”The sun was just starting to peak over the mountains, casting the pink glow over the inlet thatMaeve had told me so much about. We watched a plane circle the inlet twice, then land gracefullyon the water. “That'll be Talon and Ernest. We should go,” he said, clearing his throat.“You shouldn't have to choose between the two. If anything, the pack lands could use your skills.”“I don't know if my dad sees it that way.” Rowan slung his backpack over his shoulder and put hishelmet on, and I realized I might have struck a chord with him.Maybe I had been lucky to have not known my parents or my lineage. I grew up making my owndecisions, deciding my ownfate.“What's going to happen now? Damian is dead, you know. And Tasia,”Rowan gave me a weary look before he closed the visor on hishelmet.“I don’t know. But I do know Dad is going to send you back to the Isles. I just don’t know if he'llallow Maeve to go with you.”