Sold as the Alpha King's Breeder
Chapter 725

Chapter 70 : Never Thought I'd See You Again

*Soren*

How I wish you could feel the mate bond.

That's what I wanted to say to Mila but I couldn't finish and I couldn't say it loud enough for her tohear. The words stuck in my throat and I pulled away from her when she asked for clarification.

I hadn't understood why I'd been drawn to Mila from the beginning. There had been no matefeeling when we first met but it had been more than curiosity that drew me to her. The more timewent by, that pull got stronger.

Just a whiff of her scent had me practically drooling.

And I was starting to sense more things about her. Her moods, sometimes even her thoughts. I'dalways felt like I could interpret her better than others but I didn't know it was from the mate bond.I still only had theories about why I was only feeling it now and why it just kept getting stronger. Isuspected it was the Blackfire poison that still stifled her feelings and kept the bond from being fullyformed between us.

Then there was the matter of her grief.

She was so consumed by sadness and her past that if I said anything about the mate bond it wouldjust confuse her more. She'd probably just get upset.

“Let's get out of here," I said motioning toward the door.

Mila nodded and exited the cabin. I followed close behind her.

"What do you say about visiting your old home?" I asked, motioning to the nearby hill where thepackhouse used to sit.

“It isn't even there anymore,” she protested, shaking her head.

“You never know what memories it'll stir up,” I suggested. I held a hand out to her.

Mila eyed my offered hand suspiciously for a moment. Then she took it.

“I suppose it is worth checking out,” she admitted.

We hiked to the top of the hill. From there, I could see all the destroyed homes and buildings fromthe village and the outline of streets that still remained. From a higher vantage point, it was clear tosee how much damage had been done.

“I think this is supposed to be the mansion," Mila said, drawing my attention back to a patch of thickweeds.

“I can see the outline of the foundation," I confirmed, pointing it out to her. It had been overgrownwith grass and weeds but there was still a firm line for the foundation.

“There's really nothing left," Mila muttered to herself.

She didn't seem angry or as sad as she was when we were in the cabin. I had a feeling it was harderfor her to see something that remained from her childhood rather than seeing something that hadbeen damaged.

I could sense she was upset, though, and disappointed.

Mila had no memories from her early childhood, no memory of her parents, her pack, or her home.Everything she had was destroyed.

I couldn't imagine being in her shoes and trying to put the pieces together. There were no words ofcomfort that could ease what she was feeling or make up for what she lost.

I reached for her and pulled her against me.

“It's alright, Mila, you can let it all out," I soothed, rubbing her back.

She sniffled a little and shook her head. “I'm okay.”

I knew that wasn't entirely true. Giving her another little squeeze, I kept rubbing her back. Howcould I show her that I was there for her?

“You don't have to hide your feelings in front of me," I said, pressing a quick kiss to her forehead.Mila shook her head and looked up at me, meeting my gaze. “I thought that if I came here, therewould be something I could hold onto. Something from my past or my childhood. But there isn't..."“I'm sorry,” I said, cupping her cheek.

Smiling bitterly, Mila scoffed. “Don't be. I'm grateful that you brought me here. At least, I can seewhat happened with my own eyes. It makes me want to avenge my parents and the pack evenmore."

“That is admirable. Is there anywhere else you want to go before we leave?" I asked. I wanted to gether away from the sadder parts of the village.

Mila shrugged and pointed off in a random direction. “Let's see what is over here.”

“You know, Payne told me that Pomeni pack was a major exporter of crops and other resourcesEverything we see in the village is just a fraction of the land here," I told her.

We walked in the direction that Mila pointed and it was a road that led off in the opposite directionof the forest.

The entire road was overgrown and it looked very desolate.

“What else did he tell you?" Mila asked.

“That the Pomeni packland was severely damaged in the attack that wiped out the pack. After that,it was unable to sustain the same level of resources," I explained.

“What does that mean?" Mila asked.

“Nothing could grow here. I guess that's why another pack didn't move in and take over thisterritory,” I said.

Payne had told me that he checked in on Pomeni pack territory from time to time. Other packs hadtried to move in and cultivate the land but it was never productive and no pack could ever live thereagain.

There were rumors of curses after the pack was exterminated. The packland was useless.

I wondered if Jessica had something to do about that. She had been a very powerful witch

The road took us out to the edge of the pack where the agricultural land was. It was a completelybarren wasteland. It looked like once green fields had been turned into dusty deserts.

Wind blew by and tossed the dry, loose soil around. There was nothing healthy or alive about theonce wealthy Hathaway territory.

“This place used to be green,” Mila said.

“It can be again. You're a witch, maybe you can break the curse here,” I told her, smirking.

Mila chuckled and shook her head. “It doesn't seem possible.”

We came to a crossroads and Mila stopped walking.

“Is there anything else you want to see?" I asked, nodding back toward the center of the packland.Mila shook her head and looked down. It was obvious that she wasn't in the mood to explore herbroken hometown.

I'd brought her here in an attempt to ease her mind. I was concerned that she hadn't gotten anyclosure and might be even sadder now.

“This isn't the Pomeni packland that I knew as a child. Now that I know it isn't the land I knew, Idon't need to see anymore,” she said.

We headed back toward the forest.

“Mila... have you given any thought to rebuilding your pack?" I asked her.

It was a thought on my mind for a while, especially since I'd been toying with the idea of buildingmy own pack. I still wasn't quite sure where she stood on wanting a pack or wanting something withme.

Mila smiled wryly. “You know, Payne asked me the same question.”

“I'm not surprised. He and Ashley had dreamt about having their pack back for a long time," I said."Yes, he told me I'd given them new hope," she admitted.

“So, what do you think?" I asked, arching an eyebrow at her.

“That's... it is a complicated question, isn't it. I can't rebuild the pack unless I am sure I could protectthem... and right now... well, I can barely protect myself," she explained.

“Is that why you want the artifact?" I asked, c*****g my head at her.

“I don't see the artifact as a source of power," she said, shaking her head. “My parents werepowerful and respected without the artifact. But even they couldn't keep the pack safe. Theycouldn't keep me safe.”

“But that isn't a hard 'no," I pointed out. “Part of you still wants your pack back, right?"

Mila smiled lightly and giggled. She sighed and gave me a look.

"Who wouldn't want a place they can always feel like they belong? Even your men in the rogue zoneconsider the base as their home, don't they?" she asked.

I turned my eyes to the sky and thought about what she said. It was true that we'd fought hard for astationary base for my men to call home. Mila had never had that, and I could understand herlonging for it.

“You're right. There are times when I want that kind of home and belonging. There are times when Ifeel the need to settle down... perhaps I've had my fill of traveling the world now," I mused.

We shared a look and I felt like we'd reached a new understanding with each other.

“Whatever you decide is right for you, I'll support your decision,” I told her, nodding.

Mila put her hand to her heart and smiled at me. Her cheeks reddened and she looked down."Why are you so nice to me?" she asked, her cheeks becoming a darker shade of red.

I took a half step back. I hadn't expected her to ask me a direct question like that. Normally, I wasgood at evading her questions but this one caught me off guard. I took a moment to think over thepossible answers I should give her.

When Mila had first wandered into my life, I'd felt drawn to her because of her similarities to Rosalie.Now, I understood there was the growing mate bond mixed in too.

But I didn't know that at the time.

And after I had taken Mila's first time while we were both intoxicated, I'd felt bad. I didn't want herto hate me or think I'd taken advantage of her. I had felt like I needed to make up for that, even ifshe didn't know what had happened

By the time I was done helping her in those first few days, I felt like I couldn't resist her. I was drawnto her like a magnet. Whenever she ran, something pulled me right back to her.

It was the mate bond. But I didn't know it at the time...

But Mila couldn't feel the mate bond. I had no idea how she felt toward me. She was far morecomfortable with me than she was when we first met.

Mila was the one who insisted on making our relationship a business transaction and I no longerknew if everything was still just a transaction or a trade for her.

We had a great physical connection. I smirked thinking about it and gave her a coy look.

There was no denying that we had a strong, enjoyable physical connection. But emotionally... Didshe like me? I didn't know for sure and I'd been keeping her at a distance while I tried to figure thatout.

I'd asked her to stay with me a few times, testing her answers. She hadn't said yes but she hadn'tsaid no either.

All in all, it was the one answer I couldn't get through the mate bond.

Mila's eyes watched me as all the thoughts raced through my mind. Her eyes fell slightly and Inoticed her shoulders sagged.

"Sorry. That was just me being silly,” she said, laughing and waving me off. “You're nice to mebecause you feel obligated to help. Of course, we had an agreement. I know that.”

“No, you misunderstand,” I said, holding a hand up to her. “Mila, believe it or not, everything I'vedone is simply because I want to. Not because I'm obligated.”

Mila's eyes widened for a moment. After a moment, her eyes narrowed and she avoided my gaze."What's wrong...?"

"Soren!?" Ashley's voice called.

“Ashley?” I asked. Hadn't she gone back to the rogue zone?

Payne and Ashley came down the road toward us and they weren't alone. I squinted, recognizingthe third person. I never thought I'd see them again!