Sold as the Alpha King’s Breeder

Chapter 61 Is He Back?

I relaxed a little–but not completely.

“Who are you?” I asked him.

He was tall, with a muscular build. He had

that same strong, chiseled jawline and dark hair, though his wasn‘t black like Ethan‘s.

They looked so very much the same. There were clear differences between them, but they were slight–

the dip of his nose, the space between his eyes, and his eyes. They reminded me of Ethan‘s, but

they were gray.

The biggest difference, though, was this man‘s smile.

It came so easily, so naturally, like the sun rising in the

morning and setting in the evening. It just happened without effort.

In all of the time I was with Ethan, how often did I see him smile? Hardly ever at all, and when I did, it alw

ays seemed forced.

The man‘s expression thus made it impossible to mistake him for Ethan.

Who was this person? And could I trust him?

Just like with the dangers of the forest –

a coiled snake behind a fallen log, a beautiful tantalizing mushroom that might be poison –

I couldn‘t assume that he wasn‘t deadly just because he looked kind and inviting.

The man didn‘t answer my question for a long moment. Instead, he came over to where I was

sitting and made himself comfortable next to me, his hips settling near my feet on the bed. I was still curl

ed up, but if I were to stretch my legs back out, he would be nearer to my waist.

His hand reached up and gently brushed my cheek. I flinched, but I realized

that he was simply checking my wound.

“Your face seems to be healing already. That‘s good. I‘m sure it still hurts. I can get you some more medi

cine, if you‘d like.”

“Who are you?” I asked again, pulling away from his hand.

I hadn‘t forgotten my station in life, and for all I knew, this

man was pretty important. If this was his house, it was opulent, and he was wearing nice clothing–

a black button–down shirt and black slacks.

Besides. I didn‘t want to be rude, but I also didn‘t appreciate a strange man dragging his

hands down my skin, either.

He smiled at me. “You can call me Soren,” he said.

“Soren?” I repeated. It was an interesting name. I couldn‘t tell if it was his first or last, either.

“That‘s right,” he said, “Can I get you anything? You must be hungry. When we brought you in, you were

so injured, we just wanted to make sure we got some water and medicine. But now that you‘re awake, I

think we should get you something to eat.”

I stared at him for a long moment, not sure how to respond. I wanted to trust him, but I still wasn t sure if I could.

“Why are you helping me?” I asked him.

“Because…” he paused for a moment. “I feel just awful about what happened to you.”

He seemed so sincere, and yet, I had a tough time believing him. Maybe it was because he looked so m

uch like Ethan– and Ethan would never, ever say those words to anyone.

“What do you mean?”

“I mean, a beautiful young woman comes here to our islands, for who knows what reason–

I imagine, for a fresh start. She‘s probably excited to be here, and then…” he sighed. “Out of nowhere s

ome hooligans step in and rough her up, taking her stuff and injuring her.”

He shook his head, a sad expression on his handsome face. “That‘s just not right.”

“How do you know I came here to start again?” I asked him.

“Oh, that‘s why a lot of people

come here,” he replied nonchalantly. “It‘s a beautiful place to make a new beginning.”

He smiled at me, and I felt a warmth inside, like maybe he was right.

Like maybe I could start over.

That didn‘t mean my past was completely behind

me, though. I had to remember that. Madalynn could still be after me. So could other people.

I wrapped my arm around my abdomen protectively. I felt like I was safe in this room at this moment, tho

ugh.

Wasn‘t I?

“I‘m not sure how long I‘ll be staying,” I said with a sigh.

A look of disappointment clouded his face for a moment, as if he were upset that I wasn‘t going to be

there forever.

“Okay,” he said. “But regardless. I feel really bad that you were injured on my watch and I can‘t let that ha

ppen.”

“Your watch?” I repeated.

“I am currently in charge of the security here. And I can guarantee that

whoever those b*stards were, I‘ll hunt them down and make sure they pay.”

He paused, and changed to a much kinder tone. “But those are not for you

to worry about. You are safe here. You can be sure of that.”

I knew my eyes were wide as I stared at him. I couldn‘t believe what I was hearing–

from a man who looked so much like Ethan

“What is it?” he asked me. “Why are you looking at me.. like that?”

“It‘s just you just reminded me of someone, that‘s all,” I told him.

He cleared his throat.

“Someone kind, intelligent, and dashingly handsome, I presume,” he joked. He held his hand up to his ch

in and made a face, one eyebrow raised, posing for me.

I couldn‘t help but laugh at his silly behavior. “Uh, someone intelligent and dashingly handsome, yes…”

My voice

faded away as I thought about the other adjective he‘d used. “But maybe not so much that other part.”

He put his hand down and dropped it onto my leg, which was still under the cover. He did it naturally, and

seemingly without any sensual intentions, so it didn‘t make me feel uncomfortable.

“I‘m so sorry,” he said in a gentle voice. “Well, while you‘re here, rest assured, you will be cared for. I will

make sure your every need is met. You

can stay in my home as long as you need to. I will help you find a job, if that‘s what you came here for…”

“Thank you, but I‘ve troubled you enough…”

“No trouble at all,” he interrupted me. “I insist!”

“But–”

“There is no ‘but‘.” He raised his index finger and waved it left

and right. There was a delightful smile on his face.

I was learning something about this man. He had the magic to make people around

him feel relaxed and lighthearted.

“But surely I can‘t be the first person to be the victim of a crime on your island,” I tried to reason with him.

“No,” he admitted with a slight shrug of his broad, muscular shoulders. “But you just might be the most b

eautiful.”

I stared at him for a second, my eyes wide.

He withdrew his hand and cleared his throat, seeming to feel awkward. “I‘ll, uh, go have the maids make

you something to eat.”

He stood, and I instantly felt a

few degrees cooler, like his nearness had warmed me without me even realizing it until he was gone.

“Thank you,” I told him as he stepped toward the door.

“Of course,” he said, giving me a kind smile. “Oh, and I forgot to ask… what‘s your name?”

I thought about the persona I‘d made up earlier and decided I needed to stick with it, for now.

“Ro,” I said. “My name is Ro.”

He arched an eyebrow for a moment, like he was surprised at that name, but then he nodded.

“Ro. Interesting. All right. I‘ll see you soon.”

I lifted a hand and gave him a wave.

When he was gone, I settled back into my pillows and rested a hand on my abdomen.

Soren seemed like a good person, but I just had a feeling that I was missing something.

Something important.

In the war room, everyone was busy, and no one bothered to ask me how I was doing. Even Talon let it be

I was glad for that.

My beta leaned in to explain the next agenda item. “We have a witness,” he said. “A man

that they picked up

near the scene of the attack at one of the northern villages. When our men got to him, everyone thought h

Talon signaled for the witness to be brought in.

The man was thin and a bit dirty, his clothes disheveled as if he‘d been traveling for a while. His eyes were was middle–aged, and looked like he could‘ve been a business owner of

some sort. I had no reason to think he would not be a reliable witness.

The moment he lifted his eyes and saw my face, he took several steps back.

“You..!”

S as

The guards grabbed him by the shoulders as he moaned in fear, his skin paling, his eyes wide. “Calm

down!” one of the guards shouted, pulling on him roughly. “This is Alpha Ethan! Be respectful.”

As I watched his bizarre reaction, an unpleasant thought occurred to me.

I looked towards Talon, who immediately understood my concern.

“It‘s all right.” Talon stepped in, putting his hand up to still the guards and

keep them from hurting the man as he struggled against them. “We‘re scaring him.”

Talon gave the man a cup of water, then spoke in an assertive but soothing tone. “I assure you, you have

Some of the man‘s fear seemed to dissipate, though he was still leaning back toward the door.

Talon looked around the room and suggested, “Too many of us

here could overwhelm the witness. Please

allow me to speak with him in private. I‘ll provide a detailed report in two hours.”

I gave him a nod. With my approval, no one else had any further objections.

Once Talon moved the witness to a comfortable private room, he mindlinked me.

“Now you can speak freely,” I heard Talon say in a soft tone.

“Ye-. yes, sir,” the man muttered.

Word by word, Talon asked, “Did you see Alpha Ethan– the one standing next to me just now–

during the attack?”

It sounded like the cup in the witness‘s hand fell on the ground. I heard water splashed.

“Do not be afraid. You can speak the truth.” Talon‘s voice was assuring and convincing.

But I knew I didn‘t want to hear the answer.

“Ye–yes,” the witness stammered,

My heart sank

No one else looked so much like me except for him.

After these many years, was he still alive after all?

“Are you back?” I asked myself.