Sold as the Alpha King’s Breeder

Chapter 6 : What Do You Mean, We're Sharing a Bed?

*Lena*

I stifled my shock at seeing Xander step out onto the porch. He silently picked up the trunk as though it

were weightless and turned back into the tiny cottage.

"You'll have to share the space for a few weeks until the seasonal workers start to go back to town,"

Bethany said, totally unperturbed by the idea of a man and a woman sharing an incredibly small space

together. It was wholly inappropriate, but what was I supposed to say? She'd already mentioned the

bunkhouse was full.

I didn't meet Xander's eye as I stepped inside, looking over my shoulder as Bethany stepped off the

porch. "Breakfast at seven, okay? Don't miss it!" she said before she turned to walk toward her own

cottage. I sucked in my breath and turned on my heel, shutting the door behind me.

"What the hell are you doing here?" I hissed, dropping my duffle bag onto the single, high-backed chair

that was sitting against the wall next to a rusted wood stove. Xander was leaning against the opposite

wall, a smirk on his face. I wanted to slap it off of him.

"It was the only placement left."

"You knew I was coming here-"

"I took it because I knew you'd be here, yes. I felt bad about how I handled Slate, and I wanted to make

it up to you."

I gaped at him, then snapped my mouth shut, narrowing my eyes at him.

"There's only one bed, by the way," he shrugged, arching his brow.

"I guess you'll have to sleep on the porch!"

"No, I won't be sleeping on the porch," he said with a wry smile.

I sucked on my lower lip, trying to find an immediate solution. "I'll sleep on the floor then, out here." I

started to open my duffle bag. which was stuffed full of my clothes. All of my books and equipment

were in the trunk that Xander was now sitting on. "Do you mind?" I said, motioning to my trunk.

"I sleep on the left side of the bed, closest to the door. You'll sleep on the right side," he said casually,

running his hands down the length of his thighs to brush out the wrinkles in his jeans.

"If you think I'm sharing a bed with you, you're delusional,' I laughed, shaking my head and fishing a

thick sweater from my duffle bag. Even with the wood stove going, it was absolutely freezing in the

cottage. I couldn't believe anything grew in such weather.

"Cold?" he asked as I pulled the sweater over my head. I glared at him as I pulled my arms through the

sleeves. "It’ll be even colder on the floor tonight, you know. Well be much warmer under a quilt, sharing

each others' heat-"

"If you lay a single finger on me, I'll kill you."

He raised his hands, chuckling as he shook his head. 'I'm not a monster, Lena. There's plenty of room,

and extra blankets. You can have your own. I bet I can find a few sleeping bags, too. That way... we

couldn't touch each other, you know, being zipped up in our bags... even if we wanted to."

I could feel the heat rising in my cheeks as he looked into my eyes. Something about the way he was

looking at me sent a warm rush down the length of my spine. I didn't like the way my stomach did a

little flip when he’d said “even if we wanted to," like it had been some kind of challenge.

He rose from the trunk, tucking his hands in the pockets of the jeans.

"I’m going to the bunkhouse to grab something to eat before I go to bed. Do you want anything?" His

countenance had changed, and he was no longer giving me a teasing look as he spoke. His voice had

been soft, almost caring. It caught me off guard.

"No, thanks," I whispered, tucking a rogue lock of hair behind my ear.

"The bathroom is through this door, and this is the bedroom," he said, reaching out to touch both doors.

The cottage was small enough that it was almost uncomfortably tight with two people standing in the

main room. "There’s tea in the cabinet, and the kettle on the woodstove has hot water in it, if you want

a cup."

"Bethany said there was a kitchenette?" I murmured, glancing at the cabinets on the far wall. There

was no refrigerator, stove, or sink.

"Yeah, she lied," he laughed, leaning down to tie the laces of his shoes. "But there are fresh towels in

the bathroom if you want to take a shower. It does take a while for the water to heat up, though."

"Okay, thanks."

He looked me up and down before straightening to his full height. "I'll be right back, okay? Don't lock

me out."

I glanced down at the floor, trying to hide the smile that touched my lips as he moved across the room

and then disappeared through the door. It shut behind him, and I found myself alone.

I opened the door to the bathroom, finding it to be well-sized despite the tightness of the cottage in

general. I turned on the water in the shower, which was frigid, just like Xander had said it would be. I

walked back out to the main room, put a log in the woodstove, and poured myself a cup of tea while I

waited for the shower to heat up, holding the mug in my hands for a moment while I glanced around the

room.

I decided not to look in the bedroom-not yet, at least. I’d cross that bridge when it was time to accept

the fact that if I wanted to sleep at all during the next couple of weeks, it was going to have to be next

to Xander.

I showered, letting my journey to Crimson Creek wash down the drain. By the time I stepped back out

into the main room, dressed in thick thermal leggings and a matching sweatshirt, Xander had returned.

He rose from the armchair, offering it to me.

"You should sit by the fire so your hair dries before we go to bed," he said, and I narrowed my eyes at

him.

"Has anyone ever told you that you’re exceedingly bossy?"

"Yes," he said, matter-of-factly, but he gave me a teasing grin as he returned to his prior perch atop my

trunk. I refilled my mug of tea and sat down next to the fire, exhaling deeply. I could feel fatigue setting

into my bones, but I knew the second I surrendered to it, I would have to curl up next to the man staring

at me from across the room.

I crossed my legs, staring right back at him.

"Did Bethany tell you about the issues they're having with the crops?" he asked, biting into an apple.

I nodded, sipping my tea. "She said they had to burn some acreage-'

"I tested the soil today. I have an area set up in the warehouse with a makeshift lab, if you ever need to

use it. It's interesting, Lena. The soil was abnormal, but all of the tests I ran came back inconclusive for

disease."

"I'll look at your findings tomorrow morning, after breakfast."

He nodded, staring down at his apple for a moment.

"You know, I don't actually know what you study," I said, bringing my tea to my lips. "How are we

supposed to work together, exactly?"

I felt a rush of heat prickle across my face as I took a sip of my tea. He was staring at me, watching me

take a drink, his eyes lingering on my mouth before he met my eyes with an intense stare. I felt

suddenly lightheaded, and took another, deeper sip, hoping to wash the unusual feelings away.

"I'm a chemistry major," he said quickly, standing up and tossing his apple into a wastebasket. "I'm your

lab, essentially." He glanced down at his watch, then looked at me. "I'm going to bed; it's late. I don't

want to miss breakfast."

I sighed, rising from the chair with my empty mug in my hands. He walked into the bedroom, but I

walked past him into the bathroom to rinse out my mug and brush my teeth. I could hear him in the

bedroom. He was unzipping something, then the sound of clothing hitting the floor overwhelmed the

sound of the water running in the sink. The bathroom door was open, and through the mirror, I could

just see a glimpse of him standing shirtless in the bedroom.

I should have looked away, but I didn't. He looked through the bedroom door and met my eyes. I

blushed deeply, quickly looking away from him as I rinsed my mouth out and hurriedly splashed cool

water on my face.

Xander had, in fact, found a set of sleeping bags and had laid them out over the bed. I gingerly stepped

into the room, which didn't have much space for anything but our bags of clothes and a full-sized bed,

which was pushed up against the wall. If I wanted to get out of bed, I'd have to crawl to the end, or over

Xander.

“You first," he said, motioning to the sleeping bag closest to the wall. I swallowed, not meeting his eye

as I climbed over the bed and quickly cocooned myself in the bright green sleeping bag. zipping it up all

the way so only my eyes were visible. I scooted up against the wall, trying to give him as much space

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as possible so we wouldn't inadvertently touch in the middle of the night. He left the room and turned all

of the lights off. I heard him turn the lock in place on the front door.

He returned to the bedroom and glanced down at me as he lingered by the door. He was still shirtless,

his skin glistening in the soft light coming through the single window on the far wall. "Do you want the

bedroom door open or closed?" he asked, his hand on the doorknob.

"Um, open,' I murmured, unable to tear my eyes away from his. He left the door, maintaining eye

contact with me as he walked to the bed, his hands unbuttoning his jeans. 'What are you doing? Are

you taking off your pants?"

"Who sleeps in jeans, Lena? You can watch me undress, if that’s what you're into." He winked at me,

but I quickly shut my eyes, exhaling as I heard his jeans hit the ground and felt the bed move beneath

his weight as he climbed into his sleeping bag.

"You're sleeping naked? No-"

"I have boxers on. Chill," he grumbled, trying to make himself comfortable. Despite being pressed up

against the wall, I was still touching Xander. "They could've fit a queen size bed in here if they tried," he

said, turning to look at me. I peeked at him through the opening of my sleeping bag. "You're going to

sweat to death in there, Lena, wearing thermals. These bags are rated for negative sixty-degree

weather."

"I'm NOT sleeping next to you in only my underwear," I glowered, rolling over to face the wall. He

sighed, chuckling to himself before facing away from me.

As I waited for sleep to take me, my mind began to wander. I realized that most of the women who

attended Morhan would've killed to be in my position. I was sharing a bed with Xander Smith. I was

inches away from him. I could reach over and run my fingertips over his chest if I wanted to.

And he'd probably let me.

I squeezed my eyes shut, praying to the Goddess to let me get just a glimpse of rest.

But I didn't sleep long. Sometime in the middle of the night, I awake to Xander getting out of bed. He

darted toward the window, his hands on either side of it as he peered outside.

"What is it?" I whispered, running my hands over my face.

Xander had been right. I was suffocating in the sleeping bag and my thermals were sticking to my

heated body.

He didn't reply. The muscles in his back were totally rigid as he continued to stare out the window. I felt

a ripple of unease as I slowly sat up, leaning on my elbow as I watched him. "Xander, what's wrong?"

"Nothing. Go back to sleep."

I narrowed my eyes at his back and reached down to unzip my sleeping, bag but he was suddenly

moving, pulling on a shirt as he walked out of the room. I heard the front door unlock then slam shut

behind him as he walked out on the porch.

I lay back down, staring at the ceiling as I waited, and waited, for him to return and tell me what the hell

was going on.