Sold as the Alpha King's Breeder

Chapter 95 : We Can't Go Home Yet

*Soren*

I returned Mila's kiss passionately. Heat stirred in my abdomen and my pants tightened

As much as I wanted to throw her back on the bed and claim her, it wasn't the right moment. Groaning, I pulled my hands from her hips and tore our lips apart.

Mila panted, her cheeks bright red and her lips swollen. I grabbed the bedcovers, keeping myself from launching at her and kissing her again.

She was still recovering from all the cuts Sebastian had given her and I didn't want to slow down her recovery. She'd only just woken up after being unconscious for three days.

“Are you okay?" she asked.

Her eyes looked at my fists as they clenched the bedspread.

“I'm fine. But you're being a naughty girl and if you start something you can't finish... Well, that's a whole other issue.” I smirked.

Mila's cheeks turned a dark shade of crimson and she looked away, chewing her bottom lip.

I chuckled. “I can't wait to devour you... so get better soon, for me. Because when you're back up to your full strength...”

“Now who's being naughty?" she teased.

“You should keep focusing on getting better. Do you want to sleep more?”

Mila creased her brow and shook her head. “No. I want to move around! I've been lying here for days and my whole body is sore. I'm going to get bed sores if I keep lying here.”

“Let me see," I said, motioning to Mila's stomach.

She pushed the sheet back and pulled up her shirt. I brushed my thumb over her stomach. It was awful seeing her cut up like that, even though she was healing. Her cuts were scabbed over now, so she probably wouldn't be too weak or lose any more blood.

“That's probably a good idea. Stretch your legs and your bones, then you can get a good night's sleep tonight.”

I dropped the sheet and held a hand out to her.

“I can get up on my own."

“I'm not taking any chances," I said, shaking my head. “Your cuts are scabbed over but they could reopen if you aren't careful.”

Mila sighed and took my hand. I looped my arm around her waist and helped her out of the bed. The moment her feet touched down, she winced and leaned on me heavily.

When we'd gotten to the house, I cleaned her wounds. They were shallow cuts but there must have been something on the blade Sebastian used because they weren't healing as fast as they should have been.

I'd cleaned them and dressed them for days, checking the healing progress and keeping infection away.

Every time I had cared for her cuts, I regretted not shredding Sebastian to a thousand little pieces when I'd had the chance

I should have returned the favor tenfold!

And now, I didn't know when I'd get that chance again.

Sebastian had escaped into the bad weather that night.

I hadn't gone after him. Mila's health and safety were more important to me.

I helped Mila pick out some fresh clothes and sat her on the bed to get her dressed. She was able to put her own shirt on but I gave her an extra hand so she wouldn't have to reach and stretch so far. That's what I worried would open her wounds again.

I didn't think Mila needed to know that Sebastian had escaped yet. Rather, that I'd let him go.

That night, Payne asked me why I let him go and didn't send anyone after him

I'd told him it was because Mila wanted nothing to do with him. And if there ever came a time when we needed to kill Sebastian, it would be Mila that did it, after everything he'd done to her...

At the time, I hadn't thought it necessary to tell Payne about the soul swap. As far as he knew, Dylan was Dylan, not Sebastian. Right now, the fewer people that know, the better. Besides, with Sebastian running around in Dylan's body, he'd keep whoever was in the Alpha King's skin busy and occupied while we took care of what we needed to.

“I'm feeling stronger now. I bet I can walk downstairs on my own,” Mila said when I helped her to her feet.

“If you're sure..."

“I am. Soren, I really appreciate you taking care of me but I do need to get my strength back.” “You're right. But I'm not letting you out of my sight.”

I followed her downstairs, watching for any sign that she was weak or losing her footing. She was doing just fine.

The main area of the house had a few tables set up. Payne and Thomas were sitting at one table together and there were other shifters sitting at other tables around the room.

We were in a spacious house with plenty of room for everyone from our confrontation with Norwind to relax and spread out. We weren't in a rush to leave just yet.

It wasn't just Mila that needed to rest and recover. All my men needed some R&R time after what they faced in Norwind.

“Hey, there she is. Sleeping Beauty awakes,” Thomas said, motioning us over.

"How are you feeling?" Payne asked, looking at Mila with concern.

“Much better, thank you," Mila said.

Payne and Thomas scooched over in their seats and Mila and I sat down. I was glad to have her sitting again so she didn't overdo it and wear herself out.

“Miss Mila, I must apologize for not being able to get the artifact back,” Payne said, casting his eyes down.

Mila smiled. I noticed that she was trying to keep things light.

“I'm glad you chose to save us over getting the artifact back. I like to think my life is worth a little more than that old trinket."

She giggled.

Payne's face remained serious and Mila stopped laughing quickly. She shot me a nervous look.

I shrugged. There was no reason for her to be worried.

“There is no doubt about that." Mila smiled again, more genuinely, and nodded. I could tell she appreciated Payne's sentiment.

"Enough of that serious jibber jabber. Mila, have you eaten?" Thomas asked.

"Yes, I did. Thank you."

Thomas grinned slyly at her. “Is there any more of that chicken noodle soup left?"

He wiggled his eyebrows at both of us.

"Why do you have to make it sound dirty? It was just soup,” Mila argued, crossing her arms.

"Right, just soup,” Thomas repeated with a sarcastic emphasis. “Tell me, did Soren save some of his famous, and yet oh so rare, cooking for the rest of us?"

"Ooh. I'm sorry, Thomas, but chicken noodle soup has officially been taken off the menu,” I said, smirking.

"Awe."

Thomas bowed his head and feigned disappointment.

"Where are we?" Mila asked, looking around the run-down house. “This is a lot bigger than what I was expecting.

It seemed like her mood had lifted a lot from earlier. Getting her around other people was a good way to lift her spirits. She seemed to have a good rapport with Payne and Thomas.

It made me happy to see her connecting with the most important people in my life.

“This is Norwind's pack house... or it was..." Payne said.

“Their pack house?" she gasped and looked around again. “What happened to it?"

I glanced around at the buildings’ disrepair. Curtains were torn, and several of the floorboards were uneven and cracked. What was left of the furniture was mostly broken or basic items. Everything on the shelves had been taken, and all the art on the walls was gone.

I'd noticed a broken window in one of the upstairs rooms where a lot of water had leaked in and caused damage.

“The packs that Chandler invited here to his temple, well it was all a big trick. There was some kind of mist or magic protecting the temple and everyone that ran into it went mad,” Thomas explained. "Mad?"

Mila's eyes shifted to mine.

“They started killing their friends, overpowered by rage,” I filled in.

"Either that or they killed themselves," Payne added.

I nodded. “It was brutal to watch. I kept my men out of it as much as possible.

“Chandler had a lot of traps set, including the ones that resulted in the mountain blowing up. The explosion claimed a lot more lives,” Payne continued.

I'd heard all these updates already but Mila had been asleep. It was important for her to know what had happened.

“There were a few that escaped. The cunning ones, I suppose,” Thomas said, his voice serious.

“Or the lucky ones,” Payne countered.

Thomas nodded in agreement. “Some were from other packs and some were from Norwind, but they managed to escape and run. Of course, they felt like they were owed something for their troubles, so they robbed, luted, and vandalized whatever they came across, including the pack house."

"What about the rest of the Norwind warriors? Why weren't they protecting the pack house?" she asked.

“Chandler ordered most of his men to the temple. He wanted as many of the intruders to die as possible and he thought his Norwind warriors could help even the score. Most of his warriors died in the battle,” Payne said.

“The ones that didn't, they collected what loot they could. All the survivors from the different packs, including Norwind, gathered together and confirmed there wasn't any more money they could squeeze out of Norwind,” Thomas said. “They all left."

“What about the women, children, and the elderly?" Mila asked.

I smiled lightly. Hearing her concern for the ones that needed protection warmed my heart. She was so kind and nurturing. She'd make an excellent Luna.

“They're still here, on their own. All their defenses are gone,” Thomas sighed heavily.

Mila's eyes wandered to the nearest window. I followed her gaze and saw a lightning bolt strike the ground. Mila gasped.

Several seconds later, a loud thunder clap shook the pack house. There were other buildings around the pack house that were visible in the rain. The once prosperous Norwind pack was in shambles. It was gloomy, pitiful, and defenseless.

I watch the rain pelting the destroyed town. It was adding insult to injury to see it so waterlogged. "A prosperous and wealthy pack like Norwind could be destroyed overnight... I've asked myself many times how that could happen. Now... it has occurred right in front of my eyes..."

Mila's voice was soft and distant as she spoke, like she was talking about her own pack, not Norwind.

I looked at Payne.

His expression mirrored Mila's, somber, nostalgic, and sad.

Suddenly, Mila smiled and looked at everyone at the table.

“Well, I appreciate you all waiting for me. I'm better now, though. Now that I'm awake, let's go home."

When she said the word “home,” she paused and looked at me.

I stared back. Was my inn in the rogue zone home to her?

My heart pounded in my chest, trying to break right through my rib cage. She considered my place home? Had she finally let go of her past? Was she willing to stay with me... be with me?

Since she'd woken up, I'd been avoiding serious topics with her. After everything that happened in the tomb and the cave, she hadn't told me that she loved me back. I was still concerned that her feelings weren't as strong as mine.

But she thought of the inn as home and that gave me hope.

We could always talk about our relationship later, after she was back up to full strength and we were somewhere safe and familiar.

Mila's cheeks turned beet red and she bit her lower lip.

“I'm sorry. I invited myself again, didn't 17"

She tried to laugh it off.

I reached for Mila, taking her arms. Leaning across the table, I kissed her right on the lips.

I could feel everyone in the room staring at us but I didn't care.

"Yeah!"

“Whoohoo!"

Other cheers and whistles went off in the room as they watched us.

I tasted her fully and then pulled away slightly. “I'm glad to hear you're doing better. But we can't leave, not just yet."