Sold as the Alpha King's Breeder

Chapter 94 : A Perfect Bowl of Soup

Soren snarled and stripped off his shirt. He ripped it into strips, tying Sebastain's arms behind his back with one. He tied up his ankles with another. The last strip, he tied as a gag in Sebastian's mouth.

“Now you won't have to hear him. And if nothing else, it will slow down the amount of air he consumes,” Soren said, tossing Sebastian aside.

He kept muttering through the gag, but I was glad that I couldn't understand what he was saying. Thomas grabbed the back of Sebastian's shirt and pulled him into a corner. He laid down and closed one eye, keeping the other sharply on Sebastian.

Soren came over to me and placed his hands on my shoulders.

“Mila, let me explain... it is a long story, but you deserve to know..."

He spoke in a soft, gentle voice.

I slipped my arms around Soren's neck and kissed him before he could continue.

Soren grunted and hugged me tighter.

“I don't care about the past, Soren.”

I pressed my forehead to his, our lips hovering inches apart.

“I don't care about the future. Right now I'm with you, in this moment. That's all that matters and all I need to know. Will you please hold me?"

Soren smirked and held me against him. He cradled the back of my head in his hand and I melted into him.

I sighed and a shiver ran through me."

"Are you cold?" Soren asked.

“A little...”

He rubbed my arms up and down. Gooseflesh popped up on my arms. And I leaned into his touch more.

His skin was so hot and my skin was so cold!

I shivered again. Soren's brow creased and he pulled me closer, kissing my forehead.

Sweat covered my brow but I kept shivering. I thought I was starting to feel cold from being stuck in a damp cave underground but my joints started to ache, too.

So much had happened. A few hours ago, Dylan, or Sebastian, had been slicing me up with a knife. I'd lost a lot of blood and I hadn't allowed myself to feel the weakness from that.

All the adrenaline left my body in a whoosh and I leaned against Soren.

“Mila, are you okay?"

“I'm just... tired..."

We were still trapped in a cave and didn’t know when a rescue would come. Sebastian was tied up for the moment, but he was still dangerous and we had limited air.

We weren't out of the woods yet but there wasn't anything we could do but wait. Wait for help to come, wait to die...

Soren lowered to his knees and held me in his arms, cradling me gently against him. I could barely keep my eyes open.

“We might be here for a while, yet. Why don't you rest?" he asked.

I nodded drunkenly. The power of his scent took me over and I couldn't get enough of it. It was like his scent had some powerful magic over me. It soothed me and calmed me. I knew I was safe in his arms and that no matter what happened, it would all work out.

Sighing, I nuzzled closer to him. My eyelids grew heavy and another shiver ran through me. Despite Soren's warmth and comfort, I still felt cold. My mind got fuzzy. I thought I was falling asleep but I just felt weak...

Soren's palm pressed against my forehead and he stroked my hair.

“Mila... my sweet Mila, you're getting a fever..."

He tightened his arms around me and kissed me on the forehead again

“I need to rest..." My voice was just a soft whisper, even to my own ears.

“Shh, just relax. You can rest now," he told me.

I nodded and turned against him. I didn't really care about the artifact or what happened fourteen years ago. If Soren still wanted to explain himself when we were out of this cave, he could.

But for now, I didn't care. There were a lot of things in his past I didn't care about anymore. I knew he loved me and that's what mattered.

And now, I just wanted to be left alone by everyone. I didn't want to keep fighting people off that were coming after me and the artifact. I just wanted to be left alone by everyone and be with Soren. Especially now that I knew he was from “another world.” I wanted to savor every moment I had with him.

Even though he told me I could sleep, I couldn't seem to actually fall asleep. I was relaxed in his arms and he kept stroking my hair and kissing my forehead and my cheeks. I couldn't have been more comfortable if I was in a feather bed.

I thought that if we both died here together, it wouldn't be so bad. We were comfortable and peaceful in each other's arms.

No. I couldn't die here. Neither could Soren. We still had too much to live for.

And Soren deserved to live a long, happy life. We both did, with our baby, who was still so small and safe in my belly.

I knew I should tell Soren about the baby but it wasn't the right time or place. If we made it out of this alive, then I will tell him. felt like telling him now would be cruel, seeing as we were still in danger and there was already nothing he could do to protect me.

What good would it do to tell him now? It would just stress him out more.

We'd have plenty of time to celebrate when we got out of there.

And if we didn't get out... then it really didn't matter.”

"Sweet, beautiful Mila, stop fighting to stay awake. You're exhausted and you have a fever. Sleep now," Soren whispered, his words breaking into my thoughts.

I sighed and let go of whatever I was fighting. Soren was right. The moment I realized I was trying to stay awake, I slipped to sleep almost immediately.

My mind drifted in and out of dreams. Sometimes, I was floating through space.

At other times, I heard the sound of hammers and shovels... digging, digging.

I could feel Soren's fingers slipping through my hair, rubbing my head as he held me and rocked me gently. It was like he was in no hurry to get out of the cave.

The digging continued and I couldn't tell if any of it was real or if it was just hopeful thinking on my part.

Soren seemed confident that we were going to get out of there, even if it was just a dream.

"Hey, hello there!?"

I knew that voice.

Payne, that was Payne.

Sighing, I turned closer to Soren, still drifting in and out of sleep.

“Boss, Thomas, Miss Mila! You're all here and you're okay!"

We were saved. Payne was there to save us!

Finally, I fully succumbed to sleep.

Yawning, I opened my eyes and sat up. I was on a bed in a room that I didn't recognize. Blinking, I rapidly looked around.

Where was 1?

Rain splattered the window pane and outside, all I could see were dark clouds through the streaks of water. It was a gloomy day.

I guessed that it had to be about noon. From what I could see outside, it looked like I was still in Norwind territory.

There was a constant dripping in one of the corners. Rain water was dripping in. Whatever building I was in was run down and crummy.

My mind was a jumble. I put my hands on the sides of my head and groaned, leaning forward. What had happened?

It felt like days could have gone by since Soren and I were been trapped in the cave.

There was so much new information crammed into my head and I hadn't had time to digest it. All I'd wanted was peace and quiet, but so much had been thrown at me all at once.

It was a lot to unpack and I hadn't had the time to digest it all.

I relaxed and tried to lean back. My stomach and legs ached from where I'd been cut. I lifted the sheet and looked at them. They still weren't that healed. Seeing the cuts helped me start to remember.

“The baby!"

Immediately, I pressed my hands to my stomach. Somehow, I knew that the baby was okay. “Thank the Goddess..."

“I hope you're hungry,"

Soren bumped the door open and came in with a steaming bowl of soup in his hands.

I could smell the chicken noodle soup. First, my stomach gurgled uncomfortably and then growled, ravenous.

“lam!”

I reached for the bow! but Soren shook his head. He sat on the bed beside me and stirred the soup in the bowl. I couldn't look away from it, ready to swallow the whole bowl in one gulp.

After Chandler and Dylan took me... or Sebastian, whoever he was... they didn't feed me on a very regular schedule. I wasn't sure when the last time I'd eaten was. And when they did feed me, it wasn't exactly like they were feeding me full meals or anything like that. It was just enough food and water to keep me alive.

“I'm glad to see you're awake. Here, give this a try."

He scooped a spoonful of soup out of the bowl and sipped a little. Nodding, he held it out to me. “It should be cool enough.”

I reached for the spoon and Soren shook his head. He smirked and moved the spoon toward my mouth.

Sighing, I leaned in and let him spoon feed me. The temperature was perfect. The broth and the chicken hit my stomach just right. For a moment, my mind couldn't do anything but appreciate the food.

I wanted to grab the bowl from Soren and dump it in my mouth.

But Soren continued to spoon feed me in a slow rhythm.

He talked to me as I ate.

“Three days ago, Payne led a rescue team that dug us out of the mountain. The weather wasn't great and it was getting dark. We couldn't go far with our large group and you also needed treatment and rest immediately,” he explained.

“We're still in Norwind, aren't we?"

"Yes. We found shelter in this run-down house. It has been good enough.”

I sighed and nodded. As grateful as I was for Soren's explanation, I didn't really care how we got here. I was feeling much better now and Soren was taking care of me. Literally spoon feeding me. It was all I needed to feel happy.

“It's been raining ever since Payne dug us out. So, we're not in any hurry to go anywhere. We're just here, taking out time while waiting for our own Sleeping Beauty to wake up..."

Soren winked at me and spooned another spoonful of soup into my mouth.

I looked down slightly.

When I looked up again, Soren’s handsome face was right in front of mine. There was nothing but a thin veil of steam between us. He looked a bit unreal behind the steam.

Was I still sleeping?

Don't let this be a dream, I silently begged.

Under the sheets, I pinched myself to make sure it wasn't a dream. My leg stung where I pinched. No, this wasn't a dream.

The weather might have been awful and we might have been in a run-down house but I couldn't help feeling happy and content.

My lower lip quivered and tears poured from my eyes, completely uncontrollably.

Soren chuckled and set the soup aside.

“Is my cooking bad enough to bring you to tears?"

I shook my head, still at a loss for words. How could this moment feel so perfect when we were in a place like this?

“Well, I've got a way to make it taste better.”

Soren popped a spoonful of soup into his mouth. He grabbed my cheeks and pressed his lips to mine.

Gasping, I couldn't move or react.

Soren's tongue pressed against my lips and pushed them open. Then he parted my teeth. Warm, flavorful soup trickled down his tongue into my mouth. I swallowed quickly, tasting Soren’s tongue with the soup.

When he pulled away, he grinned at me. “Does that taste better?”

I bit my lower lip. Pushing myself off the bed, I grabbed Soren and pulled him to me again, kissing him fiercely.