Sold to the Alpha With Silver Eyes - Chapter 21: Chapter 21

*Eden*
“Wake up, Eds!” Leoni’s voice sings to me, drawing me from the light slumber in the darkness as my bedroom door creaks open.
“No, thank you,” I grumble, turning toward the wall to avoid her. Papers rustle off the bed as I yank my comforter over my head, but I couldn’t care less. I’ll organize them again later. Right now, I need to get as much sleep as I can. My eyes feel like velcro. Each side of my eyelids sealed together and near impossible to pry apart.
“Stayed up late again, huh?” She hums, her voice growing louder, a cold breeze busting through the blanket as she yanks it away from me. “What time did you call it quits?”
“4:15” I whine, glowering at her through the darkness just to be blinded as she flips on the light. “Ugh! Shit Leoni!”
“So you had a solid 45 minute nap! Now get dressed, it’s time to train.”
“Nope.” I mumble, squeezing my eyes shut tight and she laughs at me.
“It’s so cute when you think you have a choice.” Her cheery attitude receives an exhaustive sigh.
“Leoni, I swear on the heavens if you don’t let me sleep I’ll…”
“Oooh, threats! Let’s hear it. What will you do to me?”
I push up from the bed, scowling at her.
“Poison your food.” I hiss.
“I’m a lycan. You better make sure to triple the dose.” She grins, throwing a pencil at me as she walks out the door, leaving it wide open as she blasts music on a Bluetooth speaker she hangs on the knob.
“You are so mean,” I groan, dragging myself from the warmth of my bed and grumbling as I slip on socks and tennis shoes.
I reach for a sports bra as I toss my shirt to the side, slipping it on quickly before pulling my shirt back on. The one I stole from Dev and have yet to admit to him I found and washed it.
It’s too early to care now though and I’m too exhausted to think about consequences should he find out I’ve had it all along. Each step down to the front door feels heavy, my muscles slowly waking up to what we are doing. The now daily habit is still taking its time to kick in.
“Run first?” I ask as she stretches at the front, waiting for me.
“You don’t want to fix your hair?” She asks, holding back a laugh, and I shrug.
“Who the hell do I have to impress?” I grumble. “Not like I can have a mate right now, anyway.”
“Damn, I live for grumpy Eden every dang morning,” she grins. “So today we run to the pitch and then we are sparring. You’ve gained weight and muscle. It’s time to see what you got.”
She winks at me as I stand in shock, blinking at her before breaking into a jog, only for her to breeze by me. Like usual.
The sleepiness shakes away with each stride, the cool morning air cleansing my lungs of the warm air and waking me up. I catch myself smiling, enjoying the slow run as I take in the quietness of the town I’m slowly growing accustomed to. It’s not too often you can find peace in a place this big, but that is why Leoni picked five am workouts.
No one is around to give her pitiful looks or ask how she is holding up without her mate. I have long since stopped asking how she is doing. I can witness it every day. She smiles so much, but I can see the sadness in her eyes. The way losing him affects her every thought and action.
Leoni is strong in every sense of the word, but losing the love of your life changes everyone. Since I didn’t know her much before she lost Hastings, I don’t have much to compare her to. Perhaps that is why she is so at ease with me. I’m not constantly gauging her actions and emotions or checking in on her.
If I can provide a space where she can be herself and find a glimmer of happiness, then I guess I can suffer along with these morning runs. Even if it’s so early that I wanna punch a tree along the way. When I finally step into the pitch, Leoni is already sweaty as she is kicking a bag, yelling out her aggression with each hit.
“Holy heck, you were much faster today!” She says, a huge smile on her face as she checks her watch. “You shaved off seven minutes.”
“Yeah, well, sparring sounded fun, I guess.” I shrug. Moving over to where she is.
“So, what kind of training do you have?” She asks, “I know we have talked about how you trained before, but we never really got into the details.”
“Basic stuff.” I tell her honestly. “I was pretty decent for a beta’s daughter.”
Leoni gives me a soft, knowing smile. The same smile I seem to give her one when she brings up Hastings and I don’t dig into it further. I know she has questions she is begging to answer me, wanting to know about my past, who my family is and even what pack I am originally from. But as much as we clicked and I trust her, she reports to the alpha warrior I am falling head over heels for.
“Interesting,” she murmurs. “Since I am a lycan, I tend to be…well…you know…”
“Better?” I ask, raising a brow. She laughs and shakes her head.
“No, I was going to say faster and stronger.” She snorts, “But kind of the same thing.”
“So, does that mean I get a weapon?” I tease her and she reaches over, tossing me a wooden staff. I catch it, looking it over before gripping it tightly with both hands. This could get interesting now.
“Sometimes fighting means using everything available to your advantage.” She admits. “Don’t think of it as a weapon, but a tool to keep someone stronger away.”
Leoni walks toward the center of the dusty circle before she turns to look at me.
“For now, I will pull my hits.” She gives me an encouraging look as I take a moment to inhale and exhale to calm my nerves, stepping up to her and taking my stance.
It feels so weird to be looking at someone other than my dad when getting ready to spar. My heart clenches as I swallow and look down for a mere second. By the time I lift my eyes up, Leoni is lunging for me. My mouth drops open as I fall to my knees, bending back as she flies over me. I leap up, my hands sweaty on the staff as I lift it in front of me.
Leoni spins, coming back around, this time landing a blow to my side as I feel the wind knock out of me. My body spins away, the staff hitting the ground as I follow it down, scrambling to grab it as she launches herself at me again. She is relentless, a playful smile on her lips the entire time as I dodge the occasional hit, not landing a damn strike on her.
Leoni is incredible, even though I know she is holding back. There is not a doubt in my mind I will never even come close to what she is capable of, lycan or not. She is phenomenal, seeing every opening while trying to guide me as she targets my weak spots, which is every damn spot on me.
“Maybe I should spar like…with a toddler or something.” I mutter, and she chuckles.
“You are doing just fine. Remember, I am trying to help you, not beat you up. Give it time. You will get better, I promise.”
It feels like we are dancing, but she keeps stepping on my damn toes and tripping me up just for fun. Anger grows, but not at Leoni. At myself for still feeling so weak and useless. My stomach swirls with self loathing, but instead of cowering like I have been taught to do the last two years, I roll my shoulders back and accept the hits with as much grace as I can afford.
“Stopping toying with me, Leoni. I thought you wanted to spar.” I grind out and I see a glimmer in her eyes before she rushes at me.
She does a sidekick, giving me ample time to read her movement, and I jump over her kick. I swing the wooden staff out behind me and feeling it resonate with contact. She laughs out loud, howling with delight as she turns and steps up to me, fist raised.
“Okay, you got a hit in. Now I can go harder?” She asks, unbridled excitement beaming on her face.
“Please do,” I tell her, gritting my teeth. “It’s getting old feeling like a weakling.”
I attack first this time, relishing the surprise on her face before she twirls around my back, gripping my opposite hand before she whips me around to face her. Leoni winds up for a strike as something catches my attention and I look over to see someone coming toward us.
Dev saunters our way, his hair glistening in the rising sun as I swallow the way my stomach flutters. How can he look this good so early in the morning? He meets my eyes, a smile at the corner of his lips before it morphs into shock and his mouth opens.
“Leoni!” Dev roars out just as her fist slams into my cheek, my vision going black as I fly away from her and hammer into the ground with a grunt.
“Shit!! Eden!” she screams as I lay there, trying to blink through the pain and momentary vision loss.