Sold to the Alpha With Silver Eyes - Chapter 23: Chapter 23

As I rush into the house, I glance at the mirror jumping with a squeal before I realize the purple cheeked person is me. Dev chuckles behind me and I step closer to the mirror, grimacing at my face. Red radiates at the center, rippling out deeper into purple before morphing into the signature brownish blue look of a bruise.
“Hey! It’s healing already,” I say, shocked, turning to point it out to him with a wide grin. The pain of smiling makes me wince and groan. “Still hurts decent, though.”
“Did you scare yourself?” He asks, ignoring my healing cheek as I scoff and cross my arms over my chest.
“I had no idea the bruise was this big or that it would look like this or really, that we even had a mirror here in the hallway.” I pause, tilting my head, trying to remember what was here before this mirror. Has Leoni started redecorating one item at a time?
“Well, go shower up and change and come back down. I will get coffee brewing for us,” Dev says as he walks toward the kitchen, leaving me in the hallway.
“Right, you are going to be here for a while.” I exhale, struggling with the want to be near him and the urge to send him away. I groan, annoyed, before I turn and move toward the stairs before I head up the first step. He calls behind me.
“Hey, uh, just a heads up…” He pauses and I look back at him, waiting for him to finish. “Just so you aren’t caught off guard, there is a big mirror on the wall in the bathroom. I’d hate for you to get scared.”
He breaks into laughter, turning his back to me. I swear steam shoots from my nostrils as I growl low in my chest and stomp my way up to the bathroom. Dev thinks he is so funny, and if I weren’t so embarrassed and hellbent on being upset with him, I would chuckle too. A smile breaks past my lips anyway, and I shake my head. He isn’t at all how I imagined he would be when I first met him.
I toss my clothes in the hamper with my name on it, climbing into the shower and quickly cleaning myself off, cautious of my injury. It takes me only five minutes to wash completely, wrapping the big white towel around me as I step into the hallway and move toward my room.
My toes curl, trying to hide from the chilly breeze whizzing through the bottom of my door before I push it open and find my entire room askew with papers and the window wide open. My skin prickles with alarm as I step in, my heart sinking. Whatever I had organized last night and left in various spots around the room are now blown to bits.
Another breeze whips through the room, making me shiver even though the air only feels cold to my wet shoulders. The curtains dance in the wind before I make it over to them and push them open, sliding the window shut. Did I open it this morning? I know I had it open last night, but I could have sworn I shut it.
I spin around, groaning loud as I collect the papers, snatching them up, kicking myself for being so aloof at times. Now I have to figure out what had nothing and what had something I could use to search in other ways all over again. An entire night full of work undone.
“What happened here?” Dev’s voice startles me as I pop up and blush, looking around my messy room.
“I must have left the window open.” I exhale and he frowns.
“Let me help you.” He saunters into the room, collecting papers from the opposite side, the two of us quiet as we make our way to the middle of the room. I stand, placing my hand out to take the papers before I put them next to the bed on my nightstand in a messy pile.
“Thanks,” I offer him a smile and he glances away, his bob in his throat as he looks anywhere but at me.
“What?” I ask, placing my hands on my hips. The second my fingers graze the soft fabric of my white fluffy towel, I know exactly when he is trying to look away from. My hands fly to my chest to grip the towel tight as it slips away. I’m not fast enough, as the cool air in the room nips at my skin.
Warm hands wrap around my bare back, yanking me flush to his chest as I clutch my hands in front of my chest, which are now trapped between us. Dev will never be able to deny his attraction to me, not now that I can feel him eagerly awake as he presses into my stomach.
“Why are you hugging me when I am naked?” I ask, my voice wavering.
“I panicked.” He clears his throat. “In retrospect, I should have just turned away, but it was less movement to just yank you close enough that I can’t see anything.”
“Uhm…” I whisper, looking down between us in the very tiny space my arms provide. “B-but I can feel everything.”
It doesn’t even bother me that my stutter has come back. What bothers me is the growing heat in my lower stomach and the way my body wants to arch closer, his hands so gentle on my back. I close my eyes, taking a moment to breathe before I look up at the side of his face as he looks away, his jaw clenching and a red blush showing through his tanned skin.
“I apologize.” He grinds out, which only brings out laughter as I shake in his hold. He finally looks at me, worry in his eyes. “Are you cold?”
“No, I’m laughing,” I say, smiling up at him. “You can let go now so I can put some clothes on.”
His fingers twitch before they disappear and he looks up at the ceiling, turning his back to me as he strides out the door without a sound, closing it behind him.
I slip into my clothes as fast as I can, putting on my cute bunny slippers that Leoni bought for me. Then I make my way downstairs to the kitchen, pulling my sleeves nervously into my palms. My stomach churns, the moment of bravery I had earlier long gone as I move over to the cupboard and take out a mug for coffee.
“I poured you one already,” Dev says, not looking up as he points to the mug next to him.
“Oh, thanks.” I say, surprised. For a moment I hesitate, looking for any way to put distance between us as I try to shove away that feeling of lustful desire for him.
“Embarrassed?” He asks, a smirk on his lip.
“No more than you were in the room holding me while I was stark naked and wet.” I say, proud I found the confidence to bite back something so quick. But instead of the desired result, he pushes back from the table and crosses his arms over his chest, looking cocky and far too attractive for this early in the morning.
“Tell me more about you being wet.” He licks his lip, biting back a smile as I instantly flush red and plop into my seat, avoiding looking at him.
“I meant because I just got out of the shower,” I mutter.
“Just look for a way out of this bond before we both end up doing something we regret.” He says back.
There is no point in looking at him. Instead, I nod and grab my coffee, sucking down two large gulps welcoming the burn it brings to my mouth and throat. Wake the hell up, Eden, and snap out of this mindset.
This bond is doing things I can’t quite understand. Things I never got to know or experience with the mate bond. If this is what it would have been like, do I really want to live a life without a mate if we can’t break this bond?
We work in silence; him sliding glances at me from time to time as I place useless papers to the side and graze through the others in front of me. The majority of the papers are just the same damn thing, rephrased in numerous ways to make sense. The breeder’s bond must be mutual, except mine wasn’t, and it was created only for those who can not have a child with their own mate.
What is interesting is that once the bond is complete, as in the breeder gives birth, there is another bond done with the baby and the mate who could not have them to foster that mother and child bond.
So if I were to go through with having his child, I would lose my child as it would be taken from me and they would literally have a bond with another woman.
My chest stabs at the thought. Who would willingly give up their child like that? Does it always go like that or is there a place for both mothers in the child’s life? I shake the thought from my head. It doesn’t matter either way. I refuse to follow through with this bond that imitates something that is supposed to be so special. The whole thing feels barbaric and men led.
“What?” Dev asks, looking up at me. I blink when I look at him. My brows pull together.
“Huh?”
“You scoffed like you were angry.” He says, placing his hands on the book he is scrolling through.
“No, it’s just…” I sigh, shaking my head, trying to force the anger down. “This bond is disgusting.”
His eyebrows rise, and he watches me, pressing his lips together.
“Which is why my father ended this bond.” He responds.
“But he didn’t. It can still be used to this day.” I frown at him.
“As long as both parties are willing,” he adds, and I snort, pointing at the paragraph I just read.
“And do you let the female breeders know that they will carry a child they will care for and love for nine months and then be forced to give up? The mate is the one that gets the bond with that child. Not the mother.” I try to keep my voice down, but I can’t help it as my blood boils.
“All the rules are gone over with both parties.” He says. And I roll my eyes, scoffing.
“Right. Like the rules I was informed of?” I snap at him. He stands abruptly, his chair clattering to the ground behind him.
“You were there with me. Was I informed of this? Was I willingly participating because I wanted to own and use you?” He growls out, leaning over the table, his eyes filled with rage as he levels on me.
“No,” I rush out, looking away, my body shaking in fear even though he doesn’t scare me. My hands quiver as I knit my fingers together, squeezing them to bring me back to reality. He will not hurt me. I am safe and he is just offended.
“Shit.” He exhales, squatting down beside me. “Eden, I’m sorry.”
“No, no,” I shake my head, stray tears leaking from my eyes. “It’s fine. It’s me…I just…”
I can’t even explain to him why I am crying. It’s a habit, a self defense, to please the asshole alpha who loved to make me cry and shake under his violent tendencies.
“I think it’s time you leave, Dev.” Leoni says, crossing into the kitchen and taking my hands into hers. “She needs a mental break.”
“I didn’t mean to lose my temper.” He whispers.
“I know,” I say, looking at him. “Leoni, honestly, I am fine. What I want is to just…end this bond and move on with my life.”
I turn to look at her, and she matches the sadness I feel. She nods and gives me a soft smile.
“What if I help you both? Would that be okay?” She asks with an encouraging smile.
“Yes,” I sigh, feeling like I can breathe having someone here to help me control my emotions. From wanting to give my virginity to Dev one minute, to thinking him a horrible person, to then having a mental breakdown out of nowhere…I just need a buffer. I need a friend, and Leoni is the only one I have.
“Do you want to leave this stuff with us?” Leoni asks Dev, and he shakes his head.
“Leoni, can I speak with you for a moment?” He mutters, fixing the chair as he walks out of the room, waiting for her to follow.
“I know he can be scary, but he would never hurt you,” she offers.
“I know. My response wasn’t really to him, but his words…I don’t know. I guess maybe I should talk to someone about my issues one day.”
“You think?” she chuckles as she rushes off to find Dev.
I finish my cold mug of coffee, moving to the coffeepot for another fresh cup and checking the clock. Has it really already been hours? They don’t walk long as they enter the kitchen again, both standing in the doorway looking at me. Leoni looks concerned, while Dev looks nervous.
“What?” I ask, narrowing my eyes.
“So, in order to get through this more easily and quickly, I am…going to be staying here with you guys for a while,” Dev says, looking at Leoni, who seems unhappy.
“Uh, why do I get the feeling there is more to it than that?” I ask.
The two look at each other and Leoni gives him a stern look before moving into the kitchen and grabbing a drink from the fridge of plenty.
“So there is more to it than that, but you guys aren’t ready to share that information with me yet?” I scoff. Dev licks his teeth before he drags his hand through his hair.
“Someone was in the house. You did not leave your window open, and because you can’t smell, you didn’t notice the slight scent in your room.” He says, “I am staying for your safety and to scare whoever is lingering around off.”
“Well, shit.” I mutter, my shoulders dropping in defeat.