Page 6 of The Alpha's Sold Pregnant Mate

“What's that supposed to mean?” he asked, a bit confused.

“Ash, the humans around dread the Ghostbound lands. They know that something is off about the place. Of course, they don't know for sure, but they have their stories and folktales,” Articus said.

“Which means, chances are, you may not find a woman who would be willing to come with you. In fact, none of them would want to associate themselves with someone from the Ghostbound lands. So how are you going to pull this off?” Blake asked him.

“Honestly, I don't know. But I'd rather try and not be accepted than just randomly kidnap someone.”

“But what about your Pack?” Fannar asked him. “What will happen to them should you fail to find a human woman that'll willingly come with you?”

Asher heaved a sigh. His head was burning, his blood seemed to be on fire, and his heart was pounding in his chest, but he appeared to be in control.

“If that happens, then trust me, you'll be tempted to actually kidnap a human woman. Are you ready for that?” Articus asked him.

His friends were right, but Asher didn't even want to consider kidnapping as an option. He knew that he was faced with a very hard task: his conscience versus the safety of his people. Asher was so confused about what to do if his plan of walking into a random village and finding a woman to follow him didn’t work. He knew how ridiculous his plan seemed, but he was willing to give it a try.

“I'll cross that bridge when I get there,” he replied to his friends.

The men sighed.

“Good luck, man. You'll need it.” Fannar patted his shoulders.

“Finally, Asher Grey is about to find himself a mate,” Callahan teased, and they laughed.

“I'll congratulate you when you find her.” Rowan smiled.

“Trust me,” Asher said confidently. “I will.”

Chapter 2 - Esme

Esme awoke so suddenly to the sounds of her father's heavy bangs on the wooden door. She drifted out of the dream world and was forced to face the harshness of her reality. She was still sluggishly rubbing the remnants of sleep off her eyes when the door opened, and he barged in angrily.

“Get your sorry ass out of bed right this instant!” he roared, walking up to her and pulling off her sheets without caring whether or not she was decent underneath.

“I'm so sorry, Dad, I overslept…” She was still apologizing, struggling to get out of bed, when he struck her cheek so hard that she staggered and almost fell.

“How many times do I have to tell you that I am not your fucking daddy before you get it through that thick skull of yours, huh?” He shone those eyes, blazing with hatred.

Esme placed a palm on her red cheek, glowering at him with a mix of anger and resentment. For the next few seconds, everything he was blabbing about seemed to be falling on deaf ears as she cast her glare on him, still unable to comprehend how much hatred he beheld in his eyes.

Why do you always jump on every opportunity to be cruel to me for no just cause? What did I ever do to you to deserve this treatment? All I want is for you to love me… Is that too much to ask? She thought to herself, almost tearing up.

But she'd promised a long time ago not to shed any tears for him anymore. She was not going to give him the satisfaction of seeing her hurt by his words or actions.

“Are you listening to me?”His blatant question caught her attention.

“Yes, Da…” she swallowed the word, remembering his warning only seconds ago. “Yes, sir,” she said and subtly gritted her teeth in anger.

“What's that?” he inquired and leaned in closer as though he had not heard her the first time.

“I said… Yes, sir,” came the reply without looking at him.

He seized her face and forced her to look at him while his thumb and the rest of his fingers plunged into her skin, pressing hard against her teeth. Esme whimpered in pain, but he didn't care.

“You listen to me,” he began, “You live under my roof, you eat my food…”

You mean the crumbs of your leftovers? That's what you call food?

He continued, “...You drink the clean water that I give you, you wear the clothes that I'm gracious enough to get you…”

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