Sold as the Alpha King's Breeder-Chapter 1323 - 78 : Swirling Doubts

*Noah*

I woke up about an hour before dawn once again, pushing myself out of bed, despite the fatigue I was feeling from avoiding Zara. I glanced at her sleeping form briefly, stunned momentarily by the way the moonlight seemed to dance in her golden tresses. I shook my head hard, turned away from her, and started getting ready for the day.

Fragmented memories continued to return to me. They were much the same as the previous ones, but I wasn’t getting any closer to figuring out the disturbing mystery of Zara’s supposed other mate or whether the baby she was nurturing within her was truly mine.

I spent the day wrestling with the snippets that kept playing over and over in my mind. About half of them were pleasant images of Zara, smiling up at me or sharing deep conversations with me.

It looked like we had spent a lot of time just enjoying one another’s company whenever we could. I couldn’t shake the thought that her eyes had a haunting quality in that they appeared too beautiful beneath both the sunlight and the moonlight.

They were an emerald green with specks of gold, and they left me defenseless. It caused me to wonder if she was being truthful about not using some kind of spell against me. It was clear from my fuzzy memories that I had been completely infatuated with the young woman.

The past passionate feelings and devotion that I undoubtedly had for Zara were contrasting painfully with my current aloofness and distance from her. I was well aware of the physical need I had to be close to her.

My mind might have been jumbled and unable to recall certain parts of our relationship, but my body seemed to recall every inch of that woman’s form. The intensity of that connection before my memory loss seemed to clash with my present wariness about her motives and honesty.

I thought back to the night I’d confronted her as I went through my morning rounds. I barely felt present as I met with different members of our pack community. Discussing finances and disputes pertaining to Drogomor felt like it held little importance compared to the distress on Zara’s face before I slammed the door behind me and left her alone in our room.

I knew I couldn’t face her, at least not now. Each time I saw her, I was filled with the painful confusion that came with trying to figure out my feelings toward her despite the possibility of her being mated to another man.

I felt disturbed and conflicted by the contradictory impulses. I knew I had to see even less of her than I already was if I was going to figure out what to do and to continue to help lead my pack with the attention and care it deserved.

I spent the next several days ensuring that I would run into Zara as little as possible. This meant getting up excruciatingly early, long before she even had a chance to wake up, and returning to our quarters much later than she would probably retire for the night. I debated sleeping in a different room from her altogether, but I knew that could possibly lead to alarm from the help in the mansion as well as my parents.

I couldn’t risk anyone thinking something was wrong with my relationship with Zara. This was best for the pack and for me as well. I was successful in avoiding her, getting to the point where it was extremely rare for the two of us to exchange more than two words with one another.

The door to my office creaked open. I glanced up from the work strewn across the heavy oak desk, rubbing my tired eyes.

"You summoned me?" Caleb strode in, one eyebrow raised. His gaze swept over me, and his mouth curved into a wry smile. "You look like hell, man. The lady keeping you up at night?"

I sighed, waving away his wink. If only he knew how close to the truth his joke landed. "Something like that. Please, sit."

As Caleb dropped into the chair opposite me, I leaned forward, hands clasped. "I need your help. I’ve tried to have Merida located and brought to me, but she seems to have vanished.”

“Is there something wrong?” he asked.

“Maybe.”

I wasn’t certain how much faith to put into anything Zara told me. But I couldn’t completely ignore her claim that Merida was really another woman named Serena.

“I have reason to believe Merida may be Serena in disguise." Caleb’s eyes widened. I went on, "She may have orchestrated Zara’s kidnapping into the Dark Realm.”

Caleb slowly shook his head, brow furrowing. "I’m afraid neither Merida nor Serena have been seen since before you went after Zara.”

My gut twisted at that revelation, and I began to feel the truth of the threat Merida or Serena posed to our pack. I had to find her.

“Send out all available trackers at once. Bring Merida to me the moment she surfaces.”

“Yes, Noah.”

Later that night, I carefully entered the suite I shared with Zara. As she had been the last few nights as well, she was fast asleep, her dainty hands curled near her face, her golden hair lying in waves around her head.

As I tended to do, I observed her sleep for a few moments, watching the way her smooth pink lips moved slightly while she slept, as if she was having a stressful nightmare.

A part of me was hoping that she would be awake and waiting up for me to greet me, but that clearly wasn’t the case. She seemed to finally be accepting that I was trying to keep my distance. Although it was my choice to avoid her and thus, it should have relieved me to not have to try so hard to do so, the thought that she had given up on me sent a painful prick in my chest that I couldn’t quite explain.

When I got back to the mansion after a particularly hectic day of pack duties, I was surprised to find my parents awake and waiting for me in the front sitting room. They tended to be up fairly late themselves due to running the community, but this was late even for them.

I had a bad feeling when they shot me a serious look.

“If you have a moment, Son, we’d like to have a word with you,” Father said, gesturing for me to follow them into his office.

I suppressed a groan as I obeyed. “You two are up awfully late,” I started conversationally, keeping my tone light even when the door shut behind me. My parents sat side by side behind the large wooden desk in the center of the room. That wasn’t a good sign. This could be a long meeting, I thought. “May I ask what this is about?”

My parents shared a long look before my stepmother pinned me with a look that was filled with worry. “We’re concerned with how your relationship with Zara has been going,” she said finally. She pursed her thin lips for a moment before gesturing to the chair across from them. “Please have a seat, Noah.”

“I’ll stand, thank you,” I said stiffly.

My stepmother sighed but nodded. “Very well,” she said.

My father ducked his head slightly, narrowing his eyes. “It has come to our attention that you appear to be avoiding your young wife, going so far as to be absent for dinner and return from duties much later than is expected or required of you.”

“There are matters that require a great deal of my time, as I’m sure you are quite familiar with,” I said coolly forcing myself to keep eye contact with them despite the fact that I was inwardly cursing myself for being so careless.

“And which of those matters require you to neglect your wife?” my father demanded firmly.

I gritted my teeth but didn’t answer, not having a solid argument for that one. They already seemed convinced that I was going out of my way to avoid Zara. What more could I say?

Before I could formulate any kind of response, my stepmother cut in. “We’re worried about you, Noah,” she said gently in that caring way she did. “Zara seems not herself as well.”

“Do you truly care about her?” my father asked sharply.

He glanced at my stepmother, who I could tell wanted an answer to that question just as much as he did.

“And are you fully prepared for the responsibility of your unborn child, who will be your heir?” she asked, watching my face carefully.

“You need not worry about what occurs between Zara and me,” I said, deflecting the questions. “I have always done what is right for Drogomor and will continue to do so.”

My parents didn’t seem extremely thrilled with that answer, but I kept my stance strong, showing them that I wasn’t going to budge any further. Eventually, they dismissed me, warning me to keep my word and do what was best for the pack as well as for my little family.

As I ascended the stairs to the room I was still sharing with Zara, I mulled over the conversation with my parents, feeling troubled as their words began to fully sink in. As much as I wanted to deny it, a strong pull persisted, compelling me toward Zara despite the strange circumstances that surrounded our connection.

I stepped into our bedroom, making my way over to the bed and peering down at the beautiful woman beneath the covers. When was the last time I really got to look into her eyes? It felt like ages at this point since even when we were both in the same room together, and when we were both awake, I was averting my eyes from her deep gaze. Feelings that profound couldn’t have arisen for no reason, could they have?

Feeling extremely restless after the meeting with my parents, I stepped out onto the balcony connected to our bedroom, looking out over Drogomor as the moonlight bathed its entirety in a celestial glow. I tried to take solace in the peaceful view, but I couldn’t settle the swirling doubts and conflicts that filled me.

I gritted my teeth as the hard truth hit me that I needed to stop avoiding these issues and do some real soul-searching to unravel my true desires and responsibilities toward Zara and the baby she was currently carrying.

I was beginning to realize that the answer undoubtedly lay somewhere in reclaiming those missing pieces of my past, but the process of facing what I might uncover filled me with as much dread as it did anticipation.

Questions invaded my mind. 𝒇𝒓𝒆𝒆𝙬𝒆𝒃𝓷𝒐𝓿𝙚𝙡.𝒄𝓸𝒎

What was I to do if the baby wasn’t mine and Zara turned out not to be my mate?