Sold as the Alpha King’s Breeder by Alice Knightsky
Chapter 71 New Home In Papeno
**Rosalie’s POV**
A little foot kicked me right in the rib cage as I finished slipping my shoes on in the morning.
“Oof,” I mumbled as I sat down on the edge of my bed to catch my breath.
“Are you all right?” Seraphine asked, an amused expression on her face. She was tidying the room, even though that wasn’t her responsibility.
“Yes, I’m fine,” I told her, laughing as I rubbed my belly. “This one sure knows how to find Mama’s ribs, though.”
I sat there for a few minutes, feeling the baby kick, thanking the Moon Goddess that I was so blessed to have this wonderful child growing inside of me.
For a moment, I let my mind wander to Ethan. It was something I tried not to do. I tried not to think of him at all, if I could help it.
I could imagine him sitting next to me on the bed, his enormous, muscular hand engulfing my abdomen as he waited for the baby to kick his palm.
Would he smile? Would he laugh along with me at each little jab of the baby’s foot?
I wasn’t sure if Ethan would be like other fathers and marvel at the growth and milestones of his baby along the way, or if he would just look at the child as his heir and otherwise ignore this precious bundle of joy I was growing inside of me, even after I’d given birth.
It didn’t matter now. I would never know…
“Are you okay?” Seraphine asked, breaking me out of my trance.
“Yeah, I’m fine.” I smiled at her and then added, “Just thinking about the baby.”
“Ro, what are you going to do about Mr. Soren’s offer?” Seraphine asked me as I got ready to go downstairs and get some fresh air.
It had been in my mind for the past few days. I hadn’t made a decision yet.
With Derek on this island, I had decided to leave as soon as I could, but where would I be able to go without money? Especially when I was pregnant.
“Seraphine,” I told her, “I’ve been meaning to talk to you about that. Do you think I should take it?”
“I do, dear,” she said with a nod. “It’s a good job for you to take, especially with the baby. You could raise your child and care for his home… Also, I am from Papeno too, remember?”
I nodded. I did remember that, and it was an important factor.
“It’s just… I don’t know him that well.”
“He seems like a good man. He takes care of his people.” She put her hand on my arm. “If I were you, I would take the job.”
He had been kind to me, and I agreed with what Seraphine was saying. “But I’m also worried that I can’t do the job right.”
“Have you done housework before?”
“Yes.”
“Do you know how to cook?”
“Yes.”
“Have you taken care of other people before?”
“Yes…”
“Then I don’t see a problem.”
Seraphine was right. There seemed to be no reason for me to turn down Soren’s offer. I should give it a try. But before that, I needed to confirm something.
I sat down for dinner across from Soren, wearing a simple green dress.
“Well, you look lovely as usual,” he said, but I could tell he was tired. He had been away from the house all day, and I had heard from Lola that he was busy with lots of meetings.
“Thank you,” I said. “Have you been working all day?”
“You don’t want to hear about that,” he said, waving a hand at me.
Lola brought our food in and set it down in front of us, and I tried my best to act as usual.
“Wow,” Soren said. “I can’t remember the last time I had linguini with clam sauce. This is one of my favorite dishes, but the chef doesn’t like to make it.”
I couldn’t think of anything to say in response to that, so I took a bite, hiding my smile behind my fork.
“Mmm!” Soren said around a full bite. “This is the stuff.” He wasn’t even done chewing when he started talking again. “I love it! Really, I need to get the chef out here and tell him how great it is!”
“Well, the chef already knew that,” Lola said, a twinkle in her eye as she filled Soren’s wine glass. She looked at me and giggled.
I couldn’t help but smile.
“What is it?” Soren asked, looking from the maid to me. “What are you two laughing at? You didn’t just poison me, did you?” he asked in a silly voice, which let me know he was joking and trusted me. It just made us laugh more.
“No, no,” I said. “This is a test dinner,” I declared.
“Test?” he asked, wide eyed as he continued to look from Lola to me. “What are we testing? Me?”
I shook my head with a smile. “Well, you’ve passed my test. Now that you seem to like my cooking, I’ve decided to… take the job!”
“What?” Soren’s fork clattered against his plate as it fell out of his hand. “At my house? You’ll watch over it for me?”
“That’s right,” I nodded. “If you would still like me to do that.”
“Hey, hey!” he said, still smiling. “I thought I was the one who was hiring! How did I end up being interviewed? But I- like it!” His eyes were bright. “Yes, yes! Of course, I would. This is great. I’m so excited, I could kiss you!”
I felt my face heat up as my eyes widened.
“I could- but I won’t!” he amended hastily. “I know you, Ro. We’ll go there, and I’ll show you around. You’ll love it.
“I can’t wait,” I said with all my heart. “Thank you for the opportunity, Mr. Soren!”
Me pretending to be formal made him laugh even louder.
“Don’t worry, Ro. You’ll love it there, and so will your child. It’s a great place. Besides, you trust me, don’t you?” I looked across the table and met his eyes, those familiar eyes that were the same as Ethan’s, yet so very different from the ones I was so used to looking into.
“Yes, I trust you,” I found myself saying.
He reached across the table and found my hand, patting it.
“I’m so happy you’ll be staying with us, Ro. I know we haven’t known each other that long, but you’re like a breath of fresh air. I’m so glad to have met you.”
He pulled his hand away, and a strange moment passed between us before he said, “Now, back to this delicious dinner!”
I smiled and picked up my fork. He was so sweet, and I knew he was talking about the fact that we were getting along so well- as friends.
There was nothing more between us, and that was great, because I was absolutely certain I wasn’t ready for anything else.
I might never be ready for anything else.
I had my baby, and that was all that mattered.
***
“Ready to check it out?”
Two days later, after a three-hour boat ride, we arrived at the private deck of his estate on Pepano.
The property was much bigger than the one I’d been staying at, and it took a while for him to give me a grand tour of the entire estate. I couldn’t believe how opulent everything was. Standing outside and looking up at the mansion, I was impressed.
Soren was richer than I had thought. I supposed it was because he didn’t act like most rich people I knew. He was too … kind.
“Where will I be staying while I’m here?” I asked him after I’d seen the last of the rooms. I’d seen plenty of bedrooms, but he hadn’t told me which one would be mine
Rather than answering me, he smiled and nodded his head, gesturing for me to follow him.
As we headed outside, the fading sun beamed down upon me, and I took in the sights around. I had seen glimpses of the garden from the windows in some of the rooms, but seeing it firsthand took my breath away.
“This is beautiful,” I whispered in amazement. He chuckled.
“Oh, this is nothing. Just wait.”
I wasn’t quite sure where he was leading me, but there was an air of excitement to this place.
At the end of a cobblestone pathway, a small white cottage with a wrap-around porch came into view. Green vines hung from the roof and wrapped around the porch posts. Flowers adorned every corner, and a bright blue front door greeted me warmly.
It was the most beautiful thing I had ever seen. It seemed like it had been picked out of a fairytale story, and placed directly in front of me.
“Oh, wow…”
“It’s beautiful isn’t it?” Soren muttered as if taking in the breathtaking sight for the first time, just like I was.
“It is. But who lives here?” I wasn’t sure why Soren would want to show me someone else’s home, but I was pleased to see it, regardless.
“You do.”
Those two words froze me in my place.
“Excuse me?” I asked softly, turning to him, speechless.
“This cottage is for you, if you would like it,” Soren explained with a smile. “It’s still very close to the main house, but I figured you would like your privacy. It’s a good place for you to stay while you’re watching over the main house.”
Speechless was not a good enough word to describe me at that moment.
“This is too much. I couldn’t possibly accept it.”
“Um…so do you want to stay in the same house as me again then?” Soren teased me.
I blushed and couldn’t find the right words to respond. “No, not that!”
He let out a laugh, seemingly amused by my reaction. “Ro, you work here and you need a place to stay for your work, remember? It’s empty anyway. If you like it, let’s get some use out of it! It won’t be ready completely for two days, but then it will be open for you to stay in. Also, all the rooms have furniture but one. I figured you would want to do the nursery yourself.”
Tears filled my eyes as I looked back at the house and thought over everything I had been through.
I didn’t understand why Soren was being so nice to me when we hadn’t known each other for that long. No one had ever been this kind to me.
“I’m sorry, I didn’t mean to upset you,” Soren said quickly, pulling out a white handkerchief and handing it to me.
I couldn’t help but laugh, shaking my head. A peaceful silence fell between us, and I tried to let my mind process everything that had happened today.
“You didn’t upset me,” I told him. “You just might be the nicest person I’ve ever met.”