Sold as the Alpha King's Breeder novel Chapter 500

Chapter 2: Is the King of Campus Defending Me?

*Lena*

Slate was sputtering, spitting on the ground, and acting overall exceedingly dramatic as he gripped his throat. His hands had caused more redness than Xander's had, I noticed, as I watched Slate act as though Xander had come close to killing him instead of physically forcing him to let me go.

Xander continued to stand behind me, watching Slate with interest. He glanced down at me, giving me a tight, crooked smile before turning his attention back to Slate.

"You done? Or do you need a few more minutes to collect yourself?" Xander asked.

Slate glared at us both, his eyes narrowing into slits as he finally straightened up. 'Who the hell do you think you are? I'm a professor-'

"A professor who just had his hands on a female student," Xander retorted, shrugging his shoulders. "And you said she's your girlfriend, right? I expect the administration would look down on that, if they were to find out."

Slate balked, then licked his lips, turning his gaze to me.

"Don’t look at her," Xander said sharply, causing Slate to avert his gaze from me and turn his attention to Xander once more.

Slate eyed the duffle bag Xander had slung over his left shoulder, which had "Morhan Varsity Wrestling' embroidered in large, bold letters on the side. Xander had at least six inches on Slate, towering over him even to cast a shadow over the entirety of Slate's body. I fought against the smirk twitching in the corner of my mouth as the blood drained from Slate's face.

Not that I'd needed Xander's help. I would've figured out how to get away-eventually.

"You'll regret this,* Slate said weakly, glancing at me so quickly I almost missed it. 'My uncle is the dean-"

"Ah, playing that card, are we?” Xander drawled, adjusting his weight. He yawned, actually yawned, as Slate's cheeks began to burn a deep crimson. ”1 think you'd better go."

"Let's go, Lena-* Slate began.

"No. You go, alone. And if I catch you anywhere near her again, you'll be the one with regrets."

I stole a look at Xander. His gaze was fixed on Slate with such intensity it made me want to cower by association. I hadn't ever seen him so close up before.

I already knew, based on my few sightings of him around campus, that he was tall. But I hadn't noticed how dark his hair was, ink-black and swept back away from his face, curling softly around his ears. I hadn’t noticed his eyes, which were a rich, coffee-like color flaked with amber. He was beautiful, even dressed in gray sweatpants and a black windbreaker.

I hadn’t noticed that Slate had walked away until Xander slowly turned his gaze to me, meeting my eye. Time stood still.

"Are you okay?" he asked. "He didn't hurt you, did he?"

"No," I said, swallowing hard as I tore my gaze away from his eyes and watched Slate’s figure disappear down the pathway toward the campus square. "I'm fine."

"You're not really his girlfriend, are you?"

I shook my head, glancing back up at him. "Goddess, no!"

He chuckled, exhaling as he rested his hand on the duffle bag he was carrying.

"I didn't think so, but I wanted to be sure. That guy is a creep. Does he bother you a lot?"

"Yeah, actually. He always tries to stop me when I’m on my way to the greenhouses. He teaches right there." I pointed to the building Slate had come out of.

Xander nodded, scanning the building, then turning to look up the pathway toward the set of long greenhouses at the top of the hill.

"How often do you have to walk this way?" he asked.

"Um, three days a week. Wednesday through Friday."

"Well tomorrow I'll walk you to your class," he said, but then paused, clearing his throat as he looked down at me once more, 'if that's alright with you?"

"You don't have to do that-'

"It's on my way, actually. I have practice at the stadium every day around this time." He tilted his head up the pathway, where the roof of the somewhat worn-down stadium was visible above the trees in the distance. Morhan was known for its academics, not its sports.

I gave Xander another once over, wondering why the hell he was even here. The rumor was that he was a transfer student from the University of Mirage, which was, in fact, known for its athletics. He was studying something related to Heather's chosen field, I knew that much. But he was truly a mystery in every other respect. There really weren't guys like him at Morhan. He stuck out.

"I'm Xander, by the way," he said, holding out his hand for me to shake.

"I know," I replied, then paled, tucking my hands in my pockets. He arched his brow, giving me a playful look as he narrowed his eyes.

"Oh? What else do you know about me?' He dropped his hand, possibly disappointed I hadn't shaken it.