Sold as the Alpha King's Breeder novel Chapter 507

Chapter 9 : Kiss Me

♦Lena*

I'd had at least three cups of cheap wine already. It tasted awful and had likely been made on the farm, but it didn't matter. The alcohol was warming me from the inside out as I sat on a fallen log near the fire, staring into the embers with my plastic cup of wine clasped in one hand, and my other clutching my knee.

Xander was on the other side of the fire, Jen whispering and giggling into his ear.

I don't know why I was so angry about it, but I was. I couldn't deny it as I took a long drink from the garbage wine, crumpling my empty cup before throwing it into the fire.

"Three cups is not enough to get you drunk," said someone to my left. I looked up as Bethany approached with an unfamiliar woman who took a seat next to me. She smiled, her bouncy auburn curls falling around her face as she handed me a bottle of wine. "This stuff is way better!"

"I probably shouldn’t," I smiled, but I ended up taking a swig of the wine right out of the bottle when I saw Xander kiss Jen's cheek from across the fire.

“Holden makes the hooch, you know. That’s what he calls it. It’s just fermented peaches. This batch was pretty weak, but the bottle is real wine, a gift from the boss man," the unfamiliar woman grinned, taking the bottle back and bringing it back to her lips. "I'm Elaine, by the way."

"Lena," I said, wiping my mouth on the back of my sleeve.

"You have beautiful hair," she said admiringly as Bethany tossed a few more logs into the fire. 'Is it naturally that light?"

"Yeah, kind of. I get lowlights every once in a while,” I said as I touched one of the pale golden pieces falling loose around my face.

"Elaine is the one I was telling you about, Lena. She can read palms."

"Tea leaves, too," Elaine added, pointing a finger at Bethany. "But Beth won't let me read anything for her!"

"I'd rather not know my fate. That's between me and the Moon Goddess,” Bethany grinned, pointing a finger in the air, and then blowing a kiss toward the stars.

I couldn't help but laugh, which was a nice break from the glowering I had been doing all evening.

"Do you want me to read yours?" Elaine asked, her eyes a strange scarlet color as they reflected off the fire. I hesitated, then shrugged, loosened up by the wine as I opened my palm toward her. "Ah, your hands are smoother than I expected," she said, running her fingertips over the palm of my hand before tracing the lines of my palm. I expected her to say something immediately, to make up some grand story. I didn't quite believe she could actually do it.

But she stared down at my palm for what felt like ages, her expression fixed in a scowl. Bethany noticed, and moved in on US, squatting down to peer at my hand.

"What do you see?"

"It’s very odd," Elaine mumbled, not breaking her gaze from the fine lines of my palm. "Your lifeline... It's not here."

"Well, I'm not dead, am I?"

“I mean, you're technically in hell, if you think about it. There's no place worse than Crimson Creek," Bethany deadpanned, but then we both broke into a fit of giggles.

Elaine remained serious though, her eyes on my palm. I felt a wave of unease wash over me, wondering what she saw, or thought she saw. I felt my hand go rigid, my fingers threatening to curl, but it was too late.

"Your love line... Is fractured several times. Here, and here, and here.... But it's still interconnected by these faint lines, do you see?"

"What does it mean?" I asked, a little breathless.

"It means you'll have one great love, but something separates you at least twice, then..." she traced the very edge of my palm, which was flawless. "Then it just ends, turns to nothing. I’ve never seen anything like this before."

I felt a sudden overwhelming, unexplainable grief.

"Is it her mate?" Bethany asked.

"There's no mate line that I can see," Elaine said softly, shaking her head. "I am totally perplexed. But, you do work with your hands a lot, Lena. I could be misinterpreting it..'

I closed my palm as Elaine straightened up and accepted the bottle of wine Bethany was handing to her.

"What does it mean when the love line just... disappears?" I asked. Elaine took a swig of wine, then exhaled, swallowing it back.

"I don't know. Usually, it's an abrupt end, meaning a death, or an end of the relationship. Yours isn't like that, though. It’s very faint, then comes back a little deeper toward the end before fading completely. It’s almost like... they go, or you go somewhere together. Like, you're not here? Does that make sense?"

Bethany and I looked at each other, then began to laugh, the effects of the bottle of red wine taking hold.

"No!" I said, wiping tears of mirth from my eyes as I accepted the wine from Elaine, who gave me a nervous smile.

"I'm sure I'm interpreting it incorrectly. My grandmother taught me, but she wasn't very good at it."

"Makes a neat party trick." Bethany said, sitting down on the other side of me. "You should read her tea leaves next."

"I would, but we don't have any more loose tea at the bunkhouse," Elaine replied.

I opened my mouth to speak but was interrupted by a squeal on the other side of the fire. Jen had her arms wrapped around Xander's neck, and he was nibbling on her earlobe.

All of a sudden the wine wasn't sitting well. I stood, a bit lightheaded as I stepped over the log.

"I'm going to walk around for a minute," I said to Bethany and Elaine, who nodded. I crossed my arms over my chest as I walked away from the fire, smiling amiably as I passed a group of farm workers who were mingling in a small group, then began to walk toward the break in the wall.

It was a beautiful night. The stars were shining brightly across the hills. I found myself looking for those little black spots, but saw none as I walked a little way down the length of the stone wall, toward the edge of the dark forest.

I knew I shouldn't go into the forest. Every fiber of my being was telling me to stop. So, I leaned against the wall after giving myself several hundred yards of space from the bonfire, and those congregating on the outskirts of the party. I watched them for a minute, closing my eyes against the faint sounds of their voices as I took a deep breath.

"What the hell are you doing out here by yourself?"

I opened my eyes to Xander, looking menacing as he stalked toward me. I puffed out my chest and turned away from him, but he grabbed me by the shoulder and whirled me around to face him.