𝐊𝐞𝐞𝐩𝐞𝐫 || 𝐕𝐞𝐫𝐊𝐰𝐚𝐧

Chapter 3

Seungkwan was surprised to find himself enjoying his time away from life. Sure, the work was boring and monotonous, but it was nice not to have so many expectations on him. He didn’t have to don a mask and play a role whenever he stepped out of his room.

Vernon was the only speed bump on an otherwise smooth road.

“Are you going to stand there all day?” the alpha called from behind him. “That water trough won’t fill itself.”

“Just enjoying the fresh air.”

“I’m not paying you to breathe.”

“You’re not paying me at all,” Seungkwan grumbled. “This is practically slave labor.”

“Hey, you’re the one who wanted to ‘volunteer.’ Maybe you thought you’d coast through this month, that you’d be waited on hand and foot…”

“I thought I was here to work with kids,” Seungkwan pointed out.

“Let’s see how you handle horses first,” Vernon said dismissively.

Deciding it wasn’t worth starting another argument, Seungkwan picked up his bucket and went to fill it at the tap. It took five trips back and forth, his arms aching as he carried the last full bucket back across the yard.

Vernon appeared next to him, reaching for the bucket. “Let me take that.”

“I can manage,” he panted. He wasn’t going to be bested by a bucket of water.

“Suit yourself,” Vernon threw back, stalking off across the yard.

Seungkwan felt a twinge of unease at the alpha’s dismissiveness. One minute Vernon was insulting him, the next he was trying to help.

He poured the water into the trough, then went in search of the alpha.

Maybe if they talked more, got to know one another a little, they’d find some common ground.

Vernon was inside the stables, crooning softly to one of the horses. Seungkwan hung back by the door and just watched. He’d never spent any time around horses except for a few rushed weeks where he’d learned to ride one for a film shoot. Even then, the only one who’d been given time to attend to the horses was their trainer. For Seungkwan, it had been all about his posture, about looking relaxed, like he’d been riding since before he could walk. What he was watching, with Vernon and the skittish mare Ginny, was something very different.

“Are you going to stand there gawking all day?” Vernon said, making Seungkwan jump.

How did Vernon know he was there? The alpha hadn’t turned around or even glanced over his shoulder.

“You’re good with her,” he said in answer. “She’s never that happy to see me.”

In fact, she seemed decidedly unhappy whenever Seungkwan so much as set foot inside the stables.

“She hasn’t gotten to know you yet. Or me, really. It’ll take some time for her to get used to her new home.”

“She likes you well enough already.”

“Well, I am the one feeding her all these nice treats,” Vernon said, showing him the carrot slices in his palm.

Seungkwan couldn’t see his face, but he could hear the smile in Vernon’s voice.

“Why horses?” he asked. Alphas like Vernon usually had predatory shifter animals, like wolves or big cats. As a rule, horses weren’t too keen on apex predators.

“I guess I have an affinity for them.”

It might have been a meaningless comment, but Seungkwan took a stab in the dark.

“You’re a horse shifter?”

Vernon’s shoulders tensed at that. He did turn then, peering at Seungkwan over his shoulder, his eyebrows raised.

“Lucky guess,” Seungkwan said softly, shrugging one shoulder and dropping his gaze.

He’d tried openly flirty, complimentary. Maybe Vernon preferred the shy, timid type. He bit down on his lower lip, drawing attention to his mouth.

Vernon’s snort had him glancing back up. The alpha’s unimpressed expression said it all.

“Well, if we’re sharing and all, what’s under your skin?”

Seungkwan blanched at that and looked away, uncomfortable under the alpha’s scrutinizing gaze.

“Oh, so you can dish it out but you can’t take it?”

Seungkwan just shook his head and turned to leave.

“I didn’t mean anything by it,” he said quietly.

He didn’t wait to hear Vernon’s response, walking away as fast as he could without running. He felt like he was a teenager again, walking on eggshells around the alphas in his life. So far, none of his usual ways of dealing with alphas worked with Vernon.

The paddock where the horses grazed was fenced all the way around.

As he walked the perimeter, he wondered about Vernon. There was something about the alpha’s bearing and manner that suggested he was more than meets the eye. Seungkwan didn’t know what, exactly. But whatever it was, it didn’t explain the alpha’s behavior toward him. It was not the kind of reaction Seungkwan was used to getting from alphas. Maybe he was losing his edge. Or maybe Vernon was just an odd duck. The idea made him smile. Maybe Vernon was a duck, and not a horse. That would explain some of his hostility.

Alphas could be so touchy about their shifter species. If they weren’t one of the traditional ‘strong’ animals, they often wound up with a chip on their shoulder. The smaller the animal, the larger the inferiority complex.

One of the horses in the paddock trotted toward him, and he leaned against the fence, watching the piebald’s approach. On the other side of the field, he caught sight of Vernon. The alpha’s gaze fell on him for the briefest of moments before he moved on.

Seungkwan breathed a sigh of relief. At least Vernon seemed to want to spend as little time in his presence as possible. It wouldn’t be too hard to avoid him, despite the close quarters they were living in.

Pushing away from the fence, he strolled on. His thoughts turned away from the infuriating alpha to his own situation. Despite Stewart’s assurances, Seungkwan wasn’t sure he believed this was all going to blow over in the few weeks he was stuck out here in the middle of nowhere. It would take more than some physical labor and a photoshoot of him with rescued horses to get back into the industry’s good graces.

Whatever the price, he knew it would be more than he wanted to pay. It always was.