The Luna Choosing Game

It had been three days since Boss made his proposition: either I sleep with him or I get fired.

I needed one more day’s pay to cover Elva’s most recent bill. Once I had that, I could resign and hopefully find something else.

Boss trailed his eyes down the length of my body. Staring openly at my breasts, he licked his lips. “Don’t think I won’t, Piper. I’ll be waiting for you.”

In the restaurant, all of the female patrons talked excitedly about the selection. To cater to them, Boss turned all of the televisions on the walls to the royal consort ceremony broadcast.

“Which one do you think is the most handsome?” asked one patron to her friends.

They’d ordered a plate of loaded nachos to share. I carefully placed it in the center of their table.

Another girl spoke quickly. “Are you kidding? The others are cute, sure, but Nicholas is obviously the hottest.”

The other girls quickly agreed.

Startled, I hovered at their table. They were right, of course. Nicholas was the most objectively attractive, but to hear people talk about him so casually still surprised me.

For three days, I’d tried to reconcile in my mind that the Nicholas I had known was also the eldest prince of the kingdom. But I still couldn’t quite manage it.

Nicholas had always been proper. But a prince?

“Piper, is it?” one of the girls at the table asked me. I jumped, realizing I was still standing there. Yet before I could apologize, she asked me, “Which one do you think is the most handsome?”

“Nicholas,” came my automatic answer. “Excuse me.”

Embarrassed at having been caught daydreaming, I forced myself to focus on work. And I succeeded – until I heard Nicholas’ voice come from the speakers.

“The kind of woman I’d prefer?” Nicholas said. “Someone loyal. Strong. Even tempered. And she has to like to children.”

“Check, check, and check,” came a voice from the table of girls. “He’s describing me! It’s meant to be.”

“Dream on. He’s clearly describing me.”

“You don’t even like kids!”

“Yeah, well, we’ll see which of us make it through the preliminary selection. Then you’ll see!”

Does that mean we can expect you to have

but his eyes were guarded. “It’s my duty as a prince to continue the lineage. But,

in delight. “He’d make such a good

a moment, it seemed as if he was staring straight through it. I froze in place, like he could

My heart ached.

at the interviewer, and immediately, I felt foolish. Of course, he

of me at all since the

hand over my heart, hoping to soothe away the touch of

wrong with me? We hadn’t seen each other in three years. I couldn’t still be hung up on him. Sure, I

Elva, and I had Anna. I didn’t

went back to retrieve it. When I returned to the dining room, Nicholas was still on the screen, but speaking on an entirely

investigating with the utmost seriousness. This

the plate of food in my

once, all eyes on

wolf, weakens the

other waitresses hissed at me, waking

ruined food. “I’m sorry.” I quickly set to cleaning it. As I did, I cursed myself so loudly in my thoughts, I couldn’t hear any more

and exhausted. After my accident, I pushed myself as hard as I could, focusing

my eyes to the television again, not even when the table of girls bemoaned their disappointment

wouldn’t be on the

particularly stubborn

clean the stove, or prep for tomorrow. Almost always, he was

other waitresses, who had said they would clean the dining room. The lights

I was alone.

puff of hot air brushed the back of my

to

was a moment too late. Boss had

the plate onto the floor, where it

around my waist, he pressed his hips hard to mine, wedging me

I was trapped.

buttons of my shirt, revealing my

go.” Panic swelling within me, I struggled against him. He only held tighter, rougher, fingers biting into my hip

my wolf, I didn’t have the strength to break