The Luna Choosing Game

“How long did you wait, Piper? A week? Two? It couldn’t have been long.”

He sounds like he’s jealous. Or was that an illusion? He doesn’t care about me and is just mad at me.

Maybe the latter is more logical.

His dark eyes burned into me, leaving my heart in scorched tatters. Never in a thousand years would i

have thought Nicholas would be so vicious to me.

“It wasn’t like that.” I said, to try to defend myself.

He crossed his hands over his chest. He wasn’t going to listen to me,

“Why even come here?” he asked me.

“My application was selected…”

“Why even apply? Were you trying to get to me?”

“No,” I said.

“Maybe you regret your child’s father. Maybe you want me back.” He laughed once, bitterly. “Like you

have a chance.”

The words sliced into me as surely as if he’d been holding a knife. He had changed since I’d known him.

Three w

years ago, he’d been kind and patient. I’d given him my heart and he’d gently cradled it. So many

nights, we’d laid under the stars, trading kisses and stories.

Once, when he’d spent all night looking at me, I had told him, “You’re missing the

starlight.”

He’d replied, “I can see it in your eyes.”

The man before me now was nothing like the one I had known. The man here was arrogant, indifferent. and imposing in how he carried himself.

Breaking up with him had never been something I wanted to do. It hurt me still, thinking upon it, so I had tried to push it to the back of my thoughts

to focus on like work, and caring for Elva, that I could successfully distract myself from the pain of his

and seeing what he had become, brought all

+15 BONUS

was so different now that I couldn’t help but wonder if I was misremembering the past. Maybe

that young, innocent girl

bite to

mistake, and I

Nicholas said, so coldly that a chill ran along my spine. “You are the only woman who ever dared to break up with me. Piper. I’ll never allow the same mistake to

into the sitting room, and then out into the parlor. I thought he might slam the

Elva continued resting, undisturbed.

wanted to hate him.

be a cruel, insensitive bastard but he liked children. He’d been kind to Elva. He didn’t take any of his misconceptions about

wanted to hate him, but

knees beside the couch

would have revealed his secret in time. Maybe the three of us

a

reality. My reality was very far from these golden fixtures and

I needed to go home and look for another job, as soon

I

I was so drained, from the trip, from

own

me Excuse

blinked open

but the King Luna, and princes have arrived, I suggest you hurry to the parlor at

the sleep from my

he was already disappearing out of the

me with curious eyes. “Is it time for

gave her my softest smile. It is. We have to be quiet though,

Luna are talking.”

“Okay”

I pulled Elva into my arms and

was standing atop some type of stage The King

The

than he did on the bills in my purse. He

well and his voice camed far, like he was accustomed to public

he said, calming the crowd and gaining their attention “Congratulations on having

We are very pleased by your presence and look forward to

whispered something in