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

caring for Elva, that I could successfully distract myself from the

him now and seeing what he had become, brought all those feelings crashing back into Tome so hard, they stole

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so different now that I couldn’t help but wonder if I was misremembering the past. Maybe he’d never been kind. Maybe

I wasn’t that young, innocent girl

I said, adding some bite to

a mistake, and I intend to

the only woman who ever dared to

parlor. I thought he might slam the door behind him, as enraged as he was, but instead, he

Elva continued resting, undisturbed.

to hate him.

but he liked children. He’d been kind to Elva. He

hate him,

knees beside

he would have revealed his secret in time. Maybe the

was a

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

was wasting time, staying here. I needed to go home and look for another job, as soon

I

rested my head beside Elva’s on the cushion. I was so drained, from the trip,

my own eyes

me Excuse me,

open

your pardon, miss, but the King Luna, and princes have arrived, I suggest you hurry to the parlor

uh.“I rubbed the sleep from my eye.

disappearing out of the room.

me with curious eyes. “Is

is. We have to be quiet though, okay? No one can talk when the

Luna are talking.”

“Okay”

into my arms and

standing atop some type of stage The King stood at

on one side. The three princes

he did on the bills in

far, like he was accustomed

crowd and gaining their attention “Congratulations on

monumental event. We are very pleased by your presence

whispered something in the