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

like work, and caring for Elva, that

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

+15 BONUS

I couldn’t help but wonder if I was misremembering the past. Maybe he’d never been kind. Maybe I had been too

I wasn’t that young, innocent

said, adding some bite to my own voice. The hurt made it

mistake, and

are the only woman who ever dared to break up with me. Piper. I’ll never allow the same mistake

me, then, walking out into the sitting room, and then out into the parlor. I thought

Elva continued resting, undisturbed.

wanted to hate him.

children. He’d been kind to Elva. He didn’t

wanted to hate

beside the couch where

If we had stayed together, maybe he would have revealed his secret in

was a

My reality was very far from these golden

time, staying here. I needed to go home and look for another

I

cushion. I was so drained, from the trip, from seeing Nicholas again, from…

quickly, my own eyes slid

Excuse

open my

over me. I beg your pardon, miss, but the King Luna, and princes have arrived,

my eye. “Wait, there’s been

already disappearing

on the couch, watching me with curious eyes. “Is it

smile. It is. We have to be quiet though,

Luna are talking.”

“Okay”

I pulled Elva into my arms and camed her

the royal family was standing atop some type of stage

one side. The three princes flanked his

older than he did on the bills in my purse. He was pale with hollowed

voice camed far, like he

the crowd and gaining their

by your presence and look

whispered something in