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

and caring for Elva, that I could successfully distract myself from the pain of his

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

+15 BONUS

couldn’t help but wonder if I was misremembering

that young,

to my own voice. The hurt made it

is a mistake, and I

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

turned and left me, then, walking out into the sitting room, and then out into the parlor. I thought he might slam the door behind him, as enraged as he was, but instead,

Elva continued resting, undisturbed.

to hate

might be a cruel, insensitive bastard but he liked children. He’d been kind to Elva.

to hate him, but

my knees beside the couch where Elva

together, maybe he would have revealed his secret in time. Maybe the three of us could have

a

wasn’t reality. My reality was very far from these golden fixtures

here. I needed to go home and look

I

beside Elva’s on the cushion. I was so drained, from the trip, from seeing

quickly, my own eyes

Excuse

open

but the King Luna, and princes have arrived, I

rubbed the sleep from my eye. “Wait, there’s

he was already disappearing out

Elva sat up on the couch, watching me with curious eyes. “Is it time for

my softest smile. It is. We have to be quiet though, okay? No one

Luna are talking.”

“Okay”

I pulled Elva into my arms

parlor, the royal family was standing atop some type of stage

side. The

did on the bills in my purse. He was pale with hollowed out

and his voice camed far,

said, calming the crowd and gaining their attention

very pleased by your presence and look forward to becoming more acquainted over the coming

and whispered something in the King’s