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 I could successfully

he had become, brought all those feelings crashing back into

+15 BONUS

help but wonder if I was misremembering the past.

I wasn’t that young, innocent girl

want,” I said, adding some bite to my own voice.

and

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

sitting room, and then out into the parlor. I thought he might slam the door behind him, as enraged

Elva continued resting, undisturbed.

wanted to hate him.

insensitive bastard but he liked children. He’d been kind to Elva. He didn’t

to hate him, but

my knees beside the couch where Elva

would have been our child. If we had stayed together, maybe he would have revealed his secret in time. Maybe the three of us could have been

a

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

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

I

I was so drained, from the

my own

me Excuse me,

blinked open

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

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

up again, he was already disappearing out of the room.

me with curious eyes.

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

Luna are talking.”

“Okay”

my arms and

the parlor, the royal family was standing atop some type of stage The King stood at

his Luna on one side. The three

than he did on the bills in

well and his voice camed far, like he was accustomed

said, calming the crowd and gaining

are very pleased by your presence and look forward to becoming more acquainted

in and whispered something