The Luna Choosing Game

By the next morning, the drug had worked its way through my system and I felt like my old self again. I

went down to breakfast, where I was reunited with Elva, who had stayed with Susie the night before by

order of Nicholas.

I was grateful for his foresight. Mortified as I was by my actions and sounds, I was at least spared the

embarrassment of explaining any of this to Mark or the nanny myself. Or worse still, to Elva..

A thought so stomach–churning, I dared not even think of it.

So when I did finally greet her, it was with a tight hug and big smile, the same as always.

Susie and I didn’t always sit together, but we chose to that morning. There were still many empty chairs with the previous elimination, and I was feeling vulnerable from what had happened the night before. I needed my friends.

Around us the girls were chattering about the curiousness of the evening’s events. Terry was to be one of the main judges of the night, but he never came to ballroom.

Also as curious, both Nicholas and Julian disappeared sometime in the night, only to reappear this morning, one with a black eye and the other with an injured hand.

“You don’t suppose the princes got into a fight with each other?” one of the girls asked.

“No,” Lilliana said flatly. “He is too mature to take part in such childish antics.”

“Julian does love to tease,” said someone else.

“Not enough to tempt a prince away from his decorum,” Olivia added. “Prince Nicholas been around Prince Julian for years. He’s surely built up a tolerance.”

“Well, then what happened with Sir Terry?“”

“Maybe he started the fight,” someone said, and another laughed. A third shushed them.

“Don’t be ridiculous,” Olivia said, rolling her eyes.

I had Elva in my lap, but she was

okay, Piper? I heard

a cloudy head and tired eyes, but otherwise okay Except for my continued embarrassment

the bile rising in my throat, and left my half of the breakfast uneaten on the plate for

pick

asked. It took great strength to keep

left at some point last night and returned to his

a sense of relief and for the

at least, I

last night continued to linger in my mind, even as we broke

day. I couldn’t help but feel Terry’s cold hands on me or smell his

breath.

were thoughts about that girl in the black dress who seemed to have my wolf. Who was she? Where had she come from? How had she gotten it? And why was

worse now, somehow, because I would never be able to find the answers. Not since Nicholas had forbad Julian and me from continuing our

heart he was only worried for me and for the kingdom, but it frustrated me that he could not see

me from ever being manipulated into giving away

be cowed by Terry, or by Nicholas. I had my own heart

my daughter or any of those innumerous other souls out there who just wanted to do the right thing,

after seeing Elva safely into the care of her nanny and Mark, I set off on

empty ballroom. I found him sitting alone on the bottom

like him to be so isolated or

heard the click of my heels on the tile steps, he turned back

had

and his look of vulnerability faded. In its place

mind company if

my eyes at his flirtatious charms and took a seat on the same step

forgotten that Julian was also there last night. He had bome witness to the full extent of

decency both to tell me it wasn’t my

Nicholas moved away.

that Nicholas would have taken advantage. He wouldn’t have. But Julian’s being

of my desire much quicker.

I was still

angry about it. I did have desire for Nicholas. I had wanted him to kiss me on the balcony. In time, I