The Luna Choosing Game

Chapter 0622

The butler showed me to Susie's room, and then quickly excused himself outside of her door. When he was gone, I knocked.

"Go away!" Susie called in a watery voice. She was crying.

I knocked more insistently as I pushed open the door.

*I said -* she started, cutting herself off she say me. "Piper?"

"Hi, Susie," I said.

"Oh, Piper!" She was sitting at her desk, the tears running down her cheeks. As I entered the room, closing the door behind me, she jumped from the chair and ran to me.

We shared a hug. Relief flooded through me.

I stepped back after a moment, to look her over. She didn't seem too worse for wear. Other than the crying, she didn't show any signs of abuse or neglect.

"What are you doing here?" Susie sniffed. "I'm sure word has gotten around by now."

*Rumors don't matter. Come back to palace."

*If you've heard the rumors, you know why I can't."

"Everyone will forget, the moment you appear. They'll all just think it's gossip and it won't matter," I say. "Since Jessica is the only other contender for Joyce, you wouldn't even have to face elimination."

*Piper," she sounded so sad. "I can't come. It's just not rumors. My parents... They know the truth about me."

*How could they?" I asked. She wasn't showing yet. Sure they might suspect, but to have real proof?

"I told them," Susie said.

I startled, speechless.

"I didn't want to lie anymore about any of it," Susie said. "I don't want to have to pretend to have feelings for Joyce, when the only one I really want is Mark."

ring in my pocket near doubled, and I regretted

are down in the sitting room with your parents," I said. Susie's eyes went

would have kept him away. If your parents wouldn't have

laughed a

plan, as he always does, that his arrival at your door might open the way. My presence was required for this. It is, after all, more likely they'd let me

"True."

parents knew who I

"I talk about you often. You were

to be in her life! Though how much it hurt to hear she had such a hard time getting friends. She

from my pocket. "Mark told me to give you this." I held my palm out with the ring sitting in the

looked at

overdue," I told her. "He wants

closer to her, to inspect it. She touched it with only her

covered her face, softening all of her features. Then, in the next, she began to cry again. "What's the matter?" I asked her,

Or even if that didn't matter to me, Mark would be throwing his whole life away with this. He

If this is what you want, Susie, you can't let

continued looking at the ring for another minute or two, before she

to see

With Susie leading, we didn't need the

finger. I couldn't help

I've consistently said "Susie's father was saying. He cut himself off

*Susie..." her mom said.

on her. Then his gaze dropped to her hand, where she'd already put

said, the word overflowing with obvious

to Susie's parents, closer than even Nicholas

said, dropping into a deep bow. "Please allow me to marry

both went

love with your daughter,"

don't know of her

quicker. She touched her husband's

Mark confirmed. "The baby is mine. And I would raise it as my child, with

man," Nicholas said. "He is my Beta and a loyal