The Luna Choosing Game by Jane Above Story

It had been three days since Boss made his proposition: either I sleep with him or I get fired.

I needed one more day’s pay to cover Elva’s most recent bill. Once I had that, I could resign and hopefully find something else.

Boss trailed his eyes down the length of my body. Staring openly at my breasts, he licked his lips. “Don’t think I won’t, Piper. I’ll be waiting for you.”

In the restaurant, all of the female patrons talked excitedly about the selection. To cater to them, Boss turned all of the televisions on the walls to the royal consort ceremony broadcast.

“Which one do you think is the most handsome?” asked one patron to her friends.

They’d ordered a plate of loaded nachos to share. I carefully placed it in the center of their table.

Another girl spoke quickly. “Are you kidding? The others are cute, sure, but Nicholas is obviously the hottest.”

The other girls quickly agreed.

Startled, I hovered at their table. They were right, of course. Nicholas was the most objectively attractive, but to hear people talk about him so casually still surprised me.

For three days, I’d tried to reconcile in my mind that the Nicholas I had known was also the eldest prince of the kingdom. But I still couldn’t quite manage it.

Nicholas had always been proper. But a prince?

“Piper, is it?” one of the girls at the table asked me. I jumped, realizing I was still standing there. Yet before I could apologize, she asked me, “Which one do you think is the most handsome?”

“Nicholas,” came my automatic answer. “Excuse me.”

Embarrassed at having been caught daydreaming, I forced myself to focus on work. And I succeeded – until I heard Nicholas’ voice come from the speakers.

“The kind of woman I’d prefer?” Nicholas said. “Someone loyal. Strong. Even tempered. And she has to like to children.”

“Check, check, and check,” came a voice from the table of girls. “He’s describing me! It’s meant to be.”

“Dream on. He’s clearly describing me.”

“You don’t even like kids!”

we’ll see which of us make it through the preliminary selection. Then you’ll

hm? Does that mean we can expect you to have a big family,

gave a small smile, but his eyes were guarded. “It’s my

girls squealed in delight. “He’d

he was staring

My heart ached.

looking at the interviewer, and immediately, I felt foolish. Of course, he couldn’t

of me

over my heart, hoping

seen each other in three years. I couldn’t still be hung up on him. Sure, I hadn’t dated anyone else since, but that didn’t mean anything.

had Anna. I

a meal was ready. I went back to retrieve it. When I returned to the dining room, Nicholas

with the utmost seriousness. This illegal trade of wolves and their gifts is

plate of food in my

at once, all eyes on

continued, “The weakening of any one wolf, weakens the whole pack.

of the other waitresses hissed at

quickly set to cleaning it. As I did,

exhausted. After my accident, I pushed myself as hard as I could, focusing solely on work and forgetting

not once lift my eyes to the television again, not even when the table of girls bemoaned their

be on the list. Why even

closing, scrubbing dishes in the sink. After washing away a particularly stubborn clump of

he was the last to leave at night. But he was nowhere to

waitresses, who had said they would clean the dining room. The lights in

I was alone.

of hot air brushed the back of my exposed neck. The

cleaning, I immediately swung around, ready to knock Boss over the head with it. Anything to get

I was a moment too late. Boss had been expecting

onto the

hard to mine, wedging me against the lip

I was trapped.

the buttons of my shirt, revealing my lacey

against him. He only held tighter, rougher, fingers biting into my hip and

wolf, I didn’t have

Boss pressed his nose to my cheek. I felt him smile against my jaw. “You have a