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!”

us make

“Children, hm? Does that mean we can

“It’s my duty as a prince to continue the lineage. But, yes,

squealed in delight. “He’d make such a

the camera, and for a moment, it seemed as if he was staring straight

My heart ached.

off to the side again, looking at the interviewer, and immediately, I

me at all since

my heart, hoping to soothe away the touch of pain

with me? We hadn’t 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.

lonely. I had Elva, and I had Anna. I didn’t need romance to be

kitchen, signaling a meal was ready. I went back to retrieve it. When I returned to the dining room, Nicholas was still on the screen,

market is something that the royal family is investigating with the utmost seriousness. This illegal trade of wolves and their gifts is dangerous for every person

plate of

at once, all

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

one of the other waitresses hissed at me, waking me

stood among ceramic shards and ruined food. “I’m sorry.” I quickly set to cleaning it. As I

After my accident, I pushed myself as

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

be on the list.

dishes in the sink. After washing away a particularly stubborn clump of food from a plate, I

always, he was

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

I was alone.

the back of my exposed

to knock Boss over the head with it. Anything to get

too late. Boss had been expecting the

the

his hips hard to mine, wedging me

I was trapped.

hand ripped open the buttons of my shirt, revealing my lacey white bra.

go.” Panic swelling within me, I struggled against him. He only held tighter, rougher, fingers biting into my hip

didn’t have the strength to

wolf-less.” Boss pressed his nose to my cheek. I felt him smile against my jaw. “You have a child, after