Chapter 9 - The Engagement Announcement

She could feel his touch again every time she closed her eyes. The warmth of his palm against hers, the less force in his voice when he said "It's done."

  She didn't like how it still hurt her heart.

  She was back in the present when she heard a small sound.   There were small steps in the hallway.

  "Mommy?"

  Aurora stood up.   Her son stood at the doorway, rubbing his eyes because he was tired. His hair was dirty from being in bed.   Leo, her whole world fits into a small body.

  She calmed down and whispered, "Hey, baby."   "What's wrong with you?"

  “I couldn’t sleep,” he said, crawling onto her lap.   “You were talking to yourself.”

  She smiled weakly.   “Mommy’s just tired, that’s all.”

  Leo looked at the open files on the floor, his small fingers brushing over one picture.   “Who’s that man? ”

  Aurora froze.

  It was a picture of Damon on an old magazine cover from before everything fell apart.

  Her chest tightened.   “He’s… someone I used to know.”

  Leo tilted his head, studying the picture.   “He looks angry.”

  Aurora tried to laugh, but her voice shook.   “He usually is.”

  Leo frowned, then pointed at the man’s eyes.   “But, Mommy… why does he have my eyes? ”

  The question hit her like a blade to the heart.   Her breath caught, her hand shaking against his small shoulder.

  She looked down at her son, the same storm-gray eyes, the same dark lashes, the same spark she’d once fallen in love with.

  “Leo…” she whispered, barely able to speak.

  He looked up at her, waiting, innocent and curious.

  Aurora’s voice broke as she forced a smile.   “It’s just a coincidence, sweetheart.   Now go back to bed.”

  Leo yawned and nodded, cuddling against her for a moment before shuffling down the hall.

  But Aurora didn’t move.

  She sat there long after he was gone, looking at Damon’s face in the photo, the same eyes that haunted her every dream.

  Her fingers brushed the picture, her voice barely noticeable in the quiet.

  “How long before he finds out the truth? ”

  A soft knock echoed from her back door.   Aurora turned, surprised that no one should be there.

  When she pulled the curtain aside, she froze.

  There, standing in the rain, was Damon.   His shirt wet, his eyes burning with questions and the distinct smell of wolf rage in the air.

  He held something in his hand.

  A small, worn baby band etched with the name LEO.

  Her blood ran cold.

  “Care to explain this? ”  he said, voice low and dangerous.

  And before she could speak, lightning split the sky lighting the storm that was about to destroy them both.

 The flash of a hundred cameras burned like lightning across her skin as Damon’s hand found hers.  For a heartbeat, Aurora forgot to breathe.  The world was watching again.  Only this time, she wasn’t the broken girl he’d refused.  She was the woman standing beside him… wearing his ring.

 The hall shimmered with gold and glass.  Chandeliers hung like stars, catching every whisper, every story, every flash of envy.  Reporters crowded the silk ropes, their voices merging in a storm of questions.

 “Miss Vale, is it true you’re marrying your former mate?”

 “Alpha Blackwood, when did you two rekindle your relationship?”

 “Are the rumors about the fake heiress connected to your engagement?”

 Aurora stood tall, her red gown flowing around her like fire.  Her heart raced beneath her calm mask.  Damon’s hand cinched around a quiet warning to hold her ground.

 He leaned close, his voice low enough for only her to hear.  “Smile.  They can smell fear.”

 She forced a perfect one.  “I’m not afraid,” she whispered back.  “Just disgusted.”

 “Then we’re even,” he said, his jaw tightening before he turned back to the cameras.  “Ladies and gentlemen,” he began easily, “it’s an honor to finally share our truth.”

 Our truth.  The words felt like poison.

 Aurora kept her chin high, every inch the confident Luna they wanted to see.  But inside, she was trembling not from nervousness, but from the memory of the last time they stood under bright lights.  The Moonstone Gala.  His rejection.  Her shame.

 The press exploded with flashes as Damon lifted her hand, the diamond ring catching the light like a blade.

 Aurora’s voice was steady, cold.  “This alliance marks a new era for Moonstone and Blackwood,” she said.  “Business. Stability. Strength.”

 Not love.  Never love.

 She repeated that in her head like a prayer.

 Across the hall, someone watched from the shadows.

 Hidden behind a layer of glass and moonlight, a woman in white hospital clothes gripped the tablet screen in her shaking hands.

 Celeste.

 Her nails dug into her hands as she watched the live show from her mental ward.  The nurses thought the shackles would stop her rage but nothing could cage the kind of hate that burned in her veins.

 “Luna Vale,” she whispered, eyes narrowing at Aurora’s glowing smile.  “You think you’ve won?”

 Her image in the glass smiled back, sharp, hollow, demented.

 “I’m still the one who knows your secrets.”

 Her laughter echoed through the clean rooms.

 Back at the hall, Aurora felt Damon’s gaze on her like heat.  She turned away, pretending to admire the crystal centerpiece, but his voice followed her softly.

 “You’re shaking.”

 “I’m not.”

 “You are.”

 She breathed slowly.  “I just don’t like pretending.”

 He moved closer, the faint smell of pine and danger surrounding her.  “Pretending is what keeps us alive, Aurora.”

 She turned sharply.  “You mean it keeps you in control.”

 His eyes darkened.  “Don’t start this here.”

 “Why not?” she hissed under her breath.  “You’ve already played the perfect mate for the cameras.  Why stop the act?”

 “Because this isn’t just an act,” he said quietly.

 Her pulse stuttered.  “What’s that supposed to mean?”

 He paused, then shook his head.  “Forget it.  Not here.”

 But she didn’t forget.  She couldn’t.

 Every word, every look, every controlled touch it all stirred something deep inside her that she’d hidden years ago.  Something she didn’t want to feel again.