All Chapters of The Luna He Never Deserved: Chapter 21 - Chapter 30

Aurelia’s POVThe first thing I noticed when I reached the small workroom that morning was the box sitting in the middle of my desk.It definitely hadn’t been there when I left yesterday.I slowed beside the chair and glanced around the room, half expecting whoever had put it there to still be nearby. The box was pale cream, tied with a narrow red ribbon, and someone had tucked a folded napkin beneath one corner to keep it from sliding.I set my bag down and loosened the ribbon.Warm bread, eggs, fruit and something sweet filled the room as soon as I lifted the lid. Whoever had packed it had taken far too much care arranging everything, curving the pieces of fruit and bread around the centre until the entire breakfast formed an unmistakable heart.I stared at it for a few seconds before reaching for my phone.There were only a handful of people I could imagine doing something like this, and most of them had spent the last few days trying to feed me whenever I walked into a room.I ope

Aurelia’s POV“You know her?”I didn’t answer immediately.My fingers remained against the edge of the desk as a familiar perfume drifted in from the corridor.Jasmine.A second later, Rosalie appeared in the doorway. She took one step inside before noticing me, and whatever practiced expression she had prepared vanished.“Aurelia?”For once, I seemed to have surprised her.My eyes dropped to the intake folder Hobbs had left on the desk.Rosalie Hale.The name had been sitting there the entire time. I simply hadn’t looked closely enough before Hobbs called it.Rosalie recovered first. Her gaze travelled over my blue lanyard, the folder in front of me and the examination chair beside the wall before returning to my face.Then she gave a small laugh.“What are you doing here?”Hobbs looked between us, clearly sensing something beneath the question. “I’ll give you two a moment.”“There’s no need.” I picked up the folder and gestured toward the chair. “Please sit.”Rosalie’s smile faded s

Aurelia’s POVOnly after Rosalie disappeared around the corner did I realise I had been holding my breath.I let it out slowly, trying to release some of the tension with it, but before I could properly settle, a hand came down on top of my head.I looked up just as Evander patted my hair once.“That’s my girl.”I knocked his hand away. “I’m twenty-six.”“And I missed twenty-three years,” he replied without the slightest shame. “I have catching up to do.”Soren laughed beside us, but the sound died almost immediately when Evander turned his head and looked at him.I pressed my lips together.I nearly felt sorry for Soren.Nearly.Evander seemed perfectly satisfied with whatever he had accomplished because he turned back to me as though nothing had happened. “I’m going to find whoever runs this place.”The words immediately put me on alert. “Evander.”“Relax. I’m not buying you a promotion.”“That wasn’t what I thought.”“It was absolutely what you thought.”He glanced toward the corri

Darius’s POVThe heat from Aurelia’s palm spread slowly across my cheek.For several seconds, nobody moved. The nurses’ station had gone quiet behind her, and even the people passing through the corridor had slowed enough to make it obvious they were listening.Aurelia lowered her hand.She wasn’t shaking.That bothered me more than the slap.Five years ago, she would have been horrified by what she had done before her hand even came down. She would have looked around, worried about who had seen, then started explaining herself before anyone had the chance to ask.Now she simply stood in front of me and looked as though I had finally managed to say something she could no longer forgive.Soren shifted slightly closer to her.My wolf reacted immediately, but I forced him down.“Aurelia.”“No.” Her answer came before I could say anything else. “You don’t get to come here, insult my work and then say my name like that fixes it.”“I didn’t say your work was—”“You asked which man bought it

Aurelia’s POVI read Darius’s message four times before answering it.Grandmother wants you here for the Moon Goddess Festival. Stay through the festival with her, and when it’s over, I’ll sign the dissolution agreement.There was no apology beneath it and no explanation for why he had suddenly decided that the papers he once treated like a threat were now something he was willing to sign.Just a bargain.I should have hated that more than I did, but instead I found myself staring at the final line until my thumb tightened around the phone.He would sign.That was all I needed.I typed one word.Agreed.Then I put the phone facedown on the table before I could reconsider it.~~ ~Grandmother opened the door before I finished knocking.“My girl.”Her arms were around me a second later, and I closed my eyes as I hugged her carefully, breathing in the familiar mixture of soap, flour and the lavender powder she had used for as long as I could remember.“You missed your birthday visit,” sh