Wicked lessons from the Luna

To easy to please

*Rexton*

I have to quit engaging Luna Moonsdowne, but I find her so much more fetching than her sister. She isn't timid or shy, and she doesn’t retreat. But her eyes never sparkle and her lips never curve up into a genuine smile of joy; I have an irrational need to see both. Had she been as without guile as her sister when she had married Downie?

As we enter the park, I become aware of her slight stiffening as though she is bracing herself for a blow to her midsection. Surely she hasn’t avoided the park since her scandal. While Miss Halfmoon fairly sits on the edge of her seat, glancing around eagerly, striving to determine who might be in the vicinity, Luna Moonsdowne seemed to take great interest in the knot of my neck cloth.

I want her at ease again, and want her comfortable enough to challenge me. Which is ridiculous. She is not the one to whom I should direct my interest. If I am not careful, she is going to advise her sister to cast me aside immediately. That would prove disastrous for Miss Halfmoon. If the bachelors think I have dismissed the girl so easily after only one outing they aren’t likely to give her much credence as a possible wife. I need someone to take interest in her so I can pack up my courting manners.

I force myself to focus solely on her and to keep the conversation relatively neutral so the sister isn't interfering. We speak of flowers and fauna and whenever I can work in a laugh I make sure it carries on the wind to gents trotting by on fine horses or in speedy carriages. I keep my features relaxed, and a pleasant smile on my face, portraying a man on the verge of being forever smitten.

I am grateful Miss Halfmoon is occupied with taking in our surroundings and doesn’t seem particularly affected by my feigned interest. I might have been insulted by her lack of attention, except vanity has never been one of my shortcomings. I am actually glad she isn't likely to mistake my performance as true devotion.

I am rather certain, however, Luna Moonsdowne can read straight through my efforts and decipher them for what they are. If her eyes narrow any further, they will be as sharp as a finely honed blade and might slice into me.

Dear Goddess, but she is protective, and I can’t help but admire her for it. Those in my family have a penchant for caring for the less fortunate, for seeking justice, for striving for better living conditions. I can certainly see Luna Moonsdowne carrying on the tradition with a fierce determination. I suspect if she discovers my true purpose, she would flatten me with one solid punch. Or she would try. I envision closing my hand around her fist before it meets flesh, drawing her in, and claiming her mouth until I have worked us both into a fevered tempest.

We have been driving through the park for nearly half an hour before it dawns on me that no one has stopped to speak with me. I become aware of gawks, glares, and frowns. We are garnering attention, but not the sort that serves any good. I consider suggesting we stop and stroll through the green, but Miss Halfmoon has begun to fidget as though taking note of the occasional glower. Unlike her sister, who holds her head high and occasionally stares someone down.

"It's rather warm today," I say casually. "I believe I've had enough of the park. What of you, Miss Halfmoon?"

"It does seem a bit unwelcoming." She mumbles.

I lean toward her. "People are jealous of my horses."

Her green eyes grow as round as saucers. "Truly?"

No, but still I nod. "A few of the gents and I have on occasion raced. I always win. Not everyone is a good sport about it."

"Would you be a good sport if you lost?"

I grin. "Probably not. I have a very competitive nature. I prefer to win."

"To be quite honest, I can't imagine you losing."

"On occasion, I have. It keeps me humble and inspires me to work all the harder."

"This is you being humble?" Luna Moonsdowne asks.

I grin at her because it seems to irritate her when I do. "Decidedly so."

With a roll of her eyes, she directs her attention back to the greenery. I would love to engage her in a match of wits.

"I don't believe I've ever competed in anything," Miss Halfmoon laments.

"You don't see seeking a mate as a competition?" I ask.

She shakes her head, furrows her brow. "No. I wouldn't go after a gent whom another Luna wanted."

"Have you not heard there are no rules in love?"

"There are always rules, my Alpha. At least in my mind. Things I would not do for gain."

"Admirable." I instruct my driver to start back to Moonsdowne Court.

Miss Halfmoon sighs. "I believe, Tillie, I understand why you go riding in the park in the morning before anyone is about."

"It's much cooler then, Gina. My horse prefers it."

And I imagined she does as well. That she is always striving to protect her sister from the truth of her dire situation: she is loathed among my peers.

We speak very little on the journey back. When the driver pull the carriage to a stop in the drive, I leap out and extend my gloved hand to Luna Moonsdowne. After a hesitation, she places hers in it with assurance and certainty. Nothing delicate there, nothing that would break easily.

I had noticed it when I handed her up into the carriage, the way her warmth seeped through the kidskin to become part of my flesh. We are in close proximity as she descends the three steps to the ground and yet an immeasurable distance separates us, as though a wall surrounds her, one that can not be climbed over or breached.

She holds herself apart, and I wonder if she had done the same in her husband's bed.

After releasing her, I assist Gina. I might as well be handing down a doll for all the effect she has upon me. Nothing vibrates between us. No heat arce. No awareness sparks. I would think I had one foot in the grave if it weren't for the fact my reaction to Luna Moonsdowne is so strong and unwavering.

She marches ahead toward the door, while Gina lags behind, smiling up at me, her eyelashes fluttering as though she is striving to dislodge a speck of ash that has settled into the corner of

her eyes. She truly is too unknowing for me. Her sister has the right of it there, but I want access to Black Diamond more than I want to breathe.

"May I have a word in private, Miss Halfmoon?" I ask quietly, and yet Luna Moonsdowne hears me. Her back goes ramrod straight when I had thought it could go no straighter, and her slender shoulders stiffen as though someone has just walked over her grave, causing a shudder to course through her. She swings around, her features set in an impermeable mask.

"Keep it short," she orders sharply before proceeding into the residence. Not ten seconds later, the butler steps out, standing at attention, his gaze boring into me as though he suspects me of being up to no good. Not too far from the truth there.

Again I find myself wondering what about the man had appealed to the Luna. He is tall, trim, dark-haired, but his features are so bland he wouldn't be noticed in a crowd of two.

Does he possess a sense of humor? Did he cause her to laugh? Did he recite poetry in a mesmerizing cadence? Did he...

"My Alpha?"

I look down to find the girl gazing up at me expectantly. Right. My focus is supposed to be on the younger sister, not the elder.

"I had a lovely time, my Alpha," she says with a sweet voice I can’t imagine screaming out my name in rapture.

Why am I even considering these thoughts, comparing her to other she-wolves I have known, to her sister whom I don’t, when I have no plans whatsoever to carry this courtship through to fruition? "As did I. I wondered if you might care to join me in my box tomorrow evening."

Her smile withers, and her brow furrows. "Your box? You live in a box?"

Is she serious? I hadn't judged her to be daft, but then neither have I truly conversed with her about anything complicated or of importance. I offer a teasing grin. "I have a box at the theater."

Her smile grows brighter, her eyes sparkling like jewels caught by the sunlight. "At the theater! I so love the theater! I'd be delighted to attend with you."

"Do you think your maid's migraine will have vanished by then?"

"I'm rather certain of it."

I don’t know why I am disappointed by the notion. Not having her sister about would make it easier to achieve my goal. "Then I shall be here tomorrow at half past seven." I take her hand and press a kiss to the back of her gloved knuckles. "I look forward to it, Miss Halfmoon."

"In spite of what my sister says, I do wish you would call me Gina."

I smile. "My manners, it seems, are difficult to cast aside, which would no doubt please my mother to no end."

"You are funny, my Alpha."

She is far too easy to please. "Until tomorrow, Miss Halfmoon." I give a brisk nod to the butler before striding to my carriage, leaping into it, and settling onto the leather bench. My driver immediately sets the pair of horses to a trot.

I am tempted to glance back to see if Luna Moonsdowne is gazing out a window, but I don’t want to give her the satisfaction of knowing she is on my mind. I need to quickly find someone for Miss Halfmoon so I am free of her and have met my part of the bargain. Before her older sister drives me to distraction.