The two women turned their heads to stare at each other. The show continued, lights flashed, music played, everything continued on around them. Honor’s eyes were a little hard now, the light tone had left her voice too.“You know it has to be,” Honor added.They stared at each other a minute more, and then they both turned to look towards the stage again.“Turns out that was all the incentive Jess needed,” Honor continued, the hardness that left her voice again. “She designed most of these outfits here.”Luna knew Honor hadn’t meant for her to hear it, probably because she didn’t know it herself, but Luna heard the note of subtle pride in Honor’s voice anyway as she talked about her employee’s work.“They are impressive,” Luna said, referring to the designs.“They are,” Honor agreed. The two women didn’t say anything for a while.“Justin and I are happy,” Honor finally said. She turned to look at Luna, Luna looked at her too. “I know you will say that is none of your business
Maybe it was the emotional stress of her morning at Honor’s company, or the equally emotionally taxing conversation and ride with Rita back to her own company, Luna wasn’t sure what it was, but she found herself feeling dogged and tired throughout the rest of the workday.She tried to get through meetings and conference calls, her schedule, which was pretty standard for a usual workday, had seemed daunting and way too long. It was as if the day had been dragging its feet and the hours had been creeping and crawling till she was sure time was standing still. Luna rubbed a hand over the back of her neck to ease the tension there. She didn’t know why she was feeling so tired, she hadn’t done anything strenuous or taxing throughout the whole day. She let out a tired sigh and placed her head on the headrest of the backseat of her car as Matt finally drove her home later that night. She closed her eyes, emptying her mind of any thought. It was a relaxation technique she had learnt from
Luna was still thinking ‘oh shit’ as the next day rolled in. She rolled out of bed, she hadn’t slept well. Tossing and turning, her mind had been filled with the very huge possibility that followed her missing period. She could be pregnant.“Oh God,” Luna muttered to herself as she made her way to her bathroom.Dressing up and getting ready for the day became mechanical. Her mind carefully blank, she brushed her teeth, got unto the shower, showered, got out. Still acting on auto, she dried herself, picked out her outfit for the day, got dressed, accessorized. Because of years and years of doing it, she applied her makeup still without thinking about it, a light, breezy makeup. She put her hair in place, applied finishing touches, and finally ready for the day, she stared at herself in the mirror of her vanity dresser.“Oh God,” she muttered again as she felt a flutter in her belly.She knew it was just nerves and probably just the result of her unsettled stomach, but the thought
Flashback. Luna’s heartbeat picked up as she heard footsteps outside the door. He’s home. She brushed nervously at her lap, all of a sudden feeling lightheaded, the tingles in her fingertips ran up her arms and straight up to her head. She could still hear his footsteps in the hallway. She hadn’t known him long, she’s barely known him all of twenty-four hours, and yet she knew his footsteps. She didn’t know why she knew that, and at the moment, with her heart thumping loudly in her chest, she couldn’t find the space to ask herself why, she just accepted it. Besides, the mansion was quiet with all the staff already gone, the head of the staff had come to tell her good night before she left, she was the last one to go. So she knew she was the only one in the house, she and the footsteps. Which was Justin’s. As the footsteps sounded closer to the room, the sound of Luna’s heartbeats increased with it. Finally, he got to the room, he paused and Luna couldn’t hear anything fo
Present day.Dazed, Luna walked out of the hospital, she made her way towards the car. Matt rolled down the window as she leaned down to talk to him.“Everything okay?” he asked as he studied her face.Luna nodded and swallowed. “Hmm hmm,” she murmured. “I’ll need you to go on though.”Matt’s eyebrows jumped up as he stared at her. “Go on?” he asked.“To the office,” Luna clarified. “I need to go somewhere, and I’ll go there by myself,” she added before Matt could say he would take her.Matt stared at her for a couple of seconds. “Are you sure you’re okay?” he asked again.Luna smiled. “I am, really.” And then when he just continued to stare at her, Luna’s smiled bloomed even more beautifully for his concern. “Matt, I’m fine. It’s good news,” she bent enough to say. She could give him that little tidbit. “I can’t tell anyone about it yet, but it’s good news. Really good news.”Matt stared at her for a few more seconds, and then apparently content with what he saw on her face,
Two hours later, Luna stared at the closed elevator doors as it moved up to Justin’s office. When she had finally gotten to her office after leaving her father’s graveside, and Jaden had told her the first thing on her schedule for the day was a meeting with Justin, Luna couldn’t believe her ears.And it wasn’t just any meeting either, it was a one-on-one, that is, just she and Justin. In his office. Alone. Luna shook her head again as the elevators continued to glide up seamlessly. It was like fucking fate was deliberately messing with her. Or karma, everyone knew she was a bitch. But Luna couldn’t think of what despicable act she might have committed in the near past that warranted this sort of mega payback.Then again, it could just be coincidence, Luna thought to herself. It didn’t necessarily have to mean that some existential force was at play here. It could just be coincidence that on the same day she found out she was carrying her ex-husband’s baby- her ex-husband who appa
The door opened and Moira walked out. Her steps faltered as she saw Luna standing there. For a few minutes, the two women stood, staring at each other. And then Moira’s eyes narrowed as she saw in Luna’s eyes that she had heard everything that had been said.Luna stood, braced for whatever scathing comment she could see gathering up in Moira’s eyes, but surprisingly, Moira said nothing. Instead, she just gave Luna one last fulminating glare before she walked past her and out of the office. Luna could swear she actually felt the chill as Moira passed her on her way to the elevators.“Wow,” Luna muttered to herself as the doors closed on Moira.She made her way towards Justin’s office, she hesitated for just a second before knocking lightly on the door.“Come in,” was the short reply from Justin inside his office.Luna opened the door and walked in. She watched as Justin’s eyes widened as he saw her. He stood, his eyes never leaving her face. And Luna got a flash from from her firs
Back in her office, Luna leaned back in her chair and closed her eyes as she let the residual feeling from her meeting with Justin slide away. She hadn’t allowed herself to break down, not in front of him. Not even while she was still in his company, and not even on the ride back to the her company. She knew she couldn’t have afforded to have even a little chink in her armor, or a crack in her facade until she got back to her own office.It had been harder than Luna had thought it would be to sit across from Justin and keep the secret she was now keeping from him. That moment they had had before she shut it down had made it harder.In those few seconds when Justin’s fingers had trailed lightly across her face, Luna had had a glimpse of the idea of the man she had wished Justin to be while they had been married. The man she had wished with all her heart that he would grow to be.Within a few weeks into their marriage, Luna had known that her husband was not a fairytale storybook k