Don't Poke the Luna (Xena and Ryder) novel Chapter 87

Chapter 87

“Ready, X?” Ama suddenly exclaimed, her excitement palpable.

“What?!”

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Ama executed a drift, stopping perfectly in front of William. The car suddenly accelerated, and I had to grip the handle tightly. “Ama, slow down!”

“Trust me, X!” Ama completely ignored my warning, fully immersed in her stunt.

The car continued gaining speed, William’s face becoming clearer, panic and confusion

spreading across his features. Just as he started to dodge left and right, Ama quickly turned the steering wheel. The car tilted nearly 30 degrees to complete a clean drift, stopping perfectly in front of William.

William and I both let out long sighs of relief.

“Hahaha!” Ama laughed heartily as she got out, tossing her backpack to William.

“How was her driving?” William asked me with a pained smile.

“My lunch is still safely in my stomach!” I joked. Curious about what Ryder had prepared, I quickly got out of the car and ran into the house without even saying goodbye to Ama.

“Traitor!” she called after me.

I blew her a kiss before disappearing through the door. I ran all the way to the bedroom, where I found Ryder just putting on his shirt.

“Hey!” I said, closing the door behind me.

“Why the rush?” he asked.

“Trying to escape Ama. I ratted her out to William. Her driving is terrible!” I laughed as I walked toward my luggage bag. But it was empty.

“Where are my clothes?” I asked, confused.

“In the closet, where they belong,” Ryder shrugged as if it wasn’t a big deal.

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4:18 pm f

Chapter 87

I stood up and walked to the closet, discovering all my clothes had been arranged inside

his wardrobe.

“What’s going on?” I said softly, a sudden, rush of complicated emotions swelling within

1. me.

“Logan did it. He had people move all your stuff over so you wouldn’t have to keep going back there. I had a maid organize everything.”

“Oh.” It was all I could manage, not knowing what else to say.

“You don’t like it?” Ryder asked, concern flickering in his eyes.

“…No, I mean, yes, it’s just, this might be…” I stammered, unable to form complete

sentences. “Yes, thank you.”

“This overwhelms you,” Ryder concluded.

“Yes.”

“You must not be confident about us being mates, but I am.” Ryder’s disappointment was

evident as he turned and walked out of the bedroom.

My heart sank, regret filling my chest. I felt terrible. I’d genuinely hurt him, though that

wasn’t my intention. Everything was moving so quickly, and I needed time to adjust, but I

never meant to reject or hurt him.

I grabbed my clothes and went to the bathroom to shower. The hot water scalded my skin

red.

My thoughts were a jumble. Ryder was my destined mate–deep down I acknowledged this, could feel the connection. But accepting a whole new life, a new identity, none of it was easy. I feared losing myself, being swallowed by this new world. Simultaneously, I craved the love, the sense of belonging. What did I want? Even I couldn’t articulate it clearly.

After my shower, I quickly dressed. I chose a pretty dress and took time with my hair and makeup. Nothing too fancy, but I wanted to look nice for Ryder. It was my way of apologizing, of showing I cared.

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Chapter 87