Alpha's Discarded Luna (Talia) novel Chapter 24

Chapter 24

Talia’s POV

Raymond’s gaze shifts to the female reporter who screeched about me hitting her. His eyes, usually a pale gold, seem to darken, turning the color of cold, aged whiskey.

“Do you seriously dare to question my judgment?”

The woman’s mouth opens, but clearly, she can’t find the appropriate words to respond.

Her face pales, taking an involuntary step back as if she has been pushed back by the weight of his gaze.

I have noticed something about Raymond. He doesn’t shout, simply because he doesn’t need to.

His presence alone is like a suffocating blanket, snuffing out the oxygen from a person’s lungs.

He looks down at my swollen ankle, then back at my face. “You need medical attention right now.”

He leaves no room for argument. Before I can protest, his arms slide under me and he lifts me like a child, cradling me against his chest.

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Somehow, nothing about this feels even remotely romantic. Maybe because the relationship between us is professional enough to erase all doubts, or maybe because he treats me so robotically, like he’s just solving a problem and nothing more than that.

A new voice slices through the chaos, crisp and cold as shattering ice. “Oh, my! What a dramatic scene.”

Every head, including Raymond’s, turns.

Aires stands at the edge of the restaurant’s portico, the moonlight washing over him like silver frost. Imema is a pale shadow at his side. His eyes sweep over the scene as a sardonic smile lifts his perfect lips.

The reporters who were fleeing freeze in their place, caught between two terrifying forces. “Alpha Perseus!”

Imema speaks in her fake gentle tone, like she is constantly running out of breath.

“Please, everyone… the rumors are so cruel! You really shouldn’t harass Miss. Talia like this…”

They notice her and a hungry light flickers in their eyes, but just one look from Aires extinguishes it.

ve,” Aires commands, glaring in their direction. I

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Chapter 24

They don’t hesitate this time. They scatter like cockroaches under a sudden light, vanishing into the night without a backward glance.

Silence descends, thick and heavy. The only sound is the distant hum of the city.

Aires’s gaze is locked on me, specifically on Raymond’s arms around me. A chill radiates from him, deeper than the night air. His voice is flat, absolute. “Get down.”

3

Being held is awkward, exposing. I don’t want Raymond dragged into this any deeper. “Please, put me down,” I whisper to him.

Raymond ignores Aires completely, his focus on me. “Your ankle needs attention. The hospital is the priority.”

Aires takes a step forward. His eyes, fixed on my face, are no longer just cold. They are black pools of something violent and possessive I’ve never seen in him before. He enunciates each word like a hammer strike. “Talia. Get. Down.”

He’s always been controlled, his emotions locked behind a wall of ice. This… this is different. This is a crack in the glacier, and what’s seeping out is terrifying.

When I don’t move-partly because Raymond isn’t letting me,

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Chapter 24

partly from sheer shock-Aires moves. He strides forward, closes the distance in three steps, and his hand clamps around my upper arm like a steel manacle. He yanks.

Raymond, caught off-balance with me in his arms, can’t effectively block him without dropping me. I’m wrenched frotn Raymond’s hold and slammed onto my injured foot. A white-hot bolt of agony shoots up my leg. I cry out, stumbling.

Aires’s grip on my arm is the only thing keeping me upright, but it’s a cruel support. He turns to drag me away.

Another hand closes around my other wrist, stopping our

momentum.

Aires goes still. He turns his head slowly, his glare shifting from me to Raymond. His voice is pure, distilled venom. “Let. Her. Go.”

Raymond doesn’t release me. He meets Aires’s fury with a lazy, unimpressed smile. “I believe that’s my line.”

“Who the hell do you think you are?” Aires snarls, the Alpha power in his voice making the air vibrate.

Raymond’s smile widens, but it doesn’t reach his cold, golden eyes. “That’s irrelevant to you and me, both. The only relevant question is what Talia wants.”

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He looks down at me, his tone softening.

“Lia? Do you want to go with him?”

He’s baiting him by using the nickname and stoking the fire burning in his heart.

My gaze flicks past Aires to Imema, who stands watching with wide, concerned eyes. Were they here to have dinner together?

Of course they were. Aires probably got to know that I was bailed out and was here. That’s probably why he brought her to see the show and witness my final humiliation.

The thought is a final nail in the coffin of any feeling I had left.

I don’t look at Aires, focusing my attention on Raymond instead, My voice is hoarse but clear. “My ankle is sprained. Mr. Capaldi, please take me to the hospital.”

୮

Satisfaction glints in Raymond’s eyes. “Of course. No need for such formality.”

Aires’s expression shifts from fury to something like stunned, cold disbelief. “Talia,” he says, the name a condemnation. “Don’t tell me you’ve actually entangled yourself with this… person.”

Disgust, sharp and clean, washes over me. I meet his gaze Hnally, my own eyes flat.

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“Alpha Perseus,” I say, the title a weapon. “How amusing. I have no entanglement’ with Mr. Capaldi. He provided assistance when I needed it. I bought him a meal in thanks. In your mind, does a simple meal constitute an affair?” I let my gaze slide meaningfully to Imema, then back to him. “Or is it that you assume everyone operates by your own flexible standards of loyalty? Or should I call them non-existent?”

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Alpha’s Discarded Luria