Eighth-Born Luna (Emily and Nathan) novel Chapter 142

Chapter 142

Emily’s POV

What if Declan’s mark ruins my chances of ever having Nathan’s children?

The thought made me feel completely sick.

“Jess… May I have a one word” I nudged Jessie away from the crowd, moving her toward the porch steps.

“Where do priestesses usually live?”

She blinked, it was clearly not the question she expected.

“Usually far away from packs,” she said, thinking it over. “Most stay up near the mountain temples or old sacred grounds.”

“And how can I get in touch with them?”

Jessie nodded. “They usually only come down when something major is about to happen.”

Like when I almost died, I noted to Nyx.

“Exactly,” my wolf muttered.

Jessie was watching me now, her eyes searching my face. “…Why are you asking?”

“I just need to look into something,” I said.

Jessie hesitated, then let out a soft sigh. “Then you’ll probably need Nathan’s help. There’s still a travel estriction outside pack territory,” Jessie reminded me, her voice softening. “Especially for you.”

I looked down at my drink. Yeah. Because outside these borders, was Declan’s rogues.

“Thanks,” I said.

But now the real problem was figuring out how to ask Nathan without making him panic.

ľ

By sunset, everyone had sat around the small firepit in Blake’s backyard. Flames crackled under the rising moon, nd fireflies drifted through the grass.

Marcus hadn’t let go of Poppy all evening.

Meanwhile, Blake and Kane were arguing about combat training again, with Jessie interrupting every five seconds

“If I were a warrior,” Jessie insisted, holding her chin high, “I’d destroy all of you.”

“You cried last week because a spider looked at you wrong in the bathroom,” Kane reminded her.

“That spider was huge, with such a hairy little tummy.”

J

J

1:40 pm P PTM

smiled, but my mind drifted right back to the dark. I thought about the girls. The ones who helped me escape.

‘Marcus…”

He looked over at me right away. “Yeah?”

I cleared my throat, forcing the words out. “I know we can’t bring their bodies back from the rogue castle… but I’d

ike to do something to honor the girls who helped save me.”

The laughter around the fire died out.

Marcus’s expression turned serious.

“We already held ceremonies for them in our pack,” he said quietly. “Their families believe wolves meet again ifter death. Either in the afterlife… or in another life. But I’m glad you remember them.”

“And Owen too,” I added softly.

I cut a quick glance toward Nathan. I knew mentioning Owen still hurt him in complicated ways, but this wasn’t

bout jealousy. It was about gratitude. And grief.

Nathan nodded slowly.

“We’ll organize a proper memorial procession in the next few days,” his voice stayed calm and steady. “Funeral ires for everyone we lost.”

Marcus lifted his bottle. “For the fallen.”

“For the fallen,” we echoed together.

No one clinked glasses. We just drank under the rising moon.

Much later, Nathan and I walked home together. The night air stayed warm, a soft breeze moving through the rees. Crickets chirped somewhere in the distance while moonlight spilled silver across the path beneath our feet.

୮

“Where’s Liam?” I asked finally. “I barely saw him today.”

The second the question left my mouth, I felt it. That sharp spike of anxiety from Nathan again. It flared up and

vanished, but I caught it anyway.

“He’s busy,” Nathan answered smoothly. “His mate visited today.”

I blinked, looking up at him. “Wait, Liam has a mate?”

Nathan laughed softly. “Yeah. You actually saw her once.”

“When?”

“At the council meeting.” His grin turned wicked. “You walked in on them making some very questionable life

choices inside a storage room.”

1:40 pm P PT

And then, another memory came rushing back. I pointed an accusing finger at him. “Wait. That was also the day I spilled coffee all over your shirt.”

Nathan smirked. “Oh, remember.”

“You made me take your shirt off.

“You seemed very interested in helping.”

‘Nathan!”

His laughter echoed warmly through the trees. I loved hearing that sound.

We hadn’t even reached the house yet when I finally gathered enough courage to ask the question that had been veighing on me all evening.

Nathan…”

He looked down at me, his lips twitching slightly. “Oh. Full name. This must be serious.” He squeezed my hand rently. “Go ahead.”

Damn him for making me nervous.

“Yeah,” I murmured.

His expression softened, his gaze locking onto mine. “Tell me, little moon.”

The warmth of his hand wrapped around mine, and suddenly this felt much harder to ask.

“I want to speak to a priestess.”

Nathan froze.

…Why?”

I looked away. I couldn’t tell him. Not yet. Not until I knew the truth myself.

“Please trust me,” I pleaded softly. “I just need answers.”

Nathan spent a long moment studying me. Thinking. Calculating. Worrying. Finally, he let out a slow breath.

‘…Okay.”

Relief washed over me. “Really?”

“I’ll ask one to come,” he said carefully. “But Emily… priestesses don’t obey Alpha orders. They only appear when hey decide something is important enough.”

“So they might refuse?”

1:40 pm P PTM

“They might ignore us completely. Nobody controls them.”

That sounded terrifying.

“That’s okay,” I said quickly. “Kust… ask.”

Nathan kept his eyes on me under the moonlight, searching my face. Like he knew there was something I still

wasn’t saying.

We walked into my room exhausted after the long day. I moved toward the dresser, already pulling my hair loose

while searching for my nightshirt.

Behind me, Nathan leaned against the doorframe, watching me.

“…Or,” he said, his voice dropping into a casual rumble, “you could sleep in my room tonight.”

I stopped what I was doing and turned around to face him. I had never been inside Nathan’s room before. Not

once.

*…Really?”

A slow smile spread across his face. “Really.”

I couldn’t stop my own smile from matching his. “Okay.”

The second the word left my mouth, Nathan pushed himself off the doorway and closed the distance between us. Before I could even react, he slid a thick arm beneath my knees and hoisted me effortlessly against his chest. I let out a soft laugh, my hands automatically locking behind his neck as he lifted me like I weighed nothing at all.

“I could live in your scent,” he muttered, his lips brushing the crown of my head as he inhaled deeply.

He carried me out into the hallway, where warm moonlight spilled through the tall windows across the floor. After a few steps down the corridor, Nathan stopped beside his door and pushed it open with his foot, bringing us inside.

His room was massive. Darker, warmer, and completely saturated with him. It smelled like clean cedarwood, fresh sheets, and pine from the forest outside. The walls were deep masculine shades of dark brown and forest green, but it was the huge bed in the center that caught my attention. It was draped in dark blankets with way too many pillows, looking entirely inviting.

The whole space managed to feel both overwhelming and perfectly safe at the same time.

Nathan lowered me gently onto the edge of the mattress, but he didn’t back away. He stayed right there, hovering

close.

“So?” he asked quietly, his dark eyes tracking my reaction. “What do you think?”

I looked around the room one more time before looking back up into his gaze. “I like it.” I glanced back toward the massive bed. “It’s cozy.”

Nathan’s expression softened, a raw, fierce look in his eyes. “Oh, little moon…” His thumb brushed gently along my cheek, his touch sending a shiver straight down my spine. “It’ll be even cozier with you in it.”

1:40 pm P PTM

He lowered me onto the bed gently but possessively. Stepping back, he slowly began to unbutton his shirt, his dark, hungry gaze locked onto mine.

I held my breath, completely mesmerized by his every move.

Nathan was dangerously handsome the living definition of a perfect Alpha. He had broad shoulders and a culpted chest covered in faint battle scars. His hard, chiseled abs featured a perfect happy trail that disappeared ow beneath his waistband. When he unbuckled his heavy belt and pulled it from the loops with a soft slide, my heart skipped a beat. Nathan dropped his pants, leaving him in only black boxers that tightly hugged his powerful,

nuscular thighs, emphasizing his impressive… dominance.

With a smooth, predatory grace, Nathan leaned over the bed, hovering above me. A wave of his hot, musky scent vashed over me, making my head spin. His heavy, warm body barely brushed against mine, but my skin was already

in fire.

“Let me do something,” he growled huskily, almost begging. A dangerous amber fire sparked in his wolf’s eyes.

“I… I don’t know,” I breathed out, my thoughts growing weak. “You remember… I have to stay a virgin to pass the

rials and get my full power. That is the Moon Goddess’s will.”

At the mention of the Goddess, Nathan exhaled sharply. His jaw ticked, his sharp jawline clenching as thick veins

opped on his strong arms.

“I remember that perfectly,” he spat through his teeth, fighting his own instincts. “And every damn night, I hold

nyself back with everything I have just to keep from taking you right here.”

I couldn’t stop a small, triumphant smirk. The power I had over this massive, dangerous man was intoxicating.

Noticing my smile, Nathan narrowed his eyes dangerously. He leaned down to my ear, his hot breath burning my

kin.

“Laugh all you want, little wolf. But when this is all over… I will give you pure heaven. You will be tossing and urning in these sheets, losing your mind from ecstasy, begging me not to stop. You will be so incredibly hot, it will

urt from how sweet it is. You will writhe wildly under my hands, taking all of me.”

୮

His low, vibrating voice sent a sharp shiver straight between my legs. Holding back was impossible.

“Nathan… I’m already burning,” I whispered pleadingly, arching my body toward his.