Second Chance for the Barren Luna (Talia and Jason) novel Chapter 17

CHAPTER SEVENTEEN

Talia’s POV

Viki clutched her swollen belly like a shield. “Jason, please,” she whimpered. “You have to save me. They’re treating me like a rogue. This is not healthy for our pup!”

Jason looked torn, his gaze flicking from Viki’s tear–streaked face to Solon, who stood stone–faced beside me. Just as Jason opened his mouth to speak, Solon spoke. “Is this how you allow her to slander others at will, Alpha Jason?”

“No, Prince Solon,” Jason muttered.

“Jason, I didn’t do anything. You have to believe me!” Viki sobbed.

“We heard everything, Viki. You’re not here because of Lady Talia. You’re here because you lied and slandered a royal guest,” Prince Solon stated.

Viki looked hopeless for a split second before she whirled on me. Her eyes were filled with hatred as she hissed, “You planned this! You set me up!”

Solon sneered at Viki’s audacity. “And it seems that you still don’t understand the severity of the situation.”

I rolled my eyes. “Don’t flatter yourself, Viki. You made that post all on your own. I didn’t tell you to slander me.”

“You knew I would be arrested, that’s why you taunted me at the banquet!” Viki argued.

“I did not taunt you. In fact, I told you to wait for Alpha Jason and you would be let into the banquet, but you didn’t want to hear the reason,” I clarified.

“No! No! This was your plan all along. You knew we would come and…”

“Just stop it, Viki,” I snapped, cutting her off. “When are you going to accept that this is the consequence of your actions? For the record, I had no idea you were arrested until Prince Solon notified me. Nor did I know Alpha Jason would be here tonight.”

Then Jason inhaled, his jaw clenched, as he dropped down onto one knee to kneel in front of me. “Please release her,” he said stiffly. “Viki just… acted out because she was provoked.”

I blinked, stunned. “Provoked?” I repeated. “When did I provoke her?”

His voice was low, almost ashamed. “You shouldn’t have worn that necklace in front of her. You knew it would upset her. The hormones got the best of her.”

I frowned as I looked at him in disappointment. Again, against all logic, Jason was choosing her over me. It was shameful.

“Am I supposed to believe that having a baby makes you a terrible person?” I asked.

Jason couldn’t even meet my eyes. The sight of him kneeling in front of me made something in me snap. Whatever was left of my feelings that I had for Jason had disappeared the moment he chose to excuse her cruelty. This was no longer the man I fell in love with.

VERIFYCAPTCHA_LABELVerify