Shattered Moonlight (Maeve and Dominic) novel Chapter 96

Chapter 6

The next day, Kael’s pounding on the door hit like a thunderstorm rattling the frame.

I yanked it open, and there he stood under the dim, flickering porch light, chest heaving clutching that rain–soaked

cardboard box I’d tossed in the trash.

Talia! His voice was raw, ragged “What the hell’s gotten into you?”

I tilted my head, letting him get a good look at the ugly handprint on my left cheek. The bruise had spread, purple finger marks blooming like a brand of shame seared into my skin.

Kael’s eyes widened, his pupils shrinking to pinpoints.

“You…” His voice cracked, hand hovering near my face, fingers trembling before they froze midair. I didn’t hit you that

hard…

I let out a cold, bitter laugh, stepping back from his touch.

Once upon a time, I’d hold up a paper cut to him, pouting, “Kael, kiss it better!”

He’d roll his eyes, call me a ‘drama queen,” then gently slap a Band–Aid on with exaggerated care.

That same guy gave me this bruise.

Kael stared, floored by the ice in my gaze–something he’d never seen before.

I’m sorry, Talia, I didn’t mean it.” He stumbled over his words, desperate. “I thought you were picking on her…on

purpose, and I just… I lost it.”

I cut him off, my voice flat as steel. “Since you’re here, let’s make it clear: we’re done.”

“Kael, from now on, don’t speak to me like we still have something. We’re not. If we pass each other on the street, keep

walking. And don’t ever show up at my door like this again.”

His eyes flinched, like I’d slapped him. The night crept in between us, painting his silhouette in cold, jagged blue.

“Get lost,” I said, leaning against the doorframe, voice barely above a whisper.

He blinked, confusion twisting his face. “Is this about me sticking up for Riley? Or the slap?”

His eyes churned with something I couldn’t read–hurt, maybe, or anger. Since when did you get so damn cruel. Talia?”

“Kael,” I said, prying his fingers off the doorframe one by one, “it’s not just the slap. It’s you choosing the person who

humiliated me over me.”

The porch light flickered and went out, leaving us into darkness.

In that split second before the shadows swallowed us, I caught the red rimming his eyes.

For a moment, he was that kid again–the one who’d take a punch for me, grin through the blood, and say. “Doesn’t even

Chapter 6

hurt.”

Kael stood frozen, the box slipping from his grip and hitting the ground with a dull thud. A single glass star rolled out,

catching the faint light in a fractured shimmer.

His face hardened, like he didn’t recognize the girl in front of him.

He’d seen me cry, seen me laugh, seen me whine and pout–but never like this. Cold as ice, my eyes sharp enough to out

“Talia, I didn’t mean it,” he rasped, his throat bobbing. “I was pissed, I wasn’t thinking-

I shook my head. “I don’t want to hear it.”

The night wind blew over, tearing my last words apart. “Kael, don’t come looking for me again.”

He grabbed my wrist, his grip so tight it felt like my bones might crack. His eyes burned, wild and red, like a cornered

wolf ready to snap.

“Seriously?” he growled, teeth gritted. “One slap, and you’re throwing away twenty years? Talia, when did you turn into

VERIFYCAPTCHA_LABELVerify