The Rejected Luna (Avery and Kaden) novel Chapter 173

**Between the Wings of Twilight Lies the Memory of You**
by Liren Ava Roen

I stood there, completely paralyzed, my mind racing in disbelief. Steven had always been a man of words, a master of hollow promises, especially when it came to something as lowly and disgraceful as stealing someone’s phone. Such actions were beneath him; he would have scoffed at anyone who dared engage in such petty behavior.

Yet here he was, executing the theft with an effortless finesse that left me in awe.

My eyes widened in shock as I instinctively reached out for my phone. “Give me back my phone!” I exclaimed, my voice a mix of indignation and disbelief.

In a flash, his arm shot out, encircling my waist with a surprising strength, and he effortlessly pulled me onto his lap. I found myself tumbling onto his thighs, my face colliding with his chest. The steady, powerful rhythm of his heartbeat reverberated through me, a stark reminder of the proximity we now shared. In a moment of instinct, my hands flew to his shoulders for balance, creating a tableau that might have been mistaken for an intimate embrace. But beneath the surface, fury bubbled within me.

“Steven!” I shouted, my voice rising in protest.

He held me firmly against him with one hand, my waist securely locked in his grip, while the other hand deftly maneuvered my finger to unlock my phone. His gaze was fixed on the screen, his expression unreadable, as if the world around us had faded into insignificance. I was trapped, unable to push him away, my heart racing with frustration and fear. One hand pressed against his shoulder, while the other flailed in a desperate attempt to reclaim my phone.

“Steven, are you really acting like a child right now? What’s the point of unblocking yourself? The moment I get my phone back, I’ll just block you again! Give it to me!” My voice was a mixture of desperation and anger.

This wasn’t simply about him regaining access to my number; it was about the secrets lurking in my messages with Noah. The thought of him discovering that someone had agreed to take my divorce case sent a jolt of panic through me. If he found out, my carefully laid plans would crumble before they even had a chance to take flight.

His grip on my finger tightened, and suddenly, his voice turned hoarse, laced with an edge of command. “Zephyra, stop moving!”

At first, I ignored his command, but then I felt something hard pressing against me from beneath. My breath caught in my throat, and I looked up at him, confusion swirling in my mind.

His handsome face was taut, his dark eyes swirling with an intensity that felt almost palpable, like ink spilled across a canvas. They were filled with a mixture of frustration and something deeper, something that ignited a flicker of desire within me. My vibrant red dress stood out like a flame against the backdrop of his long black coat, and in that moment, we were a chaotic blend of emotions, the air around us thick with unspoken tension.

The atmosphere shifted in an instant, becoming almost unbearably hot.

I was taken aback. Why was he reacting to me like this, just as he had during those tumultuous years of our past life? Had he always harbored such feelings, and I had simply been too distant to notice during the early years of our marriage?

Biting my lip, I extended my hand toward him, desperation creeping into my voice. “Give me back my phone. And let me go.”

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