The Rejected True Heiress (Liora and Callum) novel Chapter 350

Liora’s POV

“Liora, will you come out for lunch with me today?”

I stared up at Callum, so taken aback that, for a long moment, I forgot to answer.

The last time I had seen him was last night, when he was so drunk that he confessed everything about his private life and even asked me to spend the night with him. I assumed that, upon waking, he would regret all of it—just as he always regretted the intimate moments between us—and that things would return to normal. Our distance would return, and he would hate me again, and I would hate him. Hell, he would probably even get back together with Bianca.

But now here he was, in broad daylight, sober and smelling of peanut butter. None of what I had assumed had happened.

And to make matters worse, he was asking me out to lunch.

“Lunch. Like… As in… a date?” I squeaked. I immediately cringed at how small my voice sounded. I hated that he still had that effect on me, despite all of my painstaking efforts not to let that happen.

He nodded slowly and took another bite of his sandwich. His gaze never broke from mine as he chewed. His eyes were bright, reflecting the light of the morning sun, pale and shimmering faintly with threads of silver.

I stared up at him for a moment longer, not sure what to say to that offer. Of course, my first instinct was to say yes; this was a moment that a small part of me had never fully let go of hoping for, no matter how much I tried not to think about it.

It would be so easy to say yes, too. To fall into his arms, just as I’d secretly wanted to do for months now, and let the rest click into place like a lock to a box containing my heart.

He was done with Bianca, and he was asking me out now, even when he didn’t know about my title as princess.

For all intents and purposes, it should have been a dream come true. It was exactly what I’d wanted all this time—for Callum to choose me, on his own, without the weight of titles or duty. For him to take me back as his mate, so I could reveal my identity at last.

But a much bigger part of me knew I had to say no. For my own peace of mind and dignity, I couldn’t let myself get entangled with Callum again. Not after everything that had happened, all of the times he chose Bianca, all of the moments when he made it very clear that I was nothing more than a mistake.

As if the Moon Goddess could make a mistake when she placed two fated mates together.

No. No matter how much the hopeless romantic in me wanted to accept, I knew I couldn’t. I would only look back and regret it later in one way or another. He had hurt me badly for a long time, and his cruelty had made me lose my wolf, and a single invitation to lunch couldn’t fix that.

“I’m dating Zane,” I said firmly, pulling my shoulders back.

Callum looked at me. “But you and Zane aren’t mates. We were.”

“Yeah. Were. Until you decided to choose duty over the universe.” I adjusted my bag on my shoulder. “Sorry, Callum, but just because you broke up with Bianca and suddenly want me all to yourself doesn’t mean that I’m just going to forgive you and fall into your arms like some kind of… of… damsel in distress.”

Callum’s face tightened with each word, like he was holding back a flinch as each one hit him in the chest. Good. I hoped my words struck him where it mattered. Maybe then he would learn a lesson about how he treated people.

He opened his mouth as if to say something else, but then his expression darkened as he spotted something over my shoulder. I glanced over to see Zane striding across the quad with his hands in his pockets, grinning. Upon reaching me, Zane draped his arm around my shoulders and looked between me and Callum.

“Everything alright, you two?” he asked. On my other side, Mia was particularly quiet, although she was wringing her hands more than usual.

“Just peachy. I was just hoping you’d show up, actually,” I said.

Without a second glance at Callum, I let Zane guide me away, with Mia trailing alongside us.

“You’re not… bothered by that at all?” Mia asked quietly.

I shrugged. “It’s something I’ve known I’d need since I was a child.”

The look my friends gave me spoke volumes. I was a hypocrite for lecturing Callum about duty when I was about to do the same thing. But it was different for me; I was a princess with the fate of a kingdom weighing down my future crown. Furthermore, I would be sure to choose someone kind and practical. Even if I had been in Callum’s situation, I would never have chosen someone like Bianca.

I carefully folded the list, then put it back in my pocket.

“Look,” I said calmly, “I know how it looks. But that’s why I’m going to take my time with this—make sure I choose the right person. Someone who would actually treat me right, not someone who would only be with me based on title.”

There was that look again. They both knew exactly what I did: that there were very few people in the world who wouldn’t notice my title first, above all else.

I pretended not to notice.

“Anyway,” I went on, “I don’t have to make a decision until the end of the semester. So I have time. Then, hopefully my wolf will return, and I can reveal my identity.”

We all looked at each other then with a single shared thought.

The semester wasn’t really all that long.

And suddenly, the idea of choosing a new mate felt like a responsibility that I didn’t want on my plate.