The Sickened Luna's Last Chance novel Chapter 282

Chapter 282

Chapter 282

Ella’s POV

+25 BONUS

When they announced that Anya and I had placed in the top three, I couldn’t help the smile that broke across my face. Anya whirled toward me and threw her arms around my neck once we stepped into the corridor, squealing.

“We did it, Stella! Well, you did it. You looked so beautiful in your dress-

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“No.” I pulled back and pinched her cheek. I thought I caught a glimpse of Alexander standing off to the side, but when I looked over, he was gone. “You’re the one who made the beautiful dress. Not only that, but you got all those custom orders and even a promotion offer from the Alpha. You should be proud.”

Anya’s smile was infectious as she bounded off to speak to Hunter about her potential promotion. I was so busy watching her go that I didn’t notice Liam walking up to me until he said, “How about that drink?”

I turned to Liam and felt my heart soar. I knew I should have said no, but without thinking, I nodded and replied, “That would be nice.”

I only realized what I had done after Liam started smiling and guiding me toward the exit with his hand on my lower back. I’d been riding so high on today’s success and Anya’s happiness that I hadn’t even thought twice about going out with Liam.

I would just have to be careful, that was all.

We headed to the bar together, making small talk about the charity event and the Luna Trial. Liam told me about his work with the Alpha Council, traveling between territories to mediate disputes and oversee pack governance. I told him about taking care of Lucien, keeping the details vague enough that I wouldn’t accidentally reveal anything about the curse.

Finally, we arrived at the dive bar downtown. We found a booth in the corner and ordered our drinks, listening as a musician played the piano and sang near the front of the establishment.

“So,” Liam said once the bartender had delivered our drinks, “tell me more about yourself. I feel like I barely know anything about you, and yet… you remind me so much of Ella.”

I stiffened, and Liam’s face paled. “I’m sorry if that’s weird. I know you’re your own person and everything.”

Right… About that… If only he knew.

“It’s fine,” I said, forcing a smile. “I know Ella and I shared some… physical similarities.”

“But I actually do want to hear about you,” Liam said.

But “talking about myself” meant more lying, and I feared I would say too much; so I tried to keep the conversation like and focused on topics like books and movies, not personal information.

And yet, as the drinks flowed, no matter how much I tried to steer the conversation away from myself, it didn’t work. The alcohol loosened my tongue and made me slip into that easy camaraderie we used to share. Maybe I would occasionally squeal like I used to about shared interests, or make a joke that I’d made a hundred times before as a kid.

It was so stupidly easy to forget that I wasn’t supposed to be Ella right now. That I wasn’t supposed to know the boy who had been my best friend in the entire world as a child.

“This is so weird,” he slurred after we’d ordered our third round. “I feel like I’ve known you forever. Like we’re old friends catching up instead of two people who just met a few weeks ago.”

My chest ached. “Maybe we were friends in a past life or something,” I joked. Liam didn’t laugh.

“Maybe.” Liam’s eyes met mine, full of meaning and tenderness.

Oh no…

1/4

Chapter 282

+25 BONUS

I knew that look. He’d given it to me before on a few occasions–back when he first reentered my life and declared his love for

1. me.

Some old flames never fully died out, I supposed. Especially not when those old flames were buried six feet under and a new one just happened to flicker to life in the eyes of someone who resembled her far too much for comfort.

I cleared my throat and stood, suddenly feeling my chest constrict painfully as a tide of emotion threatened to overwhelm me. I needed some ait.

“I’ll be right back,” I said, forcing a smile. “Just going to use the restroom.”

Liam nodded and leaned back in his seat, and I hurried away. There were two drunk girls crying in the bathroom when I arrived, but they left soon after that, leaving me alone in there.

I took a deep breath and leaned against the sink, steadying myself. One too many drinks was making me sway slightly, and when I looked into the mirror, my face blurred.

And for a moment, just a moment, I didn’t see Stella. I saw Ella. I saw my old hair, my old eyes, my old face, my old body.

I saw the woman that Liam saw.

Tears blurred my vision, and I had to look away before I grew too attached. Ella was dead–that old version of me was gone, whether anyone wanted her to be or not.

And although my friend was sitting just outside that door, thinking he had a second chance at love with the woman who looked like her, that was all I was.

A woman who looked like her.

Not her.

I wanted to slap Liam and tell him to pull his head out of his ass. I wanted to tell him that we were just friends, that he wasn’t hitting on my lookalike, but me. I wanted to laugh with him and tell him all the same old jokes I used to and help him find another woman to love, not the ghost of the girl he once fell for.

But I couldn’t say any of it. I could only watch like my life was a movie.

“I made a mistake coming here,” I whispered, rinsing my hands in the sink and drying them with a paper towel. “I’m going to make an excuse and go home.”

And I was just about to do just that.

But the moment I burst out into the hallway, I slammed directly into Liam’s sturdy form.

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