Chapter 0343

Hannah

A couple of weeks later, I found myself in the passenger seat of Noah’s car, my hands fidgeting nervously as we approached the Luna Council meeting. Noah had the day off, so he’d offered to drive me, mentioning he had some business nearby.

As we pulled up to the Luna Queen’s estate—all white columns and perfectly manicured lawns—my heart quickened. Noah put the car in park and turned to me. The silence stretched on as I remained motionless.

“You good?” Noah finally asked.

I nodded stiffly, unsure what to say. My throat felt dry, and I swallowed hard. Today would be my second time attending the Luna Council, and my first since the “deepfake” scandal a couple of weeks ago. The news headlines had been relentless: “Luna Hannah Accused of Cheating on Alpha Noah in Deepfake Audio!” “Luna Hannah…Cheating on Alpha Noah? Deepfake Tries to Twist Reality.” “The New Heir of Nightcrest Doesn’t Belong to Alpha Noah, or So a Deepfake Tries to Claim.”

Noah had been right; we were fine. Hardly anyone believed the audio clip, even though it wasn’t actually a deepfake. As the weeks passed, the doubts slowly faded.

Suddenly, Noah’s hand on mine pulled me from my thoughts. I jumped, my cheeks heating as I turned to him. Just last night, that hand had been in my mouth while other parts of him had been… elsewhere. Fulfilling our contract, of course.

“Hey. You’ve been working your ass off for today,” he said. “You’ll be fine.”

His words bolstered me, sending a wave of confidence through me. My shoulders relaxed slightly, and I managed a small smile.

“Thank you,” I whispered.

Noah nodded, pulling his hand away. My skin felt instantly cold where his touch had been.

When I finally got out of the car, my heart pounded, but not just from the meeting. It had been two weeks since I’d realized… realized what had happened. To me. To us.

I hadn’t told Noah, or anyone, what I’d realized that morning, curled in his arms. I didn’t dare admit it aloud, fearing the consequences. I had fallen in love with Noah again—hard, deep, and fast. I was utterly head over heels, just as I had been as teenagers. I think Noah might have even begun to feel the same; if not, he was a good actor.

He’d stopped slipping out of the bedroom before I awoke. Sometimes, we’d wake up on top of each other, unable to control our urges. Then we’d stumble to the breakfast table, faces flushed, shoveling down food to regain our strength. Once, I walked into his office midday with paperwork, and he’d thrown everything off his desk to have me right there.

But we never spoke about those moments. Afterward, we’d go about our days as if nothing had happened. I couldn’t decide if I was glad for that or not.

I entered the estate, my heels clicking on the marble floor as I approached the council chamber. The other Lunas were already seated around the large, ornate table.

Luna Alanna, the Luna Queen, sat at the head, her silver hair gleaming in the sunlight.

“Luna Hannah,” Alanna said curtly. “You have returned.”

Before I could greet Alanna, one of the Lunas said abruptly, “We heard about the deepfake.” I flinched. The pain must have shown, because another Luna quickly added, “These things happen to Alphas and Lunas. It’s alright.”

Another chimed in, “You should be glad it ended so quickly. We’ve all had our share of scandals. Isn’t that true, Evelyn?”

Evelyn, a statuesque brunette, nodded. “I once endured a three-month smear campaign because a fangirl of my husband leaked nudes,” she said, rolling her eyes. “That was a nightmare. The press was relentless, and the online comments… well, let’s just say it was a dark time.”