Chasing His Kickass Luna Back Chapter 357

Abby

As Damon and I step back out into the bustling party, the sound of music overwhelms me once more. That, and the feeling of Karl somewhere close by.

But I know it’s all in my head. If Karl was here, he would have called me. And yet, I haven’t heard from him since he left me that initial voicemail. He really must be back at home, back in his pack territory.

I turn to Damon, who’s grabbing a glass of champagne off of a passing waiter’s tray. “Shall we return to dancing, then?” he asks, seemingly unperturbed by the strange interaction we just had in the art gallery.

“Actually, I really think I should get back to the kitchen,” I say, pointing over my shoulder. “My staff might need me.”

Damon chuckles. “Oh, Abby,” he says. “Enjoy the party a little while longer, won’t you? You’ve hardly been here for twenty minutes.”

I have to stifle a slight sigh. Damon is right; I haven’t been here for that long. And although I want nothing more than to slip back into the kitchen, back into the safety of my friends and the one thing I know best—cooking—I know that Damon won’t let me go until I’ve spent a little more time here.

“Alright,” I say. “One more dance.”

“Excellent.” Damon sips his champagne and gestures toward the dance floor. As we make our way across the grand ballroom, the music begins to swell. A wave of cheers spreads throughout the room, and I glance over at Damon, who is grinning from ear to ear.

“What’s going on?” I ask.

“The highlight of the evening, the way I see it,” Damon says. He sets his unfinished champagne on a nearby table and holds his hand out to me. “Come. I’ll explain while we dance.”

I do as Damon says and place my hand in his. We converge on the dance floor with the other guests, who have already begun to pair up. The music is loud and lively with a steady tempo to it.

“This is a traditional dance from my homeland,” Damon explains as he loops his arm around my waist and begins to move with me. “We’ll be switching partners quite a lot. Follow my lead; the steps are quite simple.”

Before I know it, I’m being thrust into a lively and upbeat dance. It begins with Damon leading me around the dance floor, turning this way and that. Our palms press against one another as we rotate around each other. Damon’s smile is award-winning, his green eyes sparkling as we move.

Then, Damon spins away and I’m met with a new dance partner; a young man who I don’t recognize. “Evening, lady,” he says with a smile as we circle each other.

“Good evening,” I say a bit stiffly.

I’m not dancing with the new partner for long when we switch again. With each crescendo, the crowd shifts. Across the dance floor, I spot Damon twirling with a young woman, his black hair slightly mussed from the movements.

The girl is smiling up at him, oblivious to the fact that she’s dancing with the prince himself. If only he were smiling down at her instead of at me.

I quickly look away to hide the blush that rises into my cheeks.

Over the course of the dance, though, I can’t deny the smile that begins to spread across my face. With each new partner and new dance move, I find myself laughing along to the music as it picks up its pace.

Before I know it, I’m happily hiking up my skirt in one hand and twirling around the dance floor with the others, my fingers pressing against palm after palm.

Until…

My fingers press into a familiar palm. Warm fingers wrap around mine, rough and callused and gentle yet firm. A tantalizing scent overwhelms me in that instant—my eyes, which were just squeezed shut with glee, shoot open.

“Karl.”

His name comes out like a breath on my tongue. When I see those soft brown eyes gazing at me, it’s as if everyone else suddenly stands still, as if the music goes silent and there’s nothing but us twirling in slow motion beneath a single light.

“Abby,” Karl whispers as we spin together. “I have to talk to you.”

“Karl, I’m—” I begin, but he doesn’t hear the whisper of a confession on the tip of my tongue. He doesn’t know that I’m pregnant, that I miss him dearly, that I feel lost and confused and that a prince just tried to kiss me.

No, he doesn’t hear me over the sound of the music and the laughter. He doesn’t see my shock as he suddenly loops my arm around me and pulls me away from the dance floor, through the thick crowd, across the room and over to a secluded corner.

When we finally stop behind a small screen partition, our bodies are so close that our breaths mix in the hot, thick air of the party.

“Karl, what—what are you doing here?” I manage through my choked breaths. “I thought you…”

“Abby, I know you don’t want to talk to me,” Karl whispers. “But I need five minutes of your time. Just five minutes.” As he speaks, he presses my hands between his, holding them up to his chest. We’re so close we could kiss. God, I’ve never wanted to kiss anyone more than right now.

I need to tell him that I’m pregnant. Now is my chance. But before I can open my mouth to speak, Karl’s words come out in a frenzy.

“Abby, I can’t even begin to express how sorry I am,” he whispers, his breath tickling my hair. He reaches up to cup my cheek, still holding my hands fast to his chest with his other. “God, you look so beautiful tonight…”

“Karl, I—”

“Just listen,” he pleads with me. “Abby, I’ll never love anyone like I love you. Ever. And I’m prepared to stand by that, to spend the rest of my life alone if you reject me tonight. But… god dammit, Abby, I don’t want to leave here without you.”

I swallow hard. I want to tell Karl that I want the same thing, but I feel so shocked in this moment that no words will come no matter how hard I try.

“Look, if you want to be with Prince Damon, I won’t stop you from pursuing that life,” he continues. “And I understand if you’re so… fucking tired of my shit that you want us to be over for good. But Abby, I’m so sorry. I want to be a better man for you, if you’ll only give me the—”

“Karl, I’m pregnant.”

The words finally come out in a choked rush. Karl freezes, his brown eyes widening as he looks at me. “You’re… You’re… Really?” he whispers, to which I nod quickly. A slight laugh escapes his lips as a smile begins to tug at the corner of his mouth. A smile begins to grace my lips, too.

But then, suddenly, I feel a warm arm wrap around my shoulders. I feel myself being pulled back, away from Karl, the sensation of his heart beating beneath my fingertips fading into nothingness as I’m pulled into a pair of muscular arms.

And in this moment, I feel more frozen than ever. All I can do is look up at the man who’s holding me, up at his black hair and striking green eyes, and wonder why I can’t seem to move or speak.

“Is there a problem here?”