The Heartless Alpha's Beloved Luna Novel

---- Chapter 371 Avery's POV My mouth dropped open at Fiona's words. A "fresh divorcee from the human lands"? | would "find someone who actually wanted to stay with me for once?" When | first met Fiona, I'd thought she was just an unfortunate puppet of the men in her life. Now, | was starting to change my mind on that account. That was uncalled for, cruel, and so utterly incorrect that it was almost laughable. Maybe | had given her too much grace in the beginning, and she wasn't as much of a victim as | thought she was.

| was about to tell her exactly how | felt about that statement of hers when a sudden presence shot through the back of my mind like a silver-tipped arrow. Before | could stop it, | heard a familiar voice whisper in my head, "Avery. Talk to me-" | managed to slam up my mental walls before Gideon could say more, but the damage had been done. In my momentary state of shock, | had lost a grip on my inner fortress, allowing Gideon to slip in. My heart was hammering against the inside of my ribs and my wolf was stirring from sleep. ---- Gideon walked across the bar, heading straight for me.

Goddess, could | not get away from him for five fucking minutes? His eyes were fixed on me, only me. Fiona, noticing this, clung to his arm and gestured to me with her lower lip still creating a little shelf above her chin. "Avery got stood up," she said with a wistful sigh. "How sad." Gideon's brows arched, but | quickly cut in, "No, | didn't. Sebastian-my husband-is just taking a call." | held up my hand, displaying the wedding band, just for good measure. Gideon's face paled a little at the sight of the ring, indicating that my words struck exactly where they were meant to.

Satisfaction rippled through me, but it was quickly overshadowed by the sensation of my wolf whining. "We should be with Gideon... Not her..." | pushed her down, but it was no use. She popped right back up, her whines growing even more intense now. Deciding I'd had enough, | stood, grabbing my clutch. "You two have a nice night," | said pleasantly, brushing past Fiona. | ignored the feeling of Gideon's eyes on my back and walked over to the bar, where | sat in an open space. ---- The bartender was a middle-aged man with glasses and a handlebar mustache.

He spotted me immediately and walked over, polishing a glass. "Hello, young lady. What can | get for you?" he asked. | studied the menu. "Hm, I'm not sure. What's good here?" "What are you in the mood for? Something fruity? Strong?" "Both," | laughed wryly. "rll whip you something up," he said. "On the house, of course." "Oh, that's not-" "Don't be silly. A beautiful woman like you shouldn't be buying her own drinks. Not in that dress." | blushed a little as he turned and began mixing something behind the bar. While | waited, | propped my chin in my palm, looking around.

Fiona and Gideon were at a table on the far side of the lounge now, near the piano. Fiona had her legs draped over Gideon's and was tracing shapes on his forearm as she talked. Gideon was still staring at me. My heart fluttered traitorously, and my wolf's yearning grew ---- more intense. | quickly looked away, but the feeling of his eyes remained. | could sense him studying me like | was under a microscope. | hated that it excited some small part of me, as if there was still a sliver of the former version of myself who would actually fall for it. But | couldn't help it. Not entirely.

| could push the feelings down, but they never went fully away so long as our bond remained.