Page 4 of Heir of Darkness

His eyes lit up with a dangerous gleam as if he wanted her to fight back.

He leaned down, his lips only a hair strand away from touching her ear. The goosebumps rose on her skin without control, coming alive with his presence near.

“Then so be it, Kingsley,” Valerio whispered.

Then he pulled away from her completely, leaving her frozen in space. She only snapped out of her daze when his stare traveled down the length of her body, taking in every inch of skin exposed from the dress.

“Run now. You know I’ll find you, fiancée.”

And Luna did. She wasn’t going to hang around to give him another chance to touch her. She wanted to stay as far away from him as she could.

Her skin crawled the entire way down the hall, knowing he stood there and watched her the entire time. She hated him. That was the one thing she knew for sure. There would never be any other word to describe the way she felt toward Valerio Vitali.

The air rushed back into Luna’s lungs when she could see the stairs once again. The music from downstairs engulfed her like a blanket, reminding her she wasn’t alone. Her need for the restroom was gone. All she wanted was to get the hell out of that house and never return.

“Where were you?” Blair asked, grabbing Luna’s arm when she spotted her. Sweat coated her tan skin, highlighting the tops of her cheekbones.

“Bathroom,” Luna lied. “I’m thinking about going home.”

“They’re about to bring out the guest of honor,” Gianna said, a random boy hanging off her hand. Her blue eyes were glazed over, a big smile on her face.

“We have to stay for that!” Cecilia squealed. Her makeup was smudged, her long black hair matted in the back. She stumbled and held on to Blair, who wrapped an arm around the drunk girl.

The man in question walked onto the balcony that overlooked the living room. Allister stood at his left, Dante at his right. Everyone was silent until Valerio lifted a bottle of alcohol, allowing the cheers of celebration to begin.

Dread settled in Luna’s stomach the moment his eyes landed on her. She stared back before she turned around, walking out of the Vitali home.

She desperately wanted to run, but suddenly it felt like there was nowhere to go.

TWO

LUNA

Luna wasn’t a morning person.Not in the slightest. Even when she was a child, she preferred to stay up all night when the house was silent and she could play alone. When the sun rose, she was forced to slap on a smile and become the perfect daughter to Reece and Eleanora Kingsley.

She was also forced to remember what happened the night before.

God, that was the last time she listened to Cecilia.

She rolled out of bed to get ready for the day—a start to the new semester. She’d spent most of her school years in all girls’ schools with Gianna, Blair, and Cecilia. The four of them met at a private elementary school and had stuck by each other’s sides ever since. It was only natural they would be drawn to each other considering their parents, except for Gianna’s, worked together at one point in the past.

When it was time for Luna to start applying to universities, she really only had one option: Grand Willow University. The same place her brother attended.

It was miserable having her brother breathing down her neck constantly, making sure she wasn’t getting into trouble. But Finn wasn’t alwaysthatbad. He stood up for her occasionally, andusually he was busy getting himself into trouble, so really, Luna was able to do whatever she wanted.

Not to mention that for the past three years of being in college, it was better to have Finn around than the devil himself.

Except now he was back.

Maybe she could transfer schools.

Luna huffed, burning her red painted fingernail while she curled her hair. It was tough putting makeup on with only one hand, but she got it done. She slipped on a soft white sundress, smoothing out the wrinkles, before grabbing her bag and leaving her room.

Voices were already coming from the kitchen. Gianna sat on a kitchen stool, her blonde hair perfectly curled and her jeans hugging her legs. There wasn’t a single trace of a hangover on her face.

“Good morning, sunshine,” she said with a bright smile.

Luna returned it. “I don’t know how you’re functioning right now.”

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