The door opened and I stepped into the bedroom. The room looked, and smelled, unmistakably masculine. Not in a bad way, but it was darker than I was accustomed to. There was a scent of lavender and cedar in the air and something about it tugged at the back of my mind, like a half-remembered dream.
I set my valise down on the bed gingerly, and felt my foot kick something just under the bed frame. A slipper. A Mens slipper.
"Girls, are you sure..." I began to ask as another familiar voice cut in.
"What do you think you're doing?"
I turned around quickly as if caught doing something I shouldn't, a little noise of surprise escaping my mouth.
The man was tall and broad shouldered. His dark hair looked as if he had run his hand through it a million times before arriving. His green hazel eyes looked as hard as ice chips as he glared at his daughters.
The last time I'd seen him, he'd worn an apologetic frown.
Now?
Just the frown. My traitorous heart still skipped a beat.
"Allison is staying in your room, right daddy?" asked Eva, batting hopeful eyes.
"Allison?" he asked in confusion. His eyes snapped to mine — confusion, disbelief, and the beginnings of a headache all fighting for dominance. He blinked a few times before repeating, "Allison?"
"Gordon," I said in a soft tone. "This isn't awkward at all..."
He gave a strangled noise that wordlessly said no shit. "What are you doing here? And why are you in my bedroom... with a suitcase?"
"As far as being in your room... that was an honest mistake," I shot Giselle a hard look. She had the audacity to look innocent.
"But me being here, and with a suit case, you signed an agreement for me to be here for six months."
His dark brows furrowed. "No I didn't," he said bluntly.
"Unless someone forged your signature, yes you did," I said with a shrug. "I have the contract in the office if you'd like to see it."
"Office?" he asked, spearing Giselle with a sharp glance. "Which office?"
"I took her to Mom's old office to work from," replied Giselle matter of factly, arms crossed as if she were discussing lunch instead of committing light contract fraud.
Gordon looked like he was about to have a brain aneurism. "Giselle," he sputtered, unable to get any other words out. Anger and frustration radiated off of him like heat waves, almost shimmering in the light. "Out of my room, let's go."
I collected the valise, thankful I listened to my gut on only bringing small stuff and we all trudged back to the Luna's office.
Gordon flung the door open, eyes searching for anything out of place like he expected chaos to leave physical evidence. He seemed to visibly relax when he saw my bag on the side table instead of on the desk.
"A copy should have been emailed to you as well," I said, pulling out the contract and gently offering it to the agitated Alpha.
He flicked through the pages rapidly and I watched the lines in his forehead deepen, his scowl softening into something almost bewildered before he sighed. "It's my signature," he confirmed. "But I don't recall signing this."
He looked between his girls and said, "Eva, go play. Allison and I need to have a conversation with Giselle."
Eva's eyes darted between all of our faces with a frown. "Ok...." she said glumly, excusing herself and closing the door after her. I didn't miss the little flicker of disappointment on her face. A tiny wilt of her shoulders before she slipped out.
~~~~~~~~~~~
Author's Note:
Happy New Year!!
I thought we should kick off 2026 with something mild... so here's a forged contract, a wrong bedroom, and one very confused Alpha.
Wishing you all a year full of laughter, chaos (the fun kind), and stories that hit exactly when you need them.
Thanks for sticking around — more mayhem incoming! Tomorrow in fact!
Can't wait for the next update? You don't have to!I've opened a Patreon for early access to Luna for Hire — read up to two chapters ahead, depending on your tier.
Shout out to my first Patreon supporter, NotOneLine! Your support genuinely helps keep this story moving forward. <3
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