The Luna You Betrayed Is No Longer Yours

Chapter 19: Chapter 19 A loan

_Rowena’s POV_

The next morning, at exactly nine, a knock came at my door.

I was at my desk going through the final asset transport schedule when Velvet opened the door and gave me the look she reserved for things she found both predictable and offensive.

"The Alpha," she said.

"Send him in."

Kaelen came in without the usual energy he carried into rooms. No Alpha presence pressed into the air, no particular agenda written across his face. Just a man in a plain shirt looking slightly uncomfortable, which was such a rare configuration that it took me a moment to calibrate.

He sat down across from me without being invited, which was normal. Then he was quiet for a moment, which was not.

"I need to ask you something," he said.

I set my pen down. "Go ahead." No need for pleasantries.

Another pause. He was working up to it, which meant it was going to be something he knew I wouldn’t receive well. Kaelen only took his time when he’d already predicted the reaction and was trying to decide whether to soften the approach. freēwēbnovel.com

"The wedding," he said. "The arrangements are more than I had available on short notice."

I waited.

"I need a little loan from you. $20,000," he said. "I’ll pay it back soon."

The room was quiet.

From the corner, I heard Velvet draw a slow breath through her nose, the specific sound of someone exercising extraordinary restraint.

"What? He’s asking you to fund his wedding?" Kyra asked flatly. "To the other woman. With your money."

"Yes, I heard him."

"No, I just want to make sure we’re both clear on what’s happening." Kyra chided.

I looked at Kaelen. He held my gaze with the particular steadiness of a man who had decided that directness was better than pretending this wasn’t exactly what it was. freewebnσvel.cѳm

That, at least, I could respect.

"Alright," I said, keeping my gaze locked on his.

He blinked in what seemed to be shock. "Alright?"

"Fifteen percent annual interest." I pulled my iPad from the desk drawer. "Written agreement, signed by both of us before the transfer. Repayment within twelve months or the interest compounds." I wrote the terms as I spoke.

"Standard loan structure."

He blinked again. Slower this time. "You want interest."

"I want documentation," I said. "The interest is just good financial practice."

He stared at me. "Rowena....."

"You asked for a loan," I said pleasantly. "This is what a loan looks like. If you wanted a gift, that’s a different conversation and the answer would have been different."

Velvet made a sound near the door that she covered immediately with a cough.

Kaelen looked at the iPad. At the neat, clean terms I had written in thirty seconds. At the line at the bottom waiting for his signature.

"Fifteen percent," he said.

"Fifteen percent."

"That’s......"

"Reasonable for an unsecured personal loan with a twelve month term," I said. "You can check current market rates if you’d like. I’m actually being generous."

He looked at me for a long moment. Something moved in his expression, not quite irritation, not quite something else. The complicated middle ground he’d been living in for two weeks.

Then he picked up the pen and signed.

I countersigned, took a photo of the document for my records, and handed him the original.

"I’ll do the transfer within the hour," I said. "Send me your account details."

He stood, looked at the paper in his hand, and then looked at me.

"You’re not even angry?" he asked, still confused. Almost like it bothered him.

"Should I be?" I raised a brow and tilted my head slightly.

He didn’t answer that.

"Kaelen." I kept my voice even. "You need money for your wedding. I have money. You’ll pay it back with interest. This is a clean transaction." I gave a calm smile. "Would you prefer I made it complicated?"

He coughed, then turned around and left without answering.

The door closed.

Velvet turned from the corner with an expression I could only describe as delighted outrage. "Fifteen percent," she said.

"It’s a fair rate."

"You’re charging him interest to marry someone else."

"I’m charging interest on a loan," I said. "What he uses the money for is his business."

Velvet pressed her lips together, fighting something. Then she lost the fight and laughed, short and quickly covered.

"Well done," Kyra laughed as well.

I smiled again then transferred the money at ten-fifteen.

His account details came through by text, no message attached. I sent a transfer confirmation in return, equally wordless.

Done.

After that, the wedding preparations became background noise. Flowers arrived at the estate. A catering company sent a van. Elvira moved through the corridors with her lively energy.

The bride’s attendants circulated with lists and questions that had nothing to do with me and I made sure to keep it that way.

I had four days left.

I spent them tidying.

"Now I think about it, Kaelen is really shameless." Kyra blurted out, unable to hold back what she’d been letting run around my head since the morning began.

I hummed in response, still keeping my attention trained on the list before me.

The noises in the background seemed to send a migraine my way, but I held myself back from going and yelling at them to tune it down. The last thing I wanted was anyone thinking I was jealous or angry at the whole situation when I didn’t actually care what anyone did with their lives.

"He came to you of all people for a loan for his second marriage. Isn’t that ridiculous? What would the media say about it?" Kyra blabbered on, laughing occasionally. "How about telling someone to leak this news? Tell the media so Kaelen and his pregnant bride can be the headlines tomorrow." Kyra laughed again at her idea.

"I never knew you were this cruel." I said instead, slightly impressed by my wolf’s thinking. Too bad I wasn’t someone that petty.

"I’m not cruel, I’m just punishing bad people."

"Kyra, I’m doing business here. He took a loan, I’ll make more money with the interest, so why not indulge? I can’t ruin my business by selling him out and breaching our contract, am I right?" I stated carefully.

Kyra went quiet but eventually agreed. "I guess you’re right. And you say I’m the cruel one?" She laughed again.

I paused, smirking as I asked, "How am I cruel?"

"Rowena, you’re giving your husband a loan to marry another woman, just so he can pay back with 15 percent interest in a year. If that’s not cruel, what is it?"