NOVEL SIMPLE Chapter 14 – The Price of Victory
It was ‘Her’! It was Elana! Moira would not mistake the other woman for anyone else!
The way Elana moved, the scornful look, the poise of a tyrant, the way she pursed her lips when she saw something that displeased her - a look that was now aimed at Moira.
While Moira couldn’t be sure what had pissed off Elana, she could guess. Her rival never took kindly to interruption between their lovely spats.
Elana was exuding actual coldness, but it travelled mostly towards the Princes. Mostly. Some of the chills settled on Moira’s skin, raising goosebumps.
It was kind of hot. Moire allowed her smile to grow wider, knowing it would make Elana angrier.
And there it was. Elana’s eyes narrowed as she shut out everything else but her targets. Moira raised her hand and covered her mouth before letting out a soft, happiness-filled giggle.
Moire couldn’t help it. She WAS happy. And the gesture allowed her to lick her lips without anyone noticing.
God, was Elana sexy. The sway of her hips, the haughty way she wrinkled her nose. The long legs and tight ass… Moira licked her lips again. She really wanted to tear away Elana’s uniform and witness the woman’s full glory.
The urge had never before been so strong. Was it because Moira had changed the way she thought about the other woman?
Perhaps… Back on Earth, Moira hadn’t thought about getting together with Elana. After all, the other woman could be very annoying and relentless.
But after Elana’s death… Moira found those aspects of her rival’s personality almost cute. She shuddered as the coldness bit deeper into her flesh.
Perhaps calling it cute was too rash. Moira now had to deal with this obsessiveness directly, and she didn’t have as strong of a position in this world as in the old one.
It would probably piss off Elana even more, but she did have one tool at her disposal. “Ah, it’s so chilly.” She fluttered her eyebrows, crossed her arms in front of her and lifted her breasts.
Two pairs of eyes fell on the impressive assets immediately. Moira understood the prince. He was a good-natured fool and a bit of a pervert, but she hadn’t expected Elana to be so blatant about it.
Sure, Elana had always been upfront about her desires, but…
Moira pushed her breasts up more, making the decollete reveal more of her naked skin. “Please, be a little gentler?” She tilted her head in surprise. Elana hadn’t raised her head despite Moira showing weakness.
This was very flattering. Moira wanted to lick her lips again. She felt heat rise in her depths. Really, what was Elana doing? This was too easy. Perhaps another push was in order. “After all, it has been so long~”
Finally, Elana’s eyes snapped back to meet hers. Moira smirked. She had taken this round.
There was some noise next to Moira - someone tried to give her a jacket or something, but she ignored it. What was important was Elana’s reaction.
The proud woman chewed on Moira’s words. The cold did not recede.
It took another moment before Elana spoke. “Scram.” Without breaking their gazes, she addressed the nuisance who was poking Moira’s shoulder with the offer of a jacket.
“Elana!” The annoyance growled. “Do not act this way. Lady Moira can stay if she wishes.”
“What?” Elana blinked, then looked at the Prince.
“What? “ The prince glared back.
Moira giggled again. This was quite fun.
But the laughter had given Elana time to recompose herself. “I meant you. You are unnecessary.” She took a step forward and pushed the prince away.
The sudden closeness made Moira’s heart jump. Elana’s face was now so close to hers. Despite the coldness the woman radiated, she felt her cheeks redden.
The annoyance tried to intervene. But for Moira and Elana, the rest of the world had vanished. They both studied each other faces. Countless thoughts passed between them, most undecipherable, but some…
Moira refused to back down. She leaned closer and was about to speak.
“Moira…” Elana’s voice was almost a whisper. It was clear the woman had not expected to meet Moira here. “You…”
“Me?” Moira gave a coquettish smile.
“You, as always, have poor taste in the chosen company.”
Elana’s warm breath tickled Moira’s nose. She could smell her rival’s scent. This woman smelled… Tasty. She could not help but wonder how Elana’s lips would taste. “Poor? Wouldn’t that include you?”
The hindrance raised his voice. He was accusing Elana of something inane. It was annoying. It had distracted Moira, and she had made a mistake.
Elana would never let such a jab slide. Moira hadn’t wanted their meeting to become so… Adversisal. She had hoped for a more amicable reunion. But the old habits died hard. She had messed up.
And true to her form, Elana struck back. She leaned even closer, the tips of their noses almost touching. “No. I am the best thing that has and ever will happen in your life.”
These words were so correct it hurt. Moira could not find it in herself to refute them. But she had to respond…
“Ah,” Instead of a retort, a feeble note escape her mouth. She felt ashamed and felt the tides turning. There had to be something… Something Moira could use to take the upper hand.
“-place. You are acting-”
Moira’s mind finally filtered back the annoyance. She ignored the forming smirk on Elana’s face and swayed towards the foolish prince, leaning against his hand.
“Look at what you did!” The fool berated Elana. “She is delicate, unlike-” He didn’t finish, realising they were in the middle of a hall full of people.
But Moira didn’t care about that. She watched all emotions leave Elana’s face - leaving only a beautiful, icy mask. Moira knew she had won this battle. Only…
“Let’s leave…” The fool wrapped his arm around Moira and pulled her away from the confrontation.
Moira felt helpless. Her eyes lingered on Elana, who stood frozen. Cold billowed from the ethereal, divine beauty, freezing her surroundings.
Yes. Moira had won. She had hurt Elana and won the battle… And she had planned on using the prince to gain a position for herself for a while now. This wasn’t a bad outcome.
Only… The usual elation of prevailing over Elana didn’t come.
When Moira’s eyes met Elana’s empty ones, she looked away first. Yes. She had hurt Elana. She had won.
And she felt terrible.
