Second Chance for the Barren Luna (Talia and Jason) novel Chapter 368

Talia’s POV

‘How long is this Silverfang party of yours?’ Della asked eagerly.

No greeting, no small talk. Derek’s message had clearly reached her, and she skipped right past the fact that we’d won the war against the Rogue King. Silverfang was still reeling, but Della moved straight to what mattered most to her.

I bit back a laugh. ‘Just one night, Della. We’ve got way too much to deal with now that the fighting’s over. There’s no way we could drag it out any longer.’

‘Just one day?’ she exclaimed. ‘Really, Talia? If you’d said two, I’d be on the road already. You know I would drop everything.’

‘I do know. That’s why I kept it to one.’

‘Rude,’ she huffed, but she was already shifting tactics. ‘That doesn’t mean I can’t go.’

‘Della, we need you at Bloodmoon,’ I told her. Even though the Rogue King was gone, there were still rogues who could take advantage in an attempt to become the next Rogue King. Della needed to be there with Marco.

‘Alright, here’s the deal: I want something in return. When you’re back, Bloodmoon gets its own party. It has to be bigger than Silverfang’s, and I get to run the show. You owe me, after sidelining me for the entire fight and making me stay behind while everyone else risked their necks.’

‘Are you still upset about that?’ I questioned.

‘Damn right I am,’ Della responded. ‘I’m your Beta. I should have been there fighting alongside you.’

‘You’re right,’ I said. ‘We did sideline you. You kept Bloodmoon safe while we were gone, and we appreciate it.’ I could feel her getting ready to argue, so I kept going. ‘So, I agree. Bloodmoon gets its own party. Make it as big as you want, your rules, no one to stop you. When we get back, you can start right away.’

‘Good,’ she said, vindicated at last. ‘Enjoy your one sad little day. See you soon.’ Then, she closed the mind link.

Nolan was watching my face. “What did she want?”

"We owe Della a party. Bloodmoon gets one when we’re home. That’s the deal for making her stay behind."

I half expected him to protest, but Nolan nodded and said, “Good.”

I blinked. “Good? I thought you hated parties.”

He shrugged and said, “People change.”

"Is that so?" I moved closer, sliding my hands up his chest. "The Nolan I remember would have chosen another fight with Kargon over mingling with Alphas at a stuffy party."

“That Nolan didn’t have you at the party,” he said, and I went up on my tiptoes to kiss him.

“It won’t be ready in time,” I pouted as I handed him my cup.

Nolan took a sip from my cup and said, “It’s still good, and it doesn’t have to be the only thing we serve. The cellar’s full of wine that’s already aged. We will use that for the party and let this one finish for another night.”

“You’re right.” I looked around and didn’t see any familiar barrels of Rosefall. “But I’m not seeing anything.”

‘He may have hidden them away for special occasions,’ my wolf suggested.

She was right. That was exactly the kind of thing he would have done: hiding bottles away for a special occasion, for us.

“Come on,” I told Nolan. “My father must have kept some of the older batches of Rosefall down here somewhere.”

We searched the cellar and went farther than I ever had before. We passed familiar racks and new barrels, then entered the oldest part, where the stone ended and the air grew colder. The lamps barely lit the walls. It felt more like a cave than a cellar.

At the very back, hidden behind dusty barrels, we found a locked door.

I struggled with the old iron latch until at last it gave. The moment the door swung open, the scent hit me. It was a rich and aged Rosefall, just like my father made.

Inside, in the dark, waited three full barrels.