Chapter 173
Clair’s POV
With the revelation made, it wasn’t long before Ivan announced to the household that he was leaving to return to bis park. Well. He didn’t announce it. He just packed up his bags and quietly loaded them into his car. It was the other servants whos told us they had seen him.
“Let him go.” Gideon said, but it didn’t feel right to allow him to leave without saying goodbye. After all, he had done a lot for me, making sure I got in through the gate to find my answers Now that I had the answers, especially, I needed to convey my gratitude.
Things were tense between us and likely always would be from now on, but he was and always would be my dear friend. A man who saved my life, who gave me a home when no one else would. Maybe his motives weren’t as selfless as I had once thought, but he had still saved me. He had still seen me through and brought me here.
“I’ll be right back,” I told Gideon.
“I’ll go with you,” Gideon said, with the kind of tone that told me he wasn’t going to negotiate on that.
Ivan and Gideon didn’t get along, but I was hoping they could put aside their differences for the sake of goodbye.
Gideon and I went outside and found Ivan loading his suitcases into the trunk of his sedan. I approached him first, with Gideon moving slightly behind me.
Ivan stopped and looked at me.
“You are leaving,” I said.
“Yes.”
“You could stay…”
“No,” he replied. “I never belonged here, Claire. Not really. And even less after Lena died.” He looked beyond me, beyond Gideon, to the front façade of the palace. “This place is nothing but a tomb for me now.” He shook his head lightly. “I’m glad you found your answers. But there are none for me here. I need to return to my pack.”
Knowing he had loved and lost Lena, I understood what burdened him. I didn’t know if I could ever return to a place where Gideon had loved me, if he wasn’t still there inside of it. What it must be like to walk the halls where he had once heard her laughter or saw her smiling face, only to know hear silence and see empty hallways.
For a moment, I thought of giving him a hug. But then I wondered if that might be too much for what he had endured, so I held out my hand for him to take instead. He took it, wrapping both hands around mine as we shook.
“Thank you, Ivan,” I told him. “For all you’ve done for me, which is so much. Truly.”
“I cheer for your happiness, Claire. I only regret that I was never in a place to gift it to you myself.” He released my hand. “But I hope you will always consider me among your friends.”
“I will,” I said. “I do.”
He nodded, then held his hand out for Gideon. As Gideon shook it, Ivan told him, “Watch and protect her. There are snakes in the tall grasses here.”
“I will,” Gideon promised.
Ivan nodded at him, and then at me.
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Chapter 28
Then he moved to the car, entered, and started to drive away.
1 backed up to give him room, stepping beside Gideon. Together we watched Ivan’s car leave the drive and cast past the gate
As we walked back into the house, we went our separate ways. When I was alone, George and Victoria approached me
“Claire! My new step–daughter,” Victoria said brightly, an entirely different persona than how she had acted toward me before the results had been revealed. Perhaps realizing that I was the true daughter of the King and not a fake helped put her at ease. I wasn’t sure.
She approached me a box in hand. “This is for you. To welcome you into our family”
I opened the box and found a beautiful red scarf inside. It was silk, with some white wolves dyed upon it. It was truly beautiful and stole my breath away.
“You are a princess now,” Victoria said. “You should have beautiful things among your collection.”
George beamed proudly. “My darling wife loves to dote on her children. You should consider yourself among them now, Claire.”
“Thank you, Victoria,” I said. “Truly, this is a fine gift.”
“I’m glad,” Victoria replied. “How about a hug for your step–mother?”
I moved forward and hugged her.
“Such a blessing,” George said and stepped away.
The moment he was gone from earshot, Victoria’s fingers gripped me tighter, claw–like. Gone was the friendly tone from her voice. Ice cold, she spat in my ear, “There is only one princess in this house. My daughter. And you will never take her place.”
Before I could reply, she released me, then turned to follow her husband. I stared after her in shock, unsure what had just happened. It had seemed so out of character that I thought I must have imagined it. I was still holding the scarf.
It was so strange, I went to seek out Gideon, hoping to discuss this with him.
I found him in the sitting room, and nearly started talking before I saw a pair of women’s arms wrapped around his back. My eyes went wide, my heart sank.
Susanne was passionately embracing him!
Gideon’s POV
I had no idea how I had managed to get into this position. One minute, I was seeking out the children when Susanne stopped me to ask for my assistance finding a hairpin she had seemed to lose somewhere in the sitting room. The next, during the search, she wrapped her arms around me and pressed herself against me like we were some kind of secret lovers in a tryst!
I thought she needed help. I thought I was being nice. While we were searching, she said she was feeling feint, so I had put my arm out to help steady her.
But then she grabbed onto me, rubbing her cheek against my chest and her hands up and down my back.
“Princess, this isn’t… you need to stop this!”
“Don’t act like you don’t like it, lover.”
“Please don’t call me that!”
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Chapter 173
Chicon?” said Claire from behind me I nearly yelped as I turned to see her standing in the doorway. Her face was pale ar first, frut as she continued in look it soon berate red with ange
“Claire, I swear it’s not what it looks like,” I said quickly. “Susm was just feeling faint-
Why would I care what it looks like?” Claire snapped. “None of this matters to me.”
She turned on her heel and started walking away. I couldn’t let her go, not if she was angry with me.
But Susanne was still holding onto me like a drowning man clinging to a life raft.
- gently as I could… shoved her off of me and onto the nearby couch, where she landed with a small umph sound.
Freed from her clutches, I rushed after Claire..
In the hallway, I caught up with her. “Claire, please.”
“It doesn’t matter to me,” she said again.
I grabbed her arm and spun her to face me. Her brow was furrowed in anger, her cheeks flush.
Maybe I was mistaken, but in this moment, I dared to hope. “Claire… Are you jealous?”
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