Royally Bounded

Chapter 103

Clara

The tension started to rise when the news of Ivor spread out to the public. The press were starting to stir rumors, talking about how he would die soon or how Hayden was irresponsible to send his brother to Llyn. It caused a hit to the family reputation.

Rosie was taking care of Ivor daily, barely leaving his side. She insisted to stay at Agosdale instead of Imperos, and Hayden approved only because he considered his brother first.

Hayden was dealing with both business and personal matters. He was the busiest out of everyone, working day and night and not having huge breaks. My heart ached at how he took the burden in his hands. He had no assistance and only pushed to finish all of tasks.

I knocked on his office door. When he answered, I stepped inside, carrying the tray in my hand. He started coughing against his fist and flipped through the pages, keeping his head down as he scanned through the words. I settled the soup down in front of him, but he was still occupied with his documents.

"You barely ate anything for dinner. I made you some chicken pea soup," I sat across from him and removed the bowl from the tray.

"Your mother always make that when you're sick," he commented.

I furrowed my brows, resting my elbows on his desk. His words suddenly clicked me back to when Violet made me the chicken pea soup while I was pregnant with Xander. Hayden slowly raised his head once he heard my silence, staring at me with confusion.

"It was you," I answered his questioning thoughts. "You were the one who told Violet to make me the chicken pea soup. She lied that I told her when I never did. I only told you."

A faint smile formed on his lips. He twirled his pen around his fingers, leaning back on his chair casually as he stared over at me without a word. He had the knowing glance in his eyes, like I finally figured out the truth.

"Why didn't you tell me?" I wondered, my voice falling in a low whisper. He made it like the entire time he didn't care about me, but the truth was, he was always there.

"What was the point of telling you when you clearly hated me?" He questioned back, the flash of pain across his eyes.

I frowned at our past memories where it was only full of hatred after the betrayal. I despised how he treated me, and he despised how I treated him. We were too young to understand and communicate with each other. Maybe it was destined that we had to experience it for growth.

"You know I love you," I stated firmly. "I could never hate you because of all the things you did for me. It's enough to show how much you love me from the start. Sometimes, it makes me guilty for not loving you enough."

"We love each other just as deadly," he remarked.

A smile broke from my lips, and I removed the bowl from the tray to place it in front of him. He placed his files aside then scooped some to taste. He savoured it in his mouth, nodding approvingly at me.

"I thought this was chicken and pea soup," he swirled the spoon around and tried to find for a pea, almost like he forgotten his dislike. "Where are the peas?"

"I know you don't like peas. I scooped them out and ate them already," I smiled.

His lips twitched, and he drank another spoon before he guided the spoon to my lips. I parted my lips open, allowing him to feed me. The warm soup filled my stomach and down to where Damien was. I rubbed my stomach when Damien responded with a little kick.

After Hayden finished, I took the bowl and tray out of his office. I went to wash the remaining dishes then let them dry in the washing machine. My hand rested on my lower back as I stepped out of the kitchen.