Departure with a Belly (Alaric and Victoria) novel Chapter 43

Chapter 43 

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“W–What?” Claudia couldn’t believe what she was hearing. This was not 

what she wanted at all. She had hoped that after she made Alaric lunch, 

she would show him her injured finger when she went to his office. Then, 

he would be moved and concerned for her. Following that, the two of 

them could be alone together and deepen their relationship. But now, it 

seemed like that wasn’t going to happen. 

Claudia tried to hide her disappointment and said awkwardly, “Al, what are 

you going to do? If it’s not going to take too long, I can wait for you in your 

office.” 

“Sorry, Claudia, I’ll be gone for a while. You should go back first,” replied 

Alaric. 

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Chapter 43 I’m Not an Outsider 

please.” 

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Claudia didn’t want to leave just yet. She bit her lip and turned to look at 

Alaric, her eyes slightly red. 

How about this? Would he still be indifferent to me if I act like this? 

However, Alaric did not notice her tearful look and had already left with 

long strides as if he had some urgent matter to attend to. Claudia could 

only stand there and watch as he disappeared. 

Alaric’s assistant spoke again, “Miss Johnson, are we leaving?” 

Claudia glanced at Alaric’s assistant who had an impassive look in his 

eyes and an unfriendly tone of voice. She felt like he didn’t like her. Her 

intuition was right though; Alaric’s assistant didn’t like her because 

everyone in the company knew about Alaric and Victoria’s relationship. As 

Claudia had deliberately come to the meeting room with a lunch box, 

(which made her intentions obvious. 

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Chapter 43 I’m Not an Outsider 

After hanging around Victoria for so long, the assistant thought that she 

was a really capable yet friendly woman, so it was annoying to see 

Claudia act this way around Alaric. Although the assistant was annoyed 

by Claudia’s actions, he didn’t say anything since he was only there to 

help Alaric with his work. 

Nevertheless, Claudia was reluctant to leave at the moment. She had put 

so much effort into cooking and injuring her finger. If she were to leave 

now, what was the point? The injury would heal very soon, and it wouldn’t 

do if she had to deepen her wound to show Alaric later. She couldn’t let 

this opportunity go to waste. 

So, she smiled and asked the assistant, “Where did Al go? Will he be back 

this afternoon? If he’ll come back, can I wait for him in his office?” 

The assistant had no expression on his face as he spoke in a monotone 

voice, “I’m not sure about Mr. Cadogan’s schedule. As for you going to the 

office, I’m sorry, Miss Johnson, but that’s not possible. The office does not 

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Chapter 43 I’m Not an Outsider 

allow outsiders to enter when Mr. Cadogan is not there.” 

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Claudia almost couldn’t hold back her anger. She tugged her lips stiffly 

and said, “I’m not an outsider.” 

The assistant replied, “I can’t be sure of that.” 

This assistant is so annoying. The first thing I’ll do when I become the lady 

boss of the Cadogan Group is to replace this assistant of Alaric’s. He’s 

such a blind idiot. 

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Claudia cursed in her mind, but on the surface, she still maintained her 

calm and beautiful appearance. “Well, then, can you please take me 

back? By the way, I made this lunch with great effort. Since Al didn’t have a 

chance to eat it, you can have it.” 

Although she hated the assistant, he was still working by Alaric’s side at 

the moment, so she had to suck up to him for a bit. It would be even better 

if she could win him over to her side. However, the assistant took a big 

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Chapter 43 I’m Not an Outsider 

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step back and shook his head. “Miss Johnson, I can’t accept something for 

nothing.” 

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Claudia was so angry that she almost exploded. In the end, the assistant 

sent Claudia back home. 

When Alaric arrived at the nursing home, the time was almost right. His 

tense mood when he came here was also relaxed when he saw the scene 

of Victoria lying beside Griselda and leaning against Griselda’s leg. 

When Griselda heard the noise, she looked over at him. The two of them 

looked at each other, and then Griselda made a gesture for him to be 

quiet. Only then did Alaric notice that Victoria was actually sleeping next to 

Griselda’s leg. 

As Griselda’s legs were feeble, Alaric went up to Victoria, bent down gently, 

picked her up, and placed her on the small bed beside them. She was 

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Chapter 43 I’m Not an Outsider 

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probably in deep sleep as she didn’t even wake up when Alaric moved 

her. She even subconsciously rubbed her head against the soft pillow, and 

then fell back asleep again, hugging the covers in her arms. 

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When Alaric saw her like this, he couldn’t help but reach out and gently 

pinch her soft cheek. She was so cute even when she was asleep. Her skin. 

was so soft and smooth; Alaric couldn’t help but pinch it again. Just as he 

was about to extend his other hand to continue pinching her, Griselda said 

in a soft voice, “Now, now. Are you trying to wake her up?” 

Hearing this, Alaric’s movement paused, and then he awkwardly cleared 

his throat. “No, Grandma. I’m not.” 

Griselda then motioned for Alaric to take her outside in her wheelchair. He 

obliged, and as soon as they left the room, Griselda’s voice returned to its 

normal volume. “That little girl said she wanted to hear me tell a story, but 

she fell asleep before I even got halfway through. I don’t know if it’s 

because I’m a boring storyteller or if she hasn’t been getting enough rest 

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Chapter 43 I’m Not an Outsider 

lately.” 

“It’s probably because she hasn’t been getting enough rest,” Alaric 

responded. “She’s got pretty bad dark circles under her eyes.” 

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Earlier, when he pinched her cheeks, he noticed that her dark circles were