Building Her Throne Burying My Heart (Claire) novel Chapter 60

I tried to play it off. “I was just about to help, but my hand slipped… that’s all…”

Daisy didn’t even let me finish. “Okay, okay, I get it. Just go already.”

I bolted out of the shop and made a beeline for the car outside, heart racing, nerves all over the place. I stood there for a few seconds, still trying to catch my breath, when Garrison showed up out of nowhere. He spotted me and, instead of heading inside, walked straight over.

“Lambert, you really don’t know when to quit, do you? Are you planning to stick around Claire forever?”

I gave him a look. “What’s your problem? You seem nervous. I’m just her driver. Do you really need to keep warning me off every single time?”

Garrison’s face changed, and yeah, he definitely looked scared.

“If you didn’t have an agenda, you could get a job anywhere. Why stay here? After what you did to Claire, she’d never take you back if you weren’t always hanging around. You’re just milking whatever you had in the past, and honestly, it’s kind of pathetic.”

I couldn’t help but laugh. “You know what? You’re right. Claire actually hired me herself. If you think you can get rid of me, go ahead. I’d honestly thank you.”

That seemed to throw Garrison off. He had no idea what had really happened between me and Claire, but one thing was obvious. She’d let me stay. If Garrison could get me out of the picture, well, that would actually solve a lot for me.

He gave me a skeptical look. “You’re serious?”

“I am. There’s just one problem. I owe her two million. Unless you want to pay it off for me, I’m stuck here.”

“Let’s go then. Ride with me and we’ll grab dinner together.”

“Sounds good. I’ll have my driver take my car back.”

They both slid into the back seat. I got behind the wheel and started driving. In the rearview mirror, I could see Claire leaning against Garrison, the two of them chatting quietly. They talked about wedding dresses. She even showed him the photos Daisy had just taken. I could only watch all of this from the mirror, catching glimpses of their smiles and laughter.

Every so often, I’d sneak a look at them. Then I realized Claire was watching me, too. Our eyes met in the mirror. In that second, I felt exposed, like someone caught doing something they shouldn’t.

And then, Claire did something so unexpected, it took my breath away.