Claimed by the Crown Heir novel Chapter 13

Vanessa stared at him in stunned disbelief, looking at him as if he were a complete stranger. She suddenly felt as if she had never truly known the man standing in front of her.

She remembered the first winter they were together, the first time they had walked past this orphanage. It was freezing cold, the harsh wind biting at their skin. Jean had been in the yard with the children, rubbing their hands and stomping their feet to stay warm. Their little faces were flushed from the cold, yet they were still laughing and shoving each other playfully, their eyes shining with pure innocence.

Lucas had stood outside the gates, watching the kids with a rare softness in his eyes. Without saying a word, he turned around, went to a nearby diner, bought two massive bags of hot sandwiches, and handed them to the children himself.

She later found out that Lucas's childhood had been strikingly similar to theirs.

He was an orphan too, raised in a rural group home where he endured a lot of hardship. He never had enough warm clothes in the winter, left shivering under a thin blanket. During the holidays, he never got a hot meal, surviving on stale bread and cheap soup.

He told her that seeing these kids was like looking in a mirror at his younger self, which was why he had agreed without a second thought when she suggested sponsoring the orphanage.

He used to hold her hand, his gaze earnest as he said, "Vanessa, I know how agonizing it is to have no one to rely on. I just want these kids to feel a little warmth so they don't have to suffer like I did."

Back then, his eyes had been filled with empathy, his voice laced with genuine compassion.

It was that exact vulnerability beneath his hardened exterior that had won her heart and solidified her resolve to build a life with him.

She had believed that a man who had suffered so much would understand the value of cherishing what he had and recognize the true weight of kindness.

But the man standing before her was brutally tearing apart that gentle memory with his own hands.

"Lucas," Vanessa's voice trembled slightly, not out of fear, but from an overwhelming sense of disappointment. "Have you forgotten what you said back then? You said you knew what it felt like to have nothing, that you wanted to give these kids some warmth. And now, you are using the threat of destroying their home against me?"

The tenderness vanished from Lucas's face in an instant, replaced by a cold, unapologetic arrogance. "Times change. Back then, I had nothing, so of course I sympathized with their struggles. But things are different now. I am at the top, and naturally, my priorities have shifted. Vanessa, I know you have a kind heart. You wouldn't want to see these children suffer."

Vanessa looked at him with profound sorrow. "Lucas, you didn't just betray our relationship. You betrayed the boy who stood freezing in the wind, desperately craving warmth. You have turned into someone you wouldn't even recognize."

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