From Best Friend To Fiancé (Savannah and Roman) novel Chapter 449

From Best Friend To Fiancé

Chapter 449

Chapter 253: Calder Hudson

Savannah

When Reginald pushed his chair back and stood, I was ready for the

axe to fall.

I felt it in my bones–that familiar tightening in my chest that came

whenever power decided to remind you exactly where you stood

beneath it. I expected him to announce that my decision was

irrelevant, that my stubborn defiance had merely entertained him,

that my time here was over. I expected a dismissal. Punishment.

Retaliation.

Instead, he simply stood. Very slowly.

The scrape of wood against marble echoed far louder than it should

have in the vast dining hall. Every movement he made felt calculated,

choreographed, as though he knew every pair of eyes–mine included

-was trained on him. And he loved it.

He reached for his cane and Cassandra rose beside him at once,

smooth and silent, like she’d rehearsed it a thousand times.

1/6

Chapter 449

And I noticed, unlike the first time I met her. She rarely spoke. She’d

never said a word all night.

Then Reginald spoke, dragging me out of my thoughts. “Good choice,

Miss Hart. I wish you all the best.”

That was all. No venom. No challenge. No hint of the storm I’d braced

myself for. Just that.

For a moment, I wondered if I’d misheard him.

He didn’t look at me as he said it. Didn’t wait to see my reaction.

Didn’t grant me the satisfaction of acknowledgement. He merely

turned and began to walk away, his cane tapping lightly against the

floor.

Tap.

Tap.

Tap.

Each step almost felt like a countdown.

“You see that young, hot–looking guy over there?” Riley whispered suddenly, nudging my arm.

216

Chapter 449

I blinked, startled out of my thoughts.

She gestured discreetly toward the guard who’d been standing behind

Reginald’s seat earlier.

I followed her gaze just in time to see the man stride after Reginald,

posture straight, movements controlled, eyes forward.

“Yes,” I murmured.

“That,” Riley said, “is exactly why River couldn’t stop staring at the

door.”

I turned so quickly the room tilted. “Are they…” I hesitated, searching

for the right word. “Together?”

Riley scoffed softly. “Please. No.”

She glanced toward the door again, as if hoping the man might turn

around so she can get a glimpse of his face again.

“That is Calder Hudson,” she said. “Chief Protective Officer to

General Reginald Blackwood.” She smiled faintly, almost fondly. “And

River’s been crazy in love with him forever.”

I frowned. “Does he know?”

3/6

Chapter 449

Riley burst out laughing. “Of course not. That man has the emotional

intelligence of a brick wall. River’s been making heart–eyes at him

since before I can remember, and he’s never noticed. Not once.”

I studied River again.

“And she still likes him?” I asked quietly.

Riley shrugged. “You can’t blame her. He’s hot. Like–criminally hot.

You should see him working out or riding a horse. Full–on erotic

cinema.”

She fanned herself dramatically.

I wrinkled my nose. “Doesn’t matter how hot he is. If I’d had feelings

for someone for years and they never noticed or barely acknowledged

me, those feelings would die quicker than they bloomed.”

Riley snorted. “Yeah, right.”

But Reginald wasn’t completely out of the room yet. He’d only gone a few feet when he stopped.

VERIFYCAPTCHA_LABELVerify