The Billionaire's True Heiress From Fake Jewel to Real Crown novel Chapter 411

Claire had promised to pick up a few things for Shirley, but with a whole day left before she had to head back, there was no rush. When her grades came out, Norris was already outside waiting for her, eager to take her home for dinner. At the Churchill house, Padgett and everyone else were waiting, practically buzzing with excitement.

They had all heard the news—Claire had taken first place in the trials and everyone wanted to celebrate. For Claire though, it felt like a bit much. Sure, it was a big deal, but she still had an international competition ahead. Maybe hold off on the confetti until she won that gold medal.

She hadn’t brought a gift for the Churchills this time, not because she didn’t want to, but because training had left her completely drained. Add in the piles of schoolwork and having to rush from Apex straight here, there just wasn’t a single moment to spare for shopping.

Not that anyone in the family cared one bit. They were just proud of her and her win. Padgett especially looked thrilled. Lately, he’d been seeing more and more of his daughter’s spirit in Claire.

Tonight the Churchills were going all out. There was a whole lamb roasting in the backyard, and the scent drifted all through the house. Claire just assumed their chef was in charge of dinner like always, but as it turned out, Bishop was out by the grill himself.

Claire couldn’t stop herself from staring. He looked completely in his element, which only made Karla chuckle. “Don’t let the CEO thing fool you,” she teased, “Bishop used to be quite the cook.”

She grinned, already on a roll. “Back when we were working in the countryside together, he picked up all sorts of cooking skills. His lamb roasts had half the girls drooling.”

Claire’s eyes widened. The idea that the Churchills had ever done that kind of manual work seemed impossible. “You two actually met in the countryside?”

Karla nodded like it was the most natural thing in the world. “We did. Bishop was always sneaking off to make food. One time I caught him red-handed and managed to snag a roasted rabbit leg out of the deal.”

“I followed him back to Cabinda without thinking, and that’s when I realized just how rich the Churchill family really was. And his ‘foraging’ skills in the countryside? Turns out he was just spending money he’d stashed away.”

Back then, the Churchills kept a pretty low profile. Still, their beautiful old house and courtyard survived, partly because the older generations had donated much of their wealth to charity but made sure to preserve the family estate.

“I had no idea your love story with Bishop was that much fun,” Claire said honestly. She glanced at Bishop, who caught her gaze and grinned.

In her head, Claire was thinking, Bishop really did have that sly, fox-like smile. Totally different from Caleb. Owen must take after him. It wouldn’t surprise her at all if Bishop had been head over heels for Karla from the start and just used his cooking as bait.