The One He Dismissed Became The One He Died For novel Chapter 25

Claire's fingers instinctively curled around the seatbelt, too anxious to meet his gaze.

Even though she and Jefferson were already broken up, she still felt incredibly guilty knowing she had ulterior motives with Miles. She couldn't bring herself to tell the whole truth.

She lowered her eyes, her eyelashes trembling slightly. "Mr. Sterling is my boss, and Director Zimmerman is my direct supervisor. Obviously, I don't want to run into them when I'm off the clock."

Her tone was light, the explanation perfectly reasonable.

Miles let out a soft "Mhm" and didn't press the issue, his deep eyes giving away absolutely nothing.

He pushed the car door open, his voice quiet but serious. "Yvonne is young and was spoiled by her family. She can be reckless. If she gives you a hard time at work, you can tell me."

Claire looked up at him, her heart skipping a beat.

Was he offering to stand up for her?

Thinking back to the incident at the bar, a stoic man like him should hate meddling in other people's business.

It was probably because she looked like his former flame. Love by association.

"Thank you, Dr. Zimmerman."

Inside the elegant private dining room, the two sat across from each other, a subtle awkwardness hanging in the air. Claire asked about her mother's condition and tried her best to keep the conversation going.

Miles remained quiet, offering polite but distant nods and shakes of his head.

That was until the waiter brought out the dessert: a mango coconut cake.

Miles spoke up. "She's allergic to mango. Please swap this for something else."

Claire froze, staring at him in sheer astonishment. "How did you know I was allergic to mangoes?"

Miles paused as he set down his fork, a brief ripple of emotion flashing in his eyes before he returned to his calm demeanor.

"Susan Jenner is allergic to tropical fruits. These things are often genetic, so it wasn't hard to guess."

Claire's eyes trembled.

She had dated Jefferson for seven years, and he had never once remembered she was allergic to tropical fruits. He even ordered her a mango cake for her birthday.

It wasn't that she hadn't told him. Every time, he would just pull her into his arms and whine about being too busy and forgetting.

She had just been too stupid to realize the truth earlier—if someone didn't care, they wouldn't remember.

"What are you thinking about?"

"Nothing," Claire said, her eyes curving into a smile. "I was just thinking about how incredibly observant you are. Whoever was your girlfriend must have been incredibly lucky."

The air in the room went dead silent for a second.

"I haven't had one," he answered bluntly. "Never dated. But I have been deceived by someone."

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