Chapter 41

Christina was momentarily speechless.

Honestly, Chloe would’ve been better off staying quiet. Once she opened her mouth, it was pretty obvious she was the one who did it!

And Elton… was he really that oblivious? Couldn’t he see through such clumsy manipulation?

What exactly did he see in Chloe?

Whatever.

Christina slowly closed her eyes, suppressing the irritation rising in her chest. Everyone had their own preferences. If Elton liked Chloe, then he must have his reasons.

When she opened her eyes again, her gaze was calm and cutting.

“It seems Gabriel won’t need to investigate after all,” she said coolly to Chloe. “It's pretty obvious who did it."

"Stop accusing me!" Chloe snapped, shooting Elton a quick glance before letting out a cold scoff and storming off.

She needed to figure out a way to distance herself from this whole thing.

Or maybe get her grandfather Finnley Stone involved.

With Finnley backing her, even Gabriel would think twice before pushing too far.

Besides, Finnley had always supported her relationship with Gabriel.

He had made it clear more than once that the Stone family didn’t need political marriages to maintain their status. Chloe had the intelligence and charm to win Gabriel over on her own.

This made her absolutely certain that she would win Gabriel over.

Even after Christina returned, she hadn’t wavered.

But now, everything was shifting. Gabriel’s attitude had changed. Elton, too, was clearly taking Christina’s side.

The balance she once relied on was slipping through her fingers.

Frustrated, Chloe slammed the car door behind her and walked off without looking back.

On the other side, Elton left with Christina and the others.

His reasoning sounded perfectly natural.

After all, how could he pass up the chance to meet Christina’s friends?

Freya, however, was less than pleased. “Aren’t you going after Chloe?” she asked, frowning. “Why are you tagging along with us? Besides, we're all girls, It’s not exactly appropriate to have you around.”

Elton raised an eyebrow, clearly amused.

“That’s funny. I used to hang out with you guys all the time, and you never complained. What’s changed? Freya, have you grown up? Is this your delayed rebellious phase? Your attitude toward me has been pretty bad these past two years."

Christina glanced at Freya and gave her a subtle wink.

Freya's heart was pounding.

So Elton had noticed her change?

After all this time, Elton had finally brought it up—but now that he had, she found herself at a loss for words. “Mind your own business,” she muttered before turning on her heel and walking away.

Elton stared after her, clearly frustrated.

“Christina, seriously, what’s wrong with her?” he complained. “Tell me, is this fair? After you left, she became like this. I ask her out, she never comes. But when someone else asks, she goes without hesitation. I haven't done anything to her, so what's her problem!"

It wasn’t entirely surprising he hadn’t noticed sooner.

Gabriel and Asher would never entertain something like this. They'd probably think he was making a big deal out of nothing and being petty.

They'd laugh at him for being rejected by Freya.

Juno was Freya's closest friend and had a sharp tongue, so he definitely wouldn't tell Juno about this.

As for Chloe.

Chloe had never liked Freya to begin with.

Only Christina, though younger, was more mature and wouldn't laugh at him. Instead, she'd help him solve the problem.

And as expected, she did.

“When did her attitude start changing?” Christina asked.

"August 1st, 2024."

Elton answered without hesitation.

"That specific?" Christina raised her eyebrows.

"Of course, that was the first time she treated me badly." Elton remembered it clearly.

"Do you remember what happened that day?"

“Nothing,” Elton replied. “It was completely normal.”

Christina tilted her head slightly. “What about the day before?”

“The day before…” Elton paused, then answered without thinking, “That’s when I found out Chloe was the girl who saved me when we were kids. That’s when I started liking her.” Elton remembered that day clearly too.

Christina frowned faintly. "Chloe saved you when you were kids?" It was the first time she’d heard such a claim.

“Yeah. Remember when I got lost as a kid? When you found me, I was drenched. You asked me what happened, and I said I fell in the water and someone saved me. The girl who saved me left right after pulling me out. I only remembered that her clothes were wet and showed part of her waist, and there was a red boat-shaped birthmark on it."

"Chloe has one?" Christina doubted her own memory.

She distinctly recalled seeing Chloe when she went swimming at The Stone Manor years ago—there had been no such mark on her.

Yet Elton nodded with certainty.

"Because she saved you, you fell for her?” Christina asked calmly. “You do realize she doesn't like you, right? Maybe your feelings are like repaying kindness with resentment to her. After all, anyone can see she likes Gabriel, but you keep bothering her. Don’t you think your persistence annoys her?”

Elton frowned, clearly unconvinced.

“She’s attractive, my family approves of her, and she saved me. What’s wrong with me liking her? Besides, she’s never said I’m annoying.”

"But she's never wanted to accept you either."

Elton fell silent.

Christina pressed on.

“You know what her attitude toward you is, don't you? You're the heir of the Riddick family. You know what she says about you to others, right?"

"Christina, we're talking about why Freya's attitude toward me suddenly changed."

“Isn’t it obvious?” Christina replied evenly. “Freya changed because you suddenly started acting like a fool over Chloe. She can’t stand it—and probably doesn’t want to admit she’s friends with someone behaving like that.”

Elton scoffed.

“And she’s any better? She goes through boyfriends like changing clothes. Those guys are obviously after her money and status. Yet she keeps claiming she has some pure love with those guys. What a joke! Those men all know she only gives money and won't sleep with them. They're thrilled about it, lining up one after another."

"How do you know Freya only gives money and doesn't sleep with them?" Christina caught the key point.

Elton was speechless, his eyes flickering. He started doubting himself too. Yeah, how did he know all this?

“…I looked into it,” he said stiffly. “We’ve been friends for years. I didn’t want her getting into trouble or catching something.”

"Really?"

Christina smiled. If it were Chloe, would you investigate?

Elton shook his head without thinking.

“Of course not. She’s nothing to me. I have no right to interfere in her life.”

So who is Freya to you?" Christina asked holding his gaze.

The question lingered, heavy and unanswered.

Leaving Elton standing there in silence, Christina turned and walked after Freya.

Juno watched the exchange with wide eyes before quickly grabbing Juniper’s arm and hurrying after her.

“Christina, that was incredible!” she whispered excitedly, giving a thumbs up. "I never noticed before that Elton feels differently about Freya."

Thinking that Elton actually liked Freya, Juno got excited.

“But… the fact that he liked Chloe before still makes me uncomfortable,” she added with a grimace.

Christina laughed at her disgusted expression.

"It's not you who liked Chloe, so why does it bother you?” she teased. Then her tone shifted, more thoughtful. “Besides, don't you think it's strange? After all that, Elton is still confused. He's liked Chloe for so long, but doesn't know what liking someone means?"

“You’re right… so why doesn't he know what liking someone means?" Juno asked with a slight confused expression.

Juniper, who had been quiet until now, finally spoke.

“Because he’s never actually been in love,” she said simply. "And most likely, someone told him something that made him mistakenly think his feelings toward Chloe were love—thereby mistaking gratitude for love.”

"I see. But what does that mean?"