Chapter 142

CAMILLA’S PO.V

Ryker and I went for a walk around the palace all afternoon before finally deciding to pick Audrey up from school by ourselves. She was so excited to see us by the and

gate let out a shriek that had my ears ringing for minutes after. She was so excited to see us and chattered on about everything that had happened with her at school. It felt good to be able to have a normal day with my daughter and I wanted to cherish that moment for as long as possible but the goddess had other plans because I got to the front of the palace and saw s=a strange man that I had never seen before.

He was tall and dark as if he spent so much time under the sun. From his demeanor, it was obvious that he was a free spirit, his hair was reaching his shoulders and blew in the wind behind him, his sleeves were rolled up and the top of his buttons undone. He held up his hands to show that he wasn’t a threat but he seemed like the kind of person who could hold his own in a fight.

I placed my hands on Audrey’s shoulders. “Why don’t you go wait inside for us? We just need to handle this.”

If she was disappointed, she didn’t let it show. She just nodded and I watched her sk ip away into the palace. Once I saw that she was safe, Ryker and I made our way to the stranger. He looked at me first and his eyes ran down my body. It wasn’t in a sexual way, it was more analytical, as if he were trying to get a reading on me.

“Who are you?” I asked finally and that seemed to snap him out of his thoughts.

“You look like her,” he said simply and I immediately knew who he was and what he was referring to. “She told me about you, you must be the Queen.” He bowed slightly and offered the same courtesy to Ryker. “She doesn’t know I’m here but I heard that an execution was taking place and I figured it was the right time.”

“Am I missing something?” Ryker asked and I remembered that Christine had only told me about the handsome stranger so I gave him a quick rundown via the mind link. As soon as I was done, Ryker assessed the stranger with a frown and crossed his arms over his chest. “If she doesn’t know you are here then why are you here?”

“I want to make things right,” his explanation was cryptic and that didn’t sit well with Ryker who hadn’t reduced his glare one bit. “She left abruptly last time and I just thought that maybe we could-”

“If she left abruptly, doesn’t that stand to reason that she doesn’t want to see you?” he asked harshly and I turned to him with wide eyes. I had never seen Ryker’s protectiveness up close and I wasn’t sure whether to be embarrassed on Christine’s behalf or to smile knowing that he thought of her as family that needed protecting.

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Chapter 142

“I understand that you are protective of her but I mean her no harm. You can ask her yourself, she stayed with me while she searched for proof against Alara. If I wanted to hurt her, I would have done it a long time ago.”

Ryker hesitated and I was sure that he would send the stranger packing. After everything that happened, trusting new people didn’t come easy to any of us. Just as he was about to speak, I heard a gasp from behind me and I turned to see Christine. Her eyes were wide and her cheeks were a bright pink color as she stared at the man in front of us. She looked like she was unsure of whether she wanted to run to him or run away from him.

“Juan?” she asked and he gave her a soft smile. “What are you doing here?”

“I came to watch the execution of the woman he killed my father,” he explained and I saw sadness creep into her expression. “I also came to see you.”

She blushed harder and I slightly nudged Ryker who was taking in the entire exchange but not the same way I was. He looked hesitant and a little unsure but I was just happy that there was someone who could have her blushing this hard. Christine had always been the strong one and it was a relief to see her looking not to strong.copy right hot novel pub