As soon as they entered the celebration hall, Mrs. Paisley Ashford marched right over to them. She welcomed Claire and Wilder with giant, open arms, acting like they were old, beloved best friends she hadn’t seen since grade school.
Paisley’s eyes darted down to Wilder’s outfit. Her jaw twitched, shock flashing across her face for a solid three seconds. Then, she threw her head back and laughed. "Oh, my word! What a unique choice! The color certainly... adds life to the party, doesn’t it?"
Wilder narrowed her eyes. She had dressed like a walking hazard on purpose, fully expecting the Ashfords to throw a fit. She wanted to provoke them, to test their limits so Claire could know what was coming if her relationship with Apollo deepened.
But instead of disgust, his mother was acting overly nice from the onset. It was deeply suspicious!
"Meet my daughters-in-law, Britney and Kaida!" Paisley beamed, pulling two impeccably dressed women forward.
Britney and Kaida looked like they had stepped straight out of a glossy fashion magazine, but they were practically bouncing with excitement. They grabbed Claire’s hands, showering her with praise.
"We are so overjoyed to finally meet you!
We’ve heard so many wonderful things about you!"
Paisley turned to Apollo. "Darling, take Claire and introduce her to your grandfather. Don’t keep him waiting."
Apollo nodded. He looked at Claire and lowered his voice, trying to be reassuring. "Hey... try not to be too scared, okay? He can be a bit intense."
Claire raised an eyebrow, crossing her arms. "Scared? Why on earth would I be scared?"
Apollo blinked, suddenly remembering that Claire had faced down ruthless corporate sharks, greedy relatives, and major scandals without ever blinking an eye.
Right. Claire didn’t know the meaning of fear.
As Apollo led them through the thick crowd, a few high-society guests whispered and giggled behind champagne flutes, pointing right at Wilder’s orange sleeves and leopard-print pants. Instead of shrinking away, Wilder just lifted her chin even higher, glaring at the gossiping snobs like she was daring one of them to say something to her face.
They reached a small, exclusive circle of older men sipping expensive wine and laughing softly. Griffin spotted them first. He immediately set his glass down on a passing waiter’s tray and hurried over.
Apollo opened his mouth to speak, but Griffin casually shoved his son’s head completely out of the way with one hand, wrapping Claire in a warm, gentle hug. "Thank you so much for coming, we were worried you would reject us." Griffin whispered warmly.
He took her elbow and led her forward to an older man standing at the center of the group. The man had sharp, hawk like features, still looked built like an ox despite his age, and sported a thick mustache with curled ends that looked ready for battle.
"Dad," Griffin said proudly. "This is Claire, my third daughter-in-law." He looked at Claire and gestured to his father. "Claire, meet the family patriarch, my father, and Apollo’s grandfather."
Ares Ashford looked Claire up and down with intense, razor-sharp interest. He raised a heavy hand, waving it impatiently to cut his son off. "Stop yapping, Griffin. I already know who she is."
Claire let out a heavy sigh inside. Here it comes, she thought. He’s probably talking about all those trashy tabloid articles about my former family, calling me the fake heiress.
Ares crossed his arms, his stern face cracking into an approving smirk. "You’re a shrewd businesswoman, girl. I’ve been asking Griffin how my brainless grandson managed to catch the attention of someone like you. It is a loss for more sensible men."
Apollo grimaced.
"It’s a pleasure to meet you sir," Claire greeted with a grin.
Griffin cleared his throat awkwardly. "Dad... actually, there’s something else. Claire is pregnant."
Ares’s jaw dropped so fast it practically hit his shiny leather shoes. His eyes bugged out of his head. "Outside of wedlock?!How have you raised that boy, Griffin?!" he bellowed, his face turning bright red. "What kind of backwards operation are you running?!"
Claire darted a panicked look at Apollo. She had heard stories about how old-school Ares was-- a strict traditionalist who believed every single thing in life had to happen in the exact, proper order. Every single Ashford in the room instantly stiffened, knowing Ares was about to cause an absolute scene right then and there.
"Wait, wait, grandfather, calm down!" Apollo jumped in, waving his hands frantically. "It’s a girl!"
Claire instantly choked, letting out a violent, hacking cough that threatened to block her airway. A girl?! Claire thought, coughing into her fist. When did we decide it was a girl?! We don’t even know yet!
Miraculously, Ares’s furious expression vanished instantly, his face perking up with utter delight. He rose to his feet, aggressively grabbing Claire’s hands. "Is that true?! A girl?!"
Claire stammered, her face burning red. "I--well--uh--"
"Give him the gift, Claire!" Apollo hissed under his breath, nudging her hard.
She presented a small gift bag and practically shoved it right into the old man’s face.
Ares blinked, blinking down at the bag. He smiled softly, reached inside, and pulled out the gold pearl first.
"Not that, the frame!" Apollo said anxiously.
Ares pulled out the picture frame. It was a custom-made picture frame holding a 10-week 4D ultrasound photo, surrounded by sparkly little seashells glued to the edges.
"This was Apollo’s stupid idea!" Claire blurted out immediately, refusing to take the blame for the tacky craft project. "I had nothing to do with it."
Ares didn’t hear a word she said. His lips began to tremble. Down his weathered cheeks, two big tears spilled over, tracking straight through his wrinkles. He pulled the little frame tightly against his chest, clutching it like it was the most precious treasure on earth.
"Finally..." Ares choked out, his voice cracking with heavy emotion. "An... an Ashford princess from my line. After so many loud, annoying boys... a little girl."
Claire stood frozen, her eyes widening in utter disbelief. She whipped her head around, staring wildly at Wilder as if to ask, Should I tell him we don’t actually know the gender yet?!
Wilder slowly shook her head, pointing a single finger firmly at her own zipped lips. Shut up and let the old man cry, the gesture said.
Claire swallowed hard and nodded. Hey, at the end of the day, she wasn’t the one who lied about the baby being a girl! Apollo’s neck would be the one on the chopping block if the baby pulled a plot twist.
Ares gently pulled Claire forward into a powerful, bone-crushing embrace. He sniffled, pulling back to look her in the eyes. "I’ve received many expensive things as gifts my whole life," Ares declared, his voice thick with tears. "And this is the single greatest gift I have ever received in my eighty years on this earth."
Claire stood there, completely overwhelmed.
Suddenly, Ares snapped out of it, wiping his eyes with the back of his hand. He turned sharply and yelled across the room, "Devon! Get over here!"
A tall, stiff-looking man in a sharp suit hurried over. "Yes, Mr. Ashford?"
Ares pointed a finger at Claire. "I want her to have absolute peace of mind. If anyone-- and I mean anyone-- dares to bother her or look at her sideways, I want you to traumatize them."
Devon blinked. "Sir?"
"You all know about Claire’s former family and how they’ve been dragging her name through the mud in the news," Ares barked, his face turning hard as stone. "Sue them! Hire local goons to beat them up! I don’t care what you do, just make those miserable cowards stop stressing her! As far as everyone is concerned, Claire is the family’s VIP because she is carrying the next queen of this country."
"We have a president." Apollo said.
His grandfather slapped him on the head. "Quiet Apollo. Devon, send out my orders."
Devon nodded calmly, pulling out a small notepad. "Consider it done, Mr. Ashford."
Ares turned back to Claire, a beaming, grandfatherly smile on his face. "Now... when is the wedding? We need to book the cathedral by tomorrow morning!"