Lionel barely managed to regain his composure, offering an awkward chuckle.
"Not at all. I was simply curious about the man who could produce a prodigy as brilliant as you."
Claire kept her face completely straight. "Well, you'll definitely find out once you meet him."
Lionel choked on his words. Why was this girl's tongue so ruthlessly sharp?
She was blatantly mocking him to his face.
"I suppose chatting with you is just as enlightening," Lionel conceded, realizing she
had seen through his initial arrogance and was putting him in his place.
He wanted to apologize but couldn't bring himself to swallow his pride.
It was painfully obvious now that her medical skills weren't the only lethal thing about her.
Lionel actually found himself a little intimidated.
Despite being years older, he didn't dare pull rank in front of Claire again.
He had been thoroughly put in his place!
Completely oblivious to Lionel's internal crisis, Claire spent two more days at the hospital before Jennifer invited her out for a lavish dinner at Hearth & Kettle.
She even made sure to pack some takeout for Mary.
Mary had been resting up the past couple of days and hadn't returned to the countryside yet.
This was primarily because her second son's family had invited her over for the holidays.
Terrified that Mary would refuse, his entire family had taken turns trying to persuade her.
Mary genuinely preferred not to spend the holidays with her bustling descendants, but she also had to consider her eldest son's situation.
Her eldest's household was now down to just him and her grandson, Lance.
If she went back to the country alone, those two wouldn't even know what to do with themselves for the holidays.
Blood was blood. Though Mary had little respect for her eldest son's behavior, she couldn't just abandon him entirely.
However, Claire's arrival shifted the dynamic completely.
"Claire, you're back from Cabinda?"
Mary knew that aside from attending The Cabinda University, Claire's grandfather also lived in the city.
Whenever she wasn't around, she was invariably staying with him.
Mary never worried about Claire's safety.
Nor would she ever get upset if Claire couldn't visit immediately.
Still, seeing the granddaughter she had raised with her own hands brought an immense surge of joy to her heart.
"I actually got back a couple of days ago, but I got tied up at the hospital." Hearing this, Mary immediately knew it had to do with the bone cancer lab. Claire's complexion was absolutely radiant; she clearly wasn't sick herself. "That's perfectly fine. Come on in, I just made a fresh berry compote that's perfect for you."
Mary was meticulous about her health and maintaining her elegant appearance.
She was an expert at whipping up sweet, nourishing treats designed to keep her skin glowing.
She had actually extorted the recipes straight from Hale.
Since they were old friends, Mary felt
absolutely zero remorse about
né
bullying the man who constantly tried to steal her granddaughter attention.
Luckily, Hale never seemed to mind.
"I've been craving your desserts for weeks!"
Claire devoured a massive bowl while happily recounting amusing stories from her university classes.
She mentioned grabbing dinner with Priscilla Hastings and their great-uncle.
She also casually noted that the Hastings boy had tried to recruit her into forensics.
"That boy did bring it up with me. With your temperament, you'd make a terrifyingly good medical examiner."
Mary let out a soft laugh. "But there is no way I'm letting my pampered
girl, who was raised to heal the living spend her days trapped with Corpses
"You were right to turn him down."
Claire remained silent. *Honestly, I really wanted to say yes.*
She still fully intended to pick it up as a minor whenever her schedule freed up.
But to spare Mary the unnecessary worry, she wisely decided to keep her mouth
shut.
"Tomorrow is New Year's Eve Eve. Do you want to come celebrate in The James Village with me?"
"It gets incredibly lively out there. feast on free-range chicken and duck, and mountains of fresh
vegetables straight from the vel.ne
garden
"Plus, we can set off fireworks until dawn! It's infinitely better than staying in the city!"