My Unchosen Ex Chases Reborn Me (Soren and Fiona) novel Chapter 254

Chapter 254 Stirrings Of Love

Chapter 254 Stirrings Of Love

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After dispatching a servant to locate Soren, Fiona stepped into the corridor–and nearly collided with Hillary.

The young lady’s cheeks were flushed the color of spring peaches, her gaze drifting somewhere far beyond the lantern–lit hallway.

Fiona reached up, palm cool against Hillary’s brow. “Hillary, are you feeling unwell?”

Naomi swept forward, worry softened by an indulgent smile. “I have called her three times already, yet she keeps drifting away.”

Hillary’s voice barely rose above a whisper. “Hey, Fiona.”

Fiona brushed a stray curl from Hillary’s forehead. “The wind is strong today. Have you caught a cold?”

At that question, the girl’s mind betrayed her, flashing back to what she had seen moments earlier–Soren’s arms cinched tightly around Fiona, his voice rough with longing, and Fiona small and sure within his embrace. Hillary’s pulse raced so hard it felt audible in her ears.

She swallowed, gathering courage. “Fiona, may I ask you something?”

Fiona nodded, curiosity stirring in her eyes. “Of course.”

“How are you supposed to feel when you like someone? What if your heart races, think of him all the time? Is that it?”

and you

Fiona hesitated, the smallest shadow passing across her expression. “Perhaps,” she said gently. “That sounds very much like it.”

Naomi leaned in, laughter dancing in her tone. “And which young gentleman stirs our Hillary so?”

Hillary shook her head, heat flooding her cheeks. “No one. Truly, no one.”

In her heart, however, she knew the truth. Perhaps she had loved Soren all along. In Broadmoor, when they were children, he had treated her with a gentle regard he showed no other girl save Naomi. Yet it was clear now that his eyes looked only for Fiona, and that realization left her adrift and ashamed.

If Soren and Fiona belonged together, then to wedge herself between them would make her a villain. A lady of the prestigious Havenford Estate could never agree to become a mere

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Chapter 254 Stirrings Of Love

concubine.

P:.

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Fiona caught the flicker of pain crossing Hillary’s fragile face. A knowing weight settled in her chest; the girl had almost certainly glimpsed Fiona standing with Soren a little earlier.

The bloom of first love had been plucked in full view of polite society. Any lady, placed in such a moment, would have felt the same dim, wounded sorrow.

In the previous lifetime, Hillary had journeyed to Broadmoor at the tender edge of adulthood, radiant and unguarded. Soren, already twenty–five, lived beside her there. Her plain devotion, given day after day, soaked into him until the line between gratitude and affection blurred beyond recovery.

“Fiona, do you have a young gentleman you fancy?” Hillary asked, the words bursting out before she could reconsider.

Fiona studied the girl’s face, searching for the shadow behind the carefully polite smile.

Hillary, too, waited–eyes locked on Fiona as though the answer alone might pull her back from a precipice.

Fiona understood at once; the child was waiting for her to deny any fondness for Soren.

She held Hillary’s gaze in steady silence.

Color flooded Hillary’s cheeks. At last, she dropped her eyes, fists tightening on the hem of her gown in helpless confusion.

“There is no one I love,” Fiona said, voice gentle, smile soft.

Hillary’s head snapped up, yet she swallowed whatever words rose next, worrying her lower lip instead.

Fior allowed the matter to rest. Scheming girls set her on edge–Serena or even the once- pric ly Mindy had never unsettled her quite this way.

As they were about to leave, Hillary seized Fiona’s wrist and whispered, “Fiona, are you angry with me?”

Fiona lowered her eyes to the trembling hand. “Why would I be angry?” she asked. Yet she could not honestly claim that no shadow lingered in her heart.

“I–I… Fiona, may I speak the truth? Please don’t be cross,” Hillary begged, refusing to release her hold.

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Chapter 254 Stirrings Of Love

Fiona inclined her head and guided the girl toward a secluded corner of the garden.

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“I saw you with Soren just now,” Hillary confessed, tears spilling before she could stop them. “I think I like him–only a little, yet enough that seeing him stand so close to you made my heart race with envy. But if the two of you care for each other, I will keep myself in check.”

The admission hurt her; Hillary had no wish to cherish someone she ought never love.

Yet the heart obeyed no edict; desire could not be scolded into silence.

“I always thought my feelings were only admiration,” she sobbed. “He is so accomplished–far beyond my brothers. But the tender sprout of love has grown, and now I see my own heart. Fiona, what am I to do?”

A knot of mixed emotions tightened inside Fiona. For all the girl’s small stratagems, Hillary truly regarded her as a confidante.

That sincerity twisted the knife: the very girl leaning on her now would, in years to come, stand beside the man who had once been Fiona’s own.

“You must find the answer yourself. I can’t give you one,” Fiona answered.

“Will you and Soren be together? If you will, I shall stay away from him,” Hillary whispered, lips white where her teeth pressed.

Fiona held her gaze. “He and I will not be together.”

The reply sparked another question in Hillary’s mind–if Fiona refused him, might she be allowed? Yet instinct branded the thought forbidden, and she stayed silent.