Ready to Rule: The Real Heiress Strikes Back novel Chapter 45

Lucinda couldn’t believe how bold Lydia was, acting like she didn’t even exist. Her nails bit into her palms as she tried to keep her cool. Fine. Just wait, Lydia. Soon enough, everyone will see who the real Norwood heiress is.

She had spent all of yesterday digging up every detail about Lydia’s past. The Smiths, her adoptive family, clearly favored their son and had barely cared about Lydia. They had left her out in the countryside with her grandma. So what if Lydia was a Norwood by blood? Eighteen years living like that meant she could never really catch up. No matter what, Lucinda thought, Lydia would always be behind.

When Lucinda came downstairs, Cameron, Kylie, and Mr. Norwood were already at the breakfast table. Earlier, Cameron and Kylie had told Mr. Norwood that they’d picked out a few gifts for Lydia to thank her for saving his life, and for everything she’d gone through yesterday.

After a night to think it over and remembering what Mr. Jefferson had said, Mr. Norwood realized he’d been too harsh with Lydia. He decided not to interfere. There wasn’t much he could do anyway. All he wanted was for Lucinda to stay with the Norwood family and eventually marry well. If he could do that, he’d have no regrets.

“Lydia, come on,” Kylie called out, smiling warmly as she stood and guided Lydia to the table. “Let’s have breakfast first, and then we have a few gifts for you, to thank you for saving your grandpa.”

Yesterday, they’d tried to surprise Lydia with gifts before breakfast, and she hadn’t eaten a bite. This time, they agreed—food first, then presents.

Just as Lydia sat down, Lucinda appeared at the top of the stairs, dressed head-to-toe in a crisp white uniform. She bounced down, her voice ringing out, “Good morning, Grandpa! Good morning, Dad! Good morning, Mom!”

The room fell silent. Even the housekeepers exchanged weird glances. Lucinda, completely oblivious, thought everyone was just stunned by how cool she looked. She grinned, feeling extra confident.

“Wow, so much good food today,” she said brightly as she walked over to the table, determined to get herself noticed.

Mr. Norwood patted the seat beside him. “Lucinda, come sit next to me.”

She pouted and looked over at Cameron and Kylie. “Dad, Mom, you only care about Lydia now. You don’t love me anymore.”

Cameron and Kylie both looked up right away. “Sorry, Lucinda. We didn’t mean to ignore you,” Kylie said gently, putting a piece of apple on Lucinda’s plate.

“Here, your favorite seared tuna,” Cameron added.

“And your special royal abalone toast,” Kylie said, adding another treat.

In no time, Lucinda’s plate was just as stacked as Lydia’s. She smiled brightly, then shot Lydia a smug look across the table. “Thank you, Dad. Thank you, Mom. I’ll help you get your favorite dishes, too.”