Claire's eyes widened as realization dawned on her. She was in his property. Who else, if not Aiden, would have the money and resources needed to construct such an elaborate living space so close to the city?
'You live here?!' Lily asked Aiden excitedly after calling for his attention with a gentle tap on his shoulder.
Aiden stopped walking to answer her. He could see her eyes shine with curiosity and obvious excitement. "Why yes I do Princess."
'Mommy!' Lily smiled widely as she now focused on Claire. 'Aiden lives in a castle! He really is a King!'
Aiden couldn't help but chuckle at her words. And even though they were an innocent girls assumptions, he couldn't help but feel proud of himself. He had designed the house himself. As well as everything that surrounded it. And if the little girl, who was lovingly held in his arms, saw it as his castle, he was more than willing to make her its most beloved Princess.
Not to mention his desire to make the woman who he had tucked in his other arm it's Queen.
Claire also smiled at Lily's words. Her little flower never failed to make her see the world in a more magical and movie like way. "I guess he is Sweetie." She replied as she tapped her little nose with her index finger.
Aiden on the other hand felt his chest swell with even more pride. His Angel agreed with the idea of him being a King. It didn't matter if it was to play along with Lily's childish idea or not. He'll take it.
They continued to approach the grand entrance when it suddenly opened. An older woman stepped out and bowed in their direction. She had light brown hair styled into a tight bun behind her neck and wore what didn't seem like a uniform.
"Welcome back Master Aiden." She said as she lifted her head and offered them a gentle smile. The woman reminded Claire of Ben. They shared the same kind of air around them. And just like her most trusted butler, she could sense she was no ordinary woman.
Lily leaned into Aiden as her hands gripped his clothes. She had been lost in her thoughts as she eyed the house and didn't notice the new stranger until she spoke. Since it took her by surprise, she felt uneasy. Aiden felt her slightly jump by the shock, but before he could say anything the woman beat him to the punch.
"I am sorry to have frightened you Miss Lily." She said as she offered the little girl a welcoming smile. "I'm truly pleasured to finally meet you."
Lily was surprised. She didn't expect the strange woman would know her name. Sensing her confusion, the woman continued. But this time, she did so in sign language. 'Master Aiden has spoken very fondly of you.' The woman then turned to face Claire. "As well as you Miss Claire."
Both girls looked at Aiden curiously. He hugged Lily a bit tighter to reassure her she was safe as he spoke. "This is Aurora. She is in charge of most of the things around here. I trust her as much as I do myself so feel free to rely on her whenever you'd like." As he said so, he gave Claire's waist a squeeze for her to emphasize on his words.
Claire understood she held a similar position in his life as Ben did in hers. Making them seem even more alike. And adding what she knew about Aiden's close circle, she put one and one together. The woman was indeed someone he held dear.
With a gentle smile of her own she reached out her hand and greeted her. "It's nice to meet you Aurora."
"Like wise." Aurora replied.
Lily hadn't leaned back from Aiden's embrace, but she loosened her tightly closed fists. It wasn't much, but enough to let him know she didn't feel threatened by her since he was near. He silently took note of how he would work on helping Aurora gain her trust. He knew it would be important for her to do so, but even so, the fact that she kept clinging on to him warmed his heart. If he could, he'd keep her bundled up in his arms all the time.
Once they stepped inside, the girls roles were immediately reversed. Lily instantly relaxed as Claire tensed up. Badly.
'Mommy! Mommy! Look!' Lily excitedly signed for Claire's attention who wasn't giving it to her. Instead, she was slowly stepping away from Aiden as she trembled.
Moose and Bear were happily wagging their tails and sniffing Aiden as the latter looked at Claire's paled expression with confusion. She looked extremely afraid. Following her line of sight, he quickly realized his dog's were the reason behind it. Pushing his confusion aside, he didn't waste any time in sending them away.
"Moose, Bear, out." He commanded them as he moved to the side so they could leave through the still open door. His eyes never left Claire who silently watched them leave. Lily on the other hand was too distracted by the dogs to even notice her mom's sudden change in mood.
"Princess why don't you play with them for a few minutes. They are very friendly." Aiden forcefully tore his eyes away from Claire for a moment as he spoke to her. "I will be watching from right here." He placed her down on the floor as he gestured towards the open door. Both dogs were excitedly wagging their tails as they looked at them from a few yard away. Still close to the front entrance.
Lily started to turn to look at Claire to ask for permission, but Aiden stopped her before she could. "Mommy and I will both be right here." Giving her a slight nudge towards the door, Lily smiled up to him and headed outside. Aiden knew he didn't need to give Aurora any sort of explanation since she noticed Claire's state as well. The woman simply followed Lily outside and watched her from a safe distance as to not make her feel uneasy.
As soon as he made sure Lily's focus was elsewhere, he turned to face Claire so fast he almost got whiplashed. "Angel." He said as he reached her. Holding her by the shoulders, he bent down to meet her eye level. "What's wrong?"
He was sure she didn't mind Lily near the dogs since she hadn't tried to distance them from her. And judging from Lily's practical obsession with animals and the fact that Claire had expressed her gratitude towards him when he took her to the zoo, it meant the problem wasn't with Lily. It was with Claire herself.
"Sweetheart talk to me." He was growing more and more concerned by her silence. Her breathing was starting to sound more and more shallow while her face turned even paler. "Fuck." He cursed under his breath as he noticed her eyes were glazed over and unfocused. She was starting to have a panic attack.
Aiden leaned back a bit to see out the door and saw that Lily was completely entertained by the dogs. He gave Aurora a silent command before focusing back on Claire. He easily lifted her up and wrapped her legs around his waist. Feeling an ounce of relief when she clinged to him, he quickly walked through a couple of hallways and then into a specific room in the house. With each step he took, Claire buried herself deeper into his neck and breathed harder. It only took him two minutes to reach his destination, but he felt it was two minutes too long.
Sitting on a high chair, he finally spoke to her. "Claire, I need you to breath Baby." He didn't attempt to create space between them, on the contrary, he hugged her so tight he could feel her heart's quick beating against his chest. "You're safe and sound in my arms Angel, just focus on my voice." With one arm tightly pressing her against him and the other slowly rubbing up and down her back he continued. "Breath Angel. I need you to breath for me. Right now we're in the kitchen. I had it remodeled after I heard you liked to bake." He started to describe their surrounding as his hand kept rubbing her back.
"I ordered the latest of everything. There's even an oven that hasn't hit the market yet Sweetheart." His voice was soft as he spoke close to her ear. "Listen to the sound of my voice Baby. It's all you need to focus on." He kissed her head a few times before he went on."I can't wait to see you in here all covered in flour as you make me some of those famous muffins I've heard so much about today."
Aiden felt how her breathing was starting to get better. "That's it, breath Baby. You're doing great." He didn't loosen his grip around her as he kept talking. "I want to taste everything you make Angel. It doesn't matter if I have to start exercising eight times a day. I promise I'll eat all of it."
Claire started to loosened her arms from his neck and brought them down to his chest. She slowly turned her head to rest it on his shoulder as she continued to focus on his voice. "I might get diabetes, but who cares? It's a cheap price to pay if it means I get to enjoy your homemade treats." At that Claire laughed. Her breathing was still hard but it was surely starting to go back to normal. "Laugh all you want but I'm still dead serious Angel. What? You think I won't eat everything?"
"No." She replied as she giggled. Her breathing had slowly turned back to normal.
Aiden hugged her with both arms as he kissed her forehead. Noticing she had sweated, he took out the handkerchief he always had in one of his pockets and wiped her face. His eyebrows knotted together due to how pale her face was. He could feel his heart ache at the sight.
Claire was too tired to feel shy or embarrassed about being sweaty, so she simply closed her eyes and enjoyed his pampering. Snuggling deeper into his chest she sighed in relief. She had almost gone into a full panic attack. A sensation she didn't miss.