The Billionaire's True Heiress: From Fake Jewel to Real Crown novel Chapter 258

Ophelia was honestly shocked by how blunt Tiffany could be. Was she in a bad mood or something? Did she come over just to pick a fight with Claire? Trying to keep her cool, Ophelia said, “Tiffany, don’t say things like that. Back in the day, Melissa won an international gold medal, didn’t she? Claire takes after her mom. Even if she doesn’t get a gold, she’ll have no problem moving up in the competition. And Norris told me Claire got the top score in the first round of training camp. She’s definitely going to make the national team.”

Tiffany just rolled her eyes. Ophelia always used to have Yolande’s back, which made Tiffany happy. But now she was defending Melissa’s daughter, and that didn’t sit right with her.

“We’ll talk when she actually wins a gold,” Tiffany said. Then she turned to Claire, her smile a little too sharp. “So, where are your parents? Why didn’t they come back? Is it because they ran off years ago? Are they worried about facing Padgett? Pretty clever of them, sending you back first to test the waters.”

There was no hiding it now. Tiffany clearly didn’t like her at all. Claire could practically feel the malice coming off her in waves. Why did Tiffany want to believe she wasn’t really Melissa’s daughter—maybe even hoping she was some kind of fraud? Was it just about the inheritance? The Churchill family’s wealth mostly belonged to Padgett, and there hadn’t been a granddaughter in ages. Everyone knew how much Padgett once adored Melissa. Her running away with someone had been a huge scandal, and after that, Padgett never spoke about her again.

On the other hand, once Tiffany had Yolande, she often sent her over to Padgett’s house. The whole family doted on Yolande. Tiffany knew that when Yolande got married, Padgett would give her a generous wedding gift. Everything was going according to Tiffany’s plans—until Claire showed up out of nowhere. If Melissa’s daughter was accepted back into the family, what would happen to Yolande’s future? Tiffany’s father-in-law and Padgett were only half-brothers, and her father-in-law was illegitimate. Without Yolande, Tiffany never would have gotten this close to Padgett in the first place.

“Tiffany, why would you say that?” Claire spoke up, her voice steady. “Who said my parents ran away? You shouldn’t throw around accusations like that. My parents were married legally, back in their hometown.”

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