All Chapters of Claimed By His Daddy (Stripper/Nerd): Chapter 61 - Chapter 70

Arielle. The days in the harem blurred into one another each one laced with a cruelty that left me trembling beneath the surface even when I forced myself to keep my chin up. At first their malice had been sharp but contained poisoned whispers and mocking stares little games meant to unsettle me without leaving scars that Kael might notice. But as the days dragged into weeks they grew bolder. The venom seeped into every corner of my existence twisting my hours into something unbearable.It started in the corridors. I would be on my way out to classes with my bag heavy on my shoulder and mind already rehearsing the words I might use in a presentation when suddenly my foot would catch on nothing and I’d crash to the ground. Laughter would spill around me Jasmine or one of her shadows standing just behind smirking as though they hadn’t just tripped me. “Clumsy thing.” one of them would say sweetly offering a hand only to yank it away before I could take it. I learned to gather my b

Kael.The long dining hall was filled with laughter and the clinking of goblets and the glow of golden lamps throwing shadows against the walls but my attention was fixed on one figure alone. Arielle sat further down the table quiet as a ghost among the women with her hands folded neatly in her lap as if she was afraid of taking up too much space. For weeks I had kept my distance determined to let her stew in the harem certain it would remind her where she stood and certain it would press the arrogance out of her. And yet when my gaze slid over her face something inside me twisted unpleasantly. Her cheeks that were once softly rounded had hollowed. Her collarbone was sharper and her shoulders too frail beneath the loose fabric of her dress. Even the way she picked at the food before her was lifeless and mechanical as though she ate only enough to avoid collapsing. It unsettled me.I leaned back in my chair the goblet heavy in my hand though the wine barely touched my lips. My pride

Jax. The room reeked of alcohol and smoke and sweat and it’s a mix that burned my throat as I took another long pull from the bottle. The empty glasses clinked around me like a chorus of mocking voices, and the music pounding from the speakers felt like a heartbeat I couldn’t sync with. I didn’t care anymore. I didn’t care about rules. I didn’t care about anything. The girl I had been “with” in the last week (the one people said I was supposed to like) was crying over some dramatics she thought I would care about. I didn’t. I didn’t give a fuck. She screamed anz she threw herself at me and she made a scene. I swore at her before she ran off. Good fucking riddance. I didn’t feel empty. I felt unchained like something dark and hungry had been released in me and wouldn’t be stopped.“Man you really done?” one of my so-called friends laughed leaning back in his chair and a glass of whiskey shaking in his hand. He had that stupid smirk on his face like he knew exactly how far I’d fal

Kael. The doors to the harem flew open with a thunderous crack the heavy carved wood slamming against the walls as if the building itself flinched. The air inside shifted instantly thick with the scent of incense, perfumes and the sharp tang of fear. I stood there in the doorway hands at my sides my entire frame vibrating with a power that had been caged for too long. The women froze. Conversations died in their throats. Silk skirts rustled as some tried to step back but there was nowhere to go. My shadow stretched across the marble floor swallowing theirs.Arielle was there sitting stiffly on a low cushioned bench with her hands trembling slightly as she folded them in her lap. Her hair hung loose darker against her pale skin her shoulders narrow where once they had been soft and rounded. She was thinner. She was still beautiful but her beauty had been stripped down to something raw and fragile. Her eyes flickered up to mine (haunted but still alive and defiant) and that flicker

Arielle. The hospital walls had been suffocating even when they were painted a clean white and even when the nurses smiled at me as if I were some fragile miracle for surviving. I hated being treated like I was about to break hated being asked if I needed more rest and more food and more medicine. The truth was my body was weaker than I wanted to admit. Every step outside those doors felt heavier than before like chains dragging at my ankles but there was something else inside me too. Something burning. A spark that refused to die even when everything else had tried to crush it.I didn’t want Kael to see me as weak. I didn’t want anyone to see me that way. And so when I came back to the estate, I held my head high even if it felt like I was balancing a thousand pounds on my shoulders. He noticed of course. Kael always noticed. His eyes followed me through every hall sharp and cutting like he was measuring how long it would take before I stumbled again.That night, I thought maybe h