Chloe took a quick step toward Julian, placing a hand over her heart in a dramatic display of fake concern. Her voice rose into a high-pitched, anxious tone as she tried desperately to control the narrative before Victoria could speak. "Honey, she just fell on her own!" Chloe insisted, her eyes darting nervously around the room as she gestured toward the fallen table. "I tried to reach out and catch her, but she tripped over her own dress! You know how clumsy she gets!"
Julian did not move closer immediately. His facial expression remained stone-cold and terrifyingly intense as he looked down at the scene unfolding before him. His jaw clenched tightly, his dark eyes narrowing into sharp slits that cut right through Chloe's frantic excuses. The heavy silence in the room grew thicker with every passing second, making Chloe's fake smile falter into a desperate twitch as she realized her lie wasn't working.
Without taking his eyes off the situation, Julian spoke a single word that sliced through Chloe's rambling excuses like a sharp blade. "Enough," he stated in a deep, stern voice that filled every corner of the vast foyer. The absolute authority in his tone instantly silenced Chloe, whose breath caught in her throat as a wave of cold realization washed over her.
Julian immediately brushed past Chloe without giving her a second glance, dropping down to one knee beside Victoria on the cold marble floor. He carefully lifted the heavy accent table away and gently took Victoria's trembling hand in his own. "I'm here," he whispered softly, his stern expression softening into deep, genuine care as he checked to ensure she and the baby were unharmed by the fall.