Sotiria’s eyes flew open.She was now lying on a bed with a bridal atmosphere all around her. It was warm, romantic, and oozing with newly-wedded bliss. She recognized this place. It was her and Garrison’s newlywed home.Garrison had bought this house the day she had agreed to marry him. At the time, Garrison had not planned on whisking her away from Rothesay. When Garrison had brought her to check out the house, he’d even cracked a joke and said that he wanted to turn this room into a nest full of babies with her and spend the rest of his life with her here.Now, she was officially married to Garrison. From now on, this would be her home too…‘Wait! Wasn’t I being held down by two men in the washroom? What am I doing here? Did Garrison take me home?’She clearly remembered being tortured by that drug before losing her wits, and those two men had been waiting for the drug to take effect so that they could violate her. Had they…“No!”Sotiria broke out into a cold sweat from frig
“That’s enough from you!”Ivan was both enraged and helpless.“Let me tell you something. I'm the most open-minded father in existence. Koko was not an upstanding woman, but I was deeply in love with her at the time and ended up producing my darling daughter, Lory, that very year. This is why I never opposed your relationship with Sotiria over the past four years, despite knowing her history. Not too long ago, you called me and told me that you wanted to marry her, and I never said no.”Sotiria’s expression stiffened.‘That’s right! I’ve heard about Lorraine from Garrison—she’s Ivan’s lovechild from a disreputable woman. Ivan was really in love with her, so he never opposed his son’s choice to fall in love with a woman like me. But even so, why is he forcing Garrison to divorce me?’Then, Ivan continued. “However, a man’s dignity is of the utmost importance. We Larsons have a reputation to uphold in Rothesay. I do not care about the past of the woman my son has chosen as his wife,
“Tiria, why are you making such a silly suggestion too?” Garrison got to his feet and walked toward Sotiria.“I’m… not…”Sotiria’s voice trailed off when she thought about being violated by those two men. Tears streamed down her face uncontrollably. “It’s not a silly suggestion. I’m speaking the truth. Those two men… They… They did that to me, and the whole city knows it. I can’t drag you down with me and make you the laughing stock of the city too, and I can’t let you cut off ties with your father and sister because of me. Let’s get a divorce right now!”She was a woman with self-awareness.She was just like any other girl, average. Garrison, on the other hand, was outstanding. Having the opportunity to be with him was already more than she deserved. Besides, her past was unbearable. People used to laugh at Garrison for his “unique taste”. Now that this had happened, Garrison would be even more of a laughing stock than ever. Garrison was like a perfect pearl from the deep se
Meeting Garrison was the greatest blessing in her life. She had stumbled upon a precious jewel. From now on and for the rest of her life, she would hold on to this gem, love him with her whole heart, take care of him, and never make him feel sad again. “Tiria, I was going to keep the truth from you because I didn’t want to burden you. I wanted to lie to you and tell you that you weren’t violated at all. I never thought that my dad would spoil my plans!”Garrison sighed.“Well, since you know, I guess I should tell you the truth. Tiria, you weren’t violated by two men. Only one man violated you. Hopefully, that will make you feel better.”Sotiria’s lips trembled.The two ugly men’s faces appeared in her mind once again.Had the two ugly men done that to her, or was it just one of them? It made no difference to her!“I got the surveillance footage from the washroom and realized that those two men left after Zachary entered the washroom and violated you. The two men you were talki
“Zachary… Connor…”Sotiria seethed, enunciating every syllable of his name. Her teary eyes turned as cold as frost. “You’ve known him for many years. You must have his phone number, right? Give him a call right now. I want to speak to him!”“Tiria...” Garrison shook his head. His eyes were filled with concern. “People call Zachary the devil of Rothesay in private for a reason. His personality is the amalgamation of fire and ice. He indulges the people he cares about limitlessly, but he’s extremely cruel to the people he hates. Based on everything he’s done to you today, he’s already categorized you as someone he hates. From now on, you have to try your best to stay away from him. What could possibly possess you to want to speak to him?”“I know…”She lifted her hand to wipe the tears from her eyes. Sotiria’s clear gaze was the gaze of a woman who viewed death as home and contained a glint of determination. “But I’m still going to speak to him. I want to stand up for myself!”“
Zachary was a formidable devil.She didn’t want him to have another confrontation with Zachary because of her.“Don’t worry. I’ll leave as soon as I ask him a few questions. It’ll be fine.” Sotiria gently patted the back of Garrison’s hand.Only then did Garrison release her wrist.Sotiria began walking away again. She arrived at the elevator and confirmed that Garrison could no longer see her before allowing her tears to stream down her face again.In the beginning, when she’d thought that she had been violated by those two men, her heart had been overwhelmed by gloom. She’d felt as if her body had been tainted and had been so disgusted that she’d wanted to puke. When she had found out that it was Zachary who’d had sex with her instead, that feeling had miraculously disappeared…She didn’t feel tainted anymore!However, an even stronger sense of hatred soon followed.She didn’t know what had happened to her.She hated Zachary!However, it wasn’t because he had violated her.
“Oh my, look over here! Isn’t that Sotiria Green?”A random passerby let out an overjoyed shriek, as if she had discovered a new world.“He he he!”Then, someone smirked in a gloomy, evil manner.“What’s wrong with this woman? Didn’t she just defile Mr. Connor during her wedding to Mr. Larson? It’s only been a few hours, yet she can’t keep herself in check. She actually sought Mr. Connor out again. Is she planning on defiling Mr. Connor again?”“Of course, Mr. Connor is the most sought-after, handsome prince charming in the eyes of every woman in Rothesay. She’s had a taste of Mr. Connor now, so of course she’d yearn for him and want more.”“Sigh! This world is so unfair. The thought of it alone makes me so angry. How could Sotiria, this outrageous snake, have possibly managed to sleep with Mr. Connor, when so many beautiful and flawless heiresses have failed to catch his eye?”“You’d better watch your words, or Mr. Connor might kill you!”“Pfft! I’m not scared. I just can’t st
Sotiria glanced hurtfully at the passersby who had stopped to join in the fun.“Congratulations, you’ve succeeded. Now, everyone in Rothesay knows that I’m a shallow snake. I can’t show my face in public anymore!”At that moment, Zachary caught the hurt in her eyes and felt her hands trembling violently. He felt as if a sharp object had pierced his heart, hurting him for some strange reason…His eyes immediately turned cold.He stared at the people around them with a deadpan look on his face. His thin lips then said in a cold, sharp tone, “What? Haven’t you seen an argument before?”The people who had been jeering at Sotiria were immediately silenced.Then, the group scattered as if they had come face to face with the devil.Even other passersby were frightened by Zachary’s aura. They deliberately took the long way around, too afraid to get very close to him. In the blink of an eye, Zachary and Sotiria were the only ones left in front of the door to Lottie’s Atelier. Sotiria