Unable to take Shaelyn’s various coquettish ways of pleading, Zayn could only agree to her. Nonetheless, he had first gone back to Barrow Cove to let Faye and her family know that he was doing fine, then he met Sean and Gordon briefly and let the rest of them know that he was okay.Catching news that he had reappeared, people swarmed to look for him promptly with extravagant presents to apologize and grovel to him. Nevertheless, Zayn ignored them. They were people capricious to parties in their interest. They dissociated themselves with Zayn because of Mia this time, thus they could do the same and betray him the next time they met a similar encounter.Having that said, Zayn was not going to cut them off and offend them either. He had to put on airs, leave them hanging for a while, then accept their toadying when the time was right.Zayn was now the talk of the town in Guineve after defeating Mia, but he could not fall out with everyone no matter how capable he was. To maintain long
“He could be here or all the way in space and I still don’t give a damn,” Shaelyn answered noncommittally, “Besides, this is good news. It might just be what he needs to finally give up.”Instead of dissuading her uncle, the man only became even more serious. “Oy, that’s no way to approach this opportunity, young lady. He’s the City Mayor’s nephew and a graduate from a prestigious university from abroad—that’s a young man who shows promises! How would he feel if he sees you bringing some random guy home, huh? And honestly? That young man checks every box of husband quality and outranks… whoever this fella is. If I were you, I’d break up with your guy right now.”Shaelyn was displeased. “So what if he was some mayor’s high-and-mighty son, hmm? What’s he gonna do when he finds out I’m already seeing someone—kill me?”“Lottie, please. Your mother had to pull so many strings just to get you a shot at marrying such a wonderful, promising young man. Don’t trample over all that grueling ef
He said it with a commanding authority, as though he was ejecting an unwanted persona non grata that he hardly regarded highly from his premise. To him, Zayn was likely a colleague of Shaelyn, an unimpressive little white collar who earned 1500 dollars a month or so at most. Making a comparison with the nephew of the city mayor was akin to comparing a pauper with a prince! How could an unimpressive little white collar like this even think he could become a son-in-law to the Turner family?Zayn heard him in nonchalance. Shaelyn, however, could not bear to hear any more of it. Miffed, she riposted, “What kind of attitude is that, uncle? His name is Zayn Larson, and he is my boyfriend. Boyfriend! Not my colleague! And… he’s staying with us for the night.”The middle-aged man—husband to Shaelyn’s paternal aunt—glared. “If your plan is to see your family going kaput, then that’s a brilliant plan, Lottie. The mayor’s nephew is waiting for you inside that room, just waiting for you to accep
With that, Shaelyn picked Zayn up by the hand, spun on her heels, and turned away.She was not just livid—she felt hurt. Two years of not returning home, and this was the reception she got simply because she brought Zayn with her? How was this her family? Sometimes, she really wondered if she even needed to go home at all. Plus, the things they had decided to sling against Zayn was just beyond the pale!It was at that moment when a middle-aged woman bearing a striking semblance to Shaelyn materialized at the door. Leaning at the direction Shaelyn was, she yelled, “Come back here, young lady!”Shaelyn stopped dead on her track and turned to face the middle-aged woman. “Hi… Mom.”It was evidence that she feared her mother to a certain degree.The middle-aged woman closed the distance between herself and her daughter. “So, the thought of coming home never crosses you unless I call and remind you, hmm? Do you even remember the mother who had raised and nurtured you? Do you even rememb
“What do you think you’re doing, Lottie? Say hi to Rugal now!” Shirley Wade, Shaelyn’s mother, grunted after shooting her daughter a forceful glare.The young woman was exasperated, but she was also too scared to disobey her mother. Still, the way she greeted Rugal was so haphazard and halfhearted, anyone could tell it was insincere and devoid of any amity.Unsurprisingly, Shirley was displeased. Scowling, she snapped, “What’s with that attitude, Lottie? Can a simple, kindly greeting kill you?”Rugal leaped to his feet to defuse the tension. “Ah, please, Aunt Shirley. It’s alright. I actually like her like this.”Shirley broke into a pleased chuckle. “Damn it, Rugal. You’re such a polite, pleasant young man! It’s impossible not to like you even more!”The smile on Rugal’s face widened until it reached his eyes, which then darted to Shaelyn’s face. He was not even trying to hide how much he was infatuated with her. In fact, his attention soon slid from her face to the contour of he
Everyone else in the family was so impressed, they gawked in total shock. A diamond necklace worth 1.2 million dollars? Now that was unprecedented to them!Rugal was smiling so hard, his eyes were buried by the creases. He shook his hands in feigned humility and said, “Yea, it’s just 1.2 million dollars. Your average diamond necklace, I guess… Sorry that it isn’t more. But! I promise you that more splendors await!”The adulation the Turners leveled at Rugal had become even more fervent. Several women among them—all of whom were still single—wished they were Shaelyn herself if it meant they could be Rugal’s wife who would never need a day of honest work in their life ever again.Rugal already had a script in his head—Shaelyn would become so surprised and moved that her tongue would fail her, she would struggle to form the right reaction, and finally, she would throw herself into Rugal’s arms. How many women had Rugal conquered with this playbook?His prediction could not be any furt
Shaelyn’s admission was akin to a slap across Rugal’s cheek.Ever since he heard about her return, he had spent a mammoth sum of money to procure a gift before rushing to the Turner’s mansion from the inner city. After all that displays of sincerity, it turned out that the woman who was supposed to be his wife had a boyfriend she had cohabited with for a long time! This was utterly mortifying! An unprecedented humiliation throughout his life growing up!The Turners could see storm clouds pouring all over Rugal’s countenance to their growing fear and anxiety. They had never hated Shaelyn so much in their life!With a veneer of nipping frost in his mien, Rugal turned to Shirley and demanded, “You told me Lieselotte’s single! But from the looks of it, that isn’t the case at all, is it? I need an explanation!”He was not even going to hide the fact that he was seriously enraged—that’s how much ire this revelation had raised! Frightened, Shirley tried to do damage control as quickly as
Rugal paused for a second before snickering to himself, adding, “And how do you suppose my uncle will feel about this? He called me before I came here today, you know. He’s very invested in this marriage, too, because I’ve always been one of his favorite juniors. If my uncle knows about this fiasco, ma’am… Well! Let’s just say you Turners aren’t going to survive his wrath.”He was threatening Shirley, and she knew it. Her face paled as beads of cold sweat began to form, her mind mortified by the possibility of offending the mayor. The mayor was too important and powerful; she could not afford to cross him!“Master Rugal, please, I beseech you to calm down,” Shirley said reassuringly. “You don’t have to worry. The only reason why Lottie brought a man home this time is because she wants to tick me off. That man can’t possibly be her boyfriend at all, believe me. She claimed they’d lived together for a long time, but I know for sure that it’s a load of bunkum!“The thing is, my wayward