“For me, I take body contact very lightly. I mean, it’s just human instinct.”
Theo was startled by what Rachel said. After a while, he said in a small voice, “If you really treat it very lightly… then why can’t you forgive me?”
He felt very guilty when Roanne passed away and, in his storm of guilt and momentary craze, wanted to compensate Roanne. He never even had any body contact with Roanne!
If Rachel could advise Yannie to let it go when Thomas and Denise had sexual intercourse, how could Rachel not forgive his recklessness? “That’s different.”
Rachel was first stunned when Theo asked this question at such a time. After a while, she gave him her answer. “I said maybe you didn’t have a choice when it comes to body contact. But…”
She looked at Theo through the rearview mirror. “Did you think you were the same? Your whole heart was filled with Roanne. You made me feel like you and her were meant to be together and you wanted to be loyal to her by being alone for the rest of your life.
“Now that you think you’re over it, you come and bother me again. Should I make way for you again when the next time the same thing happens again? Theo, I’m not the first in your heart, so I choose to back out. Stop bothering me. You’re the one who decided for us to end this way.”
After that, she ignored Theo and comforted Yannie.”
Yannie, don’t let us affect you…”
Being in the front passenger seat, Theo looked at Rachel who had given Yannie all of her gentleness and attention. His lips curled up into a bitter smile. He knew Rachel was a tough and stubborn woman.
He made a mistake. Was it that serious that she could not forgive him for the rest of her life?
After Rachel and the others left Howard Mansion, the living room was awfully quiet.
Bethan sighed and looked at Gwen, who happened to meet her gaze. The two best friends simultaneously looked helpless.
Based on Yannie’s reaction, a rift had formed between her and Thomas, and they were powerless to mend it. Thinking from Yannie’s perspective, they probably would not be able to accept it, too.
Gwen stood up angrily as she stalked toward Denise and, upon reaching her, kicked her harshly.
“Don’t you know whether or not Thomas likes you? Do you have to be so disgusting? Are you happy for being a slut and wrecking their relationship?”
She did not go easy on the kick, and it caused Denise to fall to the floor. However, she looked up at Gwen and smiled haughtily.
“Of course. I’m very happy! If I can’t get him, then no one can!”
After that, she gave Gwen a cold look.
“If you know so much, know that being a slut to wreck a relationship is to insult yourself… What about you? Aren’t you a whore, too? How are you any better than me?”
Gwen could not tolerate it and kicked Denise a few more times. “I told you, I’m not the whore!”
Kate was the one who broke Luke and her up. The Hughes family was the one who used Steven’s mind and memory to take over Luke’s body. Why did they accuse her of being the other woman who spoiled Steven and Kate’s relationship? She was not going to bear the name of being the other woman!
“If you aren’t, then who is? Kate?”
Denise sneered.”
She’s been with my brother for five years and did everything she could to cure my brother. Everyone knows it!
“It was just a short time since you arrived in Saigon City and you’re already wrecking their relationship! Don’t you dare deny being a whore!”
“You–!”
Gwen furrowed her brow and wanted to say something, but Brettley stood up indifferently.
He walked slowly to Denise and squatted, staring at Denise with a pitiful look. “You probably don’t know it yet, but your brother isn’t the same man anymore.”
“What… What do you mean?”
Denise was no longer arrogant and proud when she faced Brettley’s strong breath. She furrowed her brow and confusedly replied, “
Brettley Morrison, I don’t know what you’re talking about.”
“Based on your reaction , I think your family never told you that they had changed Steven with another person.”
Brettley sighed and gave Denise a look of sympathy.
“I guess they never treated you as part of the family all these years. They didn’t tell you the truth.”
This startled Denise as she gaped at him.
“You…” she wavered.
“What does that mean?”
What did Brettley mean when he said her family did not treat her as part of the family? “Don’t tell you that you’re still in the dark now.”
Brettley narrowed his eyes and turned to look at Lucas. Immediately , Lucas threw the information he prepared earlier on to Denise.
“You’re not a member of the Hughes family by blood.”
Brettley looked at Denise coldly. “In the past, your family threw away a son because of that absurd curse. A few years later, they wanted to atone for the sin of giving away their own son, so they adopted a baby girl from a children’s home.
“You, Miss Hughes, have always been a tool for the Hughes family to compensate and atone for their sin. They never treated you as a real family. They wanted to marry you off to Thomas because they wanted to get some benefits after raising you for so many years.”
Denise looked at Brettley as her eyes widened. “No! That can’t be!”
She bit her lip and shook her head vehemently. She did not dare to look at the information on the floor.
“That’s not true! How am I not my parent’s biological daughter? They’ve treated me so nicely ever since I was young. They’d never do the things you said and would never use me!”
As she talked, she glared at Brettley evilly. “I won’t believe a thing you said; not a word! You’re all Gwen’s friends. Every word that you said is helping Gwen, the whore who wrecked other people’s relationships! You people will never fool me!”
Gwen sneered at what Denise said. She could not be bothered to argue with Denise about who the other woman was in this case. She reckoned Denise was a stubborn woman that would never listen to anyone else.
‘If she is a smart person, she’d never do such a thing to Thomas and Yannie in the mansion after Thomas’s father got shot and was sent to the hospital!’
She squinted, and unlike the gentle and indifferent person she was before, she glared at Denise’s face coldly. “Say it again. What am I?”
Denise sneered and answered loudly, “You’re a whore!”
Slap! Gwen’s powerful slap landed on Denise’s cheek. “Again. What am I?”
Denise’s face was swollen with a handprint on it. In spite of that, she was not about to give in. “You’re a whore! No matter how many times you slap me, you’re still a whore!”
Slap! Gwen did not relent. She mustered every bit of strength she could in her attacks, so much so that Denise tasted blood in her mouth. Regardless of that, she widened her eyes and glared at Gwen as she did not give up.
“Whore!”
Slap!
“Whore–”Slap!
“Who– “
Slap!
This lasted for several rounds. Gwen’s wrist hurt as a reason for the continuous slapping. Regardless, Denise was in a worse situation than Gwen. Bloodstains were present at the corner of her lips.
She massaged her sore wrist, glanced at Denise, and challengingly asked, “Again. What am I?”
Denise pursed her lips and looked at Gwen. Then, she looked at Brettley and Bethan who were standing by the side, amused at the sight. Finally, she caved in. “You are…my sister–in-law.”
Everyone was shocked to hear that. The living room became quiet.
Bethan tried hard to hold it in, but alas, she failed. “Gwen, that’s enough. She’s already calling you her sister–in–law.”
Gwen did not think Denise would change her mind and called her sister–in–law after being slapped multiple times. She was stunned.
“Even though Gwen doesn’t like Steven and never thought about being together with Steve, Luke was their son too.
There’s nothing wrong with Denise calling Gwen her sister–in –law.”
Brettley curled up his lips and smiled. Then, he looked at the message on his phone. “That’s enough. It’s not good for us to stay too long here. It’s Thomas’ father’s mansion.”
He got on his feet and said, “Bring Denise back to the hotel with you. I’ll inform the Hughes family to redeem her.”
Bethan nodded and stood up.
“What about you?”
“I’m going to the hospital.”
New Book: Back Home to Marry Off Myself
Loredana’s father left the family for his mistress, leaving them to fend for themselves abroad. When life was at its toughest, her father showed up with “good news” after 8 years of absence: To marry off Loredana to a paralyzed son of the wealthy Mendelsohn family.