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Chapter 4:
Amelia knew that ignoring Dayna wouldn’t help her sleep. If she left things hanging, the messages would just keep coming. With a few quick taps, she replied, “Jaxton’s right; it’s only a piece of clothing. I am not mad.” She then blocked Dayna’s number before setting her phone aside.
No part of her reply was a lie—she truly felt no anger. After all, things like this had happened so often over the past two years that she’d lost count. If she let herself get upset each time, she would have lost her mind long ago.
Lying back down, Amelia found she couldn’t fall asleep. A thought crept in—would her mother feel regret seeing her daughter’s life turn out this way?
Dayna, the illegitimate child of Amelia’s father, was a few months younger than Amelia. When Amelia’s mother, Katrina Davis, discovered Dayna’s existence, she sent her abroad. Yet the endless burden of work soon caught up to Katrina, and her health began to fail.
That same year Katrina’s health failed, Ricky Flynn—Amelia’s father—brought both Janessa Patel and Dayna back to the country and into their home.
Nothing about this arrangement escaped Katrina’s notice. She understood perfectly well that life with a stepmother would not be easy for Amelia, especially since Ricky had never been a man of kindness.
To protect her daughter, Katrina made plans for Amelia to marry Jaxton. This decision came easily, since Katrina and Laura Morrison, Jaxton’s mother, had been close friends for decades. Amelia and Jaxton had grown up together, and with her and Laura’s connection, Katrina believed Amelia would have a good life after marrying Jaxton.
However, Katrina had no way of knowing how much people could change. Just before her death, Katrina called Jaxton over and pressed him for a promise to take good care of Amelia. With both Katrina and Laura present, Jaxton’s answer rang with conviction. His assurance was so convincing that even Amelia believed him. But now…
At dawn, Amelia was pulled awake by a force. As she opened her eyes, she saw Jaxton’s face, full of anger. He was gripping her wrist tightly, the pain forcing her to pull away.
“What’s your problem? Why are you acting like this first thing in the morning?” she asked.
𝗣𝘰pu𝗅𝗮𝘳 s𝘵o𝘳і𝗲𝘴 o𝘯
“You think you’re clever, Amelia? Besides complaining to my mother, what else can you do?” Jaxton said.
The accusation made Amelia furrow her brows. The video had spread online, and there was no chance Laura missed it. But as soon as Jaxton heard from his mother, he jumped to the conclusion that Amelia had tattled.
Amelia didn’t even have the energy to waste explaining things to him. The matter only strengthened her resolve to break off the engagement. To Jaxton, Amelia’s silence was an admission. He continued his harsh remarks throughout the journey to his family home.
Yet as soon as they entered the Morrison residence, Jaxton changed his attitude completely. Watching him switch his demeanor so quickly, Amelia rolled her eyes. She had been so blind before, unable to realize he was just a hypocrite.