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Chapter 52
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The Substitute Bride Chapter 53
The sun was peeking from behind the clouds. At most, Van could say that her day was going to be a promising one except as she was beginning to look on the bright side of things Ashton or Ash as he likes to call himself walked into the café she was working at. Van didn't know his last name because she hadn’t bothered to ask and he in turn hadn’t supplied. She swore if she had to hear him throw in one of his smartass remarks she'd dump the hot coffee she was going to serve him on his head. Van had chosen to work for Baby and Rodrigo Martinez, the old couple who owned the little café– the only one in the small town–because it was that, it was little and is likely to draw minimal attention at most, plus it's the last place he'd think to look for her. What were the odds he'd find her in such a quaint little town as Roseville somewhere in Florida. Thinking of Jake Calloway suddenly made her heart ache. Van had said her goodbyes, and hadn’t looked back since not even to ask w
The Substitute Bride Chapter 54
"Mom I can't breathe." Rella protested under Evie's tight embrace. " I'm so sorry, it's been quite a while since I've been able to that." Her mom apologised pulling back a fraction. " I got carried away." Rella's lips twitched as she struggled to hold back a smile. It felt so good to feel her mother's arms around her after so long. Rella had thought it was pointless to remain angry at her parents, Evie Cortes can be unbearable at times, manipulative even but she's still family and family stick by each other's side no matter what. Things might still be a tad bit awkward between them but she was glad to have taken the first step. "Hi dad." Her father pulled her in a momentary hug, he looked older than the last time she saw him but still handsome nonetheless. "I'm glad you could make it." He said. "Now your mother can stop losing sleep over you." "As if you were any better." Her mom remarked. She turned to Rella then and said, "What about Stef
The Substitute Bride Chapter 55
The White Rose invitation came a day after her dinner with her mom it was a white card sealed with a delicate white rose. The card even smelled like roses which she Rella thought was another level of sophistication.Dear Mrs. Diamond the honorable committee of the White Rose would like to welcome you to the fold as a honorary member. We look forward to your presence at brunch this Saturday.The invitation was written with gold cursive letters. "Do you want to send a response immediately madam?" The butler who had delivered the invitation asked. Rella sighed. Guess she has no choice. "Sure go ahead, tell them I accept their invitation and that I'll be at the brunch." Even though she had made herself resign to the fact that this was a legacy she couldn't escape, Rella had a feeling she was going to regret this sooner rather than later. He made a small bow and left. The silence that fell on the room was deafening. Ten heads turned towards her direction and about
The Substitute Bride Chapter 56
"Did I wake you?"Rella smiled at the obvious concern in Stefan's voice. "No. It's perfect timing actually because I was about to give you a call myself." " Good thing I beat you to it then. What kind of a husband would I be if I let my wife do all the heavy lifting." She rolled her eyes. " Nobody's keeping score." " I am." " Jeez you're so full of yourself. How did the meeting go?" " The investors could not resist my charm." Rella made a sound in her throat that made Stefan chuckle. " Anyway, I didn't call you to talk about boring business. I miss you." " You've been gone for barely a day." " Precisely! I can't stand to be away from you for even a second. " " You are such a sappy romantic." " And whose fault is that?" " Touché." Rella said with a chuckle. "How has your day been?" "Not bad. I got an invitation from the the White Rose."Stefan was quiet for some time and his ex
The Substitute Bride Chapter 57
Ash was a flirt through and through and Van thought that if she ignored him long enough he'd get the hint that she wasn't interested but the guy was persistent. Many people had approached her and even tried to be friends when she arrived in Roseville, small towns were often like that everyone is in everybody's business. The first few weeks she had unwanted visitors who were curious about her after having heard she was from Manhattan they wanted to hear about the big city and were fascinated by it but Van wasn't interested. She was too heartbroken and down spirited to entertain anyone but Ash had remained consistent. Even now he was sitted in one of the tables pretending to be reading a magazine when Van got to him. "What can I get you?" He put the magazine down and stared up at her in surprise. "You're not throwing a fit that I've been here every day for the past seven days?" "You're a paying customer so who am I to stop you from coming in?"He smirked. "Is that all there is to i
The Substitute Bride Chapter 58
Van shook her head, "Doña Corazon I am not your granddaughter." "You're Perla's daughter, my granddaughter!" Van froze at the mention of her mother's name. How does she know that? "H...how do you know my mother?" The woman's eyes were glassy as she spoke. "Perla was my daughter and I just found out she's dead and has two children. You have a brother Karl is his name right?"Van inched away from the woman like she was some plague about to infect her. This cannot be happening… "This cannot be happening." Van barely uttered the word, her mind was reeling from the revelation that she had grandparents...that her mother’s family are very much alive… She shook her head, even though she knew without a doubt that Doña Corazon didn't have a reason to lie to her, she wanted to believe with all her heart that it was just a mistake, a misunderstanding even that could be sorted out but that cannot be because the woman knew her mother and brother’s names. W
The Substitute Bride Chapter 59
By the time Van stopped walking and her senses was somewhat coming back, she found herself in the middle of an empty pathway far from her apartment. Frustrated, angry and sad she broke down in a sob. Every emotion assaulting her in waves she could not control. She screamed into the vacuum until she lost her voice. She tried to remember happy times she spent with her mom but came up with nothing. Even her face was starting to blur and fade away. "I'm sorry mom. I didn't know. I had no idea. I'm sorry. I'm sorry." If she had known that her mom did nothing wrong. If she had known her grandparents were responsible for half the things that happened to her family. Now all she has left are what ifs. "So what do we do now?" Karl looked at his sister expectantly where she sat curled up on the bed. "I don't know. Those people are strangers to me...to us and frankly all I feel right now is hatred and anger." She said, her gaze was distant. "I feel the same way. I k
The Substitute Bride Chapter 60
Van sighed finally then she said, "five minutes." She hasn't opened the café officially she'd simply been doing some cleaning when he came in. She’d needed someone to talk to last night and she'd called her best friend and told her all of her woes. Rella understood her more than anyone else does, more than Jake ever did and she'd lend her strength last night even though they're far apart. And another wave of sobs took over and she cried and cried until her voice was gone. Van flopped down onto one of the empty chairs across from him and levelled him a glared. "I know you have a lot of questions." he started carefully. "I'm sorry I lied and kept you in the dark but I didn't want to get anybody's hopes up until I was certain." Van eyed him coolly,"So you knew who I was all along?" Ash nodded grimly. "Well not at first. When I first saw you I was shocked, you looked so much like aunt Perla, I mean the resemblance is striking grandma thought so too."
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