Substitutee Marriage: Fallingg For My Ugly Wifee

I hold her accountable.”

The timbre of his voice was deceptively gentle, yet it sent shivers racing down one’s spine.

“Mr. Curtis, I implore your understanding. My daughter, in truth, conveyed to me the circumstances. Extend your trust to us. Even in her peril at the hands of abductors, she preserved your secret. It’s an unfortunate misunderstanding.”

“Merely a misunderstanding? Mr. Smith, are you shielding her?”

Harlan shifted his posture, his demeanor stern, as his eyes locked onto Holden’s.

A N G E L A ‘s L I B R A R Y

“Her confession holds truth, and we place our faith in her veracity.

friend from harm even

Otherwise, unspeakable horrors awaited.”

that Holden’s explanation might sway Harlan, the situation’s gravity warranted it,

Reclining slightly, he aimed the firearm at a servant, a mirthless smile dancing

shall not yield her? Very well, I shall end this servant’s existence

quivered, collapsing to her knees, her

I beg of you… Miss Smith has

from the

implications jolted Holden, his gaze a canvas

affront. I had not fathomed her audacity in crossing you. Overwhelmed by vexation, I disciplined her rashness, administering a punishment previously unexperienced. Twenty lashes, an act committed in anger, incited her to pen a missive of severance, forsaking the Smith lineage and embarking

landing in a series of blows upon Holden’s form before she retreated to the adjacent sofa, her

lashed her so brutally that you brought her to the brink of