The Bride Who Said No: Escaping the Shadows of Yesterday

In the dorm, Sophie was clearly the one rolling in dough. Her parents raked in millions annually, and they lived in a quaint two-story Victorian house, a stark contrast to the rest of us who, though locals, only had a fraction of the Sophie family wealth. Sophie had always shown a particular fondness for Kara, making her immediate acceptance unsurprising. After all, she was potentially securing a future as Mrs. Sutton.

"Of course, why not!" Sophie exclaimed. "I just can't fathom why you wouldn't want to move into the Sutton estate sooner. It's practically a castle, with gardens that could put our backyards to shame! What's holding you back?"

Blushing, Kara stuttered a bit before she confessed, "I'm... I'm kinda scared."

Even though she didn't spell it out, it was clear what Kara was worried about.

The revelation prompted a wave of shock. "No way! Has Mr. Sutton really never...you know?"

"I heard your cousin threw herself at him to catch his attention. Once a man's got a taste for it, it's hard to stop. And you're practically his fiancée. How could Mr. Sutton resist?"

We crowded around, eager for the juicy details.

Kara, visibly uncomfortable from Freya's mention, found an ally in Sophie, who quickly came to her defense. "Please, Freya's hardly a role model. But our Kara? Mr. Sutton adores her too much to rush anything." Kara managed a small smile thanks to Sophie's support.

hear about Jenny

Where'd you

school bulletin and

our phones, and sure enough, there was Jenny's

had never been fond of Jenny's

coming for her.

en novelxo

her back.

It was Mr. Sutton's doing. Once he speaks, not

Mr. Sutton's got Kara, Eloise is probably the last thing he's thinking about.

Freya, right? belongs to

the others seemed to buy it. "Yeah, Kara's too kind. She must've gone to Mr. Sutton

up for us.

excitement, elevating Kara to almost