Once Bitten, Twice Shy

443 Found Her!

Everyone had been curious about Athena for a long time and they all wanted to know what she looked like. Was she really as Fabian described? Was her face so scarred and ugly that it resulted in him backing out of the marriage agreement?

When her photographs were finally revealed, she became the talk of the town.

Her appearance was not ugly at all! Far from it, even!

With her sweet temperament and delicately youthful appearance, she possessed the kind of charm and beauty that could capture a person’s heart and attention.

It made sense.

Irene was known to be a stunning woman when she was young and her husband’s facial features were exceptionally handsome too. Considering how their three sons were super attractive, it was unlikely that Athena would be ugly-looking.

Facts spoke louder than words, and public opinion came like a wave that instantly extinguished the rumors spread by Fabian.

To make matters worse, many people started to ridicule Fabian too, saying that he had spread those rumors out of spite because Athena did not fancy him.

Fabian’s grandfather cut him off from the outside world for a week. He was already angry to begin with, but his anger only increased when he was finally released. A flurry of calls and messages came from his friends, all of whom mocked him in schadenfreude. He ended up being so angry that he slammed his phone.

He drove straight to the house of his lover, pushed her down as soon as he entered the door, and proceeded to unleash all his pent-up feelings on her.

His lover, Wanda Leigh, was a discerning woman who knew what had happened and had some tricks up her sleeve. She was long aware of that young man’s affairs and did not show any sign of unhappiness toward him. Instead, she was so gentle and considerate toward his predicament that she successfully doused the flames of Fabian’s anger.

After doing the deed with each other, Fabian lit a cigarette and still seemed unhappy.

Wanda leaned against him and whispered hoarsely in his ear, “Fabian, she’s nothing more than a disfigured woman with bad manners. There are plenty of ways to deal with her, so don’t lose your temper to the point where you end up stressing your body. It’s going to break my heart.”

Fabian looked at her when she said that. “Do you have some kind of plan?”

Wanda smiled charmingly. “Of course, it’d be an honor to share your burdens.”

Fabian raised his eyebrows and put out his cigarette. He wrapped his arms around Wanda and pinched her small, sharp chin. “Do tell. I’ll reward you with whatever you want as long as you can make fools out of Athena and her family!”

Wanda leaned into Fabian’s ear and spoke.

The anger on Fabian’s face faded away and was replaced by a very sinister smile. “That’s perfect, Wanda. I’m glad my affection toward you didn’t go to waste.”

Wanda sneered in her heart, ‘Who cares about your affection?’

Fabian was a good-for-nothing young man who would have been a nobody had it not been for his new lease of life. Ironically, it was his incompetence that caught her eye.

That was the only way she could use him as a stepping stone into the Garveys and become their young madam.

She initially had nothing against Athena and the Gilligans, but they had become an obstacle when Fabian’s grandfather insisted that Fabian marry Athena.

In that case, she had no choice but to go against Athena!

Wanda placed her hand on Fabian’s chest to draw circles on him. “You need to show more affection toward me, then...”

“Naughty girl!” Fabian smiled wickedly and got on top of her again.

...

Capital City.

When Ronald saw the photos in the media, his eyes widened at once and he stared at them for a long time before confirming that he was not hallucinating...

The Gilligans’ young miss looked exactly like Samantha.

Or maybe...the Gilligans’ young miss was Samantha, who had been missing for several months!

Ronald’s heartbeat quickened. That had to be the case! It had to be Samantha!

All his efforts to find them were in vain, and Timothy suffered enormous pain and remorse on a daily basis.

Ronald started to worry that Timothy might join Samantha and Matthew in the afterlife.

The Gilligans’ young miss could be Timothy’s last hope, regardless of whether or not she was Samantha!

Ronald grabbed his car keys and rushed out.

...

There were lanterns and lavish decorations that night in the Gilligan residence.

After the advertisement was published, Irene sent invitation letters to all the elite single men within her circle.

She insisted on choosing the best potential husband for Athena that night so she could give Fabian a figurative slap in the face!

The three older brothers Horace, Augustine, and Samson also freed up their schedule to support their younger sister at home.

Irene was very excited and so was Libby. Even her three elder brothers seemed intrigued to see what would happen. However, Samantha-who was supposed to be the center of attention-seemed rather indifferent.

She was not interested in the number of rich young men or elite bachelors coming that night. All she wanted to know was if her old friend would show up that night.

With the advertisement appearing almost everywhere, anyone who went online would be able to see it.

That old friend would surely come if they cared about her...

The party started at eight in the evening, but once the clock turned to eight o’clock, the huge banquet hall was deserted. The only people there were the Gilligans-there were no other guests.

Irene frowned, “Why isn’t anyone here? Did I fill in the wrong time when I wrote the invitation letters?”

“I don’t think so, Madam. You wrote eight o’clock.” Libby was similarly confused.

The other servants also looked at each other in dismay.

Judging from the big shift in public opinion on the internet, it was unlikely that no one would come that night. Even if they did not necessarily like Athena, they would never go so far as to show a lack of courtesy toward the Gilligans.

Horace frowned, and Augustine walked up to Samantha to try and comfort her. Meanwhile, Samson made some calls to try and find out what was going on.

All of a sudden, there was a knock on the door.

Libby smiled and said, “Madam, someone is here.”

Irene looked up in anticipation.

The man who came in was standing tall and dressed in luxurious clothes, but Irene’s smile sank as soon as she saw the man’s contemptuous smirk.

...

It was Fabian!

To think he had the decency to show up there!

Fabian did not come alone on that occasion. With eight tall bodyguards and several reporters surrounding him, he stood in the middle and glanced arrogantly at the Gilligans.

In the end, his eyes fell on Samantha’s face, and he sneered, “Oh, I thought I’d see some eligible bachelors attending Ms. Gilligan’s high-profile matchmaking event today. Why aren’t there any suitors here though?”

Everyone immediately knew who was behind the zero turnout.

The Garveys were a towering giant in Axlelland and Fabian must have put pressure on everyone else so the other families would not offend the Garveys for the Gilligans’ sake.

“I even thought about bringing reporters here to witness the event and see Ms. Gilligan’s choice of husband.”

As he spoke, the reporters were already snapping pictures of the deserted banquet hall.

One could only imagine how embarrassing the news headlines would be for Athena and her family.

“Despicable!” Irene was so angry that she wanted to rush forward and destroy Fabian’s smug face, but Libby immediately restrained her.

Samson smiled and spoke first, “I suppose I was a bit too lenient on you the last time. Should’ve made you bedridden for at least half a month so you wouldn’t have recovered so quickly to bark in front of us!”

...

He began to roll his sleeves as he looked coldly at Fabian.

Fabian stepped back immediately and several bodyguards stood in front of him. He said fearlessly, “If you so much as lay a hand on me, we’ll see who it is that’s going to be bedridden for half a month!”

He deliberately hired eight retired special force soldiers to beat Samson up until the latter’s teeth were scattered all over the ground!

During the stalemate, a man’s low and pleasant voice suddenly yelled from the door.

“Who says there aren’t any suitors? I came here to be her suitor!”