Once Bitten, Twice Shy

“Yeah, she wears this mask all the time and I can’t see her face. She claims it’s just a little injury that she’s still recovering from. She might be deceiving me though. I bet her face is absolutely ruined, which is why she’s afraid to show it to me!”

“I didn’t see that little b*stard today. The Gilligans probably felt ashamed to let that little runt see me!”

“Tch, if my grandfather didn’t insist that I fulfill this damned engagement, I would never have wanted some woman who came from God-knows-where? She went missing for so many years, but then they found her out of nowhere with a ruined face and a kid from her previous relationships. Just how sh*tty is my luck to be forced to pick up the pieces!”

“And that Mrs. Gilligan was treating me like a fool by praising Athena to the moon. Who knows how many men she has slept with in the past!”

Samantha clenched her hand little by little.

Her intuition was indeed correct-she had the feeling that Fabian was being overly cordial that night.

It turned out to be all an act.

Judging from his appearance, her guess was completely spot on.

As the saying went, the face is the index of the mind.

His hypocritical appearance earlier was so incongruous with him that she could not sync with him in his charade.

Samantha smirked unconsciously.

Fabian noticed Samantha’s figure from the corner of his eyes and was stunned for a moment before looking over.

He did not expect Samantha to turn back toward him after leaving.

Her stance suggested she already heard everything he said.

Fabian did not seem to panic and instead ended the call nonchalantly. He no longer had the gentle and doting look when he glanced at her and was extremely arrogant and disdainful instead.

He walked to Samantha, looked down condescendingly at her, and said in a very brash and irritated tone, “I’ll be frank with you since you’ve heard everything already!”

“Athena, your ruined face and your b*stard of a son shows just how foul your life was before. A woman like you isn’t even worthy of carrying my shoes!”

“Unfortunately, we Garveys are a family that place importance on ??promises, so I’ll fulfill this marriage contract. However, I’m not someone who spends my money on a whim. Helping someone else raise their son is something I’ll never do!”

“That means you have to deal with that b*stard before we get married. You can send him away or dump him for all I care, but no outsider must know that you once had a son!”

“In that case, I’ll accept you-reluctantly-and make you my family’s young madam!”

He did not bother to persuade Athena any longer. How could a woman like her-who was disfigured and had a son from her previous relationship-have the right to put on airs in front of him?

The Gilligans would not have been in such a hurry to marry her off if that were not the case.

Who else would willingly marry her and let themselves be taken advantage of?

Samantha listened silently to his words and pursed her lips slightly. She eventually opened her mouth and said in a soft voice, “Is that your only condition, Mr. Garvey?”

Fabian became more and more conceited when he heard that.

A woman like her was the easiest to deal with!

Fabian looked at her with contempt and said, “After you get married, you should keep to yourself, maintain your reputation as a wife, and don’t even think about controlling me. That way, you’ll still have a place in the Garveys. Or else...”

He chuckled twice and the threat was rather self-evident.

Samantha could not hold back and she laughed out loud.

Her eyebrows curved into little arcs and her dark eyes brightened, producing a very charming look.

Fabian looked at her in a daze for a few seconds.

Although her face was ruined, her eyes were very beautiful and she was not completely worthless, at least...

He coughed lightly but maintained his haughtiness and spoke in a charitable tone, “You really ought to laugh up your sleeve, Athena! You’re lucky that someone like you can get married to someone like me!”

Samantha continued to laugh.

Then she said, “Today’s our first meeting, Mr. Garvey. I prepared a gift for you, but I forgot to give it to you earlier. I’ll give it to you right now.”

“Oh? How thoughtful!” Fabian spoke smugly. “Hand it over then.”

“Okay.”

As soon as Samantha said that, she clenched her fists and delivered a quick yet resounding punch to Fabian’s face!