“Tracy, how can you talk to Faye like that?”
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A man’s voice rang out from the doorway. A middle-aged man in a tailored suit stepped inside.
His build was tall and solid, his face gentle and refined, carrying the air of warmth and civility.
It was Trevor, Tracy’s so-called father.
Tracy pressed her lips together, her eyes on him cold and distant, as though staring at a stranger. “Then why don’t you tell me, Mr. Xander, which word of mine was wrong?”
She had left this house with her mother when she was only five. She felt no bond with Trevor -only resentment.
She had seen with her own eyes how her mother had struggled after the divorce. Because of that, Tracy had grown up far too sensible, far too soon.
In all those years, aside from her two older brothers who occasionally kept in touch, the rest of the Xander family had completely ignored her and her mother.
Trevor’s face darkened. He corrected her sharply. “Tracy, I am your father.”
Tracy’s lips curled into a mocking smile. “Oh, I almost forgot I had such a wealthy father. But
tell me, did your money ever have the slightest thing to do with me? Or have you forgotten
how
you threw
my mother and me out with nothing, not caring if we lived or died?”
If not for her uncle and Morgan’s family helping them, she and her mother might have starved on the streets.
When she needed him most, Trevor had turned his back. And now he wanted to claim her as his daughter? How ridiculous.
Trevor’s temper flared. “Who said I didn’t care whether you lived or died? Every month I—”
Faye rushed forward to cut him off. “What’s the point of bringing up the past? Those things are over now, aren’t they? Tracy, I bought you a dress. Try it on and see if it looks good.”
She bent down, picked up the bag from the floor, and pulled out the dress-a twin to the one Yvonne wore.
Tracy didn’t even reach for it. “I don’t like wearing white dresses. Better give it to Yvonne.”
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17:03 Thu, Feb 19
Chapter 9 If That’s Not Shameless, Then What Is
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Faye’s smile faltered, embarrassment flickering in her eyes, though she quickly smoothed it over with false warmth. “I’m sorry, I didn’t know your taste. How about this-we’ll go shopping this afternoon. You can pick a dress you like yourself. How about that?”
Tracy said nothing, only pressing her lips tighter, her silence laced with disdain.
Chase couldn’t stand it any longer. His face hardened, his voice sharp. “Tracy, it’s just a dress. If you don’t like it, exchange it. Why give everyone that ugly attitude? She’s already humbling herself to please you. If you had an ounce of sense, you wouldn’t be throwing a tantrum here.”
Trevor sighed, his tone heavy with fake patience. “Tracy, Faye truly likes you and wants to get along. Don’t make trouble anymore, alright? I know because of your mother, you hold a grudge against her. But your mother is gone. Clinging to the past-what good does it do? Isn’t it better to let go?”
The moment her mother was mentioned, Tracy’s body trembled. Her eyes flushed red.
Her expression turned icy, her voice sharp. “You don’t have the right to mention my mother. If you hadn’t cheated, if you hadn’t had a bastard child with a mistress, my mother wouldn’t have left this house with nothing. She wouldn’t have been forced to divorce you. You ruined her life and mine, and now you think a few words can wash it away? You’re shameless.”
Back then, when she was little, she often wished her father hadn’t betrayed her mother-that their family of five could have stayed happy together forever.
But there were no ifs. Her mother had carried her alone, working at street stalls from dawn till night, barely scraping enough to feed her.
She struggled to put Tracy through college, only to work herself into sickness before she could enjoy a single day of peace. She died filled with regret, never even seeing her sons again.
How could Tracy forgive?
“Tracy!” Trevor’s face flushed purple with rage. “You don’t know anything! Your mother and I already had problems. Even without Faye, we would have divorced sooner or later. Why won’t you stop harping on it?”
Tracy let out a bitter laugh. “So that’s your excuse? You didn’t love my mother anymore, so you snuck around and had a child with another woman? If you’d really stopped loving her, you could’ve said it openly. Instead you crept around in the shadows. Admit it-you were just shameless. If my mother hadn’t walked away, your mistress and her daughter would still be nothing but hidden filth.”
Maybe to them it was all in the past. But for Tracy, it would never be over.
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17:03 Thu, Feb 19
Chapter 9 If That’s Not Shameless, Then What Is
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Trevor betrayed her mother, abandoned them, ignored them for years. And now he wanted to stand here pretending none of it mattered? Didn’t he feel the least bit ashamed?
Furious, Trevor’s chest heaved. He raised his hand to strike her, but Madam Sarah seized his
wrist.
Her voice was cold and stern. “Enough! If you want to fight, take it outside. Do you think it makes me happy to see my home turned upside down like this?”
Her sharp gaze slid to Faye. “You’ve been a mistress for years, yet you still haven’t learned your place. If you buy a gift for Tracy, why pick the exact same dress as Yvonne’s? Were you trying to provoke her?”
Madam Sarah had never liked Faye and Yvonne’s little performances. Always playing the innocent, always fishing for pity.
She knew full well that whenever Tracy came home, they acted sweet on the surface but schemed behind her back.
But Tracy wasn’t someone who could be bullied. She always gave back as good as she got.
Madam Sarah’s rebuke left Trevor stiff. He coughed lightly and said awkwardly, “That’s enough. Everyone, just drop it. Tracy hardly comes home, and now we’re quarreling like this. It’s disgraceful.”
Faye’s face burned, but she forced a smile and nodded. “Mom, I really didn’t know Tracy disliked this style. She and Yvonne are about the same age. I thought their tastes would be similar, so I bought the same design.”
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Sara Lili is a daring romance writer who turns icy landscapes into scenes of fiery passion. She loves crafting hot love stories while embracing the chill of Iceland’s breathtaking cold.
