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Chapter 74. Family conflict and rebellion

Author: jengreyy
last update Huling Na-update: 2025-05-25 17:11:25

* Penny *

I wasn't sure if I had heard it right from my older brother's lips. The words came like a slap I didn't expect, sharp and jarring in their clarity, even though I had been bracing for something, just not that. I turned to the man sitting next to me, Alex Hamilton, as if seeking a different truth, hoping perhaps I had misinterpreted. But he simply nodded, the subtle movement as solemn as a verdict.

His gaze locked with mine, unwavering, piercing through my defenses like he was trying to read something buried inside me. My breath caught in my throat. I was the first to look away.

"You are not my father, Lance!"

My voice trembled at first, but I found strength in my own anger. "You're just my half-brother. You don't get to decide who I'm going to marry! That decision, that right, belongs to me. Only me."

Even as I spoke, my heart pounded like a traitor. Deep inside, in the place I refused to show anyone, lived a truth I never wanted exposed. I had carried a secret for five lon
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