Contract Marriage: The Replacement Groom

67 Opening up

“Jeslyn, you. are. my, father’s. wife!” He spelled it out for her. “You are almost like those girls running after my father and we both know the reason.” He smirked, hoping to see her raging like usual. 1 However, Jeslyn smiled bitterly and brushed his hair with her fingers, careful enough not to ruin it. “Your father and I are in this marriage for a reason and…” she thought against telling him. “I don’t necessarily have to be your blood sister for you to see me as one. Besides, how many stepmothers do you see running around the house with their stepson? How many stepmothers and stepsons can you point out do what we both do?”

She watched as his brows furrowed. “None,” she answered herself.

“That’s because I don’t see you as a stepson. You are like a little brother I don’t have…”

The thought of Christine swept through her mind. How they used to play when they were kids, how she protected Christine like a mother hen when they grew up, how she went out of her way to make Christine feel among, and also the times she spoke to her grandfather to try harder than he already was, to make his heart accept Christine.

The memories were too deep that a tear leaked from her left eye. (1)

Jeslyn smiled embarrassingly at Valen and slowly wiped her tear with the back of her index finger. “You see, that’s the difference between you and me. You don’t shed your tears, but I do and that’s why I can be whatever character I want to be in public without anyone knowing that I’m hurt.

But in your case, you are not your father who can conceal his pain extremely well. Putting your personality together, I can say that you hide your pain by hurting others.

Valen… that’s wrong…” she pulled his left hand and placed it on her palm.

“You are still very young. What character do you want your mother to see when she returns?… I heard she’s not dea-”

“She left me!” Valen screamed in his cute childish voice.

startled Jeslyn. She never thought the child would open up to her. The pain

left me! What kind of a child would she expect to see.” Valen bit his

that.

didn’t understand why he felt her pain, but the boy tried to fight

been in a very compromising situation-” Jeslyn tried to reason with him but Valen

her! My father is the greatest man in the Country. What could she possibly be

his cheek.

Jeslyn grabbed the hand and shook her

flow, it would

hate you…” his voice broke.”I hate you more than I

holding back for

fountain.

“Oh, child,”

Jeslyn’s eyes tear up, but it wasn’t right for

hardship, and on the day she gave birth to you, she saw hell. I believe she took care of you for a while

willingly let their infants go. Even demons feel an attachment to their little ones. Your mother is just like the strong-willed women fighting

have something called ‘conscience’. It follows the bad people and haunts them for the rest of their

seem like a lot of people don’t have a conscience, but I tell you, child, they do. Just that they choose to not be

be one of those without a

the louder

She left because she doesn’t want me,” Valen mumbled

mother hates their child, dear, she must also be