Chapter 31
Clara was mulling over the details Dylan had shared with her, and she could clearly recall the tangled web of relationships. Simon’s mom, Ada, had snagged her place by being the other woman.
Ada was drop–dead gorgeous, and once she pushed the original wife out, she held onto her spot with ease.
But Ada’s family background was a bit of a mess. She came from a family with three sisters and a younger brother named Nate. Nate was the late–in–life kid in the Stony family. His parents were all about marrying off their daughters for a good price to buy a house for Nate in the Capital.
In a twist of fate, Ada managed to marry into wealth, lifting the entire Stony family with her. Nate, who lacked direction and skill, latched onto Simon, and even Simon’s leftovers were enough to keep the Stony family living comfortably.
Ada’s success left her two older sisters green with envy. Her big sister Rebecca had tied the knot with a guy who turned out to be not only abusive but also a gambling addict drowning in debt. The gifts from her marriage had all been funneled into Nate’s education, but Nate wasn’t exactly the scholarly type. Despite shelling out loads of cash on tutors, he didn’t even make it through high school.
Ada’s second sister Sonya always had her sights set high for potential suitors. She watched her younger sister marry into luxury and figured she could do the same. So, she held out for over twenty years and was now in her forties and still single. Luckily, Clara had been their financial safety net, making sure they lived the good life.
Clara sifted through all these family ties in her mind, feeling a wave of irritation wash over her.
Sonya misinterpreted Clara’s silence and thought she had her in the palm of her hand. “Clara, what’s up with you today? Why are you holding back on spending? Don’t you want to keep Simon on your side? Trust me, Simon listens to me.”
Clara let out a sarcastic laugh. She must have been out of her mind to let herself be pushed around like this. She took the bag from Sonya’s hand and pointed at a more elegant, classic design on display.
“Could you switch it out for that one, please?” she asked the salesperson.
The salesperson glanced between Sonya and Clara, unsure of what to do.
Sonya immediately got flustered, “What are you doing? I want this one, not that!”
The salesperson brought over the other bag, and Clara tried it on. “Yep, this one’s perfect.”
She pulled out her phone to make the payment.
Sonya’s eyes lit up. This bag was even pricier. It was forty grand! “Alright, this one it is. Haha, I could totally rock this one, too,” Sonya said, reaching for the bag.
Clara swiftly took it back. “Ma’am, I bought this for myself. If you try to take it, I’ll have to call security.”
Sonya’s face dropped, feeling as if forty grand had just been snatched away. “Clara, let go! That’s my bag! Let go!”
Clara looked at the salesperson and asked politely, “You have security here, right?”
The salesperson quickly called over security, who held Sonya back.
Sonya’s eyes were glued to the forty–thousand–dollar bag, her face full of regret. “Clara, how dare you take my bag. When I tell Simon, you’ll come crying back. Just you wait!”
Clara, with the bag on her arm, flashed her a smile. “Go ahead, tell Simon. He’s the one who told me to stop dealing with you all. By the way, isn’t Nate still in the hospital? You’re his sister, so how didn’t you know?”
Sonya froze. Her brother was in the hospital? Nate had been the pampered one and rarely got hurt.
Her eyes lingered wistfully on the bag. “I’m just letting you hold it for a few days. You’ll bring it to me eventually.”
Chapter 31
She shook off the security guard’s hand, huffing, “Clara, you’ll always be under our thumb
