Chapter 74
1121words
She threw a sharp glare towards her mother was busy chewing down the delectable looking pasta on her own dish. Her father had gone to work early today so it was only her and Miriam on the dining table,
An event that she was not looking forward to in the least.
"So I spoke to Clara last night," Her mother began and she stabbed a fork into the chopped parsley, raising it to her lips, "Your wedding has been fixed to hold three weeks from now."
It didn't surprise her at all. Her father was gracious enough to reveal all the matrimonial plans her mother was busy making, including the villa that they were about to purchase on an island somewhere.
Miriam cocked her head, frowning, "You don't look surprised, did you know about it already?"
Aurora took her time to swallow before answering, "Knowing you, it wouldn't be out of your reach if you got us married tomorrow."
It wasn't a complement but her mother smiled as though she'd award her a golden prize. This made Aurora roll her eyes and took another bite from the parsley.
"You should be thankful," Her mother suddenly announced, spreading her arms wide, "Once you win the contest and go on to dance for the nationals, it's going to be the last time you'll be appearing on stage, except they call you to the royal theater, of course, and while your peers are struggling,
"I managed to secure a wonderful match for you. Besides, you're going to take over your father's company and William is set to place you as a major shareholder in their company. You're about to become the most successful young adult of this century and it's all thanks to me."
She wished her mother could see herself the way she saw her. It was absolutely horrendous. Where was her decision in this? Did her mother even care to know if she had a life that she wanted to live?
"You must be very proud of yourself," She muttered sarcastically but Miriam must've been so joy ridden she didn't notice the clip in her tone,
Her mother bobbed her head enthusiastically, "Of course, I am-"
"Ma'am!"
A loud screech caused both of them to jump slightly, her mother frowned in indignation, turning towards the intruder.
Glenn rushed in, a large IPad in hand and a horrified expression on her face,
"Look, ma'am, they're talking about Miss Aurora!"
Okay, that piqued her interest and she rose from her seat, meandering towards her mother and the girl. When she got close enough, she noticed it was a tabloid with the caption,
'The secrets behind the most successful family in Rosedale'
Aurora leaned forward, peering at the write-up. The beginning was like every juicy posts you would expect about the scandal of a filthy rich family but what stole her attention was the fact that Evan's name, his jail term and her relationship with a secret lover was being mentioned. When she saw the speculation of Miriam being involved in Racheal Micheals death, claiming that her motive for doing it was as a result of jealousy, it completely threw her off.
The more she read, the more astonished she became and the whole thing ended with the jaunting words,
'The truth is becoming even more darker than we expect, a family of lies and murderers. We have been deceived by their faux smile and nicety. Is the recent engagement just a smooth way of covering up for these dirt? And what other skeletons could the Rochester household be hiding, especially a particular redhead. Could there be more of Aurora's secrets?'
And at the end of the blog was the big fat name of Mike Gallagher sitting as the editor.
Miriam threw the tabloid across the table, screaming in anguish, "I should have shut the mouth of that bastard when I had the chance."
Aurora's entire body was thrumming with anxiety, she had no doubt who was behind this, however she wondered what his goal was.
"What are you planning on doing, Evan?"
Her mother whipped around to face her, "What was that?"
She blinked. Had she heard her? "Nothing," She lied smoothly, shaking her head, "I need to start going, the contest will start soon."
"Oh, alright darling. Give it your best okay?" Aurora nodded unenthusiastically, "And don't be swayed by this tabloid, I'll handle it."
This made her narrow her eyes warily, whenever her mother said that she would handle something with that tone and face, it never led to anything good.
She hoped Mike had a ton of good lawyers backing him or he was in for a very very long time in prison.
Aurora didn't say anything, she simply grabbed her purse and walked out the door. Calvin was already out waiting for her and she considered speaking to her father on giving him a raise. He was truly dedicated to his job.
"Thank you," She said as she slid into the car and he shut the door. As they drove, Calvin turned on the radio to a slow playing song and her eyes fell on her fingers,
She'd never really taken time to access the ring, it always felt more like a constriction than something beautiful to look at. She rotated it around her finger, watching as it sparkled under the glow of the light,
"Calvin?"
"Yes, miss?"
"Do you think I should get married?"
He didn't reply and she snapped her head up, catching his gaze on the rearview mirror. He looked surprised but she couldn't blame him, she didn't know why she asked him that either.
"I'm sorry, I shouldn't have asked you that kind of question," She said quickly, "It just kind of slipped out of my mouth and-"
"It's okay," He cut in gently, his eyes darting between the road and her, "And I think that that question should be directed to you."
"What do you mean?"
"I mean-" He paused hesitantly, "Do you want to get married?"
Her frown slowly melted and the response came as quick as answering to her own name, "No," She shook her head, "No, I don't want to."
At least not to Matt Traynor but she didn't say that out.
Then he smiled, his blue eyes twinkling, "There you have it, your answer."
Aurora returned the gesture and her eyes fell back on the diamond ring. It looked beautiful truly but it had never really suited her finger.
