Love’s Cruel Stroke

Love’s Cruel Stroke Chapter 23

A few years back, the news had caused an uproar, seeing how the Yates Family was well known in Seaview City. When Rachel had her coming-of-age ceremony, the celebration was so grand that everyone felt envious of her.

However, when she was caught sleeping with some man the next day, her reputation was subsequently ruined, and she became the laughingstock of the town.

She then vanished for almost a year. Just as people were starting to forget about the issue, the fire at the Yates Residence happened, and with that, Rachel’s crimes were brought to light.

She hooked up with some man and fell pregnant with his child. Although she decided to give birth to the child, she suffered from complications during childbirth and the baby did not survive. In the end, she lost her sanity and burned the house down before choosing to end her life.

LVCIY SIIIIC

Every singler rt of the story was enough to break the internet, not to mention all of them happening to one person.

For nearly two months, Rachel’s name was all over the news. Hence, at that point, everyone in Seaview City knew her name, including Jordan. The incident created such a stir that even a man like him, who didn’t pay much attention to gossip, heard about it.

He couldn’t believe the lady in front of him was the same one from four years ago.

“So, we really did meet each other.” In shock, Howard’s jaw dropped open as he glanced at her. “She’s Seaview City’s Aphrodite, the woman my mother wanted me to marry.”

When Quentin heard this, he shook his head. “If those events had not occurred, she could be your wife by now. Do you think your mother would let you marry her after everything she’s done?”

Howard glared at him and retorted, “I didn’t say that I’m going to marry her.”

“I know. You came here for Layla,” Quentin reminded.

“With Seaview City’s Aphrodite here, Layla is nothing.” Howard shifted his sight on Rachel lustfully and murmured, “Watch me make her mine.”

“She‘s not the kind of person whom you could provoke,” Jordan warned in a frigid tone,

Immediately, Howard approached him and questioned, “What’s the deal? Do you

have feelings for her?”

“No,” Jordan flatly denied.

After scoffing, Howard swirled the red wine in his glass. Meanwhile, the banquet turned chaotic as people freely gossiped about Rachel’s past.

When Caleb heard them, a scowl developed on his face and he was ready to speak out when Rachel beat him to it.

“It seems that you all know me, so I believe I don’t need to introduce myself.” Her eyes were stern as she swept her gaze over the room and spoke coldly.

She lifted the hem of her dress a little and proceeded down the stairs. In reality, she was small, yet she was the one who stood out the most in the crowd. With a smirk on her face, she announced, “There were numerous rumors about me years ago, but the fact that I’m still alive and well proves that they were only rumors.”

Everyone thought that she had died, yet there she was, standing right before them.

Indeed, rumors could not be trusted. However, there was no way the public would be convinced so easily. As stated by the Yates Family, Rachel was dead, and it was not something that could be explained with a few words.

At that moment, some women who were envious of her beauty came forward and chastised her.

“Miss Yates, you’re one of the Yates. Why are you throwing a banquet at the Sinclair Residence instead of the Yates Residence?”

“Miss Yates, the picture of your one-night stand is all over the internet. What can you say about that?”

“Miss Yates, you‘ve done so many horrible things before. Yet, you still have the guts to appear in front of everyone here?”

The questions were harsh, but Rachel had anticipated all of this to happen the minule she agreed to come here.

“I would like to declare that from now on, I have nothing to do with the Yates Family,” she announced, her face expressionless and her voice piercingly frigid.

‘As for the pictures..” Her glance traveled across the ladies. “I’m sure the majority of you here have a boyfriend or a fiancé. I’m sure if I spend some money and hire a paparazzi, all of you will show up in the news.”

The minute these words left her mouth, the ladies’ faces turned uneasy, It was unsurprising for ladies their age to date and sleep with men. Hence, if someone

actually followed them, they would also be seen cuddling with someone in bed.

Everyone immediately fell silent. Howard took a sip from the glass of wine in his hand and remarked, “How eloquent. Indeed, she’s not one to be messed with.”

Meanwhile, Jordan clenched his jaw tightly when he heard Rachel.

She was basically confirming that the pictures from five years ago were real and that she did sleep with that man.

When Jordan realized this, he felt a wave of rage come over him out of nowhere. However, when he thought it over again, it was indeed reasonable. She had to sleep with a man to be able to give birth to a daughter.

He shook his head, unable to believe that he actually lost his cool because of a woman. The gossip in the banquet hall eventually died down. Noticing this, Rachel breathed a sigh of relief.

Although she didn’t care about their opinion, she still felt uneasy. She was ready to raise a glass of red wine to toast somebody when a lady in a yellow dress approached her. “Miss Yates, did you really give birth to a set of stillborn twins four years ago?”

Instantly, Rachel’s face darkened. The death of her two babies had left a huge wound in her heart. She looked up and recognized that the woman speaking was Tiana’s best friend, Kelly Collins. Tiana had obviously instructed Kelly to ask her this question.

At that point, Rachel regretted not smacking Tiana harder the other day as it seemed that she needed to teach Tiana another lesson.

Kelly snickered as she watched Rachel’s gloomy face. “So, it’s the truth, after all. What a shame that they died. I actually looked forward to seeing whether the two kids inherited the looks of Seaview City’s Aphrodite.”

Her words rubbed salt on Rachel’s wounds. Therefore, Rachel looked Kelly in the eyes, her eyes full of anger. Before she could say anything, a mocking voice behind them sounded

“Excuse me, but how many months are you in now?” Howard asked as he walked over wh a smirk on his face, his gaze fixed on Kelly’s stomach.

Kelly was stunned, ‘What do you mean she asked.

*Your stomach looks so big that you must be pregnant. Let me guess… Four months Howard didn‘t even bother to hide the mocking smile on his face.