Chapter 338

Helen’s words left everyone stunned and utterly confused.
She rushed to clarify, her voice ringing above the chatter.
“You guys know about Anastasia, right? She’s got herself a sugar daddy!”
A shocked chorus of “What?!” rippled through the crowd.
Helen basked in the attention, straightening her posture with smug satisfaction. Her tone was scornful, gleeful.
“Anastasia’s someone’s mistress now. The man’s already married, too—his actual wife even showed up at the college looking for her!”
“And yet, would you believe it, Anastasia flat-out denies everything. She keeps insisting he’s her boyfriend. Please, who’s buying that? Now she suddenly cares about her reputation.”
“So when Shirley planned this party, she asked if Anastasia dared to bring her so- called ‘boyfriend’ along. Anastasia agreed right away, but now the party’s about to start and there’s still no sign of him.”
“Obvious, isn’t it? She chickened out. She’s probably terrified someone will expose her sugar daddy for who he really is!”
The moment Helen finished, the room erupted into gossip.
“Oh my god, I heard she got married, but no one could find out who the husband
was. Turns out she’s just someone’s side piece?”
“No wonder she’s been so low-key-she’s got something to hide!”
“I always knew something was off. Why else would she be so secretive?”
“There were all those rumors for a while, saying she’d landed some incredible husband, but anyone who tried to look into it hit a dead end. Now I get it—she started those rumors herself to save face!”
“I used to think Anastasia was a total nobody, but apparently she can fall even further.”
“Ha! If she’s a mistress, she must know how to please a man, right?”
Even among Fairhaven’s upper class, there were layers. Orıginal content can be found at.net
Most people only knew of the mysterious Mr. Harrison Lancaster from Riverton; few had ever seen him in person. Only a select handful those who attended the Aaron family’s exclusive gathering-had met the man face-to-face and knew just how formidable he was.
So they also knew the truth: Anastasia was married to that very man.
But Harrison, fiercely protective of his young wife, kept the marriage under wraps. Most of those present lacked the connections to know the real story.
Nearly every young socialite in Fairhaven had been invited to Shirley’s event today, but in the end, only about two-thirds actually showed up.
As for the third that didn’t come? Coincidentally, they were precisely the ones who knew about Anastasia and Harrison’s relationship. Their families were better connected, and they were quick to pick up on the fact that Shirley was newly engaged to Aaron.
They all knew one thing for sure: Aaron had long since fallen out of favor with Mr. Harrison Lancaster.
Who in their right mind would cozy up to the Lancaster family now? That would just mean making an enemy of Harrison Lancaster himself.
No one with any sense would set foot at a party thrown by Aaron’s fiancée. Not unless they had a death wish.
So now, the girls left at the party-blissfully ignorant-kept slinging insults and nasty speculation about Anastasia, their voices dripping with contempt.
Shirley, wearing a satisfied smile, clearly enjoyed every word. Hoping to win her favor, the others grew even bolder.
Maggie and Juliet had arrived early and overheard everything from across the room. Outraged, they strode over and fired back.
“That’s absolute rubbish! Anastasia is married—they have a marriage license and everything!”
The other girls blinked in surprise, then burst out laughing.
“Oh, please. First it was just a ‘boyfriend,’ now she’s supposedly married? Does Anastasia have no shame left at all?”
“She’s just a kept woman, making money by entertaining men. Who cares about shame at this point?”
“Talk about living in a fantasy world!”
“Didn’t Shirley say she even sent an invite to the man’s real wife? Maybe she’ll
show up tonight. I can’t wait to see what happens when she and Anastasia come face-to-face! Think Anastasia will survive that showdown?”
Maggie and her friends flushed with anger, about to speak up again—when suddenly, someone called out-
“Anastasia’s here!”