The Stand-In Bride Refusal novel · Chapter 20 of 24
Chapter 20: Winifred's Debt
Mrs. Verran received us in the study at eight, and she was standing.
She had left the wheelchair against the wall.
She held the back of a wing chair with both hands, and her knuckles were white.
The fire was out.
"Sit," she said.
"I'd rather stand," I said.
"Then so will I."
Rowan stayed by the door with his arms at his sides.
He had not slept either.
"I told you I had no proof," Mrs. Verran said. "That was not the whole of it."
"I have known where my friend's daughter lived since the week your father died."
My stomach dropped.
"Six years," I said.
"I saw your name on a staff list at the Lakeshore Charity Luncheon, two Octobers ago. 'W. Larkin, kitchen.'"
"I looked up from my soup and I knew your chin."
"You were carrying plates. You did not look at me."
"I was told not to look at the guests," I said.
"I know."
Her voice had gone thin.
"I went home and I did nothing."
The rest of this chapter is part of the paid portion of the series. Chapters 1–12 of The Stand-In Bride Refusal are free to read — start from the beginning, then unlock the rest with coins in the app.
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