?Chapter 1472:


    “Sharon… what if…” She swallowed hard. “What if I’m not… pure anymore? Do you think Marc and I could ever go back to how we were?”


    Sharon froze, staring at her in disbelief. She hadn’t expected that to be the question Ste had been struggling to ask.


    What shocked her even more was the realization of what William had done.


    “Did he take advantage of you without your consent?” Sharon shot to her feet, furious. “That bastard! I’ll go find him right now and see if he still dares call himself a man!”


    She was shaking with anger.


    She’d seen how much William used to care about Ste. That only made his current behavior hurt her even more on Ste’s behalf.


    Doing something like that while resentment still lingered between them was just wrong.


    Just as Sharon was about to storm out, Ste grabbed her wrist tightly. “Sharon, don’t… please don’t go.”


    Ste’s face was pale. Talking about this was humiliating enough already. If Sharon confronted William, it would only make her feel even more ashamed.


    Seeing Ste on the verge of tears, Sharon’s anger slowly melted away.


    She sat back down and pulled Ste into a tight embrace, holding her trembling shoulders.


    “Stel,” Sharon said gently, “this is the modern world. People are far more understanding about things like this now. You don’t need to burden yourself with it. If Marc truly loves you, he won’t care about any of that.”


    She paused, then added fiercely, “And if he does look down on you for it—watch me beat the crap out of him.”


    Sharon dered with conviction, thrusting her fist into the air. Her fierce, protective demeanor coaxed a genuineugh from Ste.


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    Watching Ste’s mood visibly lift, Sharon released a breath she hadn’t realized she’d been holding.


    Thank goodness Ste wasn’t wallowing in despair over the whole mess.


    “Honestly, even without this particr incident, Marc and I probably would never have returned to what we once had. Sharon, he lied straight to my face. I always believed he was the one person in this entire world who would never deceive me, yet he concealed the most critical truth from me all along.”


    At those words, Sharon’s mind immediately conjured memories of Marc’s devastating betrayal.


    Marc had never been worthy of trust, and if Ste hadn’t lost her memory in the first ce, they never would have permitted her to remain anywhere near such a contemptible scoundrel.


    “Stel, epting someone’s true nature can be incredibly painful, but it’s also something to celebrate. It means the universe is looking out for you, making certain you don’t spend your entire life trapped in ignorance.”


    Ste gave a small nod, recognizing the profound wisdom woven into Sharon’s words.


    Ste exhaled a long, steadying breath and continued, “Regardless of everything else, the most critical priority right now is escaping from William’s control. Once I’ve dealt with that situation, I’ll track down Marc and settle things between us properly.”


    She had never been the kind of woman who required Marc—or any man—to survive.


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