Chapter 1 I’ll Never Have Feelings for Her
Chapter 1 I’ll Never Have Feelings for Her
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Dawn Porter arrived at Austin Osborne’s birthday party with a gift she had prepared with
effort.
Just as she reached the entrance, voices could be heard from inside.
“Austin, now that Sydney’s back, you two can finally be together… But, that girl at your ce has quite the temper. What if she doesn’t agree?”
Through the ss door, Austin’s expression was shadowed by the dim lighting, but his indifferent voice was clear. “She’s just a child. I can’t be bothered by what she said.”
“Dawn is still young, but everyone knows she loves you. You’ve never had any feelings for her after all these years, huh?”
Zach Ruiz’s question made Dawn’s heart clench.
She wanted to know the answer, too. Has Austin ever had feelings for her?
The man sitting in the center of the sofa exuded a mature charm. He paused briefly before speaking in a low, cold voice, “Why are you guys acting as childish as her? Stop joking about this. To me, Dawn is nothing more than a niece. I will never develop feelings for her.”
<i>I’ll </i><i>never </i><i>have </i><i>feelings </i><i>for </i><i>her</i><i>. </i>
Those words stabbed straight into Dawn’s heart like a dagger.
No one inside had noticed her standing at the door, and the conversation continued. “Yeah, yeah, Sydney’s the only one who matters to you. She’s your first love, after all. Dawn is nothingpared to her.”
Austin gave a nonchnt “Hmm” and said, “Don’t mention Dawn in front of Sydneyter. I don’t want her to misunderstand anything.”
“As if we need to bring her up.” Zach let out a knowing sigh. “With that girl’s personality, she’d never let you be with anyone else.”
“Exactly,” another guy chimed in andughed. “If you ask me, Dawn’s already 20, right? Why not just treat her as your future wife? You’ll have a woman at home and another one outside. Considering her situation and how much she loves you, she’d definitely agree-”
Before he could finish, Austin shot him a chilling re.
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Chapter 1 I’ll Never Have Feelings for Her
“Stop the nonsense. I only let my brother adopt her because I felt sorry for her.
“My heart belongs to Sydney. Stop disgusting me.”
Dawn’s grip on the doorknob tightened, and her breath hitched.
So… <i>my </i><i>feelings </i>disgusted him?
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Seconds ago, she had been ready to walk inside. However, all the strength drained from her body the next moment. She didn’t even want to utter a word now.
Lowering her head, she forced herself to hold back the tears, then turned and walked away.
The deserted street was eerily quiet.
This private club was located by the river, and known for its exclusivity, which also meant there wasn’t a single taxi in sight.
Dawn clenched the birthday gift in her hand and walked quickly.
Meanwhile, the conversation from moments ago echoed in her mind.
<i>What </i><i>have </i><i>I </i><i>been </i><i>holding </i><i>on </i><i>to </i><i>all </i><i>these </i><i>years</i><i>? </i>
Dawn, Dawn <i>… </i><i>you’re </i><i>so </i><i>pathetic</i>.
She smiled bitterly as silent tears fell, vanishing into the pavement.
At the uing intersection, a car passed with its high beams on. The blinding light stung her eyes, and she let go of her hand in that instant.
The birthday gift dropped to the ground with a muffled thud.
It was a pair of expensive cufflinks she had bought with her hard–earned bonus.
But, it didn’t matter anymore.
Taking a deep breath, she pulled out her phone and dialled a number.
“Ethan, I ept your proposal. Let’s get married.”
Ethan Jackson was five years older than her. He was a neighbor of the Osbornes. He moved abroad after high school and had only recently returned.
Now, he lived in Northville and had only met up with Dawn once. During their conversation,
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Chapter 1 I’ll Never Have Feelings for Her <fnf8a8> For more chapters visit fin?novel</fnf8a8>
he spoke about the pressures of marriage in their circle, and he was frustrated with it.
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“Dawn, whether it’s you or me, in the end, we’re both going to end up in an arranged marriage. Our families don’t care if we’re happy. To them, marriage is all that matters.
“If we have to get married anyway, why not pick someone we’refortable with? We might as well just marry each other.”
At the time, Dawn had thought his idea was ridiculous.
However, it didn’t seem so bad now.
She turned back to nce at the neon–lit building behind her, its shing lights as dazzling as her past feelings for Austin.
“We already know each other well. It’s better than settling with a stranger. If your parents are pressuring you, we can do it soon.”
Ethan seemed surprised by her straightforwardness. He was silent for two seconds before he responded, “Alright. When should Ie to get you?”
Dawn lowered her head, and her gazended on the abandoned gift bag on the ground. “Once I settle into my internship. It won’t take long.”
Since she had decided to marry Ethan, there was no longer any reason to stay in Trifton for her internship.
After ending the call, she walked a long way before finally finding a taxi to take her back to Southbay Residence.
Located in the city center, Southbay Residence was in a prime location, only about three miles from what used to be her home, which nowy in ruins.
When Dawn was nine, her family’spany went bankrupt. Under the crushing weight of their debts, her parents had taken their own lives, burning down their house in the process.
The creditors had been ruthless, and they nearlyid their hands on the young Dawn.
It was Austin who had taken her in.
He had only been 17 at the time, but he had stood firm before his brother, Harry Osborne, and said, “I’m not married, so I can’t adopt her myself. You adopt her and I’ll take responsibility for her future.”
And, he had lived up to his word, giving her the best life possible and spoiling her for over a
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Chapter 1 I’ll Never Have Feelings for Her
decade.
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He had always told Dawn that he was her uncle, but Dawn had never once called him that.
She had always believed she and Austin were meant to be together.
The moment she turned 18, she confessed her love to him.
Austin had scolded her, telling her that her feelings were wrong, that their age gap was too big, and that he could only ever be her uncle.
However, he never allowed other men to be around her.
Dawn had thought he was jealous, or he found her too young back then.
So she had waited, thinking that things would change if she grew up.
Watching the rapidly passing scenery outside the car window, Dawn felt a stinging heat in her
eyes.
<i>Turns </i><i>out</i><i>, </i><i>growing </i><i>up </i><i>didn’t </i><i>change </i><i>anything</i>. A <i>person’s </i><i>feelings </i><i>are </i><i>only </i><i>a </i><i>burden </i><i>to </i><i>someone </i>who <i>doesn’t </i><i>love </i><i>them</i>.
<i>Austin- </i>
<i>I’ll </i><i>set </i><i>you </i><i>free</i><i>. </i>
By the time she reached home, Dawn wiped her tears, shoved down all her emotions, and went upstairs. She took a shower and went straight to bed.
She had expected to spend the night tossing and turning. Instead, she slept surprisingly well. The next morning, she woke up to the sound of ttering from the kitchen.
She went downstairs after changing her clothes while yawning.
“Lucy, what are you doing so early-”
Her voice trailed off as the figure in the kitchen came into view.
A woman stood there in a white dress with an off–white apron tied around her waist, entuating her elegant curves. Her long hair was loosely pinned up with a w clip.
She was Austin’s first love, Sydney Peay.
“Dawn, you’re awake?” Sydney turned around with a bright smile. “I was going to finish making
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Chapter 1 I’ll Never Have Feelings for Her
breakfast before waking you up, but I didn’t expect you to be up so early.”
With all that <i>noise</i>, <i>I </i>would’ve <i>had </i><i>to </i><i>be </i><i>deaf </i><i>to </i><i>keep </i><i>sleeping</i>.
Dawn silently huffed and forced a smile. “Why are you here?”
Sydney covered her mouth as if looking a little embarrassed.
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“Austin drank too muchst night. I brought him home and helped him shower and change. Since you were here alone, I thought I’d make breakfast for both of us.”
So <i>they </i>had spent <i>the </i><i>night </i><i>together</i>.
Dawn felt her fragileposure cracking, and her voice turned colder. “I don’t need you to make me breakfast.”
Just then, a familiar icy voice rang out from behind her. “Dawn, where are your manners? Apologize.”