EuropeNovelChapter 1
At the airport's arrival hall, a girl stepped out into the bustle, long hair loose around her shoulders, sunglasses
and a mask half-concealing her striking features, wireless headphones resting around her neck. In one hand, she
easily carried a small suitcase, her long, pale legs drawing more than a few lingering glances as she passed.
People stared, swhispering, half-convinced they'd just spotted a celebrity in the wild.
She halted, pushing her sunglasses up with a careless touch.
“Miss Alessia.” A middle-aged man in a tailored suit appeared before her, head respectfully lowered.
Alessia Tate slid off her sunglasses and tucked them into her collar. The small beauty mark beneath her eye only
emphasized her allure.
“Are my parents home?”
“Yes, they've returned,” the man replied.
Alessia’s expression didn’t flicker with excitement or even the slightest hint of nerves. It was as if the people
waiting for her were complete strangers.
Follow on NovᴇlEnglish.nᴇt“Butler, don’t forget the rest of my luggage,” she reminded, her tone languid.
“Of course, Miss. I'll have it brought to your room shortly.”
She nodded and strode out of the airport without another word. The butler Dawson followed at a respectful
distance. Outwardly, he betrayed nothing, but inside, he couldn't help but admire Alessia’s composure.
If it had been him-if he'd discovered, while traveling, that he'd been switched at birth-he’d have been a wreck,
scrambling for the next flight home. It was one thing if the other family rivaled the Tates, but in this case...
A trace of pity crept into Dawson's gaze as he watched Alessia’s back. Poor girl, he thought. She probably had no
idea what she was about to face.
Alessia felt the weight of his stare but couldnt be bothered to respond. In truth, she wasn’t anxious or
heartbroken-if anything, she'd almost kept traveling abroad, only booking her return ticket once the Tates were
confirmed back.
At the curb, a black sedan waited with its door already open. Alessia didn’t break stride, slipped inside, and
pulled on her headphones the moment she settled in.
15-34
Chapter 1
The car glided away toward Tate Manor.
She watched the city slide by outside the window, her mood as calm as glass. When she'd first learned she
wasn't the Tates' biological daughter, she'd been shocked, of course. But then-relief had washed over her.
It wasn’t that the Tates had mistreated her. Far from it. They'd always provided for her-financially, she'd been
better off than any of her peers, with a monthly allowance that dwarfed theirs. But that was all there was to it.
To the Tates, children existed to carry on the family nand produce the perfect heir. Three children meant a
backup-a spare, in case the second wasn’t a boy. If the second child had, in fact, been a son, Alessia wouldn't
even exist.
They never invested themselves emotionally. If you wanted something, you earned it with your grades. When the
siblings reached the right age, they were shipped off to the most elite private academies in Europe-networking
was just as important as
academics.
Alessia’s luck was that she was a girl; she didn’t have to fight for what she wanted. The downside? Her parents
never paid her the slightest attention. Even birthday presents were left to their assistant to arrange.
As a little girl, she'd tried everything-excelled in school, hoping for a word of praise, anything to be seen. But she
was never acknowledged, never celebrated like her brother and younger sibling. She let her grades slip, but
even that failed to provoke a reaction.
Nothing she did could ever change them.
Eventually, she understood: she was nothing but a pawn, her only value lying in the marriage alliance she'd be
expected to forge once she turned eighteen-one more calculated move to keep the Tate legacy strong.
Now the real daughter was back. Perfect. Thanks to her, Alessia’s plans for escape had moved up by a whole
year. The details had changed, but that was fine. If life had taught her anything, it was to stay flexible.
“Miss Alessia, we've arrived,” Dawson announced, holding open the door.
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