Preparations for the weddings went in a blur.
Interestingly, none of the Ravenwoods wanted to meet their new relatives.
Honestly, it was extremely peaceful that way.
Isabella took no time to adjust to the new lifestyle.
After all, she was once a rich man’s wife living a rich life before her son’s debts.
Lara, on the other hand, was stumbling in it.
It was all because Cristina had hired an etiquette teacher for Lara.
“Even if I didn’t raise that girl, she is going to marry as my daughter.
I can’t have her low-class upbringing become a topic of conversation.
I need to fix that before the marriage,” Cristina thought.
The etiquette teacher entered the mansion five days after Lara had shifted.
She was an old woman who was once a nanny for Juliette.
As soon as she saw Lara sitting on the floor and playing poker with the housekeeping at the middle of the night on her first day of arrival, she fainted in shock.
“This is a serious case.
I must get this tramp in shape for the high society,” the teacher decided.
The first thing she tried to fix was Lara’s fashion sense.
“Why can’t I wear a shirt and a skort and call it a day?
Why do I have to wear dresses?”
“Why does my makeup have to have the clean girl aesthetic?”
“I am not a replacement for your third miss.
I want to talk to Arnold about this.”
Lara kept complaining.
Unfortunately, Arnold had left for Paris to get her wedding gown.
Arnold was sparing no expense for her wedding.
From getting the wedding gown to repairing Isabella’s and Janet’s jewellery for her to wear to even booking the wedding in the grandest church in M city, he was going all out.
The only time Arnold had done this was to marry his late wife, Janet.
Somehow it felt like an apology from Arnold for not being able to find her and raise Lara properly.
So Lara didn’t say anything.
She didn’t want to hurt his sentiments.
And somehow, Isabella agreed to all of Arnold’s actions, making it even more difficult to disagree.
The next thing the etiquette teacher tried to correct was her posture.
“‘A noble woman keeps her posture.
‘ Well then, I am not a good noblewoman.
I am going to stand masculine or like a tramp like you keep saying I am.” Lara would retort and slam the door shut while getting out of the room.
Lara was getting annoyed by this woman’s rudeness.
It was not that she didn’t know the etiquettes of the rich families.
Rather, she knew them too well!
People are, too easy to judge based on appearance and background.
But there’s a saying, “Arrogance diminishes wisdom”.
Lara Collins grew up under Isabella Collins née Covan, wife of the former CEO of an extremely famous construction company.
Isabella, in her frail body, taught her ballet, singing, dining etiquette, tea etiquette, embroidery and even financed her Aikido lessons.
Isabella always says, “So what if we are poor?
The skills you learn today may cost me money, but even after death, nobody can steal them from you.
Unlike this useless cash.”
Lara was a top student for a reason.
It was extremely difficult to be going to different parts of the country to compete to get a scholarship.
Without Isabella scrapping out money and giving it to her, she would have never made it this far.
So, that’s why Lara found this woman as an amusement in the large Ravenwood mansion..
On the second day of suffering under the teacher, Lara was lucky.
While getting ready to go for a bath in her bathroom, she overheard the housekeeping whispering.
They were arranging her bed.
“Do you think that woman is doing this to the second miss because of revenge?” one gossiped.
“Do you mean, eight years ago, it was true?” The other one whispered sharply.
“Shh.
Miss is here.” The first one slapped the other’s back.
“Jennie, Daisy.
You don’t really have to hide gossip from me.
Rather, I am actually interested in hearing what happened eight years ago.” Lara said and sat on the bed.
“Come, sit with me.” Lara tapped on the bed, the spot beside her.
“Are you really going to gossip with us?
You won’t tell on us to Butler Nolan?” Jennie asked.
“Nope.
Why should I?
That just ruins the gossiping spirit,” Lara assured.
“Now, tell me.
What happened eight years ago?”
“We are relatively new employees, second miss.
So whatever we have as gossip is what we heard from the older employees.
Well, I heard this from Theo, the gardener, who heard it from an employee who got fired for witnessing it.
Apparently, your teacher used to sleep with first master Kevin when he used to come to this mansion,” Daisy said.
“What!” Lara exclaimed.
Check it out.