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    The Ugly Truth: A Castlewood Short Story: Castlewood High Origin Stories, #1
    The Ugly Truth: A Castlewood Short Story: Castlewood High Origin Stories, #1
    The Ugly Truth: A Castlewood Short Story: Castlewood High Origin Stories, #1
    Ebook48 pages38 minutes

    The Ugly Truth: A Castlewood Short Story: Castlewood High Origin Stories, #1

    By Mary-Kate Thomas

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    About this ebook

    Beauty queen, evil stepmother... and ugly duckling?

    In this retake of the classic fairy tale, The Ugly Duckling, learn the origin story of Tammy Norwell, the mean stepmother character in Pumpkin Run, Book 1 of the Castlewood High Tales Series.

    BONUS! Read the first chapter of Pumpkin Run, Book 1 of the Castlewood High Tales Series, included at the end of this story.

    LanguageEnglish
    PublisherMary-Kate Thomas
    Release dateJun 11, 2021
    ISBN9798201943257
    The Ugly Truth: A Castlewood Short Story: Castlewood High Origin Stories, #1
    Author

    Mary-Kate Thomas

    ​Mary-Kate Thomas is the pen name of the author of the Castlewood High Tales, a retold sweet romance series.   A mom to four great kids - two daughters, two sons - she's been happily married for over twenty years.  She spends her days wrangling her latest pair of bird dogs, driving carpool around her lovely corner of Ohio, and writing stories.   To keep up-to-date with her book releases, visit her website at www.marykatethomas.com and subscribe to her monthly newsletter.   ​ ​

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      Book preview

      The Ugly Truth - Mary-Kate Thomas

      The Ugly Truth: A Castlewood Short Story

      Castlewood High Origin Stories, Volume 1

      Mary-Kate Thomas

      Published by Mary-Kate Thomas, 2021.

      While every precaution has been taken in the preparation of this book, the publisher assumes no responsibility for errors or omissions, or for damages resulting from the use of the information contained herein.

      THE UGLY TRUTH: A CASTLEWOOD SHORT STORY

      First edition. June 11, 2021.

      Copyright © 2021 Mary-Kate Thomas.

      ISBN: 979-8201943257

      Written by Mary-Kate Thomas.

      Table of Contents

      Title Page

      Copyright Page

      Dedication

      The Ugly Truth: A Castlewood Short Story (Castlewood High Origin Stories, #1)

      Sign up for Mary-Kate Thomas's Mailing List

      Also By Mary-Kate Thomas

      About the Author

      For you, faithful reader. 

      Author’s Note:

      Welcome to the first short story in the Castlewood High Origin Stories, a companion series of origin stories of characters within the Castlewood High Tales, a retold clean & wholesome high school romance series.

      The Ugly Truth is a retold version of The Ugly Duckling by Hans Christian Andersen and focuses on the origin story of Tammy Norwell, the wicked stepmother character in Pumpkin Run, the first book of the Castlewood High Tales series.

      Cover design by Mary-Kate Thomas, using Canva.

      Is this thing on?

      The woman tapped the microphone I’d jacked into my iPhone, her eyes narrowed with suspicion behind her wire-rimmed glasses. She glared up at me as she lifted the cigarette in her other hand to her lips, taking a deep drag. Turning her head over her shoulder to blow the smoke away from me, she kept her gaze fixed on me, jabbing her cigarette in my direction.

      They told me this was for a national publication. I checked online. I talked to your boss, and he said he’d make it worth my while to do this interview. She paused, snorting, talking more to herself than to me. And then your boss sends you, some guy that looks like he’s barely even old enough to order a beer. And all you have is this? Her short and tightly permed steel gray hair bounced as she gestured toward my iPhone set up, harrumphing. I’m not so sure I remember everything so well as I thought... 

      Her voice trailed off as she stared at me, smoke curling up from both nostrils in long plumes like an angry dragon.

      Without breaking her gaze, I reached into my messenger bag, pulling out the thick envelope McGarvey had shoved into my hands outside the diner near our office. He’d known to wait for me there. If I wasn’t at my desk or out chasing down another celebrity or socialite breaking bad gossip tip, I was at the diner, buying one more black, no sugar to go from the girl with the red braid.

      McGarvey had caught me by the elbow on the sidewalk, surprising me. I had been glancing inside one last time, hoping to catch her eye. I didn’t know her name; I hadn’t yet found the courage for any attempts at conversation deeper than observations on the weather. The line at the counter had been long, and she hadn’t looked up. Dejected, I had turned and fell into the grip of

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