The forecast hadn\u2019t said a word about snow. Yet this wasn\u2019t some light dusting\u2014it was a full-on storm. Even through the glass, she could feel the cold.<\/p>\n
She changed into a knit dress and had just started washing up when loud noises echoed through the hallway. They were jarring. If she didn\u2019t know better, she might\u2019ve thought a demolition crew had shown up.<\/p>\n
\u201cNancy, what\u2019s going on\u2014\u201d Sydney twisted her hair into a loose knot and opened the door, stopping short mid-sentence.<\/p>\n
It wasn\u2019t a crew. It looked like an invading army had torn through the place. The pristine house was in ruins. Throw pillows that belonged on the downstairs sofa sat by her door, stained with dark brown gunk. A porcelain vase had rolled across the floor and shattered.<\/p>\n
The one-million-dollar oil painting in the hallway was ruined.<\/p>\n
It was chaos.<\/p>\n
Nancy trailed after Timothy, practically pleading, \u201cTimmy, please, don\u2019t touch that. That\u2019s Ms. Wilson\u2019s favorite tea set.\u201d<\/p>\n
She was too late. He smashed the tea set into pieces.<\/p>\n
Timothy stuck out his tongue and huffed like a tiny tyrant. \u201cBlehhh! I wanna play with it! Uncle Caleb said this is my home now. You\u2019re just a servant. Who are you to boss me around?\u201d<\/p>\n
Then he looked up and locked eyes with Sydney, who stood watching him in silence. His shoulders sank. That scary woman had frightened him so badly the day before that he\u2019d had nightmares of Santa Claus and monsters chasing him.<\/p>\n
He hated her and had to get rid of her. His mother once said that once this woman was gone, Caleb would belong only to them.<\/p>\n
Sydney\u2019s expression stayed calm. \u201cGo ahead. Play. Take your time.\u201d<\/p>\n
Timothy blinked. \u201cReally?\u201d<\/p>\n
He\u2019d just broken her favorite things, and she wasn\u2019t angry?<\/p>\n
Sydney leaned against the railing with a faint smile and glanced toward the first floor, where Penelope stood pretending not to hear a thing. \u201cSure. Just don\u2019t touch the ink painting in the guest lounge. That\u2019s my favorite.\u201d<\/p>\n
She didn\u2019t know whether Penelope had coached him or if Timothy had come up with this mess on his own. Either way, it didn\u2019t matter. She wasn\u2019t exactly a saint herself. Someone had once taught her that if you\u2019re bullied, you hit back ten times harder.<\/p>\n
Timothy\u2019s eyes lit up.<\/p>\n
\u201cOkay!\u201d he shouted and ran off.<\/p>\n
Nancy sighed. \u201cMs. Wilson, you and Mr. Hampton spoil that child too much.\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cIt\u2019s fine,\u201d Sydney said calmly. \u201cDon\u2019t stop him. He\u2019s the Hampton family\u2019s only grandson. As long as he\u2019s happy, that\u2019s all that matters. And Penelope hasn\u2019t said a word, has she? We should respect her parenting. If anything goes wrong, neither of us can afford to take the blame.\u201d<\/p>\n
Nancy nodded reluctantly. \u201cYou\u2019re too kind for your own good. That\u2019s why people think they can walk all over you.\u201d<\/p>\n
Sydney kept smiling faintly but didn\u2019t comment on that. Instead, she asked, \u201cDo we have any spare gift boxes?\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cWhat kind?\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cDoesn\u2019t matter. Just needs to fit something A4-sized.\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cThere should be some in the storage room,\u201d Nancy said. \u201cI\u2019ll go check.\u201d<\/p>\n
Once she had the box, Sydney returned to her room and locked the door. She placed the signed divorce agreement inside and tied the lid with a ribbon, adding a bow for flair.<\/p>\n
A loud crash came from downstairs.<\/p>\n
Sydney didn\u2019t flinch.<\/p>\n
She tightened the bow and nodded slightly. \u2018Beautiful. Perfectly done.\u2019<\/p>\n
Moments later, someone pounded on the door.<\/p>\n
Nancy\u2019s frantic voice called out, \u201cMs. Wilson, come down quickly! Timmy just ruined Mr. Benjamin\u2019s final painting!\u201d<\/p>\n
Sydney shot up, her expression dark. \u201cThe one in the guest lounge?\u201d<\/p>\n
Nancy nodded. \u201cYes.\u201d<\/p>\n
She bolted for the stairs and twisted her ankle on the way down.<\/p>\n
Timothy saw her and raised his chin smugly. His whole face said, \u201cWhat are you gonna do about it?\u201d<\/p>\n
Sydney turned to Nancy. \u201cDid you call the Hampton residence?\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cNot yet.\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cCall them.\u201d<\/p>\n
As soon as the words left her mouth, Timothy charged at her. \u201cNo! Bad lady, don\u2019t tattle!\u201d<\/p>\n
Sydney didn\u2019t see it coming. He hit her with more force than she expected, knocking her straight to the floor. Pain shot through her tailbone.<\/p>\n
Penelope rushed over. \u201cSyd, are you okay?\u201d<\/p>\n
Sighing, she said in a chiding tone, \u201cTimothy\u2019s spoiled, I know. He doesn\u2019t know how to be gentle. But he\u2019s just a kid. Please don\u2019t be mad at him.\u201d<\/p>\n
Sydney gripped her side and stared at the ink painting\u2014now torn through the center. She let out a low, cold peal of laughter. \u201cSo letting a child destroy someone else\u2019s property is part of your parenting philosophy too?\u201d<\/p>\n
Tears welled in Penelope\u2019s eyes. \u201cI just looked away for one moment! Do you really have to blame me for everything?\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cOne moment?\u201d Sydney swept her gaze across the destruction. \u201cLook at all this damage, and it\u2019s not even noon. So tell me, exactly when were you watching him?\u201d<\/p>\n
Penelope\u2019s tone changed the second they were alone. \u201cSydney! Why do you have to be so unforgiving? You\u2019re seriously going to call the old house over a stupid painting? You think Grandma\u2019s going to take your side over mine?\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cCorrection,\u201d Sydney said coolly. \u201cThat \u2018stupid painting\u2019 was Grandpa\u2019s final work before he died.\u201d<\/p>\n
As the words settled in the air, a black sedan pulled into the courtyard.<\/p>\n
The Hampton family had arrived\u2014fast.<\/p>\n
Cedella is a passionate storyteller known for her bold romantic and spicy novels that keep readers hooked from the very first chapter. With a flair for crafting emotionally intense plots and unforgettable characters, she blends love, desire, and drama into every story she writes. Cedella\u2019s storytelling style is immersive and addictive\u2014perfect for fans of heated romances and heart-pounding twists.<\/p>\n
When The Ocean Learned My Name and Whispered It Back to You by Aurelia Novel 3 Chapter 3 The forecast […]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":1,"featured_media":0,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"site-sidebar-layout":"default","site-content-layout":"","ast-site-content-layout":"default","site-content-style":"default","site-sidebar-style":"default","ast-global-header-display":"","ast-banner-title-visibility":"","ast-main-header-display":"","ast-hfb-above-header-display":"","ast-hfb-below-header-display":"","ast-hfb-mobile-header-display":"","site-post-title":"","ast-breadcrumbs-content":"","ast-featured-img":"","footer-sml-layout":"","ast-disable-related-posts":"","theme-transparent-header-meta":"","adv-header-id-meta":"","stick-header-meta":"","header-above-stick-meta":"","header-main-stick-meta":"","header-below-stick-meta":"","astra-migrate-meta-layouts":"default","ast-page-background-enabled":"default","ast-page-background-meta":{"desktop":{"background-color":"var(--ast-global-color-5)","background-image":"","background-repeat":"repeat","background-position":"center center","background-size":"auto","background-attachment":"scroll","background-type":"","background-media":"","overlay-type":"","overlay-color":"","overlay-opacity":"","overlay-gradient":""},"tablet":{"background-color":"","background-image":"","background-repeat":"repeat","background-position":"center center","background-size":"auto","background-attachment":"scroll","background-type":"","background-media":"","overlay-type":"","overlay-color":"","overlay-opacity":"","overlay-gradient":""},"mobile":{"background-color":"","background-image":"","background-repeat":"repeat","background-position":"center center","background-size":"auto","background-attachment":"scroll","background-type":"","background-media":"","overlay-type":"","overlay-color":"","overlay-opacity":"","overlay-gradient":""}},"ast-content-background-meta":{"desktop":{"background-color":"var(--ast-global-color-4)","background-image":"","background-repeat":"repeat","background-position":"center center","background-size":"auto","background-attachment":"scroll","background-type":"","background-media":"","overlay-type":"","overlay-color":"","overlay-opacity":"","overlay-gradient":""},"tablet":{"background-color":"var(--ast-global-color-4)","background-image":"","background-repeat":"repeat","background-position":"center center","background-size":"auto","background-attachment":"scroll","background-type":"","background-media":"","overlay-type":"","overlay-color":"","overlay-opacity":"","overlay-gradient":""},"mobile":{"background-color":"var(--ast-global-color-4)","background-image":"","background-repeat":"repeat","background-position":"center center","background-size":"auto","background-attachment":"scroll","background-type":"","background-media":"","overlay-type":"","overlay-color":"","overlay-opacity":"","overlay-gradient":""}},"footnotes":""},"categories":[40],"tags":[],"class_list":["post-21986","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","hentry","category-when-love-is-gone-novel"],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/kezpres.xyz\/novelreading\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/21986","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/kezpres.xyz\/novelreading\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/kezpres.xyz\/novelreading\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/kezpres.xyz\/novelreading\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/1"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/kezpres.xyz\/novelreading\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=21986"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/kezpres.xyz\/novelreading\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/21986\/revisions"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/kezpres.xyz\/novelreading\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=21986"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/kezpres.xyz\/novelreading\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=21986"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/kezpres.xyz\/novelreading\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=21986"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}