Just\u00a0as\u00a0Sydney\u00a0began to\u00a0feel\u00a0awkward,\u00a0Charlotte\u00a0appeared\u00a0in\u00a0front\u00a0of\u00a0her\u00a0and\u00a0took\u00a0her\u00a0hand\u00a0as\u00a0if\u00a0it\u00a0were\u00a0the\u00a0most\u00a0natural\u00a0thing\u00a0in\u00a0the\u00a0world.\u00a0\u201cMs.\u00a0Wilson,\u00a0you\u00a0remember\u00a0me,\u00a0right?\u201d<\/p>\n
Sydney\u00a0nodded.\u00a0\u201cYes.\u201d<\/p>\n
She\u00a0remembered\u00a0Charlotte\u00a0as\u00a0Julian\u2019s\u00a0secretary.\u00a0Some\u00a0might\u00a0be\u00a0surprised\u00a0that\u00a0someone\u00a0like\u00a0Julian\u2013cold,\u00a0distant,\u00a0and\u00a0meticulous\u00a0about\u00a0boundaries\u2013would\u00a0ever\u00a0lur\u00a0the\u00a0lines\u00a0between\u00a0work\u00a0and\u00a0personal\u00a0life.\u00a0There\u00a0was\u00a0no\u00a0way\u00a0he would\u00a0date\u00a0a\u00a0subordinate.<\/p>\n
However,\u00a0Sydney\u00a0knew\u00a0better.\u00a0Julian\u00a0did\u00a0whatever\u00a0he\u00a0wanted.\u00a0When\u00a0he\u00a0chose\u00a0to\u00a0spoil\u00a0someone,\u00a0he\u00a0would\u00a0keep\u00a0them\u00a0close\u00a0and\u00a0even\u00a0work\u00a0for\u00a0them\u00a0if\u00a0necessary.\u00a0He\u00a0had\u00a0a\u00a0way\u00a0of\u00a0indulging\u00a0someone\u00a0so\u00a0completely\u00a0that\u00a0the\u00a0rest\u00a0of\u00a0the\u00a0world\u00a0seemed\u00a0to\u00a0fall\u00a0away.<\/p>\n
And\u00a0then\u00a0he\u00a0would\u00a0let\u00a0them\u00a0go.\u00a0Brutally.<\/p>\n
Charlotte\u00a0gave a\u00a0warm\u00a0smile.\u00a0\u201cI\u2019d\u00a0heard\u00a0Mr.\u00a0Sterling\u00a0had\u00a0a\u00a0sister.\u00a0I\u00a0just\u00a0didn\u2019t\u00a0expect\u00a0it\u00a0was\u00a0you.\u201d<\/p>\n
Sydney\u00a0didn\u2019t\u00a0know\u00a0how\u00a0to\u00a0respond.\u00a0In\u00a0the\u00a0end,\u00a0she\u00a0mumbled,\u00a0\u201cYeah.\u00a0I\u00a0didn\u2019t\u00a0expect\u00a0it\u00a0either.\u201d<\/p>\n
Her\u00a0voice came\u00a0out\u00a0too\u00a0soft,\u00a0so\u00a0Charlotte tilted\u00a0her\u00a0head.\u00a0\u201cWhat\u00a0was\u00a0that?\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cNothing.\u201d<\/p>\n
Sydney\u00a0could\u00a0tell she\u00a0meant\u00a0to\u00a0be\u00a0friendly.<\/p>\n
Once,\u00a0back\u00a0when\u00a0Julian\u00a0still\u00a0cared\u00a0about\u00a0her,\u00a0there\u00a0had\u00a0been\u00a0plenty\u00a0of\u00a0girls\u00a0eager\u00a0to\u00a0cozy\u00a0up\u00a0to\u00a0his\u00a0sister.\u00a0Being\u00a0close\u00a0to\u00a0Sydney\u00a0meant\u00a0a\u00a0shortcut\u00a0to\u00a0him.\u00a0But\u00a0now\u00a0her\u00a0relationship\u00a0with\u00a0Julian\u00a0was\u00a0colder\u00a0than\u00a0that\u00a0of\u00a0strangers,\u00a0and\u00a0Charlotte\u00a0had\u00a0no\u00a0reason\u00a0to\u00a0flatter\u00a0her.<\/p>\n
Sensing\u00a0the\u00a0distance,\u00a0Charlotte\u00a0just\u00a0smiled\u00a0and\u00a0said\u00a0nothing\u00a0more.<\/p>\n
By\u00a0the\u00a0time\u00a0the\u00a0banquet\u00a0ended,\u00a0Sydney\u00a0had\u00a0planned\u00a0to\u00a0sp\u00a0out\u00a0quietly.<\/p>\n
Unexpectedly,\u00a0Adeline\u00a0stopped\u00a0her\u00a0to help\u00a0see\u00a0the\u00a0guests\u00a0off.\u00a0When\u00a0she\u00a0finally\u00a0got outside,\u00a0the\u00a0familiar\u00a0Maybach\u00a0was\u00a0long\u00a0gone.<\/p>\n
The\u00a0butler\u00a0gave\u00a0a\u00a0clipped\u00a0explanation.\u00a0\u201cMs.\u00a0Monroe\u00a0had\u00a0an\u00a0allergic\u00a0reaction\u00a0to\u00a0something\u00a0she\u00a0ate.\u00a0Mr.\u00a0Hampton\u00a0took\u00a0her\u00a0to\u00a0the\u00a0hospital.\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cI\u00a0see.\u201d<\/p>\n
She\u00a0declined\u00a0his\u00a0offer\u00a0to\u00a0arrange\u00a0a\u00a0car\u00a0and\u00a0left\u00a0on\u00a0her\u00a0own.\u00a0Instead\u00a0of\u00a0pretending\u00a0to\u00a0double\u00a0back\u00a0to\u00a0Aurum\u00a0Road\u00a0midway\u00a0through\u00a0the\u00a0ride,\u00a0she\u00a0figured\u00a0she\u00a0might\u00a0as\u00a0well\u00a0just\u00a0call\u00a0a\u00a0cab\u00a0now.<\/p>\n
\u201cMs.\u00a0Wilson?\u201d<\/p>\n
She\u00a0had\u00a0just\u00a0reached\u00a0the\u00a0main\u00a0road\u00a0outside\u00a0the\u00a0estate\u00a0and\u00a0pulled\u00a0out\u00a0her\u00a0phone\u00a0when\u00a0a\u00a0Bentley\u00a0slowed\u00a0beside\u00a0her.\u00a0<\/p>\n
The\u00a0back\u00a0window\u00a0rolled\u00a0down\u00a0to\u00a0reveal\u00a0Charlotte,\u00a0frowning.\u00a0\u201cYou\u2019re\u00a0going\u00a0home\u00a0alone at\u00a0this\u00a0hour?\u00a0Where\u2019s\u00a0Mr.\u00a0Hampton?\u201d<\/p>\n
1\/2<\/p>\n
Chapter\u00a090<\/p>\n
+15\u00a0BONUS<\/p>\n
Sydney\u00a0turned\u00a0and\u00a0saw\u00a0Julian\u00a0beside\u00a0her.\u00a0He\u00a0sat\u00a0with\u00a0his\u00a0eyes\u00a0closed,\u00a0resting.\u00a0His\u00a0sharp\u00a0profile\u00a0looked\u00a0impassive,\u00a0as\u00a0if\u00a0their\u00a0conversation\u00a0hadn\u2019t\u00a0even\u00a0registered.<\/p>\n
\u201cHe\u00a0had\u00a0something\u00a0urgent\u00a0come\u00a0up,\u201d\u00a0she\u00a0said.<\/p>\n
\u201cThen\u00a0come\u00a0on,\u00a0we\u2019ll\u00a0drop\u00a0you\u00a0off,\u201d\u00a0Charlotte\u00a0offered.<\/p>\n
\u201cNo\u00a0need.\u00a0I\u00a0already\u00a0called\u00a0a\u00a0ride\u2026\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cCome\u00a0on,\u00a0it\u2019s\u00a0not\u00a0safe\u00a0for\u00a0a\u00a0woman\u00a0to\u00a0ride alone\u00a0at\u00a0night.\u00a0Your\u00a0brother\u00a0would\u00a0worry.\u201d<\/p>\n
Before\u00a0Sydney\u00a0could\u00a0refuse,\u00a0Charlotte\u00a0stepped\u00a0out,\u00a0opened\u00a0the\u00a0passenger\u00a0door,\u00a0and\u00a0gently\u00a0ushered\u00a0her\u00a0inside.<\/p>\n
Peter\u00a0was\u00a0driving.\u00a0Julian\u00a0and\u00a0Charlotte\u00a0sat\u00a0in\u00a0the\u00a0back.\u00a0Sydney\u00a0ended\u00a0up\u00a0in\u00a0the\u00a0front\u00a0passenger\u00a0seat.<\/p>\n
Something\u00a0felt\u00a0off.\u00a0Why\u00a0did\u00a0it\u00a0suddenly\u00a0feel\u00a0like\u00a0she\u00a0was\u00a0the\u00a0child\u00a0in\u00a0a\u00a0family\u00a0of\u00a0three?<\/p>\n
Before\u00a0she\u00a0could\u00a0dwell\u00a0on\u00a0it,\u00a0Charlotte\u00a0smiled\u00a0from\u00a0the\u00a0back.\u00a0\u201cI\u2019m\u00a0three\u00a0years older\u00a0than\u00a0you.\u00a0Since\u00a0your\u00a0brother\u00a0calls\u00a0you\u00a0Syd,\u00a0I\u00a0hope\u00a0you\u00a0don\u2019t\u00a0mind\u00a0if\u00a0I\u00a0do\u00a0too?\u201d<\/p>\n
Sydney\u00a0hesitated.<\/p>\n
Sensing\u00a0she\u00a0might\u00a0have overstepped,\u00a0Charlotte\u00a0quickly\u00a0added,\u00a0\u201cSorry,\u00a0I\u2019ll\u00a0stop\u00a0if\u2014\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cIt\u2019s\u00a0fine.\u00a0Call\u00a0me\u00a0whatever\u00a0you\u00a0like.\u201d<\/p>\n
Julian\u00a0had\u00a0never\u00a0called\u00a0her\u00a0that.<\/p>\n
Charlotte\u00a0leaned\u00a0back,\u00a0visibly\u00a0relieved,\u00a0sneaking\u00a0a\u00a0glance\u00a0at\u00a0the\u00a0man\u00a0beside\u00a0her\u00a0who\u00a0still\u00a0hadn\u2019t\u00a0opened\u00a0his\u00a0eyes.\u00a0She\u00a0couldn\u2019t\u00a0help\u00a0but\u00a0think\u00a0the\u00a0two\u00a0really\u00a0were\u00a0siblings.\u00a0Both\u00a0were\u00a0quiet\u00a0and\u00a0unreadable.\u00a0Their\u00a0personalities\u00a0weren\u2019t\u00a0identical,\u00a0but\u00a0they\u00a0gave\u00a0off\u00a0the\u00a0same\u00a0impression\u2013like\u00a0cool,\u00a0distant\u00a0shadows.<\/p>\n
The\u00a0rest\u00a0of\u00a0the\u00a0ride\u00a0passed\u00a0in\u00a0silence.<\/p>\n
For\u00a0Sydney,\u00a0every\u00a0second\u00a0dragged.\u00a0Even\u00a0breathing\u00a0felt\u00a0unnatural.<\/p>\n
She\u00a0kept\u00a0replaying\u00a0the\u00a0moment\u00a0Charlotte\u00a0had\u00a0pushed\u00a0her\u00a0into\u00a0the\u00a0car.\u00a0Why\u00a0hadn\u2019t\u00a0she\u00a0moved\u00a0faster?<\/p>\n
When\u00a0the\u00a0familiar buildings\u00a0of\u00a0Haven\u00a0finally\u00a0came\u00a0into\u00a0view,\u00a0she\u00a0nearly\u00a0wanted\u00a0to\u00a0beg\u00a0Peter\u00a0to\u00a0speed\u00a0up.<\/p>\n
Then\u00a0the\u00a0brake\u00a0lights\u00a0flared\u00a0across\u00a0the\u00a0lanes\u00a0ahead\u2013aghttime traffic\u00a0jam.<\/p>\n
From\u00a0the\u00a0backseat,\u00a0Julian\u00a0spoke, his\u00a0voice\u00a0unreadable.\u00a0\u201cWas\u00a0there\u00a0poison\u00a0in\u00a0the\u00a0wine\u00a0at\u00a0the\u00a0banquet?\u201d<\/p>\n
Setting\u00a0aside\u00a0everything\u00a0else,\u00a0Sydney\u00a0still\u00a0thought\u00a0his\u00a0voice\u00a0was\u00a0the\u00a0most\u00a0pleasant\u00a0she\u00a0had\u00a0ever\u00a0heard.\u00a0Low,\u00a0warm,\u00a0and\u00a0just\u00a0a\u00a0little\u00a0too\u00a0casual.<\/p>\n
Lucia Morh is a passionate storyteller who brings emotions to life through her words. When she\u2019s not writing, she finds peace nurturing her garden.<\/p>\n
When The Ocean Learned My Name and Whispered It Back to You by Aurelia Novel 90 Just\u00a0as\u00a0Sydney\u00a0began to\u00a0feel\u00a0awkward,\u00a0Charlotte\u00a0appeared\u00a0in\u00a0front\u00a0of\u00a0her\u00a0and\u00a0took\u00a0her\u00a0hand\u00a0as\u00a0if\u00a0it\u00a0were\u00a0the\u00a0most\u00a0natural\u00a0thing\u00a0in\u00a0the\u00a0world.\u00a0\u201cMs.\u00a0Wilson,\u00a0you\u00a0remember\u00a0me,\u00a0right?\u201d Sydney\u00a0nodded.\u00a0\u201cYes.\u201d She\u00a0remembered\u00a0Charlotte\u00a0as\u00a0Julian\u2019s\u00a0secretary.\u00a0Some\u00a0might\u00a0be\u00a0surprised\u00a0that\u00a0someone\u00a0like\u00a0Julian\u2013cold,\u00a0distant,\u00a0and\u00a0meticulous\u00a0about\u00a0boundaries\u2013would\u00a0ever\u00a0lur\u00a0the\u00a0lines\u00a0between\u00a0work\u00a0and\u00a0personal\u00a0life.\u00a0There\u00a0was\u00a0no\u00a0way\u00a0he […]<\/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-22073","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\/22073","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=22073"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/kezpres.xyz\/novelreading\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/22073\/revisions"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/kezpres.xyz\/novelreading\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=22073"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/kezpres.xyz\/novelreading\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=22073"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/kezpres.xyz\/novelreading\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=22073"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}