Sydney\u2019s\u00a0thoughts\u00a0moved\u00a0sluggishly,\u00a0a\u00a0beat\u00a0behind.\u00a0For\u00a0a\u00a0moment,\u00a0she\u00a0assumed\u00a0Julian\u00a0was\u00a0talking\u00a0about\u00a0Penelope\u2019s\u00a0allergic\u00a0reaction.<\/p>\n
\u201cThe\u00a0wine\u00a0wasn\u2019t\u00a0poisoned.\u00a0Penelope\u00a0just\u00a0had\u00a0an\u00a0allergic-\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cI\u00a0meant\u00a0you,\u201d\u00a0Julian\u00a0cut\u00a0in\u00a0lazily.\u00a0\u201cWhen\u00a0did\u00a0you\u00a0become\u00a0half\u00a0mute?\u201d<\/p>\n
She\u00a0blinked,\u00a0the\u00a0sarcasm\u00a0landing\u00a0at\u00a0last.\u00a0He\u00a0wasn\u2019t\u00a0talking\u00a0about\u00a0the\u00a0wine.\u00a0He\u00a0meant\u00a0how\u00a0cold\u00a0she\u2019d\u00a0been\u00a0to\u00a0his\u00a0girlfriend\u00a0earlier.<\/p>\n
Charlotte,\u00a0oblivious\u00a0to\u00a0the\u00a0tangle\u00a0that\u00a0was\u00a0the\u00a0Hampton\u00a0family,\u00a0offered\u00a0a\u00a0tentative\u00a0smile.\u00a0\u201cMaybe\u00a0Mr.\u00a0Hampton\u00a0rushed\u00a0Ms.\u00a0Monroe\u00a0to\u00a0the\u00a0hospital?\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cRight.\u201d\u00a0The\u00a0word\u00a0had\u00a0barely\u00a0left\u00a0Sydney\u2019s\u00a0mouth\u00a0when\u00a0a\u00a0faint\u00a0snort\u00a0of\u00a0laughter\u00a0cut\u00a0through\u00a0the\u00a0air.<\/p>\n
Julian\u2019s\u00a0cool,\u00a0distant\u00a0voice\u00a0followed.\u00a0\u201cAll\u00a0bark\u00a0at\u00a0home.\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cMr.\u00a0Sterling,\u00a0not\u00a0all\u00a0of\u00a0us\u00a0can\u00a0cut\u00a0people\u00a0down\u00a0with\u00a0a\u00a0single\u00a0sentence,\u201d\u00a0Sydney\u00a0snapped,\u00a0her\u00a0voice\u00a0tight\u00a0and\u00a0measured,\u00a0each\u00a0word\u00a0biting\u00a0through\u00a0the\u00a0tension.<\/p>\n
What\u00a0she\u00a0hated\u00a0most\u00a0was\u00a0how\u00a0he always\u00a0stood\u00a0above\u00a0it\u00a0all,\u00a0passing\u00a0judgment\u00a0as\u00a0if\u00a0the\u00a0rest\u00a0of\u00a0them\u00a0lived\u00a0in.\u00a0the\u00a0dirt\u00a0beneath\u00a0his\u00a0shoes.<\/p>\n
However,\u00a0she\u00a0wasn\u2019t\u00a0like\u00a0him.\u00a0She\u00a0couldn\u2019t\u00a0shake\u00a0the\u00a0ground\u00a0just\u00a0by\u00a0stomping\u00a0her\u00a0foot.\u00a0She\u00a0was\u00a0the\u00a0one\u00a0who\u2019d\u00a0been\u00a0crushed\u2013by\u00a0the\u00a0Hampton\u00a0family,\u00a0by\u00a0the\u00a0Sterlings,\u00a0or\u00a0maybe\u00a0by\u00a0both.<\/p>\n
She\u00a0wanted\u00a0out.\u00a0Out\u00a0of\u00a0the\u00a0Hamptons.\u00a0As\u00a0far\u00a0from\u00a0the\u00a0Sterlings\u00a0as\u00a0she\u00a0could\u00a0get.\u00a0Even\u00a0this\u00a0divorce\u00a0had\u00a0taken\u00a0everything\u00a0she\u00a0had\u00a0to\u00a0fight\u00a0for.<\/p>\n
And\u00a0to\u00a0Julian,\u00a0it\u00a0was\u00a0nothing.\u00a0Ridiculous.\u00a0Beneath\u00a0him.<\/p>\n
The\u00a0air\u00a0tensed\u00a0around\u00a0them.<\/p>\n
Charlotte\u00a0picked\u00a0up\u00a0on\u00a0the\u00a0tension\u00a0and\u00a0tried\u00a0to\u00a0ease\u00a0it.\u00a0\u201cSyd,\u00a0your\u00a0brother\u00a0didn\u2019t\u00a0have\u00a0it\u00a0easy\u00a0either.\u00a0These\u00a0past\u00a0few\u00a0years-\u2018<\/p>\n
Julian\u2019s\u00a0voice\u00a0sliced\u00a0through\u00a0hers.\u00a0\u201cLet\u00a0her\u00a0speak.\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cI\u2019m\u00a0done.\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cThen\u00a0I\u00a0stand\u00a0by\u00a0what\u00a0I\u00a0said.\u00a0You\u2019re\u00a0all\u00a0bark\u00a0at home.\u201d\u00a0He\u00a0looked\u00a0down\u00a0at\u00a0her,\u00a0same\u00a0as\u00a0always\u2013distant,\u00a0superior.\u00a0\u201cIt\u00a0was\u00a0Caleb\u00a0who\u00a0wronged\u00a0you.\u00a0Why\u00a0are\u00a0you\u00a0taking\u00a0it\u00a0out\u00a0on\u00a0me?\u00a0Or\u00a0do\u00a0you\u00a0think\u00a0the\u00a0whole\u00a0world\u00a0owes\u00a0you\u00a0something?\u201d<\/p>\n
Sydney\u00a0couldn\u2019t\u00a0even\u00a0remember\u00a0the\u00a0last\u00a0time\u00a0she\u00a0cried.\u00a0But\u00a0his\u00a0words\u00a0struck like\u00a0a\u00a0slap.\u00a0The\u00a0tears\u00a0came\u00a0before\u00a0she\u00a0could\u00a0stop\u00a0them,\u00a0streaming\u00a0hot\u00a0and\u00a0fast\u00a0down\u00a0her\u00a0cheeks.<\/p>\n
She\u00a0turned\u00a0away,\u00a0took\u00a0a\u00a0breath,\u00a0and\u00a0tried\u00a0to\u00a0swallow\u00a0the\u00a0lump\u00a0in\u00a0her\u00a0throat.\u00a0Then\u00a0she\u00a0said\u00a0with\u00a0a\u00a0bitter\u00a0smile,\u00a0\u201cOnly\u00a0others\u00a0owe\u00a0you,\u00a0Mr.\u00a0Sterling.\u00a0You\u00a0certainly\u00a0don\u2019t\u00a0owe\u00a0me.\u201d<\/p>\n
She\u00a0flung\u00a0the\u00a0door\u00a0open\u00a0and\u00a0stepped\u00a0out,\u00a0walking into\u00a0the\u00a0street\u00a0without\u00a0a\u00a0backward\u00a0glance.<\/p>\n
Charlotte\u00a0was\u00a0startled.\u00a0As\u00a0she\u00a0reached for\u00a0the\u00a0handle,\u00a0Julian\u2019s\u00a0sharp\u00a0voice\u00a0cracked\u00a0through\u00a0the\u00a0car.\u00a0\u201cLet\u00a0her\u00a0go.\u201d<\/p>\n
1\/2<\/p>\n
Chapter\u00a091<\/p>\n
\u201cMr.\u00a0Sterling\u2026\u201d\u00a0Charlotte\u00a0hesitated.\u00a0\u201cShe\u00a0looked\u00a0like\u00a0she\u00a0was\u00a0crying.\u201d<\/p>\n
She\u00a0hadn\u2019t\u00a0expected\u00a0a\u00a0reaction.\u00a0But\u00a0the\u00a0moment\u00a0she\u00a0spoke,\u00a0she\u00a0saw\u00a0him\u00a0freeze\u00a0for\u00a0a\u00a0second.<\/p>\n
+15\u00a0BONUS<\/p>\n
Sydney\u00a0reached\u00a0home\u00a0cold\u00a0to\u00a0the\u00a0bone,\u00a0inside\u00a0and\u00a0out.\u00a0And\u00a0only\u00a0then\u00a0did\u00a0she\u00a0remember\u00a0the\u00a0last time\u00a0she\u2019d\u00a0cried.<\/p>\n
It\u00a0had\u00a0been\u00a0the\u00a0day\u00a0Julian\u2013who\u00a0once\u00a0treated\u00a0her\u00a0like\u00a0the\u00a0most\u00a0precious\u00a0thing\u00a0in\u00a0his\u00a0life\u2013sent\u00a0her\u00a0back\u00a0to\u00a0Eloise\u2019s\u00a0house\u00a0without\u00a0a\u00a0word.\u00a0Not\u00a0long\u00a0after\u00a0that,\u00a0he\u00a0moved\u00a0out\u00a0of\u00a0the\u00a0main\u00a0estate\u00a0altogether.<\/p>\n
He\u2019d\u00a0made\u00a0it\u00a0clear:\u00a0he\u00a0didn\u2019t\u00a0want\u00a0her\u00a0anymore.<\/p>\n
Back\u00a0then\u2026<\/p>\n
She\u00a0couldn\u2019t\u00a0believe\u00a0it\u00a0and\u00a0ran\u00a0after\u00a0him,\u00a0grabbing\u00a0his\u00a0arm\u00a0before\u00a0he\u00a0could\u00a0leave.\u00a0\u201cJules,\u00a0tell\u00a0me\u00a0what\u00a0I\u00a0did\u00a0wrong.\u00a0Tell\u00a0your\u00a0Precious\u2026\u00a0Please\u00a0don\u2019t\u00a0leave\u00a0me.\u00a0Please\u00a0don\u2019t\u00a0leave\u00a0me,\u00a0okay?\u201d<\/p>\n
Her\u00a0tears\u00a0spilled\u00a0freely,\u00a0and\u00a0her\u00a0eyes\u00a0shimmered,\u00a0desperate\u00a0and\u00a0broken.<\/p>\n
Normally,\u00a0if\u00a0her\u00a0eyes\u00a0even\u00a0welled\u00a0up,\u00a0Julian\u00a0would\u00a0treat\u00a0her\u00a0like\u00a0a\u00a0princess\u00a0and\u00a0coax\u00a0her\u00a0gently\u00a0until\u00a0the\u00a0tears\u00a0disappeared.<\/p>\n
But\u00a0he\u00a0only\u00a0looked\u00a0down\u00a0at\u00a0her\u00a0coldly.\u00a0\u201cI\u00a0was\u00a0bored.\u00a0I\u00a0raised\u00a0you\u00a0for\u00a0a\u00a0few\u00a0years,\u00a0and\u00a0you\u00a0really\u00a0thought\u00a0you\u00a0were\u00a0my\u00a0sister?\u00a0Sydney,\u00a0is\u00a0your\u00a0pride\u00a0so\u00a0cheap\u00a0you\u2019d\u00a0throw\u00a0it\u00a0away\u00a0just\u00a0to\u00a0cling\u00a0to\u00a0me?\u201d<\/p>\n
Her\u00a0tears\u00a0stopped\u00a0right\u00a0then.<\/p>\n
After\u00a0that,\u00a0she\u00a0never\u00a0cried\u00a0again.<\/p>\n
The\u00a0gossip\u00a0swirling\u00a0around\u00a0the\u00a0clinic\u00a0hadn\u2019t\u00a0bothered\u00a0Sydney\u00a0at\u00a0first,\u00a0but\u00a0it\u00a0was\u00a0getting\u00a0worse.<\/p>\n
The\u00a0next\u00a0morning,\u00a0just\u00a0as\u00a0she\u00a0slung\u00a0her\u00a0bag\u00a0over\u00a0her\u00a0shoulder\u00a0to\u00a0leave,\u00a0her\u00a0phone\u00a0rang.\u00a0It\u00a0was\u00a0Marcus.<\/p>\n
\u201cSyd,\u00a0maybe\u00a0take\u00a0a\u00a0couple\u00a0days\u00a0off?\u00a0Or\u00a0better\u00a0yet,\u00a0head\u00a0straight\u00a0to\u00a0Sterling\u00a0Corp.\u2019s\u00a0research\u00a0center.\u00a0Focus\u00a0on\u00a0the\u00a0project\u00a0for\u00a0now,\u201d\u00a0he\u00a0suggested.<\/p>\n
Chapter\u00a092<\/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 91 Sydney\u2019s\u00a0thoughts\u00a0moved\u00a0sluggishly,\u00a0a\u00a0beat\u00a0behind.\u00a0For\u00a0a\u00a0moment,\u00a0she\u00a0assumed\u00a0Julian\u00a0was\u00a0talking\u00a0about\u00a0Penelope\u2019s\u00a0allergic\u00a0reaction. \u201cThe\u00a0wine\u00a0wasn\u2019t\u00a0poisoned.\u00a0Penelope\u00a0just\u00a0had\u00a0an\u00a0allergic-\u201d \u201cI\u00a0meant\u00a0you,\u201d\u00a0Julian\u00a0cut\u00a0in\u00a0lazily.\u00a0\u201cWhen\u00a0did\u00a0you\u00a0become\u00a0half\u00a0mute?\u201d She\u00a0blinked,\u00a0the\u00a0sarcasm\u00a0landing\u00a0at\u00a0last.\u00a0He\u00a0wasn\u2019t\u00a0talking\u00a0about\u00a0the\u00a0wine.\u00a0He\u00a0meant\u00a0how\u00a0cold\u00a0she\u2019d\u00a0been\u00a0to\u00a0his\u00a0girlfriend\u00a0earlier. […]<\/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-22074","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\/22074","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=22074"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/kezpres.xyz\/novelreading\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/22074\/revisions"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/kezpres.xyz\/novelreading\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=22074"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/kezpres.xyz\/novelreading\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=22074"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/kezpres.xyz\/novelreading\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=22074"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}