\u00a0<\/p>\n
Chapter 107\u00a0<\/p>\n
Sydney arched a brow, ignored Penelope, and turned on her heel. The hem of her gown kept tangling as she walked. With a sharp kick of her calf and a quick bend at the waist, she gathered the skirt into her hand and strode toward the banquet hall.\u00a0<\/p>\n
\u2018A nuisance,\u2019 she thought.\u00a0<\/p>\n
This gown was every bit as troublesome as the divorce papers Adeline was still holding hostage.\u00a0<\/p>\n
The moment she entered the hall, her steps faltered. Across the room, Victor caught her gaze, winked with exaggeration, and began strolling toward her.\u00a0<\/p>\n
A chill ran down Sydney\u2019s spine. She instinctively veered off and slipped straight into the auction hall instead.\u00a0<\/p>\n
A staff member greeted her with a polite smile, \u201cMrs. Hampton, this way, please.\u201d\u00a0<\/p>\n
\u201cThank you.\u201d\u00a0<\/p>\n
Sydney sank into the VIP seat, finally able to exhale. But Victor followed right in, ready to close the distance, until someone suddenly caught his arm.\u00a0<\/p>\n
He was the Sterling family\u2019s second heir. In Jouleston, everyone treated him with deference for no reason other than his being Julian\u2019s cousin.\u00a0<\/p>\n
Annoyed, he shook the hand off. \u201cWhat the hell! Are you blind?\u201d\u00a0<\/p>\n
\u201cMr. Sterling.\u201d Penelope released him without offense, her voice smooth and soft. \u201cDon\u2019t be so hasty. If you push now, she\u2019ll only guard herself more. Why make it harder for yourself?\u201d\u00a0<\/p>\n
\u201cWhat do you mean?\u201d\u00a0<\/p>\n
\u201cI\u2019ve arranged everything already.\u201d She smirked and tapped a manicured finger against his chest. \u201cJust don\u2019t ruin it when it matters, and you\u2019ll get exactly what you want.\u201d\u00a0<\/p>\n
\u201cReally?\u201d\u00a0<\/p>\n
\u201cOf course.\u201d Her gaze slid toward Sydney, a calculating glint narrowing her eyes. After tonight, they would see how that bitch could possibly hold her place in the Hampton family.\u00a0<\/p>\n
Seeing Victor reluctantly hold back, Penelope allowed the staff to escort her to her seat, conveniently just one spot from Sydney.\u00a0<\/p>\n
Once seated, she pulled out a compact, touched up her lipstick, and stole a sidelong glance at Sydney. \u201cYou\u2019ve always been so aloof. I suppose it doesn\u2019t bother you that I walked in holding Cal\u2019s arm just now?\u201d\u00a0<\/p>\n
Sydney kept her eyes on her phone, not even blinking. \u201cIf flaunting your title as the homewrecker in public makes you happy, fine. I wouldn\u2019t bother watching. It would lower my standards for entertainment.\u201d\u00a0<\/p>\n
Penelope\u2019s hand jerked, smearing her lipstick off-line. She sucked in a breath and forced a cold laugh. \u201cSydney, let\u2019s see how long you can keep up this composure.\u201d\u00a0<\/p>\n
Because once Victor had had his way with her, no woman could remain this calm afterward.\u00a0<\/p>\n
Before she could gloat further, Caleb, finished with his greetings, walked over and sat right between them. The picture spoke volumes, and naturally, others noticed.\u00a0<\/p>\n
Whispers rose.\u00a0<\/p>\n
\u201cMr. Hampton really has it all. His wife on one side, his sister-in-law on the other.\u201d\u00a0<\/p>\n
\u201cTch, they make adultery and mistresses sound poetic. That Penelope is really desperate. She can\u2019t even leave her brother-in- law alone.\u201d\u00a0<\/p>\n
1\/2\u00a0<\/p>\n
\u201cWhat does it say about Caleb if he dares bring her out like this? How little must he value his wife?\u201d\u00a0<\/p>\n
\u201cOr maybe his wife just swallows it down. Look at her, sitting there calm as can be, even with the mistress flaunting herself right in her face.\u201d\u00a0<\/p>\n
\u201cAnd how do you know it\u2019s endurance? Maybe she couldn\u2019t care less. Caleb plays with his sister-in-law, and she could be playing with her own toys. In our circles, loyalty\u2019s a fairy tale.\u201d\u00a0<\/p>\n
\u201cEven so, Caleb has terrible taste. If you\u2019re going to cheat, at least pick someone younger and prettier. Penelope doesn\u2019t even compare to Sydney.\u201d\u00a0<\/p>\n
That last comment struck a chord with several listeners. No one had thought to compare the two before. But now, side by side, it was painfully clear that Sydney outshone Penelope by miles. Her beauty, her figure, and that intangible aura were incomparable.\u00a0<\/p>\n
The scattered remarks pierced Penelope\u2019s ears like needles. Rage twisted her features, and one manicured nail even snapped in\u00a0<\/p>\n
half.\u00a0<\/p>\n
She was worse than Sydney? Ridiculous!\u00a0<\/p>\n
At every banquet she had ever attended, she had been praised and fawned over. These people must be jealous because Caleb\u00a0<\/p>\n
favored her.\u00a0<\/p>\n
Humiliation boiled in her chest. She turned to Caleb, ready to lash out, only to see that he was not paying her the slightest attention. His warm, unwavering gaze rested entirely on Sydney.<\/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 107 \u00a0 Chapter 107\u00a0 Sydney […]<\/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-22090","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\/22090","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=22090"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/kezpres.xyz\/novelreading\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/22090\/revisions"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/kezpres.xyz\/novelreading\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=22090"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/kezpres.xyz\/novelreading\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=22090"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/kezpres.xyz\/novelreading\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=22090"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}