Chapter 147\u00a0<\/p>\n
Johnson Conton was Alan and Eliana\u2019s only son.\u00a0<\/p>\n
Sydney sipped her tea. \u201cThat\u2019s fine. I\u2019ll pick up some local specialties for you two to bring back.\u201d\u00a0<\/p>\n
Eliana patted her head. \u201cAnd what about you? Will you come with us this year?\u201d\u00a0<\/p>\n
She sometimes admired Sydney\u2019s thoughtfulness, yet other times pitied how alone and restrained she always seemed.\u00a0<\/p>\n
Every year they invited Sydney to spend the holiday with them. Still, she knew Johnson and his family only came home once a year, so she always waited until the second day to visit.\u00a0<\/p>\n
This year, though, the house would be emptier than ever after her divorce from Caleb.\u00a0<\/p>\n
Sydney only smiled. \u201cI think I\u2019ll stay. I could use the downtime to rethink my research plan.\u201d\u00a0<\/p>\n
The treatment was working for now, but the side effects still troubled her. She wanted to improve it.\u00a0<\/p>\n
\u201cYou could still work on it if you came with us\u2026\u201d Eliana fretted.\u00a0<\/p>\n
\u201cThat\u2019s enough,\u201d Alan cut in gently. \u201cYou know her temperament. She wouldn\u2019t feel comfortable tagging along. Better we stock up food for her before we go. Make extra of those snacks she likes. Meatballs, fried meat\u2026\u201d\u00a0<\/p>\n
\u201cAlan\u2026\u201d Sydney ducked her head, embarrassed.\u00a0<\/p>\n
\u201cFine, fine,\u201d Eliana said quickly, giving Sydney a mock glare. \u201cHappy now?\u201d\u00a0<\/p>\n
\u201cVery happy.\u201d Sydney leaned against her arm with affection. \u201cThank you, Eliana.\u201d\u00a0<\/p>\n
Before long, her eyes slid shut, and she drifted into a deep sleep.\u00a0<\/p>\n
Eliana smiled and glanced at Alan, gesturing for silence.\u00a0<\/p>\n
Alan chuckled. \u201cAfter running herself ragged on that project and drinking too? Not even thunder could wake her\u00a0<\/p>\n
now.\u201d\u00a0<\/p>\n
\u201cYeah. She\u2019s hopeless with alcohol,\u201d Marcus added as he placed a chess piece. \u201cJust let her sleep on the couch.\u201d\u00a0<\/p>\n
\u201cAre you going easy on me again?\u201d Alan shot him a glare at the move. \u201cThink I\u2019m too old to play properly?\u201d\u00a0<\/p>\n
The wine kept Sydney asleep. By the time she stirred, sunset painted the sky gold, and the house was quiet and dim.\u00a0<\/p>\n
Rubbing her eyes, she sat up groggily and noticed someone else in the living room.\u00a0<\/p>\n
Julian lounged on the sofa. At the sound of her moving, he looked over. \u201cAwake?\u201d\u00a0<\/p>\n
Sydney was startled to see him there.\u00a0<\/p>\n
\u201cWhere is everyone?\u201d she asked softly.\u00a0<\/p>\n
Julian noted how she asked for someone else first.\u00a0<\/p>\n
Once, when she was just a child he had taken in, she clung to him for safety. Each time she woke from a nap and didn\u2019t see him, she would cry and beg for her brother. Now, she only looked disappointed that he was the one\u00a0<\/p>\n
1\/2\u00a0<\/p>\n
waiting.\u00a0<\/p>\n
Julian\u2019s expression stayed cold. \u201cNo idea.\u201d\u00a0<\/p>\n
\u201cOh,\u201d Sydney replied.\u00a0<\/p>\n
Only then did she notice his suit jacket covering her. The blanket Eliana had laid on her had slipped to the floor, and knowing Julian, he wouldn\u2019t pick it up again once it touched the ground.\u00a0<\/p>\n
Sydney stood and held out the jacket. \u201cThank you, Mr. Sterling.\u201d\u00a0<\/p>\n
\u201cNo\u201d Julian began to wave it off, but his eyes froze on a spot of dark red staining the fabric.\u00a0<\/p>\n
Following his gaze, Sydney felt her stomach drop. She had gotten her period and stained his jacket.\u00a0<\/p>\n
Her eyes darted to the couch. Thankfully, she must have bunched the jacket beneath her while she slept, sparing the upholstery.\u00a0<\/p>\n
She tried to check her skirt, but the angle made it impossible.\u00a0<\/p>\n
Julian said, \u201cTurn around. I\u2019ll check for you.\u201d\u00a0<\/p>\n
2\/2\u00a0<\/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 147 Chapter 147\u00a0 Johnson Conton […]<\/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-22129","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\/22129","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=22129"}],"version-history":[{"count":1,"href":"https:\/\/kezpres.xyz\/novelreading\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/22129\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":22265,"href":"https:\/\/kezpres.xyz\/novelreading\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/22129\/revisions\/22265"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/kezpres.xyz\/novelreading\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=22129"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/kezpres.xyz\/novelreading\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=22129"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/kezpres.xyz\/novelreading\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=22129"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}