Chapter 158\u00a0<\/p>\n
For a moment, Sydney\u2019s mind went blank. That sentence from Caleb would have sounded routine any other time. But here and now, it struck her off guard.\u00a0<\/p>\n
\u201cDon\u2019t worry. It\u2019s not a real divorce.\u201d He had already made the promise to Penelope.\u00a0<\/p>\n
He gripped Sydney\u2019s shoulders, leaned slightly closer, and whispered, \u201cJust a staged divorce for a while. We don\u2019t even need to file papers.\u201d\u00a0<\/p>\n
Sydney collected her scattered thoughts, her tone cool. \u201cA real divorce would be fine too.\u201d\u00a0<\/p>\n
Since he raised the issue, she no longer needed to honor her contract with Adeline.\u00a0<\/p>\n
\u201cNo.\u201d His rejection was immediate and firm. Once divorce papers were signed, he would lose her for good. He could not allow that.\u00a0<\/p>\n
Even now, he had no idea how he would explain things if he ever found the real Precious. Maybe she had already married. In that case, all he could do was provide financial support and arrange protection to keep her safe from traffickers.\u00a0<\/p>\n
The thought brought a strange, guilty sense of relief. He refused to dwell on why. Instead, he tightened his hold on Sydney\u2019s shoulders, his gaze steady as his voice softened. \u201cSyd, all I need is for you to go along with it. Just act divorced in front of Penelope.\u201d\u00a0<\/p>\n
Fearing misunderstanding, he added solemnly, \u201cBelieve me. I have my reasons. The only Mrs. Hampton in my heart is you. It has always been you.\u2018\u00a0<\/p>\n
Sydney froze, caught off guard. She was not hesitating about agreeing. She simply didn\u2019t know which way to turn. Between him and Adeline, there was no trace of a mother\u2013and\u2013son bond. One demanded she act divorced. The other demanded she act loving.\u00a0<\/p>\n
Caleb\u2019s brows drew together in anxiety at her silence. \u201cSydney, please. I\u2019m begging you, alright?\u201d\u00a0<\/p>\n
He was begging for the sake of another woman.\u00a0<\/p>\n
Sydney lifted her head, glanced at him, and gave her answer. \u201cFine. I\u2019ll agree.\u201d\u00a0<\/p>\n
She agreed but didn\u2019t speak the truth. There was no need to act. They were already divorced.\u00a0<\/p>\n
Relief softened his expression. She opened her mouth to speak. \u201cI want to-\u201d\u00a0<\/p>\n
The universe intervened. His phone rang again. He answered and left in a rush, leaving her no chance to speak.\u00a0<\/p>\n
Sydney thought maybe it was for the best. The whole situation reeked of Penelope\u2019s schemes. If Caleb could fake a divorce for her, there was no guarantee he would help Tiffany.\u00a0<\/p>\n
Her eyes dropped as she rode the elevator upward, unsettled. When the doors slid open, Julian was the first to see her pale, shaken face.\u00a0<\/p>\n
Beside him, Yoyo slipped free of the leash and bounded over, wagging furiously.\u00a0<\/p>\n
1\/2\u00a0<\/p>\n
\u201cCaleb upset you again? You look like hell.\u201d\u00a0<\/p>\n
Sydney scooped up Yoyo and stepped out, avoiding his gaze. \u201cHe wants me to play along with a fake divorce.\u201d Since that night when she first sensed something off between them, she had been unconsciously avoiding him. Julian acted as if he hadn\u2019t noticed and wore a faint, careless smile. \u201cEven the Ninja Turtles could learn patience from you.\u201d\u00a0<\/p>\n
Her mind was consumed with worry over Tiffany, leaving no energy to spar with him. She rubbed Yoyo\u2019s head, handed the leash back to Julian, and turned to head home.\u00a0<\/p>\n
\u201cSomething else happened, didn\u2019t it?\u201d His voice, suddenly sharp and cutting, stopped her in her tracks.\u00a0<\/p>\n
Her back stiffened. She hesitated. Should she tell him? If it were not a last resort, she would never have turned to him.\u00a0<\/p>\n
But she could not bear imagining how desperate Tiffany must be, alone in custody.\u00a0<\/p>\n
\u201cJulian, can you help her? Tiffany\u2019s been falsely accused and detained,\u201d she uttered.\u00a0<\/p>\n
2\/2\u00a0<\/p>\n
Sara Lili is a daring romance writer who turns icy landscapes into scenes of fiery passion. She loves crafting hot love stories while embracing the chill of Iceland\u2019s breathtaking cold.<\/p>\n
When The Ocean Learned My Name and Whispered It Back to You by Aurelia Novel 158 Chapter 158\u00a0 For a […]<\/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-22140","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\/22140","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=22140"}],"version-history":[{"count":1,"href":"https:\/\/kezpres.xyz\/novelreading\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/22140\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":22276,"href":"https:\/\/kezpres.xyz\/novelreading\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/22140\/revisions\/22276"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/kezpres.xyz\/novelreading\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=22140"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/kezpres.xyz\/novelreading\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=22140"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/kezpres.xyz\/novelreading\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=22140"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}