Chapter 190\u00a0<\/p>\n
Sydney had let Caleb drape an arm around her shoulders in front of everyone. Thus, Julian kissed her in front of everyone.\u00a0<\/p>\n
Downstairs, someone set off a massive firework, but to Sydney, her own pounding heartbeat was louder than any explosion. It felt like it might leap right out of her chest.\u00a0<\/p>\n
Julian pressed her against him so tightly that she had nowhere left to retreat.\u00a0<\/p>\n
\u201cI told you, he\u2019s not allowed to touch you.\u201d His voice was muffled, almost sulky, like a child that was clinging to candy and unwilling to let go.\u00a0<\/p>\n
Sydney managed a weak, breathless protest through his kiss. \u201cThrough clothes doesn\u2019t count as touching.\u201d\u00a0<\/p>\n
\u201cDoesn\u2019t matter,\u201d Julian countered.\u00a0<\/p>\n
\u201cWow!\u201d\u00a0<\/p>\n
A shriek from below made Sydney flinch. She clutched Julian instinctively and buried her face against his chest.\u00a0<\/p>\n
\u201cLook at that firework! It\u2019s so pretty!\u201d\u00a0<\/p>\n
\u2018Ah, so they were talking about the fireworks\u2026\u2019 she thought in embarrassment.\u00a0<\/p>\n
Sydney drew a shaky breath, yet her heart was still racing. When she looked up, she found herself staring straight into the brightness of his eyes.\u00a0<\/p>\n
\u201cYou\u2019re only allowed to hold me like this. Do you hear?\u201d\u00a0<\/p>\n
\u201cI hear,\u201d she whispered.\u00a0<\/p>\n
He tilted his head lazily and feigned deafness. His eyes were half-lidded as he studied her. \u201cWhat did you say?\u201d\u00a0<\/p>\n
Terrified that the slightest sound might draw attention from downstairs, Sydney rose on tiptoe, braced against his strong shoulders, and pressed her lips close to his ear. \u201cI said I hear you. Precious will only hold her brother like this. She\u2019s only ever\u00a0<\/p>\n
held her brother like this.\u201d\u00a0<\/p>\n
Julian froze for a heartbeat.\u00a0<\/p>\n
Seizing the moment, Sydney slipped from his grasp and fled.\u00a0<\/p>\n
Julian watched her dart away, swept slowly his tongue over his lips, and smirked.\u00a0<\/p>\n
Of course she knew what he liked to hear. His Precious was the cleverest girl in the world.\u00a0<\/p>\n
Sydney entered the study and immediately noticed the pile of gifts on the desk, each tied with a neat ribbon. She gathered them up, ready to leave, when Victor suddenly appeared in the doorway.\u00a0<\/p>\n
She had deliberately avoided him all night, sitting at a different table during dinner. With Caleb by her side, Victor had not dared act out, but he clearly knew how to pick his moments.\u00a0<\/p>\n
Seeing her instinctively step back, he grinned. \u201cAre you so scared of me?\u201d\u00a0<\/p>\n
\u201cIt\u2019s not fear.\u201d Sydney\u2019s gaze was icy. \u201cI just prefer to stay far away from people who can\u2019t decide whether they\u2019re men or\u00a0<\/p>\n
women.\u201d\u00a0<\/p>\n
\u201cSydney!\u201d Victor\u2019s tongue darted over his teeth as his eyes roamed brazenly over her. \u201cDon\u2019t worry, I\u2019ve got plenty of ways to make you feel good. How about I give you a taste right now?\u201d\u00a0<\/p>\n
A cold, low voice echoed.\u00a0<\/p>\n
1\/2\u00a0<\/p>\n
Sydney was startled as she realized that Julian had never left. He had been standing on the balcony the whole time.\u00a0<\/p>\n
Ever since Julian had crippled him, Victor\u2019s fear had only grown. He spun toward the voice, stammering, \u201cC-Cuz, what are you doing here?\u201d\u00a0<\/p>\n
Julian stepped forward. \u201cIf I weren\u2019t here, how would I make you feel good?\u201d\u00a0<\/p>\n
\u201cC-Cuz, I was wrong, I was just joking with Sydney\u2026\u201d The memory of that brutal kick still haunted him. Even now, his legs\u00a0<\/p>\n
trembled.\u00a0<\/p>\n
Julian tilted his head thoughtfully. \u201cStill want to feel good?\u201d\u00a0<\/p>\n
\u201cN-No. No, I don\u2019t\u2026\u201d Victor dared not rely on Eloise\u2019s protection here at the family estate to defy Julian. He hated Julian, but he\u00a0<\/p>\n
feared him more.\u00a0<\/p>\n
Julian cast a sidelong glance at Sydney. \u201cYou still standing there? Enjoying the show?\u201d\u00a0<\/p>\n
Clutching the gifts, Sydney hurried downstairs.\u00a0<\/p>\n
By the time she and Caleb left the Sterling estate, it was nearly 10:00 p.m.\u00a0<\/p>\n
.\u00a0<\/p>\n
2\/2<\/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 190 Chapter 190\u00a0 Sydney had […]<\/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-22172","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\/22172","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=22172"}],"version-history":[{"count":1,"href":"https:\/\/kezpres.xyz\/novelreading\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/22172\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":22308,"href":"https:\/\/kezpres.xyz\/novelreading\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/22172\/revisions\/22308"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/kezpres.xyz\/novelreading\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=22172"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/kezpres.xyz\/novelreading\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=22172"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/kezpres.xyz\/novelreading\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=22172"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}