Chapter 532\u00a0<\/p>\n
Megan stared at the message she had just sent with a calculating smile. So what if Sydney and Julian were supposedly in love? No woman could see a photo like that and remain completely trusting.\u00a0<\/p>\n
Once the seed of doubt was planted, it would grow, take root, and spread until one day it strangled what they had.\u00a0<\/p>\n
Julian was not known for his patience. Given time, his affection would fade. And any man who left a pregnant woman abroad could hardly be called devoted.\u00a0<\/p>\n
In other words, there was still room for her.\u00a0<\/p>\n
Men, especially powerful ones, were practical creatures. If Sydney could never return to the Hutton family, Julian would know which marriage offered more value. Of course it would be with her, the Hutton heiress, not an outcast like Sydney.\u00a0<\/p>\n
Just then, Penelope pushed open the door, eyes bright with glee. \u201cSo it\u2019s true? Julian really has another woman?\u201d\u00a0<\/p>\n
Megan waved her phone with a smirk. \u201cGot the photo right here. You think I\u2019d be mistaken?\u201d\u00a0<\/p>\n
Back in her university days abroad-the same country Julian had just flown to-Megan had proudly shown off the secret photos she had taken of him years ago. He had been only 20 then, sharp, striking, impossibly handsome. Even among the foreign students known for their good looks, he had stood out.\u00a0<\/p>\n
The photo she had just received came from one of those same classmates, a woman who had spotted Julian at a hospital overseas and sent it straight to her.\u00a0<\/p>\n
Penelope let out an admiring whistle. \u201cYou really do have an impressive network. Friends everywhere, huh?\u201d\u00a0<\/p>\n
\u201cOf course.\u201d Megan lifted her chin, her tone smug. \u201cIt comes naturally.\u201d\u00a0<\/p>\n
She spoke as if her name alone guaranteed she would always be surrounded by people eager to please her.\u00a0<\/p>\n
Penelope nearly laughed. \u2018Naturally?\u2019\u00a0<\/p>\n
If only she knew how much of that \u201cstatus\u201d was borrowed. She was a counterfeit heiress who had worn the mask so long that she had started to believe it was her own face.\u00a0<\/p>\n
Suppressing the urge to mock her, Penelope changed the subject. \u201cBy the way, that message you sent to Caleb last time\u2026 Did he reply?\u201d\u00a0<\/p>\n
She was genuinely curious. Did Caleb care for Sydney deeply, or was it just possessiveness?\u00a0<\/p>\n
\u201cHe-\u201d Megan started, then abruptly stopped. Her face hardened. \u201cSince when do I have to report my every move to you? What, you think you\u2019re really the fifth child of the Hutton\u00a0<\/p>\n
1:3\u00a0<\/p>\n
family now?\u201d\u00a0<\/p>\n
+25 Bonus\u00a0<\/p>\n
By the time Sydney and Tiffany returned to Delta Mansion, the city lights were glittering against the night.\u00a0<\/p>\n
Tiffany refused to let Sydney drive, afraid her emotions might be unsteady. When the car rolled to a stop in the courtyard, she turned to her friend again. \u201cYou\u2019re sure you\u2019re okay?\u201d\u00a0<\/p>\n
\u201cI\u2019m fine.\u201d\u00a0<\/p>\n
It was not the first time Sydney had said that. She had been repeating the same answer since they left the hospital.\u00a0<\/p>\n
Seeing Tiffany\u2019s worry, Sydney smiled faintly. \u201cHonestly, I agree with you. He\u2019s not that kind of man.\u201d\u00a0<\/p>\n
Yet when she had first seen the photo, her instinct had been suspicion. Maybe it was the years they had spent apart, or maybe it was a habit-always keeping an escape route.\u00a0<\/p>\n
But in that moment she realized something painful: her trust in him was no longer absolute.\u00a0<\/p>\n
For one dizzy second, she had wondered if she was the other woman. The woman in the photo was visibly further along in her pregnancy. And the thought had struck her as cruelly ironic- her child\u2019s father standing beside someone else during a prenatal checkup.\u00a0<\/p>\n
Still, the doubt had lasted only moments. When the cold wind brushed her face outside the hospital, clarity returned.\u00a0<\/p>\n
How could she doubt the man who had once risked everything to save her?\u00a0<\/p>\n
Tiffany clicked her tongue. \u201cDid Julian feed you some kind of love potion when he brought you here?\u201d\u00a0<\/p>\n
Sydney shot her a sideways glance and smiled. \u201cLove potion? He must\u2019ve added a curse too.\u201d\u00a0<\/p>\n
Seeing her laugh again, Tiffany finally relaxed.\u00a0<\/p>\n
They got out of the car together.\u00a0<\/p>\n
Agatha was thrilled to see Tiffany and told the household staff to prepare a few extra dishes for dinner.\u00a0<\/p>\n
With her easy charm, Tiffany quickly won Agatha over. They chatted and laughed while arranging flowers in the garden until Agatha was glowing with delight.\u00a0<\/p>\n
Sydney watched them fondly before slipping upstairs for a shower. Afterward, she sat at her desk, trying to focus on work.\u00a0<\/p>\n
Her research team was still developing the new medication, aiming to reduce costs without\u00a0<\/p>\n
2\/3\u00a0<\/p>\n
+25 Bonus\u00a0<\/p>\n
sacrificing effectiveness.\u00a0<\/p>\n
But her eyes kept drifting to her phone. No new messages. None from him. Only the usual work notifications.\u00a0<\/p>\n
By the time the clock struck eleven, it should have been early evening where he was.\u00a0<\/p>\n
Sydney picked up her phone, stepped out onto the balcony, and dialed an international number.\u00a0<\/p>\n
She told herself she wasn\u2019t doubting him. Yet as the line rang, her pulse quickened.\u00a0<\/p>\n
The call connected. A woman\u2019s bright, polite voice came through with a hum of background chatter. \u201cHello? Hi there. Are you looking for Mr. Sterling? He\u2019s a bit unavailable at the moment.\u201d\u00a0<\/p>\n
\u2018That voice\u2026\u2019 Sydney had only heard it once before, but she recognized it instantly. It was the same voice she\u2019d heard that night over the phone, calling to him through the wind. It was probably the same woman from the photo.\u00a0<\/p>\n
Her fingers tightened around the phone. She took a steadying breath.\u00a0<\/p>\n
Even the strongest relationship could crumble under baseless jealousy. She refused to panic. In a calm, even tone, she replied, \u201cYes. I\u2019m calling for Mr. Sterling. It\u2019s rather urgent. Is he at a business dinner?\u201d\u00a0<\/p>\n
\u201cHe\u2019s having dinner with my family\u2014\u201d\u00a0<\/p>\n
The woman didn\u2019t finish. There was a muffled sound, and then a man\u2019s low, sharp voice cut in, \u201cWho told you that you could answer my phone?\u201d\u00a0<\/p>\n
The woman laughed softly. \u201cYou\u2019re even more humorless than your fiancee.\u201d\u00a0<\/p>\n
Julian didn\u2019t respond. The background noise faded as he stepped somewhere quieter.\u00a0<\/p>\n
When he spoke again, his voice was calm but cold. \u201cShe\u2019s crazy. Don\u2019t listen to her.\u201d\u00a0<\/p>\n
Sydney could tell from his tone that he knew the woman well. Without thinking, she asked quietly, \u201cSo she\u2019s crazy, and that\u2019s why you went with her to a prenatal checkup?\u201d\u00a0<\/p>\n
COIN BUNDLE: get more free bonus\u00a0<\/p>\n
P\u00a0<\/p>\n
\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"
When The Ocean Learned My Name and Whispered It Back to You by Aurelia Novel 532 Chapter 532\u00a0 Megan stared […]<\/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-22712","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\/22712","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=22712"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/kezpres.xyz\/novelreading\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/22712\/revisions"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/kezpres.xyz\/novelreading\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=22712"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/kezpres.xyz\/novelreading\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=22712"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/kezpres.xyz\/novelreading\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=22712"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}