\u00a0<\/p>\n
Chapter 2 The Gifts\u00a0<\/p>\n
Chapter 2 The Gifts\u00a0<\/p>\n
+5 Free Coins\u00a0<\/p>\n
I\u2019d been planning to share that good news during Thanksgiving dinner. I thought if Mom showed even the tiniest bit of concern for me, I\u2019d immediately tell her I was just joking around, and then I\u2019d surprise her with the gift I\u2019d been saving up for.\u00a0<\/p>\n
It was a beautiful gold necklace she\u2019d been talking about for months. The expensive kind.\u00a0<\/p>\n
Gold prices had been crazy high this year, but I wanted to see the look on her face when she opened it. So I\u2019d worked overtime for an entire month just to afford it before the holidays.\u00a0<\/p>\n
But Stella reacted first. \u201cWait, so when are we gonna get that place renovated?\u201d\u00a0<\/p>\n
Mom\u2019s voice went up an octave. \u201cOh my god, what about the mortgage payments?\u201d\u00a0<\/p>\n
Listening to them panic, I let out a bitter laugh and mechanically pushed the salad around on my plate before taking a bite of bread.\u00a0<\/p>\n
Mom slammed her hand on the table. \u201cAva! How can you just sit there eating right now? Stop eating and go update your resume! We can\u2019t let those mortgage payments lapse!\u201d\u00a0<\/p>\n
My chest tightened, and my eyes started burning. Because I knew the truth. If I actually lost my job, my family wouldn\u2019t be there to help me.\u00a0<\/p>\n
I thought about Stella\u2019s post again, that line that made me feel sick. \u201cCouldn\u2019t have done it without family support!\u201d\u00a0<\/p>\n
I wanted that kind of support too.\u00a0<\/p>\n
But the reality was, I couldn\u2019t even get a hug from them.\u00a0<\/p>\n
Some parents really didn\u2019t love their kids the way they should.\u00a0<\/p>\n
I got up and went straight to my room.\u00a0<\/p>\n
Around midnight, Dad knocked on my door. \u201cAva, come on. Don\u2019t be mad.\u00a0<\/p>\n
\u201cYou know how your mom is. She\u2019s got a sharp tongue but she doesn\u2019t mean it. She knows she messed up. She was just in the kitchen crying about it. We\u2019re family, and families don\u2019t stay mad at each other. Come out and talk to her, okay?\u201d\u00a0<\/p>\n
Dad\u2019s words made me think back to before Stella was born, when Mom really did love me. That was why I\u2019d been sending money home ever since I started working.\u00a0<\/p>\n
10:05 Tue, Jan 27\u00a0<\/p>\n
Chapter 2 The Gifts\u00a0<\/p>\n
96\u00a0<\/p>\n
+5 Free Coins\u00a0<\/p>\n
My anger faded into something softer, and I felt a weird flutter of hope. If Dad came to apologize, maybe they were going to make things right?\u00a0<\/p>\n
I opened the door and saw two wrapped gift boxes sitting on the mantel above the fireplace. One was large and one was small.\u00a0<\/p>\n
I was still wondering which one was mine when Dad walked over, picked up the large box, and handed it to me. Then he gave the small one to Stella.\u00a0<\/p>\n
Stella, who\u2019d been sitting by the fireplace, froze and looked up in disbelief. \u201cDad, did you grab the wrong one? This little one\u2019s really for me?\u201d\u00a0<\/p>\n
Mom reached over and patted her head. \u201cHow could we mess that up, sweetie? Your dad and I wrapped these ourselves.\u201d\u00a0<\/p>\n
I took the large box from him and felt something soften inside me, mixed with guilt. Maybe I\u2019d been acting like a brat earlier. They were thinking about me after all. Otherwise, they wouldn\u2019t have given me the bigger gift.\u00a0<\/p>\n
The gold necklace in my pocket felt like it was burning a hole through the fabric. Should I give it to Mom now?\u00a0<\/p>\n
But when I eagerly opened the box, all I found inside was a pile of loose change and crumpled bills. Quarters, dimes, nickels, pennies. Some of the dollar bills were so worn they were practically falling apart at the edges.\u00a0<\/p>\n
I counted it all. The total came to 43.7 dollars.\u00a0<\/p>\n
By the time I finished counting, my fingers were dirty from handling the old money.\u00a0<\/p>\n
Meanwhile, Stella opened her gift and let out an excited shriek. \u201cAudi keys!\u201d\u00a0<\/p>\n
She threw her arms around Mom and kissed her cheek. \u201cHow did you guys know exactly what I wanted? I love you so much!\u201d\u00a0<\/p>\n
Dad chuckled, \u201cI barely drive it anymore anyway. Getting too old for that stuff. Figured I\u2019d just give it to you.\u201d\u00a0<\/p>\n
That Audi was the car I\u2019d bought Dad last year.\u00a0<\/p>\n
I still remembered what he\u2019d told me back then. \u201cSweetheart, Dad\u2019s getting older and my legs aren\u2019t what they used to be. I just want a car so I can drive around town whenever I feel like it.\u201d\u00a0<\/p>\n
I bit the bullet and spent my whole year-end bonus on this Audi for him.\u00a0<\/p>\n
2\/3\u00a0<\/p>\n
10:05 Tue, Jan 27\u00a0<\/p>\n
Chapter 2 The Gifts\u00a0<\/p>\n
And now the keys were in Stella\u2019s hand.\u00a0<\/p>\n
96\u00a0<\/p>\n
+5 Free Coins\u00a0<\/p>\n
I watched Mom and Stella hugging each other and laughing, then quietly stuffed the cash\u00a0<\/p>\n
back into the box and set it down on the table.\u00a0<\/p>\n
3\/3\u00a0<\/p>\n
10:05 Tue, Jan 27\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 Love Locked by Mark Twain 2 \u00a0 Chapter 2 The Gifts\u00a0 Chapter 2 The Gifts\u00a0 +5 Free Coins\u00a0 I\u2019d […]<\/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":[53],"tags":[],"class_list":["post-23178","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","hentry","category-her-revenge-novel"],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/kezpres.xyz\/novelreading\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/23178","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=23178"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/kezpres.xyz\/novelreading\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/23178\/revisions"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/kezpres.xyz\/novelreading\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=23178"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/kezpres.xyz\/novelreading\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=23178"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/kezpres.xyz\/novelreading\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=23178"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}