The eyes of all three welled up with tears.\u00a0<\/p>\n
Thrilled, Clarissa hugged Madeleine tightly.\u00a0<\/p>\n
\u201cMaddie! You\u2019re my Maddie! Sweetie, you\u2019ve finally \u2026 finally\u00a0<\/p>\n
come back to us! You wanted nothing to do with us these past few years\u2026 It broke our hearts\u2026 Do you have any idea?\u201d\u00a0<\/p>\n
She burst into tears, releasing years of pent\u2013up sorrow and\u00a0<\/p>\n
grievance.\u00a0<\/p>\n
Ten minutes later, Madeleine sat on the sofa, nestled between\u00a0<\/p>\n
her parents.\u00a0<\/p>\n
She looked around. The house wasn\u2019t large, but it was cozy and\u00a0<\/p>\n
inviting. However, there wasn\u2019t a single trace of her presence to\u00a0<\/p>\n
be found.\u00a0<\/p>\n
\u201cDad, Mom, what happened to our family business? Did it go\u00a0<\/p>\n
bankrupt?\u201d\u00a0<\/p>\n
Harold and Clarissa exchanged another glance. After a heavy silence, they recounted the painful past.\u00a0<\/p>\n
Chapter 6\u00a0<\/p>\n
Madeleine rose to her feet after knowing what had happened.\u00a0<\/p>\n
\u201cWhat are you doing, Maddie?\u201d\u00a0<\/p>\n
\u201cWhere\u2019s the kitchen? I\u2019m gonna find a knife to stab myself.\u201d\u00a0<\/p>\n
It had never occurred to Madeleine that she was the chief\u00a0<\/p>\n
culprit behind the ruin of her family\u2019s business.\u00a0<\/p>\n
Harold and Clarissa explained that she had married Roderick\u00a0<\/p>\n
and had a son with him shortly after graduation.\u00a0<\/p>\n
Not long after, she began acting irrationally, insisting that they\u00a0<\/p>\n
fund Edward\u2019s startup with a massive investment.\u00a0<\/p>\n
When they refused, she funneled a massive amount of the company\u2019s capital to Edward, gutting Harold\u2019s hard\u2013earned\u00a0<\/p>\n
empire.\u00a0<\/p>\n
As it turned out, Edward was a business prodigy. Within six months, he became the Mosley Group\u2019s most fierce competitor\u00a0<\/p>\n
and ultimately acquired it, severely implicating the Livingston\u00a0<\/p>\n
Group in the process.\u00a0<\/p>\n
The Mosley Group went bankrupt and was liquidated. Every\u00a0<\/p>\n
valuable item in their home was sold.\u00a0<\/p>\n
Chapter 6\u00a0<\/p>\n
\u201cRoddy bought this house for us. He offered to buy our villa\u00a0<\/p>\n
back, but we didn\u2019t let him.\u201d\u00a0<\/p>\n
Clarissa lowered her head and wiped her tears.\u00a0<\/p>\n
\u201cWe owe him so much.\u201d\u00a0<\/p>\n
Remembering something, she grabbed Madeleine\u2019s hand and asked, \u201cMaddie, now that you\u2019ve lost your memory\u2026 Do you still\u00a0<\/p>\n
love Edward?\u201d\u00a0<\/p>\n
\u201cOf course not!\u201d Madeleine answered without hesitation.\u00a0<\/p>\n
Putting everything else aside, Edward wasn\u2019t even as\u00a0<\/p>\n
handsome as Roderick. In her memory, he was just a sullen,\u00a0<\/p>\n
introverted, and perpetually insecure young man. What could\u00a0<\/p>\n
she have possibly loved about him?\u00a0<\/p>\n
What had she been thinking? Had she lost her mind?\u00a0<\/p>\n
\u201cI\u2019m glad to hear that. Maddie, you truly broke Roddy\u2019s heart. I\u00a0<\/p>\n
genuinely don\u2019t know if he can ever forgive you.\u201d\u00a0<\/p>\n
Madeleine knew Roderick\u2013he was a proud and confident man.\u00a0<\/p>\n
He would never accept being cheated on.\u00a0<\/p>\n
But\u2026\u00a0<\/p>\n
Chapter 6\u00a0<\/p>\n
\u201cMom, I don\u2019t love Roderick either.\u201d\u00a0<\/p>\n
She had loathed Roderick most during her teenage years. Even\u00a0<\/p>\n
if she spotted him on the street, she would take a detour.\u00a0<\/p>\n
After a moment of thought, she said, \u201cMom, I\u2019ll talk to Roderick\u00a0<\/p>\n
properly about the divorce.\u201d\u00a0<\/p>\n
\u201cNo, you will not!\u201d Harold interjected sternly.\u00a0<\/p>\n
\u201cHave you even stopped to think about Kev?\u201d\u00a0<\/p>\n
Kevin\u2026\u00a0<\/p>\n
A sharp pang of pain shot through Madeleine\u2019s heart, leaving a\u00a0<\/p>\n
suffocating ache.\u00a0<\/p>\n
No matter what, Kevin was her son. Though she had no\u00a0<\/p>\n
memory of the past few years, the moment his adorable face\u00a0<\/p>\n
surfaced in her mind, she was flooded with an involuntary\u00a0<\/p>\n
warmth and affection.\u00a0<\/p>\n
\u201cAlright. I\u2019ll think it over,\u201d she conceded, steadying herself.\u00a0<\/p>\n
She would find an opportunity to have a calm discussion with\u00a0<\/p>\n
Roderick. Perhaps they could maintain a marriage in name only,\u00a0<\/p>\n
making further adjustments if he someday met someone he\u00a0<\/p>\n
Chapter 6\u00a0<\/p>\n
truly loved.\u00a0<\/p>\n
\u201cMaddie, you haven\u2019t eaten, have you? Let me make you\u00a0<\/p>\n
something nice,\u201d Clarissa offered.\u00a0<\/p>\n
\u201cReally? Mom, you can cook now?\u201d\u00a0<\/p>\n
Another wave of guilt washed over Madeleine, and she bit her\u00a0<\/p>\n
lip to hold back her tears.\u00a0<\/p>\n
\u201cI\u2019m so sorry, Dad, Mom. If it weren\u2019t for me, you wouldn\u2019t be living here, and Mom wouldn\u2019t have had to learn how to cook.\u201d\u00a0<\/p>\n
Harold stood up with a resigned sigh. \u201cDo you really think I\u2019d let Clarissa handle the cooking? She\u2019s only mastered frying eggs.\u00a0<\/p>\n
You stay here and keep her company.\u201d\u00a0<\/p>\n
With that, he walked into the kitchen, deftly tied the apron\u00a0<\/p>\n
strings, and began preparing the meal.\u00a0<\/p>\n
Madeleine was momentarily speechless.\u00a0<\/p>\n
So, Harold had been the one cooking all along. Of course, that\u00a0<\/p>\n
made perfect sense. Clarissa\u2019s hands were still as fair and soft\u00a0<\/p>\n
as ever\u2013clearly, Harold had never let her do any housework.\u00a0<\/p>\n
\u201cMom, tell me more. What else have I done over the years?\u201d\u00a0<\/p>\n
Chapter 6\u00a0<\/p>\n
She kicked off her shoes, crossed her legs, curled up on the\u00a0<\/p>\n
sofa, and hugged a cushion to her chest.\u00a0<\/p>\n
Clarissa peeled an orange and handed it to her. Everything felt\u00a0<\/p>\n
the same as eight years ago.\u00a0<\/p>\n
\u201cYou barely came home these past few years. It was as if you\u2019d\u00a0<\/p>\n
become a completely different person. At first, Harold and I\u00a0<\/p>\n
thought you were suffering from postpartum mood swings, but\u00a0<\/p>\n
then we realized even your preferences had changed.\u201d\u00a0<\/p>\n
Madeleine blinked, her mouth full of orange.\u00a0<\/p>\n
\u201cMy preferences changed?\u201d\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
Night Carved Paths Into Silence by Zyrel Ash 6 The eyes of all three welled up with tears.\u00a0 Thrilled, Clarissa […]<\/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":[85],"tags":[],"class_list":["post-29224","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","hentry","category-the-heart-surgeons-last-patient-novel"],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/kezpres.xyz\/novelreading\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/29224","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=29224"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/kezpres.xyz\/novelreading\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/29224\/revisions"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/kezpres.xyz\/novelreading\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=29224"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/kezpres.xyz\/novelreading\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=29224"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/kezpres.xyz\/novelreading\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=29224"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}