Chapter 37\u00a0<\/p>\n
Aiden\u2019s POV\u00a0<\/p>\n
Cedar lifted me onto the chair at her dining table. Her apartment was small but surprisingly warm\u2013nothing like our Sterling mansion with its echoing hallways and perfect, untouched surfaces. Here, everything felt lived in.\u00a0<\/p>\n
\u201cOf course you can stay for dinner,\u201d she said, handing me a fork with a gentle smile. \u201cThough I can\u2019t promise it\u2019ll be as good as what your family\u2019s chef\u00a0<\/p>\n
makes.\u00a0<\/p>\n
I took a bite and shook my head. \u2018Actually, it\u2019s better. It tastes like\u2026 home. I like it.\u201d\u00a0<\/p>\n
From across the table, I noticed Oliver watching us with a scrunched\u2013up face. He looked\u2026 upset? I\u2019d studied enough psychology books from Father\u2019s library to recognize jealousy. The thought was fascinating\u2013he was worried about sharing her with me.\u00a0<\/p>\n
\u201cOliver, what are you thinking about? Look, I made your favorite mac and cheese,\u201d Cedar said, spooning a generous portion onto his plate.\u00a0<\/p>\n
The transformation was immediate. Oliver\u2019s face brightened like someone had flipped a switch. \u201cThanks, Mom! This is the best mac and cheese ever! I\u2019ve never had any this good!\u201d\u00a0<\/p>\n
Cedar shook her head with a smile. \u201cIt\u2019s not nearly as impressive as those dishes you ordered. That was restaurant quality.\u201d\u00a0<\/p>\n
The affection in her eyes as she looked at Oliver made something twist inside my chest. Father had never looked at me that way\u2013with pure, uncomplicated love. Father\u2019s approval always came with conditions: perfect grades, perfect behavior, perfect everything.\u00a0<\/p>\n
Dinner finished in an awkward vibe. By eight o\u2019clock, Oliver was fidgeting in his chair.\u00a0<\/p>\n
\u201cIt\u2019s my bedtime,\u201d he announced, giving me a pointed look. \u201cAren\u2019t you going home soon?\u201d\u00a0<\/p>\n
I met his gaze steadily. \u201cAre you that eager to get rid of me?\u201d\u00a0<\/p>\n
\u201cThis is my house, Oliver shot back, hands on his hips. \u201cI can\u2019t sleep with strangers around!\u201d\u00a0<\/p>\n
\u2018Oliver!\u201d Cedar frowned as she returned from washing dishes. \u201cIs that how we treat guests? That\u2019s not acceptable behavior.\u201d\u00a0<\/p>\n
\u201cSorry, Mom,\u201d he mumbled immediately, his defiance collapsing.\u00a0<\/p>\n
Cedar dried her hands on a dishtowel. \u201cYou need to apologize to Aiden, not to me.\u201d\u00a0<\/p>\n
Oliver lifted his head, lips pressed tightly together, clearly struggling with the idea of apologizing.\u00a0<\/p>\n
\u201cIt\u2019s okay, Ms. Wright,\u201d I said quietly. \u201cOliver\u2019s right\u2013I\u2019m a stranger in his home, I understand. Henderson is waiting for me downstairs. I should go home\u00a0<\/p>\n
now.\u00a0<\/p>\n
\u2018I\u2019ll walk you to the door,\u201d she offered, untying her apron.\u00a0<\/p>\n
At the doorway, I hesitated. My heart was pounding strangely, I\u2019d never asked for anything like this before, but something about this apartment, about her,\u00a0<\/p>\n
made me want to return.\u00a0<\/p>\n
\u2018Ms. Wright, I said, feeling my face grow warm. \u201cCould I\u2026 visit again sometime?\u201d\u00a0<\/p>\n
1\/3\u00a0<\/p>\n
3:59 pm DM\u00a0<\/p>\n
Chapter 37\u00a0<\/p>\n
\u2018Of course you can, Aiden,\u2018 she replied without hesitation.\u00a0<\/p>\n
I couldn\u2019t stop the smile that spread across my face. Thank you. Good night, Ms. Wright.\u201d\u00a0<\/p>\n
The black Audi was waiting as promised when I exited the old brick building. Henderson held the door open with his usual efficiency.\u00a0<\/p>\n
\u201cYoung Mr. Sterling, there were several meetings at Sterling Design Group this evening that required your input. I\u2019ve rescheduled them as you instructed.\u201d\u00a0<\/p>\n
I stared out the window at the passing streets of Wicker Park, so different from the manicured perfection of the Gold Coast. Henderson, why would Oliver prefer staying in this old apartment building rather than coming home with us?\u201d\u00a0<\/p>\n
Henderson considered the question carefully as he navigated through traffic. \u201cMr. Sterling can be\u2026 demanding. And young Oliver frequently tests\u00a0<\/p>\n
boundaries. Perhaps he\u2019s avoiding consequences.\u201d\u00a0<\/p>\n
I traced patterns on the leather seat, unconvinced. There was something deeper here, something I couldn\u2019t quite grasp yet. Oliver seemed genuinely attached to Ms. Wright\u2013not playing some elaborate game to avoid Father.\u00a0<\/p>\n
The car pulled through the gates of our lakefront estate. Three stories of glass and limestone gleamed against the night sky, architectural spotlights\u00a0<\/p>\n
illuminating the award\u2013winning design my grandfather had commissioned decades ago.\u00a0<\/p>\n
\u201cYoung Master Aiden,\u201d Parker, our house manager, greeted me at the entrance.\u00a0<\/p>\n
I nodded in acknowledgment, then paused. \u201cParker, isn\u2019t the Chicago Design Foundation hosting their annual charity auction tomorrow evening?\u201d\u00a0<\/p>\n
\u201cYes, sir.\u201d\u00a0<\/p>\n
*If there are any suitable jewelry pieces available\u2013something elegant, nothing flashy\u2013purchase them. I\u2019d like to give someone a gift.\u201d\u00a0<\/p>\n
Parker didn\u2019t question why a six\u2013year\u2013old was requesting expensive jewelry. He simply nodded. \u201cI\u2019ll handle it personally, sir.\u201d\u00a0<\/p>\n
As I walked up the grand staircase to my wing of the house, I heard the familiar clicking of stiletto heels against marble. I tensed immediately, recognizing\u00a0<\/p>\n
the sound.\u00a0<\/p>\n
Aiden, sweetheart! There you are!\u201d\u00a0<\/p>\n
Daisy Black\u2013Aria\u2019s ballet instructor\u2013emerged from the east drawing room, her red lips curved into what I suppose she thought was a motherly smile.\u00a0<\/p>\n
I\u2019ve been waiting to see you,\u201d she cooed, bending down to my level. Her perfume\u2013something expensive with notes of jasmine\u2013clouded around me. How.\u00a0<\/p>\n
was your day, darling?\u201d\u00a0<\/p>\n
I stepped back slightly. Fine, thank you, Ms. Black,\u201d\u00a0<\/p>\n
\u201cPlease, call me Daisy.\u201d She reached out to straighten my already straight collar. \u201cI was just waiting for your father to discuss something about Aria. He seems to be running late tonight.\u201d\u00a0<\/p>\n
The way she glanced toward the entrance told me everything I needed to know.\u00a0<\/p>\n
*Father is in meetings until late,\u201d I replied, maintaining the polite but distant tone he had taught me to use with people who wanted something from us. \u201cThere\u2019s a project proposal that requires his personal attention.\u201d\u00a0<\/p>\n
Her smile faltered slightly. \u201cOh, I see. I had hoped to discuss Aria\u2019s upcoming showcase with him.\u201d\u00a0<\/p>\n
2\/3\u00a0<\/p>\n
Chapter 37\u00a0<\/p>\n
I doubted Aria\u2019s showcase was the primary agenda. Ms. Black had been orchestrating these \u2018accidental\u2018 encounters with increasing frequency over the past three months. Henderson had mentioned that she\u2019d asked detailed questions about Father\u2019s schedule twice last week.\u00a0<\/p>\n
\u2018I\u2019ll let him know you stopped by,\u201d I said with practiced courtesy. \u201cParker can show you out. Good night, Ms. Black.\u201d\u00a0<\/p>\n
I turned and continued up the stairs before she could respond, hearing her frustrated sigh behind me. Father had explicitly instructed us to be polite to Daisy-\u201cShe\u2019s the most acclaimed children\u2019s ballet instructor in the Midwest\u2013but he hadn\u2019t said we had to entertain her obvious ambitions.\u00a0<\/p>\n
In my room, I sat at my desk and opened my sketchbook, but instead of drawing, I found myself thinking about the differences between Daisy\u2019s calculated warmth and Daisy\u2019s genuine kindness. One felt like a performance; the other felt like\u2026 home.\u00a0<\/p>\n
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The Sky Remembered the Touch of Our Uninished Goodbyes by Lysa Orion Rehn 37 Chapter 37\u00a0 Aiden\u2019s POV\u00a0 Cedar lifted […]<\/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":[88],"tags":[],"class_list":["post-30436","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","hentry","category-zero-stars-for-daddy-novel"],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/kezpres.xyz\/novelreading\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/30436","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=30436"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/kezpres.xyz\/novelreading\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/30436\/revisions"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/kezpres.xyz\/novelreading\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=30436"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/kezpres.xyz\/novelreading\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=30436"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/kezpres.xyz\/novelreading\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=30436"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}