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    Some emotion I couldn’t quite name got crushed and scattered, sinking deep into my heart. I kept my eyes down and took another sip of nut milk, but all my calm was gone.


    After breakfast, I took Nathan and Yvonne to a nearby mountain. We climbed until we reached a pavilion halfway up, and that was as far as I wanted to go.


    Nathan, even with his injury, was in good shape and wasn’t out of breath at all. Yvonne, though, was sweating and panting like a little puppy. She tugged on my arm and asked, “Mom, do we have to keep climbing? I’m so tired!”


    Nathan chuckled. “Then let’s stop here.”


    I looked down from halfway up the mountain. From here, I could see the wholeyout of the school area- two new ssroom buildings were already taking shape, and they were leveling out a field behind them to make a huge sports field. The whole scene was pretty impressive.


    By the time we got down the mountain, it was already lunchtime. I treated my parents to lunch at a restaurant, and set up a separate table for the bodyguards and the driver.


    During the meal, my dad kept looking like he wanted to say something but held back. Mariah had already talked to me and knew Nathan and I weren’t a couple, so she didn’t try to bring it up again.


    Nathan, aside from taking a few work calls, was gentle andposed as always. He had an air of quiet dignity -there was something maic about him that made people want to be near him.


    In the afternoon, I took Nathan and Yvonne for a stroll down the pedestrian street. We bought whatever we liked, and the three of us walking together really looked just like a family of three.


    I had a dark little thought–if Jared saw us like this, would he get that resentful husband look on his face, just like he did in my previous life?


    In my previous life, while he and Tracy took Yvonne traveling all over the world, I hid at home like a coward, turning into a resentful wife.


    “Mom, why don’t you get a gift for Nathan? I saw him staring at that bracelet over and over,” Yvonne said, tugging on my arm and pulling me down to whisper something.


    Then she whispered a few words in my car.


    I looked up and saw Nathan really had kept sneaking nces at that bracelet.


    I got what Yvonne meant, so I reached out and picked it up. Nathan looked a little surprised.


    “Do you like it?” I asked with a smile, turning it over in my hand–the pendant had two little wooden flowers


    carved into it.


    Nathan smiled as he took the bracelet from my palm. “Would you really give this to me?”


    I paid for it right away, grinning. “If you like it, then it’s yours.”


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    Nathan gently traced the carved pattern on the pendant with his thumb and murmured, “These are crabapple


    flowers.”


    I blinked in surprise. Then he continued, “Crabapple flowers bloom in the early hours–they’re also called Victoria flowers.”


    I stared at him, a little dumbfounded. ‘Really? There’s such a thing?‘ I wondered.


    It felt like a whole nest of little rabbits had suddenly been let loose in my chest, making a ruckus. My cheeks burned bright red as I quickly grabbed Yvonne’s hand and hurried forward.


    Behind me, I heard Nathan’s gentleughter.


    Those sudden moments of flirtation always made my heart pound and my cheeks burn.


    Nathan’s really getting mischievous,‘ I thought. ‘He can y the sweet, innocent guy one second and turn on the charm the next. Maybe hanging out with Jared, that sly old fox, has made him pick up some of Jared’s wicked tricks?‘


    After a busy afternoon wandering around the crowded pedestrian street, we headed back to Mariah’s house for dinner.


    As soon as we walked in, the house was packed and lively. All my aunts and their kids hade over with their families to celebrate the New Year.


    Before I could even get my bearings, several rtives were already stuffing gifts into Yvonne’s little hands.


    “Yvonne, you’ve grown so much! What grade are you in now?” one of them asked.


    “Wait, is that Jared? When did his hair go gray? Has work been stressing him out that much?” another chimed in


    I was speechless.


    Nathan was too.


    Mariah quickly stepped in to exin, “You’ve got the wrong guy. Hisst name is Hallman, not Hob. Jared didn’te


    “Oh, my mistake. I must have mixed him up with someone else,” the rtive said,


    To keep things from getting awkward again, I made the rounds introducing Nathan to my rtives, telling them he was just a friend visiting for the holidays.


    Just then, two of my college–aged cousins blushed and started eyeing Nathan


    I hurried upstairs to get the gift envelopes ready, did a quick headcount–looked like there were eight or nine


    kids here.


    Nathan came up too. He saw me counting out cash, then just flopped onto the bed, propping his head up with one arm, watching me with azy grin in his eyes.


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    “Victoria, being here at your parents‘ ce really brings back memories. It just feels so real and alive.” Nathan said softly.


    Iughed. “Life in a small town is pretty much the same everywhere. It’s nothing like the fast pace of the big city.”


    “Yeah, my family used to be like this too. But now… I haven’t felt this kind of warmth in ages. Victoria, thanks for bringing me home,” Nathan said suddenly, his gratitude clear in his voice.


    I smiled. “As long as you don’t mind.”