Chapter 103

“It’s not you I’m looking for; I want to speak to Sonia. Is she there with you?” Grace asked on the other line, prompting Charles to glance over at Sonia.

“She’s here,” he answered.

“Pass the phone to her.”

Having made a noise of agreement, Charles handed Sonia his phone while saying, “Here, it’s my mom.”

Sonia took the phone over and greeted pleasantly, “Mrs. Lane.”

 

“Sonia! I’ve missed you so much.” Grace beamed as soon as she heard Sonia’s voice on the other end of the call.

Sonia, on the other hand, smiled as well. “I’ve missed you, too, Mrs. Lane.”

 

“You could always drop by to see me, you know.” Grace pointed out, feigning dejection.

“Sorry, Mrs. Lane. I’ve been tied up with tons of stuff recently. I barely have time to breathe,” Sonia winced and said apologetically.

few of my best recipes for you,” Grace cajoled kindly.

Sonia was just about to say something when Charles-who had been eavesdropping

-spoke up instead. “Mom, I’m bringing my darling for seafood.”

Grace, however, was insistent as she countered, “You know how restaurants never run a quality check on their seafood supplies, and it’s not as if they could do better than me when it comes to cooking.”

Sonia interjected, “Thank you for the offer, Mrs. Lane. We’ll go over to your place in a bit!”

“Oh, please, no need for the formalities. See you soon!” Grace chortled happily, elated that the younger girl had agreed to drop by for a meal.

When the call ended, Charles put his phone away and gave Sonia a resigned look. “Well, it looks like we’re going to have to give the seafood restaurant a miss.”

“It’s fine; there’s always next time, anyway. Now, we should probably go and pick out gifts for your parents.” With that, she linked arms with him and led him toward the car.

After they made their rounds through the boutiques in the mall, they finally picked out an elegant cloak for Grace and a tasteful necktie for Curtis. Then, they made their way to the Lane Residence.

In particular, Grace had been best friends with Sonia’s mother. As far as Sonia was concerned, Grace was like a second mother to her, having taken care of her ever

before Charles and Sonia pulled up in front

Sonia had dropped by in six years, though she noted that the house looked the same as

sound of the car pulling up. Her eyes lit up at the sight of Sonia, and

greeted with a bright

side and drawled sarcastically, “Don’t mind me, Mom. I’m just your biological

when I say I’m getting tired of it. My attention is on Sonia now. Come here, Sonia, let me take a good look at you!” She clasped Sonia’s hands in hers and slowly spun

was somewhat amused by the

“Your face is all

I’ve lost all my baby fat, so now I appear a little more slender

Sonia placated. “Alright, that’s enough fretting, Mrs. Lane.

took her by the

was no one else at home but them, and she couldn’t help but ask, “Is Mr. Lane not

for the past six years.” Ever

Sonia answered easily with a nod and began to detail the life she had had with the Fullers, though she kept it brief to save Grace the

edge of the coffee table in a physical show of frustration and snapped, “I knew those Fullers were rotten! You should have told us how badly they were treating you, Sonia. If you had told us, then we would have stood up for

bit into an apple. “That’s

rage he felt never went away. That being said, he was less angry with her than

the sight of Charles and Grace’s outward concern, Sonia felt warmth course through her. Tears pricked her eyes

 

she had lost both her parents, and the closest thing she had to a family was Grace and the rest of the Lanes. She might have been able to get them to stand up for her throughout her marriage to Toby, but they couldn’t come to her defense all the time. Besides, they weren’t actually related to her, which meant her troubles would only grow to become an unnecessary burden for them. She would rather give them a

with you?” Grace gently prodded the younger girl’s

frustrated, but she smiled good-naturedly as she wrapped the latter’s

and smoothed Sonia’s hair with

curiously. “Mom, what do you have on the stove? I think

eyes lit up with panic. She rose to her feet in a

second longer, she rushed toward the kitchen to salvage the chowder simmering in the pot, and thankfully, she made

Have some juice while you watch a bit of television; I’ll be in the kitchen whipping up a couple more dishes,

Lane.” Sonia nodded with a warm

and help me

as he pointed at his nose. “Are you

or not?” Grace’s face was dark as

did not dare reject her.

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