EuropeNovel“Is there anything Lessie doesn’t eat?”
“I'm not a big fan of tomatoes.” Alessia answered honestly, skipping any false politeness. The conversation
flowed easily between them.
“You get that from your dad-he’s not fond of them either,” Karen replied with a gentle smile.
“Is there anything you do like? I'll make it for you.”
With their arms linked, the two of them looked every bit like the other mothers and daughters passing by on the
street. Alessia noticed it too; the corners of her lips lifted in a faint smile, and her eyes softened.
She'd been to supermarkets plenty of times, but this was her first tat an open-air market. Watching Karen
greet the vendors, haggle with practiced ease, Alessia couldn't help but imagine what it would be like if Yvonne-
her birth mother-were here instead.
Would she lower herself, chatting and bargaining back and forth just to save a few coins? Alessia shook her
head. She could only picture Yvonne negotiating with a cool, detached expression, never wasting a word.
It was striking, really-the difference between someone who'd grown up with nothing, and someone who'd fallen
from high places. One was gentle, the other forceful; Alessia found the contrast fascinating.
The market was crowded, voices rising and falling all around them. If you didn’t speak right into someone's ear,
you had to raise your voice just to be heard.
At first, Alessia found it all new and interesting. Then it becnoisy, and finally, she stopped thinking about it
at all and just trailed obediently after Karen, listening as she explained which stall had the best deals and which
vendors sometimes shortchanged you.
Follow on NovᴇlEnglish.nᴇtWhen they stepped outside, all the clamor faded away. Alessia took a deep breath, feeling oddly like she'd
stepped out of one world and into another.
Just yesterday at this time, she'd been sleeping in a suite at one of the best hotels
overseas.
“Was it too loud for you?” Karen caught on quickly to Alessia’s unsettled mood.
“I'm not much for crowds,” Alessia said with a small smile.
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15.26
Chapter
“I'm sorry. | thought you'd be bored staying halone...”
“No, it's fine-actually, if you don’t mind, maybe next tyou can bringalong again.” To her own surprise,
Alessia made the request.
Karen looked puzzled.
“Haggling with the vendors is actually kind of fun. And you see things here you'd never find in a supermarket. |
liked it.” Most of the time, when she went shopping, she just waited in the VIP lounge while someone brought her
whatever she wanted. This was the first tin her life she'd experienced anything like this.
Once Karen was sure Alessia wasn’t just being polite, she relaxed and smiled.
“This market is the biggest one nearby, and it stays open the latest. Sof the smaller ones open before dawn
and shut down by eight in the morning. When | first moved here, | had no idea. If it hadn't been for the neighbor
across the hall, | might never have found this place.”
As they walked home, Karen's tone was light and cheerful as she told Alessia about the little helps she'd had
since moving here, and her own tricks for getting the best deals. Alessia answered here and there, both of them
sharing the weight of the shopping basket, winding through alleys on their way back.
While chatting, Alessia kept half an eye on her surroundings, trying to memorize the route. That's when she
caught sight of someone who looked strangely familiar.
“What's wrong?” Karen stopped when she saw Alessia pause.
“That man...doesn’t he look a lot like Dad?”
Karen followed Alessia’s gaze. The moment she saw him, a shadow crossed her eyes, her smile faltering into a
faint frown.
Brendan sat alone on a bench
outside their apartment building,
dressed ina crisp syit@ithdis’ m
biefgade &2his AY His head was
bowed, and the sunlight glinted off
the white in his hair, making him look
both lonely and worn. The content is
on novelenglish.net! Read the latest
chapter there!
“Ill go call-
“Lessie, shh.” Karen pressed a finger to her lips and shook her head.
Alessia understood and quickly looked away, moving on with Karen down the path.
“Lessie, when your dad comes home, don’t ask him anything, okay?”
“| know.” Alessia was bright enough
to realize that Karen w@y tying to!
[
protect Bréndan's pride. The content
is on novelenglish.net! Read the latest
chapter there!
919
15:36
A man who'd once held such a high
position, suddenly bankupi, foreed to
find worl jst takes (he family
afoht-anyone could imagine what
that felt like. The content is on
novelenglish.net! Read the latest
chapter there!
Right now, Brendan's heart must be heavy enough already.
3/3
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