The Years Between Signing and Seeing novel Chapter 575

Eleanor chuckled softly. "Don't be silly. You're my son's friends, which makes you like my own kids. If anyone is buying gifts, it should be me treating you to something nice."

With that, she unlocked her phone and handed it toward Suzie. "I won't pull Hayden away from his work, but here is his current number. You should take it down so you can get in touch."

"Thank you so much," Suzie said, snapping a photo of the contact info.

She couldn't help but stare at the woman. Eleanor had a luminous complexion. Though faint lines crinkled at the corners of her eyes, her features remained striking and deeply elegant—the very picture of classical beauty.

Perhaps because Suzie had already convinced herself this was her biological mother, she felt a profound sense of familiarity. She swore their eyes and noses shared an unmistakable resemblance.

Not wanting to stare too long, Suzie waited for Eleanor to sit before taking her own seat.

Eleanor was wonderfully conversational, sharing a few amusing anecdotes about Hayden while insisting they eat the pastries and enjoy their coffee.

After about ten minutes of pleasant chatter, Suzie remembered Stella's instructions. She asked for the restroom.

Once inside, she methodically searched for anything that could be used for a DNA test, stashing a few viable samples into her purse.

When Suzie emerged, she purposely walked past the photo wall and stopped, pretending to casually admire the pictures.

She hadn't gotten a good look earlier, but now she spotted a photo of a young man in military camouflage. It had to be Hayden's father in his youth.

Looking closely, Suzie realized the resemblance between herself and the man in the photo was even more pronounced than her resemblance to Eleanor.

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