When Her Death Couldn't Break Him (Cecilia and Nathaniel) novel Chapter 2186

Perhaps this is what people mean when they say love can fill an empty stomach—the kind of sweetness that turns plain water into a feast, the kind that makes foolish decisions feel like treasure.

Chelsea ended the call with Cecilia, her cheeks still warm from the laughter they had shared. Without a beat of hesitation, she spun on her heel and hurried back into the boutique.

The clerks blinked, startled. Moments earlier, they had assumed the slim girl had balked at the price tag and walked away for good.

Instead, before anyone could greet her, she stretched out her debit card, voice steady. "I'll take it." No bargaining, no small talk—just the quiet certainty that sometimes the heart required extravagance.

Chelsea declined the offer of gift wrapping. She only asked the attendant to run a careful pass of steam over the cloth.

Though puzzled, the woman obeyed, smoothing every last ripple until the fabric looked born from light itself.

While she worked, the clerk murmured instructions—how the iron must glide, never linger, how heat could scorch something so delicate.

Chelsea watched like an apprentice jeweler, nodding solemnly. "Yes, thank you," she said, as if being entrusted with a secret map.

When the last wisp of steam faded, she refused even a shopping bag, hugging the freshly pressed garment to her chest and racing back through the afternoon traffic as though carrying a piece of sunrise.

Inside the modest apartment, the evening hummed with the soft buzz of Jason's laptop.

Jason sat cross-legged on their threadbare couch, fingers dancing over keys while one eye kept checking the door for Chelsea's return.

When she finally slipped in, she hid the new purchase beneath her own coat before he could notice.

"Jason, why are you still awake?" Chelsea asked, voice faux-casual as she eased deeper into the hallway.

The moment he saw her, the memory of her quick kiss on his cheek blazed back, heating his skin so fiercely he had to clear his throat to hide it.

"Just finished the last of the spreadsheets," he muttered. "Was about to call it a night."

"Then don't wait another minute," Chelsea replied, already angling toward her bedroom. "Go wash up and rest."

Jason frowned at her swift retreat. "You didn't buy anything while you were out?"

"Oh, Cecilia and I grabbed a bite. Her kids needed her, so I came back early," Chelsea called over her shoulder. Inside her room, she immediately unfolded the garment, smoothing it flat before hiding it away like contraband.

Watching her odd behavior, Jason could only chuckle, clueless but charmed.

He rose, stretched, and shuffled toward the bathroom; exhaustion weighed his eyelids.

Seeing that he bought the story, the invisible boulder on Chelsea's chest at last rolled away. If he ever discovered I'd actually bought a brand-new shirt, he'd refuse to accept it on the spot. No choice—I had to bend the truth.

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