The Princess and the Pauper (Arabella) novel Chapter 1989

“The child is just too adorable; we’ve also prepared little gifts for her.” Gabriel Stapleton set down the shopping bags on the coffee table. Gustave and his companion were somewhat anxious, because they had given Arabella a small token of affection, but Stapleton had brought two considerable presents.

“Oh, you are all too kind.”

Soon after, seven or eight more guests arrived, and Arabella was kept busy with the ceremony of accepting gifts over and over again, not to mention the mountain of presents piling up.

“Bella, your phone’s been buzzing nonstop; it looks like someone’s trying to reach you. Why don’t you go on up and check?” David came downstairs, greeted the guests, and skillfully diverted their attention from his sister.

All the guests’ attention then turned to David, praising him for his soaring popularity, his pleasant singing voice, and his impressive dance moves—in short, they had nothing but high praise for him.

Arabella knew that David was giving her an out, a chance to catch her breath. In truth, her phone was in her pocket the whole time, not upstairs.

Once back in her room, Arabella casually placed the stack of gift cards onto her desk, which was already overflowing with them, all forcefully bestowed upon her by guests over the past few days.

The maid, busy tidying the bed, chuckled, “Ms. Bella, you are the record holder for receiving the most New Year's cards and gifts I've ever seen.”

“It’s also the first time I’ve ever had this much.”

“Ms. Bella, you’ve really been through it. That Serena took advantage of your identity for years, raking in all these New Year's gifts without a hint of gratitude, and even schemed against you, it’s simply outrageous!”

“Let’s not bring her up during the holidays.”

After making the bed, the maid offered with a smile, “Ms. Bella, shall I organize these for you?”

“Sure.” Arabella couldn’t be bothered to organize those gifts. Leaving them in a pile was not a solution.