Love's Tangled Web by Donna Taylor

Chapter 286

13

Over an hour later, Ellie stepped out of the taxi and stood on the sidewalk in front of her apartment, stunned as she gazed at

a tree.

The first snow of winter hadn’t arrived yet, and all the leaves had fallen, leaving only bare branches swaying in the cold wind.

Ellie gently patted the trunk of the tree. Some trees may look strong from the outside, but their insides are hollow. Onlookers waiting for spring may not realize that many of these trees have already given in to winter’s chill.

She wrapped her arms around the large tree and pressed her face against its cold, damp bark. Closing her eyes, tears streamed silently down her cheeks. Long ago, her brother had told her not to share her struggles with their parents.

They couldn’t help, and it would keep them awake at night. Yet, despite that, she felt she couldn’t ease her dad’s burden. As a child, she had been sent to the Warren family. She never got to grow old alongside her dad.

Many nights, she had sat under the apple tree in their yard with her dad, watching the moon. The moonlight stretched their shadows into different sizes.

one, while Harold’s shorter shadow reminded her of

recently deceased dad, weeping against the hollow tree as if time stood

sharing in her grief as if it lasted

dawn broke softly, Layton found Alex in

thinks you’ve lost your mind.” Layton snatched the wine glass from Alex’s

empty cigarette pack, realizing

her husband’s death benefit to cut ties with your family and keep Ellie

on his knees, fingers digging into his hair as he bowed his head and held back all his

against the bar, Layton declared, “Everything is over now. Harold is buried, and Haley has faced her reckoning. If you want to make things right, the best thing to do is send some money

shining with fear. “She might hate me, but she can never

it.” Layton stared at Alex,

a while before Layton spoke again, “When you chased after Haley, you managed to win her over, but then you broke your promises. I knew back

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Chapter 286