{"id":24893,"date":"2025-12-21T23:30:55","date_gmt":"2025-12-21T23:30:55","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/readmore.cx\/?p=24893"},"modified":"2025-12-21T23:30:55","modified_gmt":"2025-12-21T23:30:55","slug":"24893","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/readmore.cx\/?p=24893","title":{"rendered":""},"content":{"rendered":"

I looked across the room at the\u00a0Whitmores<\/span><\/strong>.\u00a0<\/span>Franklin<\/span><\/strong>\u00a0and\u00a0<\/span>Delilah<\/span><\/strong>, Sloan\u2019s parents, were working the room with the frantic energy of sharks that stop swimming and die. Franklin was a large man with a flushed face and a suit that cost more than my first car. Delilah was dripping in diamonds, but she kept touching her necklace, a nervous tic that betrayed her poise. They looked rich. They acted rich. But something was off. It was like looking at a high-resolution photo that had been slightly Photoshopped\u2014the shadows didn\u2019t match the light sources.<\/span><\/p>\n

Garrett finally wandered over. My big brother.<\/p>\n

\u201cBeth! You made it,\u201d he said, giving me a side-hug that felt obligatory. \u201cHave you met Sloan yet? She\u2019s incredible, right?\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cI\u2019ve seen her,\u201d I said neutrally.<\/p>\n

\u201cShe\u2019s amazing,\u201d Garrett gushed, his eyes scanning the room for more important guests. \u201cMom gave her Grandma\u2019s necklace as an engagement gift. Can you believe it? Sloan loves it.\u201d<\/p>\n

The air left my lungs in a painful rush. \u201cGrandma\u2019s necklace?\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cYeah. The antique pendant.\u201d<\/p>\n

I felt a cold rage crystallize in my chest. That necklace wasn\u2019t just jewelry. On her deathbed, our grandmother had held my hand\u2014my<\/span>\u00a0hand, not Garrett\u2019s\u2014and told me that pendant was for me. She called me her \u201cdreamer.\u201d My mother knew this. She had been in the room. And yet, she had handed my inheritance to a woman who called me a stinky country girl.<\/span><\/p>\n

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I looked across the room at the\u00a0Whitmores.\u00a0Franklin\u00a0and\u00a0Delilah, Sloan\u2019s parents, were working the room with the frantic energy of sharks that stop swimming and die. Franklin was a large man with a flushed face and a suit that cost more than my first car. Delilah was dripping in diamonds, but she kept touching her necklace, a…<\/p>\n

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