Chapter 163

“Mm, drive safe,” Teresa reminded.

“By the way…” Edward suddenly reversed the car to Teresa’s side. His eyes filled with complex emotions as he asked, “Is Miriam doing okay?”

Teresa raised an eyebrow. “I haven’t been in touch with Miriam lately. What’s going on?”

Edward replied, “Nothing. I’m just wondering… are you two going somewhere?”

Teresa watched the Maybach speed away. She gave it some thought and sent Jonathan a message: “[Your mom had Edward take your car away.]”

Jonathan didn’t reply. Teresa figured he was probably busy with work. After all, he’d told her before that no reply meant he was caught up in something and would get back to her when he could.

After work, Teresa took Michael to the mall. She was so tired her legs felt like jelly. At the same time, her phone buzzed incessantly with notifications. She’d ordered clothes and shoes for Jennifer, and more than a dozen packages had arrived.

“Hannah, could you pick up the packages downstairs for me? Check the verification code on my phone. I’m going to take a shower first. Carrying Michael all the way made me drenched in sweat,” Teresa said.

Jennifer had just returned home from work. She agreed and then asked, “Teresa, what’s the PIN to unlock your phone?” “It’s Michael’s birthday,” Teresa replied, going into the bathroom with clean clothes.

After unlocking Teresa’s phone, Jennifer noticed more than a dozen delivery notifications. She sighed, thinking about how wasteful Teresa could be.

Jennifer went downstairs to pick up the packages. They were all light—clothes and shoes—nothing big or heavy, so it was easy to carry them.

One package had a delivery label that read: “[It’s for my family. Please make sure it’s not damaged.]” Jennifer was momentarily stunned. Only then did she realize that every package had the same note. It suddenly dawned on her that the items were for her. She felt warmed by Teresa’s generosity, but also irritated, as she’d explicitly told Teresa not to buy her anything anymore. Suddenly, Teresa’s phone buzzed again. Jennifer assumed Teresa had more packages to collect and unlocked the phone. Several messages from Lime popped up.

One message read: “[I just saw your message. I called my mom, but she hasn’t picked up yet.]” Another read: “[I don’t know how she saw you driving my car, and I have no idea why she had Edward pick it up either. If I’d known about that earlier, I wouldn’t have agreed. I’ve told her many times not to meddle in our matters.]” Yet another: “[You must be upset. I’m really sorry! It’s my mistake. I told you to use the car as you please, but my mom took it back today. My bad.]” A final message: “[I sincerely apologize. It’s all my fault.]”

The latest message read: “[Why are you not answering the phone? You should be off work by now. If you’re driving, please reply to me when you’re home and read this message.]”

Jennifer read all the messages from Jonathan and sneered. The hospital had a family contact list. Jennifer had found Donald’s mother’s phone number and sent her an anonymous message, letting her know that Jonathan’s car was with Teresa. That’s why Jonathan’s car had been taken away from Teresa.

“That’s how it should be,” Jennifer thought. “I’m just helping Teresa cut ties with Jonathan. If Teresa still drives Jonathan’s car, they will contact each other again when Jonathan returns to Nareigh. This way, they won’t need to contact each other about the car anymore.”

Right after Jennifer got home and put the packages on the coffee table, Teresa’s phone notification repeatedly sounded. She unlocked it impatiently and found that it was Jonathan again.

The messages read: “[I feel like you’ve been much nicer to me lately. I wonder if it’s because we spent a night together.]” Another: “[I’ve been on a business trip for several days, but I want to schedule time next month to spend more time with you. If you have any issues, I’m here to help.]” A final, desperate plea: “[Reply to me, please. I’m begging you!]”

Jonathan, who was in Saintham, was nearly going crazy while typing those messages. It wasn’t easy for him to make progress with Teresa—they were barely communicating, and he'd sent numerous messages but she never replied or answered his calls.

Jennifer looked at Jonathan’s messages with a hint of disdain in her eyes and noted inwardly, “Spent a night together? When I’m practically with Teresa every day and have no idea something like that happened.” She typed coldly, “[She’s in the shower.]” Then she sent the message.