Chapter 293

She had given so much for him. If she apologized now, she’d lose all her pride. But the more she tried to convince herself, the harder it became to control her sadness and anxiety. Her mind raced with worst-case scenarios. She realized she shouldn't have stormed out of the Lynn residence, slamming her fork down like that.

Irene could be a nightmare with her words, but it was still a family dinner—with Donald’s parents and grandfather. And it was both his mother’s birthday and Mother’s Day. She shouldn’t have embarrassed her future mother-in-law like that. She had never felt so helpless and lost.

She had always been used to being independent. Even when Teresa left, she hadn’t panicked like this—she knew Teresa would eventually return. But with Donald, it was different. She realized she couldn’t be sure he’d stay by her side forever. After all, he wasn’t family.

She had chewed her nails so much they were dented. Jennifer paced, running her fingers through her hair, but her phone remained stubbornly silent.

Finally, she couldn’t take it anymore. The pain of being hurt by love was simply too much. She went downstairs, and at the end of the corridor, she saw Donald walking toward her.

Tears instantly filled Jennifer’s eyes. She clenched her fists tight, forcing herself to walk over with a blank face, determined not to let him see how much she cared—at least, not outwardly. She couldn’t lose her pride or dignity.

Donald grabbed her hand, his eyes fixed on her cool, distant face. Jennifer breathed a silent sigh of relief.

“I’m sorry I’ve been ignoring you these past few days,” Donald said.

Only then did Jennifer look at him, her gaze full of accusation. She tried to keep her voice from sounding too small. “I thought you were going to break up with me.”

“Silly, why would I break up with you? We promised we’d always be together, remember?”

She couldn’t hold back anymore and hugged Donald tightly. “Right now, there are only two people I care about in this world: my sister and you. I care about you so much, Donald.”

“I care about you, too,” Donald said, patting her shoulder. “Jennifer, let’s not fight anymore. I don’t want to ignore you again.”

“Okay.” Jennifer hugged Donald even tighter. But she didn’t realize that from the moment she said he was important to her, she had already lost completely.

That afternoon, the two went back to Donald’s apartment. After dinner, they made love twice. Jennifer soaked up all the tenderness and care Donald gave her. When he got out of bed to shower, his phone kept buzzing. She picked it up.

It needed a passcode. She typed in her birthday, and it unlocked. That little detail warmed her heart. That’s when she saw a message from Cathy pop up on the screen.

Cathy: [I’ve already talked to Irene and your dad. I’ll handle it for you, so don’t stress about it.]

Jennifer frowned and scrolled up through their chat history, reading what Cathy and Donald had said earlier that morning.

Cathy: [Your dad and I both think Jennifer is a good girl, but maybe she’s not the right one for you. It’s not that we don’t like her—we just feel you two aren’t a good match. Maybe you should think it over again.]

Donald: [Mom, as long as I think we’re right for each other, that’s enough for me.]

Cathy: [Alright.]

Donald: [Jennifer is just straightforward. You can’t ignore all her good sides. She shouldn’t have stormed off after arguing with Aunt Irene. But Aunt Irene was being so passive-aggressive, and Jennifer just couldn’t take it.]

Donald: [She really loves her family. She’s caring, loyal, kind, honest, and she’s super responsible at work. I really admire all of that about her. I hope you’ll come to see her good sides too.]

Jennifer quietly read through all the messages. When she heard the restroom door open, she quickly put Donald’s phone back on the table and said, “Looks like you got a message.”

“Oh yeah?” Donald was towel-drying his hair as he picked up his phone and saw it was from Cathy.

He answered honestly, “It’s from my mom.”

Jennifer pretended not to know. “What did she say? Was she talking bad about me again?”

“Not at all.” Donald put down the towel and kissed her on the forehead. “I already told my mom how much I like you. You’re the one for me—you’re the best in my eyes.”

Jennifer closed her eyes for a moment. She thought, ‘If this is the version of me he likes, then I’ll always be this way, as long as he never leaves me!’