Chapter 41

Teresa swiftly seized the snacks and sharply told Jonathan to leave. “Get going, Jonathan!”

Jonathan smirked, teasing her. “Aren’t you a bit mature for these kiddie snacks?”

“Stay out of it,” Teresa retorted, steering him toward the door. “I mean it, get out of my house!”

As Jonathan grabbed her wrist, Teresa’s pulse raced at the anger in his eyes. “What’s with the look?” she inquired, her voice wavering. “Change the door’s security code,” he commanded.

Teresa felt a sense of relief, glad she’d hidden any trace of Michael when Edward visited. Jonathan, no matter how perceptive, wouldn’t suspect a child was involved.

“I’ll change it when I have time,” Teresa said dismissively.

“Do it now,” Jonathan insisted.

Teresa had seen Jonathan’s stubborn side and his quick temper plenty of times. “Got it,” she stated firmly.

Jonathan left Teresa’s apartment, casting glances back as if he wanted to say something more. The moment the elevator swallowed him, Teresa shut the door, ending any chance of further conversation.

After receiving a call to collect Jonathan, the driver arrived early and waited outside. When Jonathan got into the car, the driver couldn’t help but notice his unkempt state. “Mr. Lynn, you look like you’ve had a rough night,” he remarked.

Jonathan’s sharp retort cut through the air. “Are you serious? A good driver doesn’t take his boss to an ex’s,” he bit out.

The driver shook his head, trying to clear things up. “Mr. Lynn, you were the one who insisted on seeing your wife. I just followed your orders.”

Jonathan’s forehead creased as he racked his brain, trying to piece together the night. “Was I that out of it?” he wondered aloud.

The driver glanced at Jonathan with a hint of doubt mixed with concern. “Mr. Lynn, we might need to look into the car’s recorder. You were dead set on seeing your wife here last night.”

Fragmented memories of himself, unsteady and flushed, flashed through Jonathan’s mind. He fell silent, massaged his throbbing temples, leaned back, and closed his eyes, hoping for a moment of relief.

With Jonathan out of the picture, Teresa quickly got Michael, who was still sound asleep, up and dressed. “Sweetheart, you’ll be staying at Miriam’s for a few days.”

Michael, still groggy, blinked and asked, “Why do I have to?”

“Because… Because Mommy needs to go on a business trip,” Teresa lied, her mind working overtime. She was sure she had to move Michael fast, to keep him safe and out of sight.

After work, Teresa arrived at Rosary Estates to see a luxurious black Maybach outside. Her heart sank as she recognized the car. She was relieved she’d sent Michael to Miriam’s.

Exiting her vehicle, Teresa saw Jonathan step out of the Maybach, adjusting his attire, and lock eyes with her.

“Changed the code?” he asked abruptly.

“No,” she answered.

“Why not?” he inquired, pressing further.

“I’m still picking a new one,” she admitted. She’d defaulted to six sixes for all her passwords because it was easy to remember, but now she was at a loss.

With a frustrated sigh, Jonathan guided her to her apartment entrance. “I didn’t expect otherwise. You’re alone here and not taking basic safety seriously,” he chided.

Chapter 11

Teresa frowned slightly. “The security around here is tight.”

Jonathan’s voice rose. “But what if it’s someone you know?” His worry for her was clear.

Teresa eyed Jonathan with a mix of annoyance and disbelief. “Mr. Lynn, you’re the type who’d break into a place in the dead of night. Real classy.”

She inwardly grumbled that if it were anyone else, they’d be dealing with the police right now. The situation was still fraying her nerves.

Though Jonathan was supposed to be drunk, he’d found his way to her room. She trembled at the thought of him blundering into Michael’s room. Startled from her reverie by the beeps, she realized Jonathan had quickly changed her door’s security code.

He worked quickly, resetting the system, pressing the right locations on the motherboard, and entering a new code, followed by a confirmation and re-entry.

“There you go,” he said, stepping back.

Teresa stared at him, confusion written on her face.

Jonathan clarified, “The code’s my birthday, then my age.”

Teresa questioned, “Why would you set my house code to your birthday?”

Jonathan shrugged. Just in case.

Teresa looked at Jonathan, a puzzled expression on her face.

Jonathan glanced over her casual office attire—sweater, mini-skirt, and stockings. “No more stockings, understood, Trout,” he stated, his tone brooking no argument.

As he walked away, Teresa grumbled under her breath about his intrusive behavior and called out, “Ugh, hey, when’s your birthday again!”

Jonathan paused for a moment, clearly annoyed, then continued on his way without answering, his back stiff with anger.

Truth was, Teresa knew Jonathan’s birthday by heart, yet his domineering behavior irked her. Her question was a jab at him. As soon as he left, she reset her security code to Michael’s birthday.

The idea of using Jonathan’s birthday as her security code was preposterous—it would be like handing him a key to her place. After keeping the secret about their son for more than two years, she wasn’t taking any chances. With Jonathan unaware of Michael’s birthday, the new code seemed very secure.

On her way to work the next day, Teresa’s phone vibrated with a message from Jonathan. She took a quick peek, and there it was—a transfer notification for $110,829.

Teresa exhaled, waving off the payment. It was clear Jonathan was upset she’d overlooked his birthday—November 8, his 29th. She grumbled under her breath, “So petty.”

She then tucked her phone away and headed into her office, only to be taken aback by the extravagant scene. Her office was flooded with flowers, her desk buried amidst a sea of bouquets.

Sherry, battling her pollen allergy with sniffles and sneezes, told Teresa, “Some unknown person just delivered 1,108 roses. Any clue why?”

Teresa shook her head, suspecting Jonathan’s dramatic payback.

Her coworkers gathered around, intrigued. “Teresa, who’s the secret admirer? You’ve got someone flooding you with roses,” one of them asked.

“I’m not seeing anyone, and I’m as clueless about the sender as you are,” Teresa replied.

Teresa’s colleagues raised their eyebrows and chuckled over the over-the-top flower delivery. “Somebody’s trying to impress you big time,” one joked.

“If a guy sent me all these flowers, I’d be ready to walk down the aisle with him in a heartbeat,” another chimed in.

Chapter 41 (Continued)

Feeling overwhelmed, Teresa started giving away the flowers—they were taking over her workspace. She then sent Jonathan a message: [You’re making quite a statement with the flowers. A bit much, don’t you think?]

Jonathan texted back quickly: [It’s my birthday. I thought you might’ve remembered.]

Teresa paused, then typed a reply: [Jonathan, we’ve been divorced for a while now. Does it really matter if I forget your birthday?] There was a pause before Jonathan’s response finally came: [Heading out on a date.]

That message was loud and clear to Teresa.