Chapter 527 Can't Let Him Go
Caleb went quiet for a sec. "You're just freaking out. What's the big deal with Oliver hanging with me? It's not like I haven't handled kids before. You think I can't take care of a kid?"
Susan shot back, "If you could handle it, you wouldn't have taken him to McDonald's."
"You're blowing this way out of proportion."
Susan kept going, "It's not nothing. Oliver just had surgery, and his stomach's always been touchy. He needs a strict diet. What other kids can eat, he can't. I raised him, so I know better. You can't just do whatever you want."
Caleb's face tightened. "I get it, you raised Oliver, but you don't have to keep rubbing it in and shutting me out. I'm trying to make up for lost time and be there for him. Is that so wrong? You love Oliver, but I love him just as much."
Susan sighed, "If that's true, then stop using him to get back at me. You took him to McDonald's just to mess with me because I'm getting close to Michael, right?"
Caleb asked, "Can't you just stay away from him?"
"That's a whole different issue. Right now, we're talking about Oliver. Your actions make you look really immature."
Caleb wanted to argue, but under Susan's glare, he bit his tongue. "Alright, fine, like you said, I messed up. But I really want to spend time with Oliver. I won't do it again."
He promised.
That was a big step for him, so Susan decided to ease up. "I'm heading home."
"Can you stop seeing Michael?" Caleb couldn't help but ask, "I admitted my mistake, but you keep seeing him, that's not fair."
"My relationship with him is just friends, nothing more."
"That's what you think, but it doesn't mean he doesn't have other ideas. Honestly, with my old temper, seeing you two together, I'd want to deck him." Caleb gritted his teeth.
Susan frowned. "Are you saying I should be thankful you didn't punch him?"
"At least I've held back."
"Is there ever a good reason for violence?" Susan hated this about him, so her tone got sharper. "By your logic, if there's ever a guy around me, you should punch him? Would you be happy if I only hung out with women?"
"That's not what I mean," Caleb snapped back.
"To me, that's exactly what you mean. Caleb, you have this need to control everything. You want everyone to orbit around you. But I'm not that kind of woman, I'm independent. Even if we were married, I wouldn't cut off my friends for you. If you can't handle that, then I..."
Caleb's brow furrowed. "Then what? You won't want me?"
Susan didn't know what to say. It wasn't that she didn't want him, she was just scared. At her age, she wanted a marriage based on mutual respect, not one where one person controlled the other. When she was younger, she might have seen extreme control as love, but now she wanted a more relaxed relationship.
Susan said, "Let's drop this for now, let's both cool off."
"Cool off until when?"
Susan didn't answer and got into the car.
Oliver looked at Caleb's upset face through the window and felt a bit guilty. 'Should I stop making things hard for Daddy? Seeing him sad makes me feel bad too.'
"Mommy, are we just leaving like this? Caleb..."
"He's a grown-up, he can get home on his own." She also wanted to give him time to cool down and think things through.
Susan rolled back to The Wilson Villa.
Michael was chatting it up with her parents.
"Susan, you're back. Where's Oliver? Didn't Caleb pick him up?" Carol asked, looking puzzled.
"He had something to do," Susan replied, keeping it vague.
"I see..." Carol sensed something was off but didn't push it.
Meanwhile, Michael, who only had eyes for Susan, totally ignored the mention of Caleb and smiled, "You're off work."
"Yeah."
"Michael went out of his way to get some health supplements for our parents from abroad. He's so thoughtful," May chimed in with a smile.
"Thanks," Susan smiled faintly.
"Michael," Oliver called out.
"Hey, Oliver, I got you a little something too." Michael handed Oliver a Transformers gift box. "Do you like it?"
"I like it. Thanks, Michael." But Oliver thought of the Lego set Caleb had bought him and felt a bit guilty, so he wasn't super excited.
After dinner, Michael found Susan alone.
"This is for you."
"I get one too?" Susan took it; it was a necklace.
A necklace from a married guy felt kinda off to Susan.
Michael asked, "What? You don't like it? Sorry, I'm not sure what style you like. If you don't like it, I can..."
"A necklace is more suitable for your wife." Susan closed the box.
'You are the future Mrs. Johnson,' Michael thought but didn't dare say it out loud.
He figured he needed to confess soon. But it had to be in a romantic setting, because girls loved that stuff.
Even though Susan was already a mom, in his eyes, she was always that pure little girl he wanted to protect.
"This is from the heart, please accept it," Michael said.
"Alright, thanks for the gift."
"Can you wear it to a banquet with me tomorrow?" Michael asked, a bit nervous.
Susan replied, "You should invite your wife or your assistant, I..."
"An old friend of mine just got back to the country and is looking for someone to renovate his company. I recommended you. He's usually super busy, so this is a good chance for you to meet. What do you think?" Of course, Michael had his own motives too.
If it was for work, that was different.
Susan often hit up various banquets to network.
Susan nodded. "Okay."
Michael was stoked. "I'll pick you up after work tomorrow."
"Six o'clock, at the Starbucks near my office," Susan agreed.
Michael asked, "That's a bit far from your office, isn't it inconvenient?"
"Just there."
'Does she not want her colleagues to see me?' Michael was puzzled but didn't ask, nodding. "Alright, see you tomorrow."
Susan was glad he didn't ask because she didn't like lying and wasn't in the mood to explain.
'If Caleb were as chill as him, it would be great. Caleb is so controlling and doesn't let me have any secrets. Just like earlier, Caleb would definitely have a lot to say and be all grumpy.' Susan was slightly stunned. She thought, 'Is it always so exhausting to be with him? But if that's the case, why are my feelings for him growing bit by bit? It shows that the things that attracted me to him far outweigh the points of friction. Not just because of the emotional foundation from four years ago, not just because he is Oliver's father, but because he attracts me like a light. If it weren't for this recent friction, I might have already fallen for him. From the moment I didn't get drunk and still got tangled up with him, I have already started to fall. What causes this small friction to escalate to this point? Is it because I haven't truly let go of the hurt he caused me before?'
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