Chapter 113 Mom was mine
"We'll see!" Teresa raised an eyebrow and pushed him gently, "It's getting late. You'd better head back. I have a lot to do, and don't need any more distractions."
His plea hung between them, wrapped in the comfortable silence of the night.
Gabriel pulled her close, cocooning her in his embrace, and dipped his head to plant a kiss just above her nose. "I'll hang out in your room. I'll leave after you're done with your shower."
"No, just go!" Teresa was blunt.
"Daddy leave, Mommy is mine!" Just then, the little guy waddled over, assertively patting Gabriel's behind, claiming his territory.
Gabriel shot a look down at the small intruder, released Teresa, and scooped up his son, playfully pinching his cheek. "Mommy is my sweetheart, you know that?"
"Hmph! I don't know that, mommy is mine," the little guy pouted, turning his head away in a sassy huff.
Teresa watched the amusing and routine tussle between father and son, and seized the opportunity to slip away.
Gabriel watched Teresa make her escape, speechless.
"Hmph, mommy left, now you go, Daddy. I’m going to chase Mommy," said the kid, wriggling from Gabriel's arms. He then reached for Victoria's hand, "Victoria, let's go chase Mommy."
Gabriel stood there wordless.
...
The next day, Teresa and Gabriel went to meet with the interior designer. The designer had already prepared several proposals; Teresa just needed to pick one and add her personal touch.
Still, even with the options laid out before her, talking with the designer took hours. Afterward, Gabriel took Teresa out for lunch.
He chose a special restaurant. If Teresa remembered correctly, this was the same place Liam took her for a meal three years ago, before she went abroad to study, and Gabriel tagged along uninvited. It was even the same table.
But this time, the table was secluded by screens, tucked away from prying eyes.
She wondered what Gabriel was thinking, choosing the same spot. Nevertheless, Teresa acted as if she didn't remember, not mentioning it at all.
Gabriel settled into the seat he had taken three years ago and, after ordering the meal, fished out a black velvet box from his jacket pocket and slid it across the table to Teresa.
She opened the box; inside was a flawless pink diamond ring, bigger and more brilliant than the one Liam had given her.
"Do you remember sitting here, having dinner with me three years ago?" Gabriel broke the silence without waiting for Teresa to bring it up.
Teresa looked up from the pink diamond ring to his face, playing coy, "I don't remember," she said with a shake of her head.
Gabriel chuckled softly, reaching out to take her hand, "I remember all of it, every minute and every second with you. It's all engraved in my memory."
Teresa snapped the box shut and slipped it into her purse as if it were the most natural thing in the world, not even bothering to say "thank you." "Do you also remember all the hurtful things you said? Especially those awful comments about the number of men I've been with and calling me a gold digger?"
Gabriel's face fell immediately, looking as if he had 'I'm sorry, my dear' written all over it, "That was just sour grapes, darling. It's because you're too beautiful and too alluring. I was clumsy with my words, just trying to get your attention."
Teresa just stared at him.
Soon after, the waiter came by to decant the wine and poured them each a glass. Not long after, the appetizers arrived, and the two of them started to eat and chat.
Somehow, Teresa found that their conversations were growing richer by the day. Beyond pastries, home renovations, and the dynamics of the Garcia and Bennett families, Gabriel began sharing stories from his language school days, like the time he struggled with German pronunciation. He even started consulting Teresa on tricky phonetics and delving into business matters with her.
By the end of the meal, their exchange was solid, growing more engaging by the minute, almost like two kindred spirits who had met too late in life.
As dessert was served and Teresa took a few bites, Gabriel's phone began to vibrate. Glancing at it, he saw it was Finley calling.
"Take the call. I'll head to the restroom," Teresa said, dabbing the corners of her mouth with a napkin before standing up.
She meant to actually use the restroom; this wasn't an excuse for privacy. Gabriel nodded and waited for her to head in that direction before answering the call.
"Boss, Dakota's stirring up trouble again, just posted another thing on Twitter," came Finley's exasperated voice over the phone.
Ever since Dakota had started causing a ruckus on Twitter, Finley had been following her account with alerts on high, making sure to be the first to know about any updates.
"What did she post? Send me a screenshot," Gabriel commanded, his tone turning serious.
“Got it,” Finley said before hanging up the phone, immediately forwarding the screenshot of Dakota's recent Twitter post to Gabriel.
The buzz of the incoming message alerted Gabriel to check his phone.
"We'll always have Paris."
Ah, the iconic line from “Casablanca.”
He remembered bumping into Dakota on the streets abroad once, her friends probably took those candid shots, including the one she'd shared before.
The post was blowing up quickly; in minutes, it had garnered tens of thousands of likes and comments, and who knows how many by now.
