Chapter 14 Revelations
Teresa's eyes widened. "Liam, I thought we had settled this..."
Before she could elaborate, Liam interjected, "I owe you an apology for last time. I've been thinking. Who's the other guy? Do you have feelings for him?"
Liam had spent a week in contemplation. He had considered ending things, but his feelings were too strong to ignore. He cared for Teresa deeply, more than he had for anyone else in his twenty-seven years of life.
He acknowledged past flings, and since Teresa had been with someone else, he felt they were on equal footing.
Teresa, caught off guard by his calm acceptance and apology, struggled to find her voice.
"If you're serious about him, I'll step back," Liam said, noticing her silence.
"No, it's not like that," Teresa murmured, tears hinting at a deeper pain. "I don't even know who he was."
Liam's concern deepened, his hands on her shoulders. "Teresa, what happened?"
She met his eyes. "I'm sorry, Liam. We need to end things. I'm leaving for an exchange program in Germany."
"Huh? Why?"
"For an exchange year," she added.
Liam processed this new information in silence.
"Can we talk tonight, after you meet my friends?" he finally asked.
Teresa nodded, giving him a sliver of hope.
...
"Boss, Liam's here with his friends and their girlfriends. You might want to bring someone," suggested Finley.
The event was a welcome-back party for Gabriel, organized by his childhood friends, including Aaron Shen and Kyle Campbell, heirs of their respective family empires.
The Garcias led the quartet of the city's elite families, all intertwined since their childhood days.
They were gathering at River North's most opulent club. Finley, knowing the guest list, hinted that Gabriel might bring a date.
"Who's Liam with?" Gabriel asked.
"Teresa."
The name made Gabriel's expression tighten imperceptibly.
He had assumed Teresa and Liam had split, given her attitude that night. Yet, Liam appeared to be in the dark about the whispers linking her to Gabriel.
Gabriel's lips curved into a mysterious smile. "Call Unity. Tell her to meet me there in thirty minutes."
"Unity?" Finley's confusion was palpable.
"Problem?" Gabriel's voice dropped colder.
"No issue. I'll contact Unity right away."
