Chapter 150
The mastermind behind the unleashed dog that caused a car accident, the rich wife's public tantrum, smearing efforts, and the vast network of paid trolls spreading malicious marketing, was none other than Dakota.
The next morning, just past six o'clock, Finley used Teresa's Twitter account to set the record straight. He shared everything captured on the dashcam online and subtly hinted that someone was orchestrating a smear campaign against Teresa and the Garcias. He also warned that they reserved the legal right to pursue those secretly pulling the strings.
Teresa woke up frazzled in the morning, went through her morning routine, had breakfast with Croissant, and got into the car to head to school. Pulling out her phone, she opened Twitter to find the trajectory had drastically changed.
Her post from early in the morning had only been up for two hours, but the reposts, likes, and comments had already surpassed ten million.
Upon checking, the first person to repost, comment, and like wasn't just anybody; it was the very man who had woken her up early and then scandalously “took advantage” of her.
His comment read, "My darling, you have my total support!."
Staring at the comment that countless users had liked and commented on, she glanced sidelong at the certain someone making phone calls beside her, Teresa felt so embarrassed.
How shameless could this man be?
As for the comments that followed... Teresa couldn't even bring herself to read them; she simply scrolled on by.
Nevertheless, what truly astonished her wasn't Gabriel's show-off; after all, what couldn't a shameless man like him do? It was the staggering increase of her Twitter followers, from a mere handful yesterday to over three million today! And the numbers were still skyrocketing by the second. Her inbox was a whirlwind of over a hundred thousand private messages.
Holy smokes! Even if she quit her job and dedicated herself to replying to followers' messages all day, there just wouldn't be enough time.
"Sweetheart, what's your plan for handling Dakota?" Gabriel, hanging up his phone, reached over with a grin as Teresa was engrossed in scrolling through Twitter notifications.
"Back off, don't touch me!" Teresa said, scooting towards the car door with wary eyes as he reached out to embrace her.
The jerk, he demanded her at noon yesterday, wore her out for nearly two hours last night, and upon waking up this morning, he was all over her again, igniting a flame that led to another round.
"Heh..." Gabriel couldn't help but chuckle at her reaction, "My dear, you can't blame me. I've been holding back my desire for you for too long."
"Shut up, it's none of my business!" she snapped, visibly irritated.
"Of course, it's about you." He persisted, wrapping his arms around her forcibly, pulling her close, and kissing the top of her head. "You're irresistible. Once I've tasted you, I can't forget you. How could I ever touch another woman?"
Gabriel, a strapping thirty-year-old man still flush with vigor, couldn't possibly restrain himself after such pent-up desire.
Teresa glared at him, "If you lay a hand on me today, you're dead meat!"
He hugged her tightly and switched topics with a smile, "It seems Dakota orchestrated this mess, but she's playing dumb, pushing all the blame onto one of her underlings. How do you want to deal with her?"
"You're the troublemaker here, so don't ask me," she retorted with a frown.
He chuckled, "How about this? Since she won't own up, I can stir up some trouble for her, perhaps a few years behind bars to cool down."
Teresa was speechless, giving him a stern look, "Gabriel, she's your childhood friend, your once-inseparable companion. Are you that heartless? If Dakota finds out, she'll hate me even more."
Seeing her concern, Gabriel smiled, "Aside from you my dear, all the others are just thorns in my side. I'll cut them down one by one."
"You didn't have to go that hard, you know. Karen's one of Katherine's besties. We can't have her caught in the middle," Teresa said, furrowing her brows in thought, "Even though Dakota wanted to drag my name through the mud, this whole backfire has turned into a massive, free publicity boost for you and Nebula. And me? I've gained a ton of followers without spending a dime. We're not losing out, so let's give her a break and see what she pulls next."
"Generous as always, my love."
Teresa gave him a sidelong glance. "No. I'm just worried that if we “cut down” Dakota, we'll get something worse in her place."
"I swear, there's been absolutely nothing... at all between me and any other woman," he started to protest.
"Shut up!" Teresa cut him off, placing her hand over his mouth before he could finish, "I don't want to hear it. Just deal with your messes and keep them away from me."
"Yes, ma'am. Your wish is my command."
