Chapter 178
Hayden stood frozen, stunned by his words as if doused with a bucket of iced water, the coldness making her shudder uncontrollably.
William paused after a few steps, turned his head, and gave Hayden a piercing look. His voice, now even more heavy with sarcasm, cut through the air, "By the way, if you need money, Hayden, just let me know. I'm willing to provide."
Without waiting for a response, he continued on his way, followed by several executives who had been stunned spectators but quickly regained their composure and hastened after him.
"William, what's wrong with you? Apologize to Hayden!" Teresa exclaimed.
"Teresa."
Realizing what she needed to do, Teresa stood up to follow him, but as she passed by Hayden, she was pulled into a firm grip.
"Hayden..." Teresa turned to her friend, her heart aching at the sight of Hayden's reddened eyes trying desperately to maintain a brave façade.
Hayden forced a smile at her, "I'm fine. I'm heading back to the capital tonight, and I might not return to River North again. If you and Diana want to see me, you'll probably have to visit the capital."
"Hayden, my brother is a jerk. Just quit liking him," Teresa said, her eyes brimming with tears as she looked at her.
She really hadn't expected William to be worse than Gabriel used to be, more cutting and venomous with his words!
Hayden lifted her head, fighting back the tears welling up in her eyes, then took a deep breath and flashed a bright, relaxed smile, nodding in agreement, "Yeah, I'm over him. Let's keep going with our afternoon tea, otherwise who knows when we'll get to do this again."
Teresa, holding back her own tears, nodded and smiled back, "Yeah, sure."
...
Teresa had never had an afternoon tea so uncomfortable. She believed that if her son hadn't been with her to cheer her up on the ride home, she would have been in constant misery.
In the evening, after wrapping up his work, Gabriel wanted to join her for a bath. She pushed him straight out of the bathroom and locked the door.
Gabriel stood outside, frowning as he pondered what he might have done to upset Teresa. Was it because he hadn't spent the afternoon with her? That didn't make sense; she was the one who didn't want him there. Then what was it?
Perplexed and without answers, Gabriel waited by the bathroom door. When Teresa came out, he swept her up in his arms, carried her to the bed, and pinned her down, pressing his head against hers as he nibbled her ear and whispered, "Honey, did I do something wrong? Share with me, I'll..."
Shoving the man off her, Teresa pushed him away forcefully. "Tell me, why do you guys always have to play games? Pretend you’re not saying what you mean, be sarcastic, jab at the ones you actually care about to a point it hurts?"
Looking down at the feisty woman berating him, Gabriel's sense of innocence was palpable. He couldn't help but smirk, shaking his head, "That's not true. I'm not playing games. I like you, that’s just it. I'm not two-faced, and I definitely never want to hurt you."
"Then what about those times you accused me of sleeping around, calling our beloved son a bastard?" she glared at him, annoyed.
Gabriel just gave a helpless laugh and leaned down to plant a kiss on her cheeks, "Those harsh words were from jealousy; I liked you so much but couldn't have you. That imbalance made me lash out," he explained.
"So basically, you guys are just jerks!" Teresa concluded, glaring at him once more.
"Alright, I admit I was a royal screw-up before, you were right to call me out, sweetheart," he said, lying down beside Theresa and drawing her into his arms with one hand, while the other gently took hold of hers, "If you're mad or upset, go ahead and slap me a few times."
Theresa glared at him and yanked her hand back, "I'm not hitting you. Just go take a shower, will you?"
Gabriel chuckled and dove in for another playful kiss.
But after barely a couple of bites, she pushed him away with a look of disgust, "You reek of cigarette smoke; it's gross, go shower already."
Truth be told, Theresa didn’t hate the smell; she was just a little bit on the edge in regards to the situation with Hayden and wasn't in the mood for his advances.
"Alright, I'm off to shower then, babe. Wait for me," he said, planting a firm kiss on her cheek before obediently getting out of bed and striding toward the bathroom.
Babe.
If she wasn't mistaken, this was the first time Gabriel had called her "babe." The cheesy endearment slipped out so naturally.
That rascal... Theresa couldn't help but smile, the soured mood of the events of the afternoon, was now lifted by a sweetness of the present euphoria.
She was curious to fathom just how long William was willing to continue his games, knowing that treading on that path can never do him any good.
With those thoughts, a sense of relief washed over her. She lay back on the bed, as exhaustion overwhelmed her and she drifted off to sleep. So, when Gabriel returned from his quick shower, what he saw was her asleep on the bed, clad only in a silky slip dress, under the covers.
He thought she was going to wait for him.
What a little trickster!
Yet, as he watched her lying there, how could he possibly restrain himself?
He couldn't help but smirk, tossing the towel he used to dry his hair aside, he moved toward the bed, his movements gentle but firm as he leaned over her...
"Umm... Gabriel!" Lost in a deep sleep, Theresa was abruptly awoken and instinctively grabbed a pillow, hurling it at him while swatting and scolding.
However, her resistance was met with a more emphatic move from Gabriel...
