Chapter 239
Knock, knock.
“Teresa.”
As Teresa settled back into her office, a gentle knocking preceded a sweet and cheery voice.
“Tessa, come in!” Teresa’s eyes lifted to the girl at the door, greeting her with a warm smile.
With permission granted, Tessa, all smiles and bearing a massive pile of student assignments, stepped in with a bounce in her step. “Teresa, these are all the assignments from our class while you were out.”
“Okay, thanks,” Teresa nodded and stood to take the stack of papers from Tessa.
“Are you feeling better now, Teresa?” Tessa asked with a bright smile after passing on the assignments.
The car accident and the miscarriage were supposed to be strictly private. How on earth did Tessa, just a regular student, get wind of that?
There was a moment of startled surprise in Teresa's gaze as she looked at Tessa.
But the surprise was fleeting, and she quickly curved her lips into a smile. “I’m all right. Do I look like I'm troubled?” she said lightheartedly.
“Good to hear. We really don't want you taking any more time off. We'd miss your lectures too much. You have no idea. Your lectures are an absolute delight,” Tessa said with a radiant smile, her charming and lovely face almost universally adored. She continued, “Oh, by the way, Samuel dropped out. I'm the new teaching assistant. If you need anything, just let me know. I'm at your beck and call.”
Teresa smiled at Tessa's comments. “I wouldn't think of bossing you around, you pretty little thing.”
“I'm hardly a little girl, Teresa. You're only five years older than me! So, feel free to boss me around all you want. I'm more than happy to help,” Tessa replied with continued cheer, her words as sweet as honey. Then, eyeing the color on Teresa's lips with great curiosity, she added, “Teresa, what brand and shade of lipstick is that? It's gorgeous, and I really love it.”
Teresa chuckled and shared the details of her lipstick without any hesitation.
They chatted a bit more until Tessa left the office beaming with joy.
After Tessa was gone, Teresa picked up a stack of student assignments to review.
But she had only flipped through a few when a gust of chilly wind blew in from the window.
She hadn't been to the office in over ten days, and upon entering, she had opened the window to air it out. Now feeling the cold, she got up and walked toward the window to close it.
Just as she reached out to shut the window, her eyes caught sight of a black Bentley parked at the steps leading down from the office building. The license plate was all too familiar to her. The four digits were Liam's birthday.
It was Liam's car.
Why would Liam be visiting the school? Could he be here to see her?
While Teresa was lost in her puzzlement, a familiar, cheerful figure darted down the steps and made a beeline for Liam's Bentley.
It was Tessa.
As Tessa approached, the Bentley’s driver got out to open the back door for her. Tessa gracefully climbed in, and the driver closed the door behind her before returning to the driver's seat, starting the engine, and pulling away.
As the car turned to leave, Teresa saw the profile of a face she knew all too well in the back seat.
It was Liam.
Liam and Tessa together? What's their story? Why did Liam come to pick Tessa up at school?
For a moment, Teresa was utterly baffled.
Knock, knock.
The sound of someone knocking pulled her back to reality, and she turned to see who it was.
Her lips curved into a blissful smile at the sight of the tall, striking man at the door.
Before she could say a word, Gabriel strode across the room with his long legs and opened his coat to envelop Teresa—who was dressed only in a high-necked cashmere sweater standing by the open window—and pulled her into a warm embrace.
He rested his chin on her smooth forehead and rubbed it affectionately as if to chastise her, “Who allowed you to chill by the window dressed like this, huh?”
Teresa wrapped her arms tightly around his slim waist, gazing up into his sparkling eyes that reminded her of the shimmering lakes in early spring and grinning brightly, “I was waiting for you to warm me up!”
With a laugh, Gabriel leaned down and pressed a firm kiss on her lips. “Classes are over. Let's head home.”
“Ah, going back so early?” Teresa pouted, acting more and more like a coquettish girl around Gabriel.
“Not back to the family home, but to Foxglove Fields,” he said as he closed the window, then picked up Teresa's overcoat from the cloth stand to help her into it.
She slipped into the coat, though her gaze drifted to the window.
Liam's black Bentley was already gone from sight.
“What are you looking at?” After he finished dressing her, Gabriel's well-defined fingers gently pinched her chin, turning her head toward him.
Teresa raised her eyebrows playfully. “A hot dude.”
Gabriel's eyes burned with a teasing intensity as he leaned down to nip her lips lightly, his voice deep and playful, “Is there really a dude out there hotter than your husband?"
Teresa burst into laughter at his brazenness, “You're shameless!”
Gabriel joined in the laughter, “Why need any shame in front of my sweetheart when she's all that matters?"
Teresa just shook her head.
“Let's go!” Gabriel said, wrapping an arm around Teresa to lead her out.
“Don't forget to bring my students' assignments. I'll check them at home.”
“Sure thing, sweetheart,” Gabriel nodded, grabbing the stack of homework with one hand and holding Teresa with the other, and they left together.
Once in the car, Teresa's thoughts drifted to Liam, who had come to pick up Tessa from school. Her expression grew tense. Curious, she fished out her phone and dialed Diana.
But the phone just rang and rang with no answer.
“What's wrong?” Gabriel, who had been wrapping her cozily while reviewing some documents, looked up at her concerned expression, softly asking her what was on her mind.
Teresa paused, then said, “There's a student in my class named Tessa Yellen. Right before you arrived, I saw Liam pick her up. Do you have any idea what Liam is to Tessa?”
“Tessa Yellen?” Gabriel's eyebrows knitted slightly as he pondered for a moment, “You mean the daughter of the man of the highest official rank in River North? You didn't know?!”
“Tessa is the daughter of Mayor Yellen?!” Teresa was taken aback, but she held back from saying more.
Was it her disinterest in her students' background that made her oblivious?
“People don't just go around sharing that with me. How was I supposed to know?” Teresa said with a dismissive twist of her lips, her initial surprise fading away.
Gabriel chuckled, bending down to peck her nose teasingly, “With all the political suppression these days, it's normal for these folks to keep a low profile. It's no wonder you didn't know. I bet Tessa doesn't broadcast her identity at school either to avoid trouble for the Yellen family.”
“So, what's the deal between Tessa and Liam?” Teresa pressed, nodding in understanding.
Gabriel raised his eyebrows with a grin, “That, I don't know. Should I make some inquiries for you now?”
Teresa playfully scolded him, “No way.”
“Are you sure?” Gabriel teased, the smile on his face deepening.
“It's not Liam I’m worried about. It’s Diana,” Teresa said, her concern evident. “You know Diana has a crush on Liam. If Liam and Tessa are together, then Diana...” She trailed off, frowning suddenly with surprise, “Tessa's only a freshman, nineteen years old. Would Liam be with her?”
Gabriel nodded, “Why not?”
He had met Tessa about six months prior, at a dinner party, who was shadowing her father. She had even offered him a drink, which he didn't accept.
Body-wise, Tessa could be Teresa's twin. Even their smiles held a resemblance. But in Gabriel's eyes, no one could hold a candle to Teresa. To him, Teresa was incomparable, his one and only.
Teresa argued, “Don’t you think it’s odd? Tessa's barely nineteen, a freshman in college, while Liam, like you, is already thirty.”
“Men always crave youth,” Gabriel replied without missing a beat.
“Including you?” Suddenly, Teresa's expression felt cold.
Observing her adorable pout of jealousy flash across her face, Gabriel's mood soared. He wrapped his arms around her, leaned down, and kissed her forehead firmly. “Yes, including me. In my eyes, you'll always be the most beautiful and irresistible woman in the world.”
Teresa was speechless.
Smooth-talking jerk, she thought. His sweet talk was getting better!
But she liked it.
...
Inside the CEO's office at the Evans Group skyscraper, Liam had waited almost an entire day, but Diana didn't come to work.
Not only was she absent, but she hadn't called in sick either.
As the workday was winding down, Liam attempted to call her, only to find her phone switched off.
Feeling a hint of unease, he summoned Chuck, inquiring whether he had managed to get in touch with Diana that day.
“I called, but she didn't answer,” Chuck responded, assuming Diana had already cleared her absence with Liam.
“I see. Carry on then,” Liam instructed with a hint of disinterest. Then he grabbed his suit jacket off the back of his chair, pocketed the car keys from his desk, and strode out of the office with purpose.
Before heading to the hotel last night, he had made a point of stopping by the office, leaving a necklace on his desk, and intentionally asking Diana to deliver the necklace to the hotel. It was all to show Diana he didn't love her, that she wasn't worth her devotion, not someone to entrust her life with.
What he hadn't anticipated was Diana's misunderstanding, taking his “come with it” as “wear it” and appearing at his hotel room door.
Embarrassing her like this wasn't his intention. But regardless, he had hurt her, and he couldn't just leave her hanging. If something happened to Diana, he wouldn't know how to face Teresa. So, he headed to the underground parking lot, hopped into his car, and drove straight to Diana's apartment...
