Chapter 398 Just a Fleeting Dream
The Evans Group skyscraper towered over River North City.
Ever since Diana had been let go, the position of Head Secretary had remained unfilled.
Nobody knew why Diana, who seemed to be performing well, was suddenly dismissed. It created a tense atmosphere in the CEO's office; no one dared to gossip about it, let alone ask Liam.
Following Diana's termination, her responsibilities were divided among the remaining four secretaries.
One morning, after Liam arrived at his office, one of the secretaries, Linda, brought him a cup of coffee.
However, after placing the coffee down, Linda did not turn to leave. Instead, she lingered, hesitant to speak.
"What is it, spit it out!" Without even glancing at Linda, Liam demanded coldly.
Since Diana's departure, Liam had been a constant source of icy, brooding energy in the office.
"Last night, Diana invited me out for dinner," Linda said, deciding to come clean after wrestling with her conscience.
Crossing Diana was one thing, but getting on Liam's bad side could mean losing her job.
At last, Liam spared Linda a glance but remained silent.
Taking his silence as acquiescence to continue, Linda added, "She asked me to get a sample of your DNA for her."
—His DNA sample.
Suddenly, Liam's handsome brows furrowed. A thought flashed through his mind.
Could Diana be pregnant? But the child might not be his.
"Go, you don't need to do that for her," Liam instructed dismissively.
"Yes," Linda replied, relieved, and quickly exited the room.
As soon as Linda was out the door, Liam immediately called Thomas on the intercom.
"Find out what Diana has been up to these days and where she is now," he commanded the moment the call connected.
"Right away, Liam," Thomas responded and hung up, quickly starting his search.
In the half-month since leaving the Evans Group, Diana had visited the hospital, returned to her parents' home, and last night had dinner with Linda. Beyond that, she had scarcely left her apartment, cooping herself up inside.
It didn't take a little while for Thomas to report back to Liam.
Once he knew Diana was ensconced in her apartment, Liam grabbed his car keys, headed to the underground parking garage, and drove directly to Diana's place.
Diana's apartment was just a stone's throw from the Evans Group—a quick press on the gas pedal away.
After parking his car beneath her apartment building, Liam pulled out his phone and dialed Diana's number.
In the apartment, Diana was busy preparing her lunch, attending to the life growing inside her with care. Since she couldn't or wouldn't terminate the pregnancy, it didn't matter whose child it was—she was determined to keep it. Once she had decided to keep the baby, she planned to look after herself and the baby just as she'd done for Teresa in the past.
Her initial approach to Teresa had been deliberate, but as time passed, their friendship had blossomed into something genuine and sincere. Diana never meant to hurt Teresa, but a moment of recklessness had led to just that. Fortunately, Gabriel, in consideration of her past closeness with Teresa, hadn't made things difficult for her. Otherwise, with no power or influence beyond her ordinary parents and no one else to rely on, her fate would have been grim.
Lost in thought, she stared at the stove's robust flames. Then, the phone in the living room suddenly rang, snapping her back to reality. She turned to answer the phone.
The moment she saw the caller ID flashing on her phone screen, Diana froze, thinking she had misread it. She rubbed her eyes and looked again. No, she wasn't mistaken—it was indeed Liam calling.
Could Linda have confessed to Liam? She knew Linda's timid nature would compel her to explain everything to Liam; otherwise, she wouldn't have approached Linda in the first place.
Snapping out of her reverie, Diana quickly answered the phone.
"Liam," she said, her voice measured, attempting to sound calm.
"I'm downstairs at your apartment. Come down," Liam's voice was equally composed.
"Okay," Diana replied without question, a perfect echo of obedience. After hanging up, she glanced at herself in the mirror. Her face was pale, devoid of makeup, but she left it as it was and walked straight out the door, heading downstairs.
His car was parked conspicuously outside her building, making it impossible to miss. Taking a deep breath and mentally bracing herself, she approached the vehicle with deliberate steps.
To her surprise, Liam was behind the wheel himself.
Diana walked up to the driver's side window and tapped lightly. Liam, reclining in his seat with his eyes closed, heard the knock and opened his eyes to give Diana a brief, detached glance. Then he rolled down the window and commanded coldly, "Get in."
Diana's expression remained unchanged as she faced him. She nodded, walked around the car to the passenger side, and got in.
"Liam," sitting in the passenger seat, she turned to the man beside her and called out softly.
Liam's charm was on the rise. He radiates the suave sophistication of a well-off and steady man, and his already handsome features grow more defined and alluring.
"You had Linda take a DNA sample because you're pregnant and not sure whose child it is, right?" Liam spared Diana a glance, his voice devoid of any unnecessary words as he directly posed the question.
"Yes, that's correct." Liam was straightforward, and so was Diana in her admission.
Liam's lips curved in an enigmatic half-smile. "You took the pill that day."
"So, you're sure the baby isn't yours, right?" Diana retorted, locking eyes with Liam as she sought confirmation.
Liam's gaze swept over her, his expression unreadable.
"When Teresa was forced to sleep with Gabriel, she took the pill afterward, but she still got pregnant," Diana said, meeting Liam's calm gaze with equanimity.
"If the child is mine, you can have it, and I'll take responsibility." Liam plucked a strand of hair from his head and held it out to Diana.
Relief washed over Diana at his words.
Slowly, she reached out, took the strand of hair from Liam's hand, and nodded in agreement with a soft "okay."
She had wanted to ask if he would marry her if the child were his.
But the words died on her lips.
If the child turned out to be Liam's, she could always ask later. But if she asked now and the baby wasn't his, it would be a slap in her face.
"Thank you!" In the end, she replaced her unasked question with these two words.
"If you have nothing else, Liam, I'll be going," said Diana.
"Sure," Liam responded indifferently.
After a small smile at Liam, Diana turned, pushed open the car door, and walked back into her apartment building.
Liam watched Diana enter the building but didn't immediately leave. Instead, he lit a cigarette and smoked it before finally starting the car and driving away.
Truthfully, he wasn't sure why he had made this trip, but if the child were his, he would step up.
.......
"Where do you want to go today?"
In a chalet in the town of Estes Park, Colorado, Gabriel woke up and embraced Teresa, kissing her forehead, and asked what she wished to do.
Teresa was quite worn out from last night's activities. Although it was well past dawn and the sun was high in the sky, she had no desire to get out of bed. She turned over in Gabriel's arms, wrapped herself around his firm waist, closed her eyes, and continued to sleep, murmuring, "I don't want to go anywhere; I just want to stay in with you."
Teresa's fear lingered after surviving an avalanche, worried another mishap might befall them.
"Stay inside and do what we most desire?!" Gabriel mused, his voice rich with pleasure as he kissed her forehead, looking down at her curled up cozily in his arms like a lazy little kitten.
"Do the things we want to do."
Frowning, Teresa became acutely aware of the changes in Gabriel's body. Suddenly, she opened her eyes wide, gazing upwards into his, her own eyes misty and glowing, "And what, my dear, do you most desire?"
With a seductive smile curling his lips, Gabriel swiftly pinned her beneath him and captured her lips with a husky whisper, "Do I even have to say it? Of course, it's to devour you..."
...
Following their vigorous activity, Teresa and Gabriel finally got out of bed.
Gabriel busied himself making breakfast while Teresa sat at the kitchen island, watching him. When you're deeply in love with someone, everything they do seems enchanting, especially when that someone is Gabriel.
Concerned Teresa might be hungry, Gabriel kept stuffing bits of the meal into her mouth as he cooked. So, by the time the full breakfast was ready to serve, she was already almost full.
After they had breakfast and got dressed, just as they were about to stroll around the small town, Gabriel's phone buzzed with a video call invite from Hayden.
Anticipating the reason behind Hayden's call, Gabriel accepted the invitation.
Some secrets were necessary to keep from Teresa, possibly forever, but not everything required concealment.
"Slap!" "Slap!" "Slap!"...
"I'm sorry!" "Please forgive me, forgive me!
