Chapter 422

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Hearing Evelyn’s unusually quiet and dejected tone on the phone , Teresa felt something wasn’t right .
Evelyn’s flight landed at ten in the morning . Teresa went to pick her up , handing Isabel over to her . The moment Isabel was in Evelyn’s arms , she started bawling .
“ Sweetheart , did you miss me ? I’m so sorry for coming so late to get you , ” Evelyn said , full of guilt .
“ Mommy , I thought you didn’t want me anymore . ” Isabel sobbed in Evelyn’s arms .
“ How could I ever not want my precious girl ? ” Evelyn hugged Isabel tightly .
Teresa sighed . “ Alright , let’s not just stand here . Let’s go to my place – Isabel’s luggage is there .”
Evelyn agreed .
When they got to Rosary Estates , Michael ran up and called out , “ Grandma ! ”
Evelyn responded , “ Mike , Isabel hasn’t torn up your notebook again , has she ? ”
Michael shook his head and glanced at Isabel . “ Grandma , Aunt Isabel and I are good friends now . ”
‘ Kids really don’t hold grudges .’ Evelyn sighed and ruffled Michael’s hair . She felt that he was looking more and more like his dad .
Teresa brought over some coffee and asked Evelyn , “ Did something happen ? You sounded upset on the phone . ”
After setting down the coffee , she turned to Mike and said quietly , “ Mike , can you take Isabel to your room ? I need to talk to Grandma . ”
“ Yes , ma’am ! ” Michael replied playfully .
Once the kids had left , Evelyn pulled out a handkerchief and dabbed at her eyes . “ I’m such an idiot , ” she said .
“ What happened ? Don’t cry . Just tell me , ” Teresa urged .
Choking back her sobs , Evelyn said , “ The whole 1.5 million is gone . ”
Teresa’s eyes widened . “ What ? ”
Evelyn’s lips moved as if searching for words . She’d wanted to make a little extra money , so she invested 2.6 million dollars in a project . cautious at first , but since her psychologist had recommended it , she let her guard down .
She’d been
Only then did Teresa know what had happened . After Charlie scammed Evelyn out of everything and left her penniless, Evelyn had fallen into a deep depression .
While she was in Fernlandia taking care of Isabel , she met a foreign psychologist who helped her work through her issues , and she really thought he was a good person .
Teresa was at a complete loss for words . After a while , she said , “ Are you out of your mind ? How many times have you let men scam you ? Haven’t you learned your lesson yet ? That wasn’t just a few bucks – that was 2.6 million dollars ! ”
Evelyn knew she was in the wrong and didn’t try to argue . “ I just trusted him too much never thought it would turn out like this . I swear to you , never again . I’m completely finished with men .”
She was heartbroken . “ This is just my fate . I can’t seem to meet anyone who truly cares about me . I’ve accepted it . If Isabel weren’t still so young , I might just want to give up entirely .”
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Teresa felt a whirlwind of anger , pity , and frustration . “ Okay , enough . How many times have you done such things ?
“ Just focus on taking care of Isabel from now on . I’ll make sure you get a share of feresouth Group’s dividends every year . But please , no more craty
schemes . ”
Evelyn shook her head . “ Teresa , I can’t take your money anymore . The person I’ve let down the most is you . ”
Teresa narrowed her eyes and stared hard at Evelyn . “ What do you mean ? Are you still hiding something from me ? ”
Evelyn kept dabbing at her eyes with a handkerchief , and finally , she let out the truth . That 2.6 million wasn’t even hers . It was the money Jonathan had given to Teresa .
“ When Jennifer got engaged , Jonathan came to me . He said he was leaving Nareigh and might never come back .
“ He wanted to give you 2.6 million as a wedding gift if you ever got remarried . He asked me to keep it safe for you . I … ” Evelyn couldn’t finish .
The news hit Teresa like a bolt of lightning .
After a while , Evelyn continued , “ I thought I could double the 2.6 million and turn it into 5.2 million . It’s all my fault . It’s not like when I started my business – making money is so much harder now . ”
Evelyn glanced nervously at Teresa , taking in her pale face and the deep disappointment , blame , and pain in her eyes .
Teresa snapped out of her daze and grabbed Evelyn’s shoulders , completely breaking down . “ How could you do this to me ? You spent Jonathan’s money . How am I supposed to face him now ?
“ I already can’t look him in the eye , and now you pull this ? What kind of mother does something like this ? Did you ever really love me ? ”
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Evelyn whispered , “ I’ll pay you back , bit by bit . I promise . ”
“ It’s too late . ” Teresa quickly grabbed Isabel’s packed luggage and tossed it out . “ Take your daughter and leave . I don’t have a mother like you . I was the idiot who thought you’d saved up a 2.6 million dollar engagement gift for me .”
“ Teresa- ”
Teresa slammed the door with a loud bang . Evelyn’s tearful , regretful eyes and her words continued to haunt Teresa’s mind .
‘ If Donald gave Evelyn 2.6 million to pass on to Jennifer , would she have kept it a secret , too ? And now , only now , does she tell me it was Jonathan’s money . How ridiculous , ‘ Teresa thought .
She leaned against the door , feeling as if all the strength had left her body .
At Forlisle Rose Estates in Nareigh , Donald stopped by to drop off some documents for Jonathan . “ Jennifer asked me to bring this to you , ” he said .
Jonathan opened the sealed envelope right in front of Donald . Inside was Teresa’s medical report , with a note at the bottom : [ No obvious abnormalities on ultrasound . ] Jonathan’s eyes darkened as he set the report down on the table .
Donald caught a glimpse and was a bit puzzled and surprised . ‘ What’s the deal with this report ? ‘ he wondered .
Jonathan , nursing his coffee , poured Donald a cup and gestured to a seat . “ Sit down . ”
Only then did Donald ask , “ Is this a pregnancy test for Teresa ? ”
Jonathan nodded . “ Yeah . I suspected Teresa might be pregnant with my child . That’s why I came back to Nareigh – to find out for sure . ”
Jonathan never fully bought Sanford’s story about the daughter . Once he learned Isabel was Teresa’s child , he believed Teresa’s explanation that it was all a misunderstanding . What mattered most to him was whether Teresa was actually pregnant .
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Donald suddenly understood . “ I see . The report says she’s not pregnant , right ? ”
Jonathan took a sip of coffee and looked at Donald , asking with meaning . “ Donald , can I trust you ? ”
Donald glanced at the report on the table and gave a helpless smile . “ You’re worried Jennifer would fake the results ? She wouldn’t . I promise – she’s a really professional doctor . ”
Jonathan didn’t say anything else . He just patted Donald on the shoulder with his broad palm . “ If I can’t trust my family , who can I frust ? ”