Chapter 520

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“ I don’t think this is trivial for you , ” Jonathan offered her a gentle smile . “ It’s wonderful you’ve finally found closure . Your mother truly does care about
you . ”
“ Well , ” Teresa adjusted her shawl . “ I really should thank you . “ .
“ You’ve thanked me a thousand times already . Mere words aren’t going to cut it . ” Jonathan teased .
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Teresa suddenly remembered Jonathan’s earlier remark . She shot him a glare . “ You look every inch the gentleman . Yet your mind’s always in the gutter . ”
With that , she strode forward , leaving him several steps behind . Jonathan sauntered after her , grinning as he teased . “ I’m a man . There are only two kinds of workouts for us – in the gym and in the bedroom . ”
Teresa turned to face him . “ Right now , I need to take care of my mom . I don’t have time for your kind of workout .”
Jonathan nodded with a smirk . “ I’ll take a rain check on that . But … ” Jonathan had already kissed Teresa’s lips , just to tide him over .
Evelyn still needed to get another MRI . If the results came back clear , she’d finally be able to go home . Teresa brought both Michael and Isabel along .
Isabel snuggled up beside Evelyn , completely oblivious to the fact that her parents had just been through a bitter legal battle , and that her father was now behind bars .
Evelyn decided to wait until Isabel was older before telling her that Charlie was in prison . It’s no use telling her now . She’s still too little to even understand what “ prison ” means .
“ Mike . ” Evelyn then said to Michael with a gentle smile , “ Grandma got you a notebook . Here , it’s for you . ”
It was a cartoon – patterned children’s notebook . Teresa couldn’t help but remember how , back in Fernlandia , Isabel had a notebook , the one with Jonathan’s signature on it .
tally torn Michael’s
Michael burst into tears , but Evelyn , clearly taking Isabel’s side , casually dismissed it with “ It’s just a notebook . ” Furious , Teresa took Michael and left .
Teresa was surprised to see the notebook . She turned to Evelyn and asked , “ When did you buy this ? ”
Evelyn smiled at Teresa , then at Michael . “ I bought this a long time ago , just for my dear Mike . ”
Michael looked up at Teresa , his face beaming . “ Mommy , this is a limited edition . ”
Teresa gave a small nod and ruffled Michael’s hair . “ Then say thank you to grandma .”
Michael beamed , “ Thank you , Grandma ! ”
“ I’m glad you like it , Mike , ” Evelyn said warmly . “ I’ll get you more nice notebooks whenever I find them . ”
Michael threw his little arms up and shouted , “ Yeah! ”
Seeing the child’s joyful smile , Teresa found herself smiling softly as well . ‘ Family bonds were always complicated and hard to understand , she thought . At that moment , she admitted to herself that she had never truly hated Evelyn .
‘ Maybe I’m just too tender – hearted , ‘ Teresa thought to herself . ‘ After all , she’s still my mother .
After Michael and Isabel had been playing in the ward for a while , Evelyn leaned in and whispered to Teresa . “ When are you going to tell Jonathan the
truth about Michael ? ”
“ I – I don’t know , ” Teresa murmured .
08:05 Thu , 17 Jul
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Evelyn let out a sigh , “ We were so worried something might go wrong at Hannah’s wedding . Despite all our careful planning , it was still Gordon who ended up causing trouble . Now that Hannah’s married , I think it’s time you told Jonathan the truth . ”
Just then , a nurse knocked on the door to inform Evelyn that it was time for her MRI scan . Teresa sidestepped the question , accompanying Evelyn for her MRI scan and leaving Michael and Isabel in the ward .
Michael gave a little hop and said , “ Mommy , I wanna come with you .”
Teresa turned to him and said , “ Sweetie , could you stay and play with Isabel for a little while ? Mommy and grandma will be back very soon , okay ? ”
“ Okay then . ” Michael finally agreed .
Just as Teresa and Evelyn headed downstairs , a lone figure took the elevator up to Evelyn’s hospital room . The two children , Michael and Isabel , were playing in the hospital room . Footsteps drew nearer .