Chapter 582

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“ Fine , have it your way , ” Jennifer said with restrained frustration , seeing he was determined . “ I’m only thinking of what’s best for you , if you insist on going , then go alone . I’m not going . ”
“ Alright then , I’ll go by myself ” said firmly . “ I need to check on Mom . ” He left without breakfast , storming out of the house .
Jennifer was too furious to eat and
Teresa , too . I’m only trying to do what
down her fork . ‘ Every single time ,’ she fumed . ‘ No one I care about ever listens to me . Donald ignores me , and s best for them . ‘
The loneliness weighed heavily on her . The bitter taste of being alone was hard to endure .
Feeling isolated , Jennifer decid
to
I Teresa . “ Didn’t you say you had something to tell me ? I’m home now . If you’re free , come over
“ Or , how about you come to my office instead ? ” Teresa suggested .
“ Donald’s not home . Just come over . It’s s only me here , ” Jennifer said to Teresa before hanging up abruptly .
Teresa went alone to Jennifer’s house . Noticing the troubled look on Jennifer’s face , Teresa was about to ask what was wrong when Jennifer spoke up
first to explain , “ Werner is cheating . ”
“ What ? ” Teresa’s eyes widened in disbelief . She had always thought Werner wasn’t that kind of man .
Jennifer sneered , “ Technically , he went whoring . Is that really so rare ? People can change . Philip’s done far worse . This pales in comparison . ”
“ People aren’t all the same , ” Teresa said . “ Maybe there’s just been a misunderstanding ? ”
“ No misunderstanding , ” Jennifer said coolly . “ Donald’s mom is making a scene , demanding a divorce , and they’re even summoning Cheryl back . Honestly , I think their family is falling apart . ”
Jennifer said nonchalantly , her expression icy . Teresa asked , “ Aren’t you going back to check on them ? ”
“ Why should I ? ” Jennifer retorted . “ They’re not my parents . ”
never
“ They were good to you when you got married . Cathy wronged you . You should at least go back and show some concern , even if you have to fake it . Why must you be so cold – hearted ? ” Teresa said .
“ I can’t fake it , ” Jennifer said defensively . “ This is just who I am . I don’t have the energy to care about everyone . I know exactly who matters to me .
“ But the people I care about always end up misunderstanding me . Take you , for example . I’d never side with an outsider against you , yet you constantly take someone else’s side over mine . ”
Teresa knew exactly who Jennifer meant by “ someone else . ” “ I know his feelings for me are genuine ,” Teresa admitted . “ And I … I can’t let go of him . ”
Jennifer sneered , “ Just think about that disgusting mother of his . That should help you get over him .”
Teresa fell silent for two seconds before saying , “ Actually , this is what I wanted to talk to you about . I can’t keep dragging this on . Hiding the truth isn’t . going to solve anything .
“ For Mike , and for the baby I’m carrying , I need to tell Jonathan the truth about everything . I’m telling you now because I hope you’ll prepare an exit strategy for yourself . I don’t want you to be caught off guard when everything comes crashing down . ”
Jennifer stared in disbelief . “ Are you out of your mind ? Aren’t you afraid Irene will take Mike away ? Or Mike will have to grov . an illegitimate child , just like Sanford did ? Does none of that matter to you anymore ? ”
“ Sanford came to see me , ” Teresa said . “ He’s the one who convinced me I should come clean . ”
“ What ? ” Jennifer was completely caught off guard , and she had no idea Sanford was back in Nareigh .
th the stigma of being
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“ I’ve called Sanford , ” Teresa said . “ He’s on his way ”
Just then , the doorbell rang . Sanford was already at the door .
Sanford had been waiting for Teresa to make up her mind . Now that she’d finally decided to come clean about Michael , it was exactly what he’d been hoping for .
Jennifer couldn’t believe Sanford was standing against her at that moment . A sharp sense of betrayal hit her .
Jennifer said , “ Are you all going to betray me now ? Must you really see me lose everything , and watch the two of us become the laughingstock of Nareigh ? ”
“ Jennifer , things may not be as bad as you think , ” Sanford said gently .
Jennifer couldn’t take it anymore . “ I’m up for promotion to department head , Donald’s family is falling apart , and now my own family is crumbling too . He has no one but me left . Are you really determined to see my entire family destroyed ? ”
Sanford wasn’t entirely clear what Jennifer was getting at . She also told him about the turmoil in Donald’s family .
Sanford had only met Werner a few times , and the man had never really left much of an impression . He never would have guessed Werner was capable of something like this .
Jennifer said , “ If you tell the Lynn family now that Mike is Jonathan’s child , Irene , who’s been itching to lash out about this whole illegitimate child mess and couldn’t find an outlet , will finally have her target .
“ Irene will definitely come after all of us , especially Mike . Have any of you ever thought about how Mike would feel ? ”
Teresa’s face flushed with anger . “ I’m Michael’s mom . How could I ‘ not ‘ consider my child’s feelings ? It’s precisely because I must consider his feelings that I don’t want him to grow up not knowing who his father is . ”
“ Alright , ” Sanford cut in , sensing the rising tension . “ Come on , you two , calm down . You’re family . Let’s talk this out properly . ”
Jennifer glared at Sanford , her voice laced with accusation . “ If you still considèr me a friend , how could you possibly advise my sister to confess ? Isn’t that just betraying me ? ”
Sanford pursed his lips . “ Jennifer , I swear I never meant to hurt either of you . I would never do anything to harm you . But I can’t just stand by and let an innocent child get hurt . ”
Jennifer argued , “ Mike’s life is perfectly peaceful right now . If you tell him the truth , you’ll just turn his world upside down . That’s not helping him , but you’re all just ruining him . ”
Teresa drew a deep breath and stood up . She couldn’t take it anymore . ‘ I know this is how you feel , Jennifer , ‘ she thought , ‘ but I just can’t wait any longer . ‘
Teresa said , “ I’m just here to tell you : I have to come clean about Mike . I want my child to have a normal life , at least here in Nareigh .
“ He deserves to go to kindergarten without fear , to face the world without shame , and to proudly call his father ‘ Dad ‘ in the open . ” Without another word , Teresa turned and walked out .
“ If you dare tell him , then consider me no longer your sister .” Jennifer watched Teresa walking away , her heart sinking . Silence was her only answer . Jennifer was utterly crushed .
Sanford didn’t leave immediately . He said to Jennifer , “ Let her say what she wants . She may be your sister , but it’s her put all the blame on me . ”
“ Jonathan’s no fool . He’d never buy that , ” Jennifer said bitterly . As she spoke , Jennifer let out a bitter , self – mocking laugh .
If anything comes up , just
“ My job is as good as gone . Now everything I’ve worked for in Nareigh will be completely wasted . Donald will see me as nothing but a total fraud .
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“ He’ll be disappointed in me , and he’ll divorce me . His parents are already splitting up , and i can’t lose him either . But you’re all pushing me to the
brink . ”