Chapter 696
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A familiar scent approached , and Teresa jerked her head up .
“ How did you get in ? ” Teresa shot to her feet and asked , her eyes locked on Jonathan .
Jonathan didn’t say a word , his brow furrowed as he stared at the bracelet he’d given her .
An uneasy silence stretched across the room .
Teresa suddenly remembered that she had left the door unlocked all night , waiting for Michael to return . Holding on to a faint hope that he might bring Mike home , she stayed up until morning .
“ Where is Mike ? ” Teresa demanded .
Teresa pressed him again , but Jonathan remained fixated on the bracelet , still offering no reply . She caught the scent of alcohol on him , and her heart clenched . “ You’ve been drinking ? ”
“ I’ve got two questions for you . ”
Jonathan finally spoke up . He stared intently at Teresa , unblinking .
“ Was our son conceived during our divorce ? Why did you lie and say you took birth control ?”
Teresa took a deep breath , her voice steady . “ We were so estranged back then . I wanted to get it over with quickly . And honestly ,! didn’t think I could get pregnant
“ Why didn’t you abort him ? Why did you have him ? ” Jonathan pressed .
Teresa turned her face away and said softly , “ When a child is growing inside you , it takes incredible strength for a mother to choose abortion . I couldn’t bring myself to do it , so I decided to keep him . ”
Jonathan clenched the bracelet and demanded , “ Then why didn’t you tell me after he was born ? Why did you let everyone around you lie to me ? Why keep me in the dark ? ”
“ By then , we’d been divorced for ages , and you’d left Nareigh long before that . What would’ve been the point in telling you ?” Teresa retorted .
“ Then why didn’t you tell me even after I came back to Nareigh ? ” Jonathan pressed .
Although Teresa had already asked two questions , Jonathan was still far from satisfied .
He demanded , “ Even if you don’t want to remarry me , I’m still Mike’s father . Don’t I have the right to know that ? Don’t I have visitation rights ? To see him ? What gave you the right to keep this from me ? ”
His eyes were hard with finality . With a sharp ache in his knuckles , he threw the bracelet behind him .
With a sharp crack , the bracelet struck the ground and shattered into two pieces .
Teresa stared in utter disbelief , her heart clenching with sudden , agonizing pain . “ Have you lost your mind ? ” she shouted .
“ It’s nothing but a piece of glass , ” Jonathan said with a bitter smirk , a desolate stillness in his obsidian eyes . “ Even the most precious things can shatter easily . That alone shows how worthless they are . ”
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But what lay shattered was far more than just that bracelet .
Teresa pressed her lips together . With the bracelet shattered , she knew they could never go back to how things were
It was a tense standoff . Meeting his unnerving calm with equal composure , Teresa shot back , “ What exactly do you want ? Don’t you dare throw a drunken tantrum . ”
“ I’m completely sober ,” Jonathan replied .
Jonathan’s stance was proud and unyielding , charged with a desperate determination to risk everything .
Teresa’s eyes reddened as she took a moment to steady hersell “ Fine , have it your way , ” she said , her voice tinged with weary resignation . “ As long as you’re happy . ”
Teresa wanted to tell him about Mike many times .
Whether it was because of Irene , Jennifer , or someone else , for all sorts of reasons , she just didn’t tell Jonathan . And she didn’t want to blame anyone anymore .
All the pain of raising Mike on her own and the relentless weight of caring for those around her seemed to fall away from Teresa at
that moment .
A tense silence hung between them for a few seconds . Jonathan’s words abruptly shattered the silence .
“ I’m giving you two options . First , remarry me , ” Jonathan said .
“ What did you just say ? ” Teresa asked . She thought she had misheard .
Jonathan shifted his gaze slightly and repeated , his voice firm , “ We can remarry . ”
Teresa gasped , but she hadn’t missed the frost in his expression .
She said calmly , “ So you want to remarry to give Mike a so – called family ? That’s not what I want , and I doubt it’s what you want either . You hate me , and I resent you . Let’s not make each other miserable . ”
Jonathan crossed his arms , his expression unreadable as he stared at her . “ If you won’t choose this option , then you can take the second one , ” he added .
Teresa asked warily , “ What’s the second option ? ”
Jonathan slowly pulled the DNA test report from his pocket and handed it to Teresa .
She took it , her brow furrowing in renewed confusion as she scanned the document .
Looking down at her imperiously , Jonathan stated , “ This is a legally binding DNA test with my signature , From now on , it means ! officially acknowledge Mike as my son , and the law will recognize it too . ”
Teresa’s face paled . She thought , “ What does he mean by this ? Why is he bringing up legal matters ? ”
Jonathan said coldly , “ Mike is three years old now . He has the legal right to choose which parent he wants to live with my last name , Lynn , rather than your surname , Johnston . ”
take
Teresa finally understood what Jonathan meant
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Are you planning to sue me for custody of Mike ? No , you can’t do this . ”
Jonathan retorted , “ Why can’t 17 I had a lawyer witness the DNA test . By voluntarily acknowledging the child , I have every right to pursue custody . ”
Teresa cried out , “ Jonathan , how could you do this to me ? ”
Teresa , composed moments earlier , was now on the verge of breaking down . Jonathan watched her pale face and trembling hands , noted the flicker of fear in her eyes , then drew a breath and said , his expression unreadable .
“ You did this to me , and now you expect me to play nice ? Why should 17 ′′
Tears welled up in Teresa’s eyes , her voice trembling . “ Do we have to end up like this ? ” she pressed .
“ You think I wanted this ? ” Jonathan said as he looked away . “ You kept lying to me . You should have known this day would come Sending a three – year – old to hail a taxi alone ? I can’t begin to understand your thinking . ”
Teresa took a deep breath and said , “ I admit , sometimes I’m too careless , and I haven’t been the best mom . But I carried Mike for nine months . He’s my flesh and blood . My love for him is no less than yours .”
“ What good is love when it can’t put food on the table ? ” Jonathan said , with a complex mix of emotions .
Teresa’s crystal – clear eyes met Jonathan’s , and his gaze darkened .
“ With me , Mike will have far better living conditions and a top – tier education . These are things you can’t provide . ”
A bitter laugh escaped Teresa’s lips , laced with irony .
After the divorce , he built his career and became successful . Teresa , meanwhile , struggled to return to work and raise Mike alone . Now he stood there , lecturing her about her failures . Her only support had been her child .
“ What are you laughing at ? ” Jonathan asked .
Teresa let out another derisive laugh , her fear of him now completely gone .
“ Don’t you worry about public shame ? Suing your ex – wife for custody ? How dignified . ”
Jonathan remained impassive . “ Right now , the last thing I care about is dignity . ”
Seeing her unyielding defiance , Jonathan steadied himself and averted his gaze . “ You still have a chance , ” he said , “ to choose the first option I offered . ”
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