Chapter 1076

Teresa had been thinking about some things for the past few days. At night, after the kids fell asleep, she had something she wanted to tell Jonathan in private.

She knocked on Jonathan’s door. Jonathan had just finished taking a shower and was drying his still-damp hair with a towel. As she entered, Jonathan arched an eyebrow at her and asked, “What’s up?”

“I need to tell you something,” Teresa said.

“Come in,” Jonathan replied, stepping aside. It was Teresa’s first time in Jonathan’s room, and she saw the photos of their two kids on the nightstand.

After becoming a parent, children become the most important thing. Teresa thought she couldn’t be so selfish anymore because she felt she wasn’t a good enough mother.

“Mike told me today that all the kids at his kindergarten have their father’s last names, and he’s the only one who has his mother’s,” Teresa said.

Jonathan set the towel down on his lap, looking at Teresa as if he already knew what she was going to say.

“You don’t have to worry about it. It doesn’t matter,” Jonathan said.

“Nope. Felix’s name is Felix Lynn,” Teresa said.

Jonathan’s eyes finally showed a flicker of emotion. He thought, ‘What does she mean?’

Teresa explained, “When grandpa and Werner came to me and asked me to let our second child take your surname, I made up my mind to do so.”

Jonathan took a deep breath and asked, “So, you and Gary were in this together?”

Gary had told Jonathan that the child’s name was Felix Johnston. In Jonathan’s mind, Felix’s name had always been Felix Johnston.

Teresa said, “I didn’t plot with him or anything. I just told Gary that I wanted our second child to have your last name.”

Jonathan fixed his gaze on Teresa and asked, “Why did you do that?”

“For one thing, I didn’t want to put grandpa in a difficult situation. I know he hoped that at least one grandchild would carry on the family name. And I think you deserve to be their father,” Teresa replied.

Jonathan suddenly went quiet. After a few seconds, he said, “Why are you telling me this now?”

If Teresa hadn’t told him, he would have been kept completely in the dark. He never expected that Felix’s last name was Lynn.

“I don’t know how to bring this up when your mom is around. Even if I brought it up, you probably wouldn’t believe me,” Teresa said.

“You’re their mother. My mother won’t try to take the kids away from you again. I’ve already signed that agreement. You don’t have to worry about it,” said Jonathan.

Teresa shook her head and said, “Your mother has always misjudged me, mainly because of the kids. I’ve always been afraid that she’d try to take the kids away, as she believes I can’t take good care of them.

“I’ve given this a lot of thought. I can’t raise the kids on my own at the moment. I want to prove myself, but that takes time. If I focus on that, I won’t have the time to be there for the kids.

“Maybe the kids should be with you.”

Jonathan finally grasped what Teresa meant, and his expression turned somber. “You’re going to give me custody of both children now, aren’t you? Do you see them as mere objects to be disposed of?”

“I’m thinking about what’s best for them. I can’t be selfish anymore. If they stay with you, they’ll have a much brighter future,” Teresa said.

Jonathan’s connections and resources could provide opportunities for the kids that she couldn’t. She had nothing. If she persisted in keeping the kids with her, it would only hold them back.

Even though it would break her heart, at least it was for the sake of the kids’ future.

“It wasn’t until Mike started school that I realized perhaps I was wrong. If I let both kids stay with you, I’m sure your relationship with your mother will also improve,” Teresa said.

Jonathan still didn’t say a word. His eyes narrowed slightly as he fixed his gaze on Teresa.

“Is this the only solution you can come up with? There’s a way to have the best of both worlds. Why won’t you even consider that?” said Jonathan.

“What?” asked Teresa.

“Remarry me,” Jonathan said with mixed feelings. And he added, “I don’t want our kids to end up in a single-parent family like I did.”

Especially when Jonathan was overseas, Michael would call him and cry. Hearing Michael’s sobs just broke Jonathan’s heart. Those cries made Jonathan want to try for a real family again, even though he knew Teresa didn’t love him.

“I know my mother has hurt you a lot. She does owe you an apology,” Jonathan said.

He paused and then added, “I want to give her some time. She’ll realize what she did was wrong.”

Teresa’s mind was a mess. “I’m not sure. I just thought that if I gave you custody of the kids, I could throw myself into my work,” she said.

Jonathan said, “Do you think you can take on the business world all by yourself? It’s tough. But if we get back together, you’ll have access to all my resources and connections. Even if you run into difficulties, I’ll always support you.”

“That’s not what I want,” Teresa said.

Irene’s words echoed in her mind. “You’re nothing without my son.”

“It’s up to you,” Jonathan said. With a hint of anger, he walked past Teresa and headed to his study room. Then Teresa left.

Now that Teresa had finally told Jonathan all those things, there were some things she just couldn’t avoid any longer. Her heart twisted with pain.

Teresa went to the office early the next morning. She had taken a few days off and was now mostly back to normal.

Her desk was piled high with gifts. Teresa looked puzzled as Miriam walked in and said, “Happy birthday!”

Teresa had forgotten it was her birthday today. She checked the calendar and found it was January 16th.

“All of these are from the company’s execs. Guess which one is my birthday present for you?” Miriam asked.

Teresa looked at all the gifts. Her eyes settled on the purple box in the middle. “This one, right?” she guessed.

“You got it. I knew purple was your favorite color. I know you so well!” Miriam said with a grin.

Teresa smiled as a wave of bittersweet emotion washed over her.

She was already 28. She couldn’t help wondering what kind of life she had had in these years. She didn’t want to be the same as she was now anymore. She always thought there were infinite possibilities.

“Let’s go to the meeting,” Teresa said.

Teresa never mentioned to Miriam that she’d been sick. It was just a fever, and she didn’t want Miriam to worry about her.

Just as Teresa was about to enter the meeting room, her phone suddenly rang. It was Lucas.

Teresa picked up the phone and thought perhaps Lucas was calling to wish her a happy birthday. However, she was confused because she had never even told Lucas when her birthday was.

The person on the other end wasn’t Lucas.

“What? Okay, I got it. I’ll be there right away,” said Teresa.

Lucas got into a car accident that morning and was now in the hospital, receiving emergency treatment.