Chapter 144

Teresa pulled a scarf from a paper bag and gave it to Michael. "I got you a scarf."

Michael tilted his head. "Mommy, it took you two days to get me this scarf."

"Uh, yeah, well, at least I brought it back," Teresa replied, feeling a bit guilty. She entered the room with Michael following. As she removed her coat, Michael noticed her neck. "Mommy, your neck is hurt!"

Teresa paused, realizing something. She grabbed a silk scarf from the bedside table and quickly tied it around her neck. "I'm fine. I accidentally scratched myself while sleeping last night."

"Mommy," Michael narrowed his eyes, identical to his father's. "You're acting odd."

Teresa was flustered. "W-What? What do you mean? Don't look at me like that."

Michael sniffed Teresa, then put his hands on his hips. "You smell like Mr. Lime. You were with him last night, weren't you?"

Teresa broke into a cold sweat, wondering about her son's sharp nose. She protested, "I-I wasn't hanging out with him. I hardly know the guy!"

"Then why do you smell like Mr. Lime?" Michael pressed.

"He's a guy, not a butterfly. How could he have a scent?" Teresa exclaimed.

"I smelled it when Mr. Lime carried me. Now you have it too," Michael stated.

Teresa stammered, "T-That's because... you left your scarf at the movie theater and he took it. I just got it from him, that's all. We met briefly!"

"Oh," Michael stroked his chin. "Did you meet him briefly? But you didn't come back all night."

Teresa was speechless. "Mommy, Mommy!" Michael tugged her sleeve, eyes shining. "Do you like Mr. Lime? Is that why you were with him yesterday?"

"I-I don't like him, not even a bit," Teresa denied. "All right. I'm going to change now. Go out and close the door."

"Okay," Michael replied.

Once he left, Teresa removed her scarf and sniffed it. There was no trace of Mr. Lime's scent. She wondered how Michael detected it.

When Teresa left the room, Michael approached her. "Mommy, there's no scent of Mr. Lime on the scarf, only on you."

Teresa retorted, "Are you done yet? Are you a puppy? You seem to love sniffing around so much."

Michael pouted. "I just want to know if you like Mr. Lime or not." He tugged her hand. "We're close, right? You can tell me secretly. I won't tell anyone."

"You..." Teresa sat on the couch, locking eyes with her son. After a moment, she sighed. In her twenty-seven years, she'd never been left speechless by her two-and-a-half-year-old son.

"Okay, fine, I like him," Teresa admitted.

"Wow!" Michael clapped happily. "You like Mr. Lime, I like Mr. Lime, and Mr. Lime likes us. We're meant to be a family!"

Teresa explained, "Liking someone doesn't mean you have to become a family."

"Why not? I don't get it. You like handsome guys. Mr. Lime is handsome. You like rich guys, and Mr. Lime is rich. If you like him, why not be with him?" Michael questioned.

Teresa lost her patience. "Michael, you're full of questions. Are you a two-and-a-half-year-old boy or not? Just behave like kids your age do, okay?"

Michael puffed out his cheeks. Since Teresa was secretive, he decided to tell Jonathan his mom liked him. But Teresa had taken away his phone.

Teresa went to the kitchen to prepare food. Only after finishing did she see Jonathan's message. The wine test results came back; it was spiked.

Jonathan informed Irene and Simona's father, Steven Larkin, of the findings.

Meanwhile, at the Larkin residence, Steven slapped Simona hard across the face, reddening her cheek. He was so angry he wanted to kick her, but Felicia Larkin stopped him.

"Why are you stopping me? I need to knock some sense into her! Look at her—obsessed with a man, shamelessly going to his place every day, even secretly drugging him," Steven fumed.

He raged, "Jonathan sent me the evidence and surveillance footage. You've thoroughly embarrassed me!"

Steven had paid Jonathan to not call the police; otherwise, the Larkin family would be front-page news.

Simona covered her face, kneeling. "But I just like him! What am I supposed to do? If he liked me, I wouldn't have to act so extreme."

"Have some sense! This isn't why I sent you abroad to study and raised you to be a socialite. He's not the only man in Nareigh. Moreover, he's divorced!" Steven grumbled.

He added, "Yes, he's handsome. Horizonlead Group is the most powerful in Nareigh. If this marriage works out, I wouldn't care about his past divorce. But if you can't win him over, there are plenty of men out there."

Felicia agreed, "Your dad's right. We've had high hopes for you, Simona. You shouldn't be like this. There are plenty of good men in Nareigh."

Simona lifted her head. "What do you guys know? Do you understand what liking someone feels like? It's been hard enough finding someone I genuinely like. He's divorced but has no kids, so he's single."

"You're not thinking clearly!" Steven slapped Simona again, ignoring Felicia.

"You're shameless and have lost all sense of self-respect. How did I raise someone like you? All you think about is love, and you even drugged a man. You're the only one in this circle who's completely lost your reputation."

"Alright, alright!" Felicia stopped her husband. "Stop hitting Simona. I'll talk to her."

Steven's chest heaved with anger as he glared at Felicia. "Return the gifts Jonathan's mother sent! Our relationship is sour! Since Jonathan disregards us, I'll show him what we're made of soon."

He turned and walked away. Felicia sighed, looking at her disappointing daughter. They'd invested heavily in her studies, but her academic performance was lackluster. Simona only cared about dressing up and having fun, dating many men, but never this infatuated before.

Felicia said, "I've met the CEO of Horizonlead Group. He's handsome, and he handles himself well. Otherwise, he wouldn't have grown the company so fast. Understandably, you like him, but he doesn't like you. You two aren't meant to be. You're almost thirty, not a teenager anymore. You should find someone who likes you back," she advised.

Simona cried and smashed things. "I just can't stand it! What did I do wrong? He's divorced, and it's clear he doesn't deserve me."

"I've been constantly trying to please his mother, and it's getting on my nerves. Yet, he won't even spare me a glance. Why is he treating me like this?" she complained.

It was the first time Simona felt wronged. He even exposed that she spiked his drink. She mused, 'How could he do this to me?' She also wondered how Jonathan found out. She'd left the wine on his table; he wasn't supposed to drink it. Thinking about it, Simona furiously smashed another vase.