“I… I don’t know,” Cheryl stammered, her voice trembling as she tried to defend herself. “You don’t know?” Jonathan’s gaze locked onto her, sharp and unrelenting. “The shop you opened near Teresa’s apartment—where’d you get the money for that? How much did it cost to take over the place?”

“I… I…” Cheryl faltered, her words tripping over each other. “I only helped her sell her house, but I really don’t know where she is now. I can’t reach her. She must have changed her number.”

“Wait a second.” Jonathan’s brows furrowed even deeper.

Finally, Cheryl caved. She admitted that the current owner of the house was a friend of hers and that Teresa’s house had been sold to this friend. “So, when I came to Lonisburg last time, you saw me. Why didn’t you say anything then?”

“I… I was scared you’d grill me like this, okay?” Cheryl blurted out, her voice rising defensively. “Jonathan, I swear I really don’t know where Teresa is. If you don’t believe me, check our messages.”

To prove her point, Cheryl pulled up her last few messages with Teresa and handed her phone to Jonathan. His eyes quickly zeroed in on one particular line: “[Teresa, I’ve transferred the 390 thousand from the house sale to you.]”

Jonathan’s mind flashed back to Benson, the current owner, who had told him he bought the house for 510 thousand. Yet Cheryl claimed it was sold for only 390 thousand.

It all clicked in an instant. Jonathan’s gaze darkened as he watched Cheryl’s darting eyes. “So, the money for your shop came from the house sale, huh? You skimmed off Teresa’s money to fund it, didn’t you?”

“I… I didn’t. I got a loan from the bank,” Cheryl stammered, avoiding Jonathan’s gaze. Jonathan raised an eyebrow, his tone sharp. “Really? That’s the best excuse you could come up with? You’re fresh out of school, barely working—what bank would lend you money?”

Realizing she couldn’t keep up the lie, Cheryl hesitated before nodding reluctantly. “Teresa said 390 thousand was fine. I mean, she’s loaded anyway.”

Jonathan frowned deeply. “It doesn’t matter how rich she is—her money is hers. You had no right to take it. If you needed money, you should’ve just asked me.”

Benny chimed in with a casual shrug, “Jonathan’s right, Cheryl. Teresa’s not even your sister-in-law anymore. Taking her money like that? That’s just wrong.”

Cheryl glared at Benny, her cheeks puffing in frustration. Benny wisely decided to back off, turning to Jonathan instead. “Your sister’s definitely holding a grudge against me. So, Jonathan, what do I do now?” Benny said with a teasing smile.

“No, no, Benny, I wouldn’t dare hold a grudge against you. I know I messed up,” Cheryl quickly replied, her tone softening as she tried to smooth things over.

Knowing when to back down, Cheryl lowered her head, her voice filled with guilt. “Jonathan, I’m sorry. I’ll give the money back to Teresa and explain everything. But I can’t reach her right now.”

Jonathan’s emotions were a mess. Teresa had told him not to bother her. But now that he knew Cheryl had pocketed the money from Teresa’s house sale, he couldn’t just turn a blind eye. It felt like fate was forcing him to step in, to find her, and to meet her again.

“Teresa’s out of town right now, taking some time for herself. She doesn’t like being disturbed,” Jonathan said. “I’ll talk to her about this when I see her.”

Cheryl nodded hesitantly. “So… does that mean I have to give up the shop?”

“You don’t need to close the shop. I’ll cover the money for you and pay Teresa back myself,” Jonathan replied.

Hearing this, Cheryl felt even more ashamed. She lowered her head further and stammered, “I’m sorry, I’m really sorry. I know I messed up and caused you so much trouble. Please don’t tell Mom and Dad. They’ll kill me if they find out.”

Cheryl had been staying in Lonisburg without telling anyone. The whole family thought she was out of town hosting an art exhibition—even Donald believed it. If Benny hadn’t tipped him off, Jonathan wouldn’t have known that Cheryl had taken Teresa’s money.

“This is the last time, Cheryl. Don’t let it happen again,” Jonathan said firmly.

After Jonathan left, Benny figured he might as well head out too. He had hoped to find some clues about Teresa, but he came up empty-handed and even accidentally got on Cheryl’s bad side. She was glaring at him like she wanted to set him on fire. “Hey, Cheryl, stop staring at me like that. I know I’m handsome, and yeah, your eyes are big—so what?”

“Ugh, you’re so annoying. Always meddling in other people’s business. You’re the worst.”

“What was that? What did you just call me?” Benny tilted his head, feeling like the phrase sounded oddly familiar.

Cheryl rolled her eyes and gave Benny a light kick. “You’re the absolute worst. Why did you have to snitch on Jonathan? Now I look like some kind of bad girl. It’s all your fault, you meddling troublemaker.”

Benny pressed his lips together, looking utterly innocent. Seeing how red Cheryl’s face had gotten from anger, he explained, “I was just trying to help Jonathan find Teresa quickly.”

“Ugh. You’re always like this—sticking your nose where it doesn’t belong.”

Benny chuckled. “Come on, Cheryl, how am I meddling in your business? This was just a one-time thing, purely accidental. Are you really going to hold a grudge against me for this? That’s a bit much, don’t you think?”

“Hmph. Whatever, you’re still not a good person.” Cheryl waved him off, urging him to leave. Not only was he meddlesome, but now he was a lazy mule too.

“Alright, I’m leaving. I was thinking of treating you to a meal to apologize.”

“Thanks but no thanks. I’m not sharing a meal with a meddling person.”

“Fair enough,” Benny said with a shrug. “How about I send you some money instead? Consider it my way of apologizing for calling Jonathan and exposing your secret. Deal?”

Cheryl puffed out her cheeks, still fuming, and refused.

Benny couldn’t help but glance at Cheryl a few more times. The more he looked, the more he felt something was off about her figure. It was hard to describe, and he couldn’t quite put his finger on it.

“Add me on WhatsApp. If you ever need help and your brother doesn’t reply, you can reach out to me. I’m close with him.”

Cheryl snorted, “Fine, but if I add you, I’m going to roast you every chance I get.”

Benny laughed. Cheryl’s profile picture was an adorable cartoon bunny. After adding her, Benny sent her a transfer of 600 bucks. “Take the money. And seriously, cut back on the snacks and take care of yourself.”

“You—” Cheryl angrily accepted the transfer, then promptly changed Benny’s contact name to “Jerk Benny” to vent her frustration.