Chapter 94 Chapter 94
“Marketing, and until we get married, our relationship remains a secret,” she said confidently.
“Okay, beauty.”
Tessa
When I woke up, the sun was streaming in through the windows. Last night, after a shower, we came to bed, and I was out instantly. He was asleep beside me, his hands wrapped around me. I tried to move but couldn't; he had a death grip on my waist, which made me smile.
“Let me go; I need to check on Dad and make breakfast,” I said.
“Okay, wake me up when you’re finished. Let him come up here,” he said, half asleep.
When I sat up, I froze. My picture was on the wall facing the bed. He had it blown up and framed. I hit his arm.
“Babe, what is my picture doing there?”
“I missed you,” he replied, hugging my waist.
When I walked out, I found another picture in the living room. I headed down and found Carlo and Rob in my apartment, eating breakfast with my dad.
“I’ve made breakfast; where is Zaiel?” Dad asked.
“He’ll be here in a few. I’m going to grab a shower.”
After my shower, I called him and told him to come down to breakfast. Fifteen minutes later he came in and we had breakfast. My father was on the balcony drinking coffee.
“What are you doing today?”
“Nothing, waiting for you. I’ll visit my parents later today. We have dinner with them tomorrow at their place. You need to go shopping for working clothes and stuff; take your dad and take Jax or Rob. “I already informed your friends; call them,” he said as he drank his coffee.
“Yeah, sure.”
He pushed an envelope in front of me and nodded at it.
“What’s that?”
“Yours,” he said, sitting back and smirking.
I opened the envelope and dumped everything onto the table: ID card, Social Security card, and credit cards. I picked up the ID card. Tessa Jansen Rhyland. I looked at him.
“How long have you had these?”
“Since we got married, I was waiting for you to visit so I could give it to you, but everything else happened. Besides, I wasn't going to divorce you.” he said.
“Really?”
“Yes, now go spend my money,” he said.
“I will,” I said with a smile.
He kissed me and left after saying bye to my dad. At ten, Dad and I went shopping. Jax drove us; I needed my Jeep. While browsing one of the more luxury stores, I spotted Avani and Hannah. I didn't look at them; I tried to avoid them.
They walked past us; Hannah kept her eyes down, and Avani didn't even notice us. Well, that was their problem.
Sunday night before dinner, Dad was nervous. He tried to back out multiple times. “Tessa, maybe this isn't a good idea,” he said, sitting down on the couch.
“Dad, just relax.”
“Yes, but these are rich people,” he said.
“Dad, just relax.”
When Jax pulled up to the Rhyland House, I stopped for a second. I was stumped; he said a house,this was a damn mansion. He was waiting for us on the steps. The second he saw us, he came over and shook my father's hand and kissed me. The door opened, and Mr. and Mrs. Rhyland came out.
She came to me and hugged me. “Oh Tessa, it’s so good to have you back,” she said, smiling at me.
“It’s good to be back, Mrs. Rhyland. Mr. Rhyland, hello.”
“Hello, sweetheart,” he said, smiling.
“Mr. Jansen, Hello, welcome to our home.” Mr. Rhyland said, shaking my father’s hand.
“Arthur is fine, Mr. Rhyland,” Dad said.
“Fine, I am Anthony, and this is my wife, Alina. Please come in,” Mr. Rhyland said, leading us into the house.
After we walked in, Hannah and Avani were sitting in the living room.
“Mom, who is this?” Avani asked, and I looked at Zaiel. He leaned in.
“She had an accident and lost her memory; that's the story apparently," he whispered. I nodded.
“This is your sister-in-law and our in-law. Tessa’s father” Alina said
“Really? I kept asking Zaiel to bring you over.” Avani said, rushing towards me and grabbing my hand. I looked at Zaiel, and he just shrugged. He left with his father and my father and went somewhere.
Avani was asking me question after question; Hannah didn't look pissed, she just sat there, not really saying much.
“Avani, stop, please,” Hannah said. After they left, it was just me and Alina.
“Zaiel told us, and our decision won’t change. To be honest, Anthony, Zaiel and even I would go to the same length to protect our children,” she said.
“When he didn’t believe me, I thought he didn’t care about me. But later I came to understand that it wasn't because he didn't believe; it was because they flooded him with fake proof that I was lying and they were right. He regrets a lot of things.”
“Yes, he probably does, but I think he is happy knowing you didn't let that ruin your life and that you can have a normal relationship,” she said.
“But Zaiel and I married only so your family could solve the problem; we can have a divorce now.”
“Zaiel won’t let you go; that much I know. He loves you. We need to plan the wedding,” she said.
“About that, I will start working in the marketing department of Rhyland Global. I really don't want to be idle, and I asked Zaiel to keep our relationship private for the time being.”
“And that’s fine. Come on, let’s go have dinner.”
During dinner, my father and Anthony were actively discussing football; my father looked lighter. Avani was making conversation, asking about my likes and dislikes, and it bothered me. Then she asked if I was allergic to anything, and I said "nuts" before even thinking about it, and Zaiel looked at me; I just shook my head.
Dinner continued, and by the time we were ready to leave, my father seemed more relaxed and was laughing with Anthony. When we got back to the apartment, Dad went straight to bed. He said he had a good night.
After my shower I was going to head upstairs, but when I opened my room door, he was standing there.
“Let’s go to sleep,” he said, dragging me to the bed.
Zaiel
I woke up with her wrapped up around me like a spider monkey. I checked the time; it was six AM. I removed her hands, but she just held on tighter, which made me shake my head. I moved her and got off the bed and headed back up to my apartment.
After a shower and getting dressed for the office, I headed back down to her apartment. This was too much of a hassle. Anthony has rarely been here since his mother passed away; I wonder if he would be willing to sell it. As I walked past, I stopped short. Wouldn't it be better to buy a damn house?
When I got to her apartment, Arthur was already awake and on the balcony.