Summer’s heart missed a beat upon hearing what Jerome said.
Adams started to set himself against Leonardo after having the DNA test.
Summer had guessed who was the other person in the DNA report. But she found it just made little sense.
Noticing Summer’s ever-changing expression on her face, Jerome said, “Like I said, it wasn’t difficult to guess. You already have the answer.”
“How could it be?” she mumbled.
Jerome looked at her but not said a word.
“How did you get this DNA report?” Summer asked, after seemingly having thought of something.
“No one could keep things under the hat forever,” Jerome said with a grim face.
Summer thought of what Leonardo had told her about Jerome. You cannot choose how you are born. She also thought of Adams, who used to be close to Leonardo. But when Adams found out they were not cousins but brothers, how was he expected to face Leonardo?
Exactly. Summer conjectured that the other person in the DNA report was Michael.
Just like everything else, it was a matter of cause and effect, which explained everything.
During the visit to the old residence, Michael had proposed for Adams to work in Emerson Corporation and wanted Leonardo and Adams to have each other’s back.
Before that, Michael had met with Leonardo over So Adams’s negative news.
Back then, Summer had sensed that Michael was more concerned about Adams than Leonardo. If Adams was Michael’s son born out of wedlock, that would explain everything.
Summer was more and more convinced that her conjecture was right.
“It is getting late now. Why don’t you buy me dinner?” Jerome’s words chopped off Summer’s train of thought.
“Sure. Let’s find a restaurant. I will drive.” Summer said as she got out of the car.
Jerome called out, “Can’t I eat at your place?”
She surely did not want to dine with Jerome at her place when she knew that he might be interested in her. She remained silent; it was her way of saying no.
“It is me. One misstep leads to another.”
Summer had no clue why he suddenly said that.
…
In order to show her sincerity, however, she found an upscale restaurant.
“Your generosity flatters me,” Jerome teased.
“You can choose not to eat,” she responded with a smile.
While ordering the food, Summer sensed that Jerome was staring at her. She quickly placed the order and then fiddled with her mobile phone.
“I suppose that Leonardo has told you about me?”
Summer could not help but look up at him.
“Yeah, I’m just the child of my mother and some random man outside. I don’t know who my father is. My existence is merely a fig leaf to hide the fact that my adopted father is a limp dick.”
It still felt difficult to hear that from Jerome’s mouth, even though Summer had heard it from Leonardo before.
She pursed her lips, then said, “Aren’t you eating? Why talk about this now?”
“Let me finish.” Jerome gazed at her.
She said nothing and let him finish whatever he wanted to say.
“Since my adopted father is impotent, my mother has had many men outside. They look like a loving couple on the outside, but there has been a running battle between them. It is almost too easy to know who I am…”
He knew he was not of the Patel bloodline when he was small. Naturally, he was not loved by the family and given any share in the family inheritance. So he had been acting gently to make people like him and earn their attention while looking for a wife with a good family background.
He knew that Summer liked him, and he enjoyed that feeling of being loved. So he kept flirting with her so Summer would keep on liking him.
However, Summer married Leonardo, an ugly and impotent man. As it reminded him of his mother, he started to despise Summer.
Of all the girls who liked him, Vicky came from a well-to-do family, and she was favored by Lynn, her father. He had figured if he married Vicky, Lynn would surely pay a handsome amount of dowry. But one thing he did not expect was how promiscuous Vicky was.
Of all the girls who liked him during his school days, Summer stood out as the different one. She admired him but was scared of being found out.
He was smarter than anyone else; he knew what he wanted, so he did not choose a woman like Summer as his wife. Perhaps that was life; one misstep led to another. Only when you reflected on it would you regret it.
Jerome held the glass of water in front of him and said solemnly, “Summer, I really like you, but I have discovered it too late.”
The more detached a person is, the easier it takes to move the person.
Everything he did and everyone he met in the past was to serve his utilitarian purpose, but he blew hot and cold toward Summer just so she would keep on liking him. However, things had changed. When Jerome expressed his feelings to her now, she could no longer feel a thing.
Summer was not interested in harping on the past. “Let’s not talk about this anymore. After this meal, we are still friends.” What was past was past. People needed to move on. And the best way to do that was to let go.
“Yeah, what is past is past.” Jerome paused, then continued. “But I want you to know that I will keep on liking you.”
Summer was drinking the water. Upon hearing that, she froze.
“Leonardo came to me and made me an offer: he would help me take over Patel Corporation with the condition that I should not meet you again.”
While speaking, he observed Summer’s reaction. “But I declined. His offer was tempting. But if I accept it, I wouldn’t have been able to confess my feelings to you like now. I have just discovered that many things are more important than money and power in life.”
Summer found that something was amiss with Jerome today. He apparently came prepared to confess his feelings to her.