That Can Be Arranged

Chapter 15

Chapter 15 You Can Stay

Tessa and Gregory stopped playing when the men came in. When she heard her name, she stood up and greeted, “Hello, Master Kieran. I’m here to perform for Gregory.”

“Perform?” Kieran was confused.

Gregory explained, “I asked her to come and play the piano with me. Her playing is wonderful!”

Hearing that, Kieran had a complicated look in his eyes as he shot a glance at Tessa.

Now, what does that supposed to mean? Tessa felt a little weird with him looking at her like that.

However, Kieran quickly averted his gaze as he spoke to his brother. “Nicholas, let’s talk somewhere else.”

Nicholas nodded nonchalantly, then said to Tessa, “Miss Reinhart, please keep Greg company for a while longer.”

With that, the three walked straight into the study. After entering the room, Nicholas finally queried, “What’s the matter?”

Edward and Kieran exchanged glances but stayed silent as they gave Nicholas a folder. There was a set of documents inside.

Nicholas took the documents and gave them a look. When he realized it was Tessa’s information, he thought that there was something up with her.

However, upon closer inspection, everything seemed to be alright.

Except for her mysterious disappearance for one whole year, Nicholas couldn’t see anything special about her data.

Kieran could see the confusion in his brother, so he hastily hinted, “Nicholas, look carefully at Tessa’s data from six years ago.”

Nicholas could only do as he was told, studying the information closely. He found that Tessa’s blood type was recorded, and also information that she was a top student at Southfield College. She was also qualified for a recommendation to study abroad in Vienna…

Everything perfectly matched the details of that woman six years ago.

His face went dark, and his tone was obviously colder than before. “What are you trying to say? That she is Greg’s biological mother?”

Seeing his brother’s dark expression, Kieran hastily explained, “Nicholas, we’re not saying that we’re a hundred percent sure, but the possibility is there.”

In order to guard the secret of the Sawyers’ genes so that no one would take advantage of it, the elders of the Sawyer Family had put in great effort to seal off their gene bank.

Hence, it was impossible to get a sample of Tessa’s genes. They had to tackle the problem from another angle.

“I asked Edward to investigate the school today, to figure out what Tessa did in her year of disappearance. We found that there were various versions of the story being circulated in the school. Some say that Tessa was pregnant out of wedlock, and she went to give birth to her child. Some others say that Tessa’s younger brother was critically ill, so she took some time off to take care of him… But, Nicholas, don’t you think that it’s weird? Tessa’s blood type was the exact same as the woman from that time. Also, Greg is never close to any outsiders, but he has taken to Tessa, and he’s exceptionally reliant on her.”

If possible, Kieran also wished that Tessa weren’t Gregory’s biological mother. After all, that woman was vain in the eyes of the Sawyers.

However, after the investigation, the truth had revealed itself. The explanation from the school stated that Tessa had taken one year off because her brother was critically ill.

However, Edward had asked Tessa’s neighbors, and they all testified that her brother was home the whole year and he wasn’t going through any treatment. He also didn’t know where his sister went. He had managed to survive on his pay from working as a tutor, plus the neighbors’ donations. Nôvel(D)ra/ma.Org exclusive © material.

Everything pointed to one possibility…

Tessa’s one year of disappearance coincided with the woman’s pregnancy right until childbirth!

Nicholas’ expression sank. It wasn’t fully confirmed that the woman was Tessa, but if Tessa really was Gregory’s mother, then what right did she have to stay by the child’s side?

She had abandoned Gregory for money, so what right did she have to be his mother?

Seeing his brother’s terrible expression, Kieran tried to appease him. “Nicholas, please calm down. We’re just guessing at this point, and we can’t be completely sure.”

The atmosphere around Nicholas turned cold, but he remained silent.

Boom!

Just then, a muffled thunder rolled across the night sky. When lightning struck the ground, the instant peal of thunder was deafening.

Kieran looked out the window and said, “Um, Nicholas, it’s going to rain soon. I’ll go back with Edward now, so please consider it carefully and decide how we should go about it. You can ask her directly or choose to keep observing.” With that, he left in a hurry.

After the two were gone, Nicholas sat for a long time, his dark eyes trained on Tessa’s data. His glare seemed to bore holes through the thin paper.

After a long while, he finally recovered himself and went down the stairs.

In the hall, Tessa could feel that Nicholas was emanating an aura much heavier than before. His gaze had also turned sharper. She had a feeling that these changes were directed at her.

Fear crept into Tessa’s heart, and she didn’t dare to stay much longer. She hastily stood up and said, “Um… President Sawyer, I think it’s going to rain soon, so I’ll take my leave now. Thank you so much for your invitation…”

“Are you leaving?”

Hearing Tessa’s words, Gregory instantly put on a longing face.

The look in Nicholas’ eyes was dark and hidden. He stared at Tessa for a few seconds, then narrowed his eyes as he said, “Since Greg insists, you can stay.”