Chapter <b>25 </b>


    “The door password is your birthday,” Jeffrey said to Samuel gently. “Everything inside is set up just like home.”


    “Home is wherever Mommy is,” Samuel replied protectively.


    Jeffrey raised an eyebrow, his eyes settling on Reba.


    Feeling uneasy under his gaze, Reba pulled out a chair, sat down at the table, and said dismissively, “If there’s nothing else, you should go. We’re having dinner.”


    “Didn’t you eat earlier? Why eat again?” Jeffrey asked Samuel.


    “Mommy’s cooking is delicious,” the boy answered softly.


    Jeffrey nced at the dishes on the table–they did look good, Still, he said, “Even if it’s tasty, don’t overeat. You’ll upset your stomach<i>.</i>”


    Reba’s grip tightened around her fork. ‘He’s referring to me, isn’t he?‘ she thought.


    “Big meals after dark will wreck your health,” Jeffrey added, noticing her irritation. “Understand?”


    Samuel nodded but kept eating.


    Even after the dinner was over, Jeffrey remained in the living room. He sent Samuel to his bedroom to study, then settled onto the couch, watching


    Reba.


    She cleared the table and carried the dishes to the sink. Just when he expected her to leave them, she turned on the water and carefully washed each


    dish.


    Watching her tender hands sink into the soapy water, fingers brushing against greasy bowls, Jeffrey frowned. Those hands ought to be holding a paintbrush or gliding across piano keys–not scrubbing dishes.


    He watched as long as she washed. After putting everything away, she came out of the kitchen and met his steady gaze. She paused for a while and asked, “Why are you still here?”


    Instead of answering, he asked, “Have you gotten used to life without the Hanson name?”


    “Yeah, very much,” Reba replied coolly.


    Jeffrey didn’t challenge her. He thought she had been used to a life where she didn’t have to cook, clean, or do chores–she couldn’t have adjusted so quickly to doing it all herself.


    “Quit the job at Lucas’s ce soon,” he said. That was why he had stayed. “You should know that position was tailor–made for you by Stephen.”


    Reba’s brow furrowed slightly. ‘But the job was posted by the Reed family.‘


    Jeffrey leaned backzily against the sofa arm. “Emily has always taken ballet. Why would she suddenly need a ssical dance teacher?”


    Reba paused, her mind raced as she tried to search her memory for the Reeds. But her knowledge was mostly limited to Jeffrey’s friends, and she knew next to nothing about Lucas.


    “Samuel has martial arts all day Saturday,” Jeffrey added calmly. “Emily has dance ss on Saturday morning. You think that’s a coincidence?”


    Reba was almost convinced. Stephen could easily arrange something like this. Shortening the schedule to just the morning to avoid raising suspicion sounded exactly like something he’d do.


    “If you don’t want to fall into his trap, quit now,” Jeffrey said, reading her hesitation perfectly. “You know how he operates.”


    20:27 Sun, 14 Sept


    Reba’s thoughts churned bitterly ‘Yeah, I know. But what choice do I have?


    If I quit, how do I make money? y piano on the street? Jeffrey will make things difficult for me. Find another job? I still remember those interviews i missed because of his interference.


    She met Jeffrey’s eyes steadily. “I’ll take whateveres.”


    “Stephen is a nightmare, Jeffrey another minefield. Neither option is good. I might as well choose the one that pays–cash is all that matters now,” Reba thought.


    Jeffrey fixed his gaze on her, searching for any hint that she might be joking.


    “Besides,” Reba added, “that’s just your version. Stephen has nothing on me. Why would he even set a trap for someone like me?”


    Jeffrey’s gaze intensified. He couldn’t tell her the trap wasn’t meant for her–but for him.


    <b>“</b>Even if he is using me, it’s to get to someone else,” Reba went on, shifting gears. “He’s offering good money for easy work. So what if he uses me?”


    “What if he goes after Samuel?” Jeffrey asked, surprised by her response.


    “Stephen ys dirty and can be pretty intense,” Reba said, each wordnding like a trigger on Jeffrey’s nerves, “but he wouldn’t harm a child.”


    Jeffrey’s eyes turned cold, his aura heavy with menace. “How much have you interacted with him? How well do you know him?”


    “Why would she defend Stephen? What has he done to win her trust?‘ he wondered, a bitter edge to his thoughts.


    “He won’t,” Reba insisted firmly.


    Jeffrey’s grip tightened around his phone.


    Reba checked the time and said calmly, “If there’s nothing else, you should go.”


    Just as she finished speaking, a sh of lightning lit up the sky<i>, </i>followed by a loud crack of thunder that rattled the windows.


    Reba had always been scared of loud thunder. Her body tensed reflexively when the first boom hit. As the sound faded, she hurried to the window, pulling the curtains tight, hoping to shut out the storm.


    Jeffrey watched it all quietly. Just as he was about to say something, his phone buzzed–Andrea’s name shed on the screen.


    Reba saw it too after shutting the curtains.


    Jeffrey’s long, defined fingers glided across the phone, and the call went through.


    “Jeffrey, where are you?” Andrea’s trembling voice came through the speaker. “Can youe to Harmony Estate? I’m scared of the thunder.”


    A faint smirk touched Reba’s lips. ‘Andrea is scared of thunder? Come on.’


    Back in college, after they’d fallen out, Andrea and some others had once locked Reba in the school’s equipment room during a storm. She stood outside with her arms crossed, watching Reba panic.


    Thunder crashed. Reba covered her ears, frozen in fear, while Andrea chatted cheerfully just beyond the door,


    She couldn’t hear Andrea’s words through her covered ears, but that look of pure, vindictive satisfaction was burned into her memory–a moment she’d never shake.


    Fueled by old wounds or just a desire to needle Andrea, Reba jumped in before Jeffrey could speak. “Mr. Hanson, your wife is waiting. Shouldn’t you go home instead of clinging to me?”


    On the other end of the line, Andrea felpletely silent. Her eyes turned sharp and cold, her grip on the phone so tight the screen nearly cracked.


    ‘Why is Jeffrey with Reba? Was it his heart or her call that brought him there?‘ Andrea thought. But no matter the reason, she couldn’t stand it. ‘He belongs to me. I won’t let anyone take him away.‘


    “Jeffrey, are you with Reba?” Andrea’s voice cracked, threatening to break into sobs.