Forbidden Passion

Theodore had just returned to his hotel room and couldn't wait to start a video call. Seeing Phoebe's adorably puffed-up face, he couldn't help but laugh. "Just catching you off guard so you'd answer my call," Theodore said with a beaming smile, not giving her time to react. "What are you doing?" Phoebe replied, "Nothing much, just having some downtime."

Theodore's eyes darted around her camera view as if trying to inspect every corner of her room for any hidden men.

"Is there a man with you?"

Phoebe was confused, "What man? Don't say such things."

Theodore smirked, "So, there's no man with you?"

Phoebe's attention was diverted by his question. She said, "I don't have any random men here, but that doesn't mean there are no men in my house."

Theodore suddenly felt a bit agitated. He tugged at his tie and unbuttoned the top two buttons. "Who is the man, Edward or Noah?"

When he mentioned Edward, Phoebe could clearly hear the tension in Theodore's voice.

She pursed her lips, her gaze sweeping over the exposed part of Theodore's collarbone. She really wanted to pull his collar aside to see if he had a tattoo there. "None of your business, Mr. Reynolds. If you have nothing important, I'm hanging up."

Theodore quickly said, "Wait, I want to see Ollie."

Phoebe looked at Ollie, who was playing with its tail nearby. She switched the camera to the rear and pointed it at Ollie. "Look, it's well-fed and happy, not a hair out of place."

Phoebe paused and added, "I really don't get you. If you're so worried, why did you ask me to take care of it? You could have sent it back to the estate, and it would be well taken care of."

Theodore walked to the floor-to-ceiling window, the night outside reflecting in his deep, dark eyes. He glanced at the screen where Ollie was happily playing with its tail, then looked away disinterestedly. "A single-parent child needs to bond with its mom; otherwise, it will grow distant over time."

Phoebe was at a loss for words. She often couldn't understand how Theodore's mind worked; he always left her speechless.

Just as she was about to speak, she heard the voices of Hubert, Boris, and Noomi calling out "Mom" from outside the door. Her heart skipped a beat. As they burst into the room, she hurriedly ended the video call, her heart pounding. Looking up, Hubert, Boris, and Noomi had already run over. "Mom, we just learned a magic trick."

Phoebe nervously swallowed, her mind racing to recall if the camera had caught the door. If Theodore saw them, how would she explain?

No, why should she think about explaining to Theodore? They were no longer together. Even if she had someone else's children, it had nothing to do with him.

Why should she be afraid of Theodore?

Distracted, she asked, "What magic trick did you learn?"

Hubert, Boris, and Noomi exchanged glances, then stretched out their chubby hands, trying to form a heart shape above their heads. In unison, they said, "Mom, we love you."

Hubert, Boris, and Noomi smiled sweetly, their arms too short to form a complete heart, their little faces turning red from the effort.

Phoebe was enchanted by their smiles. She smiled back, "I love you too."

In his hotel room, Theodore stared intently at his phone screen. If he hadn't been mistaken, the fleeting image he just saw was of a child.

Theodore stared at his phone, seeing the video call had ended. He irritably tapped a few times, knowing there wouldn't be a video call record, but still wanting to rewind and check if he had seen wrong. How could there be a child at Phoebe's place?

No, Phoebe did have a child, Donovan's child, who had now moved to the villa. But would that child call Phoebe "Mom"?

Theodore pressed his temples. Maybe he was overthinking. After all, he had once desperately forced Phoebe into a relationship, hoping to save their marriage.

But reality had given them no chance.noveldrama

Theodore clutched his phone and returned to the bed, growing more restless the more he thought about it. Maybe he was crazy, but he called Riley.

Riley had just put Sarah to bed. Receiving Theodore's call, she quietly left the room. "Theodore, Grandma just fell asleep. Can you call back tomorrow?" Theodore's lips tightened. "Riley, I'm not looking for Grandma. I'm looking for you."

"What do you need from me?" Riley asked.

Theodore sat on the bed, hesitating before speaking. "Riley, before Phoebe and I divorced, are you sure she had her period?"

"Yes, I'm sure. Why are you asking about this all of a sudden?" Riley was puzzled.

Theodore rubbed his forehead, his heart sinking. It was indeed his wishful thinking. How could he have thought Phoebe went to Caneda to secretly give birth to his child?

"I was just asking."

Sensing the disappointment in Theodore's tone, Riley spoke earnestly, "Theodore, I don't know why you're asking about this now, but you told me back then to make sure Phoebe had her period. So, I checked the trash every day. There was a lot of blood on the sanitary pads; it couldn't be faked."

After Riley finished speaking, there was silence on the other end of the line.

"Theodore?"

After a long pause, Theodore's voice came through. "I understand, Riley. I just... never mind, I'm hanging up."

After hanging up, Theodore lay back on the bed, staring at the ceiling.

He was just holding onto unrealistic fantasies, thinking Phoebe might secretly have his child. It seemed he was truly delusional.

Phoebe spent a restless night, not receiving any messages from Theodore. The next morning, she went downstairs to the kitchen with dark circles under her eyes.

Evelyn handed Phoebe a glass of lemon water, pointing at her. "What's with the dark circles? Stayed up late?"

"Insomnia," Phoebe yawned. "Last night, Theodore video-called to see the cat. Hubert, Boris, and Noomi happened to come into the room. I don't know if he saw them."

"So what if he did? You can't hide it from him forever," Evelyn said, glaring at her. "Phoebe, from what I see, Theodore plans to remarry you. The sooner he knows about Hubert, Boris, and Noomi, the better. Otherwise, if you rekindle old feelings and he resents you for hiding them, you'll end up heartbroken."

"What? How could I rekindle old feelings for him?" Phoebe almost choked on her lemon water.

Evelyn looked at her. "I know you better than anyone. If you really want to cut ties with him, just tell him about Hubert, Boris, and Noomi. With his pride, he won't be able to handle the fact that you have children with someone else." "Mom, do I dare to say it?" Phoebe said helplessly.

"Why don't you dare? Don't tell me it's for the company's sake. Now, move aside. The porridge in the pot is about to burn." Evelyn waved her away. Phoebe fell into deep thought.