When She Turns Her Back (Teresa and Charles) novel Chapter 117

Chapter 117

The next day was Teresa’s twenty–seventh birthday.

In the morning, Linda made her favorite breakfast. After they ate, Yvonne gave her a gift she had prepared in advance–a designer scarf.

Hector’s gift was still on the table, unopened, and the flowers he had sent had wilted overnight. Teresa carefully placed the sunflowers in a vase and set it on her bedside table.

Monica had the day off, so she came to Teresa’s room as soon as she got up, bringing her a handmade gift. She playfully insisted on styling Teresa’s hair. It was a rare moment of sisterly affection, and Teresa didn’t turn it down.

She spent the whole day with Monica. In the evening, Theodore had arranged dinner at a restaurant for the family. While he didn’t explicitly say it, everyone knew it was to celebrate Teresa’s birthday.

When they arrived, the whole family showed up–nobody was missing.

The restaurant Theodore had chosen was a popular spot, always bustling and lively. He handed the menu to Teresa with a relaxed expression and said, “Order whatever you like.”

As she took the menu, Teresa felt a pang of bittersweetness. It had been years since she last spent her birthday with her family. After marrying Charles, she had almost lost herself, spending all her time taking care of Yolanda and forgetting about her own needs.

Thinking about it now, she realized just how silly she’d been.

After they finished ordering, the whole family just enjoyed some rare downtime together, chatting about family stuff.

Just as they were eating, Teresa suddenly heard a voice behind her that sent a chill down her spine. “Teresa?”

It was Troy, but he didn’t call her in his usual flirty way.

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She turned around, confused. “Troy?”

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Troy shot Teresa a quick glance, then nodded politely to Howard and Linda. “Hello, Mr. Sullivan, Mrs. Sullivan.

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He then turned to Theodore and Yvonne, greeting them both with a friendly smile. Troy was very considerate, even remembering to greet Monica with a cheerful, “Hey, Monica.”

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Teresa didn’t understand what Troy meant, and her frown deepened.

Troy finally looked at her, a playful smile in his eyes. “You know, sometimes a chance meeting is better than a formal invitation. Mind if I join you and your family for dinner?”

Teresa didn’t understand his intentions, but before she could say anything, Theodore turned to Troy, his face cold. “Mr. Hamilton, you’re used to a life of luxury. I doubt you’d enjoy simple food like this.”

Theodore didn’t spell it out, but his meaning couldn’t have been clearer.

Troy feigned misunderstanding and sat down next to Teresa with a smile. “Come on, Theodore, don’t make it sound so serious. I’m not picky.”

Teresa saw Troy sit down and immediately shot a nervous look at Theodore–her brother had told her more than once to keep her distance from Troy.

But Troy was clingy as ever, like gum stuck to her shoe–no matter what she did, she just couldn’t shake him off.

Theodore didn’t get angry, but his attitude was far from friendly. “We’re a bit rough around the edges, Mr. Hamilton–probably not the kind of crowd you’re used to.”

His meaning was clear enough that even Linda, who wasn’t in on the details, got the message. But Troy just shrugged, unfazed. “Come on, don’t say that. I should be the one feeling honored to join you for dinner.”

Saying that, Troy helped himself to a drink, raised his glass, and clinked it against Theodore’s without waiting for a response. “Cheers, Theodore. This one’s for you.” Then he knocked it back in one go.

Troy made the toast, and even though Theodore wasn’t fond of him, he had no choice but to endure it for now.

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11:25 AM

Chapter 117

Teresa, sitting between Theodore and Troy, was already sweating from the tension.

She knew her brother well–if he didn’t like someone, he’d show no mercy. But surprisingly, Troy had been the first to initiate the toast, which left Theodore with no excuse to keep him from joining the meal.

Troy might be a bit shameless, but he was no rookie in the business world. He knew exactly how to handle different situations.

Once he’d made himself comfortable, Troy grabbed his glass and went around the table, offering a toast to each person–starting with Howard, and not even skipping Monica. Only after toasting everyone did he finally start eating.

Although it wasn’t the fancy kind of restaurant Troy usually frequented, he didn’t mind at all and seemed to enjoy himself. He kept serving Teresa and Monica more food.

Troy was on his best behavior, and Monica was completely charmed by him. She kept peppering him with questions. “Mr. Hamilton, are you Aunt Teresa’s friend?”

“Yeah, we’re friends,” Troy replied with a grin. “But we won’t always be just friends.”

Monica, not fully understanding what he meant, scrunched her nose and asked, “Why can’t you be friends forever?”

Troy smiled and ruffled her hair. “You’ll understand when you’re older, Monica.”

Hearing this, Theodore instinctively wanted to snap, but under the table, Yvonne gently squeezed his hand and shook her head. Her touch instantly soothed the anger bubbling inside him.

Teresa didn’t know Troy very well, but tonight, at the family dinner, she saw a different side of him.

In front of her family, he didn’t act inappropriately. Instead, he was unexpectedly thoughtful–serving her food, refilling her glass, and even quietly reminding her to wipe her mouth when she had sauce on her lips.

Even with Troy, an outsider, at the table, the atmosphere didn’t become awkward. He kept things lively, always stepping in to make sure the conversation stayed flowing. Everyone ended up enjoying the dinner.

Meanwhile, Charles had just arrived at Joyacre Villa after his business trip. He hadn’t even gotten out of the car when his phone buzzed with a WhatsApp message.

He glanced down–it was from Jason, and there was a photo attached. The photo showed Teresa and Troy sitting together, with Troy serving her food. The Sullivan family was watching them, and it looked like everyone was getting along really well.

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Charles stared at the photo for a while, feeling like it resembled one of those dinners where the boyfriend met the family time.

for the

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