CHAPTER 42: CHAPTER 42: IS CRYSTAL’S CHILD YOURS?

That night, Jenson Forrest returned early to Sovereign Court. After the car stopped, he leaned back against the seat, his gaze fixed on the villa, his mood dark. The house was pitch-black; clearly, Zinnia hadn’t come home again.

He remained in the car for a long time before Timothy Cohen finally spoke up. "President? You scared Mrs. Forrest’s friend at the hospital. She’s probably angry. Why don’t you try to placate her?"

Jenson glanced at him. "And how would I do that?"

"You could buy her a bouquet. Or bring her some pastries. Girls love sweets. They’re always happy to receive flowers and dessert." Timothy felt partly responsible for what happened earlier and was eager to offer advice, hoping to redeem himself.

Jenson’s thin lips curled into a sneer. Girls also like jewelry. He hadn’t forgotten how, just that morning, he’d pushed a velvet box full of jewels in front of that girl, only for her to hurl it right back at him.

This special assistant of his was on the verge of being fired. His professional skills were getting worse and worse.

「Forty minutes later, in the shadows below Yara Fairchild’s apartment building.」

Jenson sat in the driver’s seat. On the passenger seat beside him lay a rather garish bouquet of red roses, which the florist had highly recommended.

The lights on the sixth floor were off, which meant Zinnia likely hadn’t returned yet. Jenson glanced at his watch again. It was almost nine o’clock. Just as his patience began to wear thin, he spotted a familiar, slender figure carrying a bag and walking slowly in his direction.

Jenson leaned over to grab the bouquet, about to get out of the car, when a tall, thin man caught up to Zinnia. He bent down and took the shopping bag from her hands.

They clearly knew each other, chatting and laughing as they approached. The man even reached out to pat Zinnia’s shoulder. Not only did she not avoid it, but she also tilted her head up and smiled radiantly at him.

Jenson froze, the warmth draining from his eyes. He watched with his own eyes as the two of them chatted for a while in front of the building. Finally, Zinnia waved goodbye with a smile, took the shopping bag back, and went inside.

The man stepped back, his head tilted up, watching as the lights in the stairwell illuminated one floor after another, all the way up to the sixth. Only then did he turn and walk away.

Jenson sat in the car and let out a cold scoff. She wasn’t angry at all; in fact, she seemed to be in high spirits. She simply didn’t feel like coming home.

He opened the car door, got out, tossed the red roses into a nearby trash can, and drove off.

On her way home, Zinnia had stopped by a small supermarket for some daily necessities. There, she ran into the grandson of a neighbor, Grandma Sawyer. A few days prior, Zinnia had been the one to find Grandma Sawyer after she’d fallen near a flower bed and had called the ambulance. The grandson had been waiting for her specifically to let her know his grandmother’s condition was now stable, which made Zinnia very happy.

A sudden fainting spell could be very serious for the elderly, so that was a relief.

After entering her apartment, she walked to the coffee table to pour a glass of water when she heard the strangely familiar sound of a car engine from downstairs. While drinking, Zinnia instinctively walked to the window and glanced out.

A sleek black sedan was pulling away slowly. It was Jenson’s car.

Zinnia froze for a second before her expression turned indifferent. She looked away and swiped the curtains shut.

「The next day.」

Around noon, Jenson finished an international conference call. Just as he returned to his office, a call came in from Old Madam Forrest. He sat down in his office chair, loosened his tie with his long fingers, and answered the phone. "Grandma..."

"You brat, are you trying to get disowned? What on earth have you been up to! It’s bad enough that you can’t have children, but now there are rumors flying everywhere! Zinnia is practically doing charity work by not kicking you out yet!"

Jenson’s greeting was cut short by the old lady’s booming voice. He held the phone slightly away from his ear, waited for her tirade to end, then brought it back, his expression flat. "What rumors?"

"Don’t play dumb with me! Are you involved with that Crystal Sutton woman again? There are pictures online of you two kissing in a bar! I’m an old lady who knows how to surf the web, you know!"

"That’s not true, Grandma. Most of what you see online is fake. At your age, surfing the web isn’t good for your health," Jenson said, helplessly pinching the bridge of his nose.

"Don’t you try to fool me! When Zinnia runs off, we’ll see who comes crying then!"

"She won’t run. She can’t live without me..."

"My dear grandson, did you forget to wash your face this morning?"

"What?"

"Otherwise, where’d you get all that shameless confidence?"

Jenson was speechless.

"Hurry up and get that mess online cleaned up! Also, you’re taking Zinnia to lunch this afternoon. I want a video call to prove you’re together!"

"Understood." After hanging up, Jenson called Timothy Cohen into his office.

"Clear up those online rumors," he ordered.

Timothy was taken aback. Jenson usually couldn’t be bothered with such things. He always said that Stellar’s reputation was built on results, not the boss’s private life, and he had no interest in wasting the company’s PR resources on personal matters. In the past, work-related rumors with a few actresses had always been given the cold shoulder treatment, and just as Jenson predicted, they always died down on their own.

This time, however, he seemed determined to intervene.

"Right away, President. I’ll instruct the PR department immediately." It must be because of Mrs. Forrest. Has the President finally seen the light? Timothy thought, feeling as though he’d just gotten his daily dose of office romance. He was about to leave when Jenson spoke again.

"Find out where she is," Jenson added, "and book a restaurant."

He didn’t specify who "she" was, but Timothy understood instantly. Timothy was highly efficient. He returned in less than ten minutes, though his expression was hesitant.

"President, Mrs. Forrest is at a place called the Mermaid Restaurant on Triton Avenue right now..."

Jenson stood, grabbing his suit jacket on his way out the door. "Who is she meeting for lunch?"

He glanced at his watch. It was still early for the lunch rush.

Timothy hesitated. "President, I think it’s better if you see for yourself."

The Bentley glided to a stop outside the restaurant. Just as Jenson was about to open the door, his phone rang. It was Katherine Rhodes.

Jenson glanced at the screen, let it go dark without answering, and stepped out of the car, striding into the restaurant.

It was the peak of the lunch hour, but despite the restaurant’s dim, undersea ambiance, nearly all the tables were empty. Instead, a massive crowd was gathered three layers deep around a huge glass tank in the center of the room, holding up their phones to take pictures and videos. Children shouted with excitement, filling the air with a chaotic din.

Jenson felt a surge of annoyance as his phone began vibrating again, this time incessantly, as if it wouldn’t stop until he answered. With an impatient frown, he swiped to accept the call, and Katherine’s urgent voice burst from the speaker.

"Jenson, Crystal is pregnant! Since she’s pregnant, why haven’t you divorced Zinnia and married her yet?"

Jenson’s face turned icy. "How do you know she’s pregnant?" he asked in a low voice. His gaze swept the room but failed to find Zinnia, so he shot a cold look at Timothy.

Timothy braced himself and pointed toward the crowd. Frowning slightly, Jenson strode toward them.

At 190 centimeters tall, he had a significant height advantage, and even from the back of the crowd, his gaze pierced through to the massive glass tank and the mermaid swimming gracefully inside.

She wore a shimmering silver fishtail that ended at her hips. Her upper body was nearly bare, save for a tiny, shell-shaped top that did little to conceal the vast expanse of her jade-white skin and exquisite curves. Her long hair floated behind her like seaweed as she held a red rose between her teeth, smiling at the audience while tilting her head, making a heart shape with her hands, and blowing kisses. She moved with the fluid grace of a true deep-sea mermaid, her beauty utterly bewitching.

The sight, however, made Jenson’s vision tunnel and his handsome face turn ashen. He was so enraged he felt he might black out, and at that very moment, Katherine’s voice shrilled in his ear.

"Is the child in Crystal’s womb yours? Is it my biological grandchild? Jenson, I want you to divorce Zinnia this instant and marry Crystal..."