Liz remembered the conversation she had with Remington about the West family while they were in the car. Fiddling with the lace on her blouse, she turned to Jerome.
"Bro, has there been any progress on the whole Hans kidnapping me issue?"
Once Liz returned to the Madden family, Nelson wasn't about to let his granddaughter's ordeal go uninvestigated. Nelson had Jerome use the Maddens' considerable resources to dig deeper into the West family's affairs. But in the past few months, Jerome hadn't mentioned any updates. "Why the sudden change in how you address me?"
Jerome's head snapped towards Liz, his sharp senses picking up on the subtle shift in her words. Though it was a small change, it felt significantly different to him.
Caught under Jerome's intense gaze, Liz's eyelashes fluttered, and she shifted her gaze away, a touch of guilt coloring her actions. "Ah? No reason... It's just, I'm not a kid anymore. Using cutesy nicknames feels a bit embarrassing all of a sudden," Liz chuckled, sticking out her tongue slightly, her ears and cheeks flushing with a tinge of awkwardness.
She wasn't usually one to act so coy, but it was all to cover up her nervousness.
Jerome's eyes darkened, but he couldn't bring himself to press the issue further, choosing instead to drop the topic. "As for the West family, we haven't uncovered anything substantial yet. If there's any progress, you'll be the first to know, okay?"
Liz smiled and nodded, then yawned, her eyes fluttering closed with fatigue.
Jerome glanced at her again, his gaze deepening as he pondered and hesitated. Truth be told, while they hadn't found a direct link between the West family and Hans, they had thoroughly investigated Hanna and Hogan's situation.
After Liz had recovered from childbirth, she had planned to study abroad, but with Hogan's disappearance, he and Nelson feared Hogan might have fled overseas and could pose a threat to Liz if she went to Astoria. So, they used the excuse that Liz had just returned to the Maddens, and that Nelson and Mrs. Bernice Madden were not in the best of health, hoping she would stay to keep them company and get acquainted with the Madden Group's operations, as a reason to keep her stateside.
Yet, like Remington, they deliberately kept Hanna and Hogan's situation from Liz. Now, seeing Liz still so determined to uncover the truth, Jerome felt a mix of helplessness and unease. He wondered if she would ever resent or be angry with them for keeping secrets from her.
The car stopped at a red light, and Jerome smoothly brought it to a halt. He leaned over to grab a folded cashmere blanket from the back seat, unfurling it gently over Liz. In the confined space of the car, their shadows merged for a moment. Jerome noticed her eyelashes quiver; she wasn't actually asleep but pretending to be.
Why pretend? Was it to avoid facing him? Had a single night spent with Remington changed her this much?
Jerome's motion to retreat froze at this realization. He leaned closer, the faint scent of jasmine from her filling his senses. Liz tensed up, the unfamiliar closeness sending a shiver through her, making it impossible to keep up the pretense. She abruptly opened her eyes. But Jerome seemed to have no intention of making her uncomfortable. It was as if he was an experienced hunter playing with his prey, calmly waiting for her to give up the act. Their eyes met, and a tender, teasing smile flickered through his deep eyes as he softly said, "Liz, I've been thinking about going back to my original surname. What do you think?"
Frozen in place, Liz found her mind struggling to process his words. Their faces were so close, their noses almost touching. She held her breath, fearing that even a slightly deeper breath would bring their lips together. She remained still, caught in the moment. Beep! Beep beep!
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