Right after, she slid Yasmine''s file over to him.


    "Keep an eye on her!"


    "I promise you''ll be wellpensated."


    ine chuckled, "Don''t worry, I''ll do my best for you. Even if you asked me to get rid of your ex-husband''s fling, I wouldn''t say no."


    Selena nearly spit out her tea.


    "Awyer breaking thew?"


    ine handed her a tissue and shrugged it off, leaving her unsure if he was serious or just messing around.


    Kids are resilient, and in no time, Mateo was back to his yful self.


    Selena sat with him on the couch, gently asking him once more about the fire, but he still couldn''t recall a thing.


    If it weren''t for his feverish ramblings, they might never have suspected anything was off.


    Selena didn''t push him to remember those painful memories. If Yasmine really did have a hand in it, she trusted that justice would eventually catch up to her.


    As summer faded, the weather cooled down.


    Selena felt the weight of her pregnancy more and more.


    Ava treated this baby like a precious gem, worried something might go wrong again. She cooked up all kinds of healthy meals for Selena every day and barely let her out of the house, insisting she rest. Selena had a feeling the size of her belly was partly Ava''s doing with all the fussing.


    She worried the baby might be too big, making the delivery tough.


    That evening, ine brought some good news.


    He found out that after Yasmine left Bet Corporation, she quickly got a job as a kindergarten teacher at a private school.


    While she had experience, her credentials weren''t really up to par for that position.


    She only got in because a shareholder from the school wrote her a glowing rmendation, giving her a foot in the door.


    The specific shareholder was still under investigation, but they seemed to have some serious clout. Selena was out in the garden, holding her phone, her delicate brows knitting together.


    As far as she knew, Bet Corporation was the main shareholder of this private school. Could it be... Everett pulled some strings to get Yasmine in?


    To make it look like he was cutting ties with her, he publicly kicked Yasmine out of Bet Corporation but secretly found her a spot at the school. What a sneaky move


    BUMS


    If that''s the case, she must have purposely gotten close to Mateo.


    The fire might not have been an ident.


    Yasmine always hated her for using the child as a bargaining chip to get back with Everett. So, she might have set the fire, yed the hero,


    and then used that to her advantage.


    en


    What a wicked n!


    If Yasmine wanted to snatch that lousy guy, she could have him, but going after Mateo, using her son as a stepping stone, and leaving him that badly hurt? Unforgivable.


    And now she was living it up abroad, dreaming of bing Mrs. Bet, absolutely shameless!


    Through these months of focusing


    on her pregnancy, Selena had managed to keep her emotions in check, but now, her anger was boiling over, her chest heaving, her hands shaking.


    Thinking about how much Mateo suffered during his recovery broke her heart as a mother. She couldn''t


    even bring herself to relive those painful memories.


    Just then, a sleek ck SUV rolled into the driveway, smoothly parking on the spacious lot.


    The car door swung open, and Everett stepped out with his long strides.


    Selena''s eyes met his deep, brooding gaze.


    Her hands clenched into fists, nails digging into her palms, as her fury and resentment hit their peak.