Before Jeff told him about Ashley, he decided to ask Tanaga what he knew about Ashley. "Did the Chairwoman tell you anything about Ashley?" Jeff questioned as he wondered if he would tell the whole truth.
"Grandma didn't mention anything to me. All she told me earlier was that I should accompany her to visit a family… I thought it was just some distant relative… but it turned out to be…" Tanaga could not say Ashley's name, especially after finding out that was the person they visited.
"I just found out from my butler that I was married. That's why he wasn't beside me when I was recovering. He was the one Grandma assigned to take care of – to take care of that woman and what she is carrying." Tanaga's face was stern as he spoke, and it seemed very difficult for him to accept what he found out.
Jeff took a deep breath and pondered. While staring at Tanaga, he was worried that if he found out the truth about how he and Ashley met, he might use the contract. Only Jeff knew about the contract between Tanaga and Ashley, including his private lawyer and Butler Ruffy.
Little did he know, Tanaga had torn the contract for a long time. In his mind, the contract was still I Japanese where Tanaga had hidden it.
After thinking through it, Jeff realized that it would be better for him to just tell the truth about the contract. He did not want his best friend to think that he is secretive; he didn't want that to be the cause of their friendship to be broken.
"Tanaga, I beg you – let me tell you the story from the beginning. This will take a while so is that fine with you? But don't interrupt me so I can tell you this properly. Can I?" Jeff asked as he waited for Tanaga to answer before continuing.
"Well, do I have a choice? Why can't I just remember it?" Tanaga sighed while holding his chest, feeling his heart beat faster and faster.
Jeff started the story from the time Ohani left Tanaga and traded him for another man. That is why he hated women and promised never to love her again and never to marry again.
"That's why you met Ashley because you were looking for a surrogate mother who will be your heir to the underground syndicate. It turns out that Ashley was fooled by them and got here on the day that the women of your choice came from different countries. I remember you called me so early in the morning, the day you took Ashley with you home. You feel like you're the happiest man in the world. Did you know that I felt envious to you because that time my wife and I were separated? So – you see – give it some time and you'll remember everything."
After Jeff finished his story, Tanaga's phone vibrated. When Tanaga looked at it, his grandmother was calling. He didn't answer it because he was upset with his grandmother.
But Grandma Hanada didn't stop there and she texted Tanaga, leaving him no choice but to call her back.
Right after the screen revealed Grandma Hanada's face, Tanaga could see his grandmother's smile. "Where are you? Butler Ruffy said you're with CEO Go. Where did the two of you go?" Grandma Hanada calmly asked.
"We're here in my condominium, we had some business to discuss and it's too noisy out there. We don't have any privacy down there, so I thought of going here to talk." Tanaga answered, obviously irritated.
Tanaga noticed that Grandma Hanada was inside the car and was no longer in the hospital. He could not help but ask, "Grandma, are you coming here? It seems that you are inside the car and on your way somewhere," Tanaga remarked while frowning.
Grandma Hanada didn't hesitate to answer. "Yes, I'm on my way. Wait for me and don't leave. We need to talk and it's good that your friend is there so you can believe what I'm about to say. Understood? " Grandma Hanada angrily said when she noticed that Tanaga was frowning and looked irritated.
She knew her grandson. She needed to seem angry because otherwise, it would be difficult to talk to him. "All right! I'll see you in a little bit." Grandma Hanada hung up the phone.
When Tanaga saw that Grandma Hanada was no longer on the other line, he confronted Jeff.
"So, let me get this straight: we have a contract signed stating that when she gives me an heir, I will pay her ten million dollars in exchange for our future child. After that, it's the end of all this. Hmmm, do you know where I hid this contract? " Tanaga interrogated firmly.
"Hahaha! Excuse me? Even if you told me everything, you didn't tell me where you hid that contract. If I were to guess… it might be in your vault in your office in Japan. That's just my guess, okay?"
"Hmmm, you could be right. I guess we need to go back to Japan as soon as possible so I can check what the contract says. What I don't understand is how did we become husband and wife? Did we really get married or is it just fake like yours? Hahaha!" Tanaga teased his friend but Jeff's eyebrows rose up when he heard Tanaga's joke.
"For your information, the deal was fake. But we really are married to each other and mostly, we love each other. Unlike someone I know, he forgot about his dear wife." Jeff teased back his friend who seemed to be more occupied on where the contract was placed.
Tanaga was forcing himself to remember about the contract he and Ashley signed and why they became husband and wife if it was just a contract.
****
Will Tanaga's past memories return? What if they don't? Will Tanaga use the contract they signed to take the child from Ashley if it is a boy? Will Ashley agree? Too many questions, but what are the answers?
~scrool to the next chapter and find out~