Stolen Identity: Mute Heiress

Chapter 527: Quickie Or Lunch Date

While Dawn prepared Josh for school, Jamal showered and got ready to leave for the office.

As he prepared for work, he replayed his entire conversation with Dawn in his head, and he kept wondering why he’d misunderstood her the way he’d done.

If they had not had the conversation about their lack of chemistry that night, would he have reacted the same way he’d done when he saw Dawn with Adam?

Would he have doubted her love or loyalty when he saw her shaking Adam and laughing with him?

If he’d come to take her out on a date when he saw that, would he have cancelled the date just like that?

He doubted that.

He wouldn’t have liked seeing her with another guy that way, but he wouldn’t have left the way he’d done either.

He would have walked up to them, made it clear to Adam that Dawn was his, and taken her away.

He wouldn’t have called the spa either.

He’d allowed his misinterpretation of what she’d said to get into his head, and that had influenced all of his actions.

He had made major decisions that might have ruined their relationship if Dawn hadn’t been determined to keep things together.

He drew in a deep breath.

Yes, she was wrong for spending so much time with another guy and lying to him about it, but maybe she wouldn’t have lied if she’d felt safe enough with him to be honest.

He looked up when the door opened, and she walked into the bedroom.

She stared at him for a moment. “Are we good?”

Jamal drew a deep breath and nodded. “Josh?”

“He’s at the dining table waiting for us. So, go and join him. I’ll join you shortly after I get dressed,” Dawn said as she headed for the closet.

“You don’t have to drop him off at school. You can stay at home. I’ll drop him,” Jamal offered.

“I’m going to the office with you,” Dawn said without looking at him as she walked into the closet.

“You are?” Jamal asked, surprised and wondering if she wanted him to set up the space for her already.

She stepped out with a black dress and pink blazer. “Yes. You said that without Stefan you’d be working twice as hard, so I figured I’d fill in for Stefan until he gets back,” she said with a grin. “That way I take some of the stress off you, and we get to spend more time together. Because you dared to ask for time apart, I’m determined to spend even more time together.”

Jamal stared at her without a word, feeling even more guilty now about the way he’d acted.

He’d behaved immaturely, while she had been and was still acting so maturely and bridging the gap he’d tried to create.

“You know your wife is not only beautiful, but she is also very brilliant too, right? I’ll do a good job, don’t worry,” she said with a wink.

“Dawn,” Jamal whispered, his heart overflowing with love for her.

Dawn smiled when she saw the look on his face.

Yes. Her Jamal was back.

“And you don’t have to worry about paying me in cash. A quickie or lunch date daily will suffice.”

Jamal looked shamefaced, unsure how to apologise for his behaviour.

Sensing that he was still struggling mentally, Dawn smiled at him. “Josh is waiting. Go ahead. I’ll join you soon.”

Jamal exhaled softly, then gave her a nod before walking out of the room.

Dawn smiled as she watched him go, and when he shut the door behind him, she exhaled softly.

When she decided to move in with Jamal, she’d not expected him to have a change of heart so soon or so easily.

Although she’d hoped he wouldn’t take so long before coming around, she’d thought it would take days or even weeks to get him to open up his heart to her again.

As she dressed up, she replayed their conversation in her head, and she sighed softly.

Jamal had said his mother was an overthinker, but he hadn’t realised he was one too.

She thought about his overreaction to what Mila, his sister, had said the last time, and then the way he’d kept beating himself up over losing the game with his friends, and now the way he’d blown everything out of proportion because she said she couldn’t feel any spark between them.

Her brows pulled together as she thought about it.

It seemed like Jamal didn’t like criticism, and perhaps he viewed it as an attack on his person rather than feedback to work on.

She was going to have to look more into it and talk things through with him so they wouldn’t have to go through something like this.

Once she’d dressed up, she went to the dining room to join them. She paused the moment she saw them both seated together in the dining room, laughing over a drawing they were making.

She smiled as she watched them.

This was her family.

Jamal looked up when he caught a whiff of her perfume.

When their eyes met, Jamal smiled at her, and her smile widened as she walked over to take her seat.

Although Josh still led the conversation at the table as they ate, and Jamal still didn’t talk a lot, breakfast wasn’t as cold as dinner had been the previous night.

Dawn watched with relief as Jamal genuinely laughed when she told him how Josh had tried to cheer her up by dancing like him.

When they finished eating, they all left the house together and headed to Josh’s school.

As they returned to the car after dropping Josh off, they both remembered the last time they’d been there together.

Jamal stopped abruptly just before they got to the car, and Dawn looked at him with a questioning expression.

“I’m sorry for not handling things the right way. I’m sorry for misunderstanding you and for making you cry. I’m sorry for asking for a break and for doubting what we have. You deserved better from me, and I…”

Tears gathered in Dawn’s eyes, and she cut in before he could finish. “I’m sorry, too. I shouldn’t have lied to you. I should have told you the truth no matter what. And I shouldn’t have spent that much time with Adam without your knowledge.”

Jamal shook his head. “If I hadn’t misunderstood you, all of that wouldn’t have happened. If I hadn’t left the way I did without talking to you, you wouldn’t have gone to the spa in the first place.”

Dawn shook her head. “I would have gone to the spa eventually one of these days…”

“But you might not have been willing to entertain his attention if I was playing my role—”

“You are playing your role, babe. I didn’t do that because you failed in any way. It wasn’t your fault. Don’t make what I did about you, Jamal. Thank you for making excuses for me, but I did that because I didn’t really think it was a big deal. I felt it was okay as long as I wasn’t doing anything wrong, but now I know better and wouldn’t entertain any unnecessary attention from anyone.”

Jamal nodded slowly. “Will you forgive me?”

“Only if you forgive me too,” Dawn said, and Jamal shook his head.

“I can’t even stay mad at you if I wanted to. I love you so much, Dawn. The last couple of days have been some of the worst of my life. I don’t want a break from you, whether temporarily or permanently,” Jamal confessed.

Dawn stepped forward and wrapped her arms around him. “Me too. I don’t ever want a break from you.”

Jamal wrapped his arms tightly around her and exhaled deeply.

They both stood there for a moment, and then Jamal pulled back to look at her. “Thank you. Thank you for saving me and our relationship. And thank you for not agreeing to stay away.”

Dawn smiled, making a mental note to get Mari an appropriate thank-you gift for her wonderful advice.

She was glad she’d not listened to Tom’s advice to give Jamal space.

The advice may have come from a good place for Jamal’s mental health, but that didn’t mean it helped their relationship.

Not every good relationship tip works for every relationship, after all.

They still had to figure out what worked best for them. And distance or time apart wasn’t it.