"You work for John King??!", Sello's eyes were drowning in disappointment, just when she thought Linda was finally happy, this happened. She tossed her eyes to Linda but her reaction was surprisingly not as distraught as she thought it would be, in fact, Linda appeared to be less hurt compared to her, 'How can she be relaxed?', she pondered. It was days like this when she felt like she didn't understand her niece. Any normal person wouldn't be calm at this moment, she sighed, "So you knew all along?",
Linda cleared her throat, then exhaled heavily, "Yeah, I knew. I have known since the interviews..."
"And you didn't say anything?!", Jeremy asked in utter surprise. He may have not known her long enough, but he knew very well that Linda was not the type to do anything without a clear plan, and for some reason, he was scared to even ask what her intentions were. He couldn't shake the slight pinch of pain in his heart, does this even amount to betrayal? Given what he's done, does he even have the right to feel betrayed? His mind was all over, conflicted, unsure how to feel.
Although Linda appeared calm, inside she was in a panic, but her calm and unbothered demeanor only agitated Jeremy even more. It made him sink even deeper into his worries, "I think you need to hear the whole story...",
Linda stood up, "No, no Jeremy, you have your reasons, I really don't think is necessary..", she could sense Jeremy's troubles and the last thing she needed was for him to apologize because as much as he was wrong, his anger would be justified.
However, Sello didn't share the same sentiments, "No, we have to...", she said, "We need to know why he is doing it, do you even love my daughter? or even that is part of John's scheme? and what is his scheme?". She needed to know why he allowed himself to be dragged into such a mess.
Jeremy turned to Sello with a darkened face, he really loved Linda and he was aware of how everything looked, 'could that be the reason Linda is not reacting? Does she think I am faking it?', Jeremy wondered unable to hide his pain, "I love Linda, I know how this looks but I really do...", he turned to Linda, "...but Linda, if you knew, why didn't you confront me? Why did you choose me as your fiancé?"
"Because you are her Tom...", Sharon blurted, thanks to the few glasses of wine she's had, but when she looked up, she was met with Linda's glaring eyes and she instantly retracted her statement, "Uhm...it means she loves you..", then buried her sorry face into Jackie's shoulder.
"Jackie, please take her upstairs, I need to talk to Jeremy alone.", Linda calmly instructed Jackie and she nodded, and Sello followed them unwillingly.
Jeremy made his way to the couch where Linda was now calmly seated, she offered him a glass of juice, then she chuckled, "Don't mind my aunt, when we found out about you and my uncle, we were pretty much like her...",
Jeremy was quite confused by her reaction, he wondered how she kept a calm demeanor at such a moment, "How did you find out and why didn't you confront me?" he asked visibly upset.
Linda sighed, "I did a background check on the top 5 finalists, that's how I found out about your family history which ultimately revealed your relationship with my uncle. I figured you wanted revenge for what happened to your family's business.". she explained, but Jeremy grew even more confused,
"Okay, but even more reasons why you would've picked someone else, what if I hurt you or -"
She cut him off, "I took a chance. I really believe you are good Jeremy and I think - I believe I did it to save you. I blindly hoped that once you got to know me, you would see the truth or open your eyes. I am not your enemy. That's why I didn't bother to confront you, I have nothing to hide..."
Jeremy was astonished by Linda's explanation, she took a chance on someone who could potentially ruin her just because she thought he was a good person. His heart fluttered a little bit, "Oh, but still Linda, you should have said something..?"
"How? When?", Linda asked and Jeremy kept quiet, he was not sure either, Linda took both his hands, "Since you know, I think is only fair that I tell you I love you now."
Jeremy coughed, "You are telling me this now?"
She smiled, "Yes, why not? I have been meaning to tell you but I was worried it would put you in danger, I wanted to at least sort out my issues with my uncle because I believe he's doing all of this because of Global Tech..."
Jeremy gently nodded, "Yeah, that's why he's doing it. And Linda, I get what you mean by protecting me...that's why I want to explain myself...", He sipped from his juice and began telling her how his uncle and John concocted the plan to take Global Tech and the galleries from her, and Linda's face darkened at the mention of the galleries. Her calm demeanor began to crack, how dare they try to take her mother's legacy from her! her hands clenched into fists as she listened to Jeremy, 'anything but the Gallery', she raged.
Upon seeing the anger dancing in her eyes, Jeremy grabbed her face, "I am sorry Linda, your mother's galleries were my uncle's plan, not John's, he just went ahead with it...my uncle is a very dangerous and vile man. That's why I didn't want him to find out about you, but now he knows how I feel about you and I don't know his next plan. I am telling you this so we can be prepared. I can't protect you when you are in the dark...we have to be prepared, both of us. I have a plan in place, so don't worry..."
Linda remembered what Jin Ae told her about Tony, her fight was never with him but after hearing that he planned to destroy what her mother left for her, she was not going to let it go, with a stern voice, she growled, "What is your plan to take on your uncle?", 'Global Tech can wait,' she thought.
Jeremy was surprised, "No, Linda, I can't let you do that. This is not your fight, I have to do th-"
"Yeah, it wasn't until the mention of my gallery. I have to protect what is mine and you are right, we have to be prepared. When dealing with men like your uncle, is always best to strike first, and make sure it's a lethal blow because if we miss, then we are both dead." Jeremy had never seen such a side to Linda and he instantly realized that she never needed any protection.