Chapter 682 Landon, Don't Ever Show up in Front of Me Again
The vibe was pretty tense.
Katelyn piped up, "Katelyn is Daddy's baby."
Both Amara and the driver knew what was going on.
The driver thought, "Leonard's the only one who doesn't get it. He's still all excited to meet Landon. Just look at Caitlyn's eyes—she looks like she wants to set Landon on fire."
Landon's eyes flicked to Caitlyn's face for a second before he turned to Leonard with a friendly smile.
He then bent down and scooped up Katelyn. Giving her a gentle pat on the bottom, he asked softly, "What were you saying just now?"
Katelyn leaned on Landon's shoulder and repeated, "Katelyn is Daddy's baby."
Landon kissed her and said, "That's right! You are my baby."
Then he looked at Caitlyn and said, "I brought her here to sign up for foreign language classes. Are you still enrolling?"
Caitlyn was about to say no.
Landon, still holding Katelyn, walked over to the simple desk, picked up an enrollment brochure, and read it before finally saying, "You even offer home tutoring! Perfect, Katelyn doesn't like going to unfamiliar places. How about you come to our place every Tuesday, Friday, and Saturday evening for two hours? I'll pay you triple the standard fee."
With others around, Caitlyn couldn't just insult Landon outright. Calmly, she said, "That's not how we usually do things."
Before Landon could respond, Leonard jumped in, "What do you mean it's not how we do things? Caitlyn, Mr. Carter trusts you. Don't let him down."
He was worried Caitlyn would say no and quickly added to Landon, "Mr. Carter, you can trust us with your child."
Landon smiled slightly and said, "Looks like Dr. Dobbins can make decisions for Caitlyn."
Leonard blushed at the teasing.
Landon didn't seem to mind and signaled the driver to pay. Feeling the pressure from Leonard, Caitlyn couldn't refuse; otherwise, Leonard would definitely get suspicious.
She had to take the money and said softly, "There are rules for teaching; parents aren't allowed to accompany."
Landon agreed easily, "I'm busy with work anyway."
He prepaid $20,000 in cash. Caitlyn counted it and put it in the drawer, then handed over the receipt. She said, "I'll contact you next week."
She gave a look that clearly signaled it was time for them to leave.
Landon glanced at Leonard, then looked back and smiled slightly. "Are you going on a date? That's great! It's important to balance work and personal life," he said.
Caitlyn lowered her voice and said, "Mr. Carter, you sure are overstepping your bounds."
Landon didn't reply. He just gave her a long look before turning to Katelyn and saying, "Let's go get some lunch, sweetheart."
However, Katelyn looked at Caitlyn longingly.
After waiting for a long time without an invitation, Katelyn got angry and said haughtily, "Actually, lots of kids want to have lunch with me!"
Landon shook his head slightly, wondering where Katelyn got her attitude from.
"Mr. Carter, let me see you off!" Amara offered.
Landon waved it off. "No need! By the way, weren't you going out with them? Have fun!"
Amara's eyebrows twitched slightly.
Landon nodded and left with Katelyn in his arms, the driver following closely behind. Those left behind watched, each lost in their own thoughts.
Leonard was the first to speak, "I didn't expect someone like Mr. Carter to bring a child to sign up for classes personally. But Katelyn is only three years old. Isn't it a bit too early for her to start learning a foreign language?"
Caitlyn brushed her hair back and said softly, "If she can't keep up, she'll just drop out."
She didn't think Katelyn had the patience to learn a foreign language; it was probably just a passing fancy.
Leonard noticed Caitlyn's lack of enthusiasm.
When they got into the car downstairs, he turned to her and asked, "I noticed you're pretty cold towards Mr. Carter. Why, don't you like him? Does he have a bad reputation?"
Caitlyn couldn't talk about the past, so she just said calmly, "I don't really like him! Anyway, if the kid can't keep up, let's not get involved anymore."
Leonard thought for a moment and said, "I don't really like that kid either, she's too arrogant. But Caitlyn, these days, we all have to make compromises for something. I know you had a good family background before, but things are different now."
Caitlyn quietly looked ahead, not saying a word.
Leonard liked her a lot and immediately apologized, "I didn't express myself well; don't take it to heart! If it's really hard to teach, we'll discuss it later, okay?"
Caitlyn turned to him and said, "So please don't push me on this again."
Leonard leaned in, originally wanting to kiss her face, but ended up kissing the hair on her cheek. In the car opposite, the driver had left, and Landon was driving himself.
He was about to start the car when he saw Leonard kiss Caitlyn.
Landon's long fingers gripped the steering wheel more tightly than necessary when he thought no one was observing. Leonard, catching sight of Landon's intense stare, felt a flush of shyness and nodded slightly at Landon.
After a while, Landon nodded expressionlessly and drove away.
"Mr. Carter doesn't seem to be in a good mood!" Leonard turned to Caitlyn and said.
However, Caitlyn turned her face to the side and sighed, "Leonard, are you trying to be with me or Mr. Carter? If those things matter so much to you, then maybe we should just end this."
From the moment Leonard interfered with her work, she was already uncomfortable. He had just promised, but now he brought up Landon again, which made Caitlyn very uncomfortable.
She gripped the car door and said softly, "Think about it."
She showed no hesitation.
Hearing this, Leonard got a bit anxious, holding her hand. "Why are you getting emotional again? Caitlyn, it was my fault just now. I didn't fully consider your feelings! I won't mention him again, okay?"
Caitlyn looked at him seriously and said, "Leonard, you have great qualities. Honestly, you are the best man I can possibly meet at this stage. You don't need to cater to others. If you keep doing that, even if you don't get tired, I will."
A relationship was a matter between two people, but he made it feel like a business meeting or social event.
Caitlyn made it clear, "Sorry! I'm really not in the mood to go out with you. I'll take Amara's car; you go back first!"
Leonard reflected on himself. He had always been very strong-willed and realized he had been too hasty earlier. Considerately, he said to Caitlyn, "Have fun! I have important surgeries the next two days, but if it's convenient later, keep your evening free for me. I'll take you out for a late-night snack."
Caitlyn didn't want to make it awkward, so she said, "Okay."
She then got into Amara's car.
Amara wasn't surprised at all. With that jerk Landon around, how could Caitlyn's love life be good?
She started the car and said casually, "So it's just the two of us?"
Nodding, Caitlyn sat beside Amara, leaned back in her seat, and spoke softly, "Amara, I know Leonard is a good guy. It's not a problem for a man to be a bit utilitarian, but I..."
Amara got it.
Leonard's behavior was typical of guys trying to climb the social ladder, but Caitlyn was born into those privileges. Even though her family had fallen on hard times, her social circle was still intact.
To put it bluntly, they were not the same kind of people.
But Caitlyn was already in her thirties, and these major decisions had to be made by herself. Amara could only be a listener. They chatted all the way, had coffee, and went shopping.
When Caitlyn got home, she was in a much better mood. Eden saw her looking radiant and thought she had been on a date with Leonard, which made Eden very happy.
She even made Caitlyn two fried eggs. "Eat more, you're too thin right now! Gaining some weight will make it easier to get pregnant," she said.
Caitlyn knew what Eden was thinking. She wanted to explain but was afraid of disappointing Eden, so she said nothing. Fortunately, Leonard was still considerate.
The next day, when Caitlyn went to the studio, she received flowers from him: 99 white roses, fresh with water droplets, and of an imported variety.
Just then, Leonard called to apologize and console her. Caitlyn nodded and said, "I like them very much, but they're a bit expensive."
In the past, she wouldn't have said that, but things were different now.
Leonard chuckled and responded, "Don't worry about it! I have over a hundred thousand dollars in bonuses this month."
Caitlyn said, "Okay," and hugged the bouquet.
The first crisis in their relationship was safely resolved. She thought she should be more tolerant. She couldn't always measure Leonard by her past standards. Without the halo of the Robinson family's rich girl, she and Leonard were actually the same. When she interacted with those parents, she often had to bow and scrape, carefully watching their expressions.
Thinking this way made her feel much better.
In the afternoon, her assistant came over and said, "A Mr. Carter called to remind you not to forget to tutor his child."
Caitlyn was slightly stunned, then remembered it was Landon.
Today was Friday, and she had forgotten.
When she snapped back to reality, she nodded and said, "Alright, tell him I got it!"
The assistant hesitated for a moment and then softly added, "Mr. Carter also mentioned that, for future convenience, you should take him off the blacklist." With that, the assistant quickly slipped away.
Caitlyn leaned back in her office chair, biting her pen. Finally, she took out her phone and removed Landon from the blacklist, even adding him on Facebook.
After a while, Landon added her and sent a voice message: "I'm in a meeting. Just come over in the evening." His voice was quite pleasant.
Caitlyn listened to it once and confirmed he wouldn't be home, which relieved her. She thought maybe she was overthinking it. Landon didn't necessarily have any ulterior motives. Even though Phoebe had passed away, with his wealth, he could have any young girl he wanted.
No matter how beautiful she was, she wasn't young anymore. Thinking of this, she rubbed her face, realizing once again that she was already in her thirties.
Half an hour before getting off work, Caitlyn drove to Landon's villa. His personal secretary, Cherie, had sent her the address.
Caitlyn was no stranger to the grandeur of the rich, having lived that life herself. When she arrived at the villa, it was truly magnificent.
The guard asked for her ID and let her in, very politely, even taking her photo so she could enter directly next time. Caitlyn smiled lightly and said, "That's very kind of you."
The guard just smiled back.
When Caitlyn parked the car, she noticed the black Rolls-Royce. As she turned off the engine, she thought Landon wasn't supposed to be home. Why was the car here at this time?
As she got out of the car, a servant came to greet her with a big smile, "Ms. Robinson."
At first, Caitlyn didn't pay much attention, but when she heard the voice again and looked up, she saw that it was Hazel. She was stunned. "Hazel, what are you doing here?"
Hazel smiled and replied, "Mr. Landon Carter arranged for me to come over. He said I should take care of Ms. Katelyn Carter and spend my retirement here."
Caitlyn was quite confused. Although Kingsley always referred to Hazel as "Caitlyn and Landon's servant," Caitlyn knew Amara treated people well. How did Landon manage to bring her over?
But Caitlyn couldn't say much, so she just smiled, "Then take good care of her."
Hazel naturally took her bag. "Ms. Katelyn Carter is very well-behaved and so pretty! She was so excited about your visit that she took a bath, washed her hair, and combed it. I think she really likes you."
Caitlyn couldn't stand hearing any more of it.
Before entering the hall, she lowered her voice and said, "I have a boyfriend now! Mr. Carter and I ended things a long time ago. I'm just here to teach a foreign language, and I don't even know how many classes I'll be teaching."
Hazel remained unfazed. "Mr. Carter mentioned it! He said that people need to have a few choices to understand what's truly the best!"
Caitlyn was furious, cursing, "What a twisted view!"
Just as she was speaking, they entered the hall. Landon was indeed there, flipping through a newspaper, and said casually, "Who's got a twisted view? Me?"
Hazel pursed her lips and smiled, avoiding the question, and went upstairs to teach Katelyn.
Caitlyn looked at Landon, feeling inexplicably annoyed. She didn't hold back and asked coldly, "Landon, what do you mean by this? Can't you stand to see me happy? I've already got a boyfriend, so why won't you just leave me alone? Do you have to ruin my life?"
Landon's fingers paused on the newspaper. Then he looked up, his blue eyes quietly observing her.
After a while, he sneered, "It seems you're very satisfied with your new boyfriend. Well, he's young, promising, and a Ph.D.! But I don't think I've done anything out of line, nor have I ruined you... If you don't want to teach Katelyn, you can refuse. Is it your boyfriend, Dr. Dobbins, who's making decisions for you?"
They were like two wounded beasts, neither willing to back down.
Thinking of the day Leonard kissed Caitlyn, Landon felt like killing him.
Caitlyn's temper flared. "Well, I'm done teaching!" she said.
She threw the $20,000 at Landon, hitting him in the stomach and eliciting a grunt. She said coldly, "Here's your money back! Don't ever show up in front of me again."
Landon's gaze was icy as he stared at her.
Caitlyn wasn't afraid of him. She turned to leave, but a weak voice came from the stairs, "Ms. Robinson, do you hate me?"
Caitlyn turned to see Katelyn standing there, looking heartbroken.
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