Chapter 261 Catherine Hugged Him for the First Time
Cloudscape Villa was kinda off the beaten path. Plus, Catherine had thrown in some natural barriers to keep folks from just wandering in.
Unless you were a local hunter or lived nearby, most people wouldn't find it, even with GPS.
If Brent hadn't brought those crazy fans, they wouldn't have found Richard so easily, even if they knew where he was!
It turned out that Esme slipped Brent some cash to bring those wild fans into the village!
Richard frowned. "I thought Esme wasn't all that bad. At first, I figured she was just upset 'cause Catherine came home out of the blue. Didn't realize she was such a snake!"
Sophia shrugged. "You thought she was okay, but I ended up paying for it with you! Guess you learned the hard way about being too nice."
Sophia knew Richard well—honest, kind, sincere, and a bit stubborn. He was also pretty good at handling the entertainment biz. He'd even take in stray cats and dogs he found on set.
Sophia couldn't wrap her head around how the Windsor Family raised someone as kind-hearted as Richard and someone as cutthroat as Catherine. They didn't seem like they came from the same family at all!
Richard wiped his face. "It won't happen again. I'm sorry, Catherine. I didn't know Esme was that kind of person."
Luckily, Esme didn't do any real damage to Catherine!
Catherine never really cared about Esme, who was just a small-time schemer.
Richard looked at his phone and gasped! "Esme even spread rumors that Charles had an illegitimate kid, causing a huge scandal and making Charles's girlfriend leave him!"
Richard's team had dug up everything Esme had done.
The account Esme used to contact Brent wasn't hers, and Charles hadn't noticed it before.
Esme was super careful, always using someone else's identity to register info, contact marketing accounts, and then delete them.
This time, Richard's team cracked it because Esme used the same marketing account!
Even the time Esme tried to secretly buy trending topics about her engagement to Alexander got exposed!
It was the first time Catherine heard about this. "Charles's girlfriend?"
"Yeah, Charles almost got married a few years ago, but it fell apart because of those rumors," Richard said.
Catherine was puzzled. "But the kind of person Charles would love wouldn't lose faith in him over some rumors."
"True, but we don't really know what went down back then."
Charles kept quiet, and the Windsor Family didn't pry, afraid of upsetting him.
Now it seemed everything was somehow tied to Esme!
"Why would Esme do this? We need to tell Charles!" Catherine said.
After thinking it over, Richard decided to call Charles and explain what happened, also sending the info to the Windsor Family group chat.
Seeing the info, the first reaction in the group was to check if Catherine was being bullied by the crew!
Juniper: [Richard, you're so useless! You've come this far, and you still let Catherine almost get bullied! I look down on you!]
Philip: [Is Catherine okay? Richard, come to my office when you have time and get ready for a lawsuit.]
George: [When you get home, make sure to give Catherine a thorough check-up! And Richard too.]
Juniper: [Charles, do you want to explain this to your ex-girlfriend?]
Seeing what Esme had done, the Windsor Family kids fell silent.
George regretted it the most. If he had known Esme was such a troublemaker, he would've dealt with her at Ezekiel's mansion!
Charles was quiet for a while and only expressed concern for Catherine and Richard's well-being.
Charles: [We'll handle this. Don't tell Mom and Dad; they're traveling, and we don't need to stress them out.]
Charles: [Both Catherine and Richard should get a check-up.]
Probably worried about his siblings worrying about him, Charles sent another message in the group after a while.
Charles: [She's already married. The truth doesn't matter anymore.]
'The person who didn't choose to believe me back then might only think I am disturbing her peaceful life if she knows the truth now. When we were dating, she liked to repeatedly confirm my feelings for her. In hindsight, it isn't that she doesn't believe in the relationship; she just doesn't believe in me!' Charles thought. He hesitated for a moment and then dialed a number in his contacts. "Ms. Gray, sorry to bother you. Has Catherine's exemption application been processed?"
"It's in progress, but it seems Franklin is making it difficult. Could you come to the school when you have time?"
Imperial University has had students apply for course exemptions for various reasons.
Gabriella was encountering Franklin blocking the exemption process for the first time, but Franklin was the dean of the design school and also the principal, so his signature was necessary!
"Alright, see you at the school in half an hour."
Starry Residence Moonlight Mansion, The Windsor Mansion.
After completing their check-ups and listening to George's nagging for a while, Catherine and Richard were finally allowed to leave.
Sophia, claiming she was scared and needed to talk with Catherine all night, also returned to the Windsor Mansion with them.
After getting out of the car, Catherine stopped as she watched Richard and Sophia walk into the courtyard.
She looked at Alexander standing behind her, his eyes full of her reflection, filled with a hint of unnoticeable grievance and disappointment.
Remembering what Sophia said at the hospital about her being too cold to Alexander, not like someone engaged, Catherine felt a pang in her heart and stepped forward to hug Alexander's slender waist!
Catherine's presence instantly filled his world, her soft body enveloping him.
Alexander's eyes were filled with joy, his mouth curving into a beautiful smile, and his pupils dilating in an instant!
This was the first time Catherine had hugged him voluntarily!
"Catherine."
Catherine spoke softly, her voice barely audible, "The hug I promised you in the mountains."
She wasn't someone who went back on her word. Since she had promised Alexander, she wouldn't break it.
After speaking, Catherine covered her already red ears and ran away, passing Richard and Sophia and entering the house.
Richard was puzzled. "What's going on? Why is her face so red? Is Catherine catching a cold?"
'A cold? I have never seen a cold that makes the ears turn red! I have known Catherine for so many years and have never seen her catch a cold.' Sophia's mouth twitched as she glanced back at Alexander, who was still standing there grinning like an idiot!
Imperial University.
A low-key, luxurious black car stopped at the school gate, its interior lights on, casting a warm glow on Charles's elegant face, making his chiseled profile even more striking.
Gabriella jogged over and opened the car door. "Sorry, a meeting got added at the last minute, and it just ended."
Charles put away the documents beside him, his expression unreadable as he looked at her. "What do you want to eat?"
"Weren't we going to discuss Catherine's exemption application?"
Charles's voice was firm and decisive. "Ms. Gray, your mistake made me wait two hours. Besides waiting for a plane, no one has made me wait this long. Now you want me to discuss things on an empty stomach?"
Log in with Google Account
Chapters
Favorite
Settings
