Chapter 94 Acknowledge You As the Future Hostess of the Howard Family
Alexander was a bit taken aback. He knew if the lock on this box was opened incorrectly, the box would seal shut forever.
When he saw the box, Alexander quickly figured out that Felix was probably trying to use it as an excuse to get Catherine to go home with him.
But then, out of nowhere, Catherine just opened it, leaving Felix, who was peeking through the window, completely floored!
Felix thought, 'What the heck, Alexander! Why didn't you tell Catherine the key was at home so she'd have to go back with you? Now that she's opened it, all my plans are ruined!'
Alexander looked at Catherine with a soft gaze, thinking, 'Wow, she keeps surprising me more than I ever imagined!'
Catherine smoothly opened the box and found two things inside: a photo and a key.
The photo was of a little kid, cute as a button, clearly a mini Alexander. Young Alexander was adorable, with a round face, rosy lips, and white teeth, but he was wearing a dress!
Catherine burst out laughing, not expecting to see such a photo from Alexander's childhood.
Alexander freaked out for a second when he saw the photo, thinking, 'Why did Grandpa put that picture in there? Didn't he say he destroyed all those photos of me in girls' clothes?'
When Alexander looked up, he saw Felix hiding behind the curtain, flashing a "V" sign with his fingers.
"When was this taken?" Catherine asked.
Alexander, feeling a bit helpless, still answered her. "When I was three. My mom was into that back then."
"Pretty cute, I'll keep it," she said.
Alexander's face fell a bit. "How about you keep a photo with me? The Howard Group has a top-notch photography team. You can take as many pictures as you want instead of keeping this one."
Catherine looked up, a faint smile on her lips. "Then give me back the photo in your wallet."
Alexander was stunned. When did she see that he had a photo of her childhood in his wallet?
Catherine didn't have many photos from her time with the Smith family. The only childhood photo was taken by Elodie, and it was already faded. But knowing it was Catherine's only childhood memory made Alexander's heart melt.
On a whim, Alexander had carefully preserved it and kept it in his wallet.
"I have other photos from my childhood," he said.
"I only want this one."
Seeing her insistence, Alexander gave in.
Catherine picked up the key from the box and asked, "What's this key for?"
"It's the key to the Howard family's old mansion. Felix is telling you he sees you as the future lady of the Howard family," Alexander explained.
With the Howard family's wealth and status, getting into the old mansion took more than just a key, but the key symbolized absolute acceptance.
Catherine frowned slightly. "This is too valuable. I can't accept it."
"Felix is still watching. If you give it back, he might get upset." Alexander subtly gestured towards Felix.
Catherine looked up and saw Felix half-hanging out of the window, looking like he was about to jump.
"Catherine! If you don't take that key, I'm jumping right now. Alexander, just go ahead and plan my funeral! I've already got my coffin ready!" Felix shouted.
Seeing this, Catherine, worried Felix might actually fall, had no choice but to accept the key. Alexander gave Felix a nod, and Felix quickly jumped back inside, grinning like a kid and even pulling out his phone to snap a pic of Catherine and Alexander together, thinking they looked perfect.
With a light smile, Alexander said, "Just take it. It's only a key. If it weren't for you, I might never have the chance to give it away."
Even though it was just a key, it symbolized half of the Howard family's estate.
"Alright, I'll hold onto it for now. If you want it back, come find me," Catherine said.
"Sorry for the trouble. As a thank you, I'll treat you to dinner and share some news about Ethan," he offered.
'I accept the key to the Howard family's old mansion, and yet I should feel like I'm at a disadvantage?' she thought.
But Alexander's offer left her no room to refuse. "Okay."
Annie, standing by the car, quickly opened the door for Catherine. "Please, get in."
Catherine glanced at Annie's face and noticed a red handprint. Surprised, she wondered who dared to be so rude to Alexander's secretary. "What happened to your face?"
Annie didn't expect Catherine to notice and be so concerned. She was almost moved to tears, thinking, 'Look at this, how kind and gentle Catherine is!'
"I'm fine. Thank you for your concern," Annie said.
Catherine pulled out a jar of ointment from her pocket and handed it to Annie. "It'll heal in a week. Be more careful in the future."
Annie was over the moon, covering her mouth in disbelief, looking at Catherine holding the ointment.
Catherine looked calm, as if what she did was the simplest thing, just casually giving her an ointment.
"Miss, I'll apply it every day! Once it's used up, I'll keep the jar as a memento!" Annie said.
Catherine was silent, thinking it was just a jar of ointment, no need to go that far.
In the car, Alexander held Catherine's hand and played with it gently.
Seeing Catherine's concern for Annie's face, Alexander looked at Annie and asked, "Annie, what happened?"
"I was waiting for you and Ms. Windsor downstairs when I ran into Esme pushing Lila out for some sun. Esme seemed to have some doubts about my work ability and just..."
Annie was a bit annoyed, thinking, 'After all, Esme is the daughter of the Windsor family. I thought no matter how outrageous she might be, she'd be similar to Catherine. But Esme rushed up and slapped me. She even accused me of seducing Alexander, saying I dress provocatively every day and must have ulterior motives, asking if I have spoken ill of her to Alexander. I'd be crazy to develop feelings for Alexander during work hours. This is simply an insult to working people and a humiliation to my professional ethics, and I am just wearing a normal business suit, with the skirt below my knees! Getting slapped for no reason, I originally wanted to swallow my anger and let it go, but I didn't expect Catherine to notice even such a small thing and give me ointment. Such a good Catherine, kind, gentle, intellectual, and elegant, I will be Catherine's loyal servant in the future!'
Catherine didn't expect Esme to have such hostility towards Alexander's secretary.
"Not just towards me, last time Esme went to the company, she even said she wanted to fire all the receptionists. Esme has plans to fire all the female employees of the Howard Group," Annie added.
Alexander met Catherine's somewhat scrutinizing gaze and immediately explained, "I didn't ask her to go to the company. She went there on her own. I've already instructed the company's security to blacklist her!"
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