Chapter 199 Love Me Like You Do Now
The doc later broke it down, "I was so focused on keeping her physical functions stable that I forgot she's over fifty. We can't compare her to young folks. We need to take it easy."
Initially, they thought she'd be good to go in three to four months, but now it's looking more like six.
Katniss and Matilda were bummed but got it. They stuck by Sophia every day, helping her with rehab.
Katniss had a quick chat with Sophia before heading to the kitchen, where Matilda was making dinner. Soup was bubbling away on the stove.
But Matilda seemed out of it, staring at her phone with a sad look.
The soup boiled over and put out the flame, but she didn't even notice.
Katniss jumped in, turned off the stove, and wiped up the mess.
Matilda snapped out of it, put down her phone, and tried to grab the wipes, but Katniss dodged her.
"I got this," she said, carefully cleaning the stove. "Who are you texting so intensely?"
The pot was super hot, so Matilda grabbed some oven mitts to move it, making it easier to clean.
While doing that, she answered without looking up, "George. We've been chatting and playing games lately. He was whining about his mom setting him up on a blind date tomorrow and asked if he should go."
Matilda laughed, "How am I supposed to decide that for him? But he's twenty-five. It's about time for him to think about marriage and kids. No wonder his family's on his case."
Katniss paused her cleaning.
She turned to Matilda and said, "You're twenty-five too; maybe you should start thinking about your future."
Matilda was surprised and quickly shook her head, "It's too soon for me. I'll wait until Mom's fully better."
"Mom's gonna need another three to four months to manage on her own and at least a year to be back to normal. You've already been out of the loop for almost half a year taking care of her. Let me find a good caregiver." Katniss had been thinking about this for a while but hadn't decided until now.
Matilda instinctively said, "How much would a caregiver cost? I might not even make that much if I go back to work. Don't waste the money."
Deep down, she still felt like life was tough.
"We've got the money. Even though you're not working at the education institution right now, your PR and promo skills were top-notch when we started. Thanks to you, the institution is where it is today. We didn't hire a caregiver before because Mom's condition was too unique, and we were worried she wouldn't be able to speak up if something went wrong." Katniss tossed the kitchen wipes into the trash and leaned against the counter, trying to reassure Matilda. "Now she can talk, and Saskia's here to help keep an eye on things. Plus, we can monitor remotely, so it should be fine. There's something really important I need you to do."
Matilda's sense of duty kicked in immediately. "What is it?"
"Our education institution has built a solid reputation. We've almost cornered the market in the southern region, and we're getting interest from the north. The only problem is we don't have a physical presence up there. So, if you're up for it, I want you to go to Velvet City." Katniss had been itching to get back to Velvet City ever since they were slandered and wanted to boost their institution's rep there.
Now seemed like the perfect time. They needed to get a foothold in the market early, and they needed someone they trusted and who knew the ropes.
Matilda was perfect for the job.
"How could I handle something so big?" Matilda shook her head as soon as she heard it. "I haven't had a real job since I graduated."
"Of course, you can," Katniss shot back. "I already told you, your initial work on the institution's promotion was huge, and you've got serious skills. Don't sell yourself short. Plus, Velvet City is where we lived for over twenty years. You know it like the back of your hand. Use all the connections you've got. I'm counting on you to check it out and do me this big favor."
Framing it as a favor made it hard for Matilda to say no. She bit her lip, hesitating, and glanced at Sophia, who was struggling to move by the window.
Katniss had said all she could, so she patted Matilda on the shoulder. "Think it over and let me know soon. Some things can't wait, and some opportunities can't be missed."
Matilda's ears turned red, and she turned to put the pot back on the stove to keep the soup simmering.
"By the way, do you have Dr. Perez's contact info?" Katniss asked. Last time, Delphine had thrown away her phone, and with the new one, she didn't have Terry's contact info anymore.
"Of course," Matilda said, washing her hands and unlocking her phone to send Terry's contact info to Katniss. Then she asked, "Why do you need Dr. Perez? Is something wrong with Mom again?"
Katniss quickly reassured her, "No, it's nothing serious. I've just been having trouble sleeping lately, and it's messing with my nerves. I want Dr. Perez to recommend someone who can help."
Hearing this, Matilda started nagging her about working too hard for the educational institution.
Even though Saskia lived there too, she came home really late every night. Matilda said she had no idea what Saskia was up to.
But Katniss knew Saskia was with Nicholas.
Sometimes, when she was with Tristan, she'd see Nicholas texting him, clearly trying to show off.
He'd brag about how he had Saskia wrapped around his finger.
But then she'd get messages from Saskia, claiming she had Nicholas totally under her control.
After dinner, the three of them took Sophia for a walk around the neighborhood. What should've been a five-minute walk took Sophia a full thirty minutes.
The walk back took an hour, and by the time they got home, Sophia was drenched in sweat, her clothes half-soaked.
When they got back, Saskia was already home. She greeted Sophia and then pulled Katniss aside. "Tomorrow's Nicholas's birthday, and he wants me to invite you to join the fun."
For Nicholas's birthday, Michael would definitely be there, and Bella wouldn't miss a chance to make things difficult. Katniss raised an eyebrow, about to smile, when Saskia added, "But I declined for you. Michael and Bella are just too annoying."
"You shouldn't have declined. I'll go. I've been looking for a chance to face them head-on," Katniss said.
Saskia was stunned, blinking twice. "Face them? Why would you want to face off with a lunatic? She could beat you half to death and not even get in trouble. Can you really handle her?"
"Trust me, I can." Katniss patted Saskia's shoulder. "Let Nicholas know in advance that I'm sorry, but his birthday party is destined to be chaotic." With that, she turned to help Matilda bathe Sophia, and along the way, she tried to persuade Matilda again about going to Velvet City.
Actually, Nicholas totally got why Saskia declined the birthday invite for Katniss.
He'd even privately arranged with Saskia to make up for it with a smaller gathering the day after tomorrow.
But he didn't expect Katniss to say she'd go. Both Saskia and Nicholas were very intrigued after their phone call.
Katniss never did anything she wasn't confident about. How did she plan to deal with Bella?
Curious, Nicholas immediately called Tristan to find out, but Tristan didn't know either.
So when Katniss got back to the villa late at night, Tristan was not only still awake but also unusually impatient. "Are you really going to Nicholas's birthday party?" he asked.
"Yep," Katniss said while changing her shoes. "I've got a pretty good relationship with Nicholas now, so why not go?"
Tristan wasn't against her going; he was just intrigued by her confident attitude.
His deep eyes locked onto Katniss, and after a moment, he suddenly smiled, got up, and walked over to her.
He wrapped his arm around her waist, pressing her against the entryway. "Alright, if you want to go, we'll go."
"I'm going anyway. If you don't want to, you don't have to." Katniss touched her nose, feeling a bit guilty.
She didn't want to ruin her image in front of Tristan.
Tristan frowned, lifting her chin with his thumb, and said in a deep voice, "What did you say?" His tone was a mix of confusion and disbelief.
"I said, we'll go together tomorrow. But you have to promise me that after the party, you'll still love me as much as you do now." She grabbed his wrist, her fingertips inadvertently touching his pulse, feeling the strong, powerful beat that reached her heart.
After a long while, Tristan suddenly laughed, bent down to pick her up, and walked upstairs slowly. He said nothing, but the smile on his lips revealed his good mood.
He was still curious, so he kept her up half the night, whether through threats or temptations in their most intimate moments.
She wouldn't say a word.
Not many people attended Nicholas's birthday party: Michael and Bella, Isla, Saskia, Katniss, and Tristan.
Such small gatherings weren't uncommon, but it was Isla's first time attending.
And she was there as Nicholas's fiancée.
Katniss finished her lesson with Donna two hours early and arrived half an hour past the agreed time.
They arrived late, and as the waiter opened the private room door, their entrance immediately drew everyone's attention.
Next to Nicholas was Isla, who wore a deliberately ingratiating smile. It seemed the Tudor family still didn't want this engagement to fail.
Katniss glanced at Saskia in the corner, who was casually fiddling with her phone and raised an eyebrow in greeting when she noticed.
Next to her was Eudora. Seeing Eudora reminded Katniss of Aaron, and she planned to talk to Eudora about Aaron before causing any commotion.
Michael and Bella sat silently in the center, acting as if they hadn't seen Katniss and Tristan arrive.
"Tristan, Katniss, come sit here," Eudora said with a smile, pointing to the seats beside her.
Nicholas wanted to greet them, but Isla held onto his arm, stopping him. Nicholas rolled his eyes at her, scaring her into letting go.
Nicholas then handed Tristan a cigarette, saying, "Don't be shy. I'm hosting today, so feel free to make a scene!"
Nicholas's meaningful gaze fell on Katniss.
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