Chapter 466 Can You Help Me Hold the Child?
Atticus and Dwayne lived together, so naturally, this girl lived there, too.
The thought of Dwayne being involved with someone like her made Katniss's face scrunch up in disgust.
She tapped her chin with one hand while working on a spreadsheet with the other, struggling to piece together the image of this girl with Dwayne.
When she finally managed to do so, her worldview shattered into pieces.
Around noon, with the quarterly report almost done, Katniss was dragged by Marigold to the company cafeteria for lunch.
Marigold clung to her arm, calling her "Katniss" with every other word.
Unable to hold back, Katniss asked, "Marigold, how old are you?"
"I'm twenty-three," Marigold replied, looking Katniss up and down. "You must be a year or two older than me, so I call your name?"
'More like almost ten years older,' Katniss thought to herself.
"Don't you worry about getting into trouble, bouncing around the office like this?" Katniss teased.
"This place is so big, I could roll around if I wanted to. Who would dare mess with me?" Marigold said confidently, then added with a laugh, "Look at you. If it weren't for your calm and composed demeanor, I'd think you were still in college."
Katniss shook her head, unable to respond, when Marigold suddenly pulled her aside.
Looking up, Katniss saw Tristan being respectfully led by Dwayne in their direction.
Following behind Dwayne was the little girl, and behind her was Atticus.
Both men looked uneasy when they saw Katniss, instinctively stepping back to distance themselves from Tristan, awkwardly aligning themselves with 'Tomas.'
'Tomas' noticed Katniss but remained silent.
Dwayne gave Atticus a look, prompting him to stop. After watching them enter the cafeteria, Atticus walked over to Katniss.
"Mr. Banks..." Marigold greeted excitedly.
Atticus nodded at her, cutting her off, and turned to Katniss. "Come with me."
"Okay," Katniss replied, signaling Marigold to go ahead without her, and followed Atticus to a small terrace outside the cafeteria.
"What are you doing here?" Atticus asked, hands in his pockets, his tone slightly accusatory.
Katniss stood before him for a moment before responding, "I should be your cousin, right?"
Atticus looked at her, puzzled.
"What's with the attitude?" Katniss scrutinized him. "Just because you have a slightly higher position at the company, you think you can ignore me? Do you want me to tell everyone here that you're my cousin?"
"Don't!" Atticus blurted out, then looked at her angrily. "I told you, our relationship and your connection with Uncle Dwayne must stay secret at the company."
Katniss raised an eyebrow. "If it's a secret, why did you call me over?"
Atticus glanced towards the cafeteria. "Why are you here?"
So, Tristan asking her about Banks Far Company last night was to prepare for today.
She knew he was probably here because of her.
But Tristan would never guess that his visit would even disrupt her lunch.
"It's lunchtime. Do I need to remind you?" Katniss said, exasperated.
Atticus, flustered, pulled out a bill from his wallet. "Don't eat in the company cafeteria today. We're entertaining a big client."
Katniss took the money and said, "You guys are so cheap. A big client comes, and you bring them to the cafeteria?"
"The client requested it," Atticus replied, then added, "Stop asking so many questions. What do you know?"
"I might not know much, but I'm curious. Why can't I eat in the cafeteria if you're entertaining a client?" she asked, putting the bill in her bag.
Seeing her take the money, Atticus didn't want to explain further. "Just go. I have to discuss business."
He turned and went back into the cafeteria.
Katniss stood there for a moment, then left the terrace.
Before she could decide where to go, she received a message from Marigold: [I saved you a spot and got your lunch. Hurry up! There's a feast for the eyes today.]
A feast for the eyes? It was just Tristan.
He had brought Evie, who was asleep and wrapped up in his arms when they came in.
But it seemed these people only cared about looks, ignoring the fact that he was holding a child.
Katniss walked into the cafeteria, scanned the room, and headed to the corner table next to Tristan's group, where Marigold was sitting.
Marigold had chosen this spot to be closer to Atticus.
Seeing Katniss, she waved both hands.
Atticus and Dwayne noticed, and their expressions changed.
'Tomas,' who had been standing, was quickly pulled down to sit by Dwayne.
With all the commotion, there was no room left at their table, so Atticus had to bring his tray over to Marigold and Katniss's table, sitting across from Katniss.
In a low voice, he said angrily, "Didn't I tell you to leave?"
"I'm saving you money," Katniss whispered back. "A hundred dollars can cover our meals for days, and Marigold already got my lunch. It'd be a waste not to eat it."
Marigold leaned in, staring at them. "You two know each other?"
Atticus didn't hesitate. "No, we don't. Eat quietly."
He then started eating.
Seeing this, Marigold didn't dare to speak.
Tristan played along with Katniss's act, ignoring Dwayne's subtle signals.
Tristan adjusted Evie in his arms, but with her level with the table, he couldn't eat.
"Mr. Forbes, can I hold her for you?" the little girl asked tentatively.
"No," Tristan refused without hesitation.
The girl stood up and approached. "It's okay. I've held children before. I can do it."
Tristan's eyes narrowed, his displeasure evident, piercing through the girl's resolve.
But she stood her ground.
Finally, Tristan moved, standing up.
Thinking he was going to hand over the child, the girl reached out, but Tristan sidestepped her.
He walked straight to Katniss and asked softly, "Could you hold her for a moment?"
Katniss choked on her drink, using her hand to cover her face.
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