Chapter 20
On the day he was to acquire Alice’s art gallery, Samuel showed up early.
Even though the gallery staff had told him that Catherine wouldn’t be coming today, he still held onto a sliver of hope. What if she did show up?
After all, Alice had poured her heart and soul into this gallery. She loved her mother so much, so how could she not come?
With this thought, he waited for Catherine patiently.
At last, the sound of approaching footsteps echoed through the gallery.
Samuel immediately sat up straight, his eager eyes fixed on the open doors. And amidst his anticipation, a figure in white slowly stepped inside.
He quickly rose and craned his neck forward. But before he could call out, the words caught in his throat.
“Mr. Jackman, what brings you here? Where’s Cathy?”
It was Catherine’s father, Frank Jackman.
Frank looked at him coldly and replied, “I can’t tell you where she is. But why can’t I show up when you’re about to acquire my wife’s gallery?”
Samuel gaped at him. “But didn’t you…”
From what he could recall, ever since Frank remarried after Alice’s passing, Catherine had returned to Caelora out of spite. She refused to let Frank interfere with
her affairs–especially when it was related to Alice.
So why was he suddenly back to handle Alice’s affairs? Did Catherine know about this?
But Frank didn’t entertain the question. He strode into the room and took a seat.
“Aren’t we here to talk about the acquisition? Why bother asking about something unrelated?”
The moment he sat down across from Samuel, his presence loomed like a threat. Samuel could barely breathe.
“But Mr. Jackman, I’m not here for the acquisition today,” Samuel admitted. “I’m just here to see Cathy. There’s been a misunderstanding between us, and I’d like to clear it up with her.”
He had no idea where things stood between Frank and Catherine, but Frank was the only one who could reach her now.
So he told Frank the truth, hoping he’d pass the message on. What if she had a change of heart?
But as soon as the words left Samuel’s mouth, Frank scoffed.
“Misunderstanding? I don’t think so. Didn’t you cheat on her with your mistress? Didn’t you ask her to wait until you were done having your fun? Didn’t you trick her into signing the divorce agreement? You’ve hurt her enough!
“Back on the day of your wedding, you swore to us that you’d never mistreat her or let her down. But look at what you’ve done!”
Back when Alice was gravely ill, her dying wish was to see her daughter get married. That was why, after much contemplation, Frank chose Samuel as his future son
-in–law.
Later, he and Catherine fell out because of his new wife, but he’d always kept an eye on her. So he’d heard bits and pieces about what Samuel had been up to.
“I won’t deny any of that,” Samuel admitted. “But I promised Cathy that once I was done fooling around, I’d return to her.
“Yet she went behind my back and finalized the divorce without saying a word. I didn’t know about it, and I certainly don’t agree to it.
“So please, if you could pass on a message to her… ask her to come back and remarry me.”
Frank’s expression darkened
“In your dreams!” he bellowed. “Before the wedding, we made it clear–we would never accept any form of cheating. And yet, not only did you cheat, you kept lying to her and hurting her for the sake of your mistress. How dare you ask her to come back to you?
“Besides, you were clearly the one at fault, but I don’t see even a trace of remorse. Instead, you’re blaming my daughter! You’re absurd. Listen, there’s no chance you’ll ever get back together with her!”
“But I’ve already ended things with the other woman and chosen Cathy,” Samuel argued, his voice thick with defiance. “Why won’t you give me another chance? She clearly loved me. What if she still has feelings for me? You can’t just tear us apart like this.”
He’d only made the kind of mistake any man could make. Now that he’d corrected it, why were they still refusing to let him off the hook?
