Chapter 23
Still, Frank was extremely touched.
Compared to how distant and cold Catherine had been before, this was already a huge step forward.
When she read his message thanking her and saying how much he loved the gift, she sat there for a long time, lost in thought. A tempest of emotions flooded through her, and she let them consume her.
The truth was, she had forgiven Frank a long time ago.
Back then, he’d been just as much as a victim. But she had stood entirely from Alice’s point of view, thinking that he had betrayed her mother. That was why she instantly cut ties with him.
Later, after going through a disastrous marriage and having experienced all sorts of situations, she began to understand the choices Frank had made.
But the damage had already been done.
Even if Catherine wanted to make up for it, she didn’t know where to start. She could only take it one step at a time.
At the very least, as Gordon had said, she wouldn’t regret it later.
Just then, her phone vibrated in her hand.
Jolted back to the present, she realized Erank was calling her. She hesitated for a while, but eventually picked up his call.
“Cathy, thank you for the gift. I really loved it.”
Noticing that she hadn’t replied after a long time, Frank thought she missed the message. He quickly called her, afraid that she’d be upset.
Catherine hadn’t expected her father to care so much about her feelings. Her nose stung as a wave of emotions hit her.
Taking a deep breath, she replied, “I’m glad you like it. I’ll send you more gifts in the future.”
This topic was like a key that unlocked the years of misunderstanding between them, and they quickly fell into easy conversation.
But then, she heard a hasty yet familiar voice on the other end.
“Mr. Jackman, please let me see Catherine once. I know I was wrong-
“Stop right there, you rascal! What are you trying to do?”
“1
1/2
After the chaos, Catherine learned from Frank that after both he and Logan reprimanded Samuel, he finally seemed to realize his mistakes and wanted to talk things out with her.
But not wanting his daughter to get hurt again, Frank rejected Samuel’s requests. But he didn’t expect Samuel to show up uninvited at his birthday banquet instead.
In the background of the cali, she could still hear Logan apologizing and the noise of Samuel trying to break free.
“Dad, hand the phone to him,” she suddenly said, looking up at the sky outside. “I want to have a proper chat with him.”
Frank paused for a long time before finally handing over the phone. There seemed to be a racket until an excited voice came through.
“Cathy!”
“Samuel, what exactly do you want?”
In contrast with the thrill in Samuel’s voice, Catherine sounded almost too calm.
It caught him off guard. And for a moment, he found himself at a loss for words.
“Cathy, I know it was wrong of me to keep a mistress,” he began. “But why did you leave me without a word? I never even agreed to the divorce.
“You used to love me so much… Why didn’t you give me a chance? Why did you just give up on me like that?”
“Samuel.” Catherine cut him off. “I did tell you, and I did give you chances.
“Those burned love letters and that time capsule were all my warnings to you.”
Samuel’s breath hitched. When he spoke again, his voice was trembling.
“You mean…”
A low chuckle escaped Catherine’s lips.
“When you decided to keep Natalie as your mistress, I did think about leaving. But it wasn’t easy to let go after being with you for five years.
“Then I remembered how you’d once written me 99 love letters. So I thought… why not give you 99 chances too?
“Every time you hurt me, I burned one. And by the time they were all gone, I would leave you for good.
“It took you three years to write those letters, and I thought it’d take me a long time to burn them all. But not even three months had passed before I was down to
the last five.
“And when you gave me to Dylan just to please Natalie, you had no idea how heartbroken I was.
So that day, I went back to our house and dug up the time capsule we buried when we got married, the one we said we’d open when we were old and surrounded by grandchildren And I burned it.
“The last love letter was gone the day you tricked me into signing the divorce papers. I did accidentally see your plan in your chat messages, but when you handed me the papers, I still had a tiny sliver of hope.
“That’s why I asked you again and again whether it was really a property transfer contract.
“You were impatient and annoyed, but not once did you deny it.”
