Divorced the Cheat Married the Fleet (Camilla and Lance) novel Chapter 168

The first thing that flashed through his mind was Camilla’s face that day in the office. She had looked so pale, so fragile, nothing like her usual strong self. For a moment, she seemed so delicate, like even a gentle breeze would be too much for her.

Barnard suddenly felt a wave of guilt. Maybe there was a better way, something softer. Did he really have to hurt Camilla like this?

“Barnard, why are you staring at me like that? Isn’t this the quickest solution? Or did you change your mind? Was the divorce never part of your plan?” Davina’s voice shook a little, her bravado slipping as she met his gaze.

Did he really want a divorce?

Barnard didn’t bother to argue or deny anything. The truth was, he did feel that way. He wasn’t sure he wanted to let Camilla go anymore.

But as he noticed the worry in Davina’s eyes, he tried to soothe her. “Davina, it’s not as simple as you think. The people at the company care about what Camilla can do. If we get rid of her like this, everyone will feel on edge. You’ll still have a hard time trying to join the Carter family, and Dad would never let it slide.

“I’m the heir to the Carter family. I can’t let my own mess drag everyone down. Honestly, bringing this up again is not helping anyone, not even you.”

Barnard sounded completely serious. Davina pressed a hand to her stomach and sighed. “You always say what doesn’t work, but never what does. You keep telling me to wait. Just tell me when, Barnard. Can’t you see how scared I am? Camilla’s amazing. What if...?”

“Davina, just relax, okay?” Barnard’s tone was calm but firm. “I’ve been married to her for five years, but I’ve never had feelings for her beyond that. That’s not going to change. What matters now is you and the baby. Promise me you’ll look after yourself. I don’t want anything to happen to our child. Got it?”

With the conversation at that point, Davina didn’t dare push back.

The car quietly continued on to Saddlebrook Estates.

After a while, Daisy broke the silence. She turned to Barnard, her voice small and uncertain. “Barnard, what about me? Can I still stay?”

She sounded a little scared.

Barnard remembered how Davina only sent Daisy away so things would be easier for him. He thought about how Daisy, just a little kid, managed to find her way to the police station by herself. She must have been miserable at the Green house.

He realized maybe he hadn’t been making Davina feel secure, and that might have caused all this tension. So he finally made his stance clear.

“Don’t worry, Daisy. I’ll help your mom get your custody back. You’ll be living with her at the Carter house from now on.”

He thought he was making it up to Davina, but he missed the look Daisy gave her mother—a look that was almost challenging.

Daisy shook her head. “No, Barnard, I saw him. And there was a really big dog too. They went next door.”

Next door? Barnard frowned, remembering the time Davina lost Snow and Camilla brought up some footage that seemed to come from the neighbor’s security cameras. He’d had someone look into that neighbor before but only found out the owner was barely around. No other useful info.

He’d chalked it up to a coincidence, figured Camilla somehow got ahold of the neighbor’s camera footage, and had moved on. But now... if Jasper had actually shown up in that yard?

Barnard couldn’t get rid of a strange sense of unease.

Noticing his expression, Davina nudged Daisy. “Quit making stuff up. Camilla took Jasper with her. There’s no way he’s here.”

Barnard found himself agreeing. Camilla was probably trying hard to avoid him; there’s no way she’d let Jasper anywhere near.

Even if the neighbor was a friend of hers, she wouldn’t let Jasper show up here.

Thinking that, Barnard pushed away his worry. Still, he quietly told Jackson to look into the neighbor’s house again.