The Best Revenge It Wasn't Even Your Child novel Chapter 617

"No particular reason."

Catherine had no intention of entertaining his pointless question.

Lemuel's expression dimmed. "You're keeping me at arm's length. I just want to know how you're doing. You work for Golden Horizon, yet you're with Lance and you put me in SilverLeaf. Are you... afraid I'm some ticking time bomb that'll mess things up for Golden Horizon? So you're just using SilverLeaf, and things between you and Lance aren't actually that great? Then why are you with him? Is he blackmailing you?"

Catherine didn't find his sudden concern touching in the slightest.

It was laced with too much suspicion and probing.

She considered her words for a moment. "He isn't blackmailing me, but I'm only with him to hide from the Lee family. Our relationship really isn't anything special."

She knew perfectly well that Lance treated her incredibly well, but she wasn't about to share that with Lemuel.

She kept her explanation brief, hoping it would get him to back off.

Whether Lemuel turned out to be a friend or a threat, she refused to let him cause trouble for Lance.

"That's good. As long as someone is protecting you." Lemuel refilled her half-empty water glass. "Knowing that things aren't great between you two, I'll be extra careful at SilverLeaf. I don't want to cause a mess that he ends up blaming you for."

Because their marriage was a secret, Catherine wasn't used to discussing her dynamic with Lance with outsiders.

Outside the door, the footsteps resumed, slowly fading down the hall.

A sudden chill ran down Catherine's spine. She glanced over her shoulder, just in time to catch a fleeting glimpse of a black suit jacket disappearing through the crack of the door.

"Eat your lunch," she told Lemuel, turning back to pick up her fork.

She kept the meal strictly business. The whole meetup lasted barely thirty minutes.

She initially thought about heading straight to SilverLeaf to talk to Lance about Lemuel, but decided it could wait until he got home.

Surprisingly, Lance didn't come home that night.

He was a no-show the next day, too. By dinnertime, seeing only a single place setting at the table, she finally asked Susan.

"Is Lance not coming home today either?"

Catherine froze.

It was one thing for Lance to cover her living expenses, but having him foot the bill for Lanny's needs felt entirely inappropriate.

"I'll ask him."

This was the perfect opportunity to find out where to buy it and how much it cost. She could tally up everything Lance had spent on Lanny and wire him the money.

Not wanting to interrupt his work, she sent him a quick text instead.

[Lanny is out of formula. Where do you usually buy it?]

It was late, so if he didn't reply right away, he was definitely busy. Catherine didn't push it with a phone call. They still had enough formula for a couple of days; it could wait.

After dinner, Catherine's phone rang. It was a FaceTime call from Lorinda.

"Where's Lanny? I've missed him so much!"