The Villainess Needs a Hug (Ivy Windsor) novel Chapter 985

In the end, she still couldn't bear to let go of that playboy.

But she couldn't say that in front of her old friend and her son, so she simply changed the subject. "How was your shopping trip with Julian? What did you have for lunch?"

Katrina quickly answered, "Julian bought two suits, and we had Western food for lunch. I was supposed to pay, but Julian insisted on covering the bill."

"Really, Katrina? Julian just got back to the country. It's only right for you to treat him as a welcome," Willa scolded her daughter gently.

Cassandra immediately chimed in, "We're basically family, there's no need for that! Julian is two years older, and a gentleman should always step up. It was perfectly right for him to pay for the meal."

The two sides exchanged pleasantries, chatting warmly with occasional bouts of laughter and nostalgia. Only Katrina sat there completely zoned out, her mind a million miles away.

Later, when Cassandra and her son had left, Willa grabbed her daughter and asked, "What do you think of Julian? Isn't he just as good as Naylor? And he's definitely much more loyal and reliable than Naylor ever could be."

Katrina remained silent.

Naylor's "slander" about Julian was still echoing in her ears. Although she felt his words were just malicious trash talk, she also believed that men understood men best. Since Naylor himself was a notorious playboy, maybe he actually could spot one of his own kind.

So, hearing her mother's praise, Katrina kept her opinions to herself.

Willa took her daughter's silence as a form of defiance. A flicker of displeasure crossed her face, and her expression turned stern.

"If you don't have the heart to give him the hard truth, I can ask him to come over and talk to him myself. He helped me out, so treating him this way isn't right. I should be the one to explain things face to face and apologize." Willa was prepared to play the villain and break them up herself, hoping to alleviate some of her daughter's guilt.

But Katrina shook her head and refused. "There's no need. I made things perfectly clear to him. He saw Julian too, so he knows exactly why we broke up."

Willa was a bit skeptical. "Is that so? You really made it clear?"

That day, as Katrina reached the door of the hospital room, she ran right into Julian, who was dropping Cassandra off and about to leave.

Seeing them bump into each other, Willa immediately spoke up. "Katrina, walk Julian downstairs. Mrs. Sterling is here with me, so you don't need to worry. You two should go out for a stroll."

Katrina was just about to find an excuse to decline when Julian spoke up. "I happen to have two exhibition tickets for The Neo Haven Gallery of Art and no one to go with. If you're free today..."

As he extended the invitation, Julian pulled out the two tickets and gave them a little wave.

Katrina didn't have much interest in that kind of highbrow art. The few times she had attended exhibitions, she had only gone to keep Ivy company, and only because Ivy's own work was being featured.

But right now, with both of their mothers watching, she couldn't easily say no. She was afraid of offending Cassandra and didn't want to upset her mother.

So she forced a nod. "Sure, I'm free."