Chapter 143
Chapter 143
Catalina was left in a daze by his kiss and surrendered to his touch.
She also lost track of time...
Only when she felt her breath growing uneven did Bennett reluctantly release her.
Catalina slowly came to herself and felt like crying, saying, "Bennett, in the future, we..."
"I want you to move back in and become Mrs. Shaffer, my wife!"
"You..."
"Whether it's Warren or my mother, I'll handle them. I won't let you get away from me again, Catalina. Marry me, and you won't regret it."
Catalina put on a bitter smile.
She had never regretted liking him.
The following day...
They came back from the cliff.
As Bennett turned on his phone, he was immediately bombarded with notifications of calls and messages.
There were more than ten missed calls from Carolyn, a few from Vincent, dozens from Darnell, and a handful from Zavier.
Bennett was about to call Zavier back when his phone buzzed again in his hand.
It was Darnell calling.
He hung up immediately.
But before he was able to dial Zavier's number, Darnell called again.
He had no choice but to pick it up.
"What's going on?"
He asked in a chilly tone.
He didn't need to ask why Darnell was calling.
He was here to question him.
"Ben, have you lost your mind? Did you really run away with Catalina?"
"It's none of your business. Are you calling just to talk about this?"
"No, it's not just that. Do you have any idea how furious Carolyn became when she found out about you two?"
"Really? Did she set fire to the home altar?"
"It's more than that. She was so furious that she could burn down the entire Shaffer Mountain. You two did whatever you pleased and simply left like that. But have you considered the consequences? Do you think Carolyn will be easy to deal with? How could she possibly let Catalina off the hook?"
Bennett glanced at Catalina, and his brows furrowed deeply. He asked, "You called just to scold me and threaten me?"
How could he not think through what Darnell had mentioned?
Darnell sighed, "No, I just wanted to let you know that Carolyn is taking action. She's already ordered me to fire Catalina." Bennett frowned and asked, "How did you reply?"
"I refused. Do you know how nervous I was? I felt like I could die at any moment at the hands of Carolyn."
"Thanks."
"At most, I bought you a few more days. But you know Carolyn well, even if I turned her down, she might even instigate the board of directors. If that happens, Catalina also has to leave the company. Losing her job is one thing, but being with you, it's totally okay even if she never works again. Unfortunately, Carolyn is not someone so easily dealt with. I'm worried she's intentionally applying pressure bit by bit, like slowly tightening a string, until she breaks Catalina. Ben, we might be tough enough to endure it, but Catalina is just an ordinary person. She might not withstand it."
Bennett stayed silent on the phone.
After a while, he nodded and said, "Thanks, I'll be careful."
"Alright."
"Goodbye."
Bennett ended the call.
"What did you talk about?"
Catalina had actually sensed that something was going wrong through their talk on the phone.
"Nothing."
Bennett didn't intend to tell Catalina these things.
He could shoulder the pressure himself.
He said he'd take care of her, and now it was time.
He called Zavier up once more.
"Ben, you finally turned my call. How's Catalina doing? Is she alright?"
"What about you? How are Maggie, Harold, and Keira doing?"
"We're all good! Just that Grandma's pretty worried about Catalina. She insisted I call you!"
"Give your phone to Maggie, and I'll put Catalina on the phone, too."
After saying that, Bennett handed the phone to Catalina.
Catalina took it.
"Lina?"
"Hey, Grandma!"
"Lina, is everything OK? I've been trying to reach you, afraid that something might happen to you."
"I'm good. I left in a hurry yesterday and forgot to bring my phone."
"So, are you really with Bennett?"
"Yes..."
"You two made up again?"
She made no response.
What did they mean by 'making up'? They hadn't really been on good terms from the start.
Catalina raised her head to glance at Bennett and caught him looking at her too.
she blushed and quickly turned away to the car door.
"You guys haven't reconciled?"
"We... kinda have got back ther."
To reassure Maggie, Catalina had to tell a little white lie.
"Well, that's good."
Grandma let out a sigh of relief and added, "Honestly, Bennett is a good match for you. You two just didn't realize it before and kept fooling around!" "Yeah..."
Catalina echoed.
Behind her, Bennett's expression had softened considerably due to her words.
His intense gaze was fixed on her.
She shifted slightly in her seat.
She hunched her back out of shyness.
Her fair cheeks blushed, and her face was prettier than a delicate rose.
Her lips parted as she spoke.
Bennett couldn't stop thinking about the taste of her lips.
Fresh, fragrant, and tender...
He was captivated.
He swallowed hard, and the next second, he forced himself to look away.
Her soft voice echoed in his ears.
It stirred him up.
"Here you go."
Suddenly, her hand extended towards him.
The phone was handed over to him.
Bennett snapped out of it and took over the phone.
"Ready to go? I'll take you to our new home."
Bennett drove Catalina to a new place.
This so-called 'new home' wasn't too far from Catalina's workplace, yet...
"You want me to live here?"
Before she even stepped inside, Catalina was shocked to see the luxury mansion.
Quickly, she declined, "No, no, an apartment would be more than enough. This place is so massive, and I'd feel uneasy living here alone."
"Who said you'll be alone?"
"Do I have a roommate?"
But Bennett didn't respond, strode ahead, and entered the house.
The front door had a password lock.
Catalina paid close attention to the code.
The password was a series of numbers, a year combined with a date.
1103. November 3rd?
These numbers looked familiar.
Yet, at that moment, she couldn't quite recall it.
It wasn't Bennett's birthday, and certainly not her own either.
And the chosen year wasn't even this year, but the previous one.
This... was an odd combination for a password!
However, she was met with a dark, piercing gaze from Bennett.
Catalina immediately shut up.
But what she said was right!
Pushing the door open, Bennett said coldly, "It's the day we first made love."
Catalina was shocked.
What?
Thank God Catalina was not drinking water; otherwise, she might have ended up choking!
Was he some sort of pervert?
Why would he pick a day like that for a password?
Catalina's face turned red.
She thought, she definitely needed to change that password soon.