Chapter 12 Do You Like Me?
The private room fell into deathly silence.
My coworkers barely dared to breathe. They'd pieced together what was happening. No wonder Catherine couldn't stand these people! Four biological brothers ganging up on her alongside some fake, manipulative woman—who'd want that kind of family?
Still, it was someone else's business. Not their place to interfere.
I'd stopped caring what they thought. After venting my rage, my ears started ringing. Everything around me spun dizzyingly.
When I finally regained my composure, I found them all staring at me with their ugly expressions. My four brothers' faces were a sight to behold—each wearing emotions I couldn't decipher.
Michael jumped up first. "The Rosewood family raised you for years. Even a dog would've learned loyalty by now!"
"You're disgusted by us? If it weren't for saving you, Sabby wouldn't have lost her father!"
James thought about Sabrina's condition. His eyes filled with reproach as he looked at me. "Catherine, how can you be so selfish? Sabby's health is terrible but she still remembered your birthday. Can't you be reasonable for once?"
Andrew's lips parted slightly. He thought about the legal severance documents delivered to the Rosewood house. Catherine hadn't been joking. She genuinely didn't want them as family anymore.
Jason glanced between me and the slapped Sabrina. "Cate, no matter what, you can't just hit people."
I ignored all of them. But I didn't miss the excitement Sabrina couldn't quite hide.
She was thrilled, wasn't she? After today's scene, my four brothers would hate me too. Maybe then they'd finally leave me alone.
"Well, well. Quite the party going on here."
The door swung open as Blake's teasing voice reached everyone's ears. I seized the opportunity and hurried toward the exit.
My coworkers looked at him like he was their savior.
Blake's eyes narrowed. "My apologies, everyone. I need to discuss some work matters with Catherine. We'll be going."
The others scrambled to find their own excuses to escape.
I shot Blake a grateful look, recognizing he was giving me cover to leave. Then my peripheral vision caught Nicholas standing behind him, and I froze.
What was he doing here?
No time to think about that now. With Blake and Nicholas running interference, I made my escape.
Outside the restaurant, a cool evening breeze brushed across my face, soothing my frayed nerves.
Blake patted my shoulder. "Happy birthday."
I understood his underlying message—don't let the Rosewood family ruin this for you.
After thanking him quietly, he had Nicholas drive me home. I didn't refuse.
We rode in silence the entire way.
Nicholas parked beneath my rental building. Dingy streetlights overhead cast warm yellow pools of light across the pavement.
"Thanks for today. I'll treat you both to dinner sometime to make up for it."
Polite small talk.
Nicholas nodded slightly. "Wait a second. I have something for you."
I looked at him questioningly. Did Nicholas know it was my birthday too? Probably Blake told him. My personal information at DI would have the date listed.
But why would he specially prepare a gift for me?
I thought back over everything that had happened between us. A wild, reckless thought took root in my mind.
Lost in thought, I barely noticed Nicholas opening his trunk and retrieving a cake. Under the streetlight, I could make out its full appearance.
A simple fruit cake. The frosting and decorations were far from fancy.
Nicholas caught me staring. "I made it myself. Hope you don't mind."
My brain short-circuited again. Why would Nicholas, from such a wealthy background, personally bake me a birthday cake?
My brain hadn't caught up, but my mouth was already moving.
"Nicholas, do you like me?"
I tilted my head back to look at him.
Surprise flashed through Nicholas's deep eyes before quickly returning to calm. He answered almost reflexively.
"No."
He didn't like me.
Hearing that answer, I couldn't quite sort out what I felt. Disappointed? Maybe a little. Hurt? Not really.
There'd never been anything remotely romantic or inappropriate between us. Asking had been presumptuous on my part.
I smiled candidly, accepting the result. If Nicholas did like me, that would actually be more troublesome, wouldn't it? With the Rosewood family's circumstances, I was nowhere near good enough for him.
"Got it."
Nicholas rushed to explain. "I brought you the cake to wish you a happy birthday."
After a pause, he added, "Catherine, I still hope you'll move back."
He glanced around at our surroundings, his brow furrowing. This was a rental near the old campus—cheap, which naturally meant the facilities couldn't compare to his neighborhood.
I shook my head, refusing him. "Nicholas, whether you have a fiancée or not, us living together isn't appropriate."
I paused before continuing. "Besides, you just said you don't like me. Since you don't, we should stay friends. Friends need to maintain boundaries and distance. Living together would be way too close for comfort."
My words were both tactful and blunt. A gentle reminder that he'd just claimed to have no romantic feelings for me, so we needed boundaries. While also directly rejecting his offer.
Nicholas's expression grew complicated. "You've misunderstood."
"Just because I don't like you doesn't mean I'm unwilling to help you."
A flash of coldness crossed his eyes. "The Rosewood family's been giving you plenty of trouble lately, haven't they? If we live together, at least they won't dare show up at my door."
Nicholas's meaning was simple—he was still willing to provide protection.
Warmth flooded through my chest. In my past life, Nicholas had helped me so much too. I'd mistakenly assumed he did it because he liked me. That's why I'd asked so directly just now.
But he'd denied having feelings for me. I couldn't figure out why Nicholas would be so unconditionally kind to me. Part of me worried the price I'd eventually have to pay would be more than I could handle.
Nothing in life came free, after all.
"I appreciate the thought."
My tone shifted. "But the Rosewood family is my problem to deal with. I can handle them. I'm really sorry you got dragged into it before."
"I already told Andrew I'm legally severing ties with them. Should be a lot less trouble from now on."
I didn't want to keep discussing this. Time to change the subject.
"Thank you for the cake."
I unwrapped the packaging and cut it right there on the spot. Taking half, I looked at Nicholas. "You take the other half. As thanks for all your help recently."
Re-gifting someone their own present to them—talk about awkward. But my wallet was pretty much empty. Today's dinner had already blown my budget, and thanks to Sabrina's little stunt, I hadn't even gotten to enjoy the meal properly.
I sighed internally, but looking at the sweet cake improved my mood.
"And thanks for driving me home. You should head back."
I hurried off, leaving a dazed Nicholas standing there alone.