She turned on her heel and marched out of the room and down the hall, leaving the door open behind her. She didn't realize a small part of her was hoping he'd chase after until she caught herself straining her ears for his footsteps on the carpeted hall floor. Frustrated with herself, she ran up the stairs and into her bedroom.

As she crossed the bedroom, her anger took hold. She stripped out of her clothes and marched to the shower, turning the handle until the water steamed. Letting the hot water pour over her, she tried to calm down. She closed her eyes, but all she saw was his face, frozen in a furious, cold mask.

​​

"I don't know what your problem is," she said aloud. "You pretend to care about me, to worry about what happens to me, to care about what I think. But then I talk to you, and you look at me like I'm not worth the time of day."

She sighed. Saying the words in the empty bathroom didn't change anything. As her voice echoed on the marbled walls, the anger vanished, and a deep sadness seized her. She'd felt so relieved when Sean appeared in the alley. A sense of warmth and security had flooded her. She sighed and shook her head at her own foolishness. Sean wasn't warmth and security; though he pretended otherwise sometimes, he was cold and controlling.

***

Sean dug his nails into his palms as Catherine walked away. He wanted to run after her, to take her in his arms, to swear to her that he'd never let another man hurt her again. He clenched his jaw, spun around, and pounded his fist against the plate glass window. The glass trembled and shook, but it didn't break. Footsteps sounded near the door, and he turned hopefully. The hope turned to disappointment when he saw it wasn't Catherine but Drew.

"Sir, I'm here for the evening report," Drew said, nervously looking at the window.

"Tell me about them," Sean snapped.

"They're a group of hooligans," Drew said. "They come from middle-class families and have been involved in a great deal of middle-class crime. A few charges for possession of cocaine without intent to distribute and several allegations of sexual assault, but no actual charges."

Sean rubbed his knuckles, feeling the anger rise in his chest. Men like that didn't deserve to walk free.

"Make sure they face the consequences for their actions this time," he said. "Press all charges you can."

"Yes, sir," Drew said. "There was a specific reason they targeted Mrs. Blair, though."

Sean felt his blood go cold, "What?"

"They were hired to do it," Drew said. "A girl named Susan asked them to. She was in the same year as Mrs. Blair at school. Apparently, Susan and Mrs. Blair got into an argument today. From what I understand, Susan and two other girls, Lily and Ivy, fought with Mrs. Blair at the pub they all went to. They called her names and insulted her, and then the argument turned physical. They attacked Mrs. Blair, and she responded, erm, rather violently."

"Did she?" Sean asked.

"Yes, sir," Drew said. "They say she broke a bottle and threatened to cut people with it."

"She what?" Sean asked.

Drew looked miserable, but he repeated, "She grabbed a bottle on the table, smashed it, and threatened to fight with it."

Sean fought the urge to smile. The mere image of Catherine standing in the bar, waving a broken bottle in the air, made him want to laugh. She was so small and innocent, but she had such ferocity.

"What happened with the girls?" he asked.

"No one was hurt," Drew answered quickly.

"I don't care about that," he snapped. "What was the argument about?"

Drew's face reddened, and he looked down at his feet.

"Tell me," Sean snapped.

"Well, sir," Drew said quietly. "The argument was about you."

"About me?" Sean asked.

"Yes, sir," Drew said. "From what I understand, Madison Stewart instigated it. She implied that you were significantly older than Catherine, and then the other girls began jumping to conclusions."

"What sort of conclusions?" Sean asked.

Drew looked even more miserable. The tips of his ears turned red, and he stared at a point beyond Sean's shoulders.

"Apparently, they suggested that you were a middle-aged man," Drew said. "They said that Catherine dumped Marco to marry her sugar daddy. That sort of thing."

"And that's when Catherine broke the bottle?" Sean asked.

"Not exactly," Drew said.

"What the hell happened?" Sean roared.

"One of the girls tried to grab her ring," Drew said. "She attacked the girl, and a physical fight broke out. She broke the bottle during the fight."

"I see," Sean said. "I don't want any of those girls near her again. If they're attending Kings, I want their admission revoked immediately."

"Yes, sir," Drew said. "Anything else, sir?"

"Take care of those lowlifes who attacked her," he said. "Make sure they're thrown in jail."

"They're currently detained at the police station," Drew said. "Apparently, they've already run into some trouble with the others in the holding cell. I'm told they may never be able to attack another woman again."

"Good," Sean said. "That's all."

He leaned back in his chair, fighting the urge to smile. Catherine had gotten into a fight to defend him. A sudden wave of guilt-filled him. She had defended him, but he'd been so cold with her. He closed his eyes and rubbed his aching temples.

Catherine lay back against the pillows and pressed her phone to her ear.

"What do you mean she's refusing?" she asked.

"She says she doesn't want to tear our family apart," Sophia said with a sigh. "No matter what I say, she refuses to leave my dad."

"But your family has already torn apart," Catherine objected. "Your dad did that with his violence and drinking and gambling."

"I know," Sophia said miserably. "But she's traditional. Even if it's not a happy family or even a healthy one, she thinks she needs to protect it."

Catherine sighed, "Just don't give up, okay? Keep trying to convince her, please."

"I guess," Sophia said doubtfully. "Anyway, I have to go. I just wanted to check in with you and let you know what my mum said."

"Yeah, thanks," she said. "I'll talk to you later."